Covenant

Introduction

Dismiss Spanish and Children’s ministry

Who here has siblings? I grew up with a little brother. Him and I were always super close. Don’t get me wrong we got in our fair bit of scraps about nonsense here and there. Of course it was always his fault though because I was always right but still.

Now I am sure most siblings can say, if we are honest, we blamed stuff on our siblings. It happens. I mean, they probably thought about doing something bad anyway you you were just helping your parents get a leg up.

Well my brother had it the worst, and it wasn’t even from me. It was from our dog.

We got a dog when I was in sixth grade. Here is a picture

Show picture

Isn’t he cute! Great little dog. Anyway, in my house there were two people that got yelled at my brother and Bibble. Remember, like I said I was perfect.

Any time the dog barked for no reason for a while it was inevitable that you would hear, “ISAAC! I mean, BIBBLE” Everytime, to this day. And it wasn’t just my mom, it was everyone in the house. Immediately jumping to blaming my brother, even though I am pretty sure that it wasn’t him that ate my mothers shoes.

But still even if it was fleeting my brother was being blamed for something he did not do. Maybe you have done that to someone. Gotten them in trouble for something they didn’t do. Or maybe it has happened to you! Maybe you were at work and you got blamed because your coworker did (or didn’t) do something.

Today we are talking about someone taking the blame for something that they didn’t do. Now, for those studious among you might thing I am just going to talk about Jesus, and I am! But through a different avenue that I don’t think enough of us know about. We are going to be talking about when God made the first, or as we mostly know it, the old covenant with Abram.

Story

Our story takes place in Genesis 15:1-18 . . .

Genesis 15:1–18 NIV

After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. 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 ancestors 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.” When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates—

Breakdown

In this story we find God making a promise to Abram. He tells Abram He is going to make Abram’s descendents many. That Abram’s descendants were going to be a might nation. Now Abram was old. He trust God but Abram couldn’t help but tell God, “That’s great God thank you. But I need more reassurance.” So God commands him to go get a cow, a goat, a ram, a dove and a young pigeon.

God then has Abram setup a ceremony called the “Diatheke” (Dee-ath-ay-kay). Literally meaning Covenant.

This ceremony was a well-known practice in that region, and the purpose of this ceremony was to make unbreakable vows between two parties. It was done by kings to seal the terms of a treaty between countries or to agree on the resetting of borderlines after a war. But the most common use of the ceremony was between the fathers of two families whose children were about to marry. The Fathers would make a very serious vow between them, and the breaking of the vow had bloody consequences.

Let’s break this covenant ceremony down a bit. Now just gonna preface, it’s kind of gross but it’s important to heart of the story so if you’re squeamish I am going to apologize now. Aaaaaanyway...

It is important to note that culturally the bride’s family would have been considered lesser than the groom’s family. So, the lesser of the two (the bride’s father) would place a cow, a goat, a ram on the ground. The lesser of the two would then cut the cow in half. Half of the carcass was placed on one side, and the other half was placed on the other. The same was done with the goat and the ram. As blood would drain from the animals and a large puddle of blood would form between the pieces. The greater of the two men (the groom’s father) would walk barefooted stomping between the pieces. With this act, he promised that his son would be an honorable husband; not abusive, lazy, or dishonest. Then the lesser of the two (the bride’s father) would stomp barefooted through the pieces as well. His action promised that his daughter was a virgin and she would be a proper wife and mother. This blood covenant sealed the commitment that if either the groom or the bride was not a proper spouse; the father of their child would pay with his life. Essentially, the ceremony meant, “If my child is not a proper spouse may I become like these animals.”

So Abram went out and got the animals, as God requested and prepared them, allowing the blood to pool in the center. Abram then waited since he knew that God was the greater party in the covenant.

Abram was put under a deep sleep where God then reiterates the covenant.

When Abram awakes he sees a smoking pot and a blazing torch. Both representing God. The pot crossed, God making a statement saying “If I don’t hold up my end, may I be put to death.” Then came Abram’s turn. But instead, the torch passed between the animals. Once again, God making a statement saying “If you or your descendents aren’t faithful to me, may I be put to death” Creating what would be called a unilateral covenant.

A covenant that God fulfilled through Jesus Christ. You see God was always faithful, it was the Israelites that failed. Heck it was Abram who failed when he didn’t trust that God would give him kids and he had a son with Hagar.

Yet God still remained faithful to the covenant.

Main Points

God has made a vow to us

God made a promise to Abram. God promised that He would give him descendents and land. God vowed that He had a plan for Abram’s life.

God makes vows to us to.

He loves us

Zephaniah 3:17 NIV

The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”

This verse in context is talking about restoring Israel. However, this verse shows the love that God has for His people. Of course the classic verse that talks about the love that God has for His people

John 3:16–17 NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

This is showing the most love that any being could. A love that was so far and extreme that He was willing to die for you. Willing to sacrifice for you.

God was fulfilling the covenant that He made to Abram through Jesus. God literally made good on the Old Covenant but more than that, He was fulfilling the plan he had. God made a promise to Abram saying that He was willing to sacrifice Himself to save His people. God knew what He was doing when we made this one-sided covenant with Abram. It is through this faithfulness in the face of not having done anything wrong that shows us the true love that God has for all of creation.

God had a plan then.

God is a planner. God has a plan now.

He has an amazing plan for our lives

We see in Genesis 3:14-15 God is cursing the serpent saying

Genesis 3:14–15 NIV

So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 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.”

God had a plan all the way back the second that sin entered the world. This is what is known as the proto-evangelium. The first ever reference to Jesus. The promise of victory This is a verse that shows God’s planning and faithfulness.

I repeat, “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.”

If that doesn’t show the planning of God I don’t know what does.

God had a plan for victory. God made good on his promise.

God is a planner. God had a plan for Abram. God has a plan for the world.

Revelation 22:7 NIV

“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”

He is coming back! He isn’t done with this world. When He came the first time it was for people. It was for you and me. This next time though, He is coming back for all of creation! God has made a promise and He always makes good on His promises.

But before that, God has a plan for you. A part for us to play.

Ephesians 2:8–10 NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

God has a plan for you. Before you were born God had a plan for you. God promises that he doesn’t just leave you but rather he is with you. He has prepared IN ADVANCE for you. Not because He is reliant on us but because He wants us to invite us to be a part of His plan.

He had a plan for Abram and his offspring; just as He has a plan for you.

Often times in life we can wonder if God cares. Wondering if we are a mistake. But these verses say no. God make good on His vows always. God has vowed that He loves His creations. God has vowed He has a plan prepared in advance. A plan for the world but also a plan for you specifically.

The question is never “Does God love me?” The question is will you accept God’s love? God’s love is there. God’s plans are there. They were there before you were synapse in your parents brains.

All God asks, is you believe.

God expects your action

If you want a part of this plan than we must be like Abram. Willing to have action. When God says “I am your God, and you will be my people,” He is requiring Abram and his family to be faithful to Him. While God took the punishment, Abram and his descendants were not told to sit idlely. God wanted a commitment from Abram.

First thing he was asking for was commitment.

Commit to God

Romans 10:9–10 NIV

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

God asks for a commitment. God asks for a deceleration. You see through Jesus’ death on the cross the heavy lifting was completed. The difficult part was done. Sin was defeated. Through the fulfillment of the Old Covenant we have the ability to have a relationship with the one true and living God.

God commited to Abram as He did to His entire creation. God asks for our commitment to Him and belief in what He has done.

God is bigger than the difficulties of life. I cannot promise your life will be perfect as a Christian, because that would be dishonest of me. However, without God we are left with a God sized hole in our hearts. That we as people try to fill with things that will never satisfy. Drugs, alcohol, money. The problem with these things is you can never have enough. There is always more and more.

God is the only way to find satisfaction. Once we commit in words and in heart though, is the next part. We have to do it.

Walk with God

James 2:14–17 NIV

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

Faith without works is dead. Dedication to Christ is shown through how we live our life. You believe in God great, I am so excited to see you in heaven! But if you aren’t living it, if you aren’t showing it, why do you have the faith?

We need to walk out our faith. Show our faith to people. The Christian church asks God to move in this world but here God says “You want me to move yet you won’t move yourself!”

Are we willing to walk with God. It’s hard.

Because in the end to follow God asks us to do the hardest thing, to surrender our will to Him.

Surrender your will to God

Romans 12:1–2 NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Now I want to be clear. God doesn’t ask us to sacrifice our will to be saved. Jesus’ sacrifice was enough to save the world from sin.

However, if you want to fully follow the plan that God has for your life, are willing to lay down your will? Are willing to let God lead and not try to drag God down our path. It’s like dancing.

I did 6 years of ballroom dance class. I remember one time in my first few classes we had issues of girls feet getting stepped on. I will never forget what the teacher said. He said “Girls, if your feet are getting stepped on it is not the guys fault. It is yours. Let him lead. Let him do his job”

I think about out lives and how we do that. We try to have relationship with God but we try to cram God into our will. Try to do our own steps rather than falling step with Him. That is what surrendering your will to God is. Falling step with a plan that is bigger than us. A plan that existed before time itself.

Now that said, like dancing, there will be mis-steps.

Good News! God take the heat when we fall short

When we fall short God has already forgiven us. God doesn’t leave us or forsake us. He puts His hand out and says lets try again.

Invite worship team and prayer team

God fulfilled his promise to Abram. God fulfilled His promise to the world. God has fulfilled his promise to you.

When God makes a vow he stands by it. God vows that He loves you. God vows that He has a plan for you.

We are going to go into a short time of worship but before we do, I want to address some things.

If you don’t believe

If you have never accepted a relationship with Jesus Christ I want to allow you to have time to do that. God has a plan for you. God loves you.

He loves you so much that He sent His one and only Son to die for you. Jesus lived, died and resurrected so that you might have a relationship with a God that has remained faithful to you even when you aren’t faithful to Him. A God that loves you before you even thought about Him.

Once again Romans 10:9-10 says . . .

Romans 10:9–10 NIV

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

So in a few moments I am going to open up the altars and I or someone on the prayer team want to pray for you.

But before that . . .

If you do believe

Abram needed reassurance. Do you need reassurance today? Is there something that you need prayer for? Something that you feel is beating you down?

God is bigger than whatever you are going through. I cannot tell you that God will take away instantly whatever you are going through. Though I can tell you that God wants to walk with you through it.

Maybe you are believer that needs to lay down their will to God. To stop trying to take your own steps but be in-step with God.

If that is you I want you to come and get prayer in a moment.

Pray

The altars are now open.