One Condition For the Promises of God

When Christians say we will do something in the future, we often follow it with the words “God willing.” It’s a reference to James 4:15 and an acknowledgement that we are not in control; God is. But the Bible is filled with verses that tell us what God will and shall do. And, when God says it, it’s as good as a promise. In fact, Isaiah 55:11 tells us that God’s word will not return void. Instead, it will accomplish exactly what God sent it to do. We can stand on these promises and know that God will (or shall) do what He says. There is, however, a small requirement in order for those promises of God to apply to us. It’s actually the same one that applied to the Israelites over three thousand years ago. God’s one condition is that God must be our God.

God is the Same

Have you read the Old Testament lately? I read the Bible sequentially, a chapter or few at a time in the Old Testament and a chapter or few in the New Testament each night, however I feel led. It usually takes me about 14 months to get through the Old Testament. I just keep going round and round with the New Testament during that time. In the morning, I read a chapter or two from my phone in a different spot in the New Testament. I love it because so many times I’m exactly where I need to be in the Bible for God to speak into my situation. And sometimes, there are even parallels that I can notice from being in several places at once.

One thing I noticed is that God wasn’t kidding. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Despite some of the issues and incidents that we have a hard time understanding in the Old Testament, one thing is sure. God LOVES His people. He loved the ancient Israelites, and He loves those of us who name the name of Christ today. And whether then or now, there are tons and tons of benefits that go along with being one of God’s beloved. He totally takes care of His own. But God’s one condition for those promises to take affect was and is that God must be our God.

God Was Their God

If you have spent any time in the Old Testament, you know the phrase. “And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord.” It’s like a bad chorus. There will be chapters when everything is fine, humming along with God fighting battles for the nation and blessing individuals. Then all of a sudden, Bam! The people disobey and serve other gods, so God has to judge them. Sometimes He sends the people into captivity. Sometimes He brings a pestilence or makes their enemies win in battle.

In any case, after a while, the people begin to cry for mercy. God hears their cries and brings them back to Himself. The people vow to serve God, He prospers them, and then they are off to worship idols again. It’s a vicious cycle, really. Deuteronomy 28 lays out the blessings and curses in a more formal manner, but we get the idea. When His people focused on Him and obeyed, they got blessings. When they ignored God or disobeyed Him, they got curses.

God Is Our God

It’s the same thing for us today. We aren’t following Old Testament laws, but we are absolutely in a covenant relationship with God through the blood of Christ. Acts 5:22 says that God gives His Holy Spirit to those who obey, and obey we must. We, too, must avoid the idols of our land. But our idols aren’t golden calves or statues. Our idols can be anything. They can be material possessions, politicians, ourselves, or anything else we set up as a little “g” god in our hearts.

And, our obedience comes not in making animal sacrifices or eating or avoiding certain foods. It comes from having faith and listening to the Holy Spirit when He speaks to us. Just like Israel, God’s one condition for us to receive the promises of God and the benefits of being God’s children is to serve Him as God. That means, according to Romans 12:1, that we give Him our everything. It’s our reasonable service, after all.

God’s Wills and Shalls

Here is a list of the wills and shalls of God I collected this week. I started by searching all the promises of God. Then I narrowed them down to the ones that didn’t seem like specific prophecies in physical Israel’s history or future. I kept the ones that apply to everyone during the end times. As a whole, these are promises that you and I can stand on. They are benefits of being God’s children as long as we fulfill God’s one condition. We must serve Him as our God. I know I probably missed a few because they are all over the Bible. They are kind of fun to watch for as you read. If you think of one (or find one) I missed, please put it in the comments.

God Will Fight For Us

Exodus 14:14 “The Lord will fight for you, and you shall holdyour peace.”
Deuteronomy 28:7 “The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.

God Will Deliver Us and Honor Us

Psalm 50:15 “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”
Psalm 91:3 “Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence.”
Psalm 91:14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name.”
Psalm 91:15 “He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.”
Hosea 2:19-20 “I will betroth you to Me forever; yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in loving kindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord.”
2 Timothy 4:18 “And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!”

God Will Be With Us & Give Us Rest

Old Testament

Exodus 33:14 “And He said, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:8 “And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.”
Zephaniah 3:17 “The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”

New Testament

Matthew 11:28-30 “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. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
2 Corinthians 6:16-17 “And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore ‘Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.'”
Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’”
Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

God Will Be Gracious/Have Compassion and Mercy

Exodus 33:19 “Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”
Isaiah 30:18 “Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him.”
Lamentations 3:32 “Though He causes grief, yet He will show compassion according to the multitude of His mercies.”
Hosea 2:23 “Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, and I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; then I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’”
Micah 7:19 “He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”
Zechariah 1:3 “Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Return to Me,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the Lord of hosts.”
Acts 13:34 “And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus: ‘I will give you the sure mercies of David.’”

God Will Provide For Us And Strengthen Us

Habakkuk 3:19 “The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills...”
Isaiah 41:10 “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
Luke 11:13 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
Luke 12:28 “If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?”
Romans 8:32 “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”
Philippians 4:19 “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

God Will Bless Us And Honor Us

Old Testament

1 Samuel 2:30 “Therefore the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever.’ But now the Lord says: ‘Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.
Psalm 5:12 “For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.”
Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 84:11 “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”
Psalm 85:12 “Yes, the Lord will give what is good; and our land will yield its increase.”
Psalm 91:16 “With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation.”

More Old Testament

Psalm 115:12-13 “The Lord has been mindful of us; He will bless us; He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron. He will bless those who fear the Lord, both small and great.”
Psalm 145:18-20 “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them. The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.”
Malachi 3:10 “’Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.”

New Testament

Matthew 7:11 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!”
John 14:13 “’And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.’”
John 14:15-16 “’If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—’”
Acts 2:38-39 “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
2 Corinthians 6:18 “‘I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.”
James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

God Will Protect Us And Keep Us

Old Testament

1 Samuel 2:9 “He will guard the feet of His saints, but the wicked shall be silent in darkness. For by strength no man shall prevail.”
Psalm 55:22 “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”
Psalm 91:4 “He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.”
Psalm 91:11“For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”
Psalm 111:5 “He has given food to those who fear Him; He will ever be mindful of His covenant.”
Psalm 121:3-4 “He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
Psalm 121:7 “The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.”
Psalm 121:8 “The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore.”
Joel 3:16 “The Lord also will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and earth will shake; but the Lord will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel.”

New Testament

1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”
2 Thessalonians 3:3 “But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one.”
Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;”
2 Corinthians 4:14 “knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.

God Will Hear Us/Be Found By Us

1 Chronicles 28:9 “’As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever.”
2 Chronicles 7:14 “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 30:9 “For if you return to the Lord, your brethren and your children will be treated with compassion by those who lead them captive, so that they may come back to this land; for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face from you if you return to Him.”
Psalm 4:3 “But know that the Lord has set apart for Himself him who is godly; the Lord will hear when I call to Him.”
Psalm 102:17 “He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, and shall not despise their prayer.”
Jeremiah 29:11-12 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.”
Jeremiah 33:3 “‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’”
Micah 7:7 “Therefore I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.”

God Will Teach Us And Guide Us

Psalm 25:12 “Who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses.”
Psalm 32:8 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
Isaiah 41:13 “For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’”
John 16:13 “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

End Times Promises

Job 19:25-27 “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!”
Ezekiel 11:19-20 “Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.”
Ezekiel 34:11-12 “‘For thus says the Lord God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day.”
Daniel 2:44 “And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”
Hosea 13:14 “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction! Pity is hidden from My eyes.”
Joel 2:25 “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.”
Joel 2:28-30 “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke.”
Haggai 2:6-7 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts.
Zechariah 14:9 “And the Lord shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be—’The Lord is one,’ and His name one.”

God Will Be a Judge And Avenger

Ecclesiastes 12:14 “For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”
Isaiah 2:4 “He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”
Micah 4:3 “He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war anymore.”
Nahum 1:2-3 “God is jealous, and the Lord avenges; the Lord avenges and is furious. the Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies; the Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.”
Nahum 1:9 “What do you conspire against the Lord? He will make an utter end of it. Affliction will not rise up a second time.”

God Will Be With Us In Eternity

John 14:1-3 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 ^“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”
2 Timothy 4:8 “Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.”
Revelation 3:5 “He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.”
Revelation 3:21 “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”
Revelation 11:15 “Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”
Revelation 21:4 “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Revelation 21:6-7 “And He said to me, “Itis done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.

The Promises of God

God’s promises are true, and His Word stands forever. God’s one condition to reap all the benefits of His many promises is simple: He must be our God, and we must serve and obey Him in faith as His children. Hebrews 10:23 says. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” Keep this list handy to remind yourself the great blessings that God has promised His people. Pray them in faith and believe with your heart that God will do what He says He will.

If you like articles about God’s promises, try Instead of Fear, Choose Faith in God’s Promises. In it, we look at the five kinds of fear and the verses that speak to them. Or, try Standing on the Promises of God . It is about a situation at school that taught me to stand against the devil and praise God’s name. Please make sure to subscribe via email in the upper right hand corner. Also, check out my YouTube channel in which I read the blogs out loud. I also have a playlist of hymns from my church.