BIAY Day 6 - Covenant Commitment
Genesis 15-17, Psalm 6
Welcome to the Bible in a Year for 2025. Intro to this series and resource links available here, plus here’s how I’m approaching this year.
Scriptures for Today:
Reflection:
The notion of “covenant,” clearly on the front burner in today’s readings, is a powerful one throughout the whole Bible. This is plain to see in that we Christians understand ourselves to belong to the “new covenant” with God through Jesus. Dr. Sandra Richter’s Seedbed study Epic of Eden or book of the same title is a great way to learn “covenant theology,” how the covenants in the Old Testament work and how they lead to the new covenant in the Messiah, Jesus. For now, I’d like to highlight a couple of ideas from my reading of these wonderfully rich texts today.
God’s reassurance of His covenant - Much time has passed since God first called to Abram. Moreover, he is aging and the window for producing an heir, already slim to none, seem closing or closed. In chapter 15, however, God reassures Abram that his heir will not only be a hired member of his household, but a son of his own flesh and blood. To do so, God uses an object lesson—stars and sand. Both are too numerous to count and so too, says God, will Abram’s descendants be. Christian sacraments are more than only object lessons, yet they include that dimension. Water washes. Bread and wine nourish. In Christ, we are washed and we are nourished.
Critical response - What is Abram’s response to this reassertion of the covenant? “Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6) This is such a vitally important verse, it’s quoted by both Paul (Galatians 3:6, Romans 4:3) and James (2:23) as they tackle the essential character of faith itself.
God sees when no one else does - Expressing that one “feels seen” has become a modern way of indicating when someone perceives and acknowledges us in a way that helps us no longer feel alone. When Sarai mistreats Hagar and she flees with her son Ishmael, the Lord meets her in her distress and grief and she calls Him the God who sees.
New year, new name - God changes Abram’s and Sarai’s names to match God’s promise, which connects to their identity in Him. He must be called Abraham now, “father of many.” Still not yet fulfilled, I wonder what Abraham thought of his new name. It must have seemed far from his reality, even though he was believing God for its truth. Those who believe in Jesus are called Christian, “little Christ.” Seems far from fully realized, yet that is our identity in Him.
Questions:
What is your response to God’s promise of forgiveness and new life in Jesus?
When have you felt that the Lord saw you when no one else did?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, help me believe and trust in you. May the promise in the name “Christian” be made true in me. Amen.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)
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