God Keeps His Promises!
BRD REFLECTIONS:
Joshua 15:1-63 and Psalm 16 (NIV)
(Sim Bee Leng, Small Group Leader)
READ:
Joshua 15 (NIV)
OBSERVE:
The book of Joshua tells the story of how Joshua, who was appointed by God, led the Israelites across the Jordan River to take possession of the Promised Land. This took place after forty years of wandering in the wilderness and the death of Moses.
Joshua 15 details the boundaries of the territory given to the tribe of Judah. After mapping out the borders, Joshua lists the cities included in Judah’s allotment.
APPLY:
When I first read Joshua 15 in preparing to write this BRD Reflection, I must confess that I was bewildered by the long list of ancient names of the cities and villages that formed part of Judah’s inheritance. I was unfamiliar with these places, many of which were not marked in the Bible maps that were found at the back of my Bible.
However, as I read the synopsis of Joshua, I was awed by the reminder that the book of Joshua is about the fulfilment of a promise that God gave to Abraham a few centuries ago in Genesis 12:7:
“The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him.”
God did not forget His promise to Abraham and fulfilled it through Joshua when he led the Israelites into the Promised Land. God kept His promise, even though the Israelites were often stubborn, wayward, and had failed to keep God’s commandments on many occasions.
2 Corinthians 1:20 came to my mind – “For as many as the promises of God are, in Him they are yes; therefore through Him also is our Amen to the glory of God through us.”
God always keeps His promises to people. Remembering God’s promises gives me hope, joy and peace in the various situations that I face each day. When I pray for help with something, and God responds with a “No”, that doesn’t mean that He is not keeping His promise to me. It simply means that God is choosing not to grant the specific request I prayed about, at this time. God calls me to trust that He will do what’s best for me – even if it’s not what I like, or what I understand. Knowing that He is a promise-keeping God encourages me to stay faithful and continue to believe in Him even when my prayers are not answered according to my desires.
DO:
The Bible is full of God’s promises and assurances of His love, grace and help to me. I need to read it daily, learn more about His promises, pay attention to and respond to them with unwavering trust.
PRAY:
Dear Lord, You are faithful and true, a promise-keeping God. Help me to trust and follow You each day, and live faithfully as I incorporate Your promises into my daily life.
