He does what He said He would do

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

In these days of 2025, some people write checks. These slips of paper that transfer money from one person’s bank to another person’s bank aren’t as popular as they once were, but they are still certainly around. Some people are using debit cards, venmo, and cashapps instead, but sometimes you still need to pay a bill by writing a check, or you receive a check from someone else. That check isn’t merely an “I owe you” statement, nor a promise to pay later - but that piece of paper with a signature and the appropriate bank numbers is the payment. It’s as good as cash money. There are times when the person who wrote a check might not have enough money in the account, and the check is returned or “bounced.” But that’s rare, and a check is a payment and a promise kept to transfer money.

The Lord had promised His Old Testament people, but not simply that He would give them money in their bank account. He promised them that He would transfer them out of the land of Egypt and into the land He had promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. This Promised Land was flowing with milk and honey, prosperous with the gifts of God for the people of God. After generations of being away from the land God promised them, the Lord promised to bring them home. After they left Egypt and crossed the Red Sea, Moses spoke to the people of Israel to prepare them for their life as God’s people in the Promised Land that they would call home. These words are recorded in the book of Deuteronomy. There, Moses gave the Lord’s instructions to the people about how they should recognize that the Lord kept His promises.

It was a simple ceremony. Take some of the first of the harvest and take it to the priest at the appointed place, and say this: Deuteronomy 26:3 ‘I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come into the land that the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’ Then, they would go on to say Deuteronomy 26:5–10 “A wandering Aramean was my father. And he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous. And the Egyptians treated us harshly and humiliated us and laid on us hard labor. Then we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great deeds of terror, with signs and wonders. And he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground, which you, O Lord, have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the Lord your God and worship before the Lord your God.” In other words, present the first of the harvest of the Promised Land to the Lord. It was like cashing a check. The Lord said He would do it, and that basket of fruit and grain showed that the Lord was good for His promise, that He kept His word. That basket was a prophecy that God would keep His promises.

The Lord brought His people into the Promised Land, filling their baskets with firstfruits, and giving them second and third baskets, too! The Lord always keeps His promises. Those promises aren’t just the deliverance from Egypt or the entrance into the land of Canaan. The Lord has made you a promise, too. He promised you the gift of salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life. He has also given you a means and a guarantee of that gift - more than a check, and more than a basket of firstfruits. The Lord Jesus Christ, the firstborn of the dead and the only-begotten Son of God has come in the flesh for you. Because of the work of Christ, you are taken out of slavery to sin and death and put on the path to the Promised Land, not of Canaan beyond the Jordan, but of the resurrection of the dead and eternal life in God’s presence. Jesus has removed the sin which clings so closely to sinners like you and me and has forgiven you all your sins.

Yet, there are times when you might wonder why God takes so long, and you might even wonder if God has forgotten His promises. After all, why do you struggle so much with sin and tragedy? And when is Jesus going to return, anyway? Those questions take us back to those checks. Perhaps you have forgotten to cash a check, and then you wonder, “How long is a check good, after all?” (Usually 6 months, but if it’s been a while, you should check with the person who gave you the check to make sure it’s a good time to cash it.) But the promises of God don’t expire, and you don’t need to ask if it’s a good time to collect on His grace. The grace of God is for you each and every day.

And if you forget, or if you’re having a bad day, or if you simply ponder, “Does God still love me? Does God still care?” then remember that the Lord God made a promise to you when He baptised you. You were baptized into Jesus’ death and resurrection, and He blesses your going out and your coming in forevermore. There is no expiration date on God’s grace, because His mercies are new every morning. Take comfort in that promise and remember that your Savior went to the cross for you to rescue you from sin, death, and the devil - and that promise never goes bad. You can take that certainty, not to the bank, but to heaven. Amen.