Covenant of God

“ The benefit to them that are sincere in the covenant, is no less than to have the pardon of all our sins, and to have God himself to be our God and Father, and Christ our Saviour, and the Holy Ghost our Sanctifier, and to have title to the blessings of this life and of that to come. And for the duty, how great a work it is for a sinner to enter into so solemn a covenant with the God of heaven, for reconciliation and newness of life, and for salvation! ”

“ God has made a covenant of grace with us in Jesus Christ, and we are here told, First, That it is an everlasting covenant, from everlasting in the contrivance and counsel of it, and to everlasting in the continuance and consequences of it. Secondly, That it is ordered, well ordered in all things, admirably well, to advance the glory of God and the honour of the Mediator, together with the holiness and comfort of believers. ”

“ We are a nation in covenant with God, we have the books of the covenant, the Old and New Testament; we have the seals of the covenant, baptism, and the Lord's supper; we have the messengers of the covenant, the ministers of the Gospel; we have the angel of the covenant, the Lord Jesus Christ, fully, freely, and clearly set out before us in the ministry of the word: but alas! are not these blessings amongst us, as the ark was amongst the Philistines, rather as prisoners, than as privileges, rather in testimonium et ruinam, quam in salutem; rather for our ruin, than for our happiness? ”

“ THe Covenant of Grace is that free and gracious Covenant which God of his meere mercy in Jesus Christ made with man a miserable and wretched sinner, promising unto him pardon of sinne and eternall happinesse, if he will return from his iniquity, embrace mercy reached forth, by faith unfained, and walke before God in sincere, faithfull and willing obedience, as becomes such a creature lifted up unto such injoyment, and partaker of such pretious promises. ”

“ Under this head of doctrine, he gave the following marks to evidence whether the present time of renewing our covenant with God was indeed to us a time of the Lord's privileging us with his gracious presence—1st, That a time of God's privileging his people with his gracious presence, and with a shower of gospel grace, is a very inviting and alluring time; wherein, as the Lord invites his people to their duty, by engaging their hearts and souls, through his Spirit's gracious influences, to fall in love with him and his commandments, so they mutually invite one another to covenant with God. ”

“ This Covenant was made in Christ, in and through whom we are reconciled unto God: for since God and man were separated by sinne, no Covenant can passe betwixt them, no reconciliation can be expected, no pardon obtained, but in and through a mediatour. Sinnes were never remitted unto any man, no man was ever adopted into the place and condition of a sonne, by grace and adoption, but in him alone, who is the same yesterday, to day, and for ever, Jesus Christ, true God and true man. ”

“ Heaven is conveyed into the elect by way of legacy. It is part of God's testament, to write His law in our hearts, and to cause us to walk in His ways. Put these together, seeing there is such infinite mercy in the covenant. A mercy, for God to enter into covenant with us, to do it with us, and not the angels; with us fallen, with us upon, such easy terms, and to make such a covenant that contains so many, and not only so but all blessings here and hereafter, in the womb of it. It must needs be a land-destroying, and soul-destroying sin, to be a covenant-breaker. ”

“ Therefore, roll up thy sleeves to serve the Covenant, make the hearts firm in the Covenant of the beloved Lord, create harmony and agreement among the believers and impart to them the glad-tidings of the confirmation which they will receive from God if the differences of opinion be removed and if they unite and agree, be firm in spreading the fragrance of God, divulging the traces and chanting the signs of God. ”

“ God promised that there would be another covenant, not like that old one, and said that it would be laid on them without fear, and trembling, and lightnings, and that it would be such as to show what kind of commands and deeds God knows to be eternal and suited to every nation, and what commandments He has given, suiting them to the hardness of your people's hearts, as He exclaims also by the prophets. ”

“ Have respect to the promise of the Spirit that thou hast made, "That when he is come, he shall convince the world of sin, righteousness and judgement; and testify of Christ, and glorify Christ, by shewing the things of Christ." Have respect to the offices of the Spirit as he is a convincer, sanctifier, and comforter, according to the order and method of the Covenant. Have respect to the honour of the Spirit, who is the all in all of the Covenant, in print of power, and powerful manifestation, communication, and operation. ”

“ The subject of this Covenant is man intire and perfect, made after the Image of God in Righteousnesse and true holinesse, furnished not only with a reasonable soule and faculties beseeming, but with divine qualities breathed from the whole Trinity, infused into the whole man, lifting up every faculty and power above his first frame, and inabling and fitting him to obey the will of God intirely, willingly, exactly, for matter and measure. ”

“ By the Covenant of Nature Adam was not advanced above the condition of an honourable Servant. In the Covenant of Grace, man by nature the child of wrath, is made the child of God by grace and adoption. The Covenant of nature was neither the last nor everlasting, but being first made way for a better, and being broken was antiquated or disanulled to our singular comfort: but the Covenant of Grace shall continue firme and immoveable for evermore. ”

“ God in his own nature and in the nature of man, is the glorious body to which are spiritually united the children of the Covenant. God, in the nature of man, alone could have afforded a manifestation of the Covenant adequate to its character. Behold, then, as the most glorious display that has been made of God or his ways, the Lord Jesus given to denote the Covenant that had been made for the people! ”

“ What God requires that we should be to him. The covenant is mutual: Walk before me, and be thou perfect, that is, upright and sincere; for herein the covenant of grace is well-ordered that sincerity is our gospel perfection. Observe, (1.) That to be religious is to walk before God in our integrity; it is to set God always before us, and to think, and speak, and act, in every thing, as those that are always under his eye. It is to have a constant regard to his word as our rule and to his glory as our end in all our actions, and to be continually in his fear. ”

“ If the invitation to come into covenant relationship with God, is to everyone that thirsteth, in which covenant are "the sure mercies of David," then the covenant and the gospel must be one and the same thing, because every invitation that is sent out to fallen man from God is for him to come to a belief and obedience of the gospel whereby he may obtain salvation. ”

“ Covenant, in the spiritual sense, signifies conjunction; for when it is said that two persons make a covenant together, it means that they make an agreement in regard to some act or thing, and so far as both parties are faithful to the agreement, their minds are in a kind of conjunction. Now, the law of the Divine commandments is a covenant between God and man; a covenant, in which God promises, expressly or impliedly, that if man will do what is there commanded, and refrain from doing what is there forbidden, he shall be gifted with eternal life and its blessedness. ”

“ For in the Absolute Covenant there is nothing in the creature that might move God, either to promise, or to performe what he hath promised: but in the Covenant to which a stipulation is annexed, God fulfils what he promised, because the creature exhibits what was exacted, although this that God hath entered into such a Covenant, and promised so great things unto him that performed such and such obedience, that wholly proceeds from the antecedent love, and free pleasure of Almighty God. ”

“ The term new covenant, as used here, seems to mean that grand plan of agreement or reconciliation which God made between himself and mankind, by the death of Jesus Christ; in consequence of which, all those who truly repent, and unfeignedly believe in the great atoning sacrifice, are purified from their sins, and united to God. ”

“ Verse 10
Ye stand - all of you before the Lord - They were about to enter into a covenant with God; and as a covenant implies two parties contracting, God is represented as being present, and they and all their families, old and young, come before him. ”

“ The Covenant made presupposeth man called, and taking hold of the Covenant, it doth not promise that he shall be effectually wrought upon, and powerfully drawne to lay hould upon the promise. Faith is the gift of God, which he giveth as he pleaseth: but to the believer he assureth all other necessary good things, with continuance in faith, according to his free Covenant.
Of good things spirituall there be two sorts, as was said, some absolutely necessary, as faith, repentance, pardon of sinne, perseverance, eternall life, and these are all most certainly promised, and assuredly conferred. ”

“ Where any are the people of God, there there is blessedness indeed, for they have His truth for their security, they have His love for their comfort, His power for their defence. The Lord God, He takes His people into His bosom, and with every soul He does so, and says, "I the Lord thy God enters in covenant with thee, and renews the covenant that before I made with thee." ”

“ We acknowledge the covenant under which we live; we believe it, and are honest in our believe [belief] ; and we will honor that covenant by obedience to the laws of God. If we do not, our words and our actions contradict each other. By our acts, by our coming together, by our leaving our homes, our friends and our birthplaces that were dear to us according to the customs and belief of the world, we have declared our desire to serve the Lord. ”

“ Walk, therefore, with a sure step and engage with the utmost assurance and confidence in the promulgation of the divine fragrances, the glorification of the Word of God and firmness in the Covenant. Rest ye assured that if a soul ariseth in the utmost perseverance and raiseth the Call of the Kingdom and resolutely promulgateth the Covenant, be he an insignificant ant he shall be enabled to drive away the formidable elephant from the arena, and if he be a feeble moth he shall cut to pieces the plumage of the rapacious vulture. ”

“ All Latter-day Saints enter the new and everlasting covenant when they enter this Church. They covenant to cease sustaining, upholding and cherishing the kingdom of the devil and the kingdoms of this world. They enter into the new and everlasting covenant to sustain the Kingdom of God and no other kingdom. They take a vow of the most solemn kind, before the heavens and earth, and that, too, upon the validity of their own salvation, that they will sustain truth and righteousness instead of wickedness and falsehood, and build up the Kingdom of God, instead of the kingdoms of this world. ”

“ Remission of sinnes, gratious adoption in Christ, and the Inheritance of eternall life is promised to beleevers: and eternall condemnation peremptorily threatned against unbeleevers.
Christ, whom God hath exhibited in the Gospell, as he was promised to the Fathers in the Scriptures of the Prophets, is the object of this Covenant.
The end thereof is the praise of the glorious grace and mercy of God in Christ to come.
In this Covenant there is a mutuall compact betwixt God and man: God in mercy promising, and man in duty binding himself unto the Lord. ”

“ Neither can it be proved, that ever God made the Covenant of works with the creature fallen: but whensoever the Scripture speakes of Gods entring into Covenant with man fallen and plunged into sinne, and for sinne deserving wrath, it must be understood of the Covenant of Grace, as shall be shewed hereafter. ”

“ Ever since our fall in Adam God has dealt with our sinful race by covenant. This covenant was made with Christ as Mediator between God and man, and as the representative of all whom the Father gave him to be redeemed and brought to glory. ”

“ For the new covenant having been known and preached by the prophets, He who was to carry it out according to the good pleasure of the Father was also preached, having been revealed to men as God pleased; that they might always make progress through believing in Him, and by means of the [successive] covenants, should gradually attain to perfect salvation. [107] For there is one salvation and one God; but the precepts which form the man are numerous, and the steps which lead man to God are not a few. ”

“ There can be no such equality of power and authority betwixt God and the creature, as that he should indent with the most High, but he must accept what the Lord is well-pleased to offer and command. The Covenant is of God, and that of his free grace and love: for although in some Covenant the good covenanted be promised in justice, and given in justice for our workes: yet it was of grace that God was pleased to bind himselfe to his creature, and above the desert of the creature: and though the reward be of justice, it is also of favour. ”

“ Man then doth promise to serve the Lord, and to cleave unto him alone, which is both a debt of duty, and speciall prerogative, and he doth restipulate or humbly intreat, that God would be mindfull of his holy Covenant or testimony, that he would be his God, his Portion, his Protectour, and rich reward. These things be so linked together in the Covenant, as that we must conceive the Promise of God in order of nature to goe before the Promise and obedience of man: and to be the ground of faith, whereby mercy promised is received. ”