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by Kevin Pauley
Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the LORD is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations. - Psalm 100:4-5 HCSB
Human ideas of faithfulness are so inadequate! Supermarket tabloids celebrated Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley’s first anniversary by touting “And they said it wouldn’t last!” Very soon afterwards the marriage failed. The problem is not so much that their marriage ended quickly. Divorce is so rampant today that no one is even surprised by it anymore. We go through our divorces matter of factly, with quick and easy “no contest” paperwork. Pay a little fee, stamp a couple papers and you’re done! The problem is that society considered a marriage that lasted a year as “lasting”.
Contrast this with the Lord God’s eternal love. Compare it to faithfulness that endures through all human generations! When Hashem makes a promise, He sticks with it! Remember that the next time you see a rainbow.[1]
Remember that next time you casually pick up a Bible that contains writings that have been preserved for thousands of years. Didn’t Christ say, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away”?[2] Two thousand years and counting, His promise still seems to be valid.
True faithfulness may be defined as “following through regardless of difficulty.” Christ kept His promise. He remained faithfully obedient all the way to death on the cross.[3] Was that difficult for Him? You bet! Did the fact that He was fully God as well as fully man alleviate that difficulty? Not at all. “We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, yet without sin.[4] Observe Him in the Garden as he cried out, “"Abba, Father! All things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me.” Yet in spite of His obvious terror at the oncoming trial, He went on to say, “Nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will."[5]
Even the prophets, like Elijah, were human like us and struggled with their sinful inclination (their yetzer hara) just like us.[6] The truth of the matter is that no temptation has overtaken us except what is common to humanity. God is faithful and He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape, so that we are able to bear it.[7]
Let’s be honest. If we sin, it’s because we want to. God does not tempt anyone with sin. Instead each person is tempted by his own desires. Then, if we allow the sin to fester, it eventually will bring death into our lives.[8]
There is only one truly faithful Person and that is Yahweh Aman, Faithful God.[9] All humans may fail us; He will not.
Kevin Pauley is a pastor and writer. He lives in Illinois with his wife, Lynn, their five children and two dogs. His internet address is Berea.
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