All the promises are "yes"
“For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”2 Corinthians 1:20
Reflection
Paul makes here a declaration that embraces all the promises of the Bible at once: "all the promises of God in him are YEA". Think of the number of promises God made throughout the Scriptures — promises of presence, of provision, of healing, of forgiveness, of peace, of eternal life, of never abandoning us. There are hundreds. And Paul says that ALL of them, in Christ, are "yes". Not "maybe", not "who knows", not "if you deserve it" — yes. In Jesus, God left none of His promises pending or uncertain; all find in Him the guarantee of fulfillment.
The key is in the expression "IN HIM" — that is, in Christ. God’s promises are not guaranteed by our ability to deserve them, but by the work of Jesus. It is Christ who makes all of God’s promises a secure "yes". When you doubt whether a promise of God holds for you — "will God really care for me? Will He forgive me? Will He be with me?" — the answer does not depend on how good you are, but on what Christ did. And because Christ fulfilled everything, all the promises are "yes" for whoever is in Him. Your guarantee is not your performance; it is Jesus.
Notice the second part: "and in him AMEN". "Amen" means "so be it", "it is true", "confirmed". When we say "amen" to a promise of God, we are agreeing with the "yes" He has already given, appropriating for ourselves what Christ guaranteed. There is a beautiful reciprocity: God says "yes" to His promises in Christ, and we respond "amen", receiving them by faith. Each "amen" we say is an act of faith that embraces God’s "yes". And this is "unto the glory of God" — when we trust His promises and see them fulfilled, God is glorified.
This truth is a powerful antidote against doubt. We often read God’s promises with a foot back, imagining they perhaps do not hold for us, that they perhaps have exceptions, that God might change His mind. But Paul removes all that uncertainty: in Christ, ALL are "yes". The promise that God will never leave you — yes. The promise that He supplies your needs — yes. The promise that He forgives whoever confesses — yes. The promise that He is with you in the storm — yes. If you have read God’s promises with doubt, read them now with the certainty of 2 Corinthians 1:20: in Jesus, they are all "yes". Say "amen" to each one, and take hold by faith of what Christ has already guaranteed for you.
Prayer
Lord, thank You that, in Christ, all Your promises are "yes" — not "maybe", not "if I deserve it", but "yes", guaranteed by the work of Jesus and not by my performance. Forgive me when I read Your promises with doubt, thinking they perhaps do not hold for me. Today I say "amen" to each one, appropriating by faith what You have already guaranteed. To Your glory. Amen.
Put it into practice
Choose a promise of God you have doubted "holds for you" and take hold of it today with the certainty of 2 Corinthians 1:20: "in Christ, this promise is YES for me". Say "amen" to it aloud, receiving it by faith.
To reflect on
Have you read God’s promises with doubt ("do they hold for me?") — or with the certainty that, in Christ, all are "yes"?
Bible text: King James Version (public domain).