Introduction

It’s Thanksgiving weekend, and in keeping with that I’d like to share a message from the South Campus elders and all your brothers and sisters at the South Campus:

We thank God and we thank God for all of you. Last weekend was the official public dedication service for our new South Campus building, and all of you had a vital part in bringing that to reality. So, thank you, North Campus and thank you Downtown Campus for all the prayers, generous giving, and enthusiastic support. Everyone at the South Campus is filled with gratitude for all of you! God has been faithful, and you all have been instruments in his hands.

There’s no doubt that we’ve seen many evidences of God’s faithfulness to us during this whole process—not just the building, but the past 12 years of sojourning in rented facilities, so I thought it fitting that, in addition to expressing gratitude to all of you, we spend some time meditating on the faithfulness of God. The way I’d like to approach this is to answer four questions about his faithfulness. These four questions will serve as an outline for the message this morning:

1. What does it mean to say God is faithful?
2. How is God’s faithfulness seen?
3. Toward whom is that faithfulness exercised?
4. How has God been faithful to us both personally and as a corporate body here at Bethlehem?

That last question I hope will lead us not simply to look back with thankfulness for God’s past faithfulness but also to press forward into the future trusting in that same faithful God. 

We will be moving through several places in the Bible as we examine this subject, but mainly we’ll camp in Psalm 89. This is probably the most extended treatment of God’s faithfulness in all of Scripture. The word is used at least eight times (perhaps nine, depending on how one translates a Hebrew word in v. 28). And in most of the instances, it’s linked with the Hebrew word hesed, which refers to God’s covenant love. Most of what is said about God’s faithfulness elsewhere in Scripture is captured in this psalm. So, wherever we turn in the Bible today, keep your finger in Psalm 89, as we’ll be gravitating back to it repeatedly.

1) What does it mean when we say God is faithful?

We often speak of the faithfulness of God, but exactly what do we mean by that? We can often use expressions like this without really having a clear concept of what we’re talking about. The Scriptures speak often of God’s faithfulness. And the Psalms are especially full of such references. For instance, Psalms 36:5 speaks of the extent of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness, “Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.” Here the psalmist stretches to the limits of the heavens in an attempt to describe how great God’s faithfulness is. And one of the most famous verses in the OT on this subject is Lamentation 3:22–23 which says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

So, God’s faithfulness is great in its extent, and it’s linked with his covenant love. And his covenant love simply means that he makes promises to his people (like the way a young man makes promises of love while pursuing a girl he’d like to marry), and he keeps them! Psalm 89:3–4 says …

“You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: ‘I will establish your offspring forever, and build your throne for all generations.’”

Now, all through here you’ll see the psalmist speaking of the covenant God made with David. You might say, “What relevance does that have for me today?” It’s relevant in every way because Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. God made a promise to David, and it’s fulfilled in Jesus Christ! He is the King who will reign on the throne, not of a little country in the Middle East, but of the entire universe. He is seated there today and shall be for all eternity. It may help as we move through the psalm to keep in mind that whenever you hear the covenant promises to David, you should immediately see Jesus as the fulfillment. So, one aspect of God’s faithfulness is that he keeps his promises. But there’s more we must include in our definition ...

In Deuteronomy 32:4 it says, “The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.” God’s faithfulness is here linked to his moral perfection. He commits no iniquity. And Psalm 89:14 reinforces that, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.” God is faithful to his own character and nature, and since he is holy, his faithfulness means that all he does accords with that. So, there seem to be at least two themes in play when God’s faithfulness is talked about: his covenant-keeping love and his holy character. 

So, let’s see if we can wrap that up in a definition of what we mean when we say that God is faithful. This is my own definition, so I’ll take responsibility for its shortcomings, but it’s my best attempt at capturing the essence of what it means to say God is faithful. 

God’s faithfulness is his unwavering and determined commitment to display his glorious character and nature through the fulfillment of his covenant promises to his people.

The rest of this message will seek to expand and explain this definition and point us to some encouragements from God’s promises seen in our own lives and in our corporate life together as a church. So, with that in mind, let’s look at our second question:

2) How is God’s faithfulness seen?

So, how does God go about displaying his character and nature to us? There’s two main ways we see repeatedly in Scripture: his word and his works. Let’s see these both revealed in Psalm 89.

We already saw v. 3 but also in v. 19. Each attributes a direct quote to God containing the covenant promises to David. The one in vv. 3–4 is a brief version, and the one in 19–37 is more detailed. But, in each case we see God speaking his word. And he’s displaying his steadfast love and faithfulness to his people by giving promises which he will fulfill. And, as we’ve already mentioned, Jesus Christ is true son of David who is seated on an eternal throne. For example, in vv. 34–35 God says, “I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips. Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David.” He swears by his holiness, his character and nature. God speaks out of who he is in his essential being. That’s why you can trust what he says.

We also see God’s faithfulness in his works. Verse 8 speaks of God’s might, and out of that might, he rules creation:

“You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them. You crushed Rahab like a carcass; you scattered your enemies with your mighty arm. The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours; the world and all that is in it, you have founded them. The north and the south, you have created them; Tabor and Hermon joyously praise your name.”—Psalm 89:9–12

 God’s providential control of creation, his governing of the universe, even the constant norms of sunrise and sunset, changes of season, and so forth are evidence of his faithfulness by displaying his might and authority. He speaks and he acts out of who he is!

So far, we’ve tried to put a definition on God’s faithfulness so that we have an idea of what we mean when we talk about it. To expand and explain that definition, we’ve looked at how God displays his faithfulness through his word and his works. Now to our third question:

3) Toward whom is God's faithfulness exercised?

Now your immediate answer might be, “Toward his people, of course!” Well, yes, but not so fast. I think there’s something we need to see first. Turn with me to 2 Timothy 2 beginning at verse 11. The apostle Paul is going to quote an early Christian saying, probably one that was meant to teach some solid doctrine in a concise way that could be easily remembered. It consists of four “if/then” statements. Let’s walk through this.

“The saying is trustworthy …” same word translated elsewhere in the NT as “faithful”… If we have died with him, we will also live with him. The condition is this: We must have died with Christ, and the result of that condition is that we will also live with him.

“If we endure,” there’s the condition. And the result if we do that? “We will also reign with him.”

Things get a little scary in the next line: “If we deny him, he will also deny us.” This is a warning, and we could spend a whole sermon on it, but not today …

It’s this last “if/then” statement that I want to focus on, because it’s a bit surprising. In the previous three, the result seemed to naturally fit the condition. Here, that doesn’t seem to be the case. “If we are faithless …” And wouldn’t you expect, after the last statement that it would say, “He will not be faithful to us”? But it doesn’t! It says, “He remains faithful!” And then it gives the reason: “For he cannot deny himself.”

There is some difference of opinion among commentators on whether this faithlessness refers to one who denies the faith altogether, or to the kind of wavering, struggling fight of faith we all experience at times. I think, since the previous statement just addressed those who outright deny Christ, this refers to the later kind of faithlessness. Now we have to be honest, don’t we? We are often faithless in this way. My faith can be very fickle. Strong one day, and filled with doubts the next. And even when I think my faith is strong, I can often be living as if my faith were not a practical reality in my life. But our faithlessness doesn’t affect the faithfulness of God at all. Why? Because the object of God’s faithfulness is not primarily US. God is, first and foremost, faithful to himself. And if he were to withdraw his covenant promises to us every time our faith wavered or doubts arose, he would not be being true to himself.

So, let’s answer this question two ways: Toward whom is God faithful? Let’s identify two directions that his faithfulness flows. First, it is toward himself. He must at all times speak and act in accord with who he is as the morally perfect, almighty God of the universe. And secondly, he’s faithful to us, that is, to fulfill all the promises he’s made to his people. But he does this not because we are so faithful and devoted to him, but because his very character and reputation is at stake if he were to not fulfill those promises. The second direction of flow grows out of the first. Without the first there will be no second.

Now, where do we see this in our text in Psalm 89? Look at verse 29, “I will establish his offspring forever and his throne as the days of the heavens.” There’s the covenant promise not just to David but to his ultimate descendent, Jesus Christ. But, look at what God says happens if David’s children become faithless: 

If his children forsake my law and do not walk according to my rules, if they violate my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes, but I will not remove from him my steadfast love or be false to my faithfulness. I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips.—Psalm 89:30­­–34

Do you see it there? Talk about his determined and unwavering commitment. If we, as children of the covenant, are faithless, God may discipline us (which is what I think is intended by punishing here), he may correct us, but he will not remove his covenant love. To do so would be being “false to [his] faithfulness!” Frankly, what God does is he makes his very “God-ness” dependent on his fulfilling his promises to us. God is faithful first of all to himself. And out of that, he makes promises that obligate him to be faithful to us. And the beauty of this covenant is that its fulfillment isn’t based on what we do, but on who he is.

I’ve tried to fill out and support that definition of God’s faithfulness by pointing out that God’s faithfulness is an outgrowth of his moral perfection, leading to covenant promises to us as his people. We’ve seen that God shows himself faithful in what he says (his word) and what he does (his works). And we’ve seen that God’s faithfulness is exercised first and foremost toward himself, for he cannot deny himself or else he isn’t God. Then out of that, he keeps his covenant promises to us. Now, to our fourth question: 

4) How does God’s faithfulness practically work out in our lives?

I want to answer this question from two angles. First, how does it look in our lives personally, at an individual level? And second, how does it look in our corporate life as a church—touching on our 25 x ’25 vision.

I love the honesty of the psalmists. When they write these songs, they are just speaking gut-level experience. We didn’t read Psalm 89:38–52 due to time, but if you look at it, you’ll see that after all this wonderful extolling of God’s great faithfulness to his covenant promises, the psalmist is lamenting that it sure doesn’t seem like God is being very faithful right now. For example, consider verse 38 “But now you have cast off and rejected; you are full of wrath against your anointed.” Or, verse 46, “How long, O Lord? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?” And then there’s verse 49, “Lord, where is your steadfast love of old, which by your faithfulness you swore to David?” And the psalm basically ends on that note! This is just amazingly real, isn’t it? Don’t we often feel like we’re living more in the last 15 verses of this psalm than in the first 37? Obviously, the psalmist knows that God is faithful and will fulfill his covenant promises. He spent 37 verses stating that. But, here in these last verses is the reality of where we all live at times: “God, I know what the Bible says, but it just doesn’t FEEL like you’re being faithful.” The suffering is deep and painful, physically, mentally, emotionally. It seems as if we’re at the end of the rope and God is no where to be seen.

Let’s do a brief survey of just a couple of the NT promises God has given us and see if he hasn’t been faithful: 

1. God will not allow you to be tested beyond your ability, but will provide a way of escape so we can endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13). Here’s one that we all know and love, but sometimes, if we’re honest, we just don’t think it’s true. Some of you feel like the testing is way beyond what you can handle. But, we have to trust in the promises that are really given, not in the ones we think are given. We may think the way of escape promised here is to get out of the difficult circumstances. And sometimes God does do that. But the verse actually promises that God may also work our escape from a trial by giving us grace to endure it! And he has, hasn’t he? It may feel like it’s more than you can bear, but you’re still here. God is working to sustain you even when you don’t feel it. And when it seems like more than you can stand, he comes in with grace for another day—or another hour.
   
   
2. God promises that if you confess your sins, he is faithful and just to forgive you your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Do you realize the magnitude of this promise? It means God has staked his very character and nature on forgiving your sins in such a way that he is both merciful and just!

Have you experienced this? Do you know God’s forgiveness for your sins? You can. If you’ve never come to him for this, I want to plead with you to make this the day you deal with your eternal destiny. Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the just penalty for your sins, and he is calling you today to come to him. 

But, this is not just a promise for the beginning of the Christian life, we need to live by this gospel grace all throughout our Christian lives! This verse is written to believers. We still wrestle with sin and we daily need this kind of forgiveness. God fulfills this promise, not only in your first coming to Jesus, but in the ongoing forgiveness of your sins as you fight the fight of faith.

There’s a look at just a couple of new covenant promises as an example and encouragement to you in your personal walk with Jesus. But beyond that, how about the fact that your heart is beating? Your have air to breathe and food to eat. Think of all these common grace blessings that we hardly even think to thank God for that are constantly displaying his faithfulness to you.

Now, let me also talk briefly about God’s faithfulness to us as a church. I could talk about the nearly 150 years of God’s faithfulness to Bethlehem, but let’s just look at the last couple of years and forward from here. We’ve been on this journey of this 25 x ’25 vision for a two years now. The four pieces of it are: 1) build a permanent South Campus building, 2) strengthen the core of who we are as a church, 3) plant 25 churches by the year 2025, and 4) reach 25 unengaged people groups by 2025. What promises can we see in Scripture that we can trust our faithful God to fulfill for us as a church as we seek to do all this? Here’s just two: 

1. The gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church (Matthew 16:18).

Wherever we go to spread the gospel and plant churches, Satan’s resistance can only stand up as long as God allows. Ultimately, no power of hell can stop the gospel and the spread of the Kingdom. That means as we launch out in our vision to reach the unengaged and plant churches, we can trust in this promise.

Now, there’s no promise here about how long this will take, so 2025 is not a promised date. And we certainly don’t see any promise about specific numbers of people groups or church plants. So, I don’t know what the ultimate numbers will ultimately be. Maybe 10 unengaged peoples and 15 churches. Maybe 30 unengaged peoples and 50 churches! God hasn’t promised the numbers or the timing. But, we can know that when we embark on a vision like this, at the heart, that vision lines up with God’s promises. He means to advance his kingdom. So, any vision that lines up with that lines up with his promises. And the gates of hell ultimately will not prevail! In some respects, we might even say the “easy” part is done.

We have seen God’s faithfulness many times in the past 12 years of our sojourning in the south suburbs—and in his provision of land and now a building to be a launching pad for the next steps of our 25 x ’25 vision. Building a building is exciting. It’s measurable. You see the progress. But, let me just remind you that that was just one piece of the vision. We’re about to conclude the 25^th month of our 25-month funding campaign, which was meant to just get started on this vision. This is just the beginning! In some ways, the hard part of our vision is just getting underway. Let’s see what God will be pleased to do if we keep pressing forward. We can expect satanic resistance. But the gates of hell shall not prevail. 

2. We have a glorious future:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”—Revelation 21:3–5

The future of the church is to dwell forever in the presence of God in a new heaven and a new earth without any of the sin and pain and struggle that we know in this life. No matter how deep or painful your suffering, our faithful God has a future for us that is beyond your imagination in its goodness and joy! God stakes his very being, his God-ness on this. It is certain. All his promises are “yes” and “amen” in Jesus Christ.