There ARE Guarantees in Life!

I woke up in the middle of the night last night thinking about how when bad things happen people sometimes say, "well, after all, there are no guarantees in life." Truth is, there ARE guarantees in life, and I'm not just talking about death and taxes. I don't remember ever hearing anyone question that statement, so I thought it was time that someone did.

Life is full of guarantees. Most appliances are guaranteed to be free from defects. Unfortunately, some of them aren't. The guarantee is really only stipulating that the manufacturer will reimburse you in the event that there are defects. Many diet pills and potions come with money-back guarantees. But these don't guarantee that you'll actually lose weight, only that your money will be refunded if you don't. Most guarantees are not what they seem.

Thankfully, however, there are guarantees that we can count on. The Apostle Paul offered great hope in his first letter to the church at Corinth. "But the truth is that Christ has been raised from death, as the guarantee that those who sleep in death will also be raised." (1 Cor. 15:20, GNT) What better guarantee than to know that if we believe and receive Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, He is our guarantee of eternal life with Him in heaven. Death isn't the end for believers because we're guaranteed a resurrection and eternal life with Christ.

In his second letter to the church at Corinth, the Apostle Paul shared that God "has put his seal on us, and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee for the future." (2 Cor. 1:22, The Complete Jewish Bible) Later in that same letter, Paul states, "God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit." (2 Cor. 5:5, NLT) God never intended for us to wonder about our security. He wants us to know that we are secure in Him, so much so, that He placed His very Spirit in us lasting evidence of that fact.

"Well, that's great," you might be thinking, "but what about this life?" Take heart, we have plenty of guarantees for this life, too. In his letter to the church at Ephesus, Paul reminds us that, "The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us everything he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. This is just one more reason for us to praise our glorious God." (Eph. 1:14 NLT)

How exciting to know that inviting God's Son, Jesus into our hearts and lives also brings His Holy Spirit into our hearts as a guarantee of all that God has promised us. Later in that letter, Paul gives us more hope. "...The Spirit is God's mark of ownership on you, a guarantee that the Day will come when God will set you free." (Eph. 4:30, GNT) And some of that freedom is for this life!

Hebrews states very clearly "When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee -" (Heb. 6:17, The Message) It also says "This makes Jesus the guarantee of a far better way between us and God - one that really works! A new covenant." (Heb 7:22, Holman Christian Standard Bible) That covenant (or testament) is the one that all true Christians live under today! It's our assurance that full payment has been made for all our sins; past, present, and future. It's the guarantee that frees us from the penalty of sin, the power of sin, and ultimately, the very presence of sin.

Besides these God-given guarantees, there are some practical guarantees that we have as well. For example, we hear often that desire and effort are not necessarily guarantees of success. While that may or may not be true, the lack of effort is almost surely a guarantee of failure. You've no doubt heard the popular definition of insanity--doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results. Here we find yet another guarantee, not that the new things you try will get you what you want, but that not trying anything different will keep you stuck in the same rut you've always been in.

In an age when most guarantees mean little or nothing, isn't is nice to know that the most important ones are virtually "set in stone." For example, we have the guarantee that God "will never leave nor forsake us." (Heb. 13:5) A few verses later we also are guaranteed that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Heb. 13:8) Peter gave us the good news that Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, "has given us everything we need to live a godly life." (2 Pet. 1:3, NLT) Even in the old covenant, particularly in the Psalms, believers had constant reminders that God was faithful and that his love endures forever!

Next time someone tries to tell you that there are no guarantees in life, humbly beg to differ with them. God's Holy Spirit is our ever-present, ever-faithful Guarantee!