There’s a concept in the Bible that many modern-day Christians fail to grasp and understand, and it’s found throughout the Bible, from beginning to end. That concept is covenant or testament and, particularly, those covenants or testaments established by God for the benefit of mankind.

Unless one studies law, he may rarely even hear the word covenant today. Another word often used interchangeably and with a similar meaning is testament. The usual Hebrew and Greek words behind covenant and testament are “berith” and “diatheke.” Basically, a covenant or testament is a binding agreement and promise made sure by certain pledges and guarantees – sometimes by property but, in the Bible, covenants often included an oath and, in many cases, the shedding of blood (thus, the expression to cut a covenant).

There are many covenants in the Bible. Most notable are God’s covenant after Adam and Eve fell into sin (Gen. 3:15); His covenant after the flood (Gen. 9:8-17); His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Gen. 12:1-3; 22:15-18; 28:12-15); His covenant renewed at Mt. Sinai (Ex. 19:3-6; 24:1-8) and the new covenant or new testament promised in the Old Testament Scriptures (Jer. 31:31-34) and put into effect by the death of God’s own dear Son, Jesus Christ (Heb. 8:6-13).

And these covenants and promises of God were connected to the shedding of blood. Animal sacrifice began immediately after the fall into sin (Gen. 3:21; 4:4; 8:20) and continued through the Old Testament period, pointing ahead to the promised sacrifice of God’s Son.

As the covenant maker, God Himself passed between the animal pieces in Genesis 15. He, Himself, provided a substitute ram for Isaac in Genesis 22 and promised in Isaiah 53, Psalm 130, Psalm 22 and elsewhere a substitute who would, by the shedding of His blood, make atonement for the sins of all mankind and establish a new covenant or testament – that covenant promised in Jeremiah 31 and explained in great detail in the New Testament – especially in the Book of Hebrews.

And there was a sign and mark that a person was made a part and recipient of God’s covenants. The rainbow was a sign of God’s covenant with all mankind not to again destroy the entire world and all living creatures by a flood (Gen. 9:8-17). Circumcision was a sign and mark that Abraham and his descendants were God’s own people and recipients of God’s covenant blessings and promises together with Abraham. God promised to bless them, give them the land of promise and, through Abraham’s Seed, to bless all the peoples of this world (cf. Gen. 12, 15, 17 and 22).

There was a covenant meal that assured recipients of the blessings promised in the covenant. The people ate the Passover lamb whose blood was shed and put upon the lintel and doorposts of their houses that they might be spared God’s judgment upon the Egyptians and be God’s covenant people (cf. Ex. 12). The people partook of their sacrifices under the old covenant worship laws and, in Exodus 24, were even sprinkled with the blood of their sacrifices.

As promised throughout the Old Testament Scriptures, God kept His promise to send the Seed of the woman, the Seed of Abraham, His only-begotten Son in human flesh, the virgin-born God-man Savior, to fulfill all righteousness in the place of fallen mankind and then to bear on the cross the full and just punishment for the sins of all the world (cf. Gal. 4:4-5; Isa. 53:6).

By dying for the sins of the world and rising again on the third day as our substitute, Jesus has put into effect a new covenant of God with man, a covenant which no longer requires continual sacrifice of animals for sin because Jesus by His one sacrifice has paid the debt of all sin for all time. This is a covenant in which God forgives all our sins for Jesus’ sake and remembers them no more (cf. Jer. 31:31-34; Ps. 103:12; and Heb. 8:1ff.), a covenant in which He again writes His laws upon our hearts and will one day restore all things to perfection.

And as circumcision was a mark and sign that a person was a child of God under the old covenant, baptism in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is the way God has appointed to bring us into this new covenant He has made with man through the shedding of Christ’s blood.

That’s why baptism is called the circumcision made without hands (Col. 2:11ff.) and why making disciples of all people in this world is done through baptizing in the name of the Triune God and teaching them all that Christ taught and commanded (Matt. 28:18-20). It is why all of us who have been baptized into Christ are called children of God and heirs with Abraham of God’s eternal promises (Gal. 3:26ff.). It is why the apostle Paul, after his conversion on the road to Damascus, was commanded by Ananias: “And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). When He was baptized and brought into the new covenant established by Jesus’ blood, all His sins were washed away and held against him no more.

And the same remains true today. Baptism is not some insignificant thing we do in obedience to God’s command. It is what God does in us, bringing us into His new covenant in Jesus’ blood and washing away all our sins! Why would people put off baptism or deny its benefits to their children? Indeed, why would anyone wish to delay becoming a covenant child of God through Jesus’ sacrifice?

And yes, Jesus has established a new covenant meal in which we are given to partake of the very sacrifice for sin that made this covenant possible! As God’s people under the old covenant continued to partake of the Passover lamb each year in remembrance of that first Passover sacrifice and God’s saving of His people, so we are invited by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to partake often of the body He gave into death when He died for our sins, and of the blood He shed when He established this new covenant in which we have forgiveness of sins, life in fellowship with our God, and eternal salvation. In the Lord’s Supper, we remember Christ’s atoning sacrifice for all sins and are given to partake of Christ’s one sacrifice that we might receive and be assured of God’s covenant promises.

That is why Jesus says, in each of the four Lord’s Supper accounts: “This is My body. … This is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matt. 26:26,28; cf. Mark 14; Luke 22, 1 Cor. 11). When Christians partake of the bread and the wine in the Lord’s Supper, they are also given to partake of the sacrificial Lamb of God who was sacrificed on the cross to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29) and of the covenant-establishing blood He shed on the cross for the sins of all. And why is this so important? Because this is a means God has appointed in order to offer, give and assure to us the blessings of this new covenant; namely, the forgiveness of all our sins and life eternal as a child of God in His kingdom.

Some might ask how God could bring us into this new covenant through the waters of baptism or how he could give us to partake of Christ’s body and covenant-establishing blood in the Lord’s Supper. No, I can’t explain it, but I certainly am not going to question the words or the wisdom of the One who created all things by simply saying, “Let there be …” Why would I doubt or try to explain away His Word?

And what is the benefit of considering what it means to be a covenant child of God? Let me speak personally. It means that though I am a sinner, God has graciously brought me into a covenant or testament (a binding agreement and promise) He established through the shedding of Jesus’ blood to not remember or hold my sins against me but to forgive and accept me as His own dear child. It means I have the promise of an eternal inheritance in heaven and can live, and die, in the confidence that I will not be condemned for my sins and failures but have forgiveness and the certain hope of life everlasting for Jesus’ sake.

God gave His word on it! It is His covenant – sealed with Christ’s blood shed on the cross for the sins of the world – which promises and guarantees to me forgiveness for all my sins and everlasting life with Him in heaven through faith in Christ Jesus, my Savior. There’s nothing more sure than that!

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” Psalm 51:10-12 (Read all of Psalm 51)

We sing these words in the Offertory (which follows the sermon on Sunday mornings), but what do they mean and why do we sing them?

The words are a part of David’s penitential psalm – Psalm 51 – written after his sin with Bathsheba. Though David sinned against Bathsheba by committing adultery with her, and though David sinned against Uriah by taking his wife and then arranging his death in battle to cover up his sin, against whom had David really sinned?

As David confessed in verse 4 of Psalm 51, “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”

And was David in danger of being cast away and having the Holy Spirit taken from him? Most certainly, for he hid and covered up his sin and remained impenitent for months (perhaps more than a year) before he finally acknowledged his sin and turned to the LORD God for mercy and forgiveness! Bathsheba had given birth to his son before Nathan the prophet went to David and confronted him regarding his sin (2 Sam. 11-12).

And, if the LORD had cast David off and taken the Holy Spirit from him, David would have remained impenitent and would have been lost forever. But God reached out to David in mercy and, through the prophet’s admonition, brought him to acknowledge and confess his sin to the LORD God and seek God’s mercy! Cf. Psalm 32.

Do we deserve that God would cast us off and take His Holy Spirit from us? Most certainly, for we, like David, are guilty before the LORD! Each of us fails to love the LORD God with all our being. We fail to love our neighbors as ourselves. We break God’s commandments in our thoughts, words and deeds. And, if God would deal with us as we deserve, we would be left to our ways, remain impenitent and become hardened in our unbelief and sin.

But God, through His Word, admonishes us and reveals our sins and failings. He shows us our guilt and the punishment we justly deserve. And then He does an amazing thing! When we see and acknowledge our sinfulness, He comforts us with His mercy. He assures us that Christ atoned for our sins by His sacrifice on the cross and that in Him there is forgiveness for all our sins and a place in God’s family and kingdom!

Instead of taking His Holy Spirit from us, the Spirit reveals our sins and then works faith in our hearts which trusts in God’s mercy, receives His forgiveness, and moves us to amend our ways and live for our God and Savior!

With David, we sinners pray: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit” (Ps. 51:10-12).

We pray that God would, for Christ Jesus’ sake, have mercy upon us and blot out our transgressions. We pray that He would restore to us the joy of His salvation and uphold us by His gracious Holy Spirit.

And God, by the gracious working of the Holy Spirit, does move us to repent. He cleanses our hearts in the shed blood of Christ Jesus. He restores to us the joy of His salvation. He upholds us with His free Spirit (v.12). And, as we tell others of God’s mercy in Christ Jesus, other sinners are converted too and come to faith in our Lord Jesus (v.13).

Have mercy upon me, O God, and by Your Spirit, grant me repentance and faith in Christ Jesus, my Savior. Do not cast me away or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Uphold and keep me by Your free Spirit. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” Exodus 20:12 (Deut. 5:16)

This commandment of the LORD requires us to honor our parents as our God-given representatives. Children are to obey their parents; and parents – especially fathers – are to bring up their children “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:1-4; Col. 3:20-21; Deut. 6:4-9).

And notice that this commandment contains a reason to obey – a promise: “that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth” (Eph. 6:3).

What does it mean? Well, to disobey and dishonor our parents brings us all sorts of trouble and usually leads to disobeying our teachers in school, our pastors at church, and our government leaders, resulting in a troubled life and often spiritual and eternal death. And, God punishes those who disrespect and disobey their parents and promises blessing and long life to those who obey and respect their parents and others in authority over them (cf. Prov. 30:17; Rom. 13:2).

This command, too, extends to others whom God has placed over us in civil government, the church, and at work and in school.

The Bible tells us: “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God” (Rom. 13:1); and, “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you” (Heb. 13:17; cf. 1 Pet. 2:17ff.; Eph. 6:5ff.; Col. 3:18ff.).

The only exception to God’s command to honor and obey parents is that “we ought to obey God rather than men” when there exists a conflict between the will of parents and other authorities and the will of God Himself (Acts 5:29).

And this commandment does not end when we are grown because the Bible also commands us to honor and care for our parents in their old age.

1 Timothy 5:4 says to grown children: “Let them learn first to shew piety at home, and to requite their parents: for that is good and acceptable before God.”

Children sin against God when they disobey their parents and do not show them the honor and respect which God requires. Parents, too, are guilty of sin when they do not bring up their children to know the LORD and His ways. All of us are guilty when we do not submit to our government and its laws in all matters except where they contradict God’s Word. And, we are guilty when we do not heed the admonitions of our pastors and spiritual leaders when they rightly apply God’s Word to our lives.

How thankful we can be that Jesus Christ kept this commandment perfectly for us, not only in deed but in word and desire! The Scriptures tell us that He submitted Himself to His parents and honored them (Luke 2:51; cf. John 19:25-27). And, how thankful we can be that Jesus also bore upon the cross the just punishment for our sin (1 Cor. 15:3-4; 1 John 2:1ff.)! Through faith in Him, we sinners find pardon and forgiveness. In Him, we find strength and guidance to amend our ways and live in accord with God’s will and command.

Dear Lord Jesus, Son of God and our Savior, forgive our sins against the perfect will of You, our God and Maker, and give us the desire to live our lives for You in accord with Your holy Word. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Matthew 18:21-22 (Read Matt. 18:21-35)

How often should we forgive a brother or sister who sins against us? This is the question Peter asked of Jesus after Jesus instructed His disciples in regard to binding or not forgiving the sins of impenitent sinners and loosing or forgiving the sins of those who repent.

Note Jesus’ answer: “I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” Jesus did not mean only 490 times, but all the time! Like our Lord, we are always to be “good, and ready to forgive” (Psalm 86:5).

The parable of the unforgiving servant which follows illustrates Jesus’ point to Peter. A certain servant owed the king such a great amount that he would never be able to work off and repay his debt. When the king justly would have sold him and all that he had to recover at least a part of this debt, the servant pleaded for mercy. And the king was moved to compassion and forgave the entire debt.

We, like the first servant in this parable, owe to God a greater debt than we can ever repay. Our sins against the LORD God are so great that there is no hope of us ever repaying or making amends for our sins – even thinking that we could do so is foolishness. God’s law, therefore, demands that we be cast into hell’s eternal prison and suffer there forever the just penalty for our sins (cf. Rom. 3:9ff.; 6:23a). Indeed, there is nothing we can do but plead for mercy!

And God, like the king in Jesus’ parable, is merciful. He sent His only-begotten Son into the world to live a righteous and holy life in our stead and then to pay in full the debt of our sins and the sins of all by suffering our just punishment as He was crucified and died on the cross. God accepted Christ’s atoning sacrifice and raised Him up and, in the Gospel, God offers to us through faith in Christ mercy instead of judgment, forgiveness instead of eternal damnation (cf. 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Rom. 3:21ff.; 5:6ff.).

When we look to God in faith, seeking His mercy in Christ Jesus and for the sake of Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross, God graciously forgives our entire debt of sin. “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12).

But then there is the second part of Jesus’ parable. This same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him only a very small and insignificant amount in comparison with the huge debt which had been forgiven him. Rather than showing mercy to this servant as he had been shown mercy by his lord, he refused to forgive this small debt and “cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.”

When the king saw that his compassion and forgiveness had no effect on this unforgiving servant, he was angry and “delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.”

In our earthly lives, others sin against us many times; but this debt of sin, though it may seem great to us, is small and insignificant in comparison with the great debt of sin that the LORD God has forgiven us for Jesus’ sake. As a fruit of our faith, and as a result of God’s great mercy to us in Christ Jesus, we ought also to forgive those who sin against us, even “up to seventy times seven.”

In fact, the Bible urges us to “be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” (Eph. 4:32).

If we refuse to forgive from our hearts those who sin against us, neither will our heavenly Father forgive us; instead, He will cast us into the fires of hell to pay in full the punishment due unto us for our sins (cf. Matt. 6:12,14-15).

Forgive our sins, Lord, we implore, remove from us their burden sore, as we their trespasses forgive who by offenses us do grieve. Thus let us dwell in charity and serve our brother willingly. Amen. — “Our Father, Thou in Heaven Above,” Martin Luther, The Lutheran Hymnal, Hymn 458, v. 6

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

And when he had come near, he beheld the city and wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had only known in this day the things which belong to your peace! But now they are hid from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you, that your enemies shall build a barricade about you, encompass you, keep you in on every side, and shall lay you and your children within you even with the ground. And they shall not leave in you one stone upon another because you did not know the time of your visitation.” Luke 19:41-44

Luke’s gospel tells us that Jesus, when He drew near to the city of Jerusalem, wept over it because its people did not recognize Him as their Messiah and Savior — they did not know and recognize the things which make for peace between God and man; they were hidden from their eyes. Jesus loved them and shed His blood in death upon a cross to redeem them, but they didn’t know and didn’t see and didn’t repent and turn to Him in faith!

As a result of their unbelief, God’s judgment would come upon them. The words of Jesus were fulfilled when the Roman armies besieged and destroyed the city and the temple in 70 A.D. The people were killed and taken away captive.

In Luke 21:20-24, Jesus had said, “And when you see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of it depart from it, and do not let those who are in the countries enter into it. For these are the days of vengeance so that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse infants in those days! For there shall be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword and shall be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”

But does Jesus also weep over you? Does He weep because He willingly went to the cross and paid in full for all your sins and yet you do not recognize Him and His sacrifice and you continue on in impenitence and unbelief?

The Bible says of Jesus in Matthew 9:36: “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd.”

And people today are no different than people of Jesus’ day. They wander to and fro like sheep without a shepherd. They do not recognize their own utter sinfulness, nor do they recognize Jesus as God’s Son in human flesh and their Savior from sin and eternal death.

We see it in family members and friends, coworkers and acquaintances. They are lost and headed for the fires of hell and don’t even know it. They may know of Jesus, but they do not know Him and trust in Him for pardon and peace, forgiveness and life everlasting!

Yes, Jesus weeps, and we weep with Him in sorrow as we see people living their lives in ignorance of Jesus and what He in love has done for them — in ignorance of the judgment which is soon coming upon them.

Does Jesus weep over you? Does He weep because He loves you and went to the cross and paid in full for all your sins and yet you do not recognize Him and His sacrifice for you and you continue on in impenitence and unbelief?

The Bible tells us in Isaiah 53:6: “We have all like sheep gone astray. We have each turned to his own way, and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

We’ve all sinned and gone astray! We were all headed toward eternal condemnation! But God the Father sent His Son, Christ Jesus, and charged Him with our sin. Christ died in our stead. He bore the punishment for your sins and mine and rose again from the dead on the third day that we might repent and look to Him in faith and receive God’s pardon and forgiveness! God desires our salvation! He sent His Son to redeem us, and He sends His Word and the Holy Spirit to convict us of our sins and to move us to look to Jesus our Savior in faith!

There is sorrow when we do not repent and look to Jesus, but there is joy when we, by the grace of God, trust in Jesus and are saved!

O dearest Jesus, eternal Son of God and son of man, open my eyes to Your love and mercy, cleanse me from all my sins and give me life in fellowship with You, the Father and the Holy Spirit through faith in Your sacrifice for my sins. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the Revised Common Version.]