Genesis 9:12-13, "And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth."

This morning, God's promises are as sure as they were before He created this temporal frame. Since He is able to see the end from the beginning, He can make a promise sure the moment that He first ordains it.  He foreordained to love a people by election, and they are still just as loved today and throughout eternity as they were at the moment He went into covenant with Himself to love them. This is the nature of our God, and nothing with Him changes. He is invariable and has no shadow of turning. All of His promises are yea and amen.

Here, God gives a sign of one of His promises, but it is a picture of all of His promises. The Lord establishes the covenant of the bow in the clouds (rainbow). This is a sign that He will never again destroy the entire earth by a flood. By the way, this proves that the first flood covered the entire globe.  Let us reason for a moment. If God gives us rainbows today and local floods, then one can only reach two
conclusions. Either God told the truth or He did not.  The conclusion to take is obvious. Local floods prove that the first was global, for the Lord established His bow in the clouds as a token NEVER to bring that kind of judgment again. Therefore, it HAD to be global the first time.  

Also, the bow represents a picture of the manner of all the Lord's covenants.  The bow is really a complete circle. If one flies in a plane above a rainbow, he will see an entire circle. Therefore, God's covenants ALL are without beginning or ending - just like a ring that couples give and exchange on their wedding day. The ring is a symbol of love that is supposed to last the duration of the lifetime.  Since our Lord always exists, His existence to ordain and keep promises is never-ending. This circle represents the eternal nature of all of His promises.   

Now, we can only see in part and know in part while on the earth. Another point to consider is that the only thing keeping us from seeing the entire picture of the rainbow is the EARTH. The curvature of the earth and our perspective gives us only half the vision. What keeps us from seeing the entire picture of heaven, glory, and our God? It is our flesh. Our flesh prevents us from knowing as we are known. Therefore, the half of God's promises has not been told TO US. The half has been told, but it has not been told TO US yet.  

There are saints of God repeating the story over and over in heaven right now, and one day, we will be doing the same. It is a story and song that we will never tire from, for this weak flesh will no longer get in our way. No longer will we get tired (like at a good meeting). No longer will we need to attend to these bodies. They will be fashioned like unto His glorious body, and we will forever sing His praises throughout all eternity.  Then, we can know the fullness of God's mercy and grace towards us. But until that blessed day, may we look at the tokens that He has given to us to comfort us in our journey here below.

In Hope,

Bro Philip