“Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan.” Joshua 3:11
Dear Ones:
In God’s dealings with us, He never begins with our ideas or ways. Why? First of all, He is God. Secondly, He is all-wise. Thirdly, He is love, and all that He does is in the context of His holy and good nature, the greatest expression being His love. Another reason for which He works in this way has to do with distance, height, and authority. He gives us some idea of this when David writes: “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.” (Ps. 103:11) Isaiah writes concerning the issue of height, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Is. 55:9) David again compliments this concept by adding: “For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him.” (Ps. 103:11) What about the issue of authority and power? The Lord speaks through Isaiah saying: “So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth: it shall NOT return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please.” (Is. 55:11) How irrelevant and small are the thoughts and ways of men when compared to those of the Eternal God. How foolish it is to defer to the dictates and concepts of men when we can come before the Ineffable. How then, according to God’s thoughts and ways, do we conquer, and reign in this life upon this earth? It begins with what He HAS SAID, and what He has committed Himself to do. We call this a “covenant,” a binding agreement between God and man. But we must ask ourselves the question: How can such a covenant exist between the perfect and holy God, and sinful, deficient man? On the one hand you have perfection and power. On the other you have weakness and failure. How can they work together, the lesser eternally benefiting from the Greater?
In the book of Hebrews, we read: “For where a testament (covenant) is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.” (9:16) God, the covenant Giver, is also the only one who can realize, accomplish, and fulfill that covenant. It was necessary for Christ, the perfect man, to taste of death for EVERY man. In doing so, being also God, He accomplished the work, which led to the fulfillment of the covenant between man and God, sealing it with His precious blood. There is therefore the perfect Giver, the Father, and the perfect Receiver, the Son. Where does sinful man come into the picture, and how does the covenant-giving God deal with him? It is as man puts his faith in Christ, the fulfillment of the covenant, that he becomes a beneficiary of it. It is as he, by faith, receives forgiveness for all of his sins, and appropriates the Life of Christ for his power, that the blessing of the covenant becomes a living reality to him, through him.
Dear Father, we would remove the shoes from off our feet, and fall down before You who are the covenant God. What You have promised, you will do, especially in behalf of the one who truly trusts You. Open our eyes to see Your ways in dealing with us, and give us grace to respond in faith, that this life of victory will be ours to live for Your glory and honor. We thank Thee in Jesus’ name, amen.
Love, Dad