Turn with me in your Bibles to
the book of Galatians this morning. Galatians in the fourth chapter. And I'm going to read just one
verse. That is a statement that the
Apostle Paul writes to these believers in
the churches of Galatia. He says in verse 28, Now we,
brethren, He makes a distinction. He's
not making a universal statement, except in the sense of it being
to all God's believing people. Now, we, brethren, as Isaac was,
are the children of promise. the children of promise. This week, once again, I had
the responsibility of conducting a funeral service. And it seems like that I always
think at that particular time about what I've preached to people. It's always a time of taking
account. I suppose because it's at that
time, I'm reminded again of the importance of telling men and
women the truth. Have I told them the truth? I've set forth before men and
women over, well over 30 years, a lot of promises, a lot of gospel promises. But the question is, are the
promises Sure. That's the title of my message,
Are the Promises Sure? And when I think about that,
I'm reminded that God made a promise to a man by the name of Abraham. Abraham is used of the Lord to
teach us a lot. He made promises to Abraham and
to his seed concerning a land, an inheritance. And we read about that many,
many times in the Bible. If you'll turn back to the book
of Genesis, In Genesis chapter 12, one of
many places where we find reference to this, but in Genesis chapter
12 and verse 7, it says, "...and the Lord appeared unto Abraham."
This was before he changed his name. He appeared unto Abram,
and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land. And there builded
he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him." God just simply distinctively
called out Abraham and made some promises to him. In another place in Genesis it
says that he says to him, "...and I will give unto thee, and to
thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger,
all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession." He made
promises to this man. But Abraham as a father, he being spoken of as such by
a seed that he was to have, Abraham as a father is unique in Scripture. He has a seed first naturally. He has a child of the flesh with
Hagar, and his name is Ishmael. But the promise that God is speaking
of here, the promise was not through Ishmael, It was only
through Isaac, because Isaac is specifically called the child
of promise. As a matter of fact, he's viewed
by God in a special way, because God refers to Isaac as thine
only son. He's the child of promise. And not only that, but Abraham
is called a father in two other ways. He has a seed, a particular seed,
which is the man Christ Jesus. It's said of him that his seed
would be the Messiah. When you read in Matthew chapter
1 in the genealogy of Christ, it begins with the book of the
generation of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. He's the God-man. He's the seed
of Abraham in this sense. And plus that, Added to all these
things, Abraham is said to be the father, in another sense,
the father of a people that believe on Christ. They are brought to believe the
promises of God. And it says of him in Hebrews
11, it says, "...by faith he sojourned in the land of promise,
as in a strange country dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and
Jacob." Now wait a minute. I thought he had some more sons.
Well, these are identified as this spiritual seed, these who
likewise would believe, and it says of them, he journeyed in
this strange country, in this land of promise, dwelling in
tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same
promise. Ishmael was not an heir in this
spiritual, gracious sense. Esau was not an heir. But both Jacob and Isaac, they
were, as Abraham was, heirs with him of the same promise. Not only that. But when Paul
writes in this book of Galatians, he says in that third chapter,
"...know ye therefore that they which are of faith, that is,
they which believe on this Christ that I preached to you, the same
are the children of Abraham." They are the same, they are the
children of Abraham. Turn back with me in Romans chapter
4, and listen to the Apostle Paul here in Romans chapter 4,
looking in verse 13. He's talking about this promise. And sometimes all that God has
given in grace is called the promise, And yet at some other
times, it is referred to as the promises, but it is the same. He says in Romans 4 and verse
13, for the promise, that he, that is Abraham, should be the
heir of the world, was not to Abraham or to his seed through
the law. It wasn't because he was a Jew
naturally. Actually, he was before we find
that mark. He believed before that identifying
mark of circumcision. He says, "...but through the
righteousness of faith." Abraham, rather than being identified
with the law which came after him, is identified with faith. Faith in the coming One, the
Lord Jesus Christ. He says, "...for if they which
are of the law be heirs." That is, if these Jews after the flesh,
if they're the ones that God's talking about being the heirs,
He says, faith is made voice, and what? The promise made of
none effect. In other words, it wouldn't matter
what God promised to any person, Jew or otherwise, if it was based
simply on the flesh. That would make the promise of
none effect. They couldn't do anything. They never have done anything
to make that promise sure and effectual. Because the law worketh
wrath. For where no law is, there is
no transgression. But now look at this 16th verse. Therefore it, What's it? The promise. Therefore it is
of faith that it might be by grace. This has to do with faith,
believing the promise of God in Christ Jesus. This is by faith
in order that it might be all of grace. Now some people say
this salvation, these promised things, are conditioned on faith. But they are not in any way conditioned
on faith. They guarantee that those to
whom the promise is made, that they will be given faith. The promises are the cause of
them having faith, and it is for one reason, he says, therefore
it is of faith that it might be grace to the end that the
promise might be sure to all the seed." If it depended on
anything else, if it was by any other way, There is no way possible
that the promise or these promises would ever be sure to any of
those who they're made to. But you see, faith is the exact
opposite of works. Faith is God giving us the ability
to believe and to trust in not only what He said, but in what
He's done. He says, "...not to that only
which is of the law, but to that also which is the faith of Abraham,
who is the father of us all." Whether they be Jew or whether
they be Gentile, God's elect people to whom these promises
are made, it is sure to them, regardless of whichever one they
are, because it's by grace, it's in Christ, and it is by faith. And Abraham's seed and Christ's
seed, in this sense, they're the same. In Galatians 3 again, he says
this, "...and if you be Christ, then are ye Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise." Heirs according to the promise. And this people who are in Scripture
elsewhere described as being joint heirs with Christ, these
who believe, they are also heirs to an inheritance. They've been promised some things. If we're God's children, If we're
believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we've been promised or pledged
some things by God. And like Abraham, they're promised
righteousness in Christ. They don't do anything to achieve
righteousness. They're promised righteousness
as a gift. They're promised to be justified
by God and God alone solely on the basis of Christ's work. They're promised everything that
is to be deserved by being made righteous in Christ. They've received a gift. But it's by believing, and it's
received through believing on Christ. But even though the Bible
says this so clearly and states it so Repeatedly, again and again,
men are always trying to make obedience to the law in some
part conditional in receiving the promise. That was exactly
what these men who had come into Galatia were trying to do. But Paul is correcting that very
notion. He says, this is by promise and
not by the law. This is by grace and not by works. Listen to what he says. Turn
over again to Galatians chapter 3. Galatians 3 and look down at
verse 16. Paul again making it so clear,
he says, "...now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, and to seeds, as
of many, but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ." all these spiritual seed of Abraham. They, like Abraham, did not receive
the promise in any other way than being associated with this
one seed of Abraham, which Paul says is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the son of Abraham. And
this I say, that the covenant that was confirmed before of
God in Christ, the law which was 430 years after, cannot disannul
that it should make the promise of none effect. When God made this promise to
Abraham, the law had not been given. And there's no way that
God would come, and after He had promised what He had promised,
come along and give a law that would somehow make that promise
of none effect. The promise had nothing to do
with the law. For if the inheritance be of
the law, it's no more of promise." Why would we always want by nature
to be making it in some way dependent upon our obedience or our imagined
obedience to the law in some way? Not that the law is not
perfect. The imperfection and the ability
to perform any obedience to it is in us. It's imperfection. But God gave it to Abraham by
promise. I remember reading sometime years
ago where some old preacher wrote, he said, better to have God's
promises or better to have God's check than man's cash. God promised it, God gave it
to Abraham by promise, "...wherefore then serveth the law, it was
added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to
whom the promise was made, and it was ordained by angels in
the hand of a mediator." Now, a mediator is not a mediator
of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises
of God? God forbid. For if there had
been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness
should have been by the law. But the Scripture hath concluded,
all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might
be given to them that believe." He said, "...but before faith
came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which
should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster..."
If you notice, those next three
words are italicized. "...for the law was our schoolmaster
unto Christ." It is not, as men often preach,
that the law is used to bring us to Christ. There is no command
of God, no command given by the Spirit of God through any of
the apostles or from the lips of Christ Himself. There is no
command to preach the law. What are we to preach then? The
promise. We're to preach the gospel. And something's wrong if we go
by the name of being grace-believers and grace-preachers, and people
hear from us more about the law than they do the gospel, the
promise. The law was like a child-keeper
up until Christ. that we might be justified by
faith, but after that faith is come, we are no longer under
a schoolmaster, for you are all the children of God by faith
in Christ Jesus." Does that mean we become the children of God
when we believe? No. It means we show ourselves
to be the true children of God when we are unable to believe
the promise of God. For as many of you as have been
baptized into Christ have put on Christ, There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female. All these distinctions, distinctions
made by God Himself for reasons known only to Himself, all these
distinctions, they do not count in salvation. Not whether you're
a Jew or not, not whether you're a man or a woman or not. I hear
preaching that seems to exalt men over women. I hear preachers
that exalt law over grace. I hear preaching that does this
and the other. Not so. He said you are all one in Christ,
receivers and believers in the promise. And if you be Christ, There is the qualification. And
if you be Christ, or actually as it most likely is, and since
you be Christ, then are you Abraham's seed and heirs according to the
promise. Now in our day, in our day, In
what passes for modern Christianity, preachers like to talk about
men and women having a relationship with God. What about your relationship
with God? You need a relationship with
God. Well, I want to just tell you
something this morning. And that is God's elect, true
believers, have a relationship with God, And they had a relationship
with God before they believed, and they had a relationship with
God before the world began, because they had it in their surety,
and they were heirs then, and now, because they're the children
of God. Don't ever let anybody say, well,
what you do depends on your relationship with God. That's so utterly unbiblical. He says that our relationship
with God is based solely upon our union with the Lord Jesus
Christ. We are joint heirs with Him and
He will not cast us off. He is not going to disown us. If God was going to disown us
on the basis of whether we do or don't do, I would have been
disowned a long time ago. Turn over to 2 Peter. 2 Peter
chapter 1 and look down at verse 4. Peter is talking about here,
about how we are given knowledge of God. How we find out who He
is, how we find out what we are, how we find out who Christ is. And when we find out who Christ
is, we find out about the promises of God. Verse 4, he says, "...whereby
are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises." Where do we get those promises?
Where do you find out about them? In the Word of God. In the Word
of God. He's given to us exceeding great
and precious promises, that by these ye might be partakers of
the divine nature. And you talk about a violated
verse of Scripture. when men stand, and simply on
the basis of one phrase out of that verse, and tell us that
we are partakers of the divine nature in the sense of having
the divine nature added to our nature. It seems to me like that goes
right back to the old erroneous view of what man is anyway, the
old white dog, black dog. That word partakers there, If
you will look up the Greek word and look all throughout the New
Testament at how that word is translated, you will find that
in most every case it has to do with fellowship. Fellowship. It's akin to that
word in 1 John 1 where he talks about our fellowship being with
God. In other words, God gives His
people the knowledge of these promises wherein He has promised
us and given us fellowship with Him in the Lord Jesus Christ. Some say we've got two natures.
I'm not going to debate it with them, but I'm telling you this.
You talk with a man long enough, he'll say enough, and I want
to ask him, well, which one was that? Was that your human nature
or your divine nature? I've never seen but one nature
in a person. And every time in this book,
other than this verse, where you find nature or natural mission,
those words used, you will find it always having to do with the
fallen nature of sinful man. There's nothing natural about
grace, it's supernatural. Here we are wretched, vile sinners
who could not at any time or in any way be enabled to have
fellowship with the Holy God. And yet this is what the promises
give to us. They bear witness to us the promise
of God that He'll be to us a God and we'll be to Him His people. We'll have fellowship with Him. On what basis? On the basis of
the same fellow. You and I could not agree with
God on anything of ourselves. And He certainly could not come
near us as we are. But in Christ, He's laid hold and put trust
in one, He says, who is my fellow. And in this rare case, in this
singular instance, with His people, His fellow and their fellow is
the same. In other words, we agree with
God in the Lord Jesus Christ, on
the Lord Jesus Christ. We are made to have fellowship
or be partakers of the divine nature. How? Through these exceeding
great and precious promises. Surely they have reference to
the written Word of God. But what is written in the Word
of God is the actual heart and word from the mouth of God. Paul says in Romans, he says,
if we're children, and if children, then heirs,
heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we
suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." He's the promise. What else has God promised us
as His heirs? Well, He's promised us eternal
life in Christ. The Apostle John, he says it.
He says in 1 John 2.25, and this is the promise, that He hath
promised us even eternal life. I'll tell you one thing, when
you come down to the hour of death, no matter how long it
be from now, no matter by what means, I can tell you there's
one promise. that exceeds and excels them
all. And that's the promise of eternal
life. Paul writing to Timothy, this
apostle of Jesus Christ, he says, "...by the will of God, according
to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus," he says
in Titus, "...in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot
lie, promised before the world began." Before there was a world, in
a covenant called the everlasting covenant, God promised a people
in His Son eternal life. He has promised also an eternal
inheritance in Christ. Hebrews 9, the Apostle says,
"...for this cause He is the Mediator of the New Testament,
that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions
that were under the First Testament, they which are called might receive
the promise of eternal inheritance." In my earlier years, I made several
attempts to describe and talk about what that eternal inheritance
is. I'm not nearly so brave and daring
as to do that anymore. It far exceeds what our human
minds could ever comprehend. It exceeds in glory. It exceeds in goodness. Anything we're capable of imagining. In Peter, he says it's to an
inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that fadeth not away,
reserved in heaven for you. Think about that. Based on God's
promises, He's promised all His people. an eternal inheritance. You get envious when somebody
inherits $100,000, inherits a big track of land
somewhere. This is an eternal inheritance. No man will tax it, no man will
take it. It will be yours forever, whatever
it is. He's promised new heavens and
a new earth. Peter again, nevertheless, we,
according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new
earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. You look outside around you in
this world, it's just an awful mess. And there's this great temptation
to join those who take up some kind of a banner and sword to
try to right what's wrong and all this stuff. But this earth as far as an earth
naturally is gone. It started going that day whenever
Adam and Eve fell in the garden. But we got a promise. He's promised
us new heavens and a new earth. I don't know what all that involves
either. Sounds good to me. Especially that part that says,
wherein dwells righteousness. But it always comes back to this,
doesn't it? Are the promises sure? Will we receive all the inheritance? Will we enter eternal glory? Is believing on Christ, trusting
Him alone, pleading His blood, His righteousness, Counting that
God has, as He says, imputed it to us, laid it to our counts. Is that sure? Well, it dawned on me this week,
if God calls us heirs, we must be. You see, we are what God calls
us. If He calls me a sinner, I know I'm a sinner because He
said I was. But bless His name if He says I'm an heir. an heir
of righteousness, an heir of a kingdom, an heir of an inheritance,
an heir of life, I must be. But how can I be sure? Where does this assurance people
always talk about, where does it come from? It comes from believing the promises. And that big multitude that liked
the fish and the loaves when they turned and walked away from
the Lord Jesus Christ, he said, will you also go away? They said, Lord, to whom shall
we go? You've got the words of life. And we believe and are sure that
you're the Christ. assurance comes from believing
on the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing about Him. And they'll be sure
because the one who promised is faithful, God who cannot lie. And Peter, he says, the Lord
is not slack concerning His promise, but He is longsuffering to usward,
not willing that any of His people should perish. wherein God, He says in Hebrews,
willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the
immutability or unchangeableness of His counsel, He confirmed
it by an oath. He swore by Himself there was
none greater. He says, let us hold fast the
profession of our faith without wavering. For he is faithful
that promised." And because all the promises in Jesus Christ are yes and amen. Paul writes to the Corinthians,
he says, "...for all the promises of God in him are yea, and in
him Amen, unto the glory of God by us." They'll be sure, because our
father Abraham found them to be so. If you could line up all
the patriarchs, And not only all the patriarchs,
but all the saints of God through all the ages, and ask them one
by one, are the promises sure? Every one of them would say,
absolutely so. They are yes, and they are fixed
and true in the Lord Jesus Christ. And they're sure because He's
given us. If we believe, He's given us
what He calls the earnest of the Spirit, or the witness within
us. We know they're true. Oh, I know,
you might be like me, and sometimes it seems like do everything you
can to not believe, but I can't help but believe them. The devil
can say, well, you've done this, you've failed in that, you've
failed in something else, and there's no way you're going to
inherit the promise. Oh, yes. Paul says, "...in whom we have
obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the
purpose of Him, who worketh all things after the counsel of His
own will, that we should be to the praise of His glory, who
first trusted in Christ, in whom ye also trusted after that you
heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in
whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with that Holy
Spirit of promise." They're sure because our head
and representative is already seated there in heaven. And likewise, all in him are
said to be seated in the heavenlies in Christ. There was an old story I heard
a preacher tell about Two people during the time when
they would make those transatlantic voyages in a steamship. It was new travel. And he described one as sitting
there on the deck, holding on, clenching to something, wondering,
fearful, and all this kind of stuff. And here over there is the other
person. He's laid out on one of the deck
chairs in the sun, asleep, resting. On their tickets it said that
they would be delivered safely to New York or to London or which
way they were going. Will that ticket be true? He said, they'll make it if the
ship makes it. One may be of little faith, another
may be of great faith. But it doesn't depend on them
at all. It depends on whether the ship makes it. And the Lord
Jesus Christ is described as our forerunner. We're in Him
and He's already made it. He's already there, and we're
seated in Him. Not only that, but these such
as Abraham pictures, they made it. They made it. It says, Christ says, Abraham
saw my day. He rejoiced in him. All these to whom this promise
was made, just ask them. Ask the one who
led them in, Joshua. The promises are sure. Trusting in Christ alone. pleading his cross work, believing
God's promises. They are everyone's share. Peter quotes from the Old Testament. I think it's like three or four
times the basis of this statement is made, Old Testament and New,
but he says, that it is contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief
cornerstone, elect, precious, and he that believeth on him
shall not be confounded, shall not be disappointed." The promises of God in the Lord
Jesus Christ, they are sure." That old hymn, Standing on the
Promises. I read it again, I don't know
if I could even find it now, but he talks about Standing on the promises of Christ
my King, through eternal ages let His praises ring. Glory in
the highest, I will shout and sing, standing on the promises
of God. Standing on the promises that
cannot fail, when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
by the living Word of God I shall prevail, standing on the promises."
Standing on the promises, I now can see perfect present cleansing
in the blood for me, standing in the liberty where Christ makes
free, standing on the promises of God. Standing on the promises
of Christ the Lord, bound to Him eternally by love's strong
cord, overcoming daily with the Spirit's sword, standing on the
promises of God. Standing on the promises I cannot
fall, listening every moment to the Spirit's call, resting
in my Savior as my all in all. standing on the promises of God. Father, we thank you this day
for that mercy that you give to us in Christ, for these blessed
promises of you as our God who cannot lie or fail. Give us faith and confidence
in you Help us to believe the promise
of salvation, full and free and eternal, in Jesus Christ our
Lord. Bless Your Word to our hearts,
for we ask it in Your dear Son's name. Amen.