The Cost of Broken Covenants by Os Hillman
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By Os Hillman
The Cost of
Broken Covenants
by Os Hillman
"During the reign of David, there was a famine for three
successive years; so David sought the face of the Lord." - 2 Samuel
21:1a
There
was a famine in the land, and David equated that famine to the blessing or lack
of blessing from God. He sought God to know why there was a famine. The Lord
did not take long to answer: "It is on account of Saul and his
blood-stained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death" (2 Sam.
21:1b). Many years earlier, when Joshua entered the Promised Land, the
Israelites were tricked by the Gibeonites into believing they were travelers
when they were actually enemies of Israel. The Gibeonites tricked Israel into
making a peace treaty with them. It was one of the first major mistakes Israel
made after entering the Promised Land. As a result of the peace treaty, the Gibeonites
were kept as slaves to Israel. This was never God's intention for Israel. He
had wanted Israel to destroy all their enemies, but they made an error in
judgment that required that they honor a covenant with the Gibeonites.
Saul
made a decision to disregard this covenant with the Gibeonites and sought to
annihilate them. David sensed there was something preventing God's blessing on
Israel. As a nation they had violated a covenant made before God. Now they were
reaping the consequences.
There
are two things we can learn from this story. First, when we make a covenant,
God expects us to fulfill it. God is a covenant maker. He made one with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He made one with each of us through Jesus Christ.
The Scriptures are numerous regarding the importance of honoring our
commitments.
Second,
God is a very longsuffering God. He gave Israel many years of grace before He
exercised judgment for their sin. However, there always comes a day when God
must uphold His standard of righteousness.
Are
you failing to walk in God's blessing due to some failed commitment? Calamities
can befall us for many reasons; sin can be one of them. In the case of Israel,
David had to make things right with the Gibeonites. When he did this, God
removed the famine, and Israel again was prosperous. When you feel you lack
God's blessing on your life, ask the Lord if there are any past - generation
sins that you may need to repent of. He may be waiting on us before He can
release His blessing on our lives.
Os Hillman
By permission only. To learn more about Os
Hillman, go to: www.marketplaceleaders.org.
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"And the Lord said to Joshua, 'This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.'"(Josh 3:7-8). Joshua had been a faithful number two man under Moses for 40 years. Can you imagine serving one man for 40 years? Now that is faithfulness! Even so, when the time came to pass the mantel to Joshua, God knew he needed to be elevated in the eyes of the people in order for Joshua to accomplish his purpose. That is the purpose for elevation - so that you and I can fulfill our purpose and our mission.
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"Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband." Ruth 1:3-5 Naomi's life was going well. A great husband. Two fine sons who had two wonderful wives. Then the unthinkable happened. Her husband died. A little time later both her sons die. Her and her daughter-in-laws find themselves in the midst of shattered dreams. This isn't how life was supposed to be.
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"While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, 'Simon, three men are looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.'" Acts 10:19-20 Peter had never preached to the Gentiles. In fact, he believed it was against Jewish law to associate with the Gentiles. God needed to change Peter's attitude about this, so God gave Peter a vision that showed him it was permissible to preach to the Gentiles. The Spirit came to Peter and informed him that some men were about to come visit him, and he was to go with them. He went with them, and the Lord did great miracles in the lives of Gentiles through Peter.