What a day of teaching and praise music, prayer and laughter. RoseAnne's talk was titled "Following the Rabi". Although the teaching was not as connected as her "Sermon on the Mount" talk which was the first teaching I heard from her, there was a lot to take in. There was much more than I could take notes on to bring home. But she is selling CDs of this series, and I plan on having the Church library purchase everything she had for sale yesterday, books and CDs.
The one thing that struck me and enlightened me the most was the Hebraic practice of Covenant. Covenant Blood. Covenants were made in all sorts of situations; marriage covenants, business covenants, personal promise covenants, vows. Covenant did not just refer to God’s promise to Abram. I always thought of Covenant as something BIG like between God and man, but that is not the case. However Covenant was a deadly serious commitment.
Genesis Chapter 15 is the story of God promising Abram that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars and will occupy the land from “the river of Egypt to the great river Euphrates”. When Abram asks God how he will know this was true God has him bring animals, a heifer, a she goat, a ram a turtledove and a pigeon. As was the tradition in the making of a covenant or promise or vow, Abram kills the heifer, goat and ram and split their bodies in half down the center line and lays them open opposite each other. It is not explained here because every one reading this story knew that the blood was collected and laid in a depression between the halve of the animals. By tradition the two persons making the covenant [promise] would walk through the blood between the halves of the animals and get the blood on them. Thereby saying “If I break my promise may this happen to me. May I be torn to pieces.”
In 15:13 God predicts the Hebrew’s slavery in Egypt for 400 years and their coming out with great wealth.
Then in 15:17 God walks between the halves of the animals making the covenant pledge.
17When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot [oven] and a flaming torch passed between those pieces. 18On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram.”
This blood Covenant – blood sacrifice between God and Abram foreshadows the Blood Covenant – blood sacrifice between Jesus the Christ and us.
Just as the blood covenant was practiced between the families of two who were betrothed, the two young people reenacted this blood covenant in the sharing of a cup of wine.
Just as the Blood Covenant – sacrifice was made by Jesus, for us, we share the cup of wine.
I don’t explain it well but this was the first time I had understood the blood covenant ritual practiced by the Hebrews. By the writers of the Bible, the people we must understand, if we are to understand the meaning of the Bible in our lives today.
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