29/08/2023 - THE PURPOSE OF THE COVENANT

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That I may establish the oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them ‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ as it is this day.  And I answered and said, ‘So be it, LORD.’ Jeremiah 11.5

The Lord gives a severe warning before this declaration, when He says that it is cursed who leaves the Covenant made by Him with man. The Almighty is simply reporting the truth: that person has succumbed to the voice of the tempter and, like Eve, will suffer greatly (Genesis 3.16). Eve would have no pain in giving birth, but by giving in to the devil, her condition changed. The enemy can make something pleasant become distressing. It is time to turn to our heavenly Father, because He can indeed deliver us.

The moment experienced by God’s servants was dangerous, but they didn’t care. Even before the severity of prophet Jeremiah’s warnings, the people were going into captivity and even seemed to laugh at the divine rebuke. The Lord warns us of the error of living carelessly, because He loves us and wants our best. However, many don’t listen to Him. They will find that they should have heeded the warnings of the Most High. Listen to the divine voice!

As a result of the Israelites’ rebellion, Nebuchadnezzar came from Babylon that day and, after destroying Jerusalem and the rest of Judah, took the best of them, leaving only the least favored group (2 Kings 25.1-12). In the same way, the evil one acts with the talented people, leading them to drugs and prostitution. When they have nothing left to offer you, they will be left to their own devices. Trust in the Lord with all your heart to live free.

The divine insistence was due to an oath made by God millennia ago:  that I may establish the oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them ‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ as it is this day. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were chosen to begin the generation that would bring the Son of God to Earth. Here, He would pay the price of redemption, for the Lord was willing to forgive mankind. However, as the Israelites were prospering financially, they did not listen to the prophet. Because of this, the day came when Jerusalem, the city of the great King, fell, and its inhabitants went into captivity.

The Promised Land was prosperous, flowing with milk and honey, but the people’s rebellion caused them to spend 70 years under the Babylonian whip. God warns us about eternal damnation. The captivity is a simple warning of what the lake of fire and brimstone will be like. Why do many mock the Scriptures when it warns about these things? The people of Judah also disregarded this exhortation!

The Gospel is the true land flowing with milk and honey, where we have the power of God, which gives us the blessings necessary for a blessed life. But the wide gate offers practices condemned by the Word. Whoever goes through the wide gate will have a terrible end, for he will discover that the devil lied by offering a dissolute life (Matthew 7.13,14)!

The Israelites took the risk and were amazed at what they saw. They were forcibly taken into slavery and witnessed their talented young men serve the king who destroyed their country. Now, if they had repented and heeded the divine warnings, they would not have gone far away. Seventy years later, they came back destroyed!

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares