Today's the day we begin our daily dive studies for the summer. As I mentioned last year when we did this, if you have a preference or a request on something to study that you think would be cool to get a group's input on, feel free to leave a comment and suggest it! I figured we'd start with a 7-day glimpse at the term 'covenant' and what it means/stands for within Scripture.
Genesis 8.20-9.17 (NLT):
20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and there he sacrificed as burnt offerings the animals and birds that had been approved for that purpose. 21 And the Lord was pleased with the aroma of the sacrifice and said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of the human race, even though everything they think or imagine is bent toward evil from childhood. I will never again destroy all living things. 22 As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.”
9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons and told them, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth. 2 All the animals of the earth, all the birds of the sky, all the small animals that scurry along the ground, and all the fish in the sea will look on you with fear and terror. I have placed them in your power. 3 I have given them to you for food, just as I have given you grain and vegetables. 4 But you must never eat any meat that still has the lifeblood in it.
5 “And I will require the blood of anyone who takes another person’s life. If a wild animal kills a person, it must die. And anyone who murders a fellow human must die. 6 If anyone takes a human life, that person’s life will also be taken by human hands. For God made human beings in his own image. 7 Now be fruitful and multiply, and repopulate the earth.”
8 Then God told Noah and his sons, 9 “I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, 10 and with all the animals that were on the boat with you—the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals—every living creature on earth. 11 Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth.”
12 Then God said, “I am giving you a sign of my covenant with you and with all living creatures, for all generations to come. 13 I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth. 14 When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, 15 and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. 16 When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.” 17 Then God said to Noah, “Yes, this rainbow is the sign of the covenant I am confirming with all the creatures on earth.”
I find this passage intriguing on many fronts, but mainly because of how God reiterates many times over that this covenant that He is making here, He is also making with the other creatures on earth, not just mankind. I think this text also does a good job of highlighting the effect of our sin on other creatures and the world. Often times we forget that when we sin, our actions affect other people and things. We fall into the deceptive trap of believing that it only affects ourselves and forget how impactful it is on everyone and everything else around us. As we take a look at various passages dealing with 'covenant(s)' I hope that there will be some things that stick out to you that you might not have noticed before.
"Father in Heaven, please forgive us when we sin. I pray that you would help us to mend the brokenness that we cause in people's lives around us. Forgive us just as we forgive those who sin against us and affect us with their sin. Please grant us the strength to resist the temptation to sin, and grant us the awareness of your Spirit's presence in our lives. We love You! It's in Jesus' name that I ask all of this. Amen."
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