God painted a beautiful picture in the sky today. It was a full rainbow just shortly before dusk. Actually, after transferring the picture to my computer and viewing to scale it down I saw a second, dimmer rainbow. I totally missed it with my naked eye. If you look close at the picture you will be able to see it, if not leave a message and I will post the full size photo somewhere and link to it.
Do you know what the rainbow is? Well, besides the refraction of light in a prismatic effect through moisture droplets. The rainbow is a reminder to us of God's covenant that He will not destroy the Earth with a flood again. You can read about this in Genesis 9 and is summed up by verses 13-17:
I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
Did you catch that this is a covenant that God made? That means it is eternal and He will not break it. It is also one of the many covenants or promises that God makes throughout His Word. Sometimes these promises (covenants) are missed, just like the second rainbow in my picture was by my bare eyes. Most of the time we just gloss right over what God has said He will do and does do for us.
Here are some other promises that God has made to us:
John 5:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
John 10:28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
1 John 1:7-9 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
John 15:7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will[a] ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.
Matthew 11:28-29 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Do you notice anything about these other promises that I referenced? They all require action on our part. If we do this, then God will do that. But look again for the dimmer rainbow, our actions are that of just trusting in God and believing that He will do what is best for us. They only require us to rest in Him and in His Words to remember His promises, His covenants, that He has made with us.
We know that God can't break His promises, it would be a contradiction to who He is. So, we need to merely believe. This sounds a lot like salvation and conversion as well. So much of the "modern message" and the call to sinners is one of works and centered on what a man can do to be saved, instead of a call to just believe what God has already said He will do - He will save us, He will put a new heart in us, He will cause us to walk in His statutes - because, face it, we can't do any of those things. We are born in sin and sin runs our life, we are dead in our trespasses against God and only His call to "Come forth!" can bring life to us, not anything we do. From this trust and belief in God's promises flows repentance, a turning from our sins and to Him, believing His Word and resting in His promises.
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