The great covenant made with Abraham is our only way of salvation
In regard to the covenants of promise in the gospel, the Apostle Paul says:
(Ephesians 2:12) “Wherefore remember that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh,…that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise,
having no hope, and without God in the world.”
You will see from this that whatever the commonwealth of Israel is and the covenants of promise are, it is of vital importance that, instead of being aliens to them, we should become “fellow citizens” (verse 19).
What is the “Great Covenant”?
Let the Word of God now decide what the great covenant made with Abraham includes:
- Genesis 12:3 – And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee.
- Genesis 12:7 – And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land.
- Genesis 22:17 – I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.
- Genesis 22:18 – And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.
These same covenants of promise were repeated to Isaac and to Jacob as shown in the following references:
Genesis 26:2-4; 28:3, 4, 13, 14.
The Covenant has not yet been fulfilled
Since God has made a covenant to give Abraham and his seed the land of Canaan for an everlasting inheritance, and since He has not fulfilled it, it follows that the fulfilment is yet future; for God’s promises cannot fail.
We know Abraham has not yet received the promises of the covenant from the following references:
- Micah 7:20/Romans 15:8/Luke 1:72
- Hebrews 11:13-35, 39, 40 – These all died in the faith, not having received the promises but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
- Acts 7:5 – And he (God) gave him (Abraham) none inheritance in it, no not so much as to set his foot on, yet He promised that he would give it to him for a possession.Paul confirms this in Acts 26:6:
And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promisemade of God unto our fathers.
The Covenant with Abraham and the “Gospel” are identical:
Galations 3:8 – And the scripture…preached…the gospel unto Abraham saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.
Who is the “seed” referred to in the Abrahamic promises?
The “seed” in whom the Abrahamic promises are to be fulfilled is Christ which is shown in the following references:
- Luke 1:68-73 – Blessed be the Lord God of Israel: for he hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up a horn of salvation for us (that is Jesus – see context) in the house of his servant;…to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant, the oath which he sware to our father Abraham.
- Galations 3:16 – Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, and to seeds, as of many: but as of ONE, and to thy seed which is Christ.
- Romans 15:8 – Now, I, Paul, say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers.
How will this Covenant be fulfilled?
These promises will be fulfilled in the establishment of the Kingdom under Christ (that is in the setting up of the kingdom of God on earth) as the centre of a universal empire.
All nations being blessed:
- Isaiah 11:9 – The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
- Isaiah 2:4 – And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
- Psalm 72:4, 17 – …His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.
- Zecharaiah 9:10 -….And he shall speak peace unto the heathen (nations), and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
- Psalm 67:4 – O, let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth.
The inheritance of the land:
- Leviticus 26:42 – Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember, and I will remember the land.
- Joel 2:18,21 – Then will the Lord be jealous for his land, and pity for his people…Fear not O land; be glad and rejoice for the Lord will do great things.
- Micah 7:20 – Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou has sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.
- Matthew 8:11/Luke 13:28 – And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
How can we become part of this great Covenant?
Galations 3:27-29 – For as many of you as have been baptised into Christ have put on Christ..And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye ABRAHAM’S SEED, and HEIRS according to the promise.