Jacob was on one side of the brook Jabbok. Esau was coming with armed men. And Jacob prayed desperately for God's protection. But listen to the master argument that formed the very heart of his prayer: "You said, 'I will surely do you good.'"

Oh, the force of that plea! Jacob was holding God to his own word—"You said it!" God's faithfulness is a magnificent horn of the altar to grab hold of, yes. But a specific promise? That contains his faithfulness and something more. That's an even mightier holdfast. "You said, 'I will surely do you good.'"

And has God said it, only to leave it undone? "Let God be true, and every man a liar." Will he not be true? Will he not keep his word? Will not every single word that has come from his lips stand fast and be fulfilled?

Solomon used this same mighty plea when he dedicated the temple. He pleaded with God to remember the exact words he had spoken to David, his father. He asked God to bless that place based on what God himself had promised.

When a man signs a promissory note, his honor is engaged. He has put his name to it. When the due date arrives, he must discharge it or lose all credit. But it shall never be said that God dishonors his bills! The credit of the Most High has never been impeached and never shall be. He is punctual to the moment. Never before his time. Never behind it. Always exactly on time.

Go ahead—search through God's word! Compare it with the actual experience of God's people through all of history. You shall find the two tally perfectly from first to last. Many a hoary patriarch has echoed Joshua's testimony: "Not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass."

Do you have a divine promise? Then you need not plead it with an "if." You may urge it with certainty! The Lord meant to fulfill that promise, or he never would have given it. God does not give his words merely to quiet us, to keep us hopeful for a while with the intention of putting us off at last. No! When he speaks, it is because he means to do as he has said.