God gives the blessing of the promise, you must take hold of it
Hebrews 6:13-20(MSG) When God made his promise to Abraham, he backed it all the way, putting his own reputation on the line. He said, “I promise that I’ll bless you with everything I have—bless and bless and bless!” Abraham stuck it out and got everything that had been promised to him. When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they’ll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can’t break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post as high priest for us, in the order of Melchizedek.
- God is the promise keeper
The passage starts with: When God made his promise to Abraham he will back it all the way. The Bible says in Numbers 23:19(AMP) God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken and will He not make it good and fulfill it?
God is not a man, and because He is God, it is impossible for God to break His promise. One of the things that God cannot do, is lie. He can only speak the truth.
Hebrews 6:18(VOICE) So God has given us two unchanging things: His promise and His oath. These prove that it is impossible for God to lie. As a result, we who come to God for refuge might be encouraged to seize that hope that is set before us.
- A three-fold blessing, backed by the Father, Son and Holy Spirit
Now the Bible continues by saying that: I promise that I’ll bless you with everything I have – bless and bless and bless! A three-fold blessing.
In Numbers 6:24-26(AMP) God’s three-fold blessing is recorded. Make this blessing yours. The LORD bless you, and keep you [protect you, sustain you, and guard you]; The LORD make His face shine upon you [with favor], And be gracious to you [surrounding you with lovingkindness]; The LORD lift up His countenance (face) upon you [with divine approval], And give you peace [a tranquil heart and life].’
The Lord will protect you – refers to God the Father who will take care of us.
The Lord makes His face shine upon you – refers to Jesus Christ the Light of the World. John 8:12b(AMP) “I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
Lastly, The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and gives you peace – refers to the Holy Spirit. True peace comes from the Holy Spirit.
In the New Testament, we also find a three-fold blessing,
2 Corinthians 13:14(AMP) The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Again, we can see the Trinity of God at work here: the Grace of Jesus, the love of God, the Father, and lastly the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.
- These promises are for you
Well, you could argue whether the promises of God are for you. Are the promises of God real and a reality in your life? We have seen that God cannot lie, He has made every promise available to you, the question is how are you going to respond to it?
2 Corinthians 1:20(AMP) For as many as are the promises of God, in Christ they are [all answered] “Yes.” So through Him we say our “Amen” to the glory of God.
Abraham entered in the promises of God, because he stuck it out and got everything that had been promised to him. He did not fail in believing the promises of God, he undoubtedly believed that God could do what He has promised.
Now the Bible says, in Revelation 1:3(ESV) Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
When God asked Abraham to leave everyone and everything that was familiar behind and follow Him, Abraham did obey God and therefore entered into the promise of God. Genesis 12:1-3(NLT) The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
- Belief and Obedience are the key to entering into the promises of God
Entering the blessing of God requires obedience to His word and promise. Abraham and Sarah committed to the process and relocated to a faraway land where they prospered. A promise requires at least two parties who are willing to commit to the process. Are you committed to trusting God, and believing His promises, enabling you to enter into the promise of God?
Isaiah 1:19(NIV) If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land;
2 Peter 1:4(NKJV) by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
God’s greatest hope for you, is that you grow up to become just like Him, sharing in His divine nature through His great and precious promises.
- Promises require patience
Romans 4:18(NIV) Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Hebrews 6:12(NIV) We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
Hebrews 6:18(MSG) says: We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go.
Hebrews 6:18(NLV) God gave these two things that cannot be changed and God cannot lie. We who have turned to Him can have great comfort knowing that He will do what He has promised.
We, therefore, must believe the promises of God, take hold of it, and make it our own. God had done His part, now we must do our part.
I conclude with just a few promises that are available to you:
The promise of Jesus’s presence.
The promise of God answering our prayers.
The promise of the Holy Spirit and power.
The promise of salvation. We are heir to all His promises.
The promise of healing for the sick.
The promise of eternal life.
You see, all these promises are already yours, you just need to take hold of them.