A God Who Delights to Covenant
"He hath obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises." — Hebrews 8:6
The Shape of the Whole Bible
We have a God who delights in making covenants with His people. The whole Bible is the story of it.
He covenanted with Noah and set a bow in the cloud. He covenanted with Abraham and gave him a land and a lineage. He covenanted with Moses at Sinai. He covenanted with Joshua before the Jordan. He covenanted with David concerning a throne.
And the greatest gift ever given is described in the same language. The coming of Jesus Christ is a covenant:
"But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises." (Hebrews 8:6)
"There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." (Romans 11:26–27)
Why This Matters Practically
Too many Christians are entirely unaware that God desires to covenant with His people. Because they do not know it is possible, they are not listening for it — and so when the Holy Spirit begins to indicate that God wishes to make a covenant with them, they miss it completely.
That is a serious loss, and this is why.
A covenant is God binding Himself. He does not have to. He chooses to. And having bound Himself, He keeps His word absolutely, because He cannot do otherwise.
"God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" (Numbers 23:19)
The simple knowledge that God always keeps His word is the single greatest source of stability available to anyone in prolonged warfare. When everything else is in motion, that does not move.
He Knows the End From the Beginning
Here is the aspect of covenant that most changes how you live.
God frequently asks for a covenant long before you can see why. He knows what is coming; you do not. A covenant requested today may be answering an attack six months away that has not yet been conceived.
This means obedience in the moment of the request is everything — and the request will very often make no sense at the time.
"Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand." (Isaiah 46:10)
Consider how much depends on saying yes to something you do not understand. A believer who obeys only what he can see the reason for has, in effect, made himself the judge of God's instructions.
Point to Ponder
God often asks for a covenant long before you can see why. That is precisely the point.
Verse to Remember
"God is not a man, that he should lie... hath he said, and shall he not do it?" — Numbers 23:19
Question to Consider
Have I ever once considered that God might want to bind Himself to me by covenant?
Today's Practice
Read through the major covenants of Scripture in one sitting. Take an hour.
Genesis 9 (Noah). Genesis 15 and 17 (Abraham). Exodus 19–20 (Sinai). Joshua 24 (Joshua and the people). 2 Samuel 7 (David). Jeremiah 31:31–34 (the new covenant). Hebrews 8.
As you read, note three things for each: who initiated it, what God bound Himself to, and what was required of the people.
You will notice a pattern. God initiates. God binds Himself to something specific. And the human side is almost always obedience rather than performance.
Then ask Him one question and leave it with Him: "Father, is there a covenant You have been wanting to make with me that I have not been listening for?"
Prayer
Father, I did not know You wanted this. I have thought of covenant as ancient history — something You did with patriarchs and kings, not something available to me.
Thank You that the greatest covenant of all is already mine: that Your Son became the mediator of a better covenant and took away my sins.
Now teach me to listen. If there is something You have been wanting to say to me and I have not been alert enough to hear it, say it again. I am listening now.
And thank You that You keep Your word. In a life where nothing else holds still, that does. Let me build on it. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
A covenant is God binding Himself. He does not have to. That is the wonder of it.