Cork Free Presbyterian Church, 10 Briarscourt
(Annex) Shanakiel, Cork, Ireland
Pastor: Colin Maxwell. Email: colin.maxwell@fpcmission.org
1 KINGS 8:54-61 TEXT: v56 NOT FAILED ONE WORD/PROMISE
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Blessed be the LORD, that
hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he
promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which
he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
Words come during the dedication of the great temple Solomon built
Solomon, who oversaw the building of this temple, has just concluded a
most moving and powerful prayer to God - one/longest/Bible
Do you know what prayer is? It is claiming the promises/God
No warrant to ask for anything outside what is revealed/Scriptures
When Solomon prayed (earlier verses) he asked for things which were totally in line with the character/God
Evidently God was pleased with the whole event (including prayers)
because (2 Chronicles 7) fire came from Heaven, consumed the sacrifice,
and the glory/Lord filled the House
Having thus prayed and so claimed the promises/God,
Solomon then spoke in blessing to the assembled people
In our text, he blesses (praises) the Lord and declares that God has
given rest to His people according as He promised by the
hand/Moses and could claim:
There hath not failed one word of all His good promise
When Christians seek to preach the gospel to lost, guilty sinners,
Words like these must be often upon our lips
We are asking people who stand in great danger to venture the destiny
of their never dying souls upon the clear statements/God's word
That is no small matter
To err with the destiny of your immortal soul is to err fatally
It cannot be rectified afterwards
Therefore the sinner must be reassured that trusting the word/God is the best/safest and most reliable thing they can ever do
Must be satisfied: There hath not failed one word/all His good promise
Our text is more than these central words and this in turn enables us
to open the text up and preach the gospel of the grace of God
4 main thoughts:
1) GOD'S PROMISES EXTEND TO THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST:
We base this on the fact that in the immediate context, God had given rest unto His people Israel
A/ This rest involved bringing the COI out of the bondage/Egypt where they were greatly afflicted and were many perished
It involved bringing them safely through the Wilderness
It involved bringing them safely into the promised Land/Canaan where
they could live holy lives as a distinct people separated unto God
This was happening even as these words were being originally spoken
B/ This bringing into rest out of bondage is an OT picture
(A historical fact…but it serves to paint an OT picture/salvation)
The sinner (Every one of us) is in a state/bondage to sin
Just as Pharaoh lorded it over the people in a cruel Empire
So too the Devil cracks his whip and dictates the pace
Many people perished in Egypt during their sojourn there
There was much groaning/anguish at
this time: And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my
people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their
taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; (Exodus 3:7)
So too with sinners under the dread/tight dominion/Satan
You don't have to be demon possessed or into Satanic rituals etc.,
to be under Satanic control
That some are cannot be disputed - When Satan entered into the
heart/Judas, it was evidently a distinct occasion and to a distinct end
But all men by nature/sin are under Satanic control
The heart is in bondage - the chains/fetters are fastened and it is Satan - the arch foe/God - who holds the key in his pocket
C/ Here is the gospel: Jesus Christ died to set men free
He came to give liberty/rest unto the captives
His great words/invitation are these: Matthew 11:28-30
[i] He gives us rest from the accusing demand s of God's Law
Not because He faced it down…but because He bare our sins
The law is completely silent because completely satisfied
[ii] He gives us rest from the dominant control of our sins
He has broken their power and enables us to do likewise
[iii] There remains a rest for the people/God - a reference to Heaven itself when all our sorrow/grief will be gone forever
Yes…the promises of God extend to the very heart/gospel
As much as the sinner needs promises in earthly things - they
cannot take place over the spiritual and the salvation of his soul
2) GOD'S PROMISES ARE IN KEEPING WITH HIS HOLY CHARACTER:
His promise is described as being His good promise
A/ Just as a fountain cannot send forth both sweet and bitter water so
too the communications of any being must be either pure or evil
A bad character cannot honestly give good promises
A promise that looks good on the outside, but is only given to deceive
or to further a wicked end is not a good promise but an evil one
B/ God's promises are good because He Himself is essentially good
In Him is no sin at all (1 John 3:5)
Sin has never tainted any of God's thoughts, words or deeds
It is true that He has allowed sinful things to happen, when He could
have prevented them from taking place, but these are for holy and good
reasons known to Himself and in accordance with His other
attributes i.e. wisdom and justice: He Himself is essentially the
Good God
C/ God's holy character is acknowledged in all 3 spheres/existence:
[i] Acknowledged in Heaven: Isaiah 6:1-3
[ii] Acknowledged on Earth:
Even the most eminent of the holy men/earth confessed their comparative
wickedness and innate wickedness when they came into His presence:
Isaiah/Job/Peter etc.,
[iii] Acknowledged even in Hell:
The very demons when engaged in their malignant activity cried out:
I know thee who thou art- the Holy One of God (Mark 1:24)
Judas Iscariot: I have betrayed the innocent blood (Matthew 27:4)
D/ In the gospel that bear's God's name, there is nothing that contravenes His holiness - His law (as said) is silent
No law was scrapped or modified to facilitate the salvation/sinner
God spared not His own Son… (Romans 8:32)
There was no minimum sentence imposed or any easing up to facilitate the well being of the one who was bearing the guilt
God does not have two standards against sin
E/ When He poured out His righteous wrath/anger upon our sin bearing
Substitute - the basis in which salvation is promised - then He has
shown how he can be just and the justifier of him that believeth/Jesus
F/ When something sounds too good to be true, we have every right to entertain doubts if it relates to our fellow human beings
We are often bombarded with all kinds of offers
Terms and Conditions apply! Read the small print! What is written in
the small print seems to undo totally what is blazoned in full colour
The promises can never be said to be good if we do not get what is
offered to us - Even a modification detracts from its goodness
Not so the promises of God and especially re: salvation
3) GOD'S PROMISES CANNOT FAIL AND MUST BE FULFILLED:
There has not failed one word of all His good promise
A/ Solomon is thinking particularly of the COI
As God said that He would bring them out/Egypt and into the Land of Promise (An interesting designation, is it not?) so He did
Who could doubt it as they stood there that day?
No longer under Egyptian whips or the suns scorching rays/wilderness
Through the Red Sea and over Jordan and safely settled in Israel
B/ But the observation is much wider than the context
God's promises have never failed and they never will nor can
Not: even one word of all those promises can fail
Why not?
[i] Because God does not lack the ability to fulfil His promises
You/I might (even in good faith) make promises and see ourselves
overtaken by events which render us helpless to see them fulfilled
But how can God who ordains all that comes to pass ordain events that
will lead to the failure of His own promises?
Prefaced a promise/Abraham with these words: I am the Almighty God
It is the Almighty God who so loved the world etc., in John 3:16
[ii] He does not lack the will power to fulfil His promises/us:
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us
God did not promise great things to us and then have later regrets when He came to learn what kind of vile people we really were
All these things were known to him before He made these promises
Yet His heart so yearns for our salvation, that He could never take it upon Himself to retract His promises of love
He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked and He will not aid that
death (although entirely deserved) by withdrawing His promises
[iii] All God's promises are yea/amen in His Son (2 Corinthians 1:20)
They have been purchased by the shed Blood of His own dear Son
To deny them is to deny His Son and therefore to deny Himself
Something which He cannot do (2 Timothy 2:13)
Again: For when God made promise to Abraham, because he
could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, (Hebrews 6:13)
To deny the fulfilment of His promises is to be guilty of lying
Again, Titus 1:2 says that this something which God cannot do
It is much more than merely refusing to lie
I might have strong convictions on something and be prepared to see it through and be honest, even to my own hurt (Psalm 15:4)
Although not morally so, yet I have the option of lying
It is in my sinful nature - I am more than capable of doing it
But it is morally impossible for God to do it - it cannot be done
That makes the promise of God sure - especially those which offer
pardon to repentant sinners who will call upon the name/Lord etc.,
4) GOD'S PROMISES ARE ONLY TO BE FOUND IN HIS WORD:
Text: Which He promised by the hand of His servant Moses
A/ Context: Bringing of COI into the Promised Land
Moses records the promise given to Abraham in Genesis 15:13-14
But again: Greater than the immediate setting and applicable to every
promise/God whether given by the hand of Moses or David or John etc.,
B/ God does not undertake to stand over any notions which anyone has
There is a lot of pious cant out there, purporting to be of God, when
it is not and that's where disappointments (often devastation) sets in
However, there can be no disappointment when you open the pages/Bible
Here is God's own Book, given by inspiration and preserved/providence
Millions have trusted this great Book with the salvation of their souls
None who do so will at the last be lost
All who claim the promise/salvation will be in that great cloud of whom
Jesus Christ will say: "I and the children thou hast given me"
Appeal
THE END