Lesson 2, April 3-9
Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: Genesis 9:15; Isaiah 54:9; Genesis 12:1-3, Galatians 3:6-9, 29; Exodus 6:1-8; Jeremiah 31:33-34.
Memory Text: “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine.” Exodus 19:5
Last week left off with the fall of humanity, due to our first parents’ sin. This week is a quick summary of the whole quarter, as we take one day each to look at the early covenants, the ones that were all, in their own way, present-truth manifestations of the true covenant, the one ratified at Calvary by the blood of Jesus, the one that we, as Christians, enter into with our Lord.
We begin with the covenant God made with Noah to spare him and his family from destruction. We proceed to the covenant with Abraham, so rich and full of promise for all of us; then to the covenant at Sinai and the importance of what was proclaimed there; and finally we look at the new covenant, the one that all the others pointed toward. All of these, of course, will be studied in more depth in the next several weeks. This week is just a sneak preview.
The Week at a Glance: What does the word covenant mean? What elements make up the covenant? What was the covenant that God made with Noah? What hope was found in the covenant with Abraham? What role do faith and works play in the human end of the covenant? Is the covenant just a deal, or does it have relational aspects to it? What is the essence of the “new covenant”?
