**Sip Saturday is written by our Saturday morning contributor, M.H. Elrich. A beautifully gifted Christian author who seeks to honor the Trinity in her writing. She hopes that her words will encourage women to draw closer to God, whether that is through her fantasy series or her weekly devotionals.
Cornerstone Scripture:
“…consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house.”
-Hebrews 3:1b-2
A wedding ring is considered the symbol of faithfulness going back to ancient times. According to legend, husbands would give their wives a puzzle ring, which was an interlocking ring of bands, in order to ensure fidelity. The idea was the ring would fall apart once a woman removed it to commit adultery, and the wife would be unable to figure out the solution in time to hide her sin. Of course, this is a legend, but it points to how much people value faithfulness.
Anyone who has been in a relationship, whether friendship or marital, understands how rare and valuable it is to find faithfulness or loyalty. I’m certain I am not alone in experiencing betrayal and hurt from someone I thought was faithful. Such pain makes it hard to trust another person. Yet, to live alone without trusting or letting anyone in is not what God calls us to do (Hebrews 10:25). Instead, we should cling to the one who is faithful and trust that He will bring along people who can be trusted.
Jesus is the most faithful person to ever live. He was loyal to God even to the point of laying down his own life, trusting that God would raise him from the dead. This kind of steadfastness is compared to Moses’ in an effort to point to Jesus’ superiority. Moses was faithful to God, but his angry outburst prevented him from seeing the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 3:23-29; Numbers 20:10-13). He served God to the end of his life, but Jesus completed his life without any sin to mar it.
If Jesus is faithful to us, how much more are we called to be faithful to Him. This simple principle is harder than you may think. Can you be faithful to Jesus when you lose a loved one? Can you hold tight to Him when you battle cancer? Can you face the loss of a job or income and remain steadfast to the Savior of our souls?
It’s hard to have faith when terrible suffering comes, but take heart knowing that you’re not alone. Jesus knows what suffering you have faced because he faced it himself. His faithfulness to death is evidence that we should hold on in the midst of the storms of life. Jesus is an overcomer, and one day, our suffering will be over. Until then, hold fast to the author and perfecter of our lives.
Let’s pray.
Dear Lord, help me to remain steadfast to you. Even when the suffering comes, let me be loyal to you. In your Son’s name I pray, Amen.
Yes, there are challenging times for sure. Each of us 'go through the wringer'. Peter thought he was loyal to Jesus. Thankfully Jesus reinstated him and you can tell Peter has grown because of what he says in Acts. But Peter still got a deeper understanding of ministry to the Gentiles later on. If we never experience the valley, what needs refining is not evident.
Thank you and Bless you