Standing on the promises or sitting on the premises ….? – 19February 2010

That was one of the favourite sayings of Stuart Briscoe, an English evangelist and teacher who had a dramatic effect on my life as a teenager in a very troubled .  I’ll always be profoundly grateful to God for Stuart, because Jesus and His Word became alive and real and my heart was touched profoundly.  I felt that I was taking good steps forward in understanding my faith.  I remember that Stuart had a terrific sense of humour and often his audience would be in paroxysms of laughter.   

What exactly did he mean by asking: are you standing on the promises (of God) or sitting on the premises (that is, just drifting along)?  He was challenging his audience to take God at His word and move forward in faith into a life of fullness in Christ and service for Him.

The point I want to make is this: if God has said something then He means it. His word is His currency and it is up to us to take hold of it.  The more times God states something, the more intensely He means it.

It would be useful to study God’s Word, to discover, for example, how many times God says He is with us.  Emmanuel means “God with us” after all.  Once we have received that truth and thanked God for it, we don’t have to ask Him to be with us – we must stand on the promise that He is with us.  It’s nonsense to ask for something that’s already been given.  This is not a matter of being presumptious but a matter of agreeing with God.

Similarly, when we read the words of Paul about our inheritance as children of God our inclination is to believe that it’s too good to be true or that there’s got to be a catch somewhere.  Yet we are called to be people of faith, people who believe, people who trust what God has said.

King David says in Psalm 119:140:

Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them

And later in verse 148:

My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises.

Dear Father, thank you that you are with me today. Help me to receive your promises and to stand on solid ground with you.