LN 3: "Bound For Blessing" (10.07.07)

[To listen to the message, click here.]

SUMMARY
The LORD sent Moses and the Israelites on a mission to enter the Promised Land, to be His people and to be a light for the nations. Moses knew that this mission would be impossible if the LORD was not with them. And so, he prayed to the LORD, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

As the Church of Jesus Christ. We have a mission to bring glory to God by reflecting His character. Our mission is to love God and each other and to show that love to the world so as to be light for the nations that God’s salvation may reach the ends of the earth. Without God’s presence, that is an impossible mission. Our mission can be overwhelming, but being a covenant community helps us.

In its simplest form, a covenant is a mutually binding relationship. Covenant is how God has chosen to relate to His people. God relates personally and faithfully in the binding relationship of a covenant.

Three of the most important covenants are the those with Abraham, with Israel and the New Covenant Jeremiah (31:31-34) spoke of. In all three of these, the original promise given to Abraham (of land, descendants and being a blessing to the nations) unfolds. However, it is only in the New Covenant that the promise is fully realized. And that is because the New Covenant is fulfilled in Christ. At the Last Supper Jesus declared, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."

And so, as we are in Christ, we find ourselves in covenant with God just as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all Israel were. We are a part of the new covenant. We are in a binding relationship with God, with one another and with a responsibility to the world. As a covenant community, we are bound for blessing – bound to God, bound to each other and bound to be the light of the world. We are bound for blessing – to receive God’s blessing and to be God’s blessing to others.



POINTS TO REMEMBER
Our mission can be overwhelming, but being a covenant community helps us. It means that as we fulfill this mission from God in the world, we have five things to support us.

* We have the Promise. The promise to Abraham is still good. As His covenant people, God promises to bless us and to make us a blessing to the nations. He has chosen us and called us to receive His blessing of grace and to then be a blessing to others.

* We have the Precedent. The Church has roots. It is not some new-fangled idea or movement. The Church was founded by God from the very beginning. We are part of God’s plan and purpose for creation and salvation. We are part of God’s faithful covenant people throughout history.

* We have other People. We are not only connected to the saints of the past, but also to the saints of the present. In salvation, God has made a people for Himself. We are called out to be gathered in so that together we can be sent forth. God has given us companions for the journey of following Christ – He has given us the gift of each other. Though Jean-Paul Sartre (in his play “No Exit”) says that, “Hell is other people,” and though sometimes we may feel he is right, our brothers and sisters in Christ are blessing we need to appreciate.

* We have the Power. Scripture explains that God’s writing His law on our minds and hearts is actually the work of the Holy Spirit in us. As people of the New Covenant, we have been given the Holy Spirit. And the Spirit gives us power to be missionaries of God.

* We have God’s Presence. Through the covenant, God has always guaranteed His presence. God is with us. And that is good news, for without God’s presence, we can do nothing; we can accomplish nothing. God’s presence is the greatest promise. Jesus comforts us with this promise in the Great Commission: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

We are bound for blessing – to receive God’s blessing and to be God’s blessing to others.
We have been given the promise, the precedent, the people, the power and the presence for mission. So let’s go.

SCRIPTURE TO CONSIDER
(linked to biblegateway)

Moses' prayer for God's Presence - Exodus 33:1-17

Covenant with Abraham focusing on the land - Genesis 15
Covenant with Abraham focusing on descendants - Genesis 17:1-14

Covenant with Israel at Mt. Sinai - Exodus 19-20:21

The New Covenant - Jeremiah 31:31-34

Compare Luke 22:20 with Exodus 24:7-8

Jesus is the Mediator of the New Covenent - Hebrews 8-10

The Great Commission - Matthew 28:16-20