Word of Encouragement (8/21/2020)

Yesterday, we started to talk about Andrew Gray’s six respects in which Christ is the fountainhead of the divine promises. We took a look at the first three: Christ is the fountainhead because 1) He purchased the promises by His own blood; 2) He is the One to whom the promises of the covenant were first made, and through Him they are given to us; 3) in Him we have a right to all the promises. Today, we will consider the rest.

“Fourth, Christ is the fountainhead because He makes us rest on the promises and believe in them” as “the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2).

“Fifth, Christ is the fountainhead because He qualifies us for the accomplishment of the promises and infuses habitual grace in us by which we may exercise faith upon them. If Christ did not help us, we would never believe a single promise offered in Scripture, and not a single promise would be accomplished for us.” It is clear that, even though God gives us more than what we ask for, including many things we didn’t even ask for, God delights in our faith and faith-full prayers to grant us what He promised. Few things boost our faith and help us feel closer to God like an answered prayer. When our trust in God is met with God’s faithfulness, our bond with God is strengthened and deepened.

“Finally, Christ is the fountainhead of the promises because all the promises of the covenant are accomplished through Him”: “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him” (2 Cor. 1:20). “No wonder Christ calls us to Himself (Matt. 11:28), no wonder the Father draws us unto Christ (John 6:44-45), and no wonder the Holy Spirit unites us with Christ (Rom. 8:11)….”

Having been reminded of this truth, we should be all the more mindful of the foolishness and evil Jer. 2:13 speaks of: “my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”

Let us also be mindful of the two senses in which Christ is the fountainhead of the divine promises: 1) not only is He the One from whom all the promises of God flow; 2) He is also the Sum of all of God’s promises. We must not approach Him merely as a means to get blessings of God; we must approach Him as the greatest Blessing of all. Let us grow in our enjoyment of Him more and more!

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