“The Promise is Before Us”

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 16:14-25

The 2 books of Chronicles were written after Israel had been freed from Babylonian exile and were allowed to return to their homes. These are the written history of both a more faithful day, as well as the struggles that the nation endured, and were intended to bring the people back to true worship once again. As chapter 16 opens, King David is preparing to relocate the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, and he appoints priests to begin administering the celebration.

David begins a psalm of praise with the thought that thanksgiving must be the first gift that is to be offered in joy to their Lord Yahweh, followed closely with spreading the word to others about all that the Lord has done for them. We are to sing praises for his mighty acts, we are to glorify his name, and all who believe are to rejoice in this marvelous God, and must never forget the wonders and commandments that have come from him.

And the king’s rejoicing continues.

Read 1 Chronicles 16:14-18

So not only are we to remember all that the Lord has done for us, we are to remember just who he is – that he is all mighty, he is all glorious, he is the ultimate and righteous judge of all the earth, that he never forgets the promises he makes, as well as all of the commandments he proclaims.

We are reminded that his covenants, his promises, have existed since the days of Abraham, and they have never changed, even as they were passed down to Abraham’s son Isaac, to his grandson Jacob, and to the nation through all time.
As human beings, we have a difficult time understanding the full significance of the word “everlasting”. And this struggle isn’t limited to only a few! When my brother Ed and I were taking calculus in college, we came home one day for dinner, and were sharing with our folks what we were learning. When we got to the topic of “infinity”, Mom stated, quite emphatically, that she just couldn’t grasp the extent of infinity, that the concept that something would have no end, and would go on unabated forever, was beyond her. We asked her if she could imagine an end to space, and she also admitted that this didn’t make much sense to her either! And quite honestly, she was absolutely right. We may accept the concepts, but in our human limitation, we will never fully understand either the end of all we know, or a life that will be eternal.

How great, how vast, how powerful, how loving, how long does the word of God last? Forever, eternal, from everlasting to everlasting – the Psalms (41:13; 90:2; 103:17; 106:48) speak over and over about our God who is, himself, beyond our greatest understanding. And imagine, if you will, how ageless his word must be, if the Lord is as infinite and eternal as we know him to be, for the word of God has existed as long as God has!

And some of his eternal commandments still confound us today. As an example, we know that control and authority over national lands tends to change from time to time, but here we read that God has given a land to Israel “as an everlasting covenant”! This is a promise that not only will never fail, it can never be withdrawn! God and his word will never end and will never be changed.

Read 1 Chronicles 16:19-22

The other thing that we have to understand about God is that he is always ready to help us in this life, to show us a better way to live through him, but he never forces his will upon anyone – at least for now. The Day of Judgment is coming, and on that day, the eternal will of the Lord will be released, it will no longer be held back, it will become the truth and way for the entire earth.
And until that day, the faithful and unfaithful alike, will be allowed to make their own decisions and choices in life. Our passage tells us that the people “wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another.” And so do we – that’s the right of “free will”. Our allegiance “wanders” from one way to another – that’s what sin is all about. But we are not only allowed to be sinful in this life, but we also have the opportunity to confess and repent of our waywardness, and to seek the Lord’s forgiveness, and to find our way back into his kingdom.

But during our days of wandering, the Lord, in his infinite wisdom, knows that one day some will come back to him, and he protects these, his “anointed” ones. I know, because I have been one of those wanderers, and without intending to be judgmental, I suspect that all of you have had those nomadic days in your life, too. But there is nothing that our infinite and eternal God cannot, or will not do for those who will love him. And that is what the promise of Christmas is all about.

Creation envisioned the promise an eternity ago when everything came into existence; the prophets had proclaimed this promise over and over 2,500 years ago; God proclaimed it 2,000 years ago in the manger of Bethlehem; the Church has proclaimed it, with varying degrees of success, ever since then. The promise remains, and was reaffirmed on that first Good Friday, and on that first Easter morning – that there is nothing that the Lord won’t do for those who love him.

Read 1 Chronicles 16:23-25

So what will we do for the One who has done so much for us? Are we willing to be the example of a people who rejoice in the Lord and his ways? King David danced through the streets as the Ark was being carried into Jerusalem, and he wrote psalm after psalm to tell of the joy that came to him for all that his Lord was in his life. The returning exiles, after 70 years of captivity many miles away from their homes, rediscovered the joy of faithful worship and obedience to their Lord. The disciples were reinvigorated in faith at Pentecost – even after all that had happened a month and a half before - those times that had strained their faith and dampened their joy. The Church has found an indescribable joy through living out the promise of Christ, even in the midst of persecution and oppression that continues to come from the ways and wiles of earth.

But regardless of all that the world can, and will, bring against us, we must stay strong in God’s promises. They are the source and power of Christian celebration; they are the eternal hope and everlasting promise of our Almighty God; they are the life’s blood of our faith and our goal of eternity.

This passage calls us to celebration in a new way. Sing to the Lord a new song – one that expresses the fullness of our joy, the winning of our salvation, the assurance of our God and King, the promise that was given before the beginning of time, and all that will be fulfilled at the end of time. We are called to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and his salvation in every possible way and with every possible person you can.
Let nothing place a limitation on when or where or how you proclaim his goodness – let the true joy of Christmas emanate from every pore of your being, in every word you speak, in every breath that you take, in every step that carries you, in every moment that reminds you, that Jesus Christ came, not as a mighty warrior, not as a royal member of the court, not as recognizable Messiah, but as a humble, innocent, vulnerable, dependent Child of an obedient couple of God’s own people.
Let nothing restrict your belief that the promise of Almighty God – that the covenant he made with Abraham has been extended to all who love the Babe of Bethlehem – that the promise of a land free from fear and hatred – that the Living Goodness of our Eternal God is given to all who love him, and obey him, and will proclaim him to the people of earth.

Great is the Lord, for he alone is worthy, he alone must be praised, he alone is to be worshipped in all the earth. May each of us show him our unbridled joy in the humbleness and surrender that he has demonstrated for each of us, and may our lives reflect his way and life today.

His promise is upon us. But is ours upon him?