Two Thoughts from Today’s Bible Reading

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Today’s Reading: Genesis 8-10, Matthew 3

1.    God is a promise making and promise keeping God.

Genesis 8:1a, “But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that were with him in the ark, . . .”

Genesis 9:11 “I will establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth.”

In Genesis 6, God called Noah to build a big boat in order to escape God’s wrath in the form of a world-wide flood. God established a covenant with Noah, and God remembered Noah when he, his family, and the animals were adrift in the boat in the flood. God rescued Noah and set him on dry ground, as He promised. God promised to never destroy the earth again by flood, and gave the rainbow as the sign of that promise.

God has made promises to us, His children by the blood of Jesus. How can we even begin to remember all the promises He has made to us? He promised us the Holy Spirit. He promised us that He would never leave us or forsake us. He promised us forgiveness of sins. He promised us eternal life. He promised us that He would return again to receive us unto himself. He promised to hear our prayers. He promised so many things. God has demonstrated His faithfulness to His children over and over again. He will keep His promises to you and me.

2.    God expects us demonstrate our relationship to Him in the way we live daily.

Matthew 3:8, “Therefore, bear fruit in keeping with repentance;”

John the Baptist was baptizing people in the Jordan river as a public declaration of their repentance. God was using him to prepare the hearts of the people for the coming of the Messiah. As John’s ministry gained notoriety, some religious leaders came to be baptized by him as well. John refused to baptize them because they were not repenting of their sins, choosing rather to continue in hypocrisy. He told them they could not depend on their identity as a descendant of Abraham to be accepted by God. They must repent of their sins.

It is possible for people to believe they are accepted by God because they are members of a church, because they have been baptized, because they intellectually accept the claims of Jesus, or for some other reason. However, Scripture makes clear that a person who genuinely belongs to Christ will evidence that relationship by their lifestyle. We are not saved by good works, but a saving faith produces good works. We are new creatures in Christ with the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, how could our lives not be different?

So continue to serve the Lord, and continue to work at repentance (confession and forsaking of sins). 

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