covenant

Reading the book of Acts in the bible, there is so much about the outpouring of the holy spirit and about baptism.  It seems that every time someone believes, the gift of the holy spirit is just poured into them, and they immediately get baptized.
covenant.
We don't use that word in our culture.
covenant.
Yet, it means so much.  It is so powerful.
Baptism was the way a person would express their vow to enter the new covenant.  It was a BIG deal.  It's so much more than just believing.  It's a decision to make an eternal commitment to submit to Jesus as Lord, God, Ruler, King.
Do we even have words that we currently use in our culture that represent this?  We say commitment. Contract. Dedication.
But nothing seems sacred.  We are committed until.....something changes.  Our contract is honored unless.....the terms are not met by one party.  We dedicate ourselves until...something more appealing presents itself.
When we have a covenant relationship with someone, we can trust the deep, sacred promise that is not contingent on circumstances.  It is simply a sacred promise.  Unbreakable.
Last week at my Doctor, she asked me 4 questions.  Of those 4 questions, 2 of them were about my sexual activity.  Why?  It is staggering to think about all of the health issues and risks surrounding sexual activity.
I have simplified many of humanities problems to this issue of sexual activity outside of marriage.  God created sex as a sacred sign of a covenant relationship.  It's a BIG deal. It's sacred.  What happens when we reduce it to being a physically pleasurable activity?  Where to begin? Emotional devastation, physical catastrophes, spiritual emptiness.
But, maybe the worst thing is that people will never know the sacred.
It is so lost.
They will never experience the fullness of the covenant God intended, complete with mutual trust, respect, love, intimacy, serving, and sexual satisfaction and enjoyment that connects not only two bodies, but two souls.  Because it takes sacrifice of self to enter a covenant.  And we aren't willing to do that.  We want satisfaction, not sacrifice.  We want the enjoyment of sex, not the mutual love that takes effort to achieve, sustain and nurture.
I really feel we have lost any understanding of covenant.  So, it is not a surprise that we approach everything more like a contract.
This includes our relationship with Jesus.  I agree to believe A, B and C and God agrees to let me into heaven.  Sign on the dotted line....
Contract completed.
What a bummer.
To miss out on the covenant love relationship that comes from agreeing to submit to Jesus as Lord, to love him, worship him, abide in him, trust him, discover him more more daily, grow to know him better
.  It's a beautiful journey.  And He pours unconditional love and grace all over me.  Inside, outside, smothering me with the truth about how he feels about me. Filling me with joy so deep, it goes way beyond my circumstances.  Love so pure, it's blinding!
But, unlike any contract, my covenant isn't something that is just done and signed one time.  It is a daily process.  And it can NEVER be broken, revoked, or forgotten!  It is sometimes hard and demanding and confusing and frustrating!  It is my agreement to put my SELF under the authority of Jesus.  Well, if you've never tried it, putting SELF anywhere but in control is a challenge.  It's humbling.
Again, in my willingness to make efforts to humble myself, Jesus transforms me.  He takes the parts of myself that are not meeting the mark of who I was created to be, that sinful and selfish stuff, and He transforms me.
It's a covenant with my creator.
I do nothing to earn his love.
I can do nothing to lose his love.
I have complete freedom to love Him in return.
It can never be broken.
It's sacred.
And it's a journey, not a one time contract!
This link shows some of my friends demonstrating an outward sign of the covenant they have entered with Jesus.  Pretty awesome stuff.