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Why the Promises of God Matter

Honorable and Effective Promises That Transform Life

When scripture speaks of the promises of God, it speaks of divine assurances but much more. God’s promises are honorable because they flow from His character, and they are effective because they accomplish what He intends. They are not merely words to be believed, but realities to be entered into. Paul writes Jesus is the substance and reality of God's promises of old. Through God’s promises, believers do not simply receive information about salvation—they receive participation in the life of God Himself.

The apostle Peter captures this truth with striking clarity:

 "His divine power is freely given to us all, that for life and godliness through the knowledge of the one calling us, by his own glory and might..." (2 Peter 1:3)

“... through which He has given us honorable and effective promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” (2 Peter 1:4)

This verse reveals both why the promises of God matter and what they are meant to produce. They are given so that God’s people might be transformed—delivered from corruption and brought into living fellowship with God. Jesus came to deliver us from wrath but also so we might live through him (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10; Romans 5:9).

Promises Rooted in God’s Character

God’s promises are trustworthy because they arise from who He is. Scripture repeatedly grounds promise in God’s faithfulness:

“God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind.” (Numbers 23:19)

Because God is faithful, His promises are honorable. They carry moral weight and covenantal certainty. When God promises, He binds Himself to act, not because of human merit, but because of His steadfast love and truth.

This is why Paul can declare:

“For all the promises of God find their Yes and Amen in Him.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Every promise finds its fulfillment in Christ, and every fulfilled promise flows to believers through union with Him in a new covenant.

Effective Promises That Bring New Life

Peter does not merely say that God gives promises; he says they are effective. They produce something real in those who receive them. Through these promises, believers:

  • Escape the corruption of sinful desire

  • Become partakers of the divine nature

  • Enter into transformed life

This transformation is not achieved through human effort or moral striving. It is the result of God’s own life at work within the believer through the Holy Spirit.

As explored more fully in Honorable and Effective Promises and Through Honorable and Effective Promises We Overcome, God’s promises function as instruments of divine power. They operate in believers to bring about what God has purposed and promised (established on nothing greater than His oath, which he can not go back on, so according to his promises which fulfills his purpose) aligning lives with His will and purposes.

Escaping Corruption Through Participation, Not Performance

The world’s corruption flows from the sinful nature; passions of the flesh, disordered desires, and life apart from God. Scripture does not present escape from corruption as the result of stricter law-keeping, but as the fruit of participation in God’s promises. The promise of eternal life is central. 

Jesus Himself taught that new life is essential:

“Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5-9)

Jesus clarifies what this means as Nicodemus took it as being born again from a woman, from an earthly birth view, but Jesus said what is flesh is flesh and what is Spirit is Spirit, and like the wind so are those "born of the Spirit." To summarize what Jesus said, "one must be born of the Spirit." This new birth is the fulfillment of God’s promises. It brings believers into a new realm of existence, where life flows from him.

Paul describes this same reality when he writes:

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

The promises of God do not simply restrain sinful desire; they replace it with something greater, a higher power and affection—life shared with God Himself.

Partakers of the Divine Nature

To be a partaker of divine nature does not mean in this life we will be without sin, though there will be a day when we see Jesus face to face and receive the fullness God has purpose in Christ. Rather, today and forever it means sharing in God’s life, character, and righteousness through the indwelling Holy Spirit. Believers are drawn into fellowship with God and transformed into the likeness of Christ who represents Christlikeness, shaping them in holiness, love, and righteousness—not by coercion, but by communion.

The Holy Spirit: The Living Fulfillment of Promise

God’s promises find their present fulfillment through the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is not merely a sign that promises are true; He is the means by which they become lived reality.

Paul explains:

“When you believed, you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.” (Ephesians 1:13)

The Spirit applies God’s promises internally, producing assurance, transformation, and obedience from the heart. What God promises externally, He fulfills internally by His Spirit.

This is why the promises of God are inseparable from the Spirit’s work. Without the Spirit, promises remain distant. With the Spirit, they become life.

Why This Matters for Everyday Faith

Understanding the promises of God reshapes how believers live:

  • Hope replaces despair, because God’s promises are secure.

  • Obedience flows from life, not fear or obligation.

  • Holiness becomes relational, not legalistic.

  • Faith becomes participatory, not merely intellectual.

Believers are called not merely to believe God’s promises, but to live in them. Through them, God forms a people who reflect His character and share in His life.

A Foundation for the Series: The Promises of God

This article serves as a foundation for The Promises of God series. Each installment explores how God’s promises unfold through the New Covenant—beginning with the promised Holy Spirit, continuing through redemption and inheritance, and culminating in resurrection and eternal dwelling with God.

The promises of God matter because they reveal God’s heart, accomplish His purposes, and transform His people. Through His honorable and effective promises, God brings His children into life, freedom, and fellowship with Himself.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3)

God’s promises are not distant hopes. They are present realities—given, fulfilled, and lived out through the Spirit, to the praise of His glory.

The Promises of God — Part I: The Promised Holy Spirit

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