2010-08-06
Good Morning Cherished Ones,
Up to now, the Holy Spirit had me discussing the difference between the Covenant of the Law and the Covenant of Grace. Please believe that we will be returning to that comparison throughout this series of messages. However, today, we need to look at another covenants that falls under the Covenant of the Law. I like to call this the covenant of friendship, and the best example of this in the Scriptures is that friendship between Israel’s former king Saul’s son, Jonathan and the king who took over for Saul after God removed the right of kingship from him, King David. If you remember, hundreds of years afterward, the Lord Jesus during his earthly incarnation spoke about the taking of vows [MT 5: 33-37]. What He said then applies in the spiritual realm as much today as it did then and will in the future. The taking of vows before God is a very serious matter. Christ tells us, “Do not break your promise, but do what you have vowed to the Lord to do.” Then Christ goes on to tell us, “Do not vow when you when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven, because it is God’s throne; not by earth, because it is the resting place for His feet; not by Jerusalem, because it is the city of a great King. Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Just say, ‘Yes’ or ‘No’-anything else you say comes from the evil one.”
Now, let’s look at this covenant of friendship between David and Jonathan. This whole thing began when David had been asked by Saul, then the king of Israel, to play the harp for him and become his military advisor. 1 SAM 18: 1-5, “Saul and David finished their conversation. After that, Saul’s son Jonathan was deeply attracted to David and came to love him as much as he loved himself. Saul kept David with him from that day on and did not let him go back home. Jonathan swore eternal friendship with David because of his deep affection for him. He took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, together with his armor and also his sword, bow, and belt. David was successful in all the missions on which Saul sent him, and so Saul made him an officer in his army. This pleased all of Saul’s officers and men.” Before we put a modern spin on things, there was nothing homosexual about this affection that the two men had for one another. In reality, although God’s name wasn’t mentioned here, He was very much a part of what was happening and what followed it. The exchange of his sword, robe, belt and bow here was the outward symbol of what God was doing in transforming the relationship between these two men. This relationship also included every single person in both Jonathan’s and David’s families, which were be supernaturally bonded. This relationship would go through the refiner’s fire [be sorely tested] at times, but 20/20 hindsight tells us that it was God Who was making sure this bond was tight enough to survive for eternity.
Anyone who has read the Scriptures knows that Saul’s behavior toward David changed and became a dangerously erratic swing between friendly at one time and persecution at others. I’ve already written that if Saul were alive today, I think he would have been diagnosed with severe and untreated bipolar disorder. 1 SAM 19: 1-2, “Saul told his son, Jonathan, and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan was very fond of David, and warned him, “My father, Saul, is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning and go into hiding and stay there.” Jonathan told David that he would go out to where Saul was, listen to what is being said, and come back and tell him. This was to be the first of many tests God would provide for this very important covenant of friendship. Later, Jonathan’s loyalty to David would meet one of its greatest tests in 1 SAM 20 when David asked Jonathan to spy on his father, asking him, in 1 SAM 20, 14b-16, “Please keep your sacred promise and be loyal to me, but if I die, please show the same kind of loyalty to my family forever. And when the Lord has completely destroyed all your enemies, may our promise to each other still be unbroken. If it is broken, the Lord will punish you.” Eventually, Saul figured out what was going on and became furious with his son, Jonathan. 1 SAM 20: 31, “Don’t you realize that as long as David is alive, you will never be king of this country? Now go and bring him here-he must die!” This is indeed Scriptural evidence of what history has told us about murders being carried out for the sake of mankind seizing control of royal position. Shortly afterward, Saul threw his spear at his own son, Jonathan, to kill him. By God’s will, he missed, but Jonathan was now convinced without a doubt that his father was indeed willing and desirous of killing his friend, David. We can easily be convinced of Saul’s mental illness!
We must understand that God is in control of everything that happens. It’s hard to wrap our heads around this fact and it’s huge ramifications. In the story of David earlier than the incidents above, we first encounter this in 1 SAM 16: 12-13, “So Jesse [David’s father] sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. The Lord said to Samuel [the prophet at the time], ‘This is the one-anoint him!’ Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of his brothers. Immediately the Spirit of the Lord took control of David and was with him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Rammah.” It was a signal moment in mankind’s history. The Lord’s intervention in human affairs is seen clearly once again in 1 SAM 16: 14, “The Lord’s Spirit left Saul, and an evil spirit sent by the Lord tormented him.” It was at this moment that God wrested the right of kingship from Saul and gave it to David. David would not actually take office until a long period of persecution by Saul took place. All of this history demonstrates to us why vows before God are a serious matter and that God’s will, which is always-righteous, even though there is plenty of pain and trials before all has been said and done, is supreme.
PRAYER: O Lord, we must see this teaching on the making of vows and on the covenant of friendship between David and Jonathan as basic instruction before we leave earth and come to You in heaven. While the story of David probably happened somewhere between 1010-970 BC, the principles taught in these stories about him still apply today and will always forever. We are honored and edified by them. You give us guidance in that “hard path extending from a narrow gate” [MT 7: 13-14] that leads to eternal life. Isaiah uttered a profound prophecy in IS 42: 1, “The Lord says, ‘Here is My Servant, Whom I strengthen-the One I have chosen, with Whom I am pleased. I have filled Him with My Spirit, and He will bring justice to every nation.’” This could certainly be considered an early prophecy of the Christ and the new covenant to come. You inspired Isaiah to say in IS 42: 6 [written somewhere between 740-692 BC], “I, the Lord, have called you and given you power to see that justice is done on earth. Through You I will make a covenant with all peoples, though You, I will bring light to the nations.” While it was still subtle, this covenant promise made by You, Dear Lord, was a serious matter that You kept when You finally sent Your Son to earth to die for us on the cross and become our Redeemer. When David and Jonathan entered into their covenant of friendship, they became kinsmen redeemers of each other. David would work this out even after Jonathan’s death. God’s special call first to the Jewish people and then, to all who are “grafted on to the cultured olive tree” [see RO 11: 17-24-saved Gentiles] is first seen in IS 49: 6, “The Lord said to me [Isaiah], ‘I have a greater task for you, My servant. No only will you restore to greatness the people of Israel who have survived [the Jewish remnant of believers], but I will also make you a light to the nations [Gentiles who don’t yet believe]-so that all this world can be saved.’” Yes, Lord, we won’t forget Your will for us as participants in the Covenant of Grace. We say these things in the holy and mighty name of Jesus Christ [my Lord Yeshua]. Amen.
Next Week: The Holy Spirit directs me to write about the call to a covenant relationship. Time and space permitting, I will continue with my own personal story, as an example. When we make a promise, it needs to be done after careful thought. The habit of breaking promises is adversary-driven and very hurtful, which is why I say this. We also need to refuse to enter into poorly-conceived promises, which can lead to opening ourselves to the evil one establishing a stronghold in the relationship at hand with another person or even our precious relationship with God. This means prayerful thought before making a promise. It is God Who gives us wisdom and discernment, and we must not refuse to ask Him for them [PS 51: 6, PS 119: 125]. The danger of being apathetic, especially to people with evil motives which are sometimes carefully hidden, is real. This can lead to disaster. We need only look at the story of Esther and her situation with Haman, the wildly anti-Semitic second-in-charge in Persia at the time, for an example. And when we finally do make a promise/commitment to a person, keep it. We should not be afraid of righteous commitments, but should be wary of unrighteous ones. God has given us the power, that same power He used to raise Christ from death to eternal life, to battle and win in spiritual warfare in Christ’s holy name [EPH 1: 18-20]. He has also given us the armor to win this battle in EPH 6 :10-18. And it’s all because our God loves us so very much! Praise and thanks be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15