What? ?? Wha? -- Sorry, need a bit more coffee.. barely here.
<sip, sip, sip>
Ok, so, I was reading Joshua 23-24, and something just jumped off the page. I am not sure what to do with it yet, but there it was.
14 “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. 15 But just as all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the LORD will bring upon you all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the LORD your God has given you, 16 if you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land that he has given to you.”
Um, the first part, the bit that I underlined, got me thinking. I have been taught that the Abrahamic covenant was yet to be fulfilled, and the Israel had not never fully inhabited the land. I was also taught to think of the covenant as unconditional and eternal. While I see the purposes for such teaching, I am starting to now wonder how much REAL study of the pertinent scripture, I actually did.
But doesn't this text point to a fulfillment of the promises God made in his covenant? Had not Joshua clearly sealed the deal? Does this mean that God is released from any further obligation in the covenant?
Well, feel free to post your thoughts. The maintenance fellas just installed a whiteboard in my humble office, and now I am left to ponder, what should be the maiden voyage of thought to be splayed upon its surface.
<sip>
JB
end of life tag? haha. I'm sorry I didn't see this earlier. Though, i probably would not have had much to say in that regard. Allow me to go get my own cup of coffee while i distract myself from studying to talk about this.
ReplyDelete;)
At least from what I've read, it seems to me that God HAS fulfilled everything to Israel. He promised them children as numerous as the stars (a nation), a place to settle (the Promised Land)and that Israel would be sojourners of a land that is not theirs, and God will bring judgement on that nation and Israel will come out with great possessions (Israel plundered Egypt, etc.) That's the first part and I think that is what Joshua meant by God's fulfillment of His promises.
Then God instates the covenant of circumcision and it's there He uses the word everlasting establishing the everlasting covenant: "to be God to you and to your offspring after you." And then He will give to Abraham's offspring the land of sojournings for an everlasting possession and will be their God.
So, possibly, there are two Abrahamic covenants? I mean, there ARE two separate accounts and God establishes slightly different things. If we take what Paul says in Romans to consideration, "not all Israel is descended from Israel." than we have the fact that God is being the God to His chosen few, even to us gentiles grafted in, and (now getting too allegorical possibly) we will inherit the land everlasting?
nah, forget that last part, i have no idea.
But either way, christians are the descendants of Abraham by being children of promise.(Romans 9) God will be our God, idk what land we will inherit if that is part of the everlasting thing. Either new Earth inheritance, or literal middle east inheritance?? (not that it looks entirely appealing anymore....where'd the milk and honey go?)
I think God made physical promises, and then spiritual promises. He already fulfilled all physical promises to Israel as it seems, and he is now fulfilling or in process of fulfilling the spiritual promises to true Israel: being anyone who accepts Jesus as Savior and Lord.
But that's just me and my one cup of coffee. More to come? :)