Grace Notes // The Promises of God Week 6

Nothing Has Been Overlooked or Forgotten

Written By Keli Miller

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

For the past 6 weeks (yes it’s really been 6 weeks) we have been anchoring ourselves in God’s promises, in the truth of His word. Promises like our prayers are powerful and effective, Jesus is our living water, and God will fight for us and renew our strength. There is something so powerful about remembering and praying God’s promises. He is unchanging, and all these promises hold true for us today. They serve as anchors to ground us in the storm. 

This past Sunday, we wrapped up our series with three more: 

1) God sees you and is moved by you. 

2) Your story isn’t finished yet.

3) The condition of death is not eternal. 

 Not long after that, Jesus went to the village Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman’s only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. (Luke 7:11-12)

What was true for this woman is also true for you - God is moved by you. When seeing this woman's grief Jesus’ heart broke, and he approached her. When you pray and cry out to God, He doesn’t just hear you, and answers your prayers with an apathetic yes or a no, but feels with you. We have a God who is not afraid of emotions. When I think about this I am reminded of Psalm 56:8, “You’ve kept track of all my wandering and my weeping. You’ve stored my many tears in your bottle—not one will be lost.For they are all recorded in your book of remembrance.”

He said to her, “Don’t cry.” (Luke 7:13)

Jesus isn’t shushing her sadness here. He’s comforting her, and letting her in on a secret she doesn’t yet know. Her story isn’t over yet. As a widow this woman has lost her husband, her children, and with that her livelihood. What was a story, filled with loss and grief that Jesus fills with life in an instant. Now, she has a new story; a story of how Jesus restored life to her son who was dead. If Jesus tells us “don’t cry”, it’s not to dismiss our grief or pain, but because he knows that there’s more. Jesus loves to restore and bring life to the situations that we think have died and He’s not finished writing your story. 

Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, “Young man, I tell you: Get up.” The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother. (Luke 7:14-15)

Death is not the end. For this woman, death literally was not the end of her son's story, as he was raised to life. Jesus is in the business of resurrecting and is interested in resurrecting all humanity. No one and no situation was lost or forgotten.  When all seems dead and lost, I cling to this promise for our future in Revelation, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and eliminate death entirely. No one will mourn or weep any longer. The pain of wounds will no longer exist, for the old order has ceased.” And God-Enthroned spoke to me and said, “Consider this! I am making everything to be new and fresh.”

Nothing has been overlooked or forgotten by God. He sees it all. His heart is moved by your cries and requests. He is writing you a story where death is not the end, but we have everlasting life through Him. If doubt begins to creep in and everything feels dead, remind yourself of the promises of God. Let His words overwhelm you and know that He is a good Father, and has not overlooked a single thing. 

In The Word

Luke 7:11-17 

Psalm 126 

Luke 11:11-13 

Processing 

What areas of your life are you needing to see a resurrection? Maybe a broken relationship, sickness or a loss of faith? 

What promise are you needing to hear most?

Do any of these feel “too good to be true”?