With whom does God say he will make the New Covenant?
(Gen. 9:8-17; 12:1-3; Ex. 6:1-8; 19:5-8; Jer. 31:31-34; Isa. 54:9-10; Gal. 3:16) Blog Apr. 4-10, 2021
Prepared by Richard A. Marin: Present Truth PO Box 700, Fallbrook CA 92088-0700 USA
REVIEW: When God desires an intimate relationship with his people, he establishes it on the basis of a covenant, a legal contract. Covenants always include two parties and binding promises. Their format generally includes 1) a prologue stating a) the contracting parties, b) their previous history, c) and the relationship that is being entered; 2) the requirements which each party is to fulfill; 3) the seal of the governing authority; 4) the sign of the covenant; 5) the penalty for breaking the covenant; and 6) the time duration of the agreement.
God made a covenant with humanity in the person of their representative, Adam. After sin entered God made another covenant with humanity in which he promised a Redeemer. That covenant was based on the covenant that God the Father and the Son made before the foundation of the earth. In it the Father promised a perfect bride for the Son and the Son promised to be substitute and surety for the bride should she fall from perfection. We include here a continuation of our Covenant Catechism that we began in the previous Blog:
Why are covenants made?
Q. What is the purpose of a covenant?
A. Covenants are made in order to form lasting relationships (Gen. 31:43-54).
Q. What are common motives for forming a covenant?
A. Common motives for forming a covenant are admiration, a desire to work together, and/or love (1 Sam. 18:3).
Q. What does a covenant-based relationship provide that other relationships lack?
A. A covenant provides security, peace, and a knowledge of one’s rights and responsibilities (Ruth 3:1).
Q. What happens to relationships based on feelings?
A. Relationships based on feelings fail when feelings change. (2 Sam. 13:1-18).
Q. What happens to relationships based on performance?
A. Relationships based solely on performance fail when performance falters. (2 Sam. 13:1-18).
Q. What advantage do covenant-based relationships have?
A. Covenant-based relationships have promises which take precedence over feelings.
Q. Why are covenant-based relationships stable?
A. Covenant-based relationships are stable because “right” takes precedence over “might”; the legal over the moral; the promise over the practice; the word over the spirit; the pledged over the hoped for; the constant over the changeable.
Q. How can covenant-based partners always know where they stand?
A. Covenant-based partners may always know where they stand because their rights and privileges as well as their obligations and responsibilities have been spelled out and agreed upon. (see Present Truth V5 #7, p. 16).
Q. What factor that commonly erodes other relationships is subordinated in covenant-based relationships?
A. Covenant-based relationships are not changed with the circumstances — hearsay, visual changes, feeling, taste, or smell don’t alter the promises (“for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness or in health”).
Q. What freedom does a covenant provide?
A. Living under a covenant gives one faith and boldness: faith in the promises of one’s covenant partner and boldness to claim them as ones legal right (Abraham & Isaac [Gen. 22:8]; Jacob & the Angel [Gen. 32:26]).
Q. What does a covenant relationship say about exclusivity?
A. Covenants create exclusiveness like: “foresaking all others”… “One God, one people” — any other gods, any other alliances, any other people equals adultery (Lev 26:12; Deut. 29:12 [13]; etc.; Hos. 2 :4,[2]; Amos 3:2). [See Introducing Covenant Theology by Michael Horton, p. 52]
God’s Covenant with Noah (Genesis 6:5-8, 14-18; 9:8-17; Isa. 54:9-10)
1. When God decided to destroy the earth why did he choose to spare Noah and his family? Because Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord — God considered him better than he deserved & desired to preserve a bloodline for the promised “Seed.”
2. Before God covered the world with a flood what did God tell Noah? God made a proposal to Noah of a life-saving covenant that he desired to make with him in the future & a plan of action to preserve life.
3. Why did God choose the rainbow as the sign of his covenant with humanity in Noah’s day? Because the rainbow is formed by the union of light & water, making it a perfect symbol of Jesus, the Light of the world, shining through the water that represents the Holy Spirit. Humanity is preserved from total destruction because justice & mercy meet together in God’s bow of promise.
God’s Covenant with Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3; 15:1-21; 17:8; Gal. 3:16 )
4. Before Abraham moved to the land of Canaan what did God tell him? God made a proposal to him of a covenant of blessing that he desired to make with him in the future & a plan of action to pursue.
5. In what ceremony did God make his everlasting covenant with Abraham? In the ceremony recorded in Genesis 15 where animals were divided in half (representing death to the covenant breaker) & God the Father (“a smoking furnace”) & God the Son (“a burning lamp”) walked between the pieces covenanting to fulfill the promises made to Abraham.
6. Who does the Apostle Paul say was Abraham’s “seed” to whom the promises were made? Jesus Christ.
God’s Covenant with Israel (Exodus 6:3-8; 19:5-8; 34:6-7, 10, 27-28; Deut. 5:29)
7. Before God brought any plagues upon Egypt what did he tell Moses and Aaron? God made a proposal to them of a future renewal of the covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob & a promise to deliver Israel from Egyptian bondage.
8. When God gave Israel the Ten Commandment words of his everlasting covenant what impossible promise did they make? Israel promised: “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do.”
9. Why did the children of Israel break their Sinai promise within a few weeks? Because they were sinful in nature & were incapable of fulfilling their promise.
10. When, in Exodus 34, God renewed his covenant with Israel after eliminating the golden calf and its promoters what provisions did he emphasize, without which Israel would fail again? The forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of a substitute.
11. In what way were the covenant God made with Adam and that made at Sinai both similar and different? They both demanded perfect obedience of the other party but they were different in that Adam was capable of keeping his covenant but Israel was not able.
God’s New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 10:5-9)
12. In Jeremiah 31, what did God promise his captive people that he would do at some future time? God promised (as a proposal) that he would make a New Covenant with them not like the one they broke at Mount Sinai.
13. What did the New Covenant promise that the covenant made with Adam did not? The New Covenant promised the forgiveness & the blotting out of sins which the Adamic covenant did not.
14. How is the New Covenant different from the covenant made at Mount Sinai? In the New Covenant Jesus becomes the Federal Representative of his believing people, fulfilling all the demands of the covenant & offering to write the Law in their hearts & provide the forgiveness & blotting out of their sins.
15. With whom does God say he will make the New Covenant? With the house of Judah & the House of Israel, showing that these terms would then refer to believers from every nation, kindred, tongue, & people.
16. How is the New Covenant like the Abrahamic covenant? In both, it is Jesus who promises & fulfills the demands of the covenant, thus making them both covenants of grace.
17. What principle should become obvious from the points we have considered in this week’s answers? That God, like in human society, does not rush into making a covenant but first makes a proposal & gives a period of time for the other party to respond & prepare.