The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in James 4:14-16,
"Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil."
God has made many promises. Promises he will be certain to keep. In Acts 1:4 Jesus spoke of the coming Holy Spirit the Father had promised his followers. In Acts 2:30 Peter spoke of the promise God had made to David, that one of his descendants would sit on his throne: Jesus Christ. Paul speaks of the gospel God had promised in Romans 1:2. In Galatians 3:16, 29, Paul speaks of the promises God made to Abraham, an inheritance that would come through Jesus Christ, an inheritance that is ours by the same faith Abraham had. Paul refers to eternal life as God's promise in Titus 1:2. In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 we are promised our Lord will return for us, that we will be raised from the dead and meet the Lord in the clouds to be with him for eternity. Many promises and all entirely certain.
There are many things God has not promised: God has not promised us long lives here. God has not promised we will all be financially well off. God has not promised we will not get sick, that we will not die. God has not promised to answer all our prayers the way we want him to. He hasn't promised we will get that college education, that job or promotion, he hasn't promised that house, that spouse, that our children will all do well and that our dog won't die.
And yet, all too often, I presume upon God. I find myself assuming God will do this or that, and sometimes without even recognizing my dependence upon him, just like the ones James addresses in his letter here. I find for myself in this passage that a reverence for God and a recognition of my dependence upon him is always in order.
God has blessed me with so much in his promises to me! However, I find James admonition here to not presume upon God an important and appropriate outlook!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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