Covenant

“Nevertheless, I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you”.   Ezekiel 16:60 

Covenant – This word (berit) has a very special meaning in the Bible.  We often think of covenant in terms of a promise or treaty.  In ordinary usage this implies an agreement between equal parties or a negotiated contract.  This meaning has examples in the Old Testament in political alliances between nations or tribes.  There were rituals associated with making a covenant involving blood oaths and sacrifices.  But all of these elements of mutual exchange and negotiation between equals is set aside when the word is applied to God’s covenant with His people.  God’s covenant is not a mutual agreement between equal parties.  It is the promise of a supreme authority that bestows a privilege or blessing on his subjects.  There is no need for the subjects to negotiate or earn the favor of this promise since the promise is made simply because the king wishes to grant such a favor for his own reasons and on his own terms.  The divine covenant is the expression of God’s promise to Himself that He will exhibit His love and care toward those Who He calls in a solemn oath that will be valid forever.  The divine covenant is the representation of God’s character expressed toward men.  God is holy, faithful and trustworthy.  His will for our lives is based on our best-intended development.  This He promises as the One Who is in the best position to know what we need for who we are. 

It is a great blessing for those of us who are seeking renewal in our lives to know that God’s promise toward us does not falter and is not dependent on our performance.  God loves us regardless of our rebellion, desperate isolation and past failures.  He continues to love us no matter what our failures of successes in recovery simply because He chooses to love us.  He has made a promise that cannot be broken.  That promise is a blessing to you and me. 

My struggles and failures do not alter God’s promise.  They do not change His love toward me.  They affect my joy and my fulfillment because they hurt my communion with God, but God does not give up on me.  He guides me back to the promise and the blessing where I belong.  Thank God for His promise.  There is no other promise like it.