Monday, March 27, 2006
From AscensionNYC
Monday in the Fourth Week of Lent
Psalm 89:19-52
Genesis 49:1-28
1 Corinthians 10:14 - 11:1
Mark 7:24-37
As I read today's Propers, one word kept spinning in my mind: Covenant. Webster's defines covenant in several ways including, "the promises made by God to humankind as recorded in the Bible," and "an agreement among members of a church to do or keep from doing a specified thing."
The Bible records many covenants between God and God's creation that illustrate the first definition: the covenant with Noah to never again destroy the earth through a flood, the covenant with Abraham to make his "offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore" and the covenant with the Israelites held captive in Egypt to free them from their captivity and to take them as God's own people. The ultimate covenant between God and humankind occurred through the incarnation of God's son Jesus Christ as the savior of the world and the expiation of our sins.
But what of the second definition cited? What of the "agreement to do or keep from doing a specified thing?" In accepting our Baptismal covenant, we vowed to "renounce Satan...renounce the evil powers of the world...renounce all sinful desires...turn to Jesus Christ...put our whole trust in His grace and love...and to promise to follow Him as our Lord." Isn't this our part of the bargain? Isn't this the quid pro quo?
I find it fascinating that the first definition cited above refers to God's relationship with humankind while the latter focuses on an agreement forged among members of a Church and that the two are independent of one another. Can we infer from this that God's covenant with humankind, God's abiding grace, God's gift of his son as our savior is given not only to those who attempt to abide by their Baptismal vows every day of their lives but also to those for whom their Baptismal covenant has become a mere recitation of empty phrases or even those who have never been marked as Christ's own forever?
Genesis 49:1-28
1 Corinthians 10:14 - 11:1
Mark 7:24-37
As I read today's Propers, one word kept spinning in my mind: Covenant. Webster's defines covenant in several ways including, "the promises made by God to humankind as recorded in the Bible," and "an agreement among members of a church to do or keep from doing a specified thing."
The Bible records many covenants between God and God's creation that illustrate the first definition: the covenant with Noah to never again destroy the earth through a flood, the covenant with Abraham to make his "offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore" and the covenant with the Israelites held captive in Egypt to free them from their captivity and to take them as God's own people. The ultimate covenant between God and humankind occurred through the incarnation of God's son Jesus Christ as the savior of the world and the expiation of our sins.
But what of the second definition cited? What of the "agreement to do or keep from doing a specified thing?" In accepting our Baptismal covenant, we vowed to "renounce Satan...renounce the evil powers of the world...renounce all sinful desires...turn to Jesus Christ...put our whole trust in His grace and love...and to promise to follow Him as our Lord." Isn't this our part of the bargain? Isn't this the quid pro quo?
I find it fascinating that the first definition cited above refers to God's relationship with humankind while the latter focuses on an agreement forged among members of a Church and that the two are independent of one another. Can we infer from this that God's covenant with humankind, God's abiding grace, God's gift of his son as our savior is given not only to those who attempt to abide by their Baptismal vows every day of their lives but also to those for whom their Baptismal covenant has become a mere recitation of empty phrases or even those who have never been marked as Christ's own forever?
Michael Macdonald
