BUT YOU PROMISED……

How often parents hear our children say, ’But you promised…’ when we promised an outing, a story, a treasure, or delight, only to forget until reminded by a plaintive cry. Often broken promises affect a child’s life, as Elsa’a story illustrates.

Elsa came to visit, and she sat on the lounge looking quite dejected. I had assumed Elsa was a christian, because she regularly attended a church with faithful Bible teaching, But, as the saying goes, being born in a garage does not make you a car, nor does church attendance guarantee salvation.

However, she was concerned enough to talk about faith in Jesus Christ. We began in Genesis simply reviewing the sin of Adam and Eve. They listened to Satan’s temptation to doubt God’s instruction not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Eve succumbed to the devil’s enticement, and Adam was an accomplice to her disobedience. Since that time all mankind has gone its own disobedient way, and as with Adam and Eve, cut itself off from the Presence of God, and His love.

‘Yes’, Elsa assured me, ‘I know all that’, and she even repeated with me Isaiah’s words that ‘ Like sheep we have all gone astray and turned to our own way.’ To save us the Lord God laid on the Lord Jesus the sins of us all.’

Yes, Elsa heard that preached in her church. So I explained how we need to confess our sins.

‘What does confession really mean?’

‘We agree with God that sin is sin.’ We talked about the need to repent, to turn around as it were, and instead of going our own way, we live according to God’s principles. Yes, she nodded.

I talked about God’s grace, His divine intervention in our lives, so that we can believe and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death on the cross.

By believing we receive eternal life.

‘I know all that’, she countered. We talked for two hours, and to my great disappointment she said, ‘I just cannot believe it.’ I felt rather deflated, but I knew, as Paul says, it is not by our wisdom or words that a human will come to faith in Christ Jesus, but only through the power and working of the Holy Spirit can a woman be born again. ( And men, too.)

But I asked, ‘Why are you not able to believe what God says?’

Rather sorrowfully, she answered, ‘ I don’t know. I just cannot believe that God could forgive all my sins. I have asked Him many times, but I do not feel forgiven,’

I remember Jean Raddon once telling how a lady said to her,’ I have asked the Lord a hundred times to forgive me.’

Jean answered ,’then you have asked 99 times too many, because when God forgives it is real.

I said to Elsa, ‘ God is a loving heavenly Father, and He keeps His promises. When He says He will forgive you, He means it, and all is forgiven.’

I was totally unprepared for her response. Elsa broke down and sobbed. When the tears subsided, she said, ‘ Do you really mean that?’

‘Mean what?’ ‘ That God keeps His promises?’

‘Of course. The Bible says so. God is faithful and He will forgive exactly as He promised.’

Then out spilled the story. After two hours. Elsa’s father provided well for her and her brothers, but he was a man prone to promise his children all kinds of gifts, outings and presents. Even holidays. But not once were those promises fulfilled. This affected Elsa to the extent that she could not trust anyone’s promises. She was now in her late 40’s , and her Father’s aberration in her childhood restrained her from believing that the loving, tender-hearted and true Father, God, would keep His promise.

‘So all.my confessed sins are forgiven?’, she questioned. ‘Are you sure?’

I reminded her that her father was a man. God is true and faithful. ‘The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin.’ ‘ Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered, and they will not be counted against him/her.’

‘That is enough, I believe.’ And this time the tears were joyful, as she assured us that she understood God’s promises are for real.

That was five years ago and recently I met her in a shopping Mall. Her daughter accompanied her and Elsa said, ‘We have come from our Know Your Bible class.

Oh, it is so wonderful to know more about the Lord Jesus.’

Parents are role-models to their children. When our children were young, I often made promises, and with God’s help, tried to keep them, although at times they were delayed.

When the wheedling cry ‘But you promised…’ was levelled at me, I gave reasons for the delay, but also the assurance that I would keep the promise. When I met Elsa I realised again the importance of training in the home. Her picture of her father held her back, restrained her, from believing that her heavenly Father would keep His promise of forgiveness, salvation and the certainty of eternal life.

A promise is a pledge, an announcement, a divine assurance of good which affects something respecting oneself, and brings good tidings.

God’s good tidings are experienced in the salvation of those who believe and trust in all that He has promised. Yes, eternal life is certain.