The Promise

Jason M. Dickinson

The Scarlet Thread • Sermon • Submitted 3 years ago

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(Open to Genesis 15 but place markers in Gen 12 and 17)

Covenant is single greatest tool to understand structure and flow of redemptive history (How God is working to save people and restore creation)

Covenant is the backbone of the Bible.

Understanding the covenant allows us to plumb greater depths into the grace of God through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

Because we are in the New Covenant through Jesus, understanding the benefits and responsibilities of being in covenant helps us understand our relationship with Christ.

Last week we took a broad look at the covenant and saw:

Covenant is thoroughly biblical

Covenant is uniquely relational

Covenant is altogether personal

Introduction

In his book Unraveling the Mystery of the Blood Covenant, John Osteen writes,

“Livingstone, the first great missionary to Africa, was in the African jungles so long that England, his native country, began to worry about his status. As a result, the English government sent David Stanley to find him. Stanley’s search party encountered great difficulties in their travels. They were plagued by disease and starvation, and were even threatened by cannibals. At one point, the group encountered a strong, hostile African tribe near the Equator.

When the tribe showed no signs of letting them pass through their land, Stanley’s interpreter advised Stanley to cut a covenant with the tribe to avoid severe peril. Not knowing what else to do , Stanley agreed. First, negotiations were made between Stanley’s party and the African tribe. The terms were agreed upon and the ceremony began. A representative was chosen from each group and the two representatives went through the blood-covenant rite.

After blood was drawn from the wrist of each representative, mingled together and mixed with wine, both drank the mixture. Gunpowder was then rubbed on each person where the blood had been drawn, creating a permanent mark. The pagan priest that officiated the ceremony then pronounced blessings for following the terms of the agreement and curses for violating the pact.

To seal the agreement, Stanley and the chief exchanged gifts. The chief wanted Stanley’s prized possession, a goat that he had brought from England that provided mild for his weak stomach. The chief offered Stanley a spear bearing his insignia. Stanley wondered what he would do with an old spear. As he traveled throughout the darkest places in Africa in search of Livingstone, he soon found out. When other tribes with evil intent saw the chief’s spear in Stanley’s hand and his covenant mark, they knew that Stanley was in covenant with the most feared tribe in the land. Further, they knew that if they attacked Stanley or refused him passage, they would not only have to fight Stanley’s search party, but also the African tribe in covenant with Stanley. Rather than opposing Stanley, the tribes bowed before him, allowing him to pass freely through their territories, and provided him with anything he needed. Stanley reportedly used the covenant rite at least fifty times during his travels in Africa. Stanley was mightily blessed because of covenant!

— John Osteen, Unravelling the Mystery of the Blood Covenant, pp. 14-18

The Covenant Ceremony

Selection of Representatives

A representative(s) would stand for the group. Whatever happened to the representative was applied to the group.

Exchange of Outer Garments

Symbolizes my status is now your status. My authority is now yours.

Exchange of Weapons

Protection. If anyone gives you trouble, I will come to your aid.

Exchange of Token Possessions

All I have is yours, and all you have is mine — assets and liabilities.

Exchange of Names

My identity is now found in yours.

Exchange of Vows and Blood

My life is found in you.

Exchange of Places between Sacrificial Blood

My promise is good for life and breaking the covenant will cost me the same.

Exchange of Bread and Wine

A covenant meal was shared.

(Not every step of the ceremony was used in every covenant, but when any step was used, it signified the seriousness of the relationship)

Abraham’s Faith in the Promise of God. (1-6)

God’s Promise of Faithfulness in the Covenant. (7-21)

Jesus, the Faithful Promise.

Abraham’s Faith in the Promise of God. (1-6)

Genesis 15:1–21 (ESV) — 1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”

The Promise

Genesis 12:1–4 (ESV) — 1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him,

To receive the promise Abram will need to abandon everything.

Foundations of identity

Sources of provision

He’ll need to humble himself and trust God for everything — even the destination. He’ll need God every step of the way.

If he does this, Abram will receive the promise of blessing through becoming a great nation. Even more, Abram will be a blessing to all the nations.

Paul, in Galatians 3 makes clear that we are part of the nations that will be blessed through Abraham.

Galatians 3:8–9 (ESV) — 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

Abram, Sarai, and Lot travel to the land of Canaan where they worship and prepare to settle.

Famine — travel to Egypt

Return from Egypt — Lot separates. Lot — East, Abram — West.

Lot lives in Sodom — Battle with kings of the land — Lot taken captive.

Abram finds out and takes 318 men and defeats the armies of the kings, rescuing Lot along with the king and people of Sodom.

King of Sodom asks for the people but offers all the rest of goods to Abram. This would make Abram great with a great name. But he refuses.

v15 - In a vision, God reiterates His promise.

God has promised to make his name great, a great nation, a blessing. But how?

4 And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Here is where the covenant is applied to Abram.

“And he believed” = continuing in belief — he kept on believing.

Paul and James both point to this verse to show sola fide — that justification is by faith alone

Abram did not DO anything for the relationship — He did not earn the promise. The fulfilling of the promise was not on Abram it was on God.

Abram believed the Lord. He believed what God said, but more than that, he believed the personal God.

God’s Promise of Faithfulness in the Covenant. (7-21)

7 And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” 8 But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” 9 He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. 11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

Abram knew what God was doing. He was upping the ante regarding His promise — He was confirming it in a covenant.

ILLUST — “A Christmas Story” — I triple-dog-dare you!

The cutting of the animals:

Self-maledictory Oath — “Walk Unto Death” — part of covenant ceremony.

Cut animals — walk in figure 8 between them symbolizing eternity.

“May this be done to me should I break this covenant”

As you walked through the blood, imagine the gravity — Ex. Roadkill.

Jeremiah 34:18–19 (ESV) — 18 And the men who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of the covenant that they made before me, I will make them like the calf that they cut in two and passed between its parts— 19 the officials of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf.

What Abram did by cutting the animals in two was not uncommon but what happened next is:

12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, 19 the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”

The two parties or representatives would typically each walk between the pieces symbolizing the vows and looming consequences for each of the parties should the covenant be broken.

Abram didn’t walk through the pieces.

Smoking fire pot and flaming torch = 2 representations of God (the Father and Jesus)

God is saying if this covenant is ever broken I will pay the price alone. If I break the covenant, I will pay the price. If YOU break the covenant I will pay the price.

Essentially, God the Father just condemned His Son to die.

Jesus, the Faithful Promise.

Galatians 3:13–14 (ESV) — 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

God changed Abram’s name (Gen 17:5):

Genesis 17:1–5 (ESV) — 1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, 2 that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” 3 Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, 4 “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

Jesus has placed HIs name in ours — Christians

God gave Abraham’s a covenant sign (Gen 17:10):

Genesis 17:10–11 (ESV) — 10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.

The mark of the New Covenant is baptism

God celebrated the covenant with a meal (Gen 18:1-8):

Genesis 18:1–8 (ESV) — 1 And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3 and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, 5 while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” 6 And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” 7 And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. 8 Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

Jesus prepared a meal for us to celebrate the New Covenant.

Implications for Us in the New Covenant

Because of the promises of the (New) Covenant — Go, be a blessing.

In light of the reality of the (New) Covenant — Believe by faith.

In the shadow of the (New) Covenant — Walk before God and be blameless.

Conclusion

Do you

** Recognize the price of a covenant — blood spilled

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