~~~ Deuteronomy 26:16-19 ~~~ Psalm 119 ~~~ Matthew 5:43-48 ~~~
The Covenant...
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD:
he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways
and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees,
and to hearken to his voice.
In the Bible, covenants with God were taken very seriously.
God never breaks a covenant he enters into with his people.
A covenant, like any other formal agreement, is not one sided.
Both parties come to an agreement to mutually honor their promise.
God wants us to be in relationship with him
so much that he is willing to make these outlandish promises to us.
He made this covenant with us before we were even conceived.
Maybe it is because of this covenant that we have
a burning desire to seek his face.
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD:
he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways
and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees,
and to hearken to his voice.
In the Bible, covenants with God were taken very seriously.
God never breaks a covenant he enters into with his people.
A covenant, like any other formal agreement, is not one sided.
Both parties come to an agreement to mutually honor their promise.
God wants us to be in relationship with him
so much that he is willing to make these outlandish promises to us.
He made this covenant with us before we were even conceived.
Maybe it is because of this covenant that we have
a burning desire to seek his face.
Would you be willing to enter into a covenant
sight unseen with anyone else?
It might be a stretch for most of us.
Jesus gives us instructions on how to keep our side of the covenant with God.
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the
Beatitudes and then moves into a series of teachings by Jesus.
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the
Beatitudes and then moves into a series of teachings by Jesus.
Today's teaching deals with how we view our enemies.
Keeping our side of the covenant with the Lord
requires certain attitude adjustment concerning our enemies.
Keeping our side of the covenant with the Lord
requires certain attitude adjustment concerning our enemies.
...love your enemies,
and pray for those who persecute you...
and pray for those who persecute you...
Part of the covenant to being God's people states that we are to
observe his statues, commandments, and decrees.
Jesus was the Word made flesh...he was the living voice of God...
today we are reminded that we are to love those
who we would rather treat otherwise.
observe his statues, commandments, and decrees.
Jesus was the Word made flesh...he was the living voice of God...
today we are reminded that we are to love those
who we would rather treat otherwise.
It goes against our gut reaction to love
those who would try to harm us in any way.
Keeping the commandment to love thy neighbor
as thyself was never designed to be easy.
as thyself was never designed to be easy.
If our covenant with God is ever broken
it is because we make the choice to ignore our part of the agreement.
Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
We are blessed to be included in a covenant with the Lord.
It is up to us to keep our side as well.
It is time to honestly look at what God requires
on our part to keep his covenant healthy.
It is up to us to keep our side as well.
It is time to honestly look at what God requires
on our part to keep his covenant healthy.
Peace.
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