God is Faithful

By Pastor Bob Rasmussen

Good morning to JAM and to those watching online – CWM, Facebook, YouTube, Roku or however you are receiving this message.

This morning, we are using a new restreaming service, so we hope that there are no issues. We experienced a few technical glitches a few weeks ago. Our sound system had a hiccup, and we lost it. No volume in the mics or the instruments. What I loved about that mishap was that it did not stop anyone here from praising God. Amen to that! A special thank you to brother Doug for getting our old system online for this week and last.

That’s the thing about being a small church: we all wear many hats to keep this thing going. However you serve this ministry, however you give to this ministry, however you support this ministry, we appreciate it very much as we celebrate 16 years.

Having a church based on the bible, not conforming to the standards of the world, is not an easy thing to do in this day and age. But I am grateful that we do stand firmly on the Word of God and God alone. Because the greatest reason we are still here is that God is faithful, amen!

God’s faithfulness is one of the most comforting and life-anchoring truths about Jesus – His faithfulness. It is the very nature of God Himself. It is not just something He does, it is who He is.

There are so many things about the character of Jesus that speak to His faithfulness.

• Titus 1 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; 2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; 3 But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;

God cannot lie. God will not lie to us. God has never lied to us. People will lie. Politicians will lie, but not our Lord.

• Lamentations 3:21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22 It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

I love this scripture that reminds me of His faithfulness. That His compassion will never fail, great is thy faithfulness O lord! Every morning, every morning His compassions will not fail.

• Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

I love this about God; it is so contrary to man. It seems that what is right according to man changes with the wind. It changes based on what people think they feel is right. It changes to make things that are morally wrong seem OK. 

Not God, He changes not. He is not a moving target, but rather a safe and sure pillar of love, of truth and of hope. He is our salvation. His steadfastness throughout all of time is a promise that we all can hold on to.

I love to speak of God’s faithfulness. I love His unwavering commitment to His Word, to His people – to us.

And now, even more so in these uncharted waters that Diana and I are navigating in this health journey with a cancer diagnosis, His faithfulness is what I cling to. Because He is a God who keeps His promises – even when it seems impossible. 

He is faithful to His Word no matter what storms of life we may go through. And even when we fail, He can still restore us even when we do not think we deserve it.

As I look at the Word, there are a few events that I would like to discuss this morning. The first would be Noah. 

When we think about Noah, we often think of the ark, the animals, and the flood. I do not have the time to read all of the scriptures with Noah in them. However, you can read Genesis Chapters 6-9 as a refresher.

As I reread this in the Bible, I was reminded that Noah’s story is about God’s faithfulness. Faithfulness to His Word, to His warning, and faithfulness to His Covenant.

As a refresher, in Genesis 6 God looks upon the earth and sees that it is full of violence, of corruption, and of evil – continually. Kind of what is happening today, truth be told.

Humanity has turned away from Him. The world is full of wickedness, and it is dominating the world. 

• Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

God speaks to Noah and reveals His plan to judge the earth with a flood. 

• Genesis 6:13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.

The instructions were very clear. (ARK) This is a miniature version of that.

And what does Noah do? He obeys the Lord, he prepares, and he follows God’s instructions to the letter.

And then Noah is told he has seven days until the rain will start, and he has to get all the animals and birds into the ark.

When they are in there, something happens – 

• Genesis 7:16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in.

Noah did not close the ark – the Lord did. His sons did not close up the ark; the Lord did. 

Noah is no longer able to do anything. This was not a Disney cruise liner. There was no rudder. There was no steering wheel. There were barely any windows. Noah, his wife, his family, all the animals, and his other cargo were now completely in the hands of God, who shut the ark.

Sometimes I think I forget that when I am going through a storm. No matter what this life throws at us, it is a good reminder of who is really in charge, even in the worst of storms.

For 40 days during the flood, the Lord guided the ark and kept it safe – there was nothing that Noah or his family could do.

I went to Answers in Genesis, and their calculation is that it was 370 days until they were able to leave the ark. And when they did, they were given a new covenant.

• Genesis 9:11 And I will establish my covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. 12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

What this event clearly demonstrated was how faithful God is. He is faithful to his warnings, which I think the modern American church has forgotten. It shows that He is faithful to His Word – He promised Noah that He would establish a new covenant, and in so doing, he kept them all safe through the storm of all storms. It was only God who navigated the waters to keep them safe. 

And God established and has kept a covenant that still stands today.

Noah’s story teaches us that God’s faithfulness is not only seen in His promises but also in His warnings. When God speaks, He speaks to protect us; His Word speaks to us and guides us; and His Word prepares us. Noah obeyed God even when the command seemed strange, even when the world mocked him, even when the circumstances didn’t make sense.

And speaking of storms, let us turn to Luke.

• Luke 8:22 Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. 23 But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. 

I do not own a boat, so my experience on the water is pretty limited. The first time I went out on a real fishing boat was during a short vacation, when we planned to fish in the ocean. This was in Gulf Shores. My oldest son, Christian, was with me; he was probably 12 or 13. We headed out, and the boat was going fast and bouncing up and down. And within about six minutes, my son was ready to get sick, so we had to turn around and return to shore. Not a good experience.

The other time I was on a boat, I was in the Army. I shared this before – they took us all out for a nighttime exercise. I did not know the plan was to throw us out of the boat – again, not a great experience.

But I have not been through a storm, which I think would be frightening. But we have all been through a storm or two. Some of us are going through a storm right now. 

• Luke 8: 24 And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. 

Jesus is asleep, in the storm. They are fearful that they are going to die, and Jesus, and He is there asleep with his head on a pillow. This was probably mind boggling to the disciples.

• Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

One thing that really hits me is Jesus – He is asleep. Asleep. Not because He doesn’t care. Not because He isn’t aware, He knew they were going through a storm. Jesus was sleeping because He is not threatened by what terrifies us. 

There is power in knowing Jesus is not terrified of the diagnosis. It is good to know that Jesus is not overwhelmed by your situation, even though you might feel that way. Jesus is not frightened of whatever storm we are going through because He is greater. 

God’s faithfulness does not mean storms will not come. It means that the storms won’t win.

And sometimes I think that we can be in a storm – relational, spiritual, emotional, or financial. Maybe you feel like your boat is filling with water.

But God is faithful. He is with you, even when you do not feel it. He is faithful to speak peace into your storm. He will carry you through what you cannot calm, just like that storm the disciples experienced. 

They also experienced firsthand that the presence of Jesus was not a guarantee of no storms, but that He would be with us through the storm. We can take comfort in knowing Jesus will be with us throughout the storm.

I also love that Jesus is faithful, even when we sometimes are not.

Peter’s life is one of the most relatable when it comes to God’s faithfulness in all of Scripture. It is raw, it is definitely human, and it is emotional and painfully honest. It is the story of a man who loved Jesus deeply, followed Him closely, spoke boldly, and yet—at the moment of greatest pressure—failed miserably. And in many ways, it hits way too close to home for me.

I try to live as close to Him as I can, but I feel that I fail Him in so many ways. And the thing is, throughout every moment of Peter’s life as an apostle, his failure of faith, and his restoration, I see the unwavering faithfulness of God.

Peter begins as the bold disciple. In Matthew 26. As they are eating a Passover meal together, Jesus warns the men that one of them will betray Him. 

• Matthew 26:33 Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. 34 Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. 35 Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

Peter steps forward with confidence and declares that even if everyone else falls away, he will remain faithful. Nothing is going to cause him to fail. I think that His words are strong. I believe that he is being sincere and that he is fully devoted to Jesus. Peter truly believes he will stand firm. But Jesus knows the weakness of human flesh, and tells him plainly that before the rooster crows, Peter will deny Him three times.

This moment reveals something profound about God’s faithfulness: He knows our weaknesses before we do, and yet He loves us anyway. Jesus was not surprised by Peter’s future failure. He was not shaken by it. He was not disappointed in advance. 

He simply spoke truth and continued walking with Peter, teaching him, loving him, and preparing him for what was to come. Even though Jesus knew Peter would fail, it did not affect how much he cared for him.

Well, as most of us know, Peter does exactly what Jesus said would happen. He denies Jesus three times. 

• Matthew 26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

Those tears are the tears of a man who realizes he has failed the One he loves most. They are the tears of regret, tears of shame, and tears of heartbreak. They are the tears of someone who knows he cannot undo what he has done. Peter’s failure is not small—it is public, repeated, and so very devastating. 

I think that is true for anyone who follows Jesus and fails. We tend to be very hard on ourselves when we mess up. We mess up and can turn away from Jesus when we know we should run to Him. And like I said earlier, Jesus already knew what we would do, so why do we run from Him? 

After the resurrection, Jesus does not avoid Peter. I mean, had it been me, I would have been a little mad, but not Jesus. He does not shame him. He does not lecture him. Instead, He seeks him out. 

Jesus was later crucified, buried, and rose again. And then Jesus appears to the disciples by the Sea of Galilee. And Peter, impulsive as ever, jumps into the water and swims toward Jesus. There is no hesitation, no hiding, no running away. Despite his failure, Peter’s heart still longs for Jesus. And Jesus receives him.

• John 21:9 As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread. 10 Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught. 11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken. 12 Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord. 13 Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise.

On the shore, Jesus cooks breakfast for the disciples. Can you imagine this? The Lord of heaven and earth spends time making them breakfast.

This simple act reveals the tenderness of God’s faithfulness. Before Jesus restores Peter publicly, He restores him relationally. They break bread together, and He feeds him. Just like the meal at Passover.  He fellowships with him. He welcomes him. 

Then Jesus asks Peter three times, “Lovest thou me?”—mirroring the three denials. Each question gives Peter a chance to reaffirm his love. Each answer of “Yes Lord” rewrites a moment of failure; it replaces denial with faith. Each “Yes Lord I love You” restores what shame tried to destroy.

Jesus then commissions Peter: “Feed my sheep.” The man who denied Jesus is now entrusted with caring for His people. The man who failed publicly is restored publicly. The man who wept bitterly is now strengthened boldly. Peter’s failure did not disqualify him; it prepared him. It humbled him. It shaped him. And through it all, God’s faithfulness carried him.

Peter’s story teaches us that God’s faithfulness is not only seen in His promises and His power but also in His mercy. He is faithful to forgive. He is faithful to restore. He is faithful to use us again. Your failure is not final. Your mistakes do not define you. Your past does not disqualify you. The same Jesus who restored Peter stands ready to restore you.

These are just three events in the Bible, but they echo what the Word declares throughout its entirety. God is faithful. God is faithful to His Covenant. God is faithful in our fear. God is faithful even when we fail. And we can take comfort in the fact that it is true in our own lives. 

It is why we are here this very morning, amen?

If you need to have a relationship with a faithful, loving and living God, there is a choice that is set before you. You can repent, which means to turn away from the world and turn to receive Jesus as your Savior. To be baptized and be filled with His Holy Spirit . 

I am looking forward to what the Lord will do in the next year in His church, because one thing iI do know is this – He is faithful, amen?