19. Covenant relationships
A. Introduction
Each of us is born with a need to reach out to and interact with those around us.
Christianity is all about relationships. Building relationships is vital to our spiritual and emotional growth. God desires for us to be firmly linked together in the Body by the ligaments and joints of strong relationships.
There are four areas of relationships which are of vital importance. They are with:
God the Father, through the Blood of Jesus - 2Cor. 5:17-21; this is the first and most important relationship;
family, with your spouse, children or parents;
fellowship of believers;
fellow man, those in the world, sinners who are lost without Christ.
Life in the local church is to be characterised by believers, who value each other and who demonstrate this by a clear and evident commitment to one another. We are called to build relationships, that are:
firm, not flimsy;
a demonstration of self-sacrificial or agape love;
friends first, then function;
covenantal, not convenient.
Our relationships with each other are based on the words of Jesus:
Matt. 23: 37-39 - O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me until you say: Blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord!
Jhn.13: 35 - By this all men will know, that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
B. The basis of our relationship is a covenant relationship
Covenant is a strong word. The theme of covenant runs through the Scriptures, finding its ultimate expression in the New Covenant - the blood of Jesus shed for us - Matt. 26: 27-28.
The word covenant means to cut or to bind together:
God Himself is the Author and Originator of covenant. God cut, or entered into, a covenant with Abraham (Gen.15), in terms of which God irrevocable bound Himself to Abraham and his descendants.
Today God covenants Himself with all those who receive forgiveness of sin through the shed blood of Christ - the New Covenant.
God is truly a covenant keeping God, and as Derek Prince observes: the only basis upon which God relates to us is on the basis of covenant. He knows no other form of relationship.
Covenant relationships are intended to last forever! Just as God has given Himself to us wholeheartedly and unreservedly, so are we to give ourselves to one another in the Body of Christ.
C. Three areas that destroy relationships
neglect: through indifference;
sin: unforgiveness, anger, etc.;
ignorance or misunderstanding.
D. Building covenantal relationships
When we become part of a local church, we commit ourselves covenantly. No longer do we base our relationships on self-centered or wrong motives and convenience, but instead we need to begin to build relationships that are:
meaningful, and that have substance;
enriching, seeking the good of others;
firm, not easily breaking down at the slightest offence;
purposeful, as we seek to serve the purposes of God together.
Covenant relationships call us to be people who work out our commitment in a real way:
submitting ourselves to our leaders and each other;
committing ourselves to each other;
serving one another out of love (check the theme of “one another Scriptures” in this regard - Bible Study XVII);
honouring our relationships by:
- supporting each other;
- refusing criticism and gossip about others;
- guarding each other’s reputation.
Practically speaking, covenantal relationships cannot be worked out by attending Sunday services alone. To become relationally integrated into the church, you need to commit yourself to a home group or small group, so that your relationships can be worked out.
“The one anothers” - we must build relationships according to God’s principles and values:
01 - love one another - Jhn. 13: 34, 35
02 - accept one another (do not judge one another) - Rom. 14:1-3, 15: 7
03 - forgive one another - 2Cor. 2: 6 ff , Eph.4 : 31, 32
04 - forbear one another (“make allowance for each other’s faults” – the Living Bible) - Eph. 4: 2
05 - restore one another - Gal. 6:1
06 - bear one another’s burdens (be kind and tenderhearted) - Gal. 6 : 2
07 - do not cause one another to stumble - Rom.14:13, 14
08 - serve one another - Jhn.13:15
09 - caring for one another -Phil. 2: 4
10 - preferring one another - Phil. 2: 3
11 - do not wrong one another - Lev. 25:17
12 - speak no evil of one another - James 4:11
13 - be truthful and honest with one another - Eph. 4: 25
14 - be devoted to one another (loyal) - Rom.12:10
15 - giving to one another - Rom.12:13
16 - rejoice with one another - Rom.12:15
17 - weep with one another - Rom.12:15
18 - be of the same mind to one another - Rom. 12:16
19 - never take revenge on one another - Rom.12:19
20 - stimulate one another - Heb.10: 24
21 - encourage one another - Heb. 3:13