Yahweh, The Covenant Keeper
From Slavery in Egypt to Service at Sanai • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Dr. DeYoung
Dr. DeYoung
I had my very first seminary class this past Thursday, and, like most classes, it was syllabus day. I was expecting the usual, uneventful first class of the semester, but he said before we got into the obligatory coverage of the syllabus, he wanted to get us thinking right off the bat. Open your bibles to Mark 14:22-25.
And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Let me reread v.24 with a slight omission. This is my blood, which is poured out for many. Did any of you catch the difference? Do both of those sentences mean the same thing? What difference does it make it it’s just his blood or his blood of the covenant? It turns out, all the difference in the world, and that’s the direction we’re going today. Before we get there, lets pick right back up where we left off last week in Exodus 5.
Review
Review
Last week, we talked about this enemy that seeks our destruction. This spiritual war that we find ourselves in. This enemy seeks to burden us, as Pharoah did with the Israelites and put us under even harder labor until we give up hope.
Remember that quote from last week?
“The nature of the enemy's warfare in your life is to cause you to become discouraged and to cast away your confidence. Not that you would necessarily discard your salvation, but you could give up your hope of God's deliverance. The enemy wants to numb you into a coping kind of Christianity that has given up hope of seeing God's resurrection power.”
-Bob Sorge
We can not lose our confidence that the Lord will bring victory in our lives, both now and in eternity. We can not give up hope that the God, who we will soon see in Exodus, delivered His people out of bondage in Egypt and into divine service at Mt. Sinai. But God doesn’t stop there. We will stop there at the end of the book of Exodus, but the story doesn’t end there. God didn’t promise Abraham that He would bring the people of Israel to Mt. Sinai, He told Abraham of a promised land! Now, I used the word promise there, but that doesn’t do justice to what God is really communicating here. The blaring message that we are ment to get from the book of Exodus is that the One we pray to as Heavenly Father, the One we read in our bibles as capital LORD, the One who created the heavens and the earth, filled it, and breathed the very life into your lungs, is Yahweh, and He is the keeper of His covenants.
Last year when we studied hebrews together, we spent a good bit of time talking about the definition of our faith, and the object of our faith. We can put our faith in the truth of God’s word, the strength of God’s word, the power of God’s word, and we can put our faith in the God who authored it all because he has shown himself faithful through the ages. God, the promise keeper. That’s a good truth to put your faith in, but lets take it a little deeper today. Yahweh, The Covenant Keeper.
Ocean Analogy
Ocean Analogy
Imagine God’s word as an ocean, and we’re all swimming in it. There are those of us who enjoy snorkeling over the reefs, taking in the view of these vast arrays of coral and schools of vibrant fish. Then there are some of us who just really like to flip over rocks. We put on our scuba gear and descend to the depths of the ocean looking for rocks and lost treasure. You all know which one I am, and believe me, it comes with it’s many drawbacks. That said, today, whether you’re naturally a snorkeler or scuba diver, we’re all going scuba diving today. There is this really beautiful rock here in this part of the ocean, but it’s pretty far down there, so, in the words of Dori, “Just keep swimming.”
Covenants
Covenants
If you remember back to last year, we read of the covenant God made with Abraham. God lays out the entirety of the covenant in 3 parts, one in Genesis 12, one in Genesis 15, and one in Genesis 17. We are going to focus on that middle part of the covenant.
In Genesis 15, we read about the ceremony that took place. I want to park here for just a moment, because there is some nuance here that is easily missed by us modern day readers. When a nation came and took over another nation or people, the ruler would make a covenant with the people he was conquering. He would have the leader of the people he was taking over brings animals in the same way God does, and they would slaughter the animals, cut them in two, then make a isle with half of each animal on each side. When the covenant was made,(I give you protection, you pay me taxes) the conquered leader would walk the isle of slaughtered animals, symbolizing his end of the covenant. If I don’t keep this covenant, let it be done to me as it has been done to these animals.
In Genesis 15, we see those exact ceremony taking place. There is one major departure from the tradition. Abram never walks down the isle. God does. Genesis 15:17
When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
There are many places in the OT where God chooses to represent Himself to His people as smoke and fire, a visual representation of God’s presence. A Theophany. God is saying to Abraham, if I break my covenant with you, let it be done to ME as you have done to these animals. If you want to definition of the word covenant, you’ll get a lot of different answers depending on who you ask. My favorite I’ve heard so far comes from O. Palmer Robertson in his book The Christ of the Covenants:
“A bond in blood, sovereignly administered”
In this case, God entered into a covenant with Abraham and bound himself to us, and us to Himself. Do you remember that verse from Hebrews 6:13 “For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,”? God knew that if it were Abraham doing the swearing, he would be dead, just like us. But in His divine grace, God offers himself, so that He can enter into an everlasting covenant with Abraham, just like He did with us. Can you imagine a more beautifully crafted story of God’s grace and mercy? Do you see that Jesus coming to die for our sins that we might be saved is not some new idea from a different, more merciful God? This is an eternal attribute of God’s character.
So why all this talk about covenants? How does this apply to Exodus 6? I give all of this backstory, because at the end of chapter 5, Moses, who was most definitely experiencing spiritual warfare, comes to God battered and wounded. The spirit of Israel is broken and Moses feels hopeless. What do we do when we feel like we’re losing to the enemy? Exactly what Moses does. Come before God. And what does God’s response?
v.1-2 I am the Lord
Those specific words have only been used two other times so far in the OT. Once is to Abraham, when he comes before God after being told that he would be the father of many children, and here he is, old and childless, and his throne will be left to someone outside of his family. God reminds Abraham of the promise He has made and reassures Abraham that the heir to the throne will indeed be his son, Issac.
The second time we see these exact words used are in Jacob’s dream, when God shows him the promised land. Make no mistake, this phrase has significant meaning, and it harkens directly back to the covenant language with Abraham.
Why does this matter? When you come to God, looking for answers in the midst of a trial, what does He say? Does He tell Moses to do more? to work harder? To fast? To pray more? No. God’s reply is that He is Yahweh, the covenant keeper. He is making all things work for our good and for His glory. All we need to do? Trust that He is faithful.
When we read the NT, Exodus is one of the most quoted books from the OT. Why? The whole story is showing us of God’s character. If you want to know just how faithful your God is, you can find it right here in the Exodus. Yahweh is gracious and He is merciful, and He keeps His covenants.
v.3-5
God Almighty- El Shaddai
Hebrew scholars are split on this translation. I am persuaded of the other translation, which would be, didn’t I make myself known to them?
v.6-9
God, as Moses’ loving Heavenly Father, is reassuring him that the plan that is in motion is one you can trust in. It’s the plan God has been promising for generations.
v.10-13
Moses is still making excuses about why he is not the best man for the job. The Lord graciously gave Aaron as a speaker on behalf of Moses, but for whatever reason, Moses has done all of the speaking up until this point.
v.14-25
Israel(Jacob)>Levi>Kohath>Amram>Moses/Aaron
A priest represents God to the people, and the people to God. This Genealogy is providing a pedigree for these two priests of the Exodus
v. 26-30
Conclusion
Conclusion
God’s plan may not look how we want it to. Things might not happen in the timing we would like to happen. We might find ourselves wavering under the attacks of the enemy, like Moses. You might fall down before God and confess that you’ve lost faith that He can even deliver you. Praise God that His response is that His name is Yahweh, the Covenant Keeper. He has shown his faithfulness through the ages. He promised Israel deliverance, and deliverance they recieved. He promised them a land flowing with milk and honey, and a land they recieved, and to you, He has promised eternal like if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord.
While we can be assured of our eternity in glory if we are indeed children God, we are not assured of a better tomorrow. In fact, we know that, as Roland says all the time, we need to be persecution ready. What does that look like?
Ephesians 6:13–18 “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,”
Where do I get this armor? How do I put it on? Just ask.
Matthew 7:7–11 ““Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”
Now that we’ve resurfaced and taken that first nice deep breathe of fresh air, I want to put your snorkel back on, and just behold the beauty of our God. Thanks for taking that dive with me to see that rock. I hope knowing that rock exists all the way down there at the bottom helps you appreciate the view just a little bit more.
Every one of us in this room could devote the rest of our lives to scouring the depths of scripture and at the end of our lives, we couldn’t even scratch the surface of understanding all their is to God. And no matter how much we know or study, no matter how hard we work at it, God isn’t interested in a faith that you manufacture.
Luke 18:16–17 “But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.””
As amazing as the details and nuances left behind by the Great Architect for us to discover may be, the most amazing one can be summarized by Ryder’s favorite bedtime song. Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.