God's Covenant: From Abraham to Our Adoption

And so the question becomes for us, who will we live as? Will we live like we're trying to earn our relationship with the Lord, or will we live as if we already belong in this relationship to the Lord? If we're living like we're trying to earn our relationship, we often will find ourselves hiding from the Lord because we feel like we're just not measuring up. [00:28:34] (26 seconds)  #BelongNotEarn

The truth is is that we can rest in knowing that God initiates this relationship with us. He pursues us. He gives us a new identity so that we can walk in newness of life and joyful obedience. It is both beautiful and staggering that God Almighty, that God almighty himself invites us into this covenant relationship through his son, Jesus. [00:28:07] (27 seconds)  #GodPursuesUs

We are free to to flourish in obedience because our covenant relationship is secure. Obedience is no longer an attempt to belong, but our obedience is just simply an expression that we already belong to the Lord, that we already have a relationship with him. And so it's just a matter of asking ourselves, am I willing to set apart my heart for the Lord to say that I belong to him? And I may not bear that mark physically, but spiritually, I'm gonna set apart my heart for the Lord and belong to him because I'm free to do so. [00:26:47] (41 seconds)  #ObedienceFromBelonging

And because of that, many of us are often longing for security or often longing for stability in our relationships. But the good news this morning is that's where God's covenant relationship with us comes in. We may look at the world, we may look at our own lives, and we may see fragile, delicate relationships that maybe won't last for one reason or another, but we can see our covenant relationship with the Lord and see strength, stability, see the blessing that it is for us. [00:01:55] (40 seconds)  #CovenantStability

The adopted child learns to be a part of a new family. And in most ideal cases, that adopted child, perhaps as they get older, they don't say, you know what? Being a part of this family is is terrible. They make me take out the trash. They make me wash the dishes. They make me clean up after our dog. You know? It's it's terrible. I can't stand this. Wouldn't it make more sense, again, in an ideal world to say that, you know what? Because I was adopted into this family, because I've been nurtured into this family, I am free to live as part of this family. [00:25:00] (45 seconds)  #AdoptedIntoFamily

And so much in the same way, when we enter into covenant relationship with God, we enter it into with the understanding that God is pouring all of his character, all of his his promises into that relationship for us. Jesus fulfills the demands of the relationship. He fills the the demands that demand that we follow God, obey God, believe God. [00:20:03] (28 seconds)  #JesusFulfillsTheCovenant

That's where our faith in Jesus comes in. He fulfills the demands of the relationship. He dies cut off from his people, we're told, outside of the city on a cross so that he can bear the curse of the covenant for us. So why do we not have to have circumcision required for us? Because Jesus came and shed his blood once and for all for us, ending all physical rights of the old covenant. The permanence of our relationship with the Lord is based on the work of Jesus. It now rests on Jesus. [00:20:47] (40 seconds)  #PermanenceInChrist

And so when God almighty says, live in my presence, that word live is literally walk. Walk in my presence. So in his presence, meaning it expresses service or devotion to of a faithful servant, perhaps to a royal person. And so taken together, this idea of walking in his presence, it means we ought to live in such a way that every step is made in reference to God, and every day is an experience of him close at hand. We walk his presence because of our covenant relationship with him. We have that ability each and every day. [00:21:50] (42 seconds)  #WalkInHisPresence