Have you ever heard someone say something along the lines of, “God’s promise of the future should give you hope today”? Maybe you’ve heard it dozens of times or said it just as many. In part, this saying stands because we believe the Bible teaches this principle; however, at the gut level, this idea can be challenging to hear and believe.
In Isaiah 7, God reminded Ahaz through the prophet Isaiah that he had ample reason to trust God. The evidence? A future promise. In a moment where it would have made sense to the human mind to reference a past experience or previous fulfillment, God chose to offer hope with a word about something that had not yet happened.
That future promise was the incarnation of Jesus Christ. God promised a Messiah would come in order to encourage Ahaz to trust the Lord in that moment.
In hindsight, it is easy for us to read this and understand that God was forecasting a promise that we know He would ultimately keep. However, at the moment, this must have been perplexing to hear.
When we make our way through the New Testament and discover some of the beautiful and hopeful promises of the second return of Christ, the eternal joy of God’s people, and the faithfulness of God through trial and tribulation, we too might be tempted to wonder if it will actually happen.
Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that he might lie, or a son of man, that he might change his mind. Does he speak and not act, or promise and not fulfill?” God is faithful. We can look to the past and find a record of this truth, which means we can look to the future with continued confidence. God is not a liar.
Though not overt, our faithlessness in the face of His future promises suggest that we at least think there may be a chance that He is not always true to His Word and faithful to fulfill His promises. Yet He will not waver, and we can set our faith in His faithfulness.
Yes, be thankful for God’s faithfulness in the past, but also be confident in His future promises. God is present with us. He will not change His mind, His character, or His Word.
Listen to the Weekly Leader Training for Preschool & Kids
Every week, members of The Gospel Project for Kids team offer guidance to help you as you prepare to teach every session to preschoolers and kids.
Podcast (kidsleadertraining): Play in new window | Download
This training is available on Ministry Grid, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and other podcast platforms.
Need to contact our team? Connect through The Gospel Project for Kids Community Facebook page or email us.
