KEEP THE COVENANT

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Deuteronomy 4:23-24,26,29,31

So be careful not to break the covenant the Lord your God has made with you. Do not make idols of any shape or form, for the Lord your God has forbidden this.

The Lord your God is a devouring fire; he is a jealous God.

“Today I call on heaven and earth as witnesses against you. If you break my covenant, you will quickly disappear from the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will live there only a short time; then you will be utterly destroyed.

But from there you will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.

For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the solemn covenant he made with your ancestors.


The children of Israel were working with a covenant as a people based on the promise God gave to Abraham. This passed down to Isaac, then to Jacob from where the tribes of Israel were named.


The covenant was clear, they were to be the route through whom salvation and blessing will get to the whole world.


Genesis 22:15,18

Then the angel of the Lord called again to Abraham from heaven.

And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.”


Jesus said:


John 4:22

You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews.


For of course we know that the Messiah was to come from the Jewish descent. 


The children of Israel were to reveal God to the world, then the Messiah will be revealed through whom all will receive salvation.


The key word then was obedience. They were not to break the covenant.


Moses explained to them that once they did, they would be destroyed:


Deuteronomy 4:26-27

“Today I call on heaven and earth as witnesses against you. If you break my covenant, you will quickly disappear from the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy. You will live there only a short time; then you will be utterly destroyed.

For the Lord will scatter you among the nations, where only a few of you will survive.


When we go through the scriptures we see the people of Israel rebelling again and again and ofcourse they faced the destruction and the remnant were driven into captivity again and again.


Today we live in a new covenant. The one the Lord Himself said He gave. This covenant was not only be for Israel but for the whole world.


Jeremiah 31:31,33-34

“The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.

“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”


Joel 2:28-29

“Then, after doing all those things, 

 I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. 

Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions.

In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike.


Now get this, God will never forget His covenant with Abraham however, who are the Israelites here?


It is not a person but a group of people!


Listen, if there were a million people for instance and just ten were saved, the covenant was already fulfilled. Selah


I as a person cannot stop the covenant, if I as a person decide to rebel and is destroyed that does not stop the other person to be faithful and be blessed.


No wonder Jesus told the Samaritan woman:


John 4:23

But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.


Let everyone go the wrong way but you, yes, you keep the covenant.


Remember that of the hundreds of thousands above the age of twenty (20) who left the land of Israel, only two entered the promise land, two(2)!


1 Corinthians 4:2

Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful.


The children of Israel were put in charge of the covenant, they were expected to be faithful if not they would be cast away.


It is expected of every believer to keep the faith.


2 Corinthians 5:18-20

And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.

For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.

So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”


Jesus said:


Matthew 5:13-16

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.

No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.

In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.


Starting from ourselves as individuals, then our immediate family, the church and all our places of influence, we must shine forth as light. Keeping God's covenant as a testimony for the whole world to know Him.


Glory to God for Moses also said:


Deuteronomy 4:30-31

“In the distant future, when you are suffering all these things, you will finally return to the Lord your God and listen to what he tells you.

For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the solemn covenant he made with your ancestors.


We will not stay away long from Him instead we will not go away from Him at all.


We are the faithful ones.


Hebrews 10:38-39

And my righteous ones will live by faith. 

But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”

But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.


Glory to God.


PRAYER

Loving Father help me to remain in Your covenant, staying faithful till the end. My place Lord is with You both in this life and the life to come. Glory to Your name forevermore.


He calls us blessed.


Love

@the watcher.

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