Amazing Victories - But Why?

So Joshua took control of the entire land, just as the LORD had instructed Moses. He gave it to the people of Israel as their special possession, dividing the land among the tribes. So the land finally had rest from war. [Joshua 11.23] 

In today's One Year Chronological Bible reading there are some amazing victories chronicled not the least of which are a significant weather event and an unprecedented pause in the earth's rotation. Wow... just, wow.

How might it have felt to be Israel at this time in history? It is with this thought that we often lose touch with what is actually being recorded in the Bible. We should be reminded at this point of Moses' prediction of this time of victory even though Israel was a stubborn people:

“Listen, O Israel! Today you are about to cross the Jordan River to take over the land belonging to nations much greater and more powerful than you. They live in cities with walls that reach to the sky! The people are strong and tall—descendants of the famous Anakite giants. You’ve heard the saying, ‘Who can stand up to the Anakites?’ But recognize today that the LORD your God is the one who will cross over ahead of you like a devouring fire to destroy them. He will subdue them so that you will quickly conquer them and drive them out, just as the LORD has promised. “After the LORD your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The LORD has given us this land because we are such good people!’ No, it is because of the wickedness of the other nations that he is pushing them out of your way. It is not because you are so good or have such integrity that you are about to occupy their land. The LORD your God will drive these nations out ahead of you only because of their wickedness, and to fulfill the oath he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You must recognize that the LORD your God is not giving you this good land because you are good, for you are not—you are a stubborn people. [Deuteronomy 9.1-6]

Wait! What? God's promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob included using Israel to punish the idolatry of the people of Canaan who would be driven out.

“You must keep all my decrees and regulations by putting them into practice; otherwise the land to which I am bringing you as your new home will vomit you out. Do not live according to the customs of the people I am driving out before you. It is because they do these shameful things that I detest them. [Leviticus 20.22-23] 

What were the shameful and detestable customs of the people of Canaan? Leviticus 20.22-23 follows a list of these customs provided in the context of Leviticus 20 that is introduced in verse 5 below with the identification of idolatry: worshiping Molech.

I myself will turn against them and their families and will cut them off from the community. This will happen to all who commit spiritual prostitution by worshiping Molech. [Leviticus 20.5] 

So, back to Joshua and the miraculous and glorious victory he and all Israel enjoyed... It was not for them! Their "victory" was God's "punishment" upon the idolatry in Canaan which, uncoincidentally, also fulfilled God's Promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now...

Having established the context of Israel's victory above, it becomes clear why the commander of the LORD's army (Jesus, Whom Joshua encountered outside Jericho) identified Himself as such instead of "friend" or "foe" (see Joshua 5.13-14).

The point is, God has a plan. God's Covenant Promise to His people and His wrath upon idolatry (with all its list of debauchery) will both be fulfilled in entirety. The question is not whether Jesus is friend or foe to us, but are we friend or foe to Him?

You are my friends if you do what I command. [John 15.14]

Hmm..., what exactly did Jesus command that His followers must do? 

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

"Your own way" makes a person a foe of Jesus and the Kingdom of God. It puts a person in the same position as the residents of Canaan whom God detested and annihilated because of their gross idolatry (and all that went along with it). "Your own way" exposes a person to every curse of God whether he or she recognizes and admits it or not.

To "take up your cross" makes a person a friend of Jesus and the Kingdom of God. It puts a person in the same position as Joshua when he fell on his face before the commander of the LORD's army. To "take up your cross" exposes a person to every miraculous unexplainable blessing of God in the face of death itself - the way of genuine faith.

Joshua took control of the entire land, just as the LORD had instructed Moses NOT because he and Israel were so special, but because he and Israel chose to submit to the commander of the LORD's army Whose purpose was to annihilate the residents of Canaan and uphold God's Covenant Promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Joshua's choice was clear in his response to the commander of the LORD's army:

“I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?” [Joshua 5.14b]

The short answer to Joshua's question above can be paraphrased as follows: "Execute God's wrath upon the idolatrous people of the land and, in that obedience, enjoy the Covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (to be given a land filled with milk and honey - nothing but good things)." 

God would have annihilated the residents of Canaan and fulfilled His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with or without Joshua and Israel. They chose to submit.

God will annihilate idolatry and fulfill His Kingdom Promise with or without us. We must choose to submit. We must choose to give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Jesus.

Father, thank You for clarifying that Your Kingdom does not depend on me. Thank You for reminding me that I am not entitled to anything. Thank You that Your character gives me the choice to submit or rebel. With all that I understand and can consciously "will," I submit to You - to Jesus - to give up my own way, take up my cross, and follow Him. And, in so doing, may the land I occupy realize the same "rest from war" that Israel enjoyed. So be it.

The Church Today: In Real Trouble?

Lord, what can I say now that Israel has fled from its enemies? [Joshua 7.8] 

Joshua went to the right person but with the wrong question. In fact, God effectively rebuked Joshua regarding his assumption that God was to blame for Israel's defeat:

But the LORD said to Joshua, “Get up! Why are you lying on your face like this? Israel has sinned and broken my covenant! They have stolen some of the things that I commanded must be set apart for me. And they have not only stolen them but have lied about it and hidden the things among their own belongings. That is why the Israelites are running from their enemies in defeat. For now Israel itself has been set apart for destruction. I will not remain with you any longer unless you destroy the things among you that were set apart for destruction. [Joshua 7.10-12]

Like so many do today, Joshua assumed Israel's defeat was God's doing. In a moment of emotion and defeat, Joshua inadvertently fell victim to Satan' greatest line, "Has God really said...?" and so Joshua went to God as if God had some explaining to do - never mind that the curse of "defeat" was already well-defined as the result of sin. 

Well..., God explained the problem, not once (Joshua 7.10-12), but reiterated it another time to be sure:

“Get up! Command the people to purify themselves in preparation for tomorrow. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Hidden among you, O Israel, are things set apart for the LORD. You will never defeat your enemies until you remove these things from among you. [Joshua 7.13]

"Defeat" is a curse upon disobedience. Joshua should have recognized this immediately, but he did not. Instead of being on his face in a show of emotion, Joshua should have been looking for the culprit sin responsible for Israel's defeat so that it might be corrected. So, after God's second, "Get up!" Joshua 'got with the program.'

Israel's story here is not unlike our own except in one important detail: we are still groveling in emotion before God instead of purifying ourselves and getting rid of the sin. As long as there is defeat, there is sin.

"Now, wait just a minute!" one might argue, "that was Old Testament!"

Fair enough, but Who was it that Joshua encountered just outside Jericho Who instructed Joshua what to do regarding Israel's conquest of Jericho? It was Jesus, the commander of the LORD's army, Whose very presence made the ground Joshua met Him on holy. It was Jesus, Who gave Joshua specific instructions about the total annihilation of Jericho reserving all the precious metals as an offering to God. It was Jesus, Who in "Jesus fashion," gave His seven-day plan of action that appeared to have violated the Sabbath (there would have been a Sabbath in the seven-day period of marching). Jesus gives no consideration of the ceremony of Sabbath because He IS the Sabbath. The commander of the LORD's army is Jesus.

The Revelation of John gives us all the confirmation we need about what the commander of the LORD's army, Jesus, looks like and does:

Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself. He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God. The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords. [Revelation 19.11-16] 

"Defeat" remains the result of sin today and Jesus' Words remind us that our emotion (broken-hearted as it may be) is not the solution! Repentance is not emotion - repentance is action. The action Jesus requires is:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

Just as Israel was held to the standard of obedience in Jesus' presence, so we are held to obedience in Jesus' presence! And, just as Israel eventually recognized that their defeat was the direct result of "sin in the camp," so we MUST realize that our defeat signals sin in our own camp - sin that requires NOT broken-hearted emotion, but instead, the action of getting rid of the sin and complying with the Commander's instructions: giving up our own way, taking up our cross, and following Him!

Israel's sin was that Achan had taken forbidden things unto himself. Our sin today is that we take forbidden things unto ourselves. We do so every time we depend on ourselves and our ways for benefits that God said come only from Him by obedience to Him. What are those benefits? They are the blessings of Deuteronomy 28.1-14 that result from obedience to God. 

The very act of attempting to obtain the blessings of God described in Deuteronomy 28 apart from obedience to God is sin. Anything we depend on for Deuteronomy 28 blessings, other than God alone, is an idol. And, God's tolerance for idols is "zero."

Just to be sure He is not misunderstood, God gave the curses for disobedience in Deuteronomy 28.15-68 as a contrast to the blessings. Every curse listed in Deuteronomy 28 serves as a "sign" that there is "sin in our camp." "Defeat," specifically and in general, is found in those curses. To fall on our faces and cry out to God in the midst of these curses is the same thing Joshua did. But God told Joshua to get up and get rid of the sin! Jesus tells us to give up our own way (the sin), take up our cross (we must 'get up' to do that), and follow Him.

Instead of recognizing the presence of sin in our camp today, we lean hard upon the very idols that are the sin in our camp. And, instead of repenting (getting rid) of the sin (idols) responsible for our curses, we run to those idols claiming they are gifts from God! In broad categories, these idols are debt, insurance, medicine and technology. Is it any wonder the Church today is, for all practical purposes, powerless? But, no one is asking that question!

Faith in Christ to Whom we are disobedient is pure foolishness. If we have not given up our way, the way of man and his man-made solutions to sin problems (curses), and taken up our cross, the way of pure unadulterated faith and love even unto the death, then we are NOT followers of Jesus.

The lesson of Achan's story is that curses point out sin and that sin is to be gotten rid of! Where there are curses, there is sin and need for repentance that is action, not emotion. Any other explanation for curses that does not require removing the sin from the camp, is denial. It is Godless religion. Any other explanation for curses that does not require giving up our own way, taking up our cross, and following Jesus, is also, denial. It is Godless religion.

If what I am suggesting here is true, it might be argued that the Church today is in real trouble because curses abound today in the religious Church just like they do in the Godless world. We are left with two options; ignore the curses and continue to justify ourselves as 'okay' with complicated religious mumbo-jumbo, or, give up our own way (get rid of the sin), take up our cross (obedience/faith/love) and follow Jesus, knowing we have effectively done so when our lives and works actually look like Jesus' life and works.

It would be much easier just to declare me a lunatic. But what do the Scriptures say?

Father, may the truth of Your Word strike a chord in our hearts today. May the truth of curses lead us to getting rid of our own way, taking up our cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

Friend? Foe? Or Covenant Relationship?

When Joshua was near the town of Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and demanded, “Are you friend or foe?” “Neither one,” he replied. “I am the commander of the LORD’s army.” At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?” The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did as he was told. [Joshua 5.13-15]

Based on the very next verses, it would seem that the "commander of the LORD's army" was likely God Himself manifest as commander of His own army because Joshua 6.2 says, "the LORD said to Joshua..."

Having established this, is it not interesting that the commander of the LORD's army was neither "friend" nor "foe" to Joshua and Israel?

What is more interesting is what Joshua did upon hearing the commander's reply:

At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?” [Joshua 5.14b]

Joshua quickly realized he was not encountering a casual acquaintance but the Covenant God of the universe. I chose the adjective "Covenant" because it makes God indeed "neutral" as far as "friend or foe" goes, but explicitly pro-covenant in His dealings with people. This makes God completely "neutral" to all mankind, but reveals His exclusive preference toward those who obey His Covenant terms.

God was not interested in the color of their skin or their dialect. Regarding Joshua and the people with him, God was interested only in their obedience to His Covenant. Any other representation of God would have made Him less than God.

God's Covenant is His Word. Jesus is the Word of God. A person's religious affiliation, denomination, or preferences mean nothing to God's Kingdom. Jesus said it like this:

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

Of further interest is the description of Jesus in the Revelation of John: 

Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself. He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God. The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords. [Revelation 19.11-16] 

It sounds to me like Joshua encountered this same commander! And, like Joshua, when we truly encounter the commander of the LORD's army, we too will fall at His feet in worship. We will then understand that the only qualification He seeks is Covenant relationship. 

The Covenant mentioned here is demonstrated in those who repent, turning away from all other gods and believe treating all others as they wish themselves to be treated (love and forgiveness) (the first three and the last six of the Ten Commandments).

It is not ironic that Jesus (the Sabbath 4th Commandment) taught Covenant relationship through repentance and faith:

“The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” [Mark 1.15]

It is also not ironic that Jesus detailed what Covenant relationship specifically looks like:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

Giving up our own way is repentance (turning away) from all other gods so that the LORD God might be our only God. Taking up our cross is so believing the Good News of Jesus that loving and forgiving others becomes our own cross to bear. Following Jesus, the Covenant Sabbath Rest Commander of the LORD's army, is all that matters. And, that is precisely what Joshua did! He was leading the most feared people in the world at that moment and yet he fell to his face in full Covenant submission to Jesus.

Wow.

Father, may we be as aware of Jesus as Commander of the LORD's army as Joshua. May we understand the covenant significance (foreshadowed by the Ten Commandments) of giving up our own way (no other god but You), taking up our cross (treating (forgiving) others as we wish to be treated), and following Jesus (entering the Sabbath Rest)! So be it.

Follow The Blood

Before they left, the men told her, “We will be bound by the oath we have taken only if you follow these instructions. When we come into the land, you must leave this scarlet rope hanging from the window through which you let us down. And all your family members—your father, mother, brothers, and all your relatives—must be here inside the house. If they go out into the street and are killed, it will not be our fault. But if anyone lays a hand on people inside this house, we will accept the responsibility for their death. If you betray us, however, we are not bound by this oath in any way.” “I accept your terms,” she replied. And she sent them on their way, leaving the scarlet rope hanging from the window. [Joshua 2.17-21] 

In recent articles I have often suggested readers "follow the money" to find idols. Today, I will make a much more important and antithetical suggestion: to find Jesus, "follow the blood."

First, there was an agreement made between the prostitute and the spies. That agreement contained terms. Those terms were that the prostitute and her family would stay in the room where the scarlet rope hung from the window in order to be saved. The terms were simple. Everyone found outside "the room" would be mercilessly destroyed.

As the safety of the room represents the salvation Jesus provides, so the terms of the agreement represent the Covenant Promise of Jesus. The room and the benefit of the terms however may only be found by following the blood of Jesus which is clearly represented by the scarlet rope.

How cool is that?

All the sacrificial blood in the Old Testament in fact, points us to the salvation found only in Jesus Christ.

Father, thank You for Your Word - for Jesus. Thank You for the simple terms of Your Covenant, that if we repent and believe we might enjoy the salvation Jesus provided. Thank You that the blood shows us where the salvation is. Thank You that all the blood of the Bible leads us to the Cross of Jesus. Thank You that Jesus reiterated the Covenant terms when He specified that we must turn from our way, take up our cross, and follow Him. May we be found having given up our own way and having taken up our cross, as followers of Jesus and Jesus alone. So be it.

What Is Our Life?

These instructions are not empty words—they are your life! By obeying them you will enjoy a long life in the land you will occupy when you cross the Jordan River.” [Deuteronomy 32.47] 

The verse above stands in stark disagreement with every person who discounts the words of the Old Testament as outdated or irrelevant in any way.

But wait! There's more!

Jesus said:

“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]

And, even more revealing are Jesus' words in John 14 (note above and below the word "life"):

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6] 

Everything about the Bible is Jesus and Jesus is everything about the Bible. Everything about Jesus is our life and everything about our life is...

Is it Jesus? Or, something else?

Jesus said:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

If everything about our life is NOT Jesus, it is still about something... What IS it? How do we identify it?

Not ironically, in the context of today's One Year Chronological Bible reading, we find a clue:

Where now are those gods, who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their offerings? Let those gods arise and help you! Let them provide you with shelter! [Deuteronomy 32.38]

Follow where the fruit of our labor flows to. Basically, just follow the money. The fat of their sacrifices is the result of their labor raising flocks and herds. So it is with the wine of their offerings - it represents all the work of maintaining a vineyard and the culmination of all that work: wine. In today's society, the fat and the wine are both accounted for in money. 

So, where is our life? It is where our money goes. Have we given up our own way, taken up our cross and followed Jesus? Don't worry, you don't have to answer - your money already has!

Every dime we spend on debt, insurance, medicine and technology is money spent on gods designed to "help" us. The problem with this is that everything debt, insurance, medicine and technology "provide" is provision God jealously intends for us to look ONLY to Him for (I cannot cite the entire Bible here, but you get the point).

The Bible is Jesus. Jesus is our life. Neither the Bible nor Jesus are "empty words." Everything little "g" gods, debt, insurance, medicine and technology offer their "help" on (BTW: in exchange for our money) are the things big "G" God, Jesus said to walk away from in order to follow Him in miraculous provision. 

If we wish to defend debt, insurance, medicine and technology, God will let us. In fact, He says, "Let those gods arise and help you! Let them provide you with shelter!" But how can those things ever bring true satisfaction if indeed Jesus (every Word of God) is our life?

The Bible is NOT just empty words! Religion is satisfied for the Bible to be empty words, but it is not so with Jesus.

The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. [John 6.63]

Is it not interesting that Jesus said "human effort accomplishes nothing"? All our money (the fruit of all our effort) means nothing to Him.  Again, there is only one thing that matters to Jesus:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

What IS our life? Our money tells the story clearly.

Father, forgive me for "interpreting" the Bible to suit my idolatry. Yes, I said it... May I be found giving up my way, taking up my cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

Old And New Covenant - Old And New Idolatry

At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods. [Deuteronomy 31.18] 

When God hides His face, bad things happen.

Bad things don't happen to good people (no matter how many books have been written or sermons have been preached otherwise), the Bible simply does not teach such.

The only reason God hides His face and bad things happen is disobedience. Disobedience to God starts with violation of the 1st Commandment, digressing from there to consecutively break the 2nd and 3rd Commandments. In short, disobedience to God is idolatry.

The covenant discussed in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading is simply this: obey God and prosper; disobey God and suffer curses. In modern times, we like to call this the "Old Covenant," or the "Old Testament."

Somehow, people came to believe that Jesus deleted the Old Covenant, but that is just not true. Jesus came to fulfill the Old Covenant. The "Covenant" has always been Jesus. What we call the "Old Covenant" indeed only foreshadows Jesus, but Jesus has always been the "light" of it nonetheless. The New Covenant is the same original Covenant, but the 2.0 version. The New Covenant does not foreshadow Jesus, but reveals Jesus.

The mistake most people make is to believe somehow that God's Covenant no longer requires obedience. Parallel to that erroneous thinking, people think blessings and curses (more so curses than blessings) are random occurrences. In fact, religious people have so confused God's Covenant that these very people who are supposed to represent God's Church represent nothing of God at all, but instead represent a divided and fragmented segment of society that is void of God's power but still claims to have it in unrecognizable and abstract ways.

God's Covenant in Jesus Christ however, gives laser-accuracy to what obedience to God looks like:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)] 

The Old Covenant was not so focused, but rather, revolved around seemingly endless rules and regulations that could, at best, only foreshadow Christ.

Jesus' demand above is simply the "2.0" version of the "1.0" 1st Commandment. Nothing about the subsequent Commandments however changed, and that is where modern "believers" are confused. God-ward obedience (love) remains paramount to overcome idolatry, Jesus-ward (Sabbath) obedience (love) remains paramount to being holy, and man-ward obedience (love) remains paramount to the will of God on earth.

Relative to the opening passage above, nothing about that verse has changed in the New Covenant. God still hides His face on account of all the evil man commits by worshiping other gods (idols). If a person has not given up his way (the way of man - the way of idolatry), taken up his cross (the way of faith in Jesus), and followed Jesus, then God hides His face from them.

We can talk about "Old" and "New" all we want. Jesus is God in the flesh and He requires no less obedience to, and trust in, Him alone than ever before. Jesus paid the demanding price for our inability to save ourselves (sin) but none of that matters if we do not give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Him. Jesus IS the "New" Covenant, but a "covenant" of obedience and blessings nonetheless.

It might be understood better if we see the "Old" Covenant as man striving to obey God for blessings, and the "New" Covenant as man surrendering to obey Jesus for blessings. Repentance and faith are essential. 

Idolatry remains the work of the enemy to lure people away from Jesus (and therefore, God). The primary focus of idolatry today is the remediation of curses apart from essential repentance and faith in Christ alone. In other words, man's idols deny that curses have anything to do with sin, but instead attribute them to "just the way things are" and lull and lure people into their costly, and ultimate eternally damning, trap. Idolatry is the lifeblood of the industries of debt, insurance, medicine and technology. 

All the while, idolatry remains out of sight while God's people ignorantly argue about the adjectives "Old" or "New" giving nary a thought to the noun "Covenant" as it pertains to blessings and curses both temporal and eternal. If "Covenant" is minimized and confused in its defining blessings or curses, Satan has accomplished his goal and idolatry remains undetected. 

When God's people think of "Old" or "New" Covenant, they also need to remember that the antithesis is "Old" or "New" idolatry. As long as "Covenant" is important for God's people to focus on, "idolatry" remains the distractor. Idols distract God's people from the Covenant (whether Old Covenant or New Covenant) with its telltale blessings or curses. When idols remediate curses apart from repentance and faith, they take God's people's focus off their Covenant with God that is all about blessings or curses. If curses are not seen as indicators of violation of covenant terms, then there is no perceived need for repentance and faith - and Satan has accomplished his enduring goal, "Has God really said...?"

Old Covenant is about God's people's obedience to overwhelming rules and regulations so they might be blessed.

New Covenant is about God's people' obedience to Jesus so they might be blessed.

When blessings are replaced with curses, covenant has been broken because God has hidden His face on account of all the evil His people commit by worshiping other gods (idols). Those very idols offer remediation for curses to prevent God's people from turning to Him alone and following the rules, "Old Covenant," or following Jesus alone, "New Covenant," in repentance and faith.

The signs (curses) of broken covenant are all around us. But idols cover the signs.

Father, I know this article could be easily misunderstood, but the prevailing role of idolatry to keep Your people out of "covenant" is undeniable. Help us to understand that our covenant with You distinguishes us from all others. Help us to grasp the fact that if we are not distinguished as Yours, then we are in fact not Yours and are hopelessly lost in the blindness and deafness of idolatry. May we be found in the New Covenant of giving up our own way (repenting for the ways of idolatry), taking up our cross (believing only in Jesus), and following Jesus in every single thing we do. So be it.

A Covenant Moment

These are the terms of the covenant the LORD commanded Moses to make with the Israelites while they were in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Mount Sinai. [Deuteronomy 29.1]

What does "covenant" mean? Can we answer that question from the Word without relying on libraries of extra-Biblical literature and ideology? Let's try, shall we?

Aa far as I can tell, the first use of the word "covenant" is in Genesis:

But I will confirm my covenant with you. So enter the boat—you and your wife and your sons and their wives. [Genesis 6.18]

Although Genesis 6.18 was the first instance of the use of the word, it certainly was not the last. In the New Living Translation, the word "covenant" is used 328 times (including non-manuscript headings). Of these 328 uses, 293 are in the Old Testament while the remaining 35 are in the New Testament. 

Notice the first use of "covenant" in Genesis 6.18 does not indicate any form of negotiated agreement as we tend to think of a "covenant." Instead, God just told Noah and his family to get in the ark. Then, the next use of "covenant" comes after the flood:

Then God told Noah and his sons, “I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, and with all the animals that were on the boat with you—the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals—every living creature on earth. Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth.” [Genesis 9.8-11]

Again, the use of "covenant" here does not indicate any form of negotiated agreement between Noah and God.

The next use of "covenant" has to do with Abram in Genesis 15.

After the sun went down and darkness fell, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. So the LORD made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River— the land now occupied by the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,  Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.” [Genesis 15.17-21] 

Once again, there was no negotiated agreement between Abram and God. It was just a statement of promise from God just like it was with Noah.

It was not until Genesis 17 that "covenant" actually implied a direct human response to God's promise:

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.” [Genesis 17.1-2]

What follows in Genesis 17 are God's "covenant" conditions including the obedience of circumcision. From there, "covenant" is seen in agreements between men (man to man) and further covenants between man and God (all of which involved man's compliance/obedience).

It should be understood that all the initial occurrences of "covenant" involved God making promises and man complying in terms of obedience. "Covenant" seems to indicate what God promises to those who obey. It is, indeed, an agreement.

As seen in Deuteronomy 29.1 above, the Old Testament seems to be a progressive compilation of "covenants" between God and man. Man's initial consumption of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil insured this would be necessary as with increased knowledge, increased definition of boundaries is necessary. In fact, as man's knowledge blossomed in good and evil, so God's additional "covenants" kept pace. No one will dispute that the Old Testament became an overwhelming manual of rules.

However, if we "back out" all the increased knowledge of good and evil and go back to the first use of the word "covenant," we don't find a negotiation, but simply a promise: get in the boat. Although this is not the first Biblical foreshadowing of Jesus, it is certainly an early one. Just as God foreshadowed Jesus in the Garden of Eden, so He again foreshadowed Jesus in the ark. All of God's blessings can be summed up in Jesus Christ. Jesus was no afterthought to God, but instead, the plan all along. Jesus was the God's "covenant" plan before Creation.

Obedience is what distinguishes man from nature. Nature, simply left to itself, does what it was designed to do. But God did not desire relationship with robots, so, He injected freewill into man. It was a risky move, but the only way to have true fellowship with a being truly "made in His image."

Every "covenant" between God and man foreshadows, or is, Jesus. And, for all the "rules" that evolved from God's first covenant promise to Noah - the rules that eventually became perceived as overwhelming and overbearing, Jesus would then be the climax "covenant" embodying all others. And, here is what Jesus said:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

Jesus is every covenant promise of the Old Testament. Jesus is healing. Jesus is provision. Jesus is peace. Jesus is protection. Jesus is life. Every promise of the Bible is fulfilled in Jesus Who didn't give a plethora of rules and regulations to sort out... Instead, Jesus demanded total obedience - giving up every man-way to take up every God-way, in following Him.

While modern Christianity presents the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus in simplicity compared to the overwhelming Old Testament rules and regulations, it often fails to point out that following Christ is not about obeying certain ways of doing things, but is about giving up altogether on man's way of doing things so that God's way of doing things - faith - even to the point of earthly death - might distinguish us as Christ's.

Just as all God's Old Testament covenants initially revolved around man's devotion and ultimately required man's obedience, following Jesus Christ involves ultimate obedience, surpassing all previous covenants, dying altogether to oneself. This is God's 'progression of covenant.' He fulfilled it Himself! God effectively made it so difficult that only He Himself could meet the demands of His requirements. Thus, all man can do is surrender... giving up his own way, taking up his cross, and following Jesus. Man's only way to please God then, is faith in Jesus.

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. [Hebrews 11.6] 

I apologize if this all seems scattered. The one thing that should stand out is that we are nothing apart from Christ Jesus. All our religion means nothing unless we realize that we have nothing apart from Jesus. The only covenant we are capable of keeping with God is Jesus. The only covenant blessing we are entitled to is Jesus. And, that "entitlement" is only afforded through our obedience of humble selfless faith.

Father, I can only repent today for my insistence upon self-sufficiency. I surrender to You - to Jesus. All my ways are wrong and only Jesus' ways are right. May the world not see me, but see Jesus in me. May "Jesus in me" be seen as what the Bible reveals of Jesus and not what the worldly Church depicts. I am having a "covenant moment" today - and I welcome it... So be it.