God Keeps His Promises!

Psalm 105

Introduction

            Nikita Khrushchev, the former premier of the Soviet Union said, "Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build bridges even when there are no rivers." We laugh at such a statement because we have the same cynical views about politicians. The problem is that we have the same cynical views about promises as well.

            Paulo Coelho, the novelist, says in one of his books, “In the first place, you shouldn't believe in promises. The world is full of them: the promises of riches, of eternal salvation, of infinite love. Some people think they can promise anything, others accept whatever seems to guarantee better days ahead, as, I suspect is your case. Those who make promises they don't keep end up powerless and frustrated, and exactly the fate awaits those who believe promises.”

            Ralph Waldo Emerson summarizes what is so true about promises in our world when he writes, "All promise outruns performance."

            In light of these sayings about promises in our world, the statement of Corrie Ten Boom shines as a wonderful exception. She writes, "Let God's promises shine on your problems." And yet at times we even doubt the promises of God as Paulo Coelho's quote indicates.

            In a world in which broken promises are normal, why can we have hope in a God who keeps His promises. Psalm 105 helps us recognize the truth that God keeps His promises. As we go through life, we may at times struggle to see His faithfulness, but when we look at history, we are assured that God does keep His promises. Waltner says, "The purpose of knowing history is that people may know God." As we examine this historical account which reminds us of God's faithfulness, may we be encouraged to put our trust in God who is faithful.

I.     God Does What He Says

A.   The Covenant He Made

            The key theme of this Psalm is that God keeps His promises. The development of this theme begins in verses 7, 8 where it says that "He is mindful of his covenant forever."

            In order to demonstrate God's faithfulness, the writer begins with mention of the covenant which God made with Abraham. The first time God spoke to Abraham, in Genesis 12, he promised, "Now the LORD said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'" These promises include three items. One, that he would become a great nation, second, that God would give him a land and third that he would bless all the families of the earth through him. These three promises were repeated to Abraham again in Genesis 15:4-6 and Genesis 17:1-8.

            The Psalmist next mentions that these promises were once again made to Isaac. In Genesis 26:3 we read, "Reside in this land as an alien, and I will be with you, and will bless you; for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will fulfill the oath that I swore to your father Abraham." Not only did God repeat the promise, but he tied it to the promise made to Abraham, declaring God's intention to fulfill the promise made to Abraham.

            The Psalmist also mentions that God confirmed the promise to Jacob. Although all three promises are important and are mentioned in other places in the Bible, here the focus is on the promise of the land because that is the promise which the rest of the Psalm is going to talk about. Likely the reference is to the promise made to Jacob in Genesis 35:12, "The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.”

            God has made these promises or covenants. In fact, as we read in verse 8, they are promised "to a thousand generations." A generation is generally agreed to be about 20-25 years. Even if we take a generation as the lowest number, 20 years, this promise is good for 20,000 years, which means that it is still in effect today. Spurgeon comments, "O matchless condescension, that the most free and sovereign Lord should put himself under covenant bonds to his chosen and make a law for himself, though he is above all law." But as we know from life, it is easy to make promises and even to repeat promises. What we really want to know is, does God keep promises.

B.   He Kept His Covenant

            It sure didn't look like God was keeping his promise at the beginning. As the Psalmist begins the narrative which shows how the promise was fulfilled, he begins with the statement, "When they were few in number, of little account and strangers in it, wandering from nation to nation." Talk about having strikes against you. The beginning was that they did not have enough people to make a nation, they were not noticed at all on the stage of world events, they had no home and so they were wandering around from place to place.

            Yet even at that time, God was with them to protect them. A small family wandering about from place to place would have been vulnerable and could easily have been wiped out, yet in verse 14 we read that God, "allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account." This happened numerous times. One of those times was when they were in Egypt and Abraham stated that his wife was his sister in fear that if he said she was his wife, he would be killed. Funny how when he was trying to protect the promises of God, he was only making it worse. God protected Sarah and His promises by bringing plagues against Pharaoh's house and he kept the king from Sarah. In the end, Abraham was sent out of Egypt, but not killed. This scenario happened three times, twice to Abraham with two different kings and once to Isaac.

            Things got even more precarious when God "summoned famine against the land" as we read in verse 16. It is possible for famine to wipe out whole families. If you have nothing to eat, the first thing that begins to happen is that the elderly die off. Then babies begin to get sick and die and finally whole families disappear.

            Yet before the famine came, God had already made a provision for them. He sent Joseph ahead of them, as we read in verse 17.

            However, the story of Joseph is not one which at its beginning inspires confidence that God is keeping his promises. Jacob and his wives had 12 sons who were to become the 12 tribes of Israel. Yet there was conflict among the brothers and when Joseph was sent away it was not because he was going away to college or to start a business in another land. He was driven away by his brothers who sold him to slave traders. They were confident that they would never see him again. The Psalm highlights the difficulty which Joseph had when he was sold. Verse 18 says, "His feet were hurt with fetters, his neck was put in a collar of iron." Where was God during this time? How was He helping his people to receive the Promised Land?

            One of the reasons that Joseph's brothers wanted to get rid of him was because of his dreams. In one dream he saw the sun and moon and eleven stars bowing down to him, implying that his brothers and even his parents would bow down to him. In the early days of his captivity, there was no notion of the fulfillment of this dream, much less that this was an important part of fulfilling God's promise to Abraham. He was sold as a slave to a powerful man in Egypt, far from the promised land. Then, to make matters worse, he was put in prison because he was falsely accused of adultery. In prison, he interpreted dreams for fellow prisoners and hoped that this would get him out of this unjust situation. Yet for many years he continued to suffer in prison.

            Where was God at this time? Where was the fulfillment of His promises? As we look at verse 19, we see that God had not forgotten. The fulfillment of the promise was waiting for the right time. The Psalmist says, "until what he had said came to pass." During that whole time, it was a time of learning and testing for Joseph and in the end, we know that he passed the test.

            What is encouraging is the speed with which the promise was fulfilled when the time was right. In one day, Joseph went from being a slave/prisoner to being the second most powerful man in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh. In this way, when the famine which threatened the descendents of Abraham became really bad, there was provision for them in Egypt and they moved there and survived there.

            Yet, even at this point, we wonder how God's promises were being fulfilled. In Egypt, they were, as verse 23 says, "aliens." This situation was not getting them any closer to the fulfillment of the promise. They were now far from the promised land and still a small family of 66 people. Yet it was in Egypt that the promise of becoming a great nation was fulfilled. The Psalmist talks about this in verses 24 indicating that, "they became very fruitful."

            Although this promise was fulfilled, they were still a vulnerable people, and far from inheriting the land. In fact, the next thing the Psalmist says is that the fact that they multiplied made things even worse. Now their hosts became their enemies and all kinds of terrible things began to happen to them. The Egyptians tried to reduce their number through infanticide. They increased their oppression by intensifying their expectations of them and making them slaves. Where was God in this terrible time? How was His promise being fulfilled?

            It was at this time, as we read in verse 26, that God sent Moses and Aaron to set them free. What a story this is! God allowed Moses to live, rather than to die as had happened to so many other children. He allowed Moses to grow up in Pharaoh's house. Then after fleeing Egypt because he had sided with his own people, God called Moses to free His people. Moses was, at first, reluctant, but eventually went to Pharaoh, together with his brother Aaron, to ask for the release of the children of Israel. If we know anything about the story of slavery in the US, we know that such a request was crazy, but God was powerfully present at this time. He sent plagues, as recorded in verses 27- 36. The final plague, which we read about in verse 36 was, "He struck down all the firstborn in their land, the first issue of all their strength." Finally, but still reluctantly, Pharaoh let the people go.

            Several things about the exodus are interesting in Psalm 105. It says, in verse 37, that they went out, "with silver and gold." Not only did the people leave Egypt, but they plundered the nation as they left. In this way, God provided them with the means for the journey and the means to enter into the promised land. It is noteworthy that, given the fact that all the firstborn in Egypt had died, we read, in verses 37, that "there was no one among their tribes who stumbled." In this way, God not only provided for them, he also protected them. This protection is further mentioned in verse 39 where we read, "He spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light by night." In verse 40, we read that "he brought quails, and gave them food from heaven in abundance." In verse 41, we read that "He opened the rock, and water gushed out…" Although it was a difficult journey, God provided protection, food and water for them.

            Finally in verses 42-44 the Psalmist once again makes mention of the promise which God had made. In verse 44, we read "He gave them the lands of the nations…" If you read the stories in Genesis to Joshua, you know that there was much more to it. The people were not exactly faithful to God. They grumbled, complained, worshipped other gods and were in the wilderness for 40 years because of their stubborn disobedience to God. Yet that is not what the Psalm is about. Although it took over 400 years, the Psalm records the important matter, God kept His promise! In verse 8 we are assured, "He is mindful of his covenant forever." In verse 42 the same conclusion is declared, "For he remembered his holy promise..." God brought the people out of Egypt and brought them into the land. They rejoiced greatly that at last God's promise was fulfilled.    

C.   He Keeps His Promises!

            Several important things are worthy of note in this Psalm. One is that it is sometimes hard to see how God is keeping His promises. We also learn, particularly from the life of Joseph, that there are always lessons to be learned even in the times when it doesn't look like God is keeping his promise. Above all, however, we are encouraged that God is faithful. When He promises something, He keeps that promise. William Dean Howells said, "An acre of performance is worth a whole world of promise." Harold Geneen wrote, "It is an immutable law in business that words are words, explanations are explanations, promises are promises but only performance is reality." If that is the measure, then surely God has given us reason to trust in Him. His performance is solid. He has kept His promises.

            God has kept His promises and these promises extend to us as well. When John the Baptist was born, Zechariah recognized, prophetically, that the promises to Abraham, were being fulfilled in what was happening with the birth of his son and all the other things that were about to happen. We read in Luke 1:72, 73, "Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us." What Zechariah understood was that even the coming of Jesus was a part of the fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham. In that way, we know that God is still fulfilling His promises. As we think about these things, we need to remember that God has made even more promises to us. The New Testament is full of His promises to us. Let us be reminded about a few of them.

Matthew 11:28, "“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 26:28, "for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

John 4:14, "but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.”

John 14:3, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also."

Matthew 28:20, "...And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”"

            Because God has kept His promises in the past and has revealed His character as faithful, we have every reason to hope and believe that He will keep these promises! He has kept His promises and He will keep His promises.

II.  Response

            So, if God is faithful, how do we respond? The text invites us to two responses.

A.   Worship

            The Psalm begins and ends with a call to worship. In verses 1-6, there is a strong call to worship which helps us understand that worship is not just one thing.

            The imperatives in these verses include, giving thanks, calling on His name, singing, telling of His wonderful works, glorying in His holy name, rejoicing, seeking the Lord and His strength and remembering. Each of these imperatives calls us to a different aspect of worship. To worship is to acknowledge that God has done great things for us. It means that we call on His name, which means that we trust in Him. Singing is the celebration of His goodness. Proclamation is a way of letting others know of God's goodness. Glorying is a strong word of recognizing and declaring how amazing God is. Seeking Him is a trustful response when we don't understand everything or when we need His help. Remembering is made powerful when we recognize that God has remembered His promises.

            Praise is a key feature of the Psalm because not only does the Psalm begin with praise, but it also ends with praise. The last words in the Psalm are, "Praise the Lord!"

            Because God is faithful, let us worship Him!

B.   Obedience

            The other response which the Psalm mentions is obedience. In fact, the wording of the Psalm lets us know that the reason God kept His promises was "that they might keep his statutes and observe His laws." God has created us for a relationship with Himself. He has been very good to us because He wants us to follow Him. Such obedience is also for our own good. Obedience to God invites us to fall in line with how we have been created. Obedience is invited, not given as a threat, but as a response to the blessings we have received. That is the message of the Psalm. Since God has blessed us with His faithfulness, why would we not respond to Him by following Him in obedience.

Conclusion

            It is good to recognize the faithfulness of God. At times we don't see that, even as Israel didn't see it. The Psalm demonstrates that God is faithful. May we be encouraged to recognize God's faithfulness and to go on in trust no matter how difficult it is to see His faithfulness at the current time.

            It is also good to declare the faithfulness of God. Why would the Psalmist rewrite what already appeared in Genesis to Joshua? It was a way to repeat the story for his own encouragement and to declare it to others and even to God, by way of praise. We can do the same thing as we tell and retell the Biblical story, but we can also do so as we tell the many other stories of what God has done. As we remember the stories of God's faithfulness in our life and tell those stories, we encourage others and bring glory to God. I have written about God's goodness in the story I wrote about my grandmother and that has been a great encouragement to me and to the rest of my family with whom I shared it. I have written about the faithfulness of God in this message and I hope that you have been encouraged.

            We don't usually assign homework after a Sunday message, but here is a homework suggestion. The Psalm invites us to remember. How can we do that? I want to invite you to find a way of expressing God's faithfulness. I want to invite you to remember God's faithfulness either in the Biblical story or in your own story.  It doesn't have to be done by writing a sermon or a biography. Perhaps you like poetry and would like to express it in poetry. Perhaps you are an artist or an artisan. Is there a way for you to use your gifts to remember and declare God's faithfulness? If you do express it in some way, I would love to see it and perhaps we can share it with others so that many people can be encouraged that God is faithful.