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GOD AS COVENANT-GIVER
What is a covenant?
A relationship between two partners (man and God, or between people) who make
binding promises to each other and work together to reach a common goal.
In the bible there are so many covenants that were made between God and man and
between people. Some covenants are made through words as in promises while others
are made through the shedding of blood. The bible is divided into 2 sections which are
the “Old Testament” and “New Testament”, the word “testament” means “covenant. This
means that the bible is divided into the Old covenant and the New Covenant.
ABRAHAMIC COVENANT
Abrahamic covenant comes from Genesis 12:1-3.
Abraham, formerly known as Abram, was the first Hebrew Patriarch who came from Ur
of the Chaldeans. Abram and his wife Sarai were called out of Haran, where they had
lived and prospered. They were meant to go somewhere completely unknown to them.
All the while, Abram and Sarai did not have any children born to them yet. Abram was
still waiting for God to provide an heir to them, and in Genesis 17 the Lord appeared to
Abram again.
Genesis 17 also sees the changing of Sarai’s name, to Sarah (Genesis 17:15). God
promises that she will produce an heir, be the mother of many nations, and that kings
would come from her line.
The covenant between Abraham and God was made through Promises (Words).
1. God Promised an Heir to Abraham
The Lord reassured Abram that he would have an heir that comes from his own body.
And, that his descendants would outnumber the stars in the night sky (Genesis 15:4-5).
Abram then believed and it was credited to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6).
2. God Promised Land to Abraham
The Lord then reassured Abram that he would possess the land. To reassure Abram
that He would keep His word to him, God made a covenant. This involved the sacrifice
of a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove,
and a pigeon. All of these were cut in two and each half was laid opposite of each other,
except for the birds.
The Hebrew word karat, which means to make a covenant, also means to cut. So “to
make” a covenant, could also be said “to cut” a covenant.
Abram then fell into a deep sleep and a deep darkness descended. God foretold the
exodus from Egypt, and after this, a flaming torch and smoking oven appeared. They
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passed through the cut pieces, effectuating the everlasting covenant between God and
Abraham.
Importance of God’s Promises to Abraham
God’s promises to Abraham have many parts that lead to a total picture of grace and
redemption for humanity. This covenant follows the Noahic covenant, in which the Lord
promises to preserve the created order. God maintained the place in which He can fulfill
His redemptive purposes.
The covenant with Abraham is a covenant of grace, in that it brings about the
redemptive purpose. It does so by making a separate nation out of Abraham and his
descendants, the Jewish people, through Isaac and the twelve tribes of Israel. And one
of those tribes led to the promised Messiah Jesus.
In Genesis 12:1-3, God promised Abraham that He would multiply his descendants as
the stars in the sky. He would be their God and give them a specific piece of land
forever. Yet even before that, God said He would bless Abraham and his descendants
so that all the families of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12).
Abraham’s blessing and promises extend to all the families of the earth. By faith, we as
believers, experience Abraham’s blessing of being in the family of God. We believe by
faith, just as Abraham believed by faith and it was credited to him as righteousness.
(Genesis 15:6)
The significance of circumcision as a sign of the covenant
Genesis 17
Genesis 17:9-11 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My covenant,
you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. This is My
covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after
you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised. And you shall
be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the
covenant between Me and you.
1. First, life is of ultimate importance to God and life is in the blood.
The cutting away of the foreskin on the male reproductive organ was a practice in which
human blood was shed. And in Leviticus we are told that the “life of the flesh is in the
blood” and that “blood makes an atonement for the soul” (Lev 17:11). This removal of
the foreskin and the shedding of blood can be seen as a sacrifice (an atonement for
sin). Symbolically, it was a “dying” — a being “cut away”/separated from the world —
that allowed them to enter into the household of Abraham. Also, in a symbolic way, a
circumcised male (adult or child) would be standing “bare” before God, separated from
the world to be prepared for His service.
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2. circumcision can also be seen as a choice to follow God.
When Abraham circumcised his household, each adult male made a choice to do as
God commanded, indicating their free-will choice to obey God. And for each male child,
the parents made the choice thereby surrendering their child to God’s will and
consecrating their child as member of Abraham’s household.
3. Most importantly, the significance of an unconditional covenant with God.
The Abrahamic Covenant was guaranteed because it was based on the faithfulness of
God alone. Animals were sacrificed and their shed blood served as an atonement for
sin. However, animal blood is never sufficient to pay for man’s sin. Only man’s blood
could pay for man’s sin and enable man to enter into the household of God as God’s
child. Yet, God would never ask for human sacrifice of those whom He created in His
image. And so, His covenant with Abraham and his household was completed (ie.
sealed) with man’s blood by circumcision.
GOD TESTS ABRAHAM
Genesis 22
Why God tested Abraham.
1. To test Abraham’s faith. God had great things planned for Abraham. He knew
Abraham would need strong trust and character. He wanted to know if Abraham
actually had the faith to sacrifice Isaac. The only way for God to know was for
Abraham to actually prepare to do it. Faith isn’t just a feeling. It’s something that
we show by our actions (James 2:14-24). For his faith, God gave Abraham many
great blessings (Genesis 22:15-18).
2. To represent Christ’s sacrifice. The sacrifice of Isaac was a symbol of Christ’s
sacrifice. Both were firstborn sons who were promised for years and greatly
loved by their fathers who were prepared to sacrifice them. God wants us to
understand how much He loves us. He was willing to sacrifice His Son because it
was the only way to save us. We deserve the death penalty because of our sins.
But Jesus was willing to pay that penalty for us!
Nature of God according to:
Genesis 15 and 17: Omnipotence (All powerful)- This name points to God as the One
who has the power to carry out His purposes and promises. Abram’s response of falling
on his face before God (17:3, 17) shows that Abram knew who is Lord and who is not!
Genesis 12: Surprisingly Gracious- God told Abraham, “…in you all the families of the
earth shall be blessed” (vs.3c). We must not miss the Gospel that the Scripture was
preaching here! Paul personified the Scripture saying that it foresaw that God would
justify the Gentiles by faith and preached the Gospel to Abraham beforehand saying, “In
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you all the nations shall be blessed (Gal. 3:8)! So through this one man, Abraham, God
was going to bless people from every tribe, kindred, and tongue; namely, and most
greatly, through the Messiah that would come through his lineage, but also through his
life as it’s displayed in the text of Scripture – all the ups, downs, and in-betweens.
Genesis 22: supremely trustworthy because he provides (Gen 22:8, 14)
RELEVANCE OF CIRCUMCISION TO MODERN- CHRISTIAN BELIEF
In the Old Testament circumcision is clearly defined as a covenant between God and all
Jewish males.
Circumcision is not laid down as a requirement in the New Testament. Instead,
Christians are urged to be "circumcised of the heart" by trusting in Jesus and his
sacrifice on the cross.
TO PUT OFF OUR FLESH • What is the significance of circumcision? It is to put off our
flesh (Col. 2:11, 13a; Deut. 10:16; Jer. 4:4a; Acts 7:51). Many Christians today talk
about the overcoming of sin, but that is not the basic dealing. The basic dealing is to put
off the flesh. The flesh does include the sinful flesh. However, in the Bible, the flesh
includes much more than this, for it also includes our natural strength, ability, power,
and talents. Moreover, the flesh includes our natural man, the ego, the “I.” Hence, to put
off the flesh means to put off the very “I”; it means to terminate the self.
RELEVANCE OF ABRAHAM’S TEST TO MODERN - CHRISTIAN BELIEF
Abraham’s faith, then, can be read as a model for the Christian (Heb 11:17–19; Jas
2:18–24) and the ram becomes a type of Christ (John 1:29, 36; 1 Pet 1:19; Rev 5:12).
This interpretation illustrates that God richly rewards faith. Abraham’s willingness to
sacrifice his beloved son also pictures God the Father’s love (Rom 8:32; 4:20–25).
But on another interpretation, Abraham becomes a type of Christ through his self-
annihilating obedience. With the command to sacrifice Isaac, God appears to turn
against Abraham and take away his only hope. Abraham is asked to burn up the charter
of salvation, ‘leaving for himself nothing but death and hell’. This is Christ in
Gethsemane, sweating blood that the cup might pass from him, and Christ on the cross
crying out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
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