Faithfulness
6 min read
28 Then Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and to the family heads of the Israelite tribes. 29 He said to them, “If the Gadites and Reubenites, every man armed for battle, cross over the Jordan with you before the LORD, then when the land is subdued before you, you must give them the land of Gilead as their possession.”
Numbers 32:28-29
The peaceful and proper functioning of the whole world depends on people being faithful to their promises and obligations—to their relationships. Without that, the world would be in complete turmoil and chaos.
And if that is true for the world, generally speaking, how much more true is that for the church and matters of God’s kingdom?
Because—and forgive me for a moment of weakness in expressing frustration—sometimes it seems to me that some Christians are very self-forgiving in breaking promises and obligations and relationships when it comes to church—even when they would never think of doing such a thing in matters of school or career or hobbies or other areas.
Not that I am perfect in such matters, either. But my own inconsistencies highlight the point even more for me. Why do we do that? Why do we think it is OK to be like that when it comes to church, when we know it’s not OK in every other area of our lives?
It’s as if we wholeheartedly embrace the grace and mercy of God that comes through faith in the gospel, but we discard the faithfulness that God demands of us in our covenant relationship with Him.
The word of God may be difficult to understand in terms of some of the finer theological points (like predestination versus free will, for example), but the word of God is quite clear on what our covenant relationship in Christ Jesus entails—to fill the earth with the glory of God in Jesus’s name through God-fearing, God-honoring, God-worshiping, God-loving communities and families, the church.
And that simply requires faithfulness on our part. Not faithfulness when we feel like it. Not faithfulness when it is convenient to do so. Not faithfulness when it suits our needs and we benefit from it. A covenant-centered commitment to faithfulness because God is worthy of our faithfulness and because faithfulness to Jesus Christ and His church is what is best for us and our families and our churches and our communities and our world.
That’s God’s economy. God’s economy is fueled by faithfulness—first His and also ours.
Of course, if none of us are faithful, God is always faithful. And so God’s plan of salvation for the world in Christ Jesus will always be fulfilled. But then, what is at stake for us? We ought to think deeply on that question daily.
What is incredible and amazing, though, is that even when we constantly fail at faithfulness, our LORD readily receives us with open arms when we repent and return to Him.
What kind of grace and mercy and love is that? It is a grace, mercy, and love that saves us and transforms us into faithfulness.
Father, You are faithful. Forgive me for when I lack faithfulness. Open my eyes and ears and heart to understand Your love and transform my soul from the inside out. I thank You for Your faithfulness and mercy. I long to hear those words: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” In Jesus’s name. Amen.
