The Failure of Man and the Victory of Christ in the Covenants
There are two things that are true about every Old Testament covenant; man failed miserably to live up to the conditions of the covenant, and Christ came along later and succeeded where men and women failed. The following is a simple overview of Christ in the covenants.
The Adamic Covenant
This is also referred to as the covenant of works. Although the word “covenant” isn’t used in reference to God’s interactions with Adam, it is clearly implied. Prior to the fall of Adam in Genesis chapter 3, God gave Adam some commands and conditions, both positive and negative. The single negative command was that Adam not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:26-17). The condition upon disobedience of this command was death. However, God also gave Adam some positive commands. Adam was to be God’s vice regent and have dominion “over all the earth” (Genesis 1:26). This included dominion over the fish, birds, cattle and all other animals. He was also commanded to “be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). God also placed Adam in the Garden of Eden to “dress and keep it.” Even though the Bible isn’t specific about the conditions upon Adam’s obedience, it doesn’t take alot of assumption to believe that there would have been some type of reward (possibly eternal life without the possibility of sin). It doesn’t seem consistent or feasible to think that there was such a harsh condition for disobedience and no reward for obedience. The truth is that we may never know because Adam disobeyed God.
What we do know is that when Adam disobeyed God and failed to fulfill the conditions that God set before him, the whole world was plunged into sin and death. Paradise was lost. Adam managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and fail God in a nearly perfect situation. However, Christ came to the earth as the second and last Adam to redeem what the first Adam lost. I Corinthians 15:21-22 says, “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”... “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.” (I Corinthians 15:45-47). Adam acted as our federal representative in the garden of Eden. When he sinned, we sinned. When he died, we died. The human race both sinned and died in Adam (See Romans 5:12). However, Christ acting as the federal head of all of those who would ever come to Him by grace through faith brings them eternal life through His death and resurrection.
Think about the contrast between the temptation of Adam and the temptation of Christ in the wilderness after He had fasted for forty days and forty nights (Genesis 3, Matthew 4, Luke 4). Adam disobeyed God in a perfect paradise. Christ obeyed God in a barren wilderness. Adam ate when he had plenty. Christ rejected food when he was starving and weak. Adam obeyed the word of the serpent over the Word of God. Christ obeyed the Word of God over the word of the serpent. Adam submitted to the sin of his bride. Christ died for the sin of His bride. Adam brought death through disobedience. Christ brought eternal life through His obedience unto death. Time simply will not permit me to go into greater detail on this incredible subject. Suffice it to say that where man miserably failed, Christ perfectly succeeded.
Even in the same chapter as the fall of Adam, we see the very first promise of this coming Messiah who would redeem sinful humanity. Genesis 3:15 is called the protevangelium, meaning “the first good news” or first gospel. God said to the serpent, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” There are several key elements in this prophecy. First, “the seed of the woman” is a promise that a coming redeemer would enter into the world through the human race. Some theologians also speculate that it could also be a prophecy about the virgin birth since biologically, it’s the man that has the seed and not the woman. The second element that needs to be mentioned is that this seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent by the bruising of His heel. This is a clear reference to the cross. Christ was bruised on the cross but by this same bruising He crushed the head of the serpent. I hope that by now that the reader has seen that even though this covenant was given to Adam, it was ultimately about Christ, the last Adam.
The Noahic Covenant
The Noahic Covenant can be found in Genesis 8:20-9:17. This is an example of an unconditional covenant of promise because the Lord makes promises without any condition on the part of man. The Noahic Covenant has both universal and specific aspects to it. Sometimes this covenant is referred to as the covenant of common grace because it makes universal promises to “every living thing” (Genesis 8:21). God promised that He would never again destroy the world with a flood and that as long as the earth remained, “seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease” (Genesis 8:22). We also find the first institution of human law in this covenant with specific laws against murder (Genesis 9:5-6).
This covenant gets more specific with the promises that God makes to Noah and his descendants. Genesis 9:9 says, “And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you.” This is the second instance of the “seed” that we have seen. This connects the Noahic covenant back to the seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15 and also looks forward to the coming Messiah. This is clarified in Genesis 9:27 when it says, “God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.” This is Noah’s prophecy concerning his three sons. Noah stated that God would dwell in the tents of Shem. We know that Shem was the progenitor of the race of people that would eventually spawn the Jews. So now the prophecy of the “seed” has gotten even more specific. It has gone from the seed of the woman (the human race) to the seed of Shem (a specific race). It also gives a clue that somehow God Himself would be born through the line of Shem.
God has kept the promises of the Noahic covenant in three main ways. First, despite the wickedness all across the face of the earth, the Lord has kept His promise and not destroyed it. Second, despite whatever may be going on across the globe, the 24 hour day and the four seasons have continued right on schedule. Third, the Lord did send the Messiah, Jesus Christ, through the line of Shem. We know this because the genealogy of Christ in Luke’s gospel tells us that Christ is a direct descendant of Shem (Luke 3:36). However, perhaps that greatest truth concerning Christ and the Noahic covenant is that in the Old Testament God judged the sins of the world in a flood. In the New Testament God judged the sins of the world in His Son, Jesus Christ. As God commanded Noah to run to the ark, so He commands men and women everywhere to run to the cross. Here we see that God both made and fulfilled all of the conditions of the covenant in Jesus Christ. The covenant might have been given to Noah but ultimately it was about Christ.
The Mosaic Covenant
Also known as the covenant of law, the Mosaic Covenant is a conditional covenant that promises blessing for obedience and punishment for disobedience. As I mentioned earlier in this chapter, the Israelites promised to keep all of God’s commandments, but immediately broke them in one of the most profane ways imaginable. This has always been the problem. There is nothing wrong with God’s holy law, the problem is with sinful people who could never live up to God’s standard. There are people who make the mistake of thinking that God would never command us to do something if He didn’t think that we were capable of doing it. However, this is an incorrect assumption. The giving of the law isn’t a reflection of what God thinks about our abilities, it’s a reflection of God’s holy character. God commands us not to steal because He isn’t a thief. He commands us not to lie because He’s not a liar, and is actually incapable of doing so (Titus 1:2). We could go on down the list. Unlike us, God is perfectly, sinlessly holy and righteous.
There are 613 laws given in the Old Testament. There are moral laws (laws of do’s and don'ts), civil law, ceremonial law, etc. Most people couldn’t even memorize all of these laws, much less perfectly perform them. This is why it’s inconceivable that man would be so arrogant and self righteous so as to look at the law and think “oh I can do that.” The law was supposed to be seen as an Everest that couldn’t be climbed. The law is meant to show us our need for a Savior greater than ourselves. This is why in Galatians 3:24 the Apostle Paul calls the law a “schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ.” He also stated in Romans 3:20 that, “by the deeds of the law there shall be no flesh justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”
Think about this in terms of the 10 commandments, which is God’s minimum standard of human behavior. Has the reader ever told a lie? That makes you a liar. Has the reader ever looked upon someone with lust in their heart? That makes you an adulterer (see Matthew 5:28). Has the reader ever stolen anything? That makes you a thief. Has the reader ever used God’s name in vain? That makes you a blasphemer. Has the reader ever placed anything above God in their life? This makes you an idolator. If God were to judge us by the 10 commandments alone, we would all be condemned. God is very clear about His diagnoses of mankind and it’s not good. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10-12). This is why we need a Savior.
Moses wasn’t even allowed to enter the promised land with the people of Israel because he had disobeyed God as well. Instead of speaking to the rock in order to obtain water as God commanded, he struck the rock instead. This is why it’s so special that one of the greatest themes in the Gospel of John is Jesus as a new and greater deliverer than Moses. We find this first in John’s prologue, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:17). This is also seen in the feast cycle of Jesus’ ministry. Think about the feeding of the 5,000. Jesus was in the wilderness feeding thousands of hungry Jews with supernatural manna, during Passover. The allusion to Moses and the children of Israel being fed with supernatural manna in the wilderness is glaring. This is when Jesus took the opportunity to say, “Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world… I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (John 6:32-33, 35). Jesus says in no uncertain terms that Moses may have given bread to the people, but He gave Himself as the bread that would be broken for the sins of the world.
So much more could be said about this contrast between Moses and Jesus. However, the bottom line is that Moses was unworthy to lead the people of Israel into the promised land. Both he and the people of Israel had failed God miserably at every turn, which is why they wandered for over 40 years in the wilderness. Christ on the other hand came to this earth, lived a perfectly sinless life, fulfilling the just demands of God’s law, died on the cross for sin, rose from the dead three days later and ascended to Heaven in power and glory 40 days after that. Mission accomplished. None of us could ever keep the covenant of law, but Christ kept it on our behalf (Matthew 5:17). Christ not only died for us, He lived for us as well. He lived the perfect life that we could never live. Christ is the greater Moses and He is enough!
The Abrahamic Covenant
The Abrahamic covenant is very important to this discussion because it is a covenant of promise that foreshadows, and in some ways even initiates the covenant of grace. The Abrahamic covenant can be found in Genesis 12, 15, 17 and 22, becoming more specific with each chapter. Genesis 15:4-6 says, “And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” There is a lot to unpack in these three verses. First, the “heir” of Abraham has a dual meaning. The near fulfillment came through his son, Isaac, whom the LORD miraculously gave to him and Sarah at a very old age. However, the ultimate fulfillment would come through Lord Jesus Christ.
This brings us to the second thing that must be gleaned from this text. When God promised Abraham that through this heir would come a seed as numberless as the stars, there is also a dual meaning here. Through Isaac would come the nation of Israel. However, the ultimate fulfillment would come through Christ. The main focus of this promise is found in all of those who come to Christ in saving faith. The Apostle Paul left no doubt about this when he wrote Galatians chapter 3; “Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham…And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galtians 3:7-9, 29). Those who come to Jesus Christ in saving faith are the spiritual seed of Abraham, and therefore in this covenant of promise.
Something else that needs to be pointed out here is that in both Genesis 15 and Galatians 3 (see also Romans 4) it says that “Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Paul even said in Galatians 3 that God Himself preached the gospel unto Abraham, and that’s what he believed in. This brings up a very important point that must be mentioned before moving on. Salvation has always been by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Old Testament saints were saved by faith in the coming messiah. New Testament saints are saved by faith in the messiah that has already come. Salvation has never been by good works, temple sacrifices, man-made covenants, an earthly priesthood, etc. Nor could it ever be. Salvation has always come by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
Later in Genesis chapter 15, Abraham asks the LORD, “whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?” (15:8). This brings us to the official sealing of this covenant through a blood sacrifice. Dr. Michael Horton has written extensively on the sealing of the Abrahamic covenant and for this next section I am relying heavily on his work. The LORD answered Abraham’s question by instructing him to take various animals and sever them in half, leaving a walkway through the severed pieces. Abraham did so without asking any questions or acting like the Lord’s instructions were strange or out of place. This is most likely because in that day this was a common practice among kings of the Ancient Near East. They called it “cutting a covenant.” With a conditional covenant, two kings had to come to an agreement as to the terms and conditions of the covenant. For example, a suzerain (greater king) might want more taxes from the vassal (lesser king) in exchange for military protection at the vassal’s request. Once the terms were agreed upon, they would sever several animals and leave a walkway through the severed pieces. The two kings would then lock arms and walk between the severed pieces. What they were essentially saying in this sacred ceremony was, “if I don’t fulfill my end of the covenant, let me become as these severed animals.” It was a very serious thing.
On the other hand, with unconditional covenants of promise, one king (usually the suzerain) would promise to fulfill all of the necessary conditions of the covenant by himself. In this case the king would walk through the severed pieces by himself. Knowing this information really makes the end of Genesis chapter 15 come to life. “And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.” (Genesis 15:17). The LORD shows up in the appearance of a smoking furnace and a burning lamp and walks through the severed pieces by Himself! He did not say, “come on Abraham, walk through these pieces with me.” Here in this chapter, we find God making promises of a great savior and a great salvation, and He made the commitment to fulfill all of the necessary conditions.
In Genesis 22 the picture of this covenant comes even more into view. The LORD commanded Abraham to take his son, Isaac, to the top of Mt. Moriah and sacrifice him on an altar of wood. However, the LORD would intervene and provide a ram for the sacrifice instead. The allegory of Christ as pictured by Isaac is glaring. For starters, Mt. Moriah is where the Jewish Temple would be built (think of all of the animal sacrifices also picturing Christ). Mt. Moriah is also in the same vicinity in which Christ would be crucified. The Abrahamic covenant (picturing the covenant of grace) is God’s promise of salvation to all of those who come to Christ in faith, guaranteed by the death and resurrection of Christ Himself! God spared Abraham’s son, but He would not spare His own. “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, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (Hebrews 13:21)
Closing Thoughts
Time will simply not allow me to expound upon Christ in all of the covenants. However, in this brief chapter we have seen a few things very clearly. First, the LDS church places the burden of salvation upon the individual by mandating the keeping of their covenant promises to God. This is very problematic because as we have seen, mankind has never been able to keep their covenants with God. Adam failed, Moses failed, the Israelites failed, etc. Knowing this information, why would anyone want to try and shoulder the responsibility of their salvation, contingent upon keeping their promises to God? What a pressure cooker. Listen to the words of Elder Richard Maynes from the Fall General Conference of 2004;
“Brothers and sisters, we are all looking forward to the day when we can return home to our Heavenly Father. In order to qualify for exaltation in the celestial kingdom, we must gain the trust of the Lord here on earth. We gain the trust of the Lord through earning it, and that is accomplished through our actual performance in living His gospel and keeping our covenants. In other words, we earn the trust of the Lord by doing His will.”
The Biblical gospel of grace isn’t about the Lord trusting us, it’s about us trusting in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ! Salvation isn’t something that we can earn, it was earned by Christ on our behalf if we would just trust Him! He is the greater Adam, the greater Moses, the greater David and the fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham! After seeing man’s failure and Christ’s success in the covenants, how could anyone reduce the covenants to broken promises that we make to God? “But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. (Hebrews 8:6)
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