Careful In Covenant- PART 1
Joshua 9: 3- But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, 4 they worked craftily, and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, 5 old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. 6 And they went to Joshua, to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel
CAREFUL IN COVENANT-GOALS & MOTIVES
- The goal of the Gibeonites was not friendship.
- The goal of the Gibeonites was self-preservation through covenant.
- Their motives were wrong.
Even if they deceived Israel
Remember if the devil can't get you to walk his way he'll try to get you to agree with him!
COVENANT IN HISTORY
Covenant goes back to the garden. God promised everything but one thing, yet Adam and Eve still broke covenant.
God promised to redeem mankind and to crush the head of the serpent. God sacrificed an animal and covered Adam and Eve with the skin. An innocent was slain to ratify the covenant.
Adam and Even were covered by the skin of an innocent animal. In the same way, Jesus body was broken to cover our sin.
Because of the binding nature of covenant and the importance of keeping your word, covenant is meant to be treated with caution, consideration and understanding of expectation, commitment and consequence.
Of course one thing to consider is does entering into covenant or agreement with another violate an existing covenant!
WHAT IS COVENANT
Covenant is an alliance, pledge, or covenant between two.
- It can be a constitution or ordinance and agreement or a pledge.
- Covenants can be between God and man, friendships, marriages or governing laws.
- Covenants are made to be kept and are often violated.
- God will never violate covenant but man continually violates covenant.
- There really was a day when man's word was his bond.
A covenant was an agreement that required no document. While there may have been documents the absence of one made the covenant no less binding.
- The covenant is an agreement between two parties.
- It's an agreement that promises and commits to not being broken and has two sides.
- Most covenants have promises and requirements for both parties where all have to be met!
- Some covenants are filled with unconditional promises but no requirement as was the case of God's promise to Noah to never again flood the earth or the give Abraham a child and to bring nations from his loins.
- The covenant to give Abraham Isaac and land was unconditional!
The Example of Noah
The promise God made to Noah was unconditional.
Some of the covenants with Abraham were conditional only upon Abraham arising and going forward. Everything else, God would do!
With Noah, the covenant was the Word- the document or sign is the rainbow! The document is a reminder but the spoken Word is the promise!
Genesis 9
8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: 9 “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11 Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that iswith you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: 9 “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11 Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that iswith you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
Example of Abraham
God also made covenant with Abraham:
- He promised a child.
- He promised to be his shield.
- He promised to make Abraham's descendents as numerous as the stars.
- He promised land with very specific boundaries.
- He promised to prosper Abraham and make him great.
- Most of the covenant was unconditional- there was one requirement- the faith walk!
They became one in covenant. It's kind of like being joined at the hip! In covenant two become one. They are inseparable.
- What's mine is yours. What's yours is mine.
- I will arise against your enemies but you will not agree with my enemies.
- You will honor me and I will protect you!
They stayed joined. This signified the two becoming one through covenant.
This is seen in marriage covenants and other covenants in cultures of the world.
The following is the promise from God. In this covenant there were two involved but there was no requirement on Abraham's part. it was no less a covenant. God made an unconditional promise to Abraham.
Genesis 15: 18 On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates— 19 the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
EXAMPLE OF COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM'S DESCENDANTS
This is a conditional covenant requiring the recipient to walk with God by faith!
Genesis 17
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. 2 And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.” 3Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying: 4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. 5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. 8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan
9 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, b0etween Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; 11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant. 13 He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”
15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”
9 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, b0etween Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; 11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant. 13 He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”
15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”
The condition was to walk with God.
At any moment Abraham could turn his back on God and the covenant would be broken but
.............Abraham did not do that.......
“I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. 2 And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.”
Abraham believed God and walked the walk of faith and became a father to the entire nation of Israel
The sign of their covenant is circumcision.
He also became a father to all of those who walk with God by faith with the sign being the cross and the circumcision of the heart!
Romans 4:16-17 16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17- (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;
THE IMPORTANCE IS THE WORD
Again, the covenant is the Word. It is the agreement between the two parties. In conditional covenants both have to accept the Word. The document like the rainbow, circumcision, contract, etc. is the seal or the reminder. In unconditional covenants, a proimse is made that will be kept without conditions- as in the case of God's promise to never flood the earth again, God's promise to give Abraham's decendents land and other promises, and more!
The document is the reminder of both the promises and requirements so the document is a reminder of the Word. That makes the Word the primary importance.
See a few of my past tweets:
- What you fail to possess now becomes a #highplace in your future! Careful in #covenant #Belial Don't enter into agreement with the devil.
- Joshua's covenant with the Gibeonites caused the place he failed to possess to become a high place of Solomon! Careful in#covenant
- Joshua made covenant with the Gibeonites. Although he was deceived a promise is a promise!He should have asked God!#Word #Covenant! Josh 9
- Just because you later find you can't pay the bill doesn't make your car note any less binding! Careful in #covenant!
- Just because you later decide you don't like the car doesn't make your contract any less binding! Careful in #covenant! #contracts #Word
- Just because you find out later he/she is something other than what they said doesn't make your marriage contract null! Careful in #covenant
- Careful in making covenant! Claims of deception make the covenant no less binding! #friendship #contracts #covenant #Laban #Gibeonites
- The covenant was the Word- the document is the rainbow! The document is a reminder but the spoken Word is the promise! #Covenant
- In covenant, the absence of a document makes the Word no less binding in God's eyes! #Covenant
- Covenant: There really was a day when a man's word was his bond. God made covenant with his Word and gave the rainbow as a sign!
Covenants are about agreements and we need to be careful entering into them. Stay tuned for part two when we dig just a little deeper into the agreement aspect!
No comments:
Post a Comment