God is Faithful, Part 2
Characteristics of God, God is an Example to Imitate
When you think about faithfulness, what comes to mind first? You might think about being faithful to a spouse or faithful to an employer. Or maybe you think about your dog (or other pet) being faithful to you. What actions go along with being faithful? Faithfulness usually implies that you are singularly focused on the other entity—focused on your spouse to the exclusion of other men/women, focused on your employer to the exclusion of other employers, or your pet focused on you to the exclusion of other people. Does this human depiction of faithfulness match what we see in God? Let’s find out. In today’s lesson, we’ll look at what God is faithful to do.
1. God is faithful to keep his promises and his covenant.
One of the most common ways that God is faithful is that he is faithful to keep his promises. If God says he will do something, we can trust that he will follow through. This particularly applies to God’s faithfulness to any covenant he makes with his people.
Deuteronomy 7:9: Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.
1 Kings 8:56: Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses.
2. God is faithful in his actions.
When God acts, he is faithful. He enacts all his precepts in faithfulness and does no wrong.
Psalm 145:17: The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.
Psalm 111:7-8: 7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy.
8 They are established for ever and ever,
enacted in faithfulness and uprightness.
Deuteronomy 32:4: He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.
3. God is faithful in his interactions with his people.
God cares for his people, guides them, delivers them, brings relief to them, strengthens them, and protects them.
Psalm 43:3: Send me your light and your faithful care,
let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
Psalm 31:5: Into your hands I commit my spirit;
deliver me, Lord, my faithful God.
Psalm 143:1: Lord, hear my prayer,
listen to my cry for mercy;
in your faithfulness and righteousness
come to my relief.
2 Thessalonians 3:3: But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.
4. God is faithful to help his people in the face of sin.
As humans, we are all apt to sin. God has faithfully provided a way for us to overcome sin. First, he provides a way out of temptation. But if we do sin, he is faithful to forgive sins when we confess. He was even faithful to send Jesus, just like he promised, to make the final atonement for our sins.
1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
1 John 1:9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Hebrews 2:17: For this reason he [Jesus] had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
5. God is faithful to his own faithfulness.
This is one of my favorites. God is faithful because he cannot be anything else. It’s a core part of who he is. And even when we are unfaithful, God remains faithful.
Psalm 89:30-33: 30 “If his sons forsake my law
and do not follow my statutes,
31 if they violate my decrees
and fail to keep my commands,
32 I will punish their sin with the rod,
their iniquity with flogging;
33 but I will not take my love from him,
nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.”
Romans 3:3-4: 3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar.
2 Timothy 2:11-13: 11 Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
12 if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
13 if we are faithless,
he remains faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.
6. God sent Jesus to be a faithful witness.
What is Jesus a faithful witness about? He is a faithful witness about God’s creation, about God himself, and about the resurrection, which ultimately breaks the power of sin and death. He is also a faithful witness about those who follow him or reject him.
Revelation 1:4-6: 4 John,
To the seven churches in the province of Asia:
Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
Revelation 3:14-16: 14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
Conclusion
From our study today, we see that God is faithful in all things and in all ways. We can trust him because he is faithful to keep his promises and to care for and protect his people. We can trust his faithfulness because he has sent Jesus to be the faithful witness and to atone for the sins of all people. But most of all, we can trust God’s faithfulness because above all, God will remain faithful to himself. This is his singular focus. In order to remain faithful to himself, he must remain faithful to his promises and to his people. That’s why we can trust all of God’s promises in the Bible. Because God is faithful.
Premium Resources
Each individual characteristic of God study will come with two resources: a word search just for fun (including an answer key), and a list of verses for if you want to investigate that individual characteristic of God more completely.
You can access these resources by clicking here: God Is Faithful Resources
Or you can download them here:
This is most excellent! It would also make a great group Bible study.