Ever wondered why the divine covenants are often referred to as the backbone of the Bible? Well, you're in for a treat! In this 4 part series on Old Testament covenants, you'll gain a deeper understanding of these agreements God made with his people and the crucial role they play in the grand narrative of the Bible. We unravel how these covenants, whether conditional or unconditional, embody a beacon of hope and a source of strength amidst the tempest of life's trials.
Discover how understanding these covenants can empower you to face challenges with confidence and find redemption. Tune in now for an enlightening journey of faith and restoration.
Episode Highlights:
Importance of Understanding God's Nature
Definition and Characteristics of Divine Covenants
Ever wondered why the divine covenants are often referred to as the backbone of the Bible? Well, you're in for a treat! In this 4 part series on Old Testament covenants, you'll gain a deeper understanding of these agreements God made with his people and the crucial role they play in the grand narrative of the Bible. We unravel how these covenants, whether conditional or unconditional, embody a beacon of hope and a source of strength amidst the tempest of life's trials.
Discover how understanding these covenants can empower you to face challenges with confidence and find redemption. Tune in now for an enlightening journey of faith and restoration.
Episode Highlights:
Importance of Understanding God's Nature
Definition and Characteristics of Divine Covenants
Note: All scripture references are from the NIV translation unless otherwise indicated.
Jacqui :
Are you curious about what we mean by Old Testament covenants? Are you wondering what the difference is between a covenant and a contract? Did you know that the biblical covenants reveal a unique relationship between God and humanity? Well, you're in the right place. This episode of the Bible Basics Podcast is the first in a series. We'll respond to those questions and more. This episode will give you an overview of what divine covenants are. During the next three episodes, we'll dig into God's covenants with Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and the New Covenant. Well, welcome everyone.
Jacqui :
I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where, weekly, we break down the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. Before we begin, let's take a moment to reflect on the importance of understanding who God is. Many of us find ourselves in the state of what Tony Evans calls "Unconscious Christianity. We lack a Christian perspective on how the world works. When trials come our way, we are caught totally off guard. We're not able to face our daily challenges with confidence and boldness. We're not prepared to wage war against the spiritual forces of wickedness. We don't know that we have a God who promises to keep us, be with us and he will never leave us. Well, why is this relevant to our discussion on covenants. Well, friends, as we embark on this journey, you'll come to realize that we can depend on God's Word. This series will showcase God's unfailing faithfulness and give us hope in the midst of life's challenges. But that's not the only reason to understand covenants. Think of them as the backbone of the Bible, the spine that holds the entire narrative together. Just like our physical backbone provides the foundation for our bodies, the covenants serve as a foundation for the events of the Bible. They help us to better understand and follow the unfolding story, peeling back the layers to reveal God's grand plan for redemption. God uses his covenants to restore his people. He always intended to guide his people to a more secure and prosperous future, to restore his children to himself.
Jacqui :
So first let's define a covenant. A general definition is that it's an agreement between two parties and involves promises on the part of each to the other. In the Old Testament we find examples of covenants made between people who relate it to each other as equals. For instance, there is a deep bond of love and friendship between David and Jonathan, which led to a formal covenant of loyalty and loving-kindness. A friendship bond was sealed by oath between them. Then there was and Isaac. When and Isaac decided to settle their land dispute, they made a binding agreement, or a covenant, to live in peace, and oath confirmed it. The third example would be Joshua, on behalf of Israel and the Gibeonites. Joshua and the Gibeonites bound themselves by oath to live in peace together in Canaan. The problem with this covenant was that Yahweh had commanded Israel that they were not to bind themselves to the people living in the land of Canaan. This situation turned out pretty bad for both the Gibeonites and the Israelites. However, in this series, we're going to focus on what we call divine covenants, those covenants made by God himself.
Jacqui :
For a better understanding, let's turn to O'Palmer Robinson's definition, found in his book called "Christ, of the Covenants. He says that a divine covenant is a bond in blood, sovereignly administered. I'll impact each part of that definition. First of all, it's a bond. That means it's an oath bound commitment. In its most essential aspect, a covenant is what binds people together. Nothing lies closer to the heart of the biblical concept of covenant than the imagery of an unbreakable bond. Think superglue, though hopefully your fingers aren't involved in that bond. When it's a bond in blood, it involves commitments with life and death consequences.
Jacqui :
When a covenant is formed, the parties make a solemn commitment to each other. They seal it through a formal process of bloodshedding. This bloodshedding represents the intense nature of their commitment. By the covenant, they're bound together for life and death. The final piece of that definition is that it's sovereignly administered. This means that the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth dictates the terms of this covenant. There is no room for bargaining. Okay, so I'll repeat it again. A divine covenant is a bond in blood, sovereignly administered. That means it's an oath bound commitment that binds the parties together in an unbreakable bond. This commitment involves life and death consequences symbolized by bloodshedding and, most importantly, the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth initiates and dictates the terms of his covenant. There is no room for negotiating when God is involved. It's essential to distinguish these divine covenants from other covenants, which are basically like contracts, in that they are changeable. They are negotiated agreements and the parties are basically on equal terms, but divine covenants are far more profound and unchangeable. They're rooted in God's faithfulness and his sovereign authority.
Jacqui :
Now we'll address another feature of divine covenants, conditions. There are two types of divine covenants conditional and unconditional. First, let's look at the conditional covenant. This type of covenant depends on people taking specific actions in response to God's promises. God's conditions must be met by humanity in order to receive the covenant blessings. Of course, God can always be dependent upon to keep his end of the bargain. The open question is whether the people will honor their side of the covenant. Out of the five divine covenants we're going to discuss in this series, only God's covenant with Moses is conditional. In the Mosaic covenant, God promises to bless the people i"f they follow his law. Then there's the unconditional covenant. In this type of covenant, god makes promises with a certain purpose and they'll be fulfilled regardless of human actions. While there might be some human responsibilities involved, the ultimate fulfillment of these promises relies on God's power. Unconditional covenants stand out because their ultimate fulfillment is promised by God. They are not dependent on human actions.
Jacqui :
Now let's talk numbers. There are five explicit covenants that are crucial to understanding the events of the Bible. These covenants are made with Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and there's the New Covenant. They guide and propel the biblical narrative leading us to the ultimate fulfillment Jesus himself. We'll cover each of these five covenants over the next few episodes. In next week's episode, we'll discuss God's covenant with Noah and Abraham. Now, why do I emphasize the significance of understanding covenants? It's because they form the essential framework that binds the entire biblical narrative together. Throughout the unfolding story of the Bible, we witness God's character as a covenant maker, covenant keeper and covenant fulfiller. These covenants play a crucial role in revealing God's redemptive plan. Essentially, the covenants act as a foundational structure that shapes the entire story.
