What does the Bible say about God’s faithfulness? In times of waiting or grieving, are we uncertain whether God will fulfill his promises. What are his promises? How can we know that God is present even in times of transition, loss, or doubt?
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Bible Gateway interviewed Robert J. Morgan (@robertjmorgan) about his book, Great Is Thy Faithfulness: 52 Reasons to Trust God When Hope Feels Lost (Thomas Nelson, 2021).
How do we find God’s promises in the Bible? And how do we claim them for ourselves?
Robert J. Morgan: I love this question. The Bible is filled with God’s promises. Some of them are in the classic form of a promise, such as, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). The “I will” format indicates a classic promise. But the very next verse, Hebrews 13:6, is also a de facto promise: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.” This is a truth statement—a statement of fact: “The Lord is my helper.” That implies God has promised to help us, so we needn’t fear. Even commands are promises in reverse, for God never commands us to do something without providing the requisite strength and ability to fulfill it. For example, 1 Thessalonians 5:16 says, “Rejoice always.” That’s only possible if God provides the joy of the Spirit in our hearts, so in obeying the command we are, in essence, claiming the promise. The whole Bible is a treasure chest of promises, reassurances, and bracing truths.
How do we find the promise we need when we need it?
Robert J. Morgan: Let me tell you the best thing I’ve ever read on this. In Edges of His Ways, Amy Carmichael wrote, “Have you noticed this? Whatever need or trouble you are in, there is always something to help you in your Bible, of only you go on reading till you come to the word God specially has for you. I have noticed this often. Sometimes the special word is in the portion you would naturally read, or in the Psalms for the day, or in Daily Light [the morning and evening devotional book containing Scripture medleys for each day], or maybe it is somewhere else; but you must go on till you find it, for it is always somewhere. You will know it the moment you come to it, and it will rest your heart.” [Amy Carmichael, Edges of His Ways (Fort Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1998), 41.]
I use a wide-margin Bible for my morning study, and it stays on my devotional desk. When I find the promise I need, I underline it, date it, analyze it in the margin, memorize it, and add it to my lifelong mental collection.
[See the Scripture Engagement section on Bible Gateway]
What does it mean when we say God is faithful?
Robert J. Morgan: The faithfulness of God is his utter and unflagging commitment to keep every syllable of every word of every promise he has ever made. Faithfulness is a quality of God, woven into his eternal essence, that makes his every word entirely and exactly true, thus trustworthy, thus worthy of our wholehearted faith. Psalm 89:33 says that he will never betray his faithfulness. As a result, his faithfulness is our “shield and rampart” (Psalm 91:4).
What else does the Bible say about God’s faithfulness?
Robert J. Morgan: The entire Bible is a testament to God’s faithfulness, but the specific words “faithful” and “faithfulness” describe the Lord almost 100 times.
We’re told he abounds in faithfulness (Exodus 34:6) and is faithful in all he does (Psalm 33:4). His faithfulness surrounds him (Psalm 89:8) and reaches to the skies (Psalm 36:5). The Lord Jesus is a “faithful high priest” (Hebrews 2:17) and the faithful witness to testifies to the events in the book of Revelation (Revelation 1:5). That is even the name given Jesus at his return: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True” (Revelation 19:11). With perfect faithfulness he does things planned long ago (Isaiah 25:1).
We can live in reliance on God’s faithfulness (Psalm 26:3) and we should praise him for being so infinitely faithful (Psalm 71:22). It’s an attribute it tell our children (Isaiah 38:19) and all generations (Psalm 89:1).
What are some of your favorite Bible promises?
Robert J. Morgan: The capstone of all biblical promises, as I explain in my book, God Works All Things Together For Your Good, is Romans 8:28, which comes at the climax of the greatest theological treatise of the apostle Paul.
I also live my life along the conviction of Psalm 139:16, that God has an agenda for my every day.
Especially since my wife, Katrina, departed for New Jerusalem, I’ve come to deeply visualize and anticipate all the promises of our eternal home.
Jesus has a wonderful promise about inner peace in John 14:27; and in my pastoral work and ministry, I’ve clung to 1 Corinthians 15:58, that our labor in the Lord is never in vain.
[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, God’s Instructions to a New Nation]
How does Jesus factor into God’s faithfulness?
Robert J. Morgan: This is where 2 Corinthians 1:20 holds a lot of meaning: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.”
Jesus ratified all God’s promises when died for us and rose from the grave. God gives us a promise (such as Psalm 32:8: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go…”). Jesus says, “Yes!” and we say, “Amen!”
[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, The Founder Who Walked with God]
When in your life have you experienced the faithfulness of God?
Robert J. Morgan: I’ve come to fresh perspective at age 69. Some days I’m writing a book like Great Is Thy Faithfulness. Some days I’m preaching to 3,000. On other days, I’m speaking to a small group or meeting someone for coffee. And there are lots of days when I’m doing the laundry, washing the dishes, cleaning the closet, or weeding the garden. One thing is just as fulfilling as another if it’s God’s plan for me for that day. We don’t always have to be doing so-called great things. Small things, done faithfully in God’s will, are satisfying. Because of his faithfulness, I can live in contentment.
What is a favorite Bible passage of yours and why?
Robert J. Morgan: As I worked on Great is Thy Faithfulness, I pondered the passage that inspired its title—Lamentations 3. Jeremiah wrote this during the worst days of his life. His city had burned down around him and his nation was no more. He grieved deeply, pathetically, and he wrote out his bursts of grief in his book of Lamentations. Yet right in the middle of the book, he said, “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope” (Lamentations 3:21).
Don’t miss Jeremiah’s spiritual know-how. Even in deepest pain, he deliberately forced his mind back to divine truth, and that gave him the relief to survive his crisis. He called this to mind and therefore he had hope: “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23).
What are your thoughts about Bible Gateway and the Bible Gateway App?
Robert J. Morgan: I have Bible Gateway on the right side of my computer screen almost all the time. The ability to search for words and phrases, to check different translations, and consult commentaries with the click of a key—these tools save me so much time.
Is there anything else you’d like to say?
Robert J. Morgan: Every day I post a 59-second Bible study on social media and would love everyone to follow it. I teach through books of the Bible like that. The expositional study of Scripture—working our way through various books of the Bible—should be our go-to method of personal Bible study and of preaching. I was trained by expositors, and I thank God for the expositional study of Scripture. Within that setting, then, we can sometimes do systematic work—like studying the subject of the faithfulness of God. The older I grow, the more I’m amazed at his wonderful, cohesive, logical, and authoritative Word! Thanks for giving me an opportunity to share!
Great Is Thy Faithfulness is published by HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc., the parent company of Bible Gateway.
Bio: Robert J. Morgan is a writer and speaker who serves as the teaching pastor at The Donelson Fellowship in Nashville. He’s the author of The Red Sea Rules, The Strength You Need, Reclaiming the Lost Art of Biblical Meditation, Then Sings My Soul, and many other titles, with more than 4.5 million copies in circulation. He is available to speak at conferences and conventions. Contact him at www.robertjmorgan.com.
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