The death and resurrection of Christ were foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament. Alfred Edersheim found 456 Old Testament verses referring to the Messiah. J. Barton Payne found 574 verses describing Jesus’ coming. Conservatively Jesus coming and finished work fulfilled at least 300 prophecies about him. It demonstrates irrefutably that God keeps his promises. God is faithful. This is proven when Christ was born, lived a sinless life, died, rose again and ascended to the Father’s right hand. No wonder the apostle Paul could write to the Corinth church: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God” (2 Corinthians 1:20). This verse highlights the faithfulness of God’s promises and their fulfilment in Jesus Christ. Every promise God has made finds its affirmation and fulfilment in Jesus. In response, we glorify God by acknowledging and affirming these promises with our “Amen”.
The finished work of Christ is proof of God’s faithfulness
Since the death and resurrection of Christ confirmed, manifested, and established God’s faithfulness in keeping the promises that he made hundreds of years before Christ came, we can be doubly assured that he will keep all the other promises he has made about the present and future. All of the promises of God are “Yes”. They are guaranteed, are 100% fool-proof, and we should be agreeing and rejoicing with these statements with a resounding, heartfelt “Amen!” (which means “so be it” or “let it be so”). This is indeed a wide-ranging blessing springing forth from the finished work of Christ.
Just as the sun rises every morning without fail, so are God’s promises unfailing. We can trust in his promises with the same certainty that we expect the sun to rise each day. We see God keeping his promises in many of the events and stories narrated in the Bible. One well-known story is God’s promise to Abraham that he would have many descendants. Even though Abraham and Sarah were old and childless, God fulfilled his promise by giving them Isaac. God’s promises are dependable even when they seem impossible to human logic, and they sometimes require faith and patience to await their fulfilment.
A well-known example of someone who tested God’s faithfulness is George Muller. He ran orphanages in 19th century England. He never made known the needs of the orphanages nor asked for financial support from anyone. Instead, he wanted to test God’s faithfulness and show the sceptical world that God is real and will provide for all the needs of the orphans. Time and again, he trusted God’s promises and prayed, and the financial and food needs of the orphanages were met through unexpected means. This shows that God’s promises are “Yes” in Christ even in this day and age.
Confidence in times of doubt and difficulties
Knowing that God’s promises are “Yes” in Christ should fill us with confidence. In times of doubt or struggle, we can lean on His promises and find strength. For example, in moments of anxiety and fear, we can recall the promise that we read in Hebrews 13:5: “I will never leave you nor forsake you” and let it bring us peace. Or we can recall God’s promise in Philippians 4:6,7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”. We believe these promises and we bring them to God in prayer and end with a firm “Amen”, which means “let it be so”. When we experience the fulfilment of the promises we pray over, we can boldly and happily share our stories with others and so glorify our Father in heaven.
Wide-ranging implication
The implication is that all the promises from the lips of our dear Master about prayer, the Holy Spirit, the abundant life, his coming again, our resurrection from the dead, the end of this age, our eternal home in the new heaven and new earth will be fulfilled because God has already proven that he always keeps his promises. What a great bonus it is that by believing God’s promises we can experience the fulness of all that God has for us. We can grow in faith, hope and love and join God in his fulfilling mission. No matter what trials, difficulties and challenges life throws at us we can rely on the God whose promises to us are “Yes” in Christ. To this, we shout and glorify God from the rooftops with a loud “Amen!!”
This is part of a planned series of writings on the topic, “The A to Z of Christ’s Finished Work”. I am writing it alphabet by alphabet. Thus far the others that I have written can be found HERE.