The Everlasting Covenant

I want you to turn in your Bibles
now to the book of Genesis chapter 2. Genesis chapter 2. I'd like to read verses 7 and
8 of Genesis 2. Now listen. And the Lord God
formed man. of the dust of the ground, and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became
a living soul. And the Lord God planted a garden
eastward in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed."
Now if you'll go to verse 18, And the Lord God said, it is
not good that the man should be alone. I will make him and
help me for him. And out of the ground the Lord
God formed every beast of the field and every fowl of the air
and brought them unto Adam. Adam is the man. To see what
he would call them, and whatsoever Adam called every living creature,
that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle,
to the fowl of the air, to every beast of the field. But for Adam
there was not found and help meet for him. And the Lord God
caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and his flesh. And he took
one of his ribs and clothed up the flesh instead thereof. And
the rib which the Lord God had taken from man made he a woman. and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone
of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman,
because she was taken out of man. Therefore shall a man leave
his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and
they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the
man and his wife, and were not ashamed. All right, now read
verse 16 or verse 15 with me. Now there's the creation. God
created a man, Adam. God created, when he made Adam,
all men. You and I were created right
then. We were in the loins of Adam. There stood the whole human
race in a man and a woman. Right there was the whole human
race. He represented us. Adam was the head of the whole
human race. Adam was the root from which all life has come.
God dealt with Adam, He dealt with us. God spoke to Adam, He
spoke to us. When God made a covenant with
Adam, He made a covenant with us. Now here's the covenant.
In verse 15 of Genesis 2, And the Lord God took the man and
put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And
the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Now here's the covenant,
here's the covenant of work. The Lord God commanded the man,
saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat,
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not
eat of it, for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die. Here was the man and the woman
in perfect surroundings, created holy and upright without sin,
with communion with the blessed Lord. Adam walked with God. God made a covenant with Adam,
obey me and live, disobey me and die. That was the covenant
of worship. The whole human race was under
that covenant in this one man, Adam. Adam didn't long abide
under this covenant. How long, no one knows. But the
scripture says he took, he was not deceived, he took willingly
of the forbidden fruit and did And the covenant made with Adam
was destroyed. Now turn with me to 1 Corinthians
15, 22. And as a result of Adam's fall,
as a result of Adam's transgression, as a result of Adam's disobedience,
every son of Adam has fallen, has transgressed, has disobeyed
God. As a result of Adam's fall, sin
came into the world, and sin has possessed every son of Adam.
As a result of Adam's fall, disease and darkness and death has come
into this world and possessed every son of Adam. In 1 Corinthians
15, verse 21, the Scripture says, For since by man came death.
Verse 22, For as in Adam, all die. In Adam, death came upon all
men. Now turn to Romans 5. This is
the first covenant. This covenant was made between
Almighty God and the man. And when the man disobeyed, when
the man transgressed the covenant, the law of God, he died. And
death, judgment, darkness, disease came upon all whom he represented,
all who were in Adam. died when he sinned, fell when
he fell. Now look at Romans 5 verse 12.
Wherefore, as by one man, that's Adam, sin entered into the world,
and death, spiritual death. Adam didn't die immediately physically,
he did later, but he died spiritually. So death, spiritual death, death
by sin passed upon all men, for that all Have, or all, sinned. When Adam sinned, I sinned. When
Adam disobeyed God, I disobeyed God. When Adam fell, you fell. When Adam disobeyed God, you
disobeyed God. With transgressors in Adam's
fall. Turn with me to Romans 5 verse
17. Read the first part of the next
three verses. For if by one man's offense death
reigns, Verse 18, therefore by the offense of one judgment came. Verse 19, for as by one man's
disobedience the many, the many were made sinners. Not only man,
not only his children, but even creation as a result of Adam's
seed. Death came to all creation, to
the animals. to the trees, to the flowers,
to all things. Turn to Romans chapter 8. When
Adam stood in that garden, surrounded by the things that God in wisdom
and mercy and grace had made, Adam without seeing them, holy
fellowship with God, there was a covenant made. Adam represented,
here the man, the whole human race stood in one man, in one
woman. And God said, Adam, everything
is yours. Possess it. Subdue it. Multiply
it. Replenish the earth. It's yours.
But there's a covenant made, Adam. Continue in obedience and
live. Live in my favor. Live in my
love. Live forever. But Adam, there's
one tree in the garden. I'm still God. You're still dependent
on me. There's one tree in the garden.
Of that tree you shall not heap. This is my law. And if you eat
that, you'll die. Judgment and death will come
upon you, Adam, if you eat of that tree." Well, the man took
the tree, and he ate of it, and death came. Death came to the
man. Death came to the woman. Spiritual death. They realized
they were naked. Guilt and sin. And hatred came
to this world of their two sons. One killed the other. Shed his
blood. Judgment came, and not only to the man and to the woman
whose body started decaying and dying, whose souls and spirits
were separated from God, but everything about them. This dismal
death descended upon everything. Look at Romans chapter 8, verse
20. For the creature, and that's
the creation, for the creation was made subject to vanity. And
that's what Solomon said. Hold it, we're going to read
some more there. But Solomon surveyed the whole thing. And he said,
Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. Solomon, who was given more wisdom
than any man, more insight and discernment than any man, the
most brilliant man who ever lived. And yet when he surveyed all
within him and all without, he came to the conclusion everything
is vanity. man's thoughts, man's imagination,
man's ways, man's object, man's motive, man's surroundings, man's
relationship, everything's vanity. And this vanity came about because
of Adam's sin, for the creation was made subject to this vanity,
to this folly, to this death, not willingly, not willingly,
but by reason of him who has subjected the same in hope of
a new creation. Because the creation itself also
shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption. When did it come
under the bondage of corruption? God made it good. The scripture
says when God on the first day created things, he said it's
good. On the second day it's good. On the third day it's good.
When he finished his creation after the sixth day, he looked
at it and said, good. It's good. It's not good now. What happened? Adam fell. When
God had made all things, when he made this earth, it was without
decay, it was without disease, it was without darkness, it was
without death, it was without sin. But he put that man, that
representative, that federal head, that one who was the root
of the human race, he put him in his darkness. That man with
the mind and with the free will, with the free agency. To oversee
the garden. To rule it. To subdue it. To reign over it. But Adam, remember
there's one king higher than you. You're King Adam, but King
Jesus is higher than you, Lord. Adam, you're the earth's sovereign,
but there's a sovereign higher than you. Don't forget it. But
he did. He wanted to be God. He was not
content with subjection. He was not content with obedience.
He was not content. to obey God. He wanted to be
God. Satan whispered to him, you'll be like God? You'll be
like God? God's got the wool pulled over
your eyes, Adam. That was Satan's sin. You see,
God gave him power too. God gave him dominion. There
was a day when Satan was called the son of the morning. There
was a day when he was a prince. There was a day when he ruled,
I believe, over this earth in its original creation. Couldn't
prove that, but I believe it. Adam was to replenish the earth.
You can't replenish something that hadn't been replenished
before. You can't re-inhabit something that hadn't been inhabited.
God made the world, Genesis 1-1, but there's something between
Genesis 1-1 and Genesis 1-2. The earth became without form.
God never made anything without form and void. But Satan, Lucifer,
there was a day when he walked this earth. There was a day when
he ruled this earth. There was a day when he ruled
over the angels. But he said, I'll be like God.
I'll exalt my throne above the throne of God. I will, I will,
I will, I will, five times, I will. No you won't. You'll be cast
down to hell. And that's what happened to him.
And when God made this beautiful garden and this beautiful world
and said, it's good, and put man in there, man, our father,
our representative, our federal head, and we were in him, don't
you ever lose sight of that. In Adam we died. In Adam we sinned. In Adam we fell. In Adam, we
were in Adam. Adam was the only man God ever
created. God didn't create you. You were
born from Adam. Even woman came out of Adam.
And you and I came out of Adam. And when he stood there, we stood
there. And when he reigned, we reigned. And when he lived, we
lived. And when he obeyed, we obeyed. But Adam listened to
Satan's whispers through his wife Eve. You'll be like God. You'll be like God. And that
was his intention, and that was his motive, and that was the
very reason why he took that trait, to be like God. And when
he did, death came. He cringed and ran and hid from
God in shame and guilt and began at once to try to patch things
up. He began at once through his own efforts to make himself
presentable to God. But sin can never be presentable
to God. The nakedness of a rebellious
soul can never be acceptable to God. There's no repair work
that can be done by the hands of man to make him acceptable
to God. No way. No way. It has to be
a new creature. It has to be a new creature. God's got to do away with the
old to make a new creature. It's got to be a new Adam. It's got to be a new Adam. As we are born, the image of
the earth in we have, we've got to bear the image of the heaven.
There's no way you can patch up the flesh. Paul said, in the
flesh dwelleth no good thing. Christ said, that which is born
of flesh is flesh. In the flesh no man can please
God. There's nothing that an angel
or a man can do to make the flesh acceptable to God. In the gardens
flesh died. In the garden flesh was decayed
and corrupted. In the garden man, as man, became
rotten in God's sight. That's what's said. By one man's
disobedience. And even the animals turned on
man. God brought him the lions and
the tigers and the eagles. There was a time when the eagle
would sit on Adam's shoulder, but the next time he'd go for
his jugular vein. What happened? Adam's rebellion. The animals took up the quarrel
of their maker. They were angry at Adam. The
trees turned on him. The thorns and thistles turned
on him. The animals turned on him. The
elements turned on him, the seas turned on him, everything turned
on him. He turned against God. Swift
to its close now ebbs out life's little day. Earth's joys grow
dim, its glories fade away, change and decay in all around our sea. O thou that changest not, abide
with him. Vain are the hopes the sons of
men on their own works have built. their hearts by nature unclean
and all their actions guilt. Let Jew and Gentile stop their
mouths without a murmuring word. The whole race of Adam stands
guilty before the Lord. In vain we ask God's righteous
law to justify us now, since convince us and condemn us is
all the law can do." Now turn to Romans 3. Romans 3 verse 19,
listen to it. What the law saith, we know that
what things the law saith, it saith to them who are under the
law that every mouth may be stopped. And all the world become guilty,
guilty, guilty. And you know the condition now
in which your babies are born? As a result of that sin, if you'd
like to learn, turn to Psalm 51. And God tells us, through
the mouth of his prophet David, the condition in which all your
babies are born, the condition in which you were born. In Psalm
51, David said, in verse 5, Behold, I was shapen in iniquity. In
sin my mother conceived me. in sin, I was conceived in sin. Meaning by that that the very
nature and spirit of the child is evil from birth. Turn to Psalm
58, Psalm 58 verse 3, the wicked are strained from the womb, they
go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies. That was the first covenant. God made a garden. God made a
world. And God made it like God makes
everything perfect. God put his stamp of approval
on it. He said it's good. He made a beautiful man and a
beautiful woman. He made them husband and wife.
He gave them a relationship of love. He told them to bring forth
children. He told them to multiply and
replenish the earth. He gave them everything. He said,
there it is. It's yours. But there's one thing. There's a covenant. I'm going
to make an agreement with you. If you do what I've commanded
you, you live. You live in this perfect paradise.
You live in this perfect joy. Now, if you disobey me, you're
going to die. And there was a whole human race
standing there. The whole human race. It's what the Word of God
teaches. And so they fell. They sinned.
And God came to the man. He said, Adam, where are you?
He said, I'm hiding. Why are you hiding, Adam? I'm
afraid. Why are you afraid, Adam? I'm naked. Who told you you were
naked? Has thou eaten of the tree? Have you broke the covenant?
Lord, the woman you gave me. Well, he turned to her and said,
Eve, what have you done? The serpent. He said to the woman,
he said, now Eve, because of your sinning, you were going
to bear children in joy. Now you'll bear children in sorrow.
You weren't going to bear children in happiness, now you're going
to bear children in tears. You were going to bear children
without pain, now you're going to bear them in pain. I'm going
to greatly multiply your sorrow in your salvation. And your desire
is going to be to your husband. He's going to rule over you.
He's going to reign over you. He's your Lord. He's your master.
Always will be. And Adam, you're going to plow
the field, but it's going to yield thorns and thistles now
instead of vegetables. You're going to plow the field
and plant your grain, but it's not going to rain, and it's going
to dry out and die on the ground. Adam, you're going to make, you're
going to earn your bread, but you're going to do it by the
sweat of your brow. That's right, sweat of your brow. Satan, Satan,
I'm going to put enmity between you and the woman, between your
seed and, here we go now, here's a new covenant, here's a new
covenant. This new covenant, why do you
call it new, Preacher? Is it God just thought of it?
Uh-uh. The new covenant was made before that was made with Adam.
Before God ever made that covenant with Adam, he'd already made
that other covenant, that everlasting covenant. I read you about it.
Turn to Hebrews 13. He'd already made it. Well, Preacher, why is it called
a new covenant? Because it's newly revealed.
Because though it's the first made, it's the second mentioned.
Though it was the first made, it was the second revealed. Though
it was the first one established, it was the second one made known. Before there was a sinner, there
was a Savior. Christ was the Lamb slain before the foundation
of the world. That new creation was chosen
in Christ before God made the old creation. God's purpose and
plan to redeem a people was already established because God can't
do anything in time that he hadn't decreed in eternity. Look at
Hebrews 13, verse 20. Now, the God of peace that brought
again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of
the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant. You
see, this covenant made with Adam was made right there in
the Garden. Right there in the Garden. Adam didn't exist before
that time. He was made right there. Made
a man and put in that garden. And that's when God made that
covenant with him. But those people in Christ, that new creation,
the elect people, the family of God, the children, were in
Christ from eternity. In the beginning, God chose you
to salvation. God chose you in Christ before
the foundation of the world. He is the Lamb slain before the
foundation of the world, known unto God all his works from the
beginning. Way back yonder before God recreated,
before God told Adam to replenish, back yonder before Satan ever
walked the earth, God had a people. And here you go, Satan. I'm going
to put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed. and her seed. Her seed, woman,
doesn't have a seed. Anybody who knows anything about
the birth of children knows that woman, there's no such thing
as a seed of woman. Man has the seed. When a husband
and wife come together and life is conceived, it's conceived
from the seed of man, not from the seed of woman. What's God
talking about? God's talking about a virgin-born
son. God's talking about one who won't
come from Adam at all, who can't trace his genealogy to Adam.
Every living person in this building or anywhere, every living person
that's ever walked this earth on two legs can trace his genealogy
back to that first M.A. in man, Adam. It's that one person. And that's the Lord Jesus Christ,
whose Father is God. That's the reason when this angel
came to Mary and said, you'll have a son. She said, that can't
be. A woman can't have a child who
doesn't know a man. It's man who begets. It's man
who sires a child. It's man who plants the seed.
A woman can't do it. That's what she said. How can
that be? I don't know a man. I've never known a man. And the
angel said, that holy thing, that holy thing, not that man,
that holy thing, which shall be born of thee shall be called
the Son of God." Now you go to that fool preacher you've been
listening to who says it's not important that Christ be virgin
born and tell him that's what he is. He's ignorant. He's ignorant of the fall of
man, he's ignorant of the purpose of God, he's ignorant of the
covenant of grace, and he's ignorant of the character of Christ. And
he's totally ignorant of what sin is. If Jesus Christ was not
virgin born, he is a sinner. He is a son of Adam. He is under
the original covenant that was broken, and he's under the sentence
of death, and he's in hell right now if he's not born of woman. If he's not that seed of woman,
he's an imposter. If he's not that seed of woman
born without a human father, he's an imposter. He's a counterfeiter. And he's in hell because he's
a liar. That's how important the virgin
birth is. And any preacher, be he a professor, a theologian,
an intellectual, a liberal, a conservative, or whatever he is, he reveals
his total ignorance of God's eternal purpose, who does not
know the importance of the Virgin I'll put enmity between you and
the woman, between your seed and her seed, her seed. Behold,
the Lord himself will give you a sign, a virgin shall conceive,
a virgin shall bring forth a son, and his name shall be called
Immanuel." Not Adam's son, God's with us. God is with us. Every person born into this world
is a son of Adam, and in Adam they die, but Christ never was
in Adam. He himself is the second Adam.
Turn to 1 Corinthians 15. All right, come on, let's look
at the Bible. Let's buy us a Bible. What do you say? I'm so sick
and tired of people following these old clichÃ©s and traditions
and old customs and doing what Mama and Daddy said, people who
never opened a Bible in the past. I want somebody to get them a
Bible and open it and find out what God says. Look at 1 Corinthians
15, verse 47. The first man, verse 45, so it
is written, the first Adam, Man, M-A-N, that's what Adam
means, man, was made a living soul. The last Adam. Our Lord said, O God, a body
thou hast prepared me. That body was not prepared by
the seed of man. It didn't come from man, it came
from God. The last man. The first man was
made a living soul. The second man, a quickening
spirit. Read on. Albeit that was not
first, which is spiritual, he didn't come first on this earth,
but that which is natural, afterwards came the second Adam, 4,000 years
later. The first man is of the earth,
earthly, made out of the dust. The second man, who is that second
man? Well, he's a good man, not even
more than that. Well, he's a great preacher.
He's more than that. Well, he's a great healer. He's
more than that. Well, he's the best man that
ever lived. He's more than that. He's the Lord from heaven. He
wasn't involved in that fall. He wasn't involved in that confrontation
with God. He wasn't involved in that at
all. That's man's business. That first covenant was made
between God and that man, that first man, that man from, that
natural man, that man of the earth, that man God made out
of the dust, that covenant was made with him and his followers
and his people. And he fell and destroyed everyone
up! And this second covenant was
made with that second Adam. In the Council Halls of Eternity,
he was made. Turn to Hebrews 7.22. In the
Council Halls of Eternity, it says in Hebrews 7.22, he was
made. By the decision of the Heavenly
Father, he was made. Hebrews 7.22, by so much was
Jesus made a surety, a guarantor of a better covenant. of a better
covenant. That first covenant was made
with Adam, the first Adam. That second covenant was made
with Christ, the second Adam. You see that? That first covenant
was a covenant of works. Adam, do and live. Adam, fail and die. Do you know that's what most
preachers are preaching right now? That's exactly the message. No
wonder, no wonder the sons of Adam are so frustrated. No wonder
we're so confused. Oh, of course the preacher has
brought the standard of righteousness down a little. Oh, of course
the preacher has brought the standard of holiness down a little.
He's got it connected now with the flesh. Don't get drunk, and don't lie,
and don't curse, and don't go to show, and don't do that. He
got her down a little bit. But it's all the same thing.
That's what's being preached. Do good, and God will take you to
heaven. Do bad, and God will send you to hell. The preachers today
have put us right back down to 6,000 years ago under that old
covenant of works that Adam couldn't keep. Now watch it. That Adam
couldn't keep, though he were perfect. Think about it now. Are you going to hand me a covenant
of works in the shape I'm in? God Almighty handed Adam a covenant
of works in a perfect state and he couldn't keep it. Almighty
God handed Adam a do and a don't in a state surrounded by perfection,
was naked and didn't even know it, had no guilt, no shame, No
frustrations. Had a mind as sharp as any mind
that's ever been created. Had a perfect body and a perfect
mind and a perfect heart and perfect surroundings. Not a trowel,
not a tear, not a pain, not a care. Never seen bloodshed, never seen
death. He couldn't keep it. And now
you're going to hand me one and say, by now, huh? And tell me
to keep it and go to heaven? You're a fool. And I'd be one
to believe you. And I'd be one to believe you. That first covenant was a covenant
of pure works. And the second covenant, now
watch it, I don't want to scare you, make you rejoice in it,
was a covenant of pure grace. Oh, the Heavenly Father gave
somebody something to do, but it wasn't me. It was my Lord. Oh yeah, the Heavenly Father
handed somebody a perfect law. and told him to keep it in every
jot and tittle. But it wasn't me, it was my Lord. Turn to Romans 5, let me show
you that. Romans chapter 5. It wasn't me. I'll tell you this,
even in my new state, in my new birth, I can't do what I want
to do. Paul said, when I would do good,
evil is present with me. The things I would, I do them
not. The things I would not do, I do, O wretched man that I am."
You can't hand the newborn child of God a covenant of works and
expect him to obey it, much less an unbeliever. It's wretched. It's miserable. It's unfair. It's ungodly to hand an unbeliever
a covenant of law and tell him to obey it and go to heaven.
That's not right. In Romans 5 verse 19, by one
man's disobedience, the many were made sinners. So by the
obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Oh yeah, God
made a covenant with that second Adam. And in that second Adam,
you and I stood by his grace. Not by the first birth, but by
the second birth. And God gave that second Adam this holy law,
made him a man, put him, yeah, turn to Galatians, let me show
you that. In Galatians chapter 3, in Galatians, that's right,
he made him under the law, that's the reason Christ became a man,
see, so he could redeem men. It is necessary that to redeem
his people, he had to become one of them, numbered with the
transgressors. In Galatians 4 verse 4, But when the fullness of time
was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under
the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might
receive the adoption of sons. Because he obeyed, I obeyed. You see, I was in that first
Adam when he disobeyed, and his sin was imputed to me, and his
nature was imparted to me by my natural birth, natural generation. God put me by grace in that second
Adam, and his obedience was imputed to me, and his nature imparted
to me in a new birth and spiritual regeneration. You see that? It
has you too covered. When Adam was dying, Christ was
made alive. Preacher, I wasn't even here
when Adam fell! How could I be involved? I wish you hadn't said that,
because it reveals your ignorance of God's Word. You weren't here
when Christ died, either. How could you be involved, huh?
How could you be involved? I wasn't even born when Adam
sinned." You weren't born when Christ died, either. If you cannot
take unrighteousness by imputation, you can't take righteousness
by imputation. If you cannot receive disobedience
by one man's sin, you cannot receive obedience by one man's
sin. If you can't enter into death
by sin, you cannot by one man's fall, you cannot enter into life
by another man. Representation. In Adam, all
who were in Adam died. In Christ, all who were in Christ
live. When he lives, we live. When
he died, we died. When he arose, we arose. When
he ascended and seated at God's right hand, that's where we are.
Turn to Ephesians 2. When you say something, find
the Scripture for it. If you can't find the Scripture
for it, don't say it. Ephesians 2, and here it talks
about us, verse 2. Ephesians 2, let's start with
verse 1. And you, and you, hath he quickened, or made alive,
who were dead in trespasses and sins? In times past you walked
according to the course of this world, according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the
children of disobedience, among whom also we all had our conversation
in times past in the lust of thy flesh. fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, we were by nature, by nature,
from Adam, the children of wrath, even as others. But God, not
but I made a decision, but I changed my mind, but I was better than
you, but I'm smarter than you, but I'm more righteous than you,
but I'm, no sir, but God, who is rich in or his great love
wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sin, hath quickened
us together with Christ. He put us in Christ, and he raised
us in Christ by grace, so you say. And he hath raised us up
together, us in who? Us in Christ. And made us sit
together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages
to come He might show the exceeding riches of his kindness toward
us, the exceeding riches of his grace and his kindness toward
us in Christ Jesus. That's where it all is. It's
not in you, it's in Christ Jesus. And someday, when this new covenant
is complete, when all his people are brought in by his grace and
mercy through the preaching of the gospel, through faith, God's
going to close the book. He's going to do away with everything
that worketh or maketh a lie. He's going to do away with all
influence of evil. He's going to do away with all
tempters and temptations. He's going to cast them into
the bottomless pit, and there's going to be a new heaven and
a new earth. Now, this first covenant was made with Adam,
the second one with Christ. The first covenant was broken,
and all who were under it and in it died. The second covenant
was ratified. It was complete. It was kept.
Christ obeyed. He cried from the cross, it's
finished! All I came to do, all I set forth to perform, all of
God's will is accomplished, it's finished! That first covenant failed, that
second one shall never fail. Turn to 2 Samuel, listen to David. And I'll tell you this, my friends,
if you want to find your comfort and your good deeds, I feel sorry
for you. because they're full of holes
covered with sin. Isaiah said, even your righteousness
is a filthy rag in God's sight. You want to find comfort in your
feelings and comfort in your obedience and comfort in your
church membership and all these other things. I feel for you.
Turn to 2 Samuel 23. Old David knew better than to
try to find any comfort in those things. He found comfort in what?
God's covenant. God's covenant. Listen, 2 Samuel
23, verse 1, this is precious. Now, these be the last words
of David. I've always been interested in
people's last words. I've got the last sermon Brother
Barnard preached. I loved him, appreciated him.
I like to listen to that last thing he said. He didn't know
he was going to die. David did. But David said, David the son
of Jesse, The man who was raised up on high, the anointed of God.
Boy, we can't claim those things, can we, huh? The anointed of
the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel. He said, The Spirit
of the Lord spake by me. His word was in my tongue. The
God of Israel said, The rock of Israel spake to me. He that
ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord.
And he shall be as the light of the morning when the sun rises,
even a morning without clouds, as a tender grass springing out
of the earth, by clear shining after rain, although my house
be not so with God, yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant."
What he's saying is this, he's included me in his everlasting
covenant. I'm a part of his everlasting
covenant. I'm a son in the everlasting
covenant. And watch it, this covenant is
ordered in all things. Christ has fulfilled it, Christ
has obeyed it, Christ went to the cross and died under the
wrath of God and paid our sin debt, paid, restored our souls,
it's ordered in all things. Watch it, and it's sure. It's
sure. Now listen to it, and this is
all my salvation. And this is all my desire. Although,
now listen, he makes it not to grow. It doesn't look like it
here. Here I am withered and old and gray and failing and
my friends and my family's all gone. I'm alone. I'm lying here
on a bed trying to gasp for breath and trying to get just one more
breath out of my head. It doesn't look like that I belong to God. For all indications, You can't
see any glory in this mass of flesh. From all indications,
there's no glory there. But it's there. It's there, David
said. And it's sure. With David's Lord
and ours, a covenant once was made, whose bonds are firm and
sure, whose glories cannot fade, signed by the holy three in one
in mutual love before time begun. Firm as the lasting hills, this
covenant shall endure, whose certain shalls and wills make
every blessing pure. When ruin shakes all nature's
frames, its purposes remain the same. Here, when my feet shall
fall, I know that I shall see grace to restore my soul and
pardon in Christ, full and free. With delight I shall behold this
wandering sheep return to the foe. And when through Jordan's
flood my God shall bid me go, his arms shall me defend, and
he'll conquer every foe. And in this covenant I shall
be sufficient grace to see me through." Our Father, we are grateful for
every promise of the book. We don't understand all that
we want to understand. with these finite minds, with
limited understanding and mental powers, oh, how we want to enter
into the treasures of thy purposes and thy counsel. Not just see
thy judgments, but thy ways and thy way home. How hungry we are
how hungry we are to enter into the secret chambers of the living
God and to understand his mercies and his grace and his kindness
toward us in Christ Jesus. Now we know in part and we prophesy
in part, but then we shall know that we have been known. But
Lord, you've given us some understanding, and we're grateful. You've given
us some discernment, and we praise Thee. Lord, increase it. Increase
it. Give me wisdom that I might preach
to these whom I love, and I believe these whom you love. Let me feed
Thy sheep, and give Thy sheep an appetite and hunger and thirst
for the things of the Lord. Wean us from the from the wild
thorns of this world, and give us an appetite, a hunger and
thirst for righteousness. Make us hungry to hear the word,
and to feast on the things of our God, and to know him whom
to know is life eternal. O Lord, there are so many voices
that cry from the vanities of this world. Give us a deaf ear
to those voices, and an ear open to hear thee speak through thy
word. I have to behold the beauty of Christ. These things that
are important, may we set our affections on things above, not
on things of this earth. For Christ's sake we pray, Amen.

The Everlasting Covenant

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

The Everlasting Covenant

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Henry Mahan

Books by Henry Mahan

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book