You Gave Us Your Word
“You gave me your word!” It’s an idiom that means someone promised you something. One context in which you might find yourself using this turn of phrase is as protest when another person doesn’t hold up their end of a deal… Something like: “But you promised, remember?!” The tricky thing about giving someone your word is that, once you give it, you have to keep it. Making promises requires follow-through. To be a person of your word, then, means that others can trust you to do what you said you would. Has someone ever made you a promise that they didn’t follow through on? Have you ever broken a promise you made to someone else?
When I was a kid, I remember spending the day at a friend’s house. Cooped up inside all morning, we were antsy to go out and play. There was a park just a half mile from the house which we knew every square inch of, and my friend’s mom had promised we could go to the park that afternoon if we ate all our lunch and could wait just a couple more hours. With park privileges on the line, I cleaned my plate spotless at lunch… I’m talking carrots and all! One o’clock came and went. Two o’clock came and went. Three o’clock came and went. (Mom usually picked us up around 4:00, but if we left for the park now we could still get in a game of block-off or two before racing home just in time). Four o’clock came, mom pulled in the driveway, I said bye to my friend, and I got in the car feeling let down that we didn’t get to go the park when my friend’s mom had promised we would.
That story has stuck with me all these years, I imagine because it was one of the first real-world experiences I’d had with what it means to promise something. What is a promise? Is it a sure thing? Is it just a hope that may or may not come true? It depends on the follow-through—on what happens between giving someone our word and the fulfillment of that word. We humans make and break promises all the time. But when God makes a promise, it’s a sure thing… sure enough that we are safe to rest our hope in God following through. Numbers 23:19 puts it this way:
When God makes a promise, God follows through. And, throughout the Bible, God makes LOTS of promises. Here are just some of the promises God made long ago:
To Abraham, God promised that through his offspring all nations would be blessed (Genesis 12:3)
To David, God promised that one of his descendants would reign forever (2 Samuel 7:16)
Through the Prophets, God promised a Savior who would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), a King who would establish an eternal Kingdom (Daniel 7:13-14), a Suffering Servant who would lay down his life to heal us (Isaiah 53), and a Shepherd from Bethlehem who would care for His people (Micah 5:2-4)
God promised to give us a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11), to never leave or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:8), and to be with us even in hard times (Isaiah 43:2).
Countless promises—God “giving God’s word”—often in times of uncertainty and suffering to remind people that God was present and at work, even when circumstances seemed bleak. But if I learned anything from that day we DIDN’T GO TO THE PLAYGROUND (really, I’m not still bitter about it), it’s that it’s not always enough to just give your word; promises must be fulfilled. If God gave all these promises to God’s people throughout history, then when and how does God make good on His word? We find the answer in the Gospel of John, chapter 1:
““In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it […] And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.””
God taking on human flesh and living up close?! THAT’S how God decides to fulfill every promise? By being born, living, and dying just like us? How unexpected! How wonderful! How humble! How loving! Through the centuries, God gave His people His word—promises of restoration, salvation, and a Messiah who would come to redeem and renew. And the birth of Jesus is the fulfillment of those promises, a demonstration of God’s unwavering faithfulness. Paul puts it this way in his second letter to the early church in Corinth:
“Every promise God has ever made has its ‘yes’—its fulfillment—in the incarnation of Jesus. For this reason it is through him that we say the ‘Amen,’ to the glory of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)
To fulfill every promise ever made, God gave us His Word, not just in speech this time but incarnate. In the flesh. And it changes the course of creation for eternity. Advent is the season we remember this sacred promise forever kept. Together, we reflect on God’s promises while watching and waiting for their fulfillment. It’s a time of anticipation and hope, trusting God will keep His word, but not knowing exactly how or when it will happen. This Advent, wait with expectation and joy for God’s arrival, assured that God’s promises are more than mere words; they are life, hope, and salvation for the world. As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we rejoice with the angels in heaven and the shepherds on earth that the One who gave us His Word is faithful forever!
