Read the Bible to find out about promises God has given

What is your favorite Bible verse or promise? That's a question I get from time to time. To be honest there are so many Scriptures and so many wonderful promises found in the word of God that it's hard for me to say which is my favorite. The Apostle Paul wrote about God's promises several times but what he told the Corinthian Christians is something you can count on.

2 Corinthians 1:20, "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'yes' in Christ. And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God."

Jesus is the fulfillment of all that God has promised. Promises of forgiveness of sins are found in Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice. Promises of eternal life are found in his resurrection from the dead. Promises of the Holy Spirit are given to those who abide in the Lord. All the promises, no matter how many God has given, are complete in Christ. To that all the people of faith say "Amen." Amen means "I agree." Do you agree with that statement? If you are a person of faith, you should.

Often life brings hard times, that's just reality. The Bible says "the rain falls on the just and the unjust." That means all people face the same things in life. Sometimes people of faith have children who rebel. Sometimes people who love God have health issues.

Sometimes the most devout Christian faces financial problems that they did not cause.

In 2 Corinthians, that same Paul, wrote of his many personal issues. He went to Macedonia to preach the Gospel and found no rest, he was harassed by religious hypocrites, he found conflicts at every turn, and even feared for his own life. But something happened.

2 Corinthians 7:6, "But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus."

God came though. He brought comfort to Paul by sending a young man, Titus, to bring him help. I love that phrase, "but God." When trouble comes to those who are downcast, it matters not how big it is, God comes through. Will the issues go away? Can you just claim some money or health and God beckons like a genie in a lamp? No, that is misuse of the promises of God. But he is called the "God of all comfort," his nature is "compassionate, gracious, and slow to anger." He desires that all would come to him for forgiveness and restoration. So those who have faith in Christ can agree with Paul, that all the promises of God are for them.

My favorite Bible verses are the ones where God demonstrates his love, not based on my performance or my devotion, but based on his great love. His love was demonstrated on the cross as Jesus Christ bore in himself the sin of the world. If you don't know these promises God has given, read your Bible to find out. More importantly, give your life to him, then say Amen.

Pastor Rich Lammay of High Sierra Fellowship is a member of the Carson Valley Ministers' Association.