The Covenant To Love

One way to express for love for God is by praising Him. Moses sang: “Ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are just, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He.” [1]

Another way to express love for God is to keep His commandments.

The Lord calls His commandments a covenant. “These are the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb.” [2]

God’s commandments are a holy place where He meets with us and we meet with Him. God cannot sin so He cannot partake in sin with us, but He can fellowship with us when we are walking in His ways. Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” [3]

Keeping God’s commandments is about love. John wrote, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments.” [4]

God’s covenant is a covenant to love. Just like a marriage covenant! To love, honor and cherish! Jesus said that all the Law and the Prophets hang on the two commandments to love God and love one’s neighbor. [5]

So, how do divine consequences for sin fit into this equation? Sin is the rejection of love for God and love for others. Curses on sin can be compared with signs of being on the wrong path. God in His love for us provides for us signs to exit from the highway to hell.

God’s Word is a sign to exit from the highway to hell. When God blesses us with the opportunity to hear His Word, He is giving us a sign to exit from the highway to hell.

God’s Spirit urges us to exit from the highway to hell. The Holy Spirit bears witness to Word of God and the testimony of Jesus. He gives us an inner witness that what God is telling us is right.

God gives His angels charge over us to protect us in all our ways. For example, when Balaam made a bad decision to use his prophetic gift to gain worldly wealth, God placed in angel in the middle of his road to convict him of his crime. Sadly, Balaam wanted to stay on the highway to hell, so God let him continue on that road. Balaam was eventually executed. The Apostle Peter compares false teachers to Balaam, “who loved the wages of wickedness.” [6]

The Bible says, “Whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.” [7]

God compared Israel’s worship of false gods with the sin of adultery. He compared His sending Israel away into exile with a divorce. [8]

God removed lesser blessings to induce a greater blessing, namely, Israel came back to God with their whole heart. “Then, I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.” [9]

I have attached slides that summarize the blessings of God on covenant keepers and the curses of God on covenant breakers.

I have attached slides that compare the curses of Law listed in Leviticus and the curses listed in Revelation.

God has not changed in regards to His desire for His people to be covenant keepers, but He has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to bear the curses we deserve, so that whosoever believes in Jesus Christ, can have His perfect obedience to the Law placed in their account, and live under the blessings of a covenant keeper.

I have attached slides that testify from the Scripture that Jesus Christ took the curses of the Law that we deserve so that we can receive the blessings of the Law that we do not deserve by faith in Him.

The Gospel is God’s ultimate message of love for us and His desire to bring us to Him.

“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [10]

[1] Deuteronomy 32:3-4
[2] Deuteronomy 29:1
[3] John 14:15
[4] 1 John 5:2
[5] Matthew 22:40
[6] Psalm 91:11; Numbers 22:21-35, 31:8; 2 Peter 2:15
[7] Hebrews 12:6
[8] Jeremiah 3:8
[9] Jeremiah 24:7
[10] Romans 5:6-8

I appreciate the testimony of Johnny Chang. He explains the connection between love and the commandments very well. I have attached the link to his testimony below:

 https://youtu.be/NP8ixeAN7XQ?si=ep1QgNdWN8nnePRF