Promises Fulfilled

Jan. 26

Read: Joshua 21:43-45

Promise Fulfilled

“Thus the LORD gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it, and they settled there. And the LORD gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the LORD had given all their enemies into their hands. Not one word of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.” (21:43-45)

God always delivers on his promises. He never fails. He is trustworthy. When we read these verses in Joshua 21:43-45, it is hard to see how one could say God is still on the hook for promises that he made to Israel… as if there is some portion of the promised land that God has not / did not deliver on. God is not lazy or “loose” in fulfilling his words, notice how it says that “not one word of ALL THE GOOD PROMISES that the Lord had made failed”.

So what happened? How is it that - especially today - we wrestle with borders, land, and the geography of so-called “Israel”? The very next book in the bible (Judges) tells the story of how the people of God wander away from him time and time again… and as a result, the Lord uses conquering foreign enemies to bring his people to repentance and back to him. It is a cycle played out in the Old Testament time and time again. When the Israelites from the book of Joshua are displaced by the enemies they once conquered in the book of Judges, their loss of land does not mean that God didn’t deliver on his promises. Likewise, it doesn’t mean that they can simply walk back onto that Land without the Lord’s intervention because it was land delivered in a past promise.  The encouraging part is the way that God raises up a hero-judge to rescue his people whenever they call out to him in repentance and confession. The Lord never leaves repentant and humble children of his abandoned and conquered.

The same holds true today for the people of God. When we call out to him, he hears our voice and works to bring us near. When we confess, repent, and humble ourselves - calling on the name of the Lord - he comes to our rescue. There are indeed times that the Lord uses hardship and struggle to bring us back to him. As I have written here before, the Lord loves redemption more than perfection! God delivered the land he promised to the people of Israel in the days of Joshua. He is not on the hook for anymore “land”. He is a fulfiller of his promises… always. He has promised US eternal life in Christ. We can bank on that! Struggles in this world do not mean God has forgotten his promises, but rather they bring us to him so that HE may carry us through and we may experience his goodness. May the Spirit within us drive away any doubt we may have about God’s promises. Love you guys. - JDP