Faithful Fruit That Remains!

God is faithful. Always. In fact, faithfulness is a core attribute of God. It is who He is, and we would do well to both stand on this truth and emulate it.

There are many accounts in Scripture of God’s faithfulness. Tragically, there are also many accounts of people who went through hardships or even times of great blessing, yet did not trust God to be faithful. People who decided that they would rather trust their circumstances, human logic, or feelings rather than trust God to do what He says He will do. People who trusted the temporal rather than the eternal.

It is always dangerous and inappropriate to associate the character of God with the character of humans. People can hurt us and let us down. People can be influenced by evil and walk away from responsibilities, covenants, and families. People can steal, lie, slander, gossip, and cheat. In Psalm 50, God provides a list of deplorable human qualities and then declares the good news that He is not like us.

Unlike people, God is faithful to keep His promises. Here are just a few of the promises God provides to us in Scripture:

• “I will never leave you or abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5 CSB)

• “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1 CSB)

• “You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13 CSB)

• “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28 CSB)

• “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, I have continued to extend faithful love to you.” (Jeremiah 31:3 CSB)

• He is faithful and loving to point out our sin. (Romans 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9)

• “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 CSB) (To learn more about what it means to repent, click here.)

He will always be faithful to His word. In John 1, Jesus is identified as the Word of God, and in Revelation 19 Jesus is identified as Faithful and True. Jesus – the very Word of God – is Faithful and True.

To understand what it means to be faithful, let us first look at the word faith. Faith is a noun which is defined in Hebrews 11:1 (CSB), “Now faith is the reality [or assurance] of what is hoped for, the proof [or conviction] of what is not seen.” (CSB). I once heard a pastor says that faith is doing in advance what only makes sense in reverse. It is having trust in someone or something which is trustworthy, for a future outcome.

Faithfulness is also a noun, used to describe the state or quality of being faithful.1 It is used to describe the particular character of the state of being full of faith, steadfast in faith, or completely worthy of trust.

In Exodus 34, God declares His name and character to Moses. He said, “The Lord—the Lord is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth, maintaining faithful love to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But he will not leave the guilty unpunished…” (Exodus 34: 6-7 CSB) Faithful is also one of the names of Jesus, as recorded in Revelation. “Then I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse. Its rider is called Faithful and True...” (Revelation 19:11 CSB)

At His core, God is faithful. This is why He expects His children and followers to also be faithful to Him and to one another. We spent all of 2025 around the theme of putting our best faith forward, living as children of faith. In the March article I write, “Beloved, we put our best faith forward when we demonstrate daily our conviction of the eternal reality of our hope which we don’t yet see with our physical eyes. Perhaps the Apostle Peter said it best, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; though not seeing him now, you believe in him, and you rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy.” (1 Peter 1:8 CSB).”

While there are many examples in Scripture of faith-fails, there are also many examples of faithful, albeit at times imperfect, obedience to God. In fact, Hebrews 11 – referred to as the faith chapter – describes faith as a particular quality found in many of the key figures in Scripture: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets. The list could go on to describe Mary, the disciples of Jesus, the woman with the alabaster jar, the woman with bleeding, the centurion, the Apostle Paul, etc. These examples should inspire us to daily “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7 CSB).

Let us be faithful to Him to the end, for He surely will be faithful to us. If we trust and serve Him to the end, we just might hear Him receive us in glory with the words recorded in Matthew 25:23 (CSB), “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

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1“Faithfulness.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faithfulness. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

Closing Prayer

Faithful Father,

Thank You that You are Faithful and True. When circumstances change, You remain the same. When people disappoint us, You remain trustworthy. When we cannot see what lies ahead, You are already there.

Forgive us for the times we have trusted what we can see more than what You have promised. Forgive us when fear, doubt, circumstances, or human logic have caused us to question Your goodness and faithfulness. Help us remember that Your character is not defined by our circumstances. You keep Your promises, You never leave us, and Your faithful love endures forever.

Lord, strengthen our faith so that we can walk by faith and not by sight. Teach us to trust You even when we do not understand. Give us the courage to obey when the path ahead is unclear and the perseverance to remain faithful when the journey is difficult. May our lives bear fruit that remains and point those around us back to You.

And when our earthly journey is complete, may we hear those precious words: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Until that day, help us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the Faithful and True, trusting that the One who began a good work in us will also be faithful to complete it.

In the name of Jesus,
Amen.

Reflection Questions

1. Where in your life are you being tempted to trust your circumstances, feelings, or human logic more than God’s promises? What would it look like to choose faith in that situation?

2. God is faithful, and He calls us to be faithful. Where is He inviting you to demonstrate greater faithfulness—to Him, to others, or to a responsibility He has entrusted to you?

3. If Jesus were to say to you today, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” what would you hope He would be affirming about the way you lived your life? What is one step you can take today toward becoming that faithful servant?