I am currently studying and teaching through the book of 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles. This past week my study was in 1 Kings 3-4 and 2 Chronicles 1. In this section of the Scriptures we have the recording of the establishment of David’s son Solomon’s Kingdom. In 1 Kings 4:20-21 we read, “Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance; they were eating and drinking and rejoicing. Now Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt…” 

If we look back in history over 1000 years before we meet a man named Abram who God called out of the Ur of Chaldeans to follow Him. This God explained to this Abram that He was the Most High God, the Almighty God, the Everlasting God; and He made Abram a promise. He promised him that He would make him a great nation and through Him all the families of the world would be blessed (Genesis 12). He promised him that he would have a son from his own body and his own wife and that he would have descendants as the stars of the sky and the sand of the seashore. He also told him that He was going to give him the land from the river of Egypt to the great river Euphrates  (Genesis 15). This Abram was Solomon’s fourteen greats grandfather.

God keeps His promises.

Abram, who became Abraham, didn’t get to see it all come to fruition, but he believed it (Genesis 15:6). He knew that if God said it, He would indeed see that it all came to pass.

The Lord has done what He purposed; He has accomplished His word which He commanded from days of old. 

Lamentations 2:17

Whether it be judgment or blessing, if our God has promised it, He will see it accomplished. He keeps His word.

In 2 Chronicles 1:9 Solomon prayed, “Now, O LORD God, Your promise to my father David is fulfilled, for You have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth.” This was true, however, Solomon was a little short-sighted in his prayer of thanksgiving. This promise from God to David was not just for this time in the life of Solomon, but it is a promise that reaches much further (2 Samuel 7:8-17). It is a promise that pointed to a son to come; the son who would be the Son of Man and the Son of God, Jesus the Messiah. The fulfillment of this promise in the days of Solomon was yet to come, but we now see it.

We now stand on this side of the fulfillment of the promise of David and we see this eternal Kingdom coming, yet we also still wait for this promise to be complete. We wait for our God to bring ALL of this King of kings enemies under His feet. We serve Him as we are used by Him to build His kingdom. He has promised us that as we serve Him He is preparing our place in His kingdom (John 14).  How can we believe Him? How can we trust that He is doing exactly what He said He is doing? The nation of Israel stands as witness that we can.

This tiny nation, in the midst of an enormous planet, that through the ages has remained unable to be destroyed, no matter how great her enemy or how violent her attack, stands as a glorious witness to the validity of God’s Word. It stands as a testament that His promises will be kept. When the enemy of our souls tries to make us doubt our God, all we have to do is turn our eyes to the still existing and thriving nation of Israel.

Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’

Exodus 19:5-6

There is a reason that this nation has always been targeted. There is a reason that so many through the years have tried again and again to destroy this country. There is a reason that so many have tried to wipe it off the map. The reason is bigger than the fight over land. The reason is larger than the greed of man. The reason is rooted in the serpent of old, Satan, who stands against the Creator God and all that is His.

If Satan can destroy this nation and destroy those who call her home then he can wipe out her memory and he can wipe out all she represents… but the simple fact of the matter is that no matter how hard he tries he will never succeed.

Beloved, I do not know what you are struggling with today. I do not know what doubts and fears are threatening your hope and peace today, but I write this today to encourage you to look to the reality of a little nation in a big world. A nation that for all human reasoning should not even exist, but because she is protected by a Sovereign God who made a promise to one man over 4000 years ago, she still stands. We serve a God who has kept His Word to one man for all this time, regardless of the actions of those who came after him. This same God has made promises to us… and we can trust Him to keep every single one.