2011-05-20
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Up to this point, we have examined the three elements of the Abrahamic Covenant-people, land, and a King. We also looked at GN 15: 17, the actual consummation of the covenant itself. “When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking fire pot and a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces” [of halved animals carefully selected for this sacrifice]. Abram had fallen into a deep sleep just before this happened. However, it would be useful to look at the prophetic aspects of this supernatural event. We need to ask: Just what did these sacrificed animals represent? Since God loves His human creation and wants us to revere human life, it makes sense that He created us with a sense of self-preservation. This is quite different than the other pagan beliefs, e.g. Baalism, practiced by ancient societies that later surrounded Israel. These religions practiced human sacrifice, religious prostitution, divination, and the occult- rites which God finds detestable [see DT 18: 9-12]. However, God was directing Abram to carefully select and prepare the animals, mentioned beforehand in GN15: 9-10. Many theologians believe that these sacrificed animals were substitute sacrifices for a human, namely Abram himself. In this way, Abram foreshadows the ultimate substitute Sacrifice, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave His life on the cross, so that mankind could be saved from spiritual death [among other godly gifts-JN 3: 16; RO 3: 24-25]. When we think of it, all we have to do is to repent of our sins and believe in the Lord Jesus, and we are given salvation, the gift of the Holy Spirit [RO 8: 14-16], justification like Abram had [GN 15: 6; RO 4: 3], and eternal forgiveness [2 CH 7: 19; JL 2: 13b; 1 JN 1: 9].
While I’m not a scholar in Hebrew, as I wish I was, it is necessary for us to look at some key words in that language to better understand what a covenant is. The words, “karath beriyth [pronounced kar-ath, ber-eeth] mean “made a covenant” in Hebrew. The word, beriyth, is the word for “covenant.” As has been previously mentioned, a covenant is a compact, or two-way agreement. Let’s look at the definition on p. 24 of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible , which gives this word, beriyth, a number of 1285 in its system of understanding Hebrew words. “The word beriyth…is a compact (…made by passing between pieces of flesh): a confederacy, covenant, league. More discussion of what this means is found in “Covenant” in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, vol. 1 written by Elmer Smick and edited by R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer, and Bruce Waltke, 1980. “ When it is used between nations, it is a treaty, alliance of friendship; between individuals, it is a pledge or agreement; and between God and man, it is a covenant accompanied by sign, sacrifices, and a solemn oath that sealed the relationship with promises of blessing for keeping the covenant and curses for breaking it.” Vine’s Expository Dictionary says that over time the act of “cutting a covenant” didn’t necessarily include the cutting of animals but seems to be an allusion to the Abrahamic covenant process. Vine’s says, “In such a covenant the one passing through the pieces pledged his faithfulness to the covenant. If that faithfulness was broken he called death upon himself, or the same fate which befell the animals.” This is sobering. The concept of a “bond unto death” is serious, which is why Christ taught us to carefully consider any vows we make. That doesn’t mean be afraid to make an important vow, like marriage, but it means carefully consider it first and if you make one; keep it, so you will be blessed.
GN 15: 13-16 gives us added information that helps us to recognize the new historic and moral ground that is carved out in the Abrahamic Covenant. “Then the Lord said to [Abram], ‘Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.’” The NIV uses the term 400 years, but we know from EX 12: 40, that this number is actually 430 years and has been rounded off. We also see the fulfillment of the prophecy that Abraham will live to a “good old age” and will “go to his fathers in peace” is seen in GN 15: 8. Just how sinful many Canaanite religious practices were is now known from archaeological artifacts and from their own epic literature, discovered at Ras Shamra (ancient Ugarit) on the north Syrian coast beginning in 1929. We can see from God’s willingness to wait “until the sin of the Amorites has reached full measure” demonstrates God was patient in judgment, even with the wicked Canaanites. We must be reminded of 2 PET 3: 9, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
PRAYER: O Lord, we are so very blessed that You are a patient God, One Who wants as many people to come to faith in Your Son as possible. You have a huge task still in progress. It is to civilize Your human creation. Those of us who study Your history with us carefully will see this hard toil on Your part, fraught with disappointments for You, which is still in progress. PS 107: 43, “Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.” We can see the truth of this verse over human history, and we can see it in the context of our own personal lives. The sinful nature of mankind has made true the reasons for Your statement to the serpent in the Garden of Eden, in GN 3: 15, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” This verse tips us off in a general sense as to what we learn with more specifics as we study Your word. Dearest Abba, each covenant we will examine in this series is made necessary because we, Your human creation, don’t have the perspective or the power- without Your presence and intervention- to overcome the sin we have inherited combined with the sin we ourselves commit. We must be gradually civilized. That is why Your Son, Jesus had to say, in JN 15: 5, “I am the Vine and you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” Your power by Your Holy Spirit to bring faith to a heart open to it is remarkable. If we are wise and willing to pray for seekers, we can pray RO 15: 13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” We can explain the hope we have in us as believers in the Lord Jesus and what His death on the cross means to us, if we will first pray, asking You to give us the right words. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we can witness to others effectively and endure whatever opposition we are offered. You alone can give us the wisdom and discernment to know when to witness and with whom. We thank and praise You for Your patience, wisdom, compassion, and love. In the holy, mighty name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: I’m led to begin writing a new segment of messages called “God is Faithful.” I will begin by describing a real person who really knew her Covenant Partner. In the meanwhile, it is helpful for us to understand significance of the smoking fire pot and the flaming torch of GN 15: 17. You’ll remember my assertion that with each covenant He makes with us, God obligates Himself to us, just as we become obligated to him when we enter into this two-way agreement. These symbols are a picture of the Father and His Spirit foreshadowing the crucifixion of the Son. MK 15: 34, “And at the ninth hour [3 PM], Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ –which means [in Aramaic, one of the languages commonly spoken in Palestine at that time], ‘My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?’” This expresses how deeply Jesus felt His abandonment by God as He bore the sins of the mankind. Of all the pain God could have felt at the sacrifice of His only Son’s physical life, this separation from Him, albeit temporary, made necessary by Christ taking on mankind’s sin, was the most painful. It was necessary for God to obligate Himself taking on this pain for mankind to have the opportunity to be saved. Our God loves us so much that He was willing to do this for each and every one of us [JN 3: 16]. Nothing in the world can give us inner peace and comfort in times of challenge more than this! Praise and thanks be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15