WHEN IN DELIGHT I ask for a sign by which to remember some
sweet promise, the sign itself becomes a keepsake, a treasure among my
possessions. It reflects both the trust of the promise and the trustworthiness
of the promisor.
When in doubt I demand a sign as proof that a certain
promise can and will be kept, that
sign becomes a cold legality, a contract, a bond that binds the promisor. It
reflects the mistrust of the promise, the presumption of fault in the promisor.
Thirty years ago my wife and I made foundational promises
each to the other: to be faithful unto death. This is not a merely sentimental
thing. It is absolutely the ground upon which we build stability in an unstable
world, something as solemn as a rock. But it is also a dear thing—and the
promise itself binds us together. Therefore, the signs of it are
unnecessary but are treasures
nevertheless; our golden rings; letters written in absence; certain anniversary
traditions.
But there are husbands and wives from whom the promise
itself is not enough. Their
uncertainty, their personal stability in an unstable world, cannot be built on
mere promises, since each sees the other as potentially a part of that unstable world! Therefore, they
create legal signs to establish the promise. They bind one another to contracts
constructed to outlast any promise of faithfulness: prenuptial agreements.
These signs are not treasures. They are grim necessities made powerful by a
codified judiciary.
Now, then apply the same alternatives to our relationship
with God. How do we react to the promises God makes unto us? In delight do we
seek a keepsake?—or in doubt do we demand proofs?
Be wary, my
friend: when God is the promisor, delight and doubt reveal no one but
ourselves. For God is faithful. God is trustworthy (read Isa. 44:6-8). God is
unlike the world altogether. He gives keepsakes of his promises, surely. Unto
faith, God grants signs in abundance: rainbows, pillars of fire and cloud,
water in the wilderness, lightning to consume Elijah’s wet sacrifice, and this
sign: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name
Immanuel.”
Again, God
is faithful. He does not change. Therefore, if we feel that we must bind him to
his promises by some sign, some extra proof (which for God is precisely as
insulting as it is unnecessary), we will only bind ourselves. That sign will
burden us like a punishment. And more than we ourselves shall suffer for this,
our faithlessness.
Jesus says,
“I am coming soon.” And how do you respond? Oh, let it be as a bride responds
to the promise of the bridegroom, adorning yourself for his return, joyfully
shouting with the Spirit, “Come!” (Rev. 21:2, 9; 22:17). Then your joy, your
present beauty, your complete sense of assurance and belonging—these shall be
signs of the Lord’s trustworthiness and of our trust, signs of his love until
he comes in glory.
“Amen!
Come, Lord Jesus!”
Excerpt from Preparing
for Jesus by Walter Wangerin, Jr.
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