Covenant Foundations
The Bible is a big book, and grasping the entirety of its story is a challenge for even the most mentally astute of men. When I personally approach the Bible, I want to find pegs to hang information on. Or to use a more popular illustration, what is the thread which binds the Scriptures together? How does Leviticus relate to Isaiah, and 1 Kings to Genesis? Alec Motyer comes alongside us as a masterful tour guide, doing as the subtitle of his book promises - “Understanding the Promise-Keeping God of the Bible.”
In the introduction, he states: “You see, 'covenant' is not a lawyer's plaything: it's a great biblical word, which takes us to heart of what God is doing in the world through our Lord Jesus Christ, who came as the fulfilment of what God had been doing through Israel. The whole Bible is held together by the word 'covenant'. At its heart, the biblical covenant is about God making and keeping promises to rescue us and establish us as His people.”
Even in these opening words, Motyer aims to make the Bible simple. In fact, these pages originally were lectures given to young college students in December 1972 to January 1973. As he writes, he aims to equip us to answer three questions whenever we open our Bibles - 1) where are we? 2) what is going on? 3) how is God keeping His promises? In 119 pages, Motyer takes us from Noah to the edge of the New Testament, tracing out the major themes of God’s covenant dealings with man.
Without getting into the meat of his argument, what are some of the practical takeaways from Motyer? One, he highlights God’s redemptive love - both as the motive for our obedience and the ground of our hope. Whereas we are often distracted by the thunders of Sinai or the failings of His people, Motyer highlights with great clarity the amazing love of God to His people. In every promise He makes, nothing prevents Him from keeping that promise - not our sin, not our circumstances, not anything. This places our failure and His promises in their proper perspective.
Two, he puts the sacrifical system on an understandable level. Many of us read Leviticus when we have trouble sleeping, and we finish the book as dazed and confused as when we started. Motyer cuts through the details and allows us to see the principles at work for us and our salvation. Moreover, he draws clear connections to the New Testament and to our daily life.
Three, Motyer provides the biblical and theological backdrop for understanding the prophets. Prophetic literature is the struggle of all of our Bible reading. We often picture these books as a squirrel’s insane jumping. They are just flailing in the air, hoping they land. However, if you watch closely, a squirrel is fixated on one point, and every turn of his body is ensure he reaches that point safely. As we read the prophetic literature with all of its twists and turns, Motyer does not describe in detail those movements. Instead, he simply says, “Look at where they are headed!” Once we see their goal, the remainder of their writings begin to make sense.
How do we make sense of these three points? In a word - covenant. I would encourage you all to join our FEAST Group this year as we read this short, delightful book. If you cannot join us, you can purchase it here.
