Lesson 2 Outline – Israel’s Covenant Failure

Brett Cushing – Teacher

Israel’s Covenant Failure – Outline

  1. Introduction and relevance
    1. Week two of “The Second Exodus” study
    2. Connection between ancient people and modern believers
      1. ancient people are “like our peeps” – our ancestors
      2. their situations mirror our own experiences
      3. times of crisis, confusion, and self-inflicted captivity
  2. Main thesis: God’s covenants comfort us in times of crisis
    1. Central theme: God’s covenants provide comfort during crisis
    2. Three key points covenants reveal
      1. God desires to dwell with us
      2. we desire not to dwell with God
      3. God still desires to give us grace
  3. Understanding covenants
    1. Definition: a binding promise between two people
    2. Historical context: often between king and subjects
    3. Two types of covenants
      1. conditional promises (require mutual agreement and fulfillment)
      2. unconditional promises (unilateral, God doing it for us)
    4. Purpose: disclose God’s overall salvation plan for the entire world
  4. Major biblical covenants demonstrating God’s desire to dwell with us
    1. Noahic covenant (Genesis 9:11)
      1. unconditional covenant
      2. God’s promise never to flood the world again
      3. comfort: God’s redemptive purpose for entire world
      4. shows God doesn’t desire to destroy but to dwell with us
    2. Abrahamic covenant (Genesis 12, ratified in Genesis 15)
      1. two promises to Abraham
        1. make him into a great nation
        2. all peoples blessed through his seed
      2. unique ratification ceremony
        1. Abraham cut animals in half
        2. only God walked through (Abraham was in deep sleep)
        3. God took penalty upon Himself for covenant failure
      3. modern relevance
        1. we are under same covenant (those with faith in Christ are Abraham’s children)
        2. foreshadows new covenant in Jesus Christ
    3. Mosaic covenant (Exodus 19-24)
      1. established 430 years after Abrahamic covenant
      2. God’s promises to Israel
        1. special nation with special role
        2. kingdom of priests (intercessors)
        3. God’s treasured possession if they obey
      3. people’s response: “We got this! We’re all in!”
      4. comfort for us: Jesus fulfilled the Mosaic law
        1. didn’t come to abolish but fulfill
        2. we get credit for everything Jesus did perfectly
        3. we become His righteousness
    4. Davidic covenant (2 Samuel 7:12-17)
      1. given after repeated disobedience by God’s people
      2. God’s promise of David’s descendant (Jesus Christ)
      3. God would build house for His name
      4. kingdom will endure forever
      5. fulfillment in Jesus
        1. angel’s announcement to Mary
        2. Jesus’ favorite teaching theme: kingdom of God
        3. gives us God’s presence, peace, and purpose
    5. New covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
      1. prophesied during captivity and exile
      2. God’s promises
        1. put law within them, write on hearts
        2. “I will be their God, they shall be my people”
        3. all will know the Lord
        4. forgive iniquity, remember sins no more
      3. addresses essential problem: wrong desires
      4. fulfillment through Jesus and Holy Spirit
        1. Spirit guides, counsels, convicts
        2. sanctifies and makes us more like Jesus
        3. three aspects: justification (God’s present), sanctification (God’s process), glorification (God’s promise)
  5. We don’t desire to dwell with God
    1. Illustration: Indonesian airliner pilots
      1. pilots didn’t trust instrument panel
      2. desired to trust themselves only
      3. landed at wrong location (military base)
      4. parallel: God’s people in exile asking “How did we get here?”
    2. Root of the problem: wrong desires leading to disobedience
      1. disobedience lurks behind loud declarations
      2. problem began with Mosaic covenant
        1. initiated by God’s grace
        2. people declared “We will do everything!”
        3. immediate disobedience followed
    3. Pattern of wrong desires throughout Scripture
      1. Adam and Eve: tree of knowledge vs. tree of life
      2. Eve desired the apple (looked good and pleasing)
      3. Cain: God warned “sin’s desire is for you”
      4. David’s desire for Bathsheba
      5. Israel’s desire for control
    4. Jesus’ teaching on desire vs. behavior
      1. sermon on the mount
      2. murder begins with anger
      3. adultery begins with lust
      4. disobedience is fundamentally about desire
  6. Israel’s progressive rejection of God
    1. Initial enthusiasm but quick failure
      1. started strong in Exodus 19
      2. immediately made golden calf (God they could control)
    2. Downward spiral through Old Testament
      1. book of Joshua: started great, ended failing
      2. early Judges: God as less desirable option
      3. later Judges: God became obsolete
      4. end of Judges: God seen as enemy, everyone did what was right in own eyes
    3. Desire for worldly ways
      1. craved created things rather than creator
      2. rejected Samuel’s sons
      3. demanded a king like other nations
      4. replaced God with created things
      5. connection to Romans: worshiped created rather than creator
  7. Personal application: our similar struggles
    1. Our desires fuel our disobedience
    2. Rooted in wrongful dependence
      1. “I will determine what’s right and wrong for me”
      2. tendency to decide first, then ask God to bless it
    3. God sees wrongful dependence as obstinance
    4. Disobedience results in experiencing God’s absence
  8. God’s response: grace despite obstinance
    1. Isaiah 30 example
      1. context: Israel surrounded by enemies
      2. their desire: alliance with Egypt for strength and autonomy
      3. God’s invitation: salvation through quietness, waiting, repentance, rest
      4. opposite of “Nike slogan” – don’t just do something, wait on God
    2. God’s heart revealed
      1. God craves to give grace
      2. “I am waiting, I am yearning, I can’t wait to give you grace”
      3. God’s obstinate children don’t stop His grace
      4. God is not mad at us – He loves us through Jesus Christ
  9. Conclusion: God’s covenants provide comfort
    1. All covenants based on God’s grace
    2. God does all the work in all covenants
    3. Even Mosaic covenant included sacrifices (God knew they would fail)
    4. Our part: simply depend upon and trust in God
  10. Final application questions
    1. What keeps me from having comfort in crisis and confusion?
    2. What do I need to do?
    3. What will my life look like when I turn back to God?
    4. How can I embrace that His grace is available and He’s craving to give it?