The Bible speaks at length about what God has done for his people. Passages like Psalm 78 catalgoue how God’s love is borne out in action.

However, the Bible also speaks persistently about the nature of what God has done. His word labours to reveal to us the character from which his actions flow. Psalm 111 wants us to know that all God does stems from his faithfulness and goodness.

Here is a friend you don’t want to lose. He is reliable, trustworthy, true and flawless. Whatever he does, he does well. Whatever he does, he does for the good of his people. With him we need not worry about injustice triumphing or evil reigning. Though these things are prevalent in the world, they will not withstand his good judgment.

Whatever God declares to be good will be. His precepts, his words of judgment, are trustworthy. And they endure. Forever.

And it’s in this that we find the kernel of assurance in what Christ has done for his people. In Christ, we wretched sinners find full forgiveness. In Christ, we’re aligned perfectly with God’s will for mankind. If by faith in his faithfulness we are in Christ, then God’s declaration of righteousness becomes ours.

To be justified by God is to have his eternal decree rest over us. Through faith in Christ that declaration is bestowed on us, with all its eternal ramifications.

In this, we are the works of his hands, the product of his faithfulness and uprightness. It is good for us never to forget the eternal work of his word over us.