2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
As we continue discussing the issue of covenants, the Lord directs me to say a little more about the Noahatic covenant and then to go on to the Abrahamic covenant. There is always some kind of a sign or symbol that a covenant is made with God following the sealing of this two-way agreement. GN 9: 11-13 demonstrates this for the Noahatic covenant. “With these words I make My covenant with you: I promise that never again will all living beings be destroyed by a flood; never again will a flood destroy the earth. As a sign of this everlasting covenant which I am making with you and with all living beings, I am putting My bow in the clouds. It will be a sign of My covenant with the world.” As with all His promises, this one is being kept even to this day. When we know and understand our Lord, we can rest assured that He will keep any promise He makes. We learn more about this sign of the rainbow in GN 9: 14-17, “Whenever I cover the sky with clouds and the rainbow appears, I will remember My promise to you and to all the animals that a flood will never again destroy all living beings. When the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between Me and all living beings on earth. That is the sign of the promise which I am making to all living beings.” God really wanted Noah, his family, and their descendants to understand that this was a serious commitment between Him and them, one that was to last over time.
Anyone who has raised a child successfully knows that all children need a source of stability, an authority figure whose parental pronouncements are consistent, fair, and compassionate. This parent must be a promise-keeper in their lives. God is that kind of Parent to His children. He is not fickle, cagey, or inconsistent in His dealings with us. When we accept what we learn in IS 55: 8-9 and keep our trust in Him, obeying Him we can have real protection, happiness, and peace in our lives. “’My thoughts,’ says the Lord,” are not like yours, and My ways are different from yours. As high as the heaven are above the earth, so high are My ways and thoughts above yours.” When we accept that God is always righteous, we will have no trouble believing His promises and trusting Him enough to obey Him. At the same time that we need to be cognizant of God’s superior knowledge and wisdom, we can also know that He is our Fortress and Refuge. PS 31: 3-5 is the prayer of a man who really understood God’s capabilities and believed in Him, David. “You are my Refuge and my Fortress; guide me and lead me as You have promised. Keep me safe from the snare that has been set for me; shelter me from danger. I place myself in Your care. You will save me, Lord; You are a faithful God.”
No discussion of covenants would be complete without looking at one of the most compelling and important covenants that God ever made with His children, the Abrahamic one. It begins in GN 12: 1-3, “The Lord said to Abram, ‘Leave your native land, your relatives, and your father’s home, and go to a country that I am going to show you. I will give you many descendants, and they will become as great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, but I will curse those who curse you. And through you I will bless all nations.” I have read those words a thousand times, and each time the Lord teaches me something new about them. We know that because God is omniscient and knows so much more than we do, that He is able to know which people are willing to take a spiritual “walk on the wild side,” leaving their comfortable, familiar lives to go out into what is unknown to them at the Lord’s command to carry out an assignment from Him they can’t begin to understand. Abraham is just such a person. Born and raised in an idolatrous belief system, Abram was a loyal son to his father, Terah. That quality in him undoubtedly motivated Abram to take Terah along against God’s wishes. God is not a Parent Who desires to break His children’s spirits. I believe that is why He was willing to lead Abram to Haran, which is where Terah finally passes away, rather than take him directly into Canaan. God must have known that Terah was too set in his ways to be willing to put aside idolatry. How many of us would be willing to leave our homes and family aside to obey a command given by God that we don’t understand?
When God promised to make Abram famous, I doubt Abram was the kind of man who really cared about that. It was the part about being a blessing that intrigued this very faithful man. Now, I realize that is a supposition on my part, but I think it is likely true nonetheless. Abram had no way to know how he would become a blessing, but was obedient enough to give God the chance to show him. Much later in the Scriptures, God would reveal the ways that Abram’s descendants through Isaac and Jacob were supposed to make true that phrase, “through you, I will bless all the nations.” EX 19: 5-6, “Now, if you will obey Me and keep My covenant, you will be My own people. The whole earth is Mine, but you will be my chosen people, a people dedicated to Me alone, and you will serve me as priests.” 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, but I will also make you a light to the nations-so that the world may be saved.’” You all know that these two verses are the driving force in my own personal reasons for dedicating my life to spreading the word of God.
Just as I cited PS 31: 3-5 above, we can see in GN 12: 3 that David’s assertion is not an empty, chancy guess. He knew God had made the promise to protect His chosen people from their enemies who curse them. David understood God would keep this covenant. What makes God’s promise all the more amazing is that His children do not always deserve this grace extended to them if we observe their response to His sovereignty over the years. Just because the OT is primarily about the Jews, we should not ignore the fact that this grace has now been extended to faithful Gentiles too. They are “ingrafted” on to the olive tree that represents direct descendants of Abraham who are faithful in RO 11: 16-25 (which I hope you will review). When God opened the Gospel to Gentiles, He gave them all the same privileges and responsibilities that faithful Jews have had all along. Meditate on how that impacts your personal life.
PRAYER: O Lord, we come before You in humility today to acknowledge both Your superior wisdom and Your faithfulness toward us. What an ideal You are for us to have! You have taught us that when we have faith enough in You to trust and obey, You have the power to carry out Your work through us and bless our lives. When we acknowledge that You are the Source of good and wisdom in our lives, we can follow a course that You set out for us that will lead to protection, provision, great advice in times of trouble, encouragement, healing, reconciliation, and peace. We can enjoy the comfort of never feeling alone or abandoned. You truly are our Rock and Redeemer, our Fortress and our Refuge. You are the Parent Who is always compassionate, consistent, patient, and righteous. The path You take us on leads directly to eternal life. How little You ask in return, Dearest Lord. All You want from us is that we should seek You out and obey You. You deserve our humility, confession of sins, adoration, worship, loyalty, honor, glory, trust, obedience, praise, and thanks. We offer all these to You today, in Christ’s name. Amen.
Tomorrow, the Lord directs me to continue discussing the Abrahamic covenant. It is my hope that each of us will see that this covenant made so long ago is still a dynamic force in our lives today and in the future. We take our walk with the Lord often with Him holding our hand. When we are ill, injured, or grieving, He may even pick us up and carry us in His arms. That is one more way that our Lord lets us know the love He has for each of us. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn