“But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not 'Yes' and 'No.' 19. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by me and Silas and Timothy, was not 'Yes' and 'No,' but in Him it has always been 'Yes' 20. For no matter how many promises God hasmade, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And through Him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God.” (NIV)
Paul was being criticized by Corinthian Christians because he promised that he would visit them at a certain time, but that visit did not happen because God had other plans. In our text, Paul is defending his honesty by informing them that he did not make promises lightly, and that his message was never “Yes” and “No.” From this explanation Paul saw an opportunity to share a great truth about Christ. His message was that in Christ all of God’s promises are “Yes.” Christ is God’s “Yes” to all that God has in store for us. This reality has not changed, for Christ is still God’s “Yes” to us and to all generations. The following points will explain what it has meant, and still means, that Christ is God’s “Yes.” Christ is God’s “Yes” to a promised Messiah. Without going into great detail about Old Testament prophecies of Christ, it will be sufficient to say that when Christ came everything that was written and promised about Him in the Old Testament was fulfilled. He was God’s resounding “Yes” to this promise. Not everyone realized this, especially the Scribes and Pharisees, but it was, and is, true today as well. Christ is God’s “Yes” to the salvation that we can have through Him. When we use the word “saved” it sometimes confuses people who do not understand what God has done for them. But it is a sweet word to us, for we know that in Christ God said “Yes, you can be saved, delivered and cleansed from sin.” Sin is our great enemy and without God’s “Yes” in Christ it will totally defeat us. Being saved means that we have been delivered from the penalty of sin. We have God’s promise that if we will put our faith in Jesus, we will be saved, that is, we will become God’s children through adoption into His family. This promise is true for everyone who lives on this earth. The Bible says that “whosoever will may come.” It should be our prayer that people all over the world will respond in a positive manner to God’s “Yes.” Christ is God’s “Yes” to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Here is what Paul wrote about this promise in verses 21-22 of 2 Corinthians 1: “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. 22. He anointed us, and set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit guaranteeing what is to come.” The Holy Spirit brings a lot into our lives about which we do not have room to write at the present time, but when we are saved, God’s promise of the Holy Spirit to help us live for Jesus becomes a reality. Here is one promise made in John 16:13-14: “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; but He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is to come. 14. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it made known to you.” Christ is God’s “Yes” to us that we can spend eternity with Him when we have faith in Him and turn our lives over to Him. In John 14 Jesus promised that He would prepare a place for us. Specifically, He promised: “I am going to prepare a place for you. I will come back and take you with me that you also may be where I am…” I have not written anything new in this article, but I hope that a reminder of what we have in Jesus will give you a blessed day, and make you have a greater appreciation for what God’s “Yes” in Christ means to you. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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