SIGN OF THE COVENANT

Our God is faithful

What is it about rainbows that fascinate us?  When it rains, I tend to look to see if the sun is shining elsewhere in the sky.  I'm on the lookout for a rainbow.  When I saw the double rainbow the other day, it got me to thinking about the covenant God made with mankind after the flood.  

God said, "This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth." (Genesis 9:12-13)  

What is a covenant?  Simply put, it's a contract. Other synonyms include commitment, pledge, promise, and bond.  It's like a legal contract, but in Scripture it's an agreement between God and His people; so it's a two-way street, between us and God.  In the agreement between God and the people of Israel, God promised to protect them if they kept His laws and remained faithful to Him.  

The first time we read of a covenant between God and man is in Genesis 9.  But it's not the last time.  The prophet Jeremiah foretold of the NEW covenant.   

"Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt." (Jeremiah 31:31-32)  

What's the difference between the old and the new covenant?  The old covenant was written on stone tablets (Exodus 31:18).  But the people were unfaithful to God (Exodus 32:1-6).   

The new covenant was written on their hearts instead of stone tablets. 

"For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel.  After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, and I will write them on their hearts.  And I will be their God, and they shall be My people." (Hebrews 8:10)

So when I saw this double rainbow I was reminded of God's covenant, which I happened to see on the eve of a life-altering event in my life. After almost 20 years, an ending... but also a beginning.  With the pound of the gavel, the door slammed shut on the past.   

But I need not worry, for God has written His Word on my heart.