“No word from God will ever fail.”[1] I prefer the NIV in this case to the more common translation, “nothing will be impossible with God.” While both have substantially the same meaning, “No word from God will ever fail”, caught my attention. It means that God’s promise will not ever fail! Our understanding of this statement must not be extrapolated to general conversations God had with his servants in ancient times. The context of the statement concerns God’s plan for the redemption of humanity.
Not long after being rescued from slavery, the Israelites complained about having only manna to eat; God told Moses to tell the people they would get meat to eat.
…say to the people: Consecrate yourselves for
tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wailed in the hearing of the
LORD, saying, 'If only we had meat to eat! Surely it was better for us in
Egypt.' Therefore the LORD will give you meat, and you shall eat. You
shall eat not only one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty
days, but for a whole month[2]
Moses was alarmed with the prospect of having to
provide meat for the entire number of Israelites for as long as God said. He
questioned God:
Are there enough flocks and herds to slaughter
for them? Are there enough fish in the sea to catch for them? The LORD
said to Moses, "Is the LORD's power limited? Now you shall see whether my
word will come true for you or not."[3]
Moses should have known better than to question God’s power. He had seen
God’s power at work in Egypt, and along the journey.
At the point of entry into the Promised Land, the people were influenced by ten of the spies, saying that they would be defeated by the people in the land. God spoke to Moses,
How long will this people despise me? And how
long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have
done among them?[4]
God was frustrated with the people because they thought
success of entering the Promised Land was based on their own strengths and
abilities.
Forty years later, after allotting the land by tribe, to the children of those who rebelled against God, Joshua said:
Thus the LORD gave to Israel all the land that
he swore to their ancestors that he would give them; and having taken
possession of it, they settled there. And the LORD gave them rest on
every side just as he had sworn to their ancestors; not one of all their
enemies had withstood them, for the LORD had given all their enemies into their
hands. Not one of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the
house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.[5]
Concerning
God’s promises, the certainty of being carried out is concrete. Because the
parents of those who received the land didn’t believe the absolute certainty of
God’s promise, they died in the wilderness.
The disciples weren’t able to heal a boy; his father spoke to Jesus;
“…if You can do anything, take pity on us and
help us!” And
Jesus said to him, ‘If
You can? All things are possible to him who believes.’ Immediately the boy's father cried out
and said, “I do
believe; help my unbelief.”[6]
The father
of the boy wondered if Jesus could to do any more than his disciples had been
able to do. The response Jesus gave was a question, “you are questioning my
ability?”, and a directive, “you must believe.”. Jesus healed the boy.
Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful…[7]
“No word from God will ever fail.”
“He who promised is faithful.”
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