March 7th - A Conditional Covenant

A Conditional Covenant

(Deuteronomy 26:16-19; 27:1-26; 28:1-68; 29:1-29; 30:1-20)

Torah

Artist Unknown

Yesterday, our Bible reading concluded the listing of the law of the Lord from the Torah. Today, we read of how God’s people were called to a covenant of obedience. Their response would lead either to blessing or cursing.

Although God called the Israelites to be His holy people, and He promised never to leave them, His favor would depend upon their choices. The people could choose to obey the Lord and keep His covenant, or they could opt to reject Him and lose His hand of blessing upon their lives and the land He would give to them.

This conditional covenant represented a new chapter in the history of God’s people.

The Abrahamic Covenant was unconditional.

God’s promise to Abraham (known as the Abrahamic Covenant) had been unconditional. God assumed full responsibility for the promise and the outcome (see Genesis 12-17).

"I will make you into a great nation,

and I will bless you;

I will make your name great,

and you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you,

and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth

will be blessed through you."

(Genesis 12:2-3, NIV)

The Mosaic Covenant was conditional.

Throughout the delineation of God’s covenant with Moses and the people (see Exodus 19-24), the word “if” appears repeatedly. God promises fruitfulness, prosperity, health and expansion, if the people will seek to obey His laws. On the other hand, He warns of disease, disaster, oppression and ruin, if they will not.

Sin separates man from the Lord, and deliberate disobedience blocks His hand of blessing. Bible scholars and historians have traced the patterns of sin and obedience and found the consequences to bear out the Lord’s principles.

Does all suffering come from sin?

It can be easy for healthy and wealthy individuals to claim the Lord’s favor and to blame those who struggle and suffer for their own troubles. However, any honest evaluator will quickly discover that bad things happen to righteous people, and good things may also happen to the wicked.

Certainly, mankind’s troubles began when sin entered the world through prideful disobedience. We have all experienced the perils of our fallen condition.

However, even in times of suffering, we may walk with the blessing of the Lord.

Will we choose to be blessed or stressed?

Living in a dangerous and often dark world, who would not rather face the future with the Lord’s favor than without it? Would we not choose to obey Him and live under His protection and providence, rather than striking out in deliberate rebellion?

How can we, as individuals or even as nations, expect the Lord to rain blessings upon us, if we refuse to invite His leadership and laws into our lives?

Will you pray with me?

Holy God,

We are convicted and humbled,

As we are reminded

Of Your call to obedience.

Although we live under Your law of grace,

We also see the importance

Of obeying You

From this day forward.

We love You,

And we desire to reside

Under Your hand of blessing

All the days of our lives.

Help us to obey You.

Amen.

January 10th - A Trusted Servant

A Trusted Servant

(Genesis 24)

Rebecca and Abraham's Servant at the Well

By William the Younger Hilton

1833

A faithful servant is a blessing indeed. How I long to be just that. Who among us does not desire to hear the Lord’s blessing one day?

"'Well done, good and faithful servant. . . .

Come and share your master's happiness!'”

(Matthew 25:23, NIV)

Abraham’s personal servant proved faithful, when Abraham sent him to find a suitable bride for Isaac.

Because of his faith in God’s promise to build His holy nation from his offspring (or seed), Abraham refused to allow his son to marry outside of his own people. The line of Abraham would eventually lead to the birth of Christ, so the direct lineage of faith had to be preserved.

Abraham’s servant (presumably Eliezer) traveled to the family’s land of origin (Mesopotamia) in search of God’s chosen wife for the promised son Isaac.

The servant’s faith is a model for us all. He prayed before, during and after his journey. He placed the burden of choice upon the Lord. His prayer petitioned God for a definite, measurable answer.

“This is my request.

I will ask one of them,

‘Please give me a drink from your jug.’

If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink,

and I will water your camels, too!’

—let her be the one You have selected as Isaac’s wife.

This is how I will know

that You have shown unfailing love to my master.”

(Genesis 24:14, NLT)

Although the Bible does not counsel us always to set specific guidelines for the Lord’s answers to our prayers, this clearly is a case where God willed it so. There was to be no mistaking the Lord’s direction in this important matter, which would set the course of the genealogical heritage of the Messiah Himself.

Silent prayer is powerful.

Abraham’s servant did not broadcast his specific prayer request. Rather, he petitioned the Lord silently (see Genesis 24:45).

Certainly, shared prayers are important. However, in this instance, the privacy of this petition seems to add to the remarkability of God’s answer. There was no human possibility for Rebekah (or anyone else) to know what Abraham’s servant had prayed. The answer clearly came directly from God Himself.

Abraham’s faithful servant had also prayed that God would grant him favor with men, aiding him on his appointed mission. The Lord paved the way, and his request was answered. Rebekah’s family consented to the match, and she agreed to journey immediately and become Isaac’s bride.

How I crave a true balance of prayer and productivity, waiting and working, trusting and trying. How much more smoothly might life progress, if my every action were both organized and orchestrated with prayer?

May God grant it so.

Will you pray with me?

Great, gracious God,

Every detail of our lives is in Your hands.

You care about our lives

Even more than we do.

Teach us to trust You,

Before we take action,

In the midst of activity,

And after the work has been completed.

Grant us favor,

That we may do Your bidding.

May we give You

All glory and praise.

For You are good.

Amen.

January 9th - To Will God's Will

To Will God’s Will

(Genesis 22 - 23)

The Sacrifice of Isaac

by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio

(1601-02)

How we struggle to will God’s will. Yet, a single glimpse at God’s wondrous sense of order may reaffirm our confidence in His unfathomable wisdom.

Today we have read about Abraham’s heart-wrenching trial of faith. After waiting a quarter of a century to see God’s personal promise realized with the arrival of a son, Abraham’s worst nightmare arrived. The Lord asked him to sacrifice his beloved only son Isaac on the altar at Mount Moriah.

And Abraham obeyed.

He took the boy, loaded up the firewood and headed for the mountain of sacrifice. There, this devoted father tied his own son and raised his blade to slay him, in obedience to the Lord. Abraham proved he loved the Lord even more than his own child.

Jesus spoke of this level of commitment, when He instructed His followers about counting to cost of following Him:

"If anyone comes to Me

and does not hate his father and mother,

his wife and children,

his brothers and sisters

— yes, even his own life —

he cannot be My disciple.”

(Luke 14:26, NIV)

At the appointed moment, as soon as Abraham demonstrated his faithful obedience, the Lord intervened and provided the sacrifice Himself.

What a wonderful God! How He must have felt at that moment, knowing that this entire event foreshadowed the day when He would sacrifice His own Son at Calvary.

Where is Mount Moriah?

Our great God of wisdom and order orchestrated a stunning pattern of history at this very geographical spot. Mount Moriah, the site where Abraham offered his son Isaac to the Lord (see Genesis 22), was also the spot where Jacob later saw the angels traveling up and down the stairway to Heaven (see Genesis 28:10-18).

This same location would be chosen for Solomon’s Temple. The Ark of the Covenant would sit on this very site (see 1 Kings 8:11).

Joseph and Mary would bring young Jesus to this place to dedicate Him to the Lord. Here, Simeon and Anna would rejoice at the coming of the long-awaited Savior of the world (see Luke 2:22-39).

Map of Jerusalem, showing Mount Moriah.

Historical Textbook and Atlas of Biblical Geography

Public Domain - Coleman (1854)

Surely, God carries the course of history in His hands.Will we ask our loving Lord for the will to do God’s will?

“I desire to do Your will, O my God;

Your law is within my heart."

(Psalm 40:8, NIV)

“Teach me to do Thy will;

for Thou art my God:

Thy spirit is good;

lead me into the land of uprightness.”

(Psalm 143:10, KJV)

“May Your Kingdom come soon.
May Your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.”

(Matthew 6:10, NLT)

Will you pray with me?

Sovereign Lord and Master,

How we long to long for your will.

Build our faith.

Make us worthy of Your calling.

Guide us daily,

And instill in us the desire

To desire more of You.

Give us the will

To do Your will.

We praise You.

Amen.

January 8th - God Protects His Own Promises

God Protects His Own Promises

(Genesis 19:30 – 21)

King Abimelech Restores Sarah to Her Husband Abraham

By Frans Geubels

(c1565)

Even patriarchs can slip up sometimes.

Do you recall our reading on January 5^th? While living in Egypt, Abram worried for his own safety, so he told the Egyptians that his beautiful wife, Sarai, was his sister. In truth, Sarai was his half-sister.Abram and Sarai shared the same father, Terah (the son of Nahor). Still, Abram’s claim was deceitful.

Based on Abram’s claim, the Pharaoh took Sarai into his household, intending to make her part of his collection of women.

However, the Lord prevented Sarai from becoming dishonored in this strange circumstance. God protected Sarai, her purity and her dignity. (You can review this account in Genesis 12:11-20.)

In today’s reading, Abraham (previously Abram) behaved in like manner, some twenty years later. Fearing King Abimelech and the people of Gerar, Abraham again lied and introduced Sarah (previously Sarai) as his sister. Perhaps Abraham again feared potential harm from men more than he trusted God for protection.

Believing Sarah to be Abraham’s sister, King Abimelech sent for her, planning to add Sarah to his own household.

Amazingly, God appeared to King Abimelech in a dream to confront him with the truth about Abraham’s wife, Sarah.

“Then God said to him in the dream,

‘Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience,

and so I have kept you from sinning against Me.

That is why I did not let you touch her.

Now return the man's wife, for he is a prophet,

and he will pray for you, and you will live.

But if you do not return her,

you may be sure that you and all yours will die.’”

(Genesis 20:6, NIV)

How often do we act just as Abraham did, though perhaps in various situations? We make New Year’s resolutions. We create commitments, covenants and vows. And then we break them.

Often, our gracious God protects those around us from our errors, even as He guarded Sarah. God can work His purpose through our failures, as well as our honest efforts.

“And we know that in all things

God works for the good of those who love Him,

who have been called according to His purpose.”

(Romans 8:28, NIV)

The Lord may prevent unintentional sins.

What a remarkable story. Although King Abimelech made no pretense of believing or serving the Lord, God still spoke to him. And the Almighty prevented this unbelieving king from committing unknowing adultery with Sarah. Clearly, it suited God’s purpose to protect this individual from unintentional sin.

Why would God take such interest in this situation?

Abraham and Sarah still awaited the arrival of Isaac, their long-ago promised son. Five more years would pass before the child’s birth. Still, God revealed to them that their offspring would become a whole nation.

“I will surely bless you

and make your descendants as numerous

as the stars in the sky

and as the sand on the seashore.”

(Genesis 22:17, NIV)

Unlike the family line of Abraham’s cousin Lot, which was furthered by deceit and even incest (see Genesis 21:1-7), Abraham’s offspring had to be conceived in fully legitimate manner. God protected the lineage of this patriarch, as His own Son would one day be begotten through his line.

Had Sarah been besmirched by either the Egyptian Pharaoh or King Abimelech, then the seed through which the Savior would come might have been spoiled as well.

God chose to build His holy nation through the family of Abraham, so that one day all of God’s children might belong to this patriarch’s clan, either by birth or by adoption.

God protects those who love Him.

Certainly, this was not one of Abraham’s shining moments. Placing his own wife’s purity and even safety in peril brought shame to this patriarch.

Yet God guarded Sarah, even when her own husband did not. Surely, Sarah prayed from the king’s palace, as she worried when she might be summoned to be with the king. God loved Sarah dearly. After all, He chose her to be the mother of the promised son, the first fruits of His holy nation.

What a wonderful encouragement this is to any of us. Consider wives of unbelieving or faithless husbands. How much comfort might women derive from knowing that God hears the prayers of those in distress. He knows the agonies of worry and rejection. He understands the sorrow and disappointment a wife may feel when her husband, who ought to be the priest of the home, makes poor and selfish choices.

And God steps in.

As today’s reading ends, Abraham and Sarah are indeed blessed with a son. Isaac brings joy and laughter to his parents, as they see the fulfillment of God’s 25-year promise.

Sarah said,

"God has brought me laughter,

and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me."

(Genesis 21:6, NIV)

Will you pray with me?

Most Holy God,

We confess that we have made commitments to You

And broken them.

We have made promises

And cast them aside.

Change our hearts.

Build us into Your holy people.

Thank You for Your guidance

And Your protection,

When we make unwise or even sinful choices

And when others make poor decisions

That affect us.

Hold us in Your loving hands,

Close to Your gracious heart.

We praise You.

Amen.