God Is _______નમૂનો

God Is Faithful

And [the LORD] passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” Exodus 34:6-7 NIV

We’ve examined a few attributes of God, and we can find countless more throughout Scripture. But in Exodus chapter 34, God reveals five specific things about Himself to Moses: He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, loving, and faithful.

In this same passage, God tells Moses that He also doesn’t allow the guilty to go unpunished. It seems like a jarring shift, right? God wants His people to know He’s loving and faithful and slow to anger … but also He’ll punish those who have it coming. How do we reconcile that tension of God’s justice and His love?

For starters, we tend to view things in black and white. But God transcends the boxes we try to put Him in. He’s not only loving—He’s also just, which is why He can’t allow the guilty to go unpunished. Yet He is merciful, too, meaning that while He punishes a few generations, He shows love to thousands of them.

God’s love and His justice are both on display throughout Scripture. They are a huge part of His faithfulness.

God’s grand plans to restore our relationship with Him begin with a promise He makes to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis. He says that He will bless the world through their descendants—a promise ultimately fulfilled in Jesus.

But we humans predictably continue to disregard our side of the bargain. As Moses is speaking with God, the rest of the people grow impatient and decide to worship a golden calf statue instead. Yet because of His faithfulness to His promises, God does not destroy them.

Instead, those who continue to disobey Him and walk away from Him receive punishment, but those who repent are given another chance.

And throughout many other failures by humans, God’s faithfulness remains, which is evident through Jesus fulfilling God’s promise.

So every time we mess up or miss the mark again, we can come running back to God, thankful that our failures don’t discount God’s faithfulness to forgive and to uphold His promises.

Pray: God, thank You for Your faithfulness through Jesus and throughout my life. Even when I am unfaithful or fail, You never fail me, and I praise You for that. Give me eyes to see Your faithfulness at work, and grow my faith in the process. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Challenge: Reflect on specific times in your life where you’ve seen the faithfulness of God. Consider making a list to refer to often.