The Dutch theologian, Herman Bavinck, once said: “A religion that cannot offer comfort in grief and sorrow, in life and death, cannot be the true religion.”
Nothing is as meaningless as cheap comfort, and nothing is as comfortless as empty promises. We easily say, “promises create obligations” – you have a responsibility to remain faithful to your word. But it’s not for nothing that the idiom goes further: “…He who waits on them feels burdened.” How many times do we have to retrace our steps and apologise, despite all our good intentions?
During the Reformation, when breaking away from the Catholic Church, the reformers placed great emphasis on the Latin word “promissio.” (You immediately see where the English word “promise” comes from.) In Latin, “promissio” means to give something forward. It’s like getting a foretaste of the main course. John Calvin said that God’s “promissio” has everything to do with grace. Each of God’s promises to us is an expression of God’s grace. A contemporary of Calvin, Edward Leigh, put it this way: “God’s promises are the reason why we can hope, they are the focus of our faith, and they are the content of our prayers.” As we sing, “Alles, alles, is genade. Onverdiende guns alleen.” These are the pillars of God’s promises to us.
Do you long for true comfort? Comfort that offers hope in life and death, in grief and sorrow? There is only one place for such comfort – you come to know it through God. As Peter said: “The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little while” (1 Peter 5:10).
PRAYER: Thank you that You are already giving me Your grace for the future today.
ART: “The Triumph of Christianity” by Gustave Doré
MUSIC:
We look at a music video of “God, I Need You” by the Dutch group Soli Deo Gloria Urk.