When we believe God’s promises from
the depth of our hearts the things that God promises become
ours. We can only be forgiven by trusting His cross work and
not by our works. Those who repent of their sins and believe
in the Lord Jesus Christ are forgiven and can hear Him say to
us as He did to the man let down through the roof at Jesus’
feet:
Son, be of good cheer; your sins are
forgiven you.
—Matthew 9:2,
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Do you have the true faith of
humility that asks as the inquiring soul in the gospel
records: “Lord, do you care for lepers? Are you willing to
cleanse them?” Jesus answers, “I am willing; be cleansed.” By
faith we possess the promises of God and their fulfillments.
The broadest, most encompassing promise of all is:
I will be a Father to you, and you
shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord
Almighty.
—2 Corinthians 6:18,
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This is the same as God saying to
Abraham:
I am your shield, your exceedingly
great reward.
—Genesis 15:1,
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We can say like Jeremiah, “The
Lord is my portion”(Lam.
3:24). Faith hears
God say to the soul out of His Word by the power of the Holy
Spirit, “I will never leave you, nor forsake you. I have loved
you with an everlasting love. Fear not, for I am with you.” Is
it any wonder that joy now fills the heart and floods the
soul? When we truly drink these promises in and believe them
as true for ourselves then we will rejoice. This is the order:
believe and rejoice. Believe and then you will truly rejoice.
We are promised a joy that the world cannot give and the world
cannot take away. We are enabled to “rejoice in the Lord
always. I will say it again: Rejoice” (Phil. 4:4) because the
forgiveness and new life that we have in the Savior is from
Him and cannot be taken away by any trial or difficulty.
However, we must believe Him. We must see Him above all things
ruling and reigning, and trust His sovereignty to work all
things for good for those who love Him. Then we can continue
to say, “The joy of the Lord is my
strength.”
Let us believe, and then we will be able
to rejoice. May we believe until we rejoice. Lord, sustain our
faith and strengthen our joy!
