God's Promises Are Faithful and True

Isaiah 25:1-9

Our passage for the start of this week’s Lectionary Scriptures is from the Prophet Isaiah.   In addition to prophecies about the coming Messiah, prophecies about both the children of Israel and other surrounding nations, and admonitions to God’s people to worship only Him and follow His Word, there are many beautiful songs of praise to God scattered throughout the Book of Isaiah, and our passage today is one of them.  As we look into this passage, we will see some of the reasons that Isaiah is praising God at this moment.

In verse 1, we read that God’s counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.   God’s purposes have been planned by Him from ages past.  He completes the plans that He has made and has promised.  We can trust in the Lord God that He will fulfill all of the promises that He makes to us.

One of the great promises that God has made to His children is that He will protect and care for the poor (vs. 4).  When others are ruthless and oppress us, we can turn to Him.  I know from personal experience that when your financial support has been knocked out from underneath you, and your worries start to mount, God is the only sure and reliable one to turn to.  He is a place of safety and refuge for the poor and needy.  When the storms of life come upon us, we can turn to the Lord God for safety in trouble.

In verse 6 we see a reference to God’s Messianic banquet during the Millennial age.  The Prophet Isaiah pictures it atop a mountain, filled with grandness and glory.  This banquet is open to all people of all nations, and any who have accepted Jesus Christ, God’s Son, as their Savior will be present.  It is not just for any one group of people.  His saving message was intended to go into all of the world, to all peoples and all nations.  In the final book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation, we read where God’s promise of this banquet is fulfilled in the marriage feast of the Lamb.  This is the banquet for the Church, all those who have accepted Him as Savior (Revelation 19:6-9).

There is another promise of God that Isaiah speaks of in this passage, and that is the promise that He will destroy death forever (vs. 7-8).  Most everyone has faced the heartache of losing a loved one in death.  It is our ancient enemy, and one that many people fear as they get older.  God, though, has promised His children victory over death.  The Apostle Paul made a mention of death being swallowed up in his letter to the Corinthians (I Corinthians 15:54).

One of the most precious promises we read in Scriptures, and is first mentioned here in verse 8, is that God will wipe away all of our tears.  Life is difficult, and there are so many times that the tears come.  As we’ve just mentioned, the death of loved ones bring tears.  Also so many of our troubles and trials will bring tears, as well.  Tears are all too familiar to many of us.  God promises us here that He will one day wipe all of our tears from off our face.  No matter how desperate a believer’s situation, we have a divine hope, knowing God will wipe all of those tears away.  This is such an assured promise, God repeated it twice in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 7:17; Revelation 21:4).

As our passage closes, we have one more promise that God makes to us (vs. 9).  God promises to act on behalf of those who wait for Him.  When we wait for Him, He has promised to save us.  Waiting patiently shows that we believe God’s promises, and that we trust in Him to fulfill them.

God has never made a promise that He has not kept.  His record is sure.  Place your trust in Him, and know that we can fully rely that every promise will be fulfilled.