Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP210015S
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00:01 Welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School.
00:03 We're on the second lesson of the quarterly titled, 00:07 "The Promise," 00:08 God's everlasting covenant. 00:10 To me the most exciting teaching that there is. 00:13 Last week, we left off with the fall of humanity 00:16 from our first parent's sin. 00:20 This week, we're going to have a covenant primer. 00:23 We'll talk about what is a covenant? 00:25 What are the elements? 00:26 The covenant with Noah, the covenant with Abraham, 00:29 how do faith and works combine in the covenant setting, 00:34 and the everlasting covenant? 00:38 Now, if you do not have a quarterly yet, 00:42 you can go to ABSG.Adventist.org 00:47 and download a copy 00:48 or better yet go by 00:50 your nearest Seventh-day Adventist Church. 00:52 They'll give you a quarterly 00:54 and invite you to a fellowship luncheon. 00:56 Please stay tuned. 01:31 This is such an exciting study 01:33 that we're about to embark upon. 01:35 What we will look at today 01:37 is basically just kind of introducing 01:40 what we'll be studying in the rest of the quarter. 01:43 And I am very happy to have my 3ABN family here with us. 01:48 First we have John Dinzey. 01:50 So glad you're here, Johnny. 01:52 It's a blessing to be here. 01:53 And I think we can say again 01:54 today we have a feast of good things. 01:56 Amen. 01:57 And then evangelist and singer of Israel, Ryan Day. 02:01 Amen. Praise the Lord. 02:03 I'm excited about today's lesson. 02:04 Amen. 02:05 And then my precious sister and our COO, Jill Morikone. 02:09 Thank you, Shelley. Excited to share. 02:11 I have the covenant with Moses. 02:13 Amen. 02:14 And then my pastor, Pastor John Lomacang. 02:17 Good to be here, Shelley. 02:19 I have the new covenant, which is an exciting topic. 02:21 Oh, this whole thing is exciting. 02:25 Ryan, could you have a prayer for us please? 02:26 Absolutely. 02:28 Father in heaven, Lord, we just are so thankful 02:30 and blessed to be here today, 02:32 to be able to breathe another fresh breath of life 02:34 and be able to use this life Lord for Your glory. 02:36 And so, Lord, as we gather here today, right now 02:39 and we dissect Your Word, 02:42 try to understand the covenants better. 02:43 Lord, I ask that You bless us. 02:45 Give us the Holy Spirit that 02:46 we speak the words that bring glory to You, 02:49 and help to bring understanding to us and everyone listening. 02:52 We ask in Jesus' name, amen. 02:54 Amen and amen. 02:56 Okay. 02:58 Covenant primer is our topic today. 03:02 The memory text is this, 03:03 from Exodus 19:5, 03:07 God's speaking, 03:08 "Now therefore, 03:09 if you will obey My voice indeed 03:12 and keep My covenant, 03:14 then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me 03:19 above all the people, for all the earth is Mine." 03:23 Let me tell you something. 03:24 The unifying theme of Scripture is our God 03:28 is a covenant making, 03:30 covenant keeping God. 03:33 That's the everlasting gospel, three angels' messages. 03:37 The first angel comes out, 03:39 and he has the everlasting gospel. 03:41 That's the foundation of the three angels' messages 03:44 of Revelation 14. 03:46 But if somebody asks, 03:47 "What's the everlasting gospel?" 03:49 What would you say? 03:51 It's found in the previous chapter, 03:54 Revelation 13:8, 03:57 "The Lamb who was slain 04:01 before the foundation of the earth." 04:03 This is God's covenant of redemption, 04:07 the grace that was given to us in Christ Jesus 04:10 before time began. 04:12 And you might say, 04:14 "Well, how do we know 04:15 that's the everlasting covenant?" 04:16 Because Hebrews 13:20-21 talks about Jesus' blood 04:23 is the blood of the everlasting covenant. 04:30 Here's the thing. 04:31 When we look at covenants, 04:34 this is the overarching divine plan of God. 04:38 There is a progressive, unfolding. 04:42 Each one of God's covenants 04:45 builds on the last and depends on the last. 04:49 God is revealing Himself ever greater 04:54 until the manifestation of Jesus Christ, 04:58 the covenant of redemption that began before time began. 05:04 So Sunday's lesson is 05:05 "Covenant basics." 05:07 And it says, 05:08 "I will make my covenant," 05:10 in Genesis 17:2, 05:12 "between me and thee 05:13 and will multiply you exceedingly." 05:17 This is a covenant statement God made to Abraham. 05:21 In the Hebrew covenant is berit. 05:27 And it means to obligate, to bind. 05:30 It's interesting 05:32 in the Bible in the Old Testament 05:34 287 times the word covenant is used. 05:37 Of those 287 times, 05:40 270 times it's referring to God's covenant with man. 05:44 The other times it's man's covenant with man. 05:48 When we look at greater understand covenant, 05:54 it implies more than one party, 05:57 it implies a relationship of trust, of love, of loyalty, 06:03 peace of goodness. 06:05 But here's where you can get 06:07 the real understanding of God's covenant. 06:11 What's it mean to bind or obligate? 06:14 In the Greek, 06:16 there are two words for covenant, 06:18 just have a different prefix. 06:20 There's syntheke and diatheke. 06:25 Syntheke is a contract. 06:28 Syntheke is when two parties make terms they come together, 06:32 and it's a contract. 06:34 Syntheke is never used of God's covenants, 06:38 only a covenant of man with man. 06:41 Diatheke is the Greek word for will, for testament, 06:48 270 times in the Old Testament, 06:52 and always in the New Testament. 06:55 Every reference to God's covenant 06:57 is diatheke. 06:59 It is God's will, God's testament. 07:05 And the reason we know that to me this is exciting, 07:08 the Septuagint 07:09 when 70 Hebrew scholars got together, 07:12 and they translated the Old Testament into Greek, 07:16 they always used diatheke, 07:18 just like the New Testament does. 07:20 So it shows us that God's covenant are a will. 07:26 Now interestingly, 07:27 God made two types of covenants. 07:30 There's an obligatory covenant, 07:32 that means it's a covenant 07:34 where God makes all the promises. 07:36 And it is based, 07:38 it's very similar to the Suzerain Vassal treaties 07:43 where a sovereign nation would come in, 07:46 in an effort to demonstrate 07:47 that they were merciful in giving. 07:49 When they took over another nation, 07:51 they would grant favor 07:54 to the subordinate vassal nation. 07:59 But that's the vassal was to obey the stipulations 08:04 of this treaty, 08:06 if you will. 08:08 And so God designed it 08:10 in such a way that they would understand it. 08:11 God makes all the promises in the covenant. 08:14 But obligatory covenants, God says, 08:17 "If you want to be part of My will, 08:20 if you want to be an inheritor, 08:22 a co-inheritor with Jesus Christ, 08:26 what you've got to do 08:28 is walk according to these stipulations." 08:32 God wanted an intimate relationship 08:34 with humanity. 08:36 But He wanted a relationship 08:39 that was based on reciprocal, loyal love. 08:45 One element I love about God's covenant 08:47 over and over again, 08:49 He says, 08:51 "Here's the covenant, 08:52 I will be your God, 08:54 and you will be My people." 08:56 Amen. 08:58 That makes me so excited. 09:00 So what He's saying is His benevolence and protection 09:05 are given in exchange for loyal love. 09:09 Then there were promissory covenants 09:11 like the Davidic covenant, 09:13 where he told David, 09:14 "Your seed will always be on the throne." 09:17 There was no oblige... 09:19 Anything that he had to do. 09:21 Our writer of this quarterly 09:23 brings out that covenants are a relationship. 09:28 They are, if you will, 09:31 there's boundaries to this relationship 09:34 that explains the arrangement of the relationship. 09:38 And here's the three elements. 09:40 He said they always include. 09:42 God affirms the covenant promise with an oath, 09:45 we can look at Galatians 3:16. 09:48 And, interestingly, 09:49 this is in the context of righteousness by faith. 09:53 Listen to what Paul says. 09:54 Galatians 3:16. 09:56 "Now to Abraham and his Seed," 09:59 capital S, not to his seeds, 10:03 "but one seed to your Seed who is Christ. 10:08 So God is making this oath. 10:10 He said to Abraham and the seed where the promise is made. 10:14 Hebrews 6:13 says, 10:16 "When God made a promise to Abraham 10:19 because He could swear by no one greater, 10:21 He swore by himself." 10:24 God's covenants define, 10:27 they establish His relationship with humanity. 10:32 Now the second element of a covenant is obligation, 10:36 obedience to God's will, 10:39 as described in His moral law of love, 10:42 the Ten Commandments. 10:43 Deuteronomy 4:13, God says, 10:47 "He declared to you His covenant, 10:49 which He commanded you to perform." 10:51 And we'll look at that old covenant 10:52 in lessons to come. 10:54 And then he says, 10:56 "The Ten commandments, 10:57 and He wrote them on two tablets of stone." 11:00 I'm going to say up front, 11:01 the Ten Commandments are not the old covenant. 11:04 The Ten Commandments, 11:05 though, are a covenant. 11:08 They are in both the Hebrew and the Greek, 11:11 it just simply means 10 words. 11:14 And they are written in future tense, 11:19 which indicates they are ten promises. 11:22 English, we translated as commandments. 11:26 Basically, it's our interpretation, 11:29 but it's because the syntax 11:31 does indicate they are commandments. 11:34 So the third thing, 11:35 and oh, by the way, 11:36 the Ten Commandments, you will see 11:38 were the heart of the Old Covenant, 11:41 and they are the heart of the New Covenant. 11:45 The third element is the means 11:48 by which the covenant obligation 11:51 is ultimately fulfilled 11:54 is through Christ and the plan of salvation. 11:57 Let's look at Isaiah 42:6. 11:59 I love this verse. 12:01 Isaiah 42:6. 12:03 Speaking of the Messianic servant, 12:05 Jesus Christ, 12:07 God says, 12:08 "I, the Lord, have called You the Messiah, 12:12 in righteousness, 12:14 I will hold your hand, 12:16 I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people 12:22 as a light to the Gentiles." 12:27 Humanity enters 12:30 into covenant relationship 12:34 with God as our Father 12:37 when we accept this everlasting covenant, 12:40 Jesus Christ. 12:41 When we accept Christ as our Savior, 12:44 when we're born again, 12:46 we enter into covenant. 12:49 Oh, we need to understand this. 12:51 It binds us to God. 12:54 But it obligates us to keep His promises and to... 13:01 I mean, it obligates Him to keep His promises. 13:04 But it obligates us to walk according to His will, 13:09 obedience that is motivated by covenant loyalty, 13:13 and by love. 13:15 We've got to be willing to have 13:18 this committed relationship with Him. 13:22 God will work in us 13:25 to will and to do His good pleasure. 13:28 So even obedience is a gift of grace. 13:32 God will empower our obedience. 13:36 Obedience is not a means to be saved. 13:42 Obedience is a fruit that shows we are safe. 13:48 And when we obey God, 13:52 we are keeping covenant with Him. 13:56 But if we disobey God, we are breaking covenant. 14:00 Let me give you, 14:01 leave this with this one scripture. 14:04 Daniel 9:4, 14:05 Daniel's praying and he says, 14:07 "O Lord, great and awesome God, 14:10 who keeps His covenant and mercy 14:13 with those who love Him, 14:16 and with those who keep His commandments." 14:21 Obedience is part of God's last will 14:25 and testimony for us. 14:28 Johnny. Amen. Amen. 14:30 Well, we move now to Monday's lesson. 14:32 And in Monday's lesson, we have 14:36 "Covenant with Noah," 14:38 Covenant with Noah. 14:40 I like to start with Genesis 6:5. 14:43 In Genesis 6:5. 14:46 Let's go to verse 9. 14:50 "Then the Lord saw 14:52 that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, 14:54 and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart 14:58 was only evil continually. 15:00 And the Lord was sorry 15:02 that He had made man on the earth, 15:05 and He was grieved in His heart. 15:07 So the Lord said, 15:08 'I will destroy man 15:10 whom I have created from the face of the earth, 15:12 both man and beast, creeping thing 15:15 and birds of the air, 15:16 for I am sorry that I have made them." 15:19 Verse 8. 15:21 "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." 15:27 This is beautiful. 15:28 When you see the Scripture, you start reading and you say, 15:30 "Oh, no, God created man in His image." 15:34 And now, the picture is such a horrible picture 15:37 that God is sorry that He made man on the earth. 15:41 He has to make a decision that is shocking. 15:46 He has to destroy men on the earth. 15:47 But when you get to that verse, it says, 15:49 "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." 15:53 And now let me read verse 9. 15:54 And this is the genealogy of Noah. 15:56 "Noah was a just man, perfect in his generation, 16:00 Noah walked with God." 16:03 I like that. 16:05 You see, God saw the whole earth, 16:09 everybody was corrupt. 16:11 And this is a horrible picture of people that 16:14 God is able to look inside the heart, 16:17 and see that even the very thoughts are evil. 16:21 The condition is such that there appears to be no hope. 16:26 But interestingly enough, 16:28 God chose Noah to do a work of mercy. 16:32 God's grace was still extended, 16:35 His hand was still extended to people, repent, repent. 16:39 And Noah was selected to preach for 120 years. 16:43 What a merciful God? 16:45 What a merciful God? 16:47 Let's continue reading. 16:48 Let's go to Genesis 6:13-17, 16:51 "And God said to Noah," 16:55 actually, I'm just going to read verse 13 at this time, 16:56 "And God said to Noah, 16:58 'The end of all flesh has come before Me, 17:00 for the earth is filled with violence through them, 17:03 and behold, I will destroy them with the earth." 17:06 So God tells Noah 17:09 that He has to destroy the people of the earth. 17:12 And He asked him to build an ark, 17:15 so that people may have an opportunity to repent 17:18 and escape the destruction that is coming upon the world. 17:22 Verse 18, no, Genesis 6:18. 17:25 "But with thee will I establish my covenant, 17:28 and thou shalt come into the ark, 17:31 thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, 17:34 and thy sons' wives with thee." 17:37 "Thy sons' wives with thee." 17:38 So we see here that God promised that 17:39 even though He was going to destroy the earth, 17:42 He was going to protect Noah and his family. 17:45 And so we see that 17:47 this covenant that God is making with Noah, 17:50 as you examine this covenant, 17:51 and we're going to do a little bit of that 17:53 in this lesson and more later on. 17:56 You will notice that God is the one making promises, 17:58 God is the one saying, I'm going to do this, 18:00 I'm going to do this, I'm going to do this. 18:01 He didn't ask Noah or his family to do anything. 18:05 And so this is a covenant that needs to be looked at. 18:08 And we're going to just kind of taste it a little bit, 18:11 and then we're going to eat some more of it 18:12 in another lesson. 18:14 And so, let's look after the flood, 18:16 after God has protected Noah and His family, 18:20 unfortunately, 18:21 you know, it's a sad, sad thing, 18:23 that after preaching 120 years, 18:25 I'm going to think, well, he was not a good preacher, 18:27 only his family, 18:29 but it was the people 18:34 rejecting God's grace. 18:37 And unfortunately, 18:38 the Bible tells us that in the end time, 18:43 we're going to face similar situations 18:44 to the days of Noah. 18:46 They were marrying, 18:47 and giving in marriage and drinking. 18:49 And this is, we're seeing this in today's time. 18:53 And so just like Noah, we have to preach the gospel. 18:58 Noah preached the gospel of righteousness, 19:00 the gospel of God to people 120 years. 19:04 And unfortunately, only his family was saved, 19:08 only eight people. 19:10 Let's look after the flood, God protected them. 19:13 And I see something interesting here, 19:15 because it's like God is starting over. 19:19 Let's read Genesis 1:28, 19:22 "Then God blessed them and God said to them, 19:25 'Be fruitful, and multiply. 19:28 Fill the earth and subdue it. 19:30 Have dominion over the fish of the sea, 19:33 over the birds of the air, 19:34 and over every living thing that moves on the earth." 19:38 So we see God's blessing upon Adam and Eve. 19:42 But let's go over now to Genesis 9:1 19:46 to see how God blesses them and what He tells them. 19:50 "So God created, 19:52 so God blessed Noah and his sons 19:54 and said to them, 19:56 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.'" 19:59 Now, notice verse 2, 20:01 "And the fear of you and the dread of you 20:03 shall be on every beast of the earth, 20:06 on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, 20:09 and on all the fish of the sea, 20:11 they are given into your hand." 20:13 Dominion is given, being given to them, 20:15 "Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you, 20:19 I have given you all things even as the green herbs, 20:22 but you shall not eat flesh with its life, 20:26 that is, its blood." 20:27 So we see here God giving instruction, 20:29 just like He gave instructions to Adam and Eve, 20:32 He told him, 20:33 "You can eat of the herbs of the field," 20:35 but here the diet is being changed, 20:37 things have changed, 20:39 and now they can eat flesh, eat meat. 20:42 Now, you see, 20:44 God is making a covenant with Noah and his family. 20:47 It's like starting over. 20:48 Let's go to Genesis 9:8, 20:51 "Then God spoke to Noah and his sons 20:53 with him saying, 20:54 'And that's for me, 20:56 behold, I established my covenant with you, 20:59 and with your descendants after you." 21:02 That's you and I. 21:04 "And with every living creature that is with you, 21:06 the birds, the cattle, 21:08 and every beast of the earth with you, 21:11 of all they go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 21:15 Thus I will establish my covenant with you. 21:18 Never again shall all flesh be cut off 21:21 by the waters of the flood. 21:22 Never again shall be a flood to destroy the earth." 21:26 So God is making this wonderful promise 21:30 to Noah and his family and to us. 21:33 Now, when God told them, He built the ark, 21:38 and they were preaching for 120 years. 21:42 Yes. 21:45 They had to obey God's command. 21:46 If God said, Go into the ark, 21:48 they chose not to, what will happen to them? 21:50 The same thing that happened to the people 21:52 that were outside the ark, 21:54 they were destroyed by the flood. 21:56 So the interesting thing I want to point out to you is 22:00 that after 120 years, 22:04 God could still look 22:06 and see that Noah and his family 22:09 found grace in His sight. 22:11 Nothing changed. 22:13 Noah continued to be faithful 22:14 from the moment God called him 22:16 to the moment he entered into the ark, 22:19 and he continued to be faithful, 22:20 just like that, 22:22 God calls upon us. 22:24 It is not that once you enter into the Christian life, 22:27 you choose to be faithful for a moment, 22:30 or choose to be faithful 22:31 on only on the day you go to church. 22:34 God wants us to be faithful every single day of our life. 22:38 And the Bible does say in Matthew 24, that 22:43 "He who endures to the end, the same shall be saved." 22:48 Noah endured to the end, and he was saved into the ark. 22:52 Now, what God said to Noah, 22:55 what God said to the people of Israel, 22:58 He says to you and to me. 23:00 Notice the words of Isaiah 54:9-10. 23:05 Isaiah 54:9-10, 23:08 "For this is like the waters of Noah to me, 23:11 where Isaiah have sworn 23:13 that the waters of Noah 23:14 would no longer cover the earth, 23:16 so have I sworn that 23:17 I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you. 23:20 For the mountain shall depart, and the hills be removed, 23:24 but my kindness shall not depart from you, 23:27 nor shall my covenant of peace be removed, 23:30 says the Lord, 23:32 who has mercy on you." 23:33 And yes, the Lord has mercy upon me and on you. 23:38 Noah was an example for you and for me, 23:43 what happened in those days 23:44 was it happened for an example to us. 23:49 Wouldn't it be wonderful, 23:50 if God could look all over the earth, 23:53 find that there is, there are wicked people, 23:56 but of you and your family, you will find grace, 24:01 and that God will say, 24:03 "I want to make My covenant with you and your family." 24:06 This is a choice that you and I have. 24:09 Noah was faithful 24:11 because he chose to be faithful. 24:12 He chose to rely upon the Lord. 24:14 He chose to live his life 24:16 according to the ways of the Lord. 24:18 And you and I have the same opportunity. 24:20 And I hope you will take God's hand and say, 24:23 "Yes, I will follow you all the days of my life." 24:27 Amen and Amen. Thank you. 24:29 And then we see once again, that God is making a covenant, 24:33 but man was obligated to get on to the ark 24:39 to actually establish this covenant, 24:41 and Jesus Christ is our ark today, right? 24:44 All right. 24:46 We're going to take a quick break 24:47 and we'll be right back. 24:53 Ever wish you could watch 24:54 a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 24:56 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter? 24:59 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com. 25:04 A clean design makes it easy 25:07 to find the program you're looking for. 25:09 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:12 so you can follow along. 25:14 Sharing is easy. 25:16 Just click share 25:17 and choose your favorite social media. 25:19 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 25:23 Now we're going to see 25:24 the continuing unfolding of God's covenants, 25:27 as Ryan presents the covenant with Abraham. 25:30 Amen. 25:32 So actually, Tuesday's lesson is entitled, 25:34 "The Abram Covenant" 25:36 because, of course, this is talking about 25:38 the portion of Scripture, 25:40 before God had actually changed Abram's name to Abraham. 25:43 We often refer to it as the Abrahamic covenant. 25:46 But Tuesday's lesson, the Abram covenant, 25:49 and I love this particular portion, 25:50 because you know, God calls Abraham, 25:52 He tells him to go out of the land 25:54 in which he's at, 25:55 and He takes him into a different land. 25:57 But before He does, 25:58 you know, He kind of gives him 26:00 a beautiful juiced version of the nice, 26:02 beautiful covenant 26:03 that He's going to establish with him 26:04 later on in the relationship together. 26:07 But it's quite interesting 26:09 just to set this up to kind of give an idea. 26:11 We just talked about 26:13 or Brother Dinzey just talked about 26:14 and set us up from the perspective of Noah, 26:17 God established a covenant with Noah. 26:19 And we see that from Noah's time, 26:21 you know, they were to be fruitful 26:23 and multiply the earth. 26:24 And well, we're going to start reading 26:26 in just a moment 26:27 from Genesis 12, 26:28 which is where Abraham is introduced to us, 26:30 in this case, Abram is introduced to us. 26:33 And we see that in the previous chapter, 26:36 the lineage, 26:38 the lineage of Noah is interesting 26:39 in the sense that he had three sons 26:41 Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 26:42 Well, Ham and Japheth, 26:44 well, their lineage wasn't such a great lineage, 26:47 okay, it's out of those two, 26:50 came the descendants of heathen nations 26:52 that did not walk in the way of the Lord. 26:54 And we know that Abram, 26:56 who becomes Abraham, of course, 26:58 one of the most central figures in all of Scripture, 27:01 probably second to Jesus Christ Himself. 27:03 Abraham is the most central figure 27:06 in all of Scripture, in my opinion, 27:07 if you read through the Scripture, 27:09 it's quite interesting that 27:10 Abraham is brought up 27:11 over and over and over and over even by Christ Himself. 27:14 But it's interesting that out of the lineage of Shem, 27:17 we find Abraham is from that lineage. 27:20 And so we see in Chapter 11, of Genesis, 27:22 the Tower of Babel incident. 27:24 And so you know, there's lots of evil again 27:27 starting to replicate upon the earth, 27:29 and God needs to bring a beacon of light 27:32 into this dark world, right? 27:34 He needs someone that can represent Him, 27:36 speak on His behalf 27:37 that He can use to turn the world right side up. 27:40 And so He chooses Abram. 27:42 And so we're going to go to Genesis 12. 27:44 And we're going to read those first three verses there. 27:46 And this is where God kind of introduces Himself to Abraham. 27:49 And He tells them all of the good things 27:51 that He has planned to do for him. 27:53 And so Genesis 12:1-3. 27:56 The Bible says, 27:57 "Now the Lord had said to Abram: 27:59 'Get out of your country, 28:02 from your family and from your father's house, 28:05 to the land that I will show you. 28:07 And I will make you a great nation, 28:10 and I will bless you and make your name great, 28:13 and you shall be a blessing. 28:15 I will bless those who bless you, 28:17 and I will curse him who curses you, 28:19 and in you 28:21 all the families of the earth shall be blessed." 28:24 And so he says, Hey, you know what? 28:26 Get up out of that land that you're at, right? 28:27 I'm going to make you a blessed man. 28:29 I'm going to make you a blessing to others. 28:31 And I'm going to bless you abundantly. 28:33 Got to consider here that the Bible tells us 28:36 if I'm not mistaking that 28:37 they were dwelling in the land of Ur. 28:38 Now Ur was basically a providence 28:40 or a connected city in the region 28:43 and in the valley of Babylon. 28:45 So basically, the city that would become, 28:47 you know, Babel or Babel became Babylon. 28:49 This is where he was dwelling. 28:51 And God says, kind of like that, 28:53 that fourth angel from Revelation 18, 28:56 get out of there, come out of there, My son, 28:58 come out of her, My people. 28:59 And He says, 29:00 "I want to send you on, 29:02 I want you to be that beacon of light. 29:03 And I'm going to bless you 29:04 and you're going to be a blessing to others." 29:06 And so there's actually 29:07 eight different blessings or promises, 29:09 that God promises him that, 29:11 of course, later on we see, 29:13 you know, detailed in a much greater form 29:16 in Genesis Chapter 15, and in Genesis Chapter 17. 29:19 But those eight points of promise are, of course, 29:22 he's going to take him to a new land. 29:24 I'm going to take you out of this land, 29:26 put you in a new land much better than this one. 29:28 He's going to establish through him 29:30 a great nation, 29:31 and God did indeed do that. 29:33 We know that's the case. 29:35 Number three, He promises a blessing, okay. 29:37 So He promises him that I'm going to bless you, 29:40 you're going to be a blessed, man. 29:41 Number four, He promises to make his name great. 29:44 And, of course, we know that, as I said earlier, 29:47 second to only Jesus Christ Himself 29:49 in all of Scripture. 29:50 Abraham is probably the most central figure 29:53 based on the promise 29:54 and the covenant that He made with Abraham 29:56 that would have its ripple effect 29:57 all the way through the generations to come. 30:00 Also, the point number five here, 30:02 He promised that 30:03 Abraham will be a blessing to others. 30:05 And we're going to detail that in just a moment 30:07 on how God would use Abraham to be a blessing to others. 30:11 Of course, number six, 30:12 He will bless those who bless him. 30:14 Man, that's a good one, right? 30:15 Those who blessed Abraham and are good to him, 30:19 God's going to bless him. 30:20 And, of course, He will curse those 30:21 who curse him. 30:23 And then I like point number eight 30:24 that this promise ends with. 30:27 And through Abraham, 30:28 all the families of the earth will be blessed. 30:33 I love this 30:34 because my mind goes back to Galatians 3, 30:36 okay. 30:38 You can't think about the beautiful promise, 30:40 the beautiful covenant that God made with Abram, 30:42 in this case, Abraham, 30:44 without thinking of how it affects us 30:46 and how generations and generations 30:49 and millennia of people have been blessed forevermore, 30:52 because of the covenant that God made with Abraham. 30:55 God honored His word, 30:56 we see the effects of that in Galatians 3. 30:58 I'm going to read verses 6 and 9, 31:00 6 through 9. 31:01 And we're also going to read verse 29. 31:03 So Galatians 3:6-9. 31:05 Notice what the Bible says. 31:07 It says, 31:08 "Just as Abraham 31:09 'believed God, 31:11 and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' 31:13 Therefore know that 31:14 only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. 31:18 And the Scripture, foreseeing 31:20 that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, 31:23 preached the gospel to Abraham 31:25 beforehand, saying, 31:27 'In you all the nations shall be blessed.' 31:31 So then those who are of faith 31:34 are blessed with believing Abraham.'" 31:37 And then that beautiful kind of synopsis 31:40 of everything that has been said so far. 31:42 Genesis 3:29, one of my favorite texts, 31:45 excuse me, it's Galatians. 31:46 I saw the G here, you're right. 31:47 Galatians 3:29. 31:50 "And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, 31:55 and heirs according to the promise." 31:57 This is not just a Jewish thing, right? 31:59 God would establish 32:01 a beautiful nation through Abraham 32:02 that would be known as the Jewish nation. 32:04 But this blessing, this blessed covenant blessing 32:07 would continue on to all the nations, 32:10 all the different generations to come. 32:12 If you are of Christ, then you are His, 32:14 that is you are Abraham's seed and heirs 32:17 according to the promise. 32:18 So in this, 32:20 we see the first recorded divine relation to Abraham 32:23 in this portion of Scripture, Genesis Chapter 12, 32:26 God promised to enter 32:28 into a close and lasting relationship with him, 32:31 even before he used any language 32:33 that speaks about covenant making, 32:34 because there's not any language there. 32:36 He doesn't say I'm going to make a covenant. 32:37 But we see the effects of that. 32:39 And, of course, this is like I said a juiced version, 32:41 and a direct reference to the covenant 32:43 that he's going to make later in Genesis 15, and Genesis 17. 32:46 So for the moment, 32:48 God offers a divine human relationship 32:51 of great significance. 32:53 And, of course, you see this in the repeated, 32:55 you know, I will echoed there in Genesis 12:1-3, 32:58 you know, that I will show you, 33:00 I will make you, I will bless you, 33:02 I will bless those, 33:03 I will curse those who curse you. 33:04 God is saying, 33:06 I'm going to put myself out there for you, 33:07 I'm going to be there for you, Abraham, 33:08 You're my man. 33:10 And I'm going to bless you. 33:11 So we also see something amazing here, 33:13 that from this, God says to him, 33:16 Go, go forth. 33:18 That was the command. 33:19 I'm going to do all these things for you, 33:21 will you go for Me? 33:22 And it's amazing to see that from this. 33:24 Abraham's had so much faith and trust 33:27 in the Word of the Lord, that he did indeed do this. 33:30 And the lesson brings that 33:31 I think beautifully in the closing time I have here 33:33 which isn't much. 33:34 I just want to establish the fact 33:36 that Abraham exemplified the relationship 33:38 between faith and works. 33:40 Okay, we're not saved by our works, right? 33:42 We're saved by grace through faith. 33:44 Ephesians 2:8-10 establishes that very clearly 33:48 that we're not saved, 33:49 that we are saved by grace through faith, 33:52 and not of works, right? 33:53 But yet, do we toss out the works? 33:55 Was Abraham saved solely upon the fact that, 34:00 you know, he just believed what God had said, 34:02 but didn't act on it? 34:03 Absolutely not. 34:04 In fact, that's what James brings out. 34:06 Of course, we know that famous Chapter 2, 34:08 James Chapter 2, 34:09 where he's not once not twice, 34:10 but three different times says 34:12 faith without works is, is dead. 34:14 He repeats it three times, verse 17 of James Chapter 2. 34:18 We see it in verse 20 of James Chapter 2, 34:20 and also again in verse 26. 34:22 And so it actually, 34:24 he actually gives the instance here, 34:25 and this is James 2, he uses Abraham as an example. 34:28 He says, 34:29 "Was not Abraham our father," 34:30 this is verse 21 of James 2, 34:32 "Was not Abraham our father 34:34 justified by works 34:35 when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?" 34:37 But then he kind of clarifies in verse 22, 34:39 "Do you see that faith was working together 34:42 with works and by works, faith was made perfect? 34:46 Abraham expressed his faith. 34:48 He believed in trust in the Word of God. 34:50 But how was God able to see 34:52 that he actually did have that faith. 34:55 He went forth just as God sent him, 34:57 he went forth 34:58 and he showed his faith by his works. 35:01 And I think that's something 35:02 that we can learn from Tuesday's lesson 35:04 is that God has all these wonderful promises to us. 35:06 He's put Himself out there for us. 35:08 And He says, 35:09 "I will do all of these wonderful things. 35:10 I will bless you abundantly, if you will trust in Me." 35:14 And sometimes we just verbally say, 35:16 "Yes, Lord, I trust in You. Yes, Lord, I believe in you. 35:18 Yes, Lord, I believe in Your Word." 35:20 But yet, while we're not just, 35:22 when we're not saved by our works, 35:25 the Bible says, we are judged by our works. 35:27 Our faith is determined on whether or not 35:29 we actually do what God tells us to do. 35:31 In this case, I think Tuesday's lesson. 35:33 Abraham was a great example in that matter. 35:36 Amen. 35:37 It's powerful, Ryan. 35:38 I love that and I like this entire lesson 35:40 because we kind of discussed some of the covenants 35:43 but later in subsequent lessons, 35:45 we'll be spending even more time 35:47 on the Abrahamic covenant on the covenant that I have, 35:49 or the New Covenant. 35:51 The covenant I have, "The Covenant with Moses," 35:53 the Sinaitic covenant really begins in Exodus 19, 35:56 and goes all the way through Exodus 24. 35:59 We'll discuss that 36:00 as we get into subsequent lessons. 36:02 And although the Bible speaks of covenants in the plural, 36:05 there is only one basic covenant of salvation 36:09 that is found in Scripture. 36:11 And we see the blessings in the salvation 36:13 that's given by God, 36:15 not earned by us as human beings. 36:17 But yet we are called to respond in faith 36:20 and in obedience. 36:22 Now, it's interesting because many people say, 36:25 well, the covenant at Sinai, that's the covenant of works. 36:29 I'm excited today, 36:30 because we're going to talk about 36:32 how it is a covenant of redemption, 36:34 and a covenant of grace, 36:36 and a covenant of promise from God. 36:39 But before we get to any of that, 36:41 the lesson wants us to talk about briefly 36:43 at the beginning, 36:44 the connection between the Abrahamic covenant, 36:47 or the covenant with Abram, 36:49 and the Sinaitic covenant. 36:50 So let's take a look at that. 36:52 I see at least three connections. 36:54 First connection is 36:55 they both establish a special relationship 36:58 between God and His people. 37:00 We see that in Exodus 19:5, 37:03 this is, of course, the covenant at Sinai. 37:05 Exodus 19:5, 37:07 "Now therefore, if you will, indeed obey My voice, 37:10 and keep My covenant, 37:11 then you shall be a special treasure to me, 37:14 above all people, for all the earth is mine." 37:17 So God is calling the children of Israel 37:20 into a special relationship with Himself. 37:24 He did the same thing with Abraham. 37:26 I think of Genesis 17:7, 37:30 "I will establish My covenant 37:31 between you and your descendants after you 37:34 and their generations, 37:35 for an everlasting covenant, 37:37 to begot to you 37:38 and your descendants after you." 37:40 God wanting to establish that relationship 37:43 between Himself and Abraham and Abraham's descendants, 37:46 who, of course, are the children of Israel. 37:49 Then we see the second connection is that 37:51 they're both called to be a great nation. 37:54 In Sinai, Exodus 19:6, 37:57 "You should be to me a kingdom of priests, 38:00 and a holy nation." 38:01 They're called to be a great nation. 38:03 And, of course, God called Abraham, 38:05 Ryan already established this so beautifully in Genesis 12:2, 38:09 "I'll make of you a great nation, 38:12 and will bless you." 38:14 The third connection I see is that 38:15 obedience is required as a condition of the covenant. 38:20 In Sinai, it says, 38:22 and notice the language is very similar here, 38:25 Exodus 19:5, 38:27 and we compare that with Genesis 22:18. 38:30 Exodus 19:5, 38:32 "Now therefore, if you will, indeed obey My voice," 38:35 you notice the language, 38:37 it says, obey My voice, 38:38 it doesn't say keep My commandments. 38:39 It doesn't say, it says, 38:41 "Obey My voice and keep My covenant." 38:44 You compare it the same wording with Abraham. 38:47 Genesis 22:18, 38:49 "In your seed, 38:51 all the nations of the earth will be blessed, 38:54 because you have," 38:55 what's that word? "Obeyed My voice." 38:58 The same wording, 38:59 I see those connections clearly 39:01 between the covenant 39:03 that God established with Abraham, 39:04 and the covenant that God made with the children of Israel 39:07 there on Mount Sinai. 39:09 They're just delivered from Egypt, 39:12 and they have arrived at Mount Sinai. 39:14 So let's look at the connection 39:16 between the Sinai covenant and grace. 39:20 Number one, 39:21 the covenant is based on redemption. 39:25 Let's turn back to Exodus Chapter 6. 39:27 Exodus Chapter 6, God extends redemption, 39:31 He extends deliverance to His people 39:33 who are in bondage in Egypt. 39:36 Exodus 6:5-6. 39:38 The Lord is talking with Moses here, 39:40 and he says, 39:42 "I have heard the groaning of the children of Israel, 39:45 whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, 39:47 and I have remembered my covenant. 39:50 Therefore say to the children of Israel, 39:52 'I am the Lord. 39:53 I will bring you out 39:55 from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 39:57 I will rescue you from bondage. 40:00 I will redeem you with an outstretched arm 40:03 and with great judgments.'" 40:05 Here I see what a beautiful correlation 40:07 between the covenant and redemption, 40:10 and the covenant and deliverance. 40:12 You know, so many times we think 40:14 that's a covenant of works. 40:15 That's a covenant that I cannot possibly keep in, 40:19 yet here God couches the language 40:22 in connection with that redemption 40:25 and that deliverance. 40:26 We see it in the preamble to the Ten Commandments. 40:29 Exodus 20:2. 40:31 He says, 40:32 "I am the Lord your God, 40:35 who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 40:38 out of the house of bondage." 40:40 We see that connection again in Deuteronomy Chapter 5, 40:43 which is another reiteration of the Ten Commandments 40:46 with that deliverance from bondage. 40:50 We see that in Exodus 19. 40:53 That's the chapter before 40:54 what we call the Ten Commandments. 40:55 Exodus 19:4, 40:57 "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, 40:59 how I bore you on eagle's wings, 41:02 and brought you to Myself." 41:05 The imagery there is exquisite, 41:06 it reminds me of a baby eagle growing up 41:09 and pushed out of the nest, but they can't quite fly. 41:13 And the mother eagle comes underneath 41:16 and swoops down 41:17 and the baby rests on their back. 41:18 I bore you on eagle's wings. 41:21 God knew the weakness of His people. 41:24 He knew they had been in bondage 41:26 in idolatrous Egypt, 41:28 and they had largely forgotten who their God was. 41:33 They had forgotten His commandments. 41:35 They had forgotten His law of love. 41:37 And He reminds them that He is their Redeemer. 41:42 The covenant at Sinai is based on redemption. 41:45 It's also based on relationship. 41:48 God desire to enter the covenant with His people, 41:51 because He wanted a relationship with them. 41:54 He says in Exodus 6:7, 41:57 "I would take you as My people, 41:59 and I will be your God." 42:01 He wants to be in relationship. 42:04 "Then you should know that I'm the Lord your God 42:05 who brings you out 42:07 from under the burdens of the Egyptians." 42:09 The covenant is not just based on redemption. 42:11 It's not just based on relationship, 42:14 it is based on God's promise. 42:17 This is my favorite part about this covenant here. 42:20 It's God's promise, of course, of a coming Savior. 42:23 We see that in the sacrificial system 42:25 that was set up type, 42:27 looking forward to the Lamb of God, 42:30 the antitype, 42:31 Jesus who would come 42:32 and would take away the sins of the world, 42:34 Jesus' sacrificial provision for their sin 42:38 and their iniquity. 42:39 But we also see God's promise in the Ten Commandments, 42:43 as Shelley already brought out. 42:47 The word in Hebrew isn't commandments at all. 42:49 It's simply words of God, 42:52 the words or you could say, the sayings of God. 42:56 When you look at the Ten Commandments, 42:58 or the ten words, the ten sayings, 43:01 we tend to look at it in language of do and don't, 43:05 thou shalt, thou shalt not. 43:08 But if you look, 43:09 it's actually written 43:10 in the second person singular imperfect. 43:13 You may say, what in the world does that mean? 43:15 The imperfect verb form, 43:18 notes action or state that is still in progress. 43:22 So it's not something that's completed 43:24 or something that is already done in the past. 43:26 It's something that is still in progress. 43:29 The same verb tense, 43:31 the same wording is used in Judges 6:23. 43:35 "And the Lord said unto him, 43:37 'Peace be unto thee, fear not thou shalt not die.'" 43:40 Now when you hear that, Pastor Johnny, 43:42 I wouldn't think now that's a commandment don't die. 43:44 What do I think? 43:46 That's a promise you're not going to die. 43:50 The same thing in Psalm 91:5, the same verb tense, 43:54 "Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, 43:57 nor from the arrow that flies by day." 43:59 So when we read that, we don't think a command, 44:02 don't be afraid. 44:03 It's a promise. 44:05 You don't have to be afraid. 44:09 So I took the liberty 44:10 to rewrite the Ten Commandments. 44:13 This is Jill's version, ten promises. 44:17 Promise number one, 44:19 you will desire only Me, 44:21 nobody and nothing else. 44:24 Promise number two, 44:26 you will have no need for other gods 44:28 or other support systems 44:30 because I will give you everything that you need. 44:34 Promise number three, 44:36 you will reverence and respect Me, 44:39 My name and My character, 44:41 and would do everything you can 44:43 to guard our relationship. 44:45 Promise number four, 44:47 you will delight in spending time with me 44:49 on our special day, the seventh day Sabbath, 44:52 no interruptions, no distractions, 44:54 just quality time with Me. 44:57 Promise number five, 44:59 you will love those who have given you life 45:02 and respected the family that I gave to you. 45:07 Promise number six, 45:08 you will respect others' lives and hold them sacred 45:13 as you would your own. 45:15 Promise number seven, 45:16 you will delight in 45:17 and love the spouse that I gave to you. 45:20 Promise number eight, 45:22 you will have enough with what I've given to you, 45:24 and will have no need to take from somebody else. 45:27 Promise number nine, 45:28 you will speak truthfully 45:30 and well of your neighbors and associates. 45:34 Promise number 10, 45:35 you will be content with what I've given you, 45:38 and will rejoice in my gifts for your life. 45:42 That is the promise of grace that God gave to His people. 45:46 Oh, wonderful, wonderful, beautiful. 45:47 I love the way that you put the Ten Commandments 45:49 in promises, blessings, nothing to be afraid of. 45:53 I like the way that you couch that. 45:55 Now I begin with the new covenant. 45:57 Now in order to understand why we need a new covenant, 45:59 we have to understand 46:00 what did God see that prompted Him 46:05 to move upon Jeremiah, 46:07 to say that a new covenant was needed. 46:09 Isaiah 24:5, 46:11 let's go ahead and go there first. 46:13 I want to kind of give you 46:14 a little bit of historical background 46:16 because we have a lot of terms in Scripture 46:17 that sometimes we wonder, 46:19 well, what's the difference between that one and this one. 46:21 You find the word the term Hebrews, 46:23 and then Israelites and then Jews. 46:25 And if you look 46:27 at the unfolding of the historical background, 46:28 as according to the Jewish Encyclopedia, 46:32 the descendants of Abraham were Hebrews. 46:36 But after the Lord changed, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, 46:39 then Jacob wrestled with God and the Lord said, 46:41 you'll no longer be called Jacob but Israel. 46:44 And after they came out of the exile 46:46 of their time in Egypt, 46:48 from that point on the predominant identity 46:50 by which the Hebrews 46:52 that went into Egypt were called, 46:55 they were now called the Israelites, 46:57 as Exodus 14:15, says, 46:59 tell the children of Israel to go forward. 47:02 And all these things happen as an example, 47:04 and you find scripturally over and over Israelite. 47:07 And now we go down to Revelation 47:09 that the children of Israel, the tribe, tribes of Israel, 47:12 not that tribes of the Hebrews. 47:14 And so you find clearly 47:15 one on the way in the other one on the way out, 47:19 God identifying them, 47:20 but Isaiah 24:5 talks about 47:22 what happened to this beautiful covenant 47:25 that God gave to them, 47:27 the Bible says, 47:28 taken into the entire picture of humanity. 47:32 "The earth is also defiled under its inhabitants, 47:36 because they have transgressed to the laws," 47:38 the commandments of God, 47:40 "changed the ordinances, 47:42 the ordinances 47:44 by which you express your commitment 47:45 to God's covenant, 47:47 and broken the everlasting," 47:49 notice that, 47:51 "everlasting. 47:52 It was never intended to be broken, 47:55 it was everlasting." Why? 47:56 Because from God's perspective, God is everlasting. 48:00 And everything that God makes, He doesn't alter. 48:03 I will not alter the covenant that has gone out of My lips. 48:07 But you find then after the changing of, 48:11 after the identity change, and the Israelites, 48:16 the Hebrews losing their identity, 48:18 disconnecting from their roots, 48:20 they learned a lot of Egyptian ways, 48:23 in the land of Egypt as slaves, 48:26 and the Lord in mercy of their 400 year bondage 48:30 began to restore. 48:32 And as you see, 48:33 when God was about to bring them out of Egypt, 48:36 Moses, under God's leadership 48:37 restored to them a day of worship, 48:39 that angered Pharaoh, and he said, 48:41 "Now make brick without straw. 48:43 You've given them one day and seven to rest, 48:45 and the word there rest in the Hebrew is Shabbat, 48:48 or that you've restored to them the Sabbath. 48:50 That's why that restoration was the very reason 48:53 why when they came out later on before Sinai, 48:57 the Lord asked Moses, 48:58 how long do they refuse to keep My commandments? 49:01 How long do they refuse to keep My Sabbaths? 49:04 It had been restored in generations 49:06 that traditions had been crushed 49:09 by the lives of those under Egyptian bondage. 49:12 But now Jeremiah brings into view God's desire, 49:17 not only for those 49:18 who are by nationality an Israelite, 49:22 but those who are Israelites by spiritual identity. 49:26 Let's look at Jeremiah 31:31-33, 49:29 "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord, 49:31 "when I will make a new covenant 49:33 with the house of Israel, 49:35 and with the house of Judah, 49:37 not according to the covenant 49:39 that I made with their fathers in the day 49:41 that I took them out of by the hand 49:43 to lead them out of the land of Egypt. 49:46 My covenant which they broke," 49:48 God called it an everlasting covenant, 49:49 but he said, "Who broke it?" 49:51 "They did. I didn't break it." 49:53 And it goes on, 49:54 "Though I was a husband to them," 49:56 this is a powerful language, we will see that in a moment, 49:59 says the Lord, 50:00 "But this is the covenant 50:02 that I will make with the house of Israel 50:03 after those days," 50:04 says the Lord, 50:06 "I will put My law in their minds 50:07 and write it on their hearts. 50:10 and I will be their God and they shall be My people." 50:13 Now, I want to make a very important point 50:15 before I go to the husband aspect of it, 50:17 because the husband aspect of the covenant 50:19 is so beautiful. 50:20 That's the language in the Bible 50:22 that God established from the Garden of Eden, 50:24 gave Adam a wife, and it says, 50:26 "You be her husband," 50:28 then God called Himself, the husband man. 50:31 The New Testament, 50:33 He called Himself the husband in the Old Testament, 50:35 and then the church in all through the Bible, 50:38 He's coming back for a bride without, 50:40 a church without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, 50:43 a bride with no spots on her garment, 50:45 which is His righteousness, garments white and clean, 50:48 which is a symbolism of the bride. 50:51 But we find here clearly, 50:52 what does the Bible say about husband? 50:54 Let's go to the New Testament very quickly. 50:56 Husband, the beautiful language as Jesus unfolds it 50:59 through the life of a young man named John, 51:01 whom he says, 51:02 "The one whom the Lord loves." 51:04 John 15:1, 51:06 "I'm the true vine, 51:07 and my father is the husbandman." 51:10 Husbandman comes from the Hebrew word, 51:13 Adamah meaning the Lord of the land 51:16 or the Lord of the earth. 51:18 Jesus refers to His Father as the husbandman, 51:22 the one that dresses the vine. 51:25 John 15:1, once again, 51:27 "I am the vine, My father is the vinedresser." 51:30 Jesus acknowledges His Father, 51:33 for the preservation of a fruitful branch, 51:36 or the removal of an unfruitful branch. 51:40 He's saying, 51:41 "My father decides to remove it, 51:43 or to keep it going." 51:44 That's why you find in the parable, 51:46 where the Lord came three years looking for fruit. 51:50 And the keeper of the garden said, 51:52 not to take it down. 51:54 But just wait, no, no, no, no, no, no, 51:55 leave it for another year, this year also, 51:58 and I'll dig around it, I'll remove the thorns, 52:00 if it bears fruit, fine, 52:02 but if not, then I'll bring it down. 52:04 And you find it eventually, 52:06 when Israel rejected 52:07 or ultimately rejected the Messiah. 52:09 Then He says, 52:10 "Your house is left to you desolate." 52:12 And the sad reality was, John 15:2, 52:16 "Every branch in Me 52:18 that does not be a fruit He takes away, 52:20 and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes, 52:22 that it may bear more fruit." 52:24 Have you ever felt the 52:25 pruning of God in your life? 52:27 It's a painful thing. 52:29 But He doesn't prune us to cause us to be unfruitful, 52:32 He prunes us to become more fruitful. 52:36 Couple of points I brought out. 52:37 The only way that fruit can be produced in our lives 52:40 is if we abide in His Son. 52:43 Secondly, the only way that the Father can 52:45 or will cultivate the fruit in our lives 52:48 is if we abide in His Son. 52:50 He's not cultivating fruits apart from His Son. 52:53 Thirdly, God does not know, 52:54 cannot operate in our lives 52:56 when we choose to be independent of His Son. 53:00 The covenant does not just include the Father, 53:03 but it also includes the Son. 53:05 You believe in God, believe also in Me. 53:07 Look at John 15:7-8. 53:09 "If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, 53:12 you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 53:15 By this My father is glorified, 53:18 that you bear much fruit. 53:20 So you will be My disciples." 53:24 Now I have four very quick points. 53:26 Let me see if I can get through those 53:28 talking about the covenant. 53:29 And let me make a very important point. 53:30 In the Old Testament, 53:32 it was necessary to be circumcised 53:35 to be a part of the covenant observations, 53:37 the ceremonies. 53:38 But when the Lord brought about salvation 53:41 and expanded that 53:42 not only to the Jews as a people, 53:45 but to all those who accepted Him, 53:48 there was this pressure from the Jews 53:50 to impose upon others, 53:51 you've got to be circumcised, you got to be circumcised. 53:54 That's one of the reasons 53:55 why when we talk about commandments today, 53:57 people keep misunderstanding that this is not a Jew thing. 54:01 But this is a righteousness application. 54:04 And that's why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 7:19, 54:07 "Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, 54:11 but keeping the commandments of God is what matters." 54:14 Four very quick points. 54:16 The new covenant 54:17 does not abolish the Ten Commandments. 54:19 It reaffirms our obligation to it, 54:21 and to the God it represents. 54:23 Hebrews 10:16, 54:25 "This is the covenant 54:26 I will make with them after those days," 54:28 says the Lord, 54:29 "I will put My laws 54:31 into their hearts and in their minds, 54:32 I will write them." 54:33 That's New Testament. 54:35 The second point, 54:36 the new covenant makes God's law inescapable. 54:39 Wherever we go, 54:40 it is in our hearts and in our minds. 54:42 That is why we are able to feel guilt. 54:46 Because if our heart condemn us, 54:48 then God is greater than our hearts. 54:50 John 3 verse... 54:52 1 John 3:20, 54:53 "For if our hearts condemn us, 54:55 God is greater than our hearts and knows all things." 54:57 The third point, 54:58 the law of God refused 55:00 to deaden our awareness of evil. 55:04 Romans 7:23, 55:06 "But I see another law 55:07 and my members warring against the law of my mind, 55:09 and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, 55:12 which is in my members." 55:13 It refuses to say, ah, you can escape God's law. 55:17 And the fourth point, 55:19 it is impossible to be a, 55:21 in a covenant relationship with God 55:23 and ignore His law. 55:26 Psalm 78:10, 55:29 "They did not keep the covenant of God, 55:31 they refused to walk in His laws." 55:34 And so, friends, basically saying, 55:37 the covenant of God is everlasting. 55:40 God wants His people 55:42 to also be in an everlasting relationship, 55:45 not only with Him, but with His Son, Christ Jesus. 55:48 And when we do that, 55:49 the covenant promises of God are fulfilled in our lives. 55:52 Amen. 55:53 Praise God. What a wonderful study. 55:55 Why don't we all take just a few seconds 55:58 and have a final thought on your day. 56:01 Yes. 56:02 My day was The Covenant with Noah. 56:05 And I believe that if you were to ask Noah 56:08 after the end of his life, 56:10 he will say something similar 56:11 to what Solomon said in 1 Kings 8:15, 56:15 "Blessed be the Lord 56:16 who has given us rest to His people, Israel, 56:20 according to all that He promised, 56:22 there has not failed one word of all His good promise, 56:25 which He promised through His servant Moses." 56:28 In the same way I say to you, trust in God, 56:30 not one of His promises will fail. 56:33 Hmm. Amen. 56:34 Tuesday's lesson, 56:36 speaking about The Abraham Covenant, 56:38 Genesis 15:6, I love this. 56:40 It says, 56:42 "And he believed in the Lord, 56:43 and He accounted it to him for righteousness." 56:46 If only we would just trust and believe in the Lord, 56:48 the righteousness of Christ would be applied to us as well. 56:52 Amen. 56:53 Wednesday's lesson, we look at The Sinai Covenant 56:55 which is based on redemption and relationship, 56:57 God's promise 56:58 and also based on our obedience, 57:01 which is fulfilled through grace. 57:03 And Hebrews 13:20, 57:06 "May the God of peace 57:08 who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, 57:12 that great shepherd of the sheep, 57:14 through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 57:18 notice the Lord connects, 57:19 the resurrection and the sacrifice 57:22 in the blood of Jesus to the everlasting covenant." 57:25 The everlasting covenant is the covenant of redemption, 57:28 the Lamb slain 57:29 from the foundation of the world, 57:31 before eternity, He is our ark of safety. 57:34 He is our righteousness by faith. 57:36 When we look at the Sinai, 57:38 we know that 57:39 each covenant builds on the last. 57:42 When God heard in Exodus 2:24, 57:45 He heard the Hebrew children groaning. 57:48 He remembered His covenant with Abraham. 57:51 In Luke 1:72, 57:56 "God remembers His covenant with Abraham." 58:02 It's all about righteousness. 58:04 Bye-bye. Join us next time. |
Revised 2021-04-08