God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord – 1 Corinthians 1:9

When it feels like the world is disintegrating, when people and circumstances around us are unstable, unpredictable, overwhelming, or threatening, we come face to face with the fact that we are not really in control of our lives or situations; not for a moment.  It can take just such an awakening for us to understand our creaturely fragility.

A natural response is to seek someone in whom to place our trust and reliance.  We might rely upon human institutions such as the police, America, or a political party.  We might settle for a particular human being.  Some are more or less reliable, and others are wholly unreliable.  If we honestly, objectively rate ourselves, we each fall miserably short of absolute honesty, integrity, and reliability.

In contrast, God is perfectly faithful.  All He says and does is eternally complete, accurate, true, and trustworthy.

God cannot fail to carry out His word, nor to actualize His every divine plan and purpose.  He is completely faithful to Himself and to all His intentions, promises, and decrees.  Whatever God says He will do, He will do (Num 23:19, Psa 89:34).  He never loses His place or stands corrected.  His power is infinite.

God is faithful and true, even when we are faithless (2Tim 2:13), or facing temptations (1Cor 10:13), or committing sins (1Jn 1:9, 2:1).  In His immutability, His faithfulness never waivers in the slightest measure.

To state it another way, God alone is absolutely, perfectly, eternally reliable.  Since God is the one, true source and sustainer of all life and being besides His own, on what or whom else can we rely for what we need most?  Who else can give us life (John 6:68-69)?  Who else can sustain us in all circumstances?

Where else but in Christ can we find our only true and complete comfort in life and in death?  Who else can we trust absolutely?

When the world tempts us to fear or despair, let us remember the word of God:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

– Philippians 4:6-7