Finding Strength in God's Everlasting Covenant

 

Summary

In the face of life's trials and tribulations, we find solace in the Everlasting Covenant that God has made with us. David's life, filled with both divine grace and human frailty, serves as a poignant reminder of the complexities of faith. Despite the thorns that pierced his dying moments, David's faith triumphed, offering us a model of steadfast belief amidst adversity. Our lives, much like David's, are marked by trials that accumulate with age, such as the heartache of wayward children or the burdens of spiritual leadership. These trials, though painful, are opportunities for our faith to shine brightly.

The Everlasting Covenant is a source of profound comfort. It is a covenant of pure grace, devoid of human merit, and filled with divine promises. This covenant assures us that despite our imperfections and the trials we face, God's promises remain steadfast. It is a covenant made personally with each of us, offering a deep, personal connection to the divine. This personal aspect of the covenant is what transforms it from a theological concept into a source of daily strength and joy.

The covenant is not only everlasting but also meticulously ordered and sure. It is designed to uphold divine justice while magnifying mercy, ensuring our salvation while delivering us from sin. This divine order provides a foundation of security and peace, allowing us to rest in the assurance of God's unchanging love and faithfulness.

In embracing this covenant, we are called to find our deepest desires and joys in God alone. Our lives should reflect a sacred exhilaration, a holy joy that stems from our relationship with God. This joy is not dependent on external circumstances but is rooted in the eternal promises of God. As we navigate the challenges of life, may we find our ultimate satisfaction and desire in the Everlasting Covenant, allowing it to shape our lives and guide our paths.

Key Takeaways:

1. Faith Amidst Trials: David's life teaches us that faith can triumph over life's thorns. Despite the trials that accumulate with age, such as family heartaches or spiritual burdens, our faith can shine brightly when anchored in God's promises. [01:24]

2. The Covenant of Grace: The Everlasting Covenant is a covenant of pure grace, devoid of human merit. It assures us that despite our imperfections, God's promises remain steadfast, offering us a deep, personal connection to the divine. [20:42]

3. Personal Connection: The covenant is made personally with each of us, transforming it from a theological concept into a source of daily strength and joy. This personal aspect is what makes the covenant truly life-giving. [22:28]

4. Ordered and Sure: The covenant is meticulously ordered and sure, upholding divine justice while magnifying mercy. This divine order provides a foundation of security and peace, allowing us to rest in God's unchanging love. [33:39]

5. Desire in God Alone: We are called to find our deepest desires and joys in God alone. Our lives should reflect a sacred exhilaration, rooted in the eternal promises of God, shaping our lives and guiding our paths. [38:08]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:12] - David's Sublime Consolation
- [01:05] - Trials and Triumphs of Faith
- [02:13] - Accumulating Life Trials
- [03:47] - Heartache of Wayward Children
- [05:19] - David's Family Troubles
- [07:01] - Comfort in God's Covenant
- [08:37] - Church and Spiritual Burdens
- [11:44] - Inward Spiritual Struggles
- [16:27] - The Everlasting Covenant
- [19:52] - Covenant of Pure Grace
- [22:28] - Personal Connection to the Covenant
- [28:24] - Everlasting and Ordered Covenant
- [33:39] - Security in Divine Order
- [38:08] - Finding Desire in God Alone

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
- 2 Samuel 23:5

Observation Questions:
1. What does David mean when he refers to the "Everlasting Covenant" in 2 Samuel 23:5? How is this covenant described in the sermon? [00:12]
2. How does the sermon describe the trials David faced in his life, particularly towards the end? [01:05]
3. What are some examples of trials mentioned in the sermon that accumulate with age? [02:31]
4. How does the sermon illustrate the personal nature of the covenant God makes with individuals? [22:28]

Interpretation Questions:
1. In what ways does the sermon suggest that the Everlasting Covenant provides comfort amidst life's trials? [07:47]
2. How does the sermon explain the concept of a covenant of pure grace, and why is it significant for believers? [20:42]
3. What does the sermon imply about the relationship between divine justice and mercy within the Everlasting Covenant? [33:39]
4. How does the sermon portray the idea of finding one's deepest desires and joys in God alone? [38:08]

Application Questions:
1. Reflect on a recent trial in your life. How can the concept of the Everlasting Covenant provide you with comfort and strength during this time? [07:47]
2. The sermon emphasizes the personal nature of God's covenant with us. How can you cultivate a deeper personal connection with God in your daily life? [22:28]
3. Consider the trials that accumulate with age, such as family heartaches or spiritual burdens. How can you prepare your faith to shine brightly in these situations? [02:31]
4. The sermon calls us to find our deepest desires and joys in God alone. What practical steps can you take to align your desires with God's eternal promises? [38:08]
5. How can you apply the idea of divine justice and mercy in your interactions with others, especially when faced with conflict or disagreement? [33:39]
6. Reflect on the areas of your life where you might be relying on your own merit rather than God's grace. How can you shift your focus to embrace the covenant of pure grace? [20:42]
7. The sermon suggests that our lives should reflect a sacred exhilaration rooted in our relationship with God. What changes can you make to experience this holy joy more fully? [24:23]

Devotional

Day 1: Faith Triumphs Over Life's Thorns
In the journey of life, trials and tribulations are inevitable. David's life exemplifies how faith can triumph over these challenges, even as they accumulate with age. His story reminds us that despite the heartaches of wayward children or the burdens of spiritual leadership, our faith can shine brightly when anchored in God's promises. These trials, though painful, are opportunities for our faith to grow and manifest the strength that comes from trusting in God. As we face our own thorns, we are encouraged to hold steadfastly to our faith, knowing that it can lead us to triumph. [01:24]

"For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance." (Psalm 66:10-12, ESV)

Reflection: What is one specific trial you are currently facing, and how can you actively choose to let your faith shine through it today?


Day 2: The Covenant of Pure Grace
The Everlasting Covenant is a profound source of comfort, rooted in pure grace and devoid of human merit. It assures us that despite our imperfections, God's promises remain steadfast, offering us a deep, personal connection to the divine. This covenant is not based on our actions but on God's unwavering grace, providing us with a foundation of hope and assurance. As we embrace this covenant, we are reminded of the depth of God's love and the security it brings to our lives. [20:42]

"And I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me." (Jeremiah 32:40, ESV)

Reflection: In what ways can you remind yourself today of the grace-filled promises of God's covenant, especially when you feel unworthy or distant from Him?


Day 3: Personal Connection to the Divine
The Everlasting Covenant is made personally with each of us, transforming it from a theological concept into a source of daily strength and joy. This personal aspect is what makes the covenant truly life-giving, as it offers a unique and intimate relationship with God. It is through this personal connection that we find the strength to face life's challenges and the joy that transcends circumstances. Embracing this covenant allows us to experience God's love in a profound and personal way, shaping our lives and guiding our paths. [22:28]

"And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people." (Leviticus 26:12, ESV)

Reflection: How can you cultivate a deeper personal connection with God today, allowing His presence to be a source of strength and joy in your daily life?


Day 4: Security in Divine Order
The Everlasting Covenant is meticulously ordered and sure, upholding divine justice while magnifying mercy. This divine order provides a foundation of security and peace, allowing us to rest in the assurance of God's unchanging love and faithfulness. It is through this covenant that we find the balance of justice and mercy, knowing that our salvation is secure and our sins are forgiven. As we rest in this divine order, we are encouraged to trust in God's plan and find peace in His promises. [33:39]

"The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations." (Psalm 33:11, ESV)

Reflection: What specific area of your life do you need to surrender to God's divine order today, trusting in His justice and mercy?


Day 5: Finding Desire in God Alone
We are called to find our deepest desires and joys in God alone. Our lives should reflect a sacred exhilaration, a holy joy that stems from our relationship with God. This joy is not dependent on external circumstances but is rooted in the eternal promises of God. As we navigate the challenges of life, we are encouraged to find our ultimate satisfaction and desire in the Everlasting Covenant, allowing it to shape our lives and guide our paths. [38:08]

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:25-26, ESV)

Reflection: What is one practical step you can take today to shift your desires and joys towards God, allowing Him to be your ultimate source of satisfaction?

Quotes

"David at any rate was never the man who would play the hypocrite in the last extremity of death you can see how true how deep how thorough his faith in God must have been for his dying bed was by no means an enviable one his dying pillow was stuffed with sharp Thorns his was a life which although it had much of divine grace about it yet had much of sinful nature too he was dying as we might not wish to die in some respects but his faith triumphed as we may well desire that our faith May Triumph whatever the outward circumstances of our life or death may be." [00:54:43]

"Brethren there are some troubles that a man outgrows there are some Childish trials connected with our early Christian Life which we without effort outlive and which in due course pass away we shall not have to feel thank God ever again the special Perils of our youth and of our early manhood when we have passed into riper years we leave these things behind us but there are some troubles which accumulate as we grow for instance there is the peculiar trouble alluded to in the text." [02:06:45]

"Now this particular form of trial accumulates as we grow older some of us here have not yet come to it may God grant that we never may but I know there are some here whose hairs are plentifully sprinkled with gray who have this as their daily cross to carry and to look back on All the Troubles of their youth and say that they were as nothing compared with this the house being a Miss with God the children being disobedient the sons of and daughters training up their children but not in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." [03:56:56]

"Believe me it is one thing to read that text but quite another thing to feel it and it is one thing to suppose ourselves under these circumstances rejoicing in the Lord but quite another thing to come into these depths these very depths with God's waves and Billows going over us and yet by joyous Faith to lift our head out of the waves and sing with bravest confidence in our God." [07:54:40]

"The trial to some of us will come possibly from the church the faithful Minister makes the church that he serves his family the earnest Deacon the truly called elder considers the church too to be his household the excellent and devoted conductors of the Bible classes and Sunday School classes will come in the faith and love of Sanctified souls to look upon those under their charge as children committed to them as a sacred trust to train and nurture in Christian Life and conduct." [08:44:20]

"Although my heart be not so with God as I would have it and I do not live so near to him as I could desire nor serve him as I wish yet still for all that I am a sinner saved by grace and he is made with me unworthy me an Everlasting Covenant ordered in all things and sure the beauty of the comfort of the text is that it is set boldly strikingly upon so black a foil in David's case a sorrow of the bitterest kind is associated with a joy of the sweetest description." [16:27:00]

"Observe first that this covenant made with us is a covenant of pure grace it would scarcely console Adam to think of the Covenant under which he was the Covenant of works it would be very sorry consolation to think of the Covenant of works now for we have all broken it and all that remains to us of its Provisions is its curse but we Rejoice to know that the Covenant of works is as far as we are concerned fulfilled completely by Jesus Christ and there remains nothing but God's side of it to be fulfilled." [19:52:00]

"The doctrines in themselves are delightful but it is the personal interest in and realization of the doctrines that give real Delight the Covenant oh yes that is The Well of Bethlehem but it is within the gate but a covenant made with me ah that is the water from the well Rippling at my very lips I drink it and am completely refreshed it would be pleasant to hear of a covenant made with 10,000 men that they might be saved and our common Humanity might make us rejoice therein." [22:28:00]

"How joyous ought to be the Christian's life there ought to be a sacred exhilaration a holy r Qui in our spiritual life at the thought that God has made personally with us unworthy sinful but pardoned and accepted men and women a covenant ordered in all things and sure there is a very poor man in this place just come from his labor he has not even had time to go home to wash his face he is very poor if you could see his room there is very little Furniture in it and the wages he earned burs come to a very little." [24:10:40]

"It is so ordered that Divine Justice is not infringed while Divine Mercy is magnified so ordered that the safety of the soul is secured and yet the soul is delivered from its sin so ordered that Holiness excludes exudes the sinful from heaven and yet the sinful are admitted having been washed in the Precious Blood of the Covenant ordered in all things its great things and its little things every wheel and every Cog of every wheel was in the mind of the Divine artificer and has been placed in its proper position to work out the Divine result." [33:39:00]

"Let others roam through the world as they may but the soul of the Christian is satisfied at home he can say in the words of our hymn I need not go abroad broad for Joy I have a peace at home my sze are turned into songs my heart has cease to roam down from above the Blessed Dove has come into my breast to witness their eternal love and give my spirit rest amen." [40:15:20]

"Rejoice now to lay hold on Christ is to lay hold on Everlasting Love and to find a resting place that shall last you when the world has melted away like a moment's foam dissolves into the wave that bears it and is gone forever rest in God patiently with your whole soul relying upon the Merit of Jesus and the Everlasting Covenant is yours and the text closes with saying and all my desire I do not want anything else to rest upon but this one thing do I covet no other source of Joy than this." [38:08:00]

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Transcript
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