We are not to follow our human reasoning or understanding, but the teaching of our Covenant God. Too often we lean on our own understanding instead of studying to know and live in ways that God can approve of because they line up with His heart. We often baulk at and reject teaching that makes us feel uncomfortable because it defies human reasoning or understanding. However, the things of the Spirit are not naturally discerned, but are revealed by the Spirit of God. Too often we do what SEEMS right, which leads to destruction instead of embracing truth.
So the question in context of Covenant, IS DO WE BELIEVE WHAT THE BIBLE says and will we obey it? Or will we try to justify our responses because they make us uncomfortable?
When Jesus said “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood” He was saying those who enter into Covenant with me. His Words…”He who eats my flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life and I will raise Him up on the last day.” John 6:54
Christianity is not about a commitment or an acceptance of the gospel, but a Covenant with Christ. When covenant partners walked between the pieces of flesh it was a walk into death that led to life-the life of another besides yourself. Thus, as well as becoming friends through covenant, you and your partner now embrace common enemies.
Covenant is a 2 way street. Many embrace Jesus and/or covenant on their own terms, thinking that Jesus/Covenant exists for their own benefit and forget that they are bound by covenant to live for another.
Because you are bound to Jesus, people will hate you. The Word is clear that they hated Jesus and they will hate you. (John 15:18-19) The world hates Jesus because He takes away the excuse for sin. They hated Him because of His righteous life. Those who are NOT in Covenant with Jesus do not like righteousness and are opposed to the truth of the Word. They set their standards and philosophies towards things that are opposed to God. They may even call themselves Christians, but they have crawled in bed with world and have united themselves with it’s likeness and not taken on the identity of Christ.
For do you not know that friendship (covenant term) with the world is hostility towards God. Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an ENEMY of God. (James 4:4)
This would be the equivalent of having an affair with our spouse or betraying our Covenant friend. To love the world and adopt it’s standards is to say “Jesus, I know I belong to you, but before you return, I want to have an affair with your arch enemy”. And so we crawl into the world’s bed to sleep with the enemy of God-commiting spiritual adultery in our Covenant. (This is the Scriptures analogy…not mine.)
Few of us would tolerate this in our marriages or even from a friend, but we expect God to continually accept our half hearted commitment, while His expectation is Covenant. A reciprocal, two way Covenant that offers an exchange of life…and demonstrated by how we live. Would we remain in a relationship that was half hearted? I think not….we expect our spouses and Covenant friends to be ALL IN…and it is what the Father expects from us. The question is….are we? Or are we deceiving ourselves into thinking our commitment not a covenant will save us because that is what we are comfortable with? Or will we embrace what the Word says about Covenant….ALL of them?
ALL FOR YOU
Monday, May 24, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
focus error
I was walking on the beach this morning...thinking that my calves were hurting from the exercise...while that is not comfortable, I do love that. It proves progress and proves that strength, change and work is happening from the inside out. I bent over to write in the sand, when lens popped out of my sunglasses. I have these sunglasses with interchangeable lenses. It is a pretty cool thing most days, but today…it was bad news. About the time the lens hit the sand, a wave came in and grabbed the lens and washed it out with the wave. So I stooped over to grab it quickly and when I did, my camera strap slipped off my shoulder and my camera fell into the wave that had just crashed at my feet. I jerked up the camera, which had been submerged only a few seconds and it was dripping with sand and salt water. Meanwhile, I am still looking for my lens. I spotted it in the wave and grabbed it up as well.
Oh, and did I mention I had my phone in my other hand the whole time all of this was happening. I messed up my sunglasses and my camera, but my linkage via my phone was still in tact. The only thing I didn’t mess up was that.
A little irritated with myself for being so irresponsible, I found a set of chairs (which were not mine…you know those rental ones) and decided to sit my tail down under the umbrella and focus. Multitasking this morning was costing me big time. Sitting in that chair, I laid my camera down, fixed my lens and just leaned back to pray. After saying amen, I flipped the camera on to see if it worked…and it came on, but there was a message on the screen. It read…Focus Error. No duh…If that wasn’t a word picture for me. I should not have been multitasking, but should have been focusing on the one. Instead, I was letting my heart wander around and it cost me.
God’s heart is that we focus not wander. All of us have hearts that are prone to wander, because we have a focus error. We are not focused on the one, but on the details of life. And when that happens, it costs us. Without focus, we will wander like we lost, entertained by every whim and fancy instead of leaning into the moment and hearing with clarity the voice that stirs us to walk together.
The problem is not that we can’t focus….it is that we don’t…
Why? Why do we have a focus problem?
One of our greatest problems is that we try to focus on too many things.
You sit down to pray and the next thing you know you mind has wandered off to thinking about the surgery your friend is having. And with questions about what happens, you decided to google the surgery and get some info. While looking at the info, a pop up comes on your computer and it reminds you that you haven’t checked your email yet today. So you, check your mail, knowing you ought to be praying, but deciding that the people’s names in your in box will now become your prayer list of those you will pray for. Skimming the list, you skip a few, and then respond to those who are important. You get an email that encourages your heart and so you decide you want to be an encourager too, so you decide to go out facebook and post so that everyone can hear what you have heard. After all, that is the point of facebook, right? While posting, you see a video posted by a friend that says you must watch, so you click on it and it makes you laugh and so you decide that you need to tweet all your friends to tell them to check out the link so that they can have a joyful heart also. About that time, a text message hits your phone and your kids forgot their lunch and your husband wants you to leave whatever you are doing to run it up to them so they don’t starve. Feeding the hungry is a big part of serving God you know. So you leave your prayer time…and wonder why you never feel like you truly talked to God and wondered if He talked back.
There are so many distractions…and we have a hard time shutting all that down long enough to focus on the ONE THING that is important.
It is like we live in a world where we think there is automatic focus like our cameras....but instead...it isn't automatic. Just like there is intentional engagement, there is an intentional focus on the one. But sometimes we live life with the main thing...all blurry, while focused on the objects in the background. who wants to live life pictured like that.
Focus is NOT automatic. And depending on the distance, the more intention it takes to bring into focus…to be able to see.
Ps 16:8-11
8 I have set the LORD continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely.
10 For Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Sheol; neither wilt Thou allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay.
11 Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; in Thy presence is fulness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.
David shared with us words that remind us WHY we should focus.
These words were David’s, but they were also a foreshadowing of Christ’s…before He endured the Cross. In John 10:18 and John 14:31, Jesus demonstrated that HE SET HIS EYES on what the Father said. He focused….He set the Lord continually before Him despite the struggles of life. In view of death, He looked up and focused.
He is at my right Hand-his hand is mighty to save. His arm is not too short…will not be shaken by distraction.
Isa 59:1 Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short that it cannot save; neither is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.
Heb 12:2 for the joy SET before, he endured the cross.
His heart was glad, his glory rejoices and his flesh was secure….Knowing he would not be abandoned. HE TRUSTED….
And then knew the result….will make known the path…
There is fullness of joy in His Presence
In His hand, pleasures forever
Jesus endured the biggest distraction….was it a struggle…certainly…
How was He able to do this?
He didn’t live life on automatic….He worked on the intentional focus on the one…while letting the many be blessed as a result…
We have believed a lie. That the world can’t go on without us for a few minutes while we focus.
And so we focus on the background instead of the main thing…which is not the important part of the picture…
Ps 101:3 I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me.
HOW DID HE DO THIS?
His eyes were set on things above….He was focused.
Eccl 3:11 He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.
Our problem is our mindset is on life here instead of on eternity.
Need to refocus….we have a focus error….
Don’t know if my camera will work or not. My sunglasses seem okay for the minute. He restored one lens, I am praying for the other. But regardless, He got my attention. Focus Error. Focus on the One…not the many. It is what Jesus did. Remember the parable of the sheep, leaving the many to retrieve the one. The lost coin, looking for the one. It is a principle of life…focus on the one, not the many things that distract.
ALL FOR YOU
Oh, and did I mention I had my phone in my other hand the whole time all of this was happening. I messed up my sunglasses and my camera, but my linkage via my phone was still in tact. The only thing I didn’t mess up was that.
A little irritated with myself for being so irresponsible, I found a set of chairs (which were not mine…you know those rental ones) and decided to sit my tail down under the umbrella and focus. Multitasking this morning was costing me big time. Sitting in that chair, I laid my camera down, fixed my lens and just leaned back to pray. After saying amen, I flipped the camera on to see if it worked…and it came on, but there was a message on the screen. It read…Focus Error. No duh…If that wasn’t a word picture for me. I should not have been multitasking, but should have been focusing on the one. Instead, I was letting my heart wander around and it cost me.
God’s heart is that we focus not wander. All of us have hearts that are prone to wander, because we have a focus error. We are not focused on the one, but on the details of life. And when that happens, it costs us. Without focus, we will wander like we lost, entertained by every whim and fancy instead of leaning into the moment and hearing with clarity the voice that stirs us to walk together.
The problem is not that we can’t focus….it is that we don’t…
Why? Why do we have a focus problem?
One of our greatest problems is that we try to focus on too many things.
You sit down to pray and the next thing you know you mind has wandered off to thinking about the surgery your friend is having. And with questions about what happens, you decided to google the surgery and get some info. While looking at the info, a pop up comes on your computer and it reminds you that you haven’t checked your email yet today. So you, check your mail, knowing you ought to be praying, but deciding that the people’s names in your in box will now become your prayer list of those you will pray for. Skimming the list, you skip a few, and then respond to those who are important. You get an email that encourages your heart and so you decide you want to be an encourager too, so you decide to go out facebook and post so that everyone can hear what you have heard. After all, that is the point of facebook, right? While posting, you see a video posted by a friend that says you must watch, so you click on it and it makes you laugh and so you decide that you need to tweet all your friends to tell them to check out the link so that they can have a joyful heart also. About that time, a text message hits your phone and your kids forgot their lunch and your husband wants you to leave whatever you are doing to run it up to them so they don’t starve. Feeding the hungry is a big part of serving God you know. So you leave your prayer time…and wonder why you never feel like you truly talked to God and wondered if He talked back.
There are so many distractions…and we have a hard time shutting all that down long enough to focus on the ONE THING that is important.
It is like we live in a world where we think there is automatic focus like our cameras....but instead...it isn't automatic. Just like there is intentional engagement, there is an intentional focus on the one. But sometimes we live life with the main thing...all blurry, while focused on the objects in the background. who wants to live life pictured like that.
Focus is NOT automatic. And depending on the distance, the more intention it takes to bring into focus…to be able to see.
Ps 16:8-11
8 I have set the LORD continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely.
10 For Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Sheol; neither wilt Thou allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay.
11 Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; in Thy presence is fulness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.
David shared with us words that remind us WHY we should focus.
These words were David’s, but they were also a foreshadowing of Christ’s…before He endured the Cross. In John 10:18 and John 14:31, Jesus demonstrated that HE SET HIS EYES on what the Father said. He focused….He set the Lord continually before Him despite the struggles of life. In view of death, He looked up and focused.
He is at my right Hand-his hand is mighty to save. His arm is not too short…will not be shaken by distraction.
Isa 59:1 Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short that it cannot save; neither is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.
Heb 12:2 for the joy SET before, he endured the cross.
His heart was glad, his glory rejoices and his flesh was secure….Knowing he would not be abandoned. HE TRUSTED….
And then knew the result….will make known the path…
There is fullness of joy in His Presence
In His hand, pleasures forever
Jesus endured the biggest distraction….was it a struggle…certainly…
How was He able to do this?
He didn’t live life on automatic….He worked on the intentional focus on the one…while letting the many be blessed as a result…
We have believed a lie. That the world can’t go on without us for a few minutes while we focus.
And so we focus on the background instead of the main thing…which is not the important part of the picture…
Ps 101:3 I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me.
HOW DID HE DO THIS?
His eyes were set on things above….He was focused.
Eccl 3:11 He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.
Our problem is our mindset is on life here instead of on eternity.
Need to refocus….we have a focus error….
Don’t know if my camera will work or not. My sunglasses seem okay for the minute. He restored one lens, I am praying for the other. But regardless, He got my attention. Focus Error. Focus on the One…not the many. It is what Jesus did. Remember the parable of the sheep, leaving the many to retrieve the one. The lost coin, looking for the one. It is a principle of life…focus on the one, not the many things that distract.
ALL FOR YOU
gym
Going to the gym always seem to get my mind thinking while my blood is pumping. I was on the bike listening to preaching on my ipod, when a thought struck me.
Why are we on treadmills or bikes going nowhere, while watching TV’s and shows that communicate nothing. In front of every piece of equipment is a TV. That just seemed crazy to me. How ironic. I had written earlier about being on equipment that went nowhere, but today my thought is while going nowhere we are watching things that communicate nothing and then wonder why our souls do not feel better.
We go to the gym and work on our “flesh”, but does our soul feel any better? We have spent an hour or so trying to burn off fat, build muscle on machines that go nowhere, while watching and feeding our souls nothing. I looked around at the numerous people who were locked into a Oprah, a soap opera, an entertainment show or even CNN and thought to myself “why?”. What would it take for us to get off the machines and unplug from the worthless pleasures and plug up to that which feeds our soul?
Don’t misunderstand, I am still going to the gym and not knocking on that. However, it is such a word picture for our culture. We are so placated by the idea of going nowhere and communicating nothing that we actually think we are doing something and taking in mass amounts of something, simply because we think activity denotes progress.
Just because we are busy and taking in information doesn’t mean it is productive. We spend an enormous amount of time listening to and repeating things that mean nothing but make us feel important because we think we know something because we heard something. We spend a ton of time in activity thinking it is getting us where we want, but instead is getting us no where.
Ecclesiastes addresses these thoughts. Solomon writes that striving after such things is like striving after the wind and will gain us nothing in the long run, because there is no enjoyment without Him. (2:25) Solomon describes life for those who are pursuing this life as vanity of vanities and states that thinking that “what the eyes see is better than what the soul desires. This too is futility and striving after the wind.”
We spend our days full of activity that is merely striving after the wind, on treadmills going nowhere and gaining knowledge that communicates nothing. Perhaps we should not set our minds to know the things of this life (1:13), but instead set our hearts on eternity (3:11). Do you think we are striving after the wrong things…and need to change what we fear and pursue? Solomon ends with “the conclusion, when all has been heard is: “fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether good or evil.” (12:14)
If we spent as much time determined to know Christ and Him crucified, perhaps our souls would be in better shape than our bodies.
ALL FOR YOU
Why are we on treadmills or bikes going nowhere, while watching TV’s and shows that communicate nothing. In front of every piece of equipment is a TV. That just seemed crazy to me. How ironic. I had written earlier about being on equipment that went nowhere, but today my thought is while going nowhere we are watching things that communicate nothing and then wonder why our souls do not feel better.
We go to the gym and work on our “flesh”, but does our soul feel any better? We have spent an hour or so trying to burn off fat, build muscle on machines that go nowhere, while watching and feeding our souls nothing. I looked around at the numerous people who were locked into a Oprah, a soap opera, an entertainment show or even CNN and thought to myself “why?”. What would it take for us to get off the machines and unplug from the worthless pleasures and plug up to that which feeds our soul?
Don’t misunderstand, I am still going to the gym and not knocking on that. However, it is such a word picture for our culture. We are so placated by the idea of going nowhere and communicating nothing that we actually think we are doing something and taking in mass amounts of something, simply because we think activity denotes progress.
Just because we are busy and taking in information doesn’t mean it is productive. We spend an enormous amount of time listening to and repeating things that mean nothing but make us feel important because we think we know something because we heard something. We spend a ton of time in activity thinking it is getting us where we want, but instead is getting us no where.
Ecclesiastes addresses these thoughts. Solomon writes that striving after such things is like striving after the wind and will gain us nothing in the long run, because there is no enjoyment without Him. (2:25) Solomon describes life for those who are pursuing this life as vanity of vanities and states that thinking that “what the eyes see is better than what the soul desires. This too is futility and striving after the wind.”
We spend our days full of activity that is merely striving after the wind, on treadmills going nowhere and gaining knowledge that communicates nothing. Perhaps we should not set our minds to know the things of this life (1:13), but instead set our hearts on eternity (3:11). Do you think we are striving after the wrong things…and need to change what we fear and pursue? Solomon ends with “the conclusion, when all has been heard is: “fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether good or evil.” (12:14)
If we spent as much time determined to know Christ and Him crucified, perhaps our souls would be in better shape than our bodies.
ALL FOR YOU
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
covenant more
Covenant 7 fyi…
“below the surface of one of the most beautiful and meaningful instances of covenant in all the Scriptures; the bond between Jonathon and David. This event is introduced simply, but profoundly, “Then Jonathon made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.” (Our Covenant God, book)
In our culture, we are quick to jump to some sort of odd perversion instead of embracing what the Scripture deems as one of the most precious of relationships. While we often want to equate Covenant ONLY with marriage, the Word is clear to explain that Covenant friendship is a relationship God establishes and longs for us to partake in. Often we reject this notion, due to perversion or simply because we are uncomfortable with letting another this close, or perhaps even because it just seems odd to us. But whether we like it or not, it is defined in Scripture and is a sacred part of the journey God calls us to.
Kay Arthur describes this relationship as “a way of life that ordered your steps and altered your lifestyle, from your relationships with others to the way you conducted your affairs, all under the watchful eye of an omnipresent God.”
Part of our rejection to the idea of Covenant friendship has been our lack of Biblical knowledge about Covenant. We MUST return to the WORD for our insights on Covenant and how God views. If we refuse to do so, we will face the wrath of God for not viewing Covenant as HE does. From friendships like David and Jonathon, Ruth and Naomi or Jesus and His inner circle, the Word is clear to define Covenant Friendship as something God valued and expected to be kept. It is why Jesus called us friends and described the greatest of all love in the context of friendship. (Greater love hath no man than that he would lay down his life for his friend-John 15:13-14)
The Word defines the Covenant of Friendship as souls being KNIT together, loving as oneself. That is how Jonathon loved David. (1 Sam 18:1-3) Covenant was not just a commitment made, but was also sealed, therefore accompanied by a sign that came with it that sealed the covenant and kept it-a reminder that it is to never be broken. (it is why we wear wedding bands-a sign and seal of marital Covenant). All Covenants come with a sign and seal. The Rainbow, the cross-from God are such examples. But sometimes it was a well dug, a meal shared, a tree planted. Circumcision was a HUGE sign of Covenant. (hence the shedding of blood AND the issues with the seed.)
In the Covenant of Friendship of David and Jonathon, they not only exchanged lives, but signs and symbols of that Covenant. We find in 1 Sam 18, that they exchanged robes, weapons and belts.
David and Jonathon understood covenant friendship as the exchange of life.
“Jonathon stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.” 1 Sam 18:4
The Word is clear to say that Jonathon made a Covenant with David. The word in the Hebrew reads, he CUT Covenant with David, therefore it is understood by the reader that there was a blood exchange, making them blood brothers.
Before we go into the exchange, perhaps we should just read what scholars greater than I have to say about covenant friendship.
[Jonathan loved him as his own soul] The most intimate friendship subsisted between them; and they loved each other with pure hearts fervently. No love was lost between them; each was worthy of the other. They had a friendship which could not be affected with changes or chances, and which exemplified all that the ancients have said on the subject; "Friendship produces an entire sameness; it is one soul in two bodies: a friend is another self."
(from Adam Clarke Commentary)
Kay Arthur: “Speaking volumes of the breadth and depth of Covenant they had just cut, the new relationship they had just entered into, the Covenant made them one. A relationship that would supersede all others except their relationship with their God.”
For example, David and Jonathan entered into a covenant because of their love for each other. This agreement bound each of them to certain responsibilites <1 Sam. 18:3>. (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary)
(Copyright (C) 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
Disciplines of a Godly Man- describes the relationship between David and Jonathon as a relationship that though in Scripture has fallen by the wayside, simply because we lack roots. He goes on to say that even the most intimate of friends for men will never approach the depth of friendship that women share because men do not value friendship like they do. He goes on to state that such thinking is to ignore the wisdom of Scripture and life. (R. Kent Hughes) Jesus ministry was centered and rooted in DEEP friendship with a few-3, particularly 1. He goes on to describe the friendship of Jonathon and David as the Mutuality of soul. It is a supernatural mutuality of soul where two are one (knit together) because of the Spirit of God that has drawn them into a Covenant friendship.
According to Hughes, The mutuality of soul is followed by an unselfish love and accompanies a mutuality of love and commitment to one another. The deepest of friendships have the desire to make the other royalty. (as Jonathon did for David.) They work for and rejoice in the other’s elevation. There are no hooks, no desires to manipulate, or control and no jealousy. With such a Covenant friendship comes deep loyalty. When Saul spoke evil of David, Jonathon did not receive the evil report but instead spoke well of David. (1 Sam 19:4)
Repeated (Jonathon and David affirmed and cut Covenant twice, not just once) commitments to covenant bound their lives and their children’s lives to one another. (1 Sam 20:14-17)
Hughes alludes to the fact that many men never experience such Biblical friendship and are confounded by the women who do. He states that such friendship is a discipline we must exercise and engage in, that it takes work and a willingness to be transparent and challenges us all to look at Scripture and to cultivate such a friendship.
ALL FOR YOU
“below the surface of one of the most beautiful and meaningful instances of covenant in all the Scriptures; the bond between Jonathon and David. This event is introduced simply, but profoundly, “Then Jonathon made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.” (Our Covenant God, book)
In our culture, we are quick to jump to some sort of odd perversion instead of embracing what the Scripture deems as one of the most precious of relationships. While we often want to equate Covenant ONLY with marriage, the Word is clear to explain that Covenant friendship is a relationship God establishes and longs for us to partake in. Often we reject this notion, due to perversion or simply because we are uncomfortable with letting another this close, or perhaps even because it just seems odd to us. But whether we like it or not, it is defined in Scripture and is a sacred part of the journey God calls us to.
Kay Arthur describes this relationship as “a way of life that ordered your steps and altered your lifestyle, from your relationships with others to the way you conducted your affairs, all under the watchful eye of an omnipresent God.”
Part of our rejection to the idea of Covenant friendship has been our lack of Biblical knowledge about Covenant. We MUST return to the WORD for our insights on Covenant and how God views. If we refuse to do so, we will face the wrath of God for not viewing Covenant as HE does. From friendships like David and Jonathon, Ruth and Naomi or Jesus and His inner circle, the Word is clear to define Covenant Friendship as something God valued and expected to be kept. It is why Jesus called us friends and described the greatest of all love in the context of friendship. (Greater love hath no man than that he would lay down his life for his friend-John 15:13-14)
The Word defines the Covenant of Friendship as souls being KNIT together, loving as oneself. That is how Jonathon loved David. (1 Sam 18:1-3) Covenant was not just a commitment made, but was also sealed, therefore accompanied by a sign that came with it that sealed the covenant and kept it-a reminder that it is to never be broken. (it is why we wear wedding bands-a sign and seal of marital Covenant). All Covenants come with a sign and seal. The Rainbow, the cross-from God are such examples. But sometimes it was a well dug, a meal shared, a tree planted. Circumcision was a HUGE sign of Covenant. (hence the shedding of blood AND the issues with the seed.)
In the Covenant of Friendship of David and Jonathon, they not only exchanged lives, but signs and symbols of that Covenant. We find in 1 Sam 18, that they exchanged robes, weapons and belts.
David and Jonathon understood covenant friendship as the exchange of life.
“Jonathon stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.” 1 Sam 18:4
The Word is clear to say that Jonathon made a Covenant with David. The word in the Hebrew reads, he CUT Covenant with David, therefore it is understood by the reader that there was a blood exchange, making them blood brothers.
Before we go into the exchange, perhaps we should just read what scholars greater than I have to say about covenant friendship.
[Jonathan loved him as his own soul] The most intimate friendship subsisted between them; and they loved each other with pure hearts fervently. No love was lost between them; each was worthy of the other. They had a friendship which could not be affected with changes or chances, and which exemplified all that the ancients have said on the subject; "Friendship produces an entire sameness; it is one soul in two bodies: a friend is another self."
(from Adam Clarke Commentary)
Kay Arthur: “Speaking volumes of the breadth and depth of Covenant they had just cut, the new relationship they had just entered into, the Covenant made them one. A relationship that would supersede all others except their relationship with their God.”
For example, David and Jonathan entered into a covenant because of their love for each other. This agreement bound each of them to certain responsibilites <1 Sam. 18:3>. (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary)
(Copyright (C) 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
Disciplines of a Godly Man- describes the relationship between David and Jonathon as a relationship that though in Scripture has fallen by the wayside, simply because we lack roots. He goes on to say that even the most intimate of friends for men will never approach the depth of friendship that women share because men do not value friendship like they do. He goes on to state that such thinking is to ignore the wisdom of Scripture and life. (R. Kent Hughes) Jesus ministry was centered and rooted in DEEP friendship with a few-3, particularly 1. He goes on to describe the friendship of Jonathon and David as the Mutuality of soul. It is a supernatural mutuality of soul where two are one (knit together) because of the Spirit of God that has drawn them into a Covenant friendship.
According to Hughes, The mutuality of soul is followed by an unselfish love and accompanies a mutuality of love and commitment to one another. The deepest of friendships have the desire to make the other royalty. (as Jonathon did for David.) They work for and rejoice in the other’s elevation. There are no hooks, no desires to manipulate, or control and no jealousy. With such a Covenant friendship comes deep loyalty. When Saul spoke evil of David, Jonathon did not receive the evil report but instead spoke well of David. (1 Sam 19:4)
Repeated (Jonathon and David affirmed and cut Covenant twice, not just once) commitments to covenant bound their lives and their children’s lives to one another. (1 Sam 20:14-17)
Hughes alludes to the fact that many men never experience such Biblical friendship and are confounded by the women who do. He states that such friendship is a discipline we must exercise and engage in, that it takes work and a willingness to be transparent and challenges us all to look at Scripture and to cultivate such a friendship.
ALL FOR YOU
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