This morning, we encounter many problems due to dishonesty. In years past, a man's word was his bond, and there were no lawsuits filed every day because of trucebreakers. Indeed, it is a difficult time when a man cannot have confidence in the word or oath that another man takes. Our leaders take oaths that are quickly broken, and many times, we fail to do what we say we will do. However, in this example, Paul builds to a beautiful crescendo of One who cannot lie, and whose counsel shall never fail or falter.

While men may lie unto us, God is mentioned as being immutable (unchanging). While we must swear by something greater than ourselves (God), God could swear by no greater, so He swore by Himself. He declared by the power of Himself as God that we are His heirs. We are His children. He promised unto us that He is our Father, Brother, and Husband. As such, we are His family by several different chords. The reason we have such strong hope and consolation is for two reasons: 1.) God cannot lie. Because God cannot lie, we have hope that the promise of eternal life before the world began will indeed come to pass in a manifest way to every child of God without exception.  

Our Lord was not satisfied with 99% of the fold. Rather, He came to seek and to save them which were lost. One might say, "Well then did He save all of mankind, for all of mankind was lost?"  No, He did not seek and save all of mankind, for not all of mankind are sheep. He has never nor will ever seek out to save a goat, for He declares that He never knew them. While He does certainly know things about them, He does not know them in that intimate fashion that He knew us (His children and sheep) before the world began. He loves us with an everlasting love that knows no beginning or ending. Therefore, God cannot lie, and will never back away from that which He has promised. All the promises of God are in Him yea and in Him amen.  

2.) God does not change. He declares that He does not change, and therefore we are not consumed. Had God changed at any point, then He would not have been God to begin with. We change from time to time on different things, for we are imperfect creatures. A man told me, "I have not changed in 50 years." Truly, it is a sad state when we cannot even see ourselves needing to change things in our lives. I am in constant need of changing those things that I am doing wrong. My opinions need correcting, my paths need straightening, and my aims need re-aligning. Not so with our God. He has always been correct, straight, and aligned. All of our good gifts and perfect gifts come from Him. There is no variableness neither shadow of turning with Him. His counsels are perfect from start to finish and all points in between.  

Therefore, by these two beautiful attributes of God, we have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge. This consolation gives us hope that one sweet day we will see Him as He is and know Him as He knows us. When someone belittles our hope, it sorrows us to know that they do not understand the nature of hope. Our hope sustains and saves us.  It gives us strength for every passing hour. Indeed, with a God of salvation as this, of whom should we be afraid? God is the strength of our life, of whom shall we fear? There is not a power in heaven, earth, or under the earth that can possibly pry us out of the love of God for us in Jesus Christ our Lord. How wonderful to know that He keeps us who are most undeserving and incapable of keeping ourselves.

In Hope,

Bro Philip