The Covenants in the Bible

1. The Bible A Guide for “Life” and “Living”

2. The Bible a Guide to Life and Living • The Holy Bible has guided life and living since God created Adam and Eve. • Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that those who believe understand how the Bible paints an unmistakable portrait of how God has guided humanity through its time of success and utter failures, war and peace, famine and abundance, and most of all, from sin to salvation. • God’s words for living are captured and codified through all the scriptures and told in stories and through direct covenants handed to humanity from the creator – God. • God’s Covenant Agreements with humanity, as portrayed in His Holy Word, are the pillars that hold God’s instructions for life and living through the ages. Add a footer

3. What Is a Covenant? • A solemn agreement between human beings or between God and humanity in which mutual commitments are made. • God’s Covenants Elements of a Covenant • Promise • Obligation • Action/Outcome • Condition(s) All covenants will not contain every element, all come with a promise and an obligation. Add a footer

4. A Covenant Relationship with God? Add a footer

5. Conditional Covenant • With a conditional covenant, the terms of the covenant depend on the one receiving the covenant, not on the one granting it. • The receiver must meet certain obligations or conditions of the covenant before the giver of the covenant is obligated to fulfill what was promised.

6. Unconditional Covenant • With an unconditional covenant, fulfillment for what is promised depends solely upon the authority and integrity of the one making the covenant. • It is a promise with no “if” attached to it.

7. A Promise Is a Promise Add a footer

8. Blessings and . . . Add a footer

9. Covenant Exercise… 5 minutes • List 2 or 3 general covenant agreements you have in your life and list whether those covenants are conditional or unconditional • __________________________________ • __________________________________ • __________________________________ • Have you made any personal covenants with God? Was that agreement conditional or unconditional? Have you lived up to your part of the agreement? • ___________________________________ • ___________________________________ My favorite example is: “Lord if you get me out of this mess, then I promise to never do this again. Known Favorite (II Chronicles 7:14) Add a footer

10. What are the Covenants of God? • Edenic Covenant • The Adamic Covenant • The Noahic Covenant • The Abrahamic • The Mosaic • The Palestinian (Land) Covenant • The Davidic Covenant • The New Covenant • Review of Covenants Video Add a footer

11. Adam and Eve In the Garden of Eden, divine promises are made, although the word covenant is not used. These two covenants are unconditional. Add a footer

12. The Edenic Covenant (Innocence) • The covenant in the Garden of Eden is the first of the “universal covenants,” meaning it pertains to all mankind. In it, Adam (representing mankind) is charged with three responsibilities: • To be fruitful and multiply (produce children), to subdue (manage) the earth, and have dominion (rule) over all the living things (Gen 1:28). • To maintain and care for the Garden of Eden and enjoy its fruit (Gen 1:29; 2:15). • All the blessings were contingent upon not eating of the fruit of the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil” (Gen 2:16,17).

13. The Adamic Covenant (Grace) This included the curses pronounced against mankind for the sin of Adam and Eve, as well as God’s provision for that sin. • Enmity between Satan and Eve and her descendants. • Painful childbirth for women. • Marital strife. • The soil cursed. • Introduction of thorns and thistles. • Survival to be a struggle. • Death introduced. • Death will be the inescapable fate of all living things.

14. Noah and His Family • This was an unconditional Covenant between God and Noah (specifically) and humanity (generally). • God gave the rainbow as the sign of the Covenant, a promise that God would never again destroy all life on earth with a flood. • This is a reminder that God can and will judge sin. Add a footer

15. Abraham and His Descendants God promised many things to Abraham: • He promised that he would make Abraham’s name great. • He promised that Abraham would have numerous descendants. • He promised that Abraham would be the father of a multitude of nations.

16. Abraham • God also made promises regarding a nation called Israel. • Another promise is that the families of the world will be blessed through the line of Abraham. (This is a reference to the Messiah, who would come from this line.)

17. Abraham is Foremost • God’s Covenant with Abraham is absolutely unconditional! • It is everlasting. • It is one of the most profound in the Scriptures. Add a footer

18. Moses and the Israelites • The Mosaic Covenant was a conditional covenant. • It brought either God’s direct blessing (if they followed his Laws) or God’s direct cursing (for disobedience). Add a footer

19. Mosaic Law • Part of the Covenant was the Ten Commandments, but there was also the rest of the Law, which contained more than six hundred commands—roughly three hundred positive and three hundred negative. • The history books of the Old Testament (Joshua–Esther) detail how Israel succeeded, or failed, at obeying the Law. Add a footer

20. Mosaic Covenant • The Ten Commandments are a summation of the Mosaic Law. • These commandments guide the relationship God had with His people and how His people should relate to one another as examples to the rest of the world. Add a footer

21. David and the Kingdom • The Davidic Covenant amplifies the “seed” aspect that was detailed in the Abrahamic Covenant. • God promises that David’s physical line of descent will last forever and that his kingdom will never pass away. Add a footer

22. David’s “House” • God will forever establish David’s “house,” the royal dynasty, through David’s descendants. • David’s son (Solomon) will build God’s “house,” the first Temple of Jerusalem. • The “sign” of this covenant will be the descendants of David and the Temple itself. Add a footer

23. David’s Throne • David’s throne has not been in place at all times. • There would come a time, however, when someone from the line of David would again sit on the throne and rule as king. Add a footer

24. This Future King: Jesus

25. The New Covenant • The New Testament makes clear a distinction between the Covenants of the Old Testament and the Covenant of the New Testament. • Paul speaks of these “two covenants,” one originating “from Mount Sinai” and the other from “the Jerusalem above” (Galatians 4:24–26). Add a footer

26. New Covenant • The death of Christ ushered in the New Covenant, under Which we are justified by God’s grace and mercy. It is now possible to have the true forgiveness of sin. • Jesus himself is the Mediator of this better Covenant between God and man. • Jesus’ sacrificial death served as the oath that God made to us to seal this New Covenant. Add a footer

27. Christ as Covenant • At the Last Supper, Jesus spoke of the cup, saying, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Add a footer

28. New Life through Covenant • Under this New Covenant, God would write his Law on human hearts. • The thief cometh not, but for to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come that they might have life and have it more abundantly. John 10:10 • That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (Rms 10:9) • For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Rms 10:13) Add a footer

29. A Review • The Eight Covenants of the Bible: • Edenic Covenant • The Adamic Covenant • The Noahic Covenant • The Abrahamic • The Mosaic • The Palestinian (Land) Covenant • The Davidic Covenant • The New Covenant • The New Covenant • Secured by Christ • Removal of sin • Cleansing of the conscience Add a footer

30. Questions or Reflections Add a footer