♪ theme music ♪
(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,
an in-depth, interactive study
of the Word of God.
We're in the middle of a series
on Ezra and Nehemiah,
an ancient Jewish priest
and a government official in Persia.
And you say, "Derek, what could
that have to do with us today?"
God and the covenant today,
but God wants to make
a covenant with us, too.
It's a new covenant
and an everlasting covenant,
that will change us,
not only today but forever; so I'm excited
about Hope Sabbath School today,
God and the Covenant.
I'm glad you joined us.
And this has been a great series,
hasn't it?
(Team) Yes.
(Derek) Fifth century B.C.,
a Jewish priest,
inspired by the Holy Spirit,
named Ezra,
and a government official
living in Persia - he was a Jew in exile
by the name of Nehemiah,
also guided by the Holy Spirit -
write a record for us
by the Holy Spirit today.
It's exciting to know what God can do.
And we're happy you're part
of our Hope Sabbath School family
wherever you are around the world.
Here's a note from Mutale in Zambia.
Lots of Hope Sabbath School members there.
"Hi, Hope Sabbath School team."
(Team) Hello!
(Derek) "My name is Mutale.
I've always enjoyed
the discussions every day at my office
before I start work in the morning."
Begin the day with God, right?
"May the good Lord Jesus
continue to grant you good health
so that you can reach
many people around the world,
even as God also helps you
in your Christian journey."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) "Let's be prayerful
in these Last Days as believers.
Pray for everyone so that God
can take control. Amen."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Mutale, thanks for writing
to us from Zambia,
and I know there are
many Hope Sabbath School members there.
Carlos writes from Chile.
I don't remember one from Chile,
but I'm sure we've had some.
Carlos says, "I just want to thank you,
Hope Sabbath School team, for being there.
I'm an English teacher in Chile,"
South America.
"Let me tell you, watching
Hope Sabbath School every Friday night
has been a double blessing for me.
I can study the Bible,
listening to your beautiful English.
Greetings to everyone, from Chile."
Well, Carlos, thanks for writing to us,
and I'm sure you're
a great English teacher, but even more,
to be a great man of God, right,
a great woman of God,
that you can bless students.
Here's a note from Marcia in Jamaica.
Long live Jamaica, Nicole.
(Nicole) Long live.
(Derek) All right.
"Thank you, Hope Sabbath School.
I watch your show to help me
understand more about the Bible.
Keep teaching and sharing God's Word
so that Jesus can come soon."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Well, Marcia,
a simple message from Jamaica,
but we believe with all of our hearts
what you said.
Jesus is coming soon,
and He wants us all to be ready.
A donor writes from Oklahoma in the U.S.,
and I just want to say thank you
to all of our donors; Hope Channel
is a donor-supported ministry.
"I love the program," the donor writes.
"Young people are inspiring to me."
They must be talking
about the folks sitting there and not me,
but I just want to say
that we are excited to see young leaders
taking their place in this ministry.
"I'm 90 years old," writes the donor,
"and I want you to know
that you are an inspiration."
Somebody smile and say Amen.
(Team) Amen!
(Derek) All right, praise God.
You know, I know this donor.
By the way, a gift for 20 dollars,
and that may be a major donation
when you're 90 years old.
Thanks for being part of our ministry
and for each one of you
that supports this ministry.
Last note, from Justina in the Bahamas.
Justina writes and says, "Thank you,
Hope Sabbath School team,
for your explanation of the Word of God.
I listen during the week
so that I can receive
a clear understanding of the Bible.
Hope Sabbath School uplifts me
and allows me more and more
to understand God's faithfulness
and His grace to me.
I love you all.
I look forward to the day
when all of God's people
will meet in His Kingdom.
Please do not get weary in well-doing.
Keep up the excellent work.
I'm sure that God has a special reward
for each one of you."
And you know what the reward will be?
To see each other there
and to be with Jesus.
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) So, thanks, Justina,
for writing to us from the Bahamas.
And we'd love to hear from you.
You can write to us
at sshope@hopetv.org.
And those email testimonies
really do encourage us.
Right now, though, we have
a Scripture song to sing,
taken from Psalm 25,
a 3,000-year-old Scripture song.
My wife put a happy tune to it, and we're
going to sing it together right now.
♪ music ♪
(Derek) You know, as we
were singing that song,
it suddenly hit me
that Jesus, as a young lad in Nazareth,
might have sung those words.
It was a thousand-year-old Scripture song
written by the psalmist at that time,
but Jesus memorized Scripture in song.
He had these beautiful Psalms.
Now, you say, "It's a different tune."
I know; Maybe He'll hear us,
"To You, O Lord," and He'll pause
and say, "I know the words.
Who wrote the tune?"
But the Word of God
is so powerful, isn't it?
And I'm glad that you can sing
along with us
wherever you are around the world,
that we can sing Scripture together,
and we can be blessed.
But right now we want to pray
that God will guide us in our study.
God and the Covenant is the title.
God wants to make a covenant with us.
Let's pray; Father in Heaven, we thank You
that from these ancient writings
of Ezra and Nehemiah,
we can learn practical lessons
for our lives today.
And I pray that we would catch a glimpse
of Your immeasurable and unfailing love,
that we would catch a glimpse
of all that You want to do for us,
in us and through us.
May lives be blessed today.
We pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Before we begin
reading from the Scripture
about God and the Covenant,
someone give me a simple explanation,
what is a covenant? Anybody. Brittany.
(Brittany) It's an agreement
between two or more people.
(Derek) Okay, an agreement
between two or more people.
Jason, you want to add to that?
(Jason) It often has a lot
of emotional significance
related to a relationship.
(Derek) Certainly a well-known covenant
in today's culture is?
(Derek, Team) Marriage.
(Derek) And unfortunately those covenants
are not always kept, right?
But it's an agreement.
So, both people are consenting.
Are they equal, the two parties?
Sometimes, that's right;
that's a good answer.
Sometimes they're equal.
Other times, for example,
if a monarch and people
are making decisions.
Certainly God and us
making a covenant together,
we're not equal are we?
But we're both agreeing,
a covenant that is made.
Let's go to Nehemiah, chapter 9,
beginning with verse 36.
And, Nicole, would you
begin our study today? Verses 36 to 38.
What is the setting for the people of God
here during the time
of Ezra and Nehemiah
when they say, "We're going
to renew our covenant with God"?
(Nicole) So the New King James Version
of Nehemiah 9:36-38 says:
(Derek) So, what's the setting
of making this new covenant?
Where are we history-wise?
Anybody? Travis?
(Travis) They're prisoners
in their own land.
(Derek) That's an interesting way
of describing it
because they're not really prisoners
in a jail, right?
But they're in a very difficult situation.
John?
(John) So, this is shortly
after the completion
of the city walls of Jerusalem.
They had been restored and rebuilt,
but they were still
under Persian rule at the time.
(Derek) And how did all of that happen?
Give me a little history, Stephanie.
How did they end up in exile,
and now they've come back from exile?
Why do they go, "We need
to renew our commitment to God"?
(Stephanie) When they've gone away,
when they were taken into captivity,
it was because of their disobedience.
(Derek) They had abandoned
the covenant with God, right?
Okay, and how long were they there?
(Derek, Team) Seventy years.
(Derek) And we're going
to study about that
because then they go,
"You know, God promised
we could come back."
But as Travis pointed out, the first wave
comes back under Zerubbabel.
Another wave comes back
under Ezra and Nehemiah,
but things are not all well, right?
So they are saying to themselves,
"You know, we know what got
our forefathers into trouble,"
abandoning the agreement with God,
the covenant with God,
"let's renew our covenant."
Now, in chapter 10,
you've got your Bible there,
you'll notice in verses 1 through 27
what do you see, anybody?
(Derek, Team) A list of names.
(Derek) And I am not going to ask for you,
Adison, to read that list.
I'm sure you could,
but why do you think the Holy Spirit
inspired Nehemiah to write down
all of those names?
What do you think, Adison?
(Adison) I think it was important
because this covenant was
not only for one individual and God,
but it was a community thing.
So, here we have an example
of all these names being listed down,
and so you can see
that it was a community covenant
between God and His people.
(Derek) You've got Nehemiah there,
certainly, right,
and then you've got Zedekiah and Seraiah.
I'm assuming, as the list
is being written,
that someone says...?
(Team) "Me, too."
(Derek) "Me, too," right,
"add my name," right? Travis?
(Travis) You know, when we
sign agreements nowadays,
we do that so there's accountability,
so they can't go back and say,
"Well, you know, I never said that."
When you put something in writing,
you know, it's an accountability,
it's official.
(Derek) So, back to the marriage
or courting relationship,
if someone says, "Well, I'd like
to move in with you,
but I'm not ready to make
a formal agreement...
(Evelyn) Commitment.
(Derek) What would you say
to them, Evelyn?
(Evelyn) I would say you guys
need to do it the way
the Lord commands us to,
I mean, to show commitment to one another.
(Derek) That's true. Yes, Jason.
(Jason) I would say that's
kind of like cheating.
You're trying to get the benefits
of the situation without the commitment.
(Derek) And the truth is, it won't work
because there's no...?
(Team) Commitment.
(Derek) There's no commitment, right?
Now, having listed these primary signers,
I mean, we can think
of other primary documents
where there are the signers
whose names are on there,
let's take a look, Gladys,
at verses 28 and 29,
something that Nehemiah adds
after that list of names.
(Gladys) I'm reading
from the New International Version,
Nehemiah, chapter 10, verses 28 and 29:
(Derek) So, what's the significance
of that little add-on
to the list of names?
(Harold) Total commitment.
(Derek) Total commitment.
(Harold) It wasn't just the leaders
because we can't forget
the names listed in verses 1 through 27;
these were the leaders,
which actually they were supposed to teach
and impart this message.
But at the same time, the people,
were like, "We want to be followers, too."
(Derek) Right? The rest of the people.
In fact, we find that phrase
toward the end of verse 29,
or verse 28, excuse me,
"everyone who had knowledge
and understanding."
What does that mean?
We had that when Ezra
was reading, too, the Word, right?
What does that mean?
Even the little ones
who could understand, right?
They said, "Me, too, papa,"
"Me, too, mama, add my name
to that list.
I want to be named with the people of God
who are making this covenant with God."
So, like Harold said,
it's, like, a total commitment,
a total commitment.
Now, how did the witness of the leaders
influence the rest of the people?
We don't know, do we?
Is there a correlation sometimes, John,
between the leader, even in a family,
and where the family goes?
(John) They often set the example,
and they set the tone for the family
or those that they are leading.
(Derek) So, you've got two key leaders,
namely Ezra and...?
(Team) Nehemiah.
(Derek) who are saying,
"We're going to follow God.
This is what God wants us to do.
They both sacrificed in order to do that.
Now the other leaders are coming,
and now all of the people,
a total commitment,
"Let's make a covenant,"
make an agreement, "with God." Stephanie.
(Stephanie) I guess, what came to my mind
was that each person has to make
their own individual commitment.
So, even though the leaders
are making the commitment,
each individual also had
to make their own commitment.
(Derek) Now, it said, "those who
have understanding."
What about the tiny ones?
How is their destiny determined,
the ones without understanding yet?
(Team) The parents.
(Derek) It was the same
in the time of Noah.
It was the same, you know,
you think of other times
when people had decisions to make.
The Exodus, you know,
"Are we going to go out?"
The little ones, they don't
make that choice, do they?
At that point, their destiny
is very much impacted
by the decision of their parents.
It's a solemn responsibility, right?
So, we're going to pause for a moment now.
We've seen this important juncture,
crossroads, for the people of God
there in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah,
"We're going to renew our commitment,
our covenant, with God."
But there had been times
down through sacred history
when God has made covenants,
or agreements, with people,
and we're just going to take a moment
to look at some of those.
Some of them might seem massive,
and some are rather small, but there are
at least two people in the agreement,
and they're both agreeing to it,
and it has implications.
So, anybody, give me some examples
of other covenants. Anybody? Yes, Evelyn?
(Evelyn) There's the covenant
God had with Adam.
(Derek) All right, let's look at that
in the book of Genesis, chapter 3,
a covenant with Adam.
Again, a covenant is a what?
(Team) An agreement.
(Derek) It's an agreement, okay.
So let's see, the words spoken
in verse 15 are actually
spoken to the serpent,
but it is describing a covenant
with the human family.
So would you read verse 15 for us,
and then also if you would add verse 21.
(Evelyn) And I will be reading
from the New Living Translation; it says:
Verse 21 says:
(Derek) So, what does that promise
in verse 15, that God is not
going to abandon the human family -
He's making a promise to them, right,
that He's going to provide
a way of salvation for them -
and verse 21, why are those two related?
Help me, someone. John?
(John) These are linked because verse 15
gives the promise of the Messiah to come,
and here you have that they
are clothed with skin.
That means that there was a sacrifice
that took place for them
to receive skins or covering.
(Derek) And that's not described there
in chapter 3.
In chapter 4, you've got
Abel bringing the lamb.
Cain, in rebellion, bringing
some fruit from his garden.
So obviously this idea
of a lamb pointing forward
all the way to the Lamb of God, Jesus,
who will take away the sin of the world,
had been explained to them.
Now, did you ever think
(my wife was sharing this with me
just a few days ago),
does that mean that God
offered the first sacrifice
to show them the cost
and also the sign of looking forward?
And if that's true, was that
the first time in eternity
that God had caused any form of death?
That's a solemn thought, isn't it?
And yet, the agreement is,
if you trust My promise,
I will save you, right?
And not just you but your children.
Well, we could spend a lot of time there.
We may get a thousand emails;
you go, "Really?"
Or did God just tell Adam,
"You kill the lamb'"?
Maybe God told Adam?
We'll hear from you.
What do you think, by the way?
It was certainly not
within the heart of God
to witness any death, was it?
God wanted all things
to be in perfect harmony.
We'll get some emails, I'm sure.
Yeah, I see you thinking. Gladys?
(Gladys) Yes, the covenant
that God made with Noah.
(Derek) Okay, let's take a look at that.
Of course, you know the story
of Noah starts in Genesis 6,
but let's take a look at Genesis 9.
Perhaps you could read that
for us, Gladys, verses 8 through 11.
(Gladys) Sure, I'll be reading
from the New International Version,
Genesis 9, verses 8 to 11:
(Derek) So, that's God part
of the covenant, a promise,
and He gives the sign of that with what?
(Team) A rainbow.
(Derek) So, what's their part
of the covenant?
What does He ask them
to do to enter into it?
(John) Trust Him.
(Derek) To just trust Him, that's right.
You say, "That's not very much,"
but actually it's the very essence,
isn't it,
of trusting in the immeasurable
and unfailing love of God.
One more, another covenant. Brittany.
(Brittany) I think of Abraham
when he was called Abram.
God promised him that He would make
his descendants like the stars of the sky.
(Derek) When his name was Abram,
and I'll have you read
chapter 12 for us, of Genesis, 1 to 3,
when his name was Abram,
how many children did he have?
(Team) None.
(Derek) And how old was he at that time?
Oh, can you remember that? Was he...?
Seventy-five years old, right?
Well, let's take a look, Brittany,
in chapter 12, verses 1 to 3.
And then we could look at many others,
but I'm going to ask you
what you've noticed
they all have in common so far.
(Brittany) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Genesis, chapter 12, verses 1 through 3:
(Derek) Now, that's a beautiful promise.
By the way, if you look
at the family tree of Jesus,
get to Matthew,
He's a son of Abraham, right?
Because the, "In you, all the families
of the earth will be blessed," is also...?
A prophecy pointing forward to Messiah
just like the lamb is a prophecy
pointing forward to Messiah, right?
"In you all the nations..."
We have to look at one more, Moses,
the covenant made with Moses and Israel.
If someone could look in Exodus 19,
verses 4 through 6.
Exodus 19, Jason, if you
could read verses 4 through 6,
what does the Word say there?
(Jason) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Exodus, chapter 19, verses 4 through 6:
(Derek) So, now God's making
a covenant with Moses and...?
All of Israel.
What do you see that all
of these covenants have in common?
We could look at more, too,
but what do you see
that they have in common, Harold?
(Harold) God is the Initiator.
(Derek) Okay.
(Harold) He starts the covenant.
(Derek) Very important, God is
the Initiator,
and what's motivating Him?
(Team) Love.
(Derek) That's right.
He doesn't need, like,
"And I really need your help
to build this city of...," whatever,"
you know, like the Egyptians, right.
No, it's just motivated by love.
He's like, "I want to bless you.
Can we make an agreement?"
In fact, all of the sacrifice
is coming from Him.
Anything else that you're noticing? John?
(John) It appears that in each
of the covenants,
it's based on what God
has done or will do,
so, based on His actions and His doing.
(Derek) So, trusting Him
because we've seen what He's done
in the past, maybe?
Abram must have had some confidence
in God's leading in his past. Nicole?
(Nicole) It's all based on us trusting.
He doesn't ask us to do anything.
He said, "I'm going to do
everything for you,
if you can just trust Me and accept it,
then that's the covenant."
(Derek) It's almost like
they're about to set off
this nuclear explosion,
"Here's the shelter; just come in," right?
"My love has provided for you,
just enter in." Harold?
(Harold) I wanted to add
that all these covenants
have to do with a relationship.
It's always about this relationship,
entering this harmonious relationship
with God,
because the part, as it's been mentioned,
is the trust.
When you trust, you're willing to obey.
You're like, "Oh, yes, I love You.
I want to do this,"
because, again, I believe John
said that we love Him
because He first loved us.
(Derek) That's right.
So, we're going to go now
to a beautiful statement
of what is called the New Covenant,
but it's another revelation
of the immeasurable and unfailing
love of God
in Jeremiah, chapter 31, verses 31 to 34.
Stephanie, if you could read that for us.
(Stephanie) And I'll be reading
from the King James Version:
(Derek) Now, that expression,
"They shall all know Me,"
what does that mean?
Anybody know? The Hebrew understanding
of that "knowing." Yes, Gladys.
(Gladys) It's an intimate relationship.
(Derek) That's right; it's actually
the same word where Adam
knew his wife, Eve, and she conceived
and bore a child, right?
So it's that close, intimate relationship,
and that's God's ideal, for how many?
(Team) For all of us.
(Derek) Yeah, that everyone
(we won't need to go and say...),
that all will experience
that intimate relationship.
What do you hear different...
The Lord Himself says,
"This is not like the covenant
I made with their fathers
the day I brought them out of Egypt."
What's different in this covenant,
the wording of this New Covenant? Jason?
(Jason) There is some description
about putting the Law
in their hearts and in their minds.
And in the sort of previous covenant,
there was a lot of external activity
written down.
And so there's something kind of happening
more internal here, it seems.
(Derek) Okay, yes, you're
absolutely right.
Let's expand on that a little. Travis?
(Travis) I'd like to say
that this New Covenant was based
on God's promise to change us
internally, like you said,
but the first covenant was,
"I promise, if you do this,"
and this promise was based
just on God's promise, which never fails.
Man failed in keeping the covenant,
and God says, "I'm going
to do something within you
so that you can keep
this covenant with me.
(Derek) All right, so, again,
more internal.
Were there any other covenants
that talked about, "I will forgive
their iniquities
and remember their sins no more"?
(Team) No.
(Derek) I suppose you could
go back to Genesis and say
that by trusting in the sacrifice.
This is much more explicit,
though, isn't it?
"And I'm going to do something..."?
"...in their hearts," right?
"I'm going to change their hearts."
So, what are your thoughts about God
wanting to do that for you?
Because that's not just written
in the time of Jeremiah, right?
That covenant is a covenant He wants
to make with each one of us, right?
Give me a new heart, forgive my sins,
give me a new start,
what are your thoughts about that?
Yes, Alex.
(Alex) It's just really humbling to me.
I think of all the things
that I've done to hurt Him,
the things I still do to hurt Him,
and that He wants to have
a covenant with me,
that He still wants to reach out to me
to have it.
(Derek) So, back to what we said earlier.
Again, He's taking the initiative
(always, right),
and it's based on His...?
(Team) Love.
(Derek) His immeasurable, unfailing love.
And Alex says that's kind of humbling
because He knows me, right? Nicole?
(Nicole) It's encouraging also,
that, even when I fall, He's still there
to pick me up,
and He still wants to be with me.
It's kind of self-esteem booster
that this God of the universe
wants little 'ole me
to be in the covenant with Him.
(Derek) And if it was a human being,
you might say, "Well,
that's because they don't
really know me," right?
But He does! John?
(John) The terms of the covenant,
and there are terms of agreement,
and God says that He will complete them,
so He's fulfilling those terms
in our lives,
and it's to us to receive and believe in.
(Derek) All right. Adison?
(Adison) I just love this concept,
in part because that same Law
that was written on the tables of stone,
the Holy Spirit takes it,
and He engraves it
upon the tables of our hearts.
And we find Christ's righteousness,
not our own;
He puts His righteousness on us.
And I just think it's a tremendous gift.
(Derek) And it's important
to "rememberize," to remember
("rememberize," that's not
an English word),
to remember what Jesus said,
that all of that Law He wants
to write on our hearts is summarized
in two great commandments, right?
Because, remember, this is
all about wanting
an intimate love relationship with us,
and those two great commandments,
Jesus said, are...?
(Team) Love God.
(Derek) Love God how?
With all your heart, soul,
mind and strength.
And love your neighbor...?
(Team) As yourself.
(Derek) It's in the context
of that relationship.
All right, Travis, how do you feel
about, God's like, "I want to make
this covenant with you"?
(Travis) I just think
that, when we look at the new covenant,
it just shows how relentless God is,
because He's doing something in us
that we couldn't do ourselves.
What God is doing to us
is He's enabling us to be
a part of His Kingdom,
something that was
just absolutely impossible
within ourselves.
And we got to see that
through the Old Testament Scriptures.
(Derek) I've been told
that that's something
about Judeo-Christian faith
that is unique,
because many religions have us
trying to earn God's favor.
You know, we beat ourselves,
we walk on hot rocks,
or put fish hooks in our back,
or whatever, you know,
to try to...or we offer chickens...
to try to placate God or earn His favor.
Here, we're seeing God
take the initiative.
And He loves us with an everlasting love.
Now, one other aspect of covenant
before we move on.
The Bible also speaks
about God wanting to make
an everlasting covenant.
Is that different from this new covenant
we're talking about?
Well, let's read two verses,
and then you can give me
the answer to that question.
Hebrews 13, verses 20 and 21,
Malaina, if you have that,
you could read it for us,
Hebrews, chapter 13, verses 20 and 21,
and then someone could find
Isaiah 55 and verse 3.
(Malaina) I will be reading
from the New King James Version,
Hebrews, chapter 13, verses 20 through 21:
(Derek) Amen. All right,
"through the blood
of the eternal covenant."
Isaiah 55 and verse 3,
someone have that already?
Alex, do you have it already? Verse 3.
(Alex) Okay, and I'll be reading
from the King James Version:
(Derek) So, is this the same covenant,
or is it "Oh, that's a different one."
The everlasting one
is different from Jeremiah 31.
What do you think?
(Team) Same.
(Derek) Same. So, why does God
go out of His way
to say "everlasting covenant," Stephanie?
(Stephanie) That's really important
because it is forever;
it's down through the ages.
It's His covenant that is sure.
We know that it will be accomplished.
(Derek) Because we said
He takes the initiative,
and it's based on what He...?
(Team) Has promised.
(Derek) And so by saying
it's an everlasting covenant,
He's saying, "I am the Lord, and I..."?
(Stephanie) Change not.
(Derek) "I change not."
"I am the same..."?
(Derek, Team) Yesterday, today
and forever.
(Derek) So, that gives us comfort.
We ought to get a little happy, right?
Praise God!
He's not going to say,
"You know, I thought about this, Alex.
You're right; you don't deserve
this covenant I'm making with you
because I've noticed, in fact,
I have a record of all of your failings."
And you say, "Lord, have mercy."
You say, "No, they've been washed away."
But you know, to think
that God is never going to come there
and go, "I've changed My mind
about this agreement with you."
Everlasting covenant, someone says?
(Team) Amen!
(Derek) Gladys?
(Gladys) I've been struggling with this,
with the fact that, yes,
God is love; He doesn't change,
but what happened with Noah?
He said that He regretted
or resented making man?
My husband asked me that this morning
when we were reviewing this...
(Derek) Okay. Well, how do you think
God feels when we reject His offer
of immeasurable and unfailing love
and throw dirt in His face, so to speak?
How does He feel about that?
(Team) Hurt. It's painful.
(Derek) It's heartbreaking for Him, right?
I don't think He stopped loving those
when He regretted.
I think He wept over those
who refused to come into the Ark, right?
But He wants to make
this everlasting covenant with us.
He wants us to know
that even when we are not trustworthy,
He is trustworthy. Travis?
(Travis) If anyone's ever had
a child who has rebelled,
I think that verse
is really explained in that term,
you know?
Once you've experienced that,
of course you love that child,
but, boy, it just really
brings sorrow to your heart,
and it just tears you up inside.
And you just get that feeling inside
like, why? You know?
But you would do anything
for that child even yet, you know.
(Derek) Sure. Sure.
So, I have a question for you,
and I want you to look with me
in Joshua 24, [verses] 14 and 15.
Can you make a decision
for someone else to accept
that immeasurable and unfailing offer
of God's love?
Well, before you say no,
let's look at Joshua 24, 14 and 15,
and maybe you're absolutely right.
Maybe he talked to the family,
and they said, "Me, too."
And so he comes and says...
Well, let's see what the text says.
Joshua 24, Evelyn, do you
have it there, verses 14 and 15.
(Evelyn) I will be reading
from the New Living Translation:
(Derek) Amen? By the way,
that is capitalized in my Bible;
that's the name, Yahweh.
That's the name of the Lord God,
Creator of heaven and the earth.
(John) His covenant name.
(Derek) His covenant name, that's right.
That's the agreement He's made with us.
Now, Joshua says, "As for me and my house,
we will serve the Lord."
But you're saying you can't make
that decision for your spouse,
or, if you have children,
for your children, for your siblings.
So, what, what do you think, Jason?
(Jason) Well, when you're
a family relationship,
particularly the marriage one,
is a covenant,
so when you have that covenant,
you aren't making
the individual choice for the person,
but you're kind of setting the tone,
like we said with the leaders,
you're kind of setting the direction
for the person.
Ultimately, each of the individual
family members
have to make their own choice,
but you can kind of set the stage
which way it will go.
(Derek) Yes. Remember that phrase,
"those who have understanding,"
so, for all those that do,
this would be a good time
for a family council, right,
and say, "As the mother,"
or, "As the father," "As the parent,"
some families only have one parent,
some have two,
"but this is my decision,
and here's why I'm making my decision,"
and they say, "Mommy, we see that,"
or, "Daddy, we see that,"
or, "Mommy and daddy,
we see that. Me, too!"
So, no matter how young they are,
if they have understanding,
like it says in the text,
they can say, "Me, too."
And I think that's helpful.
It's not like, you know, Joshua's dragging
his family kicking and screaming,
but they thought it through together,
and he can come and say,
"The decision of me and my family
is we will serve the Lord."
Anybody want to respond to that.
Yes, Gladys?
(Gladys) In a family, usually...
I will say, for my family it's like that.
When we were little, he always said,
"In the morning, in my house
we will have worship."
So everyone who will come and visit,
that's what we do in my house.
So, I think that that's what the Lord
represents.
This is what He wants,
to have that relationship,
and the leader of the home,
or the representative of the home,
makes the decision, not forcing it
on the family member,
but kind of like being the representative
of God in the home
and bringing his family along.
(Derek) Okay, and back
to what we've talked about earlier,
that list of names,
and then it said, "and the..."?
"Rest of the people," right?
So it became a total commitment.
But leadership is not unimportant, is it?
That can have an influence.
Well, let's talk about some
of the promises now.
We'll go back to Ezra and Nehemiah's time.
They said, "We need
to renew our covenant with God."
Let's look at some
of the promises that they made.
John, would you read for us
in Nehemiah, chapter 10,
beginning with verse 29 through verse 38.
And while John reads that, are they
getting the most important things here?
Maybe what is the most important promise
that we make,
let's think about that.
But let's hear how they respond now.
They're renewing their covenant with God.
(John) From the New King James Version,
it says:
(Derek) So, that seems like
a lot of details, yes?
But it's all part of a ceremonial system
which points to what?
(Brittany) The Lamb of God.
(Derek) To the Lamb of God who's coming
and reflects the immeasurable
and unfailing love of God.
If, when we're doing all of that,
we don't forget what it's pointing to
and that God wants
what kind of relationship with us?
(Team) Intimate.
(Derek) An intimate, loving, personal
relationship with us, then it's okay.
If we lose sight of that,
then we're in trouble, right?
Could that happen
even in the twenty-first century?
You know, we don't bring lambs
and have grain offerings, right?
We typically, when we come to worship,
what are some things that we do
when we come to worship?
(Team) Praise. Sing.
(Derek) We sing praise to God and we...?
(Team Member) Pray.
(Derek) And we pray, and...?
(Nicole) Read the Bible.
(Team Member) Give offering.
(Derek) We give offerings, that's right;
We read the Bible.
We listen to someone
teaching from the Scriptures, right?
So there are things that we do,
but we always need to remember
when we come that it's all about what?
(Team) Jesus.
(Derek) It's all about God
who loves us with a...?
An immeasurable and unfailing love,
wanting a...?
(Team) Relationship.
(Derek) A relationship with us.
And, of course, as someone mentioned,
He showed that most vividly
and perfectly...?
(Team) At the cross.
(Derek) Through the coming of Jesus,
who lived, died on the cross,
rose again the third day,
and has ascended to Heaven.
He's ministering there
in the heavenly sanctuary,
and He's coming back soon.
(Team) Amen!
(Derek) We forget that if we think,
"I went to church this week, did you?"
We could miss the whole point, right?
Promises are not bad.
The Bible does tell us
we should be careful
about making promises to God.
And so I'm going to read that,
have someone read it from Ecclesiastes 5,
and then I have an important question
for you, and that is,
what is the most important promise
anyone can ever make to God? Okay?
But let's look first in Ecclesiastes,
which basically says, "Don't be careless
in making promises to God."
Ecclesiastes, chapter 5, and, Adison,
could you read the first five verses,
Ecclesiastes 5:1-5?
(Adison) And I'll be reading
from the King James Version:
(Derek) So, what's the sacrifice of fools?
Making rash promises
without any intention of keeping them.
Better not to say anything, right?
So, we don't want to be careless,
but there's at least one promise
that God really wants us to make.
What's the most important promise
He wants us to make to Him?
I don't know; is there
a right answer to that?
Or most important decision, I don't know.
What do you think, Brittany?
(Brittany) I think He wants us
to give Him our whole heart
and to promise to give it to Him every day
the rest of our lives.
(Derek) Can we do that?
(Brittany) Only with His help.
(Derek) Or can I promise
to at least allow Him
to enable me to do that?
(Team) Yes.
(Derek) You know, isn't there...
I remember a prayer,
"Take my heart, I cannot give it,"
you know?
(Adison) Keep it pure.
(Derek) Yeah, keep it pure.
I mean, it's like, "God, here I am.
I promise to be..."?
(Team) Willing.
(Derek) Willing. "I promise to be..."?
(Derek, Team) Open.
(Derek) "...to Your immeasurable
and unfailing love.
Your covenant with me.
You know me, God,"
but can I promise that, "I will,
by Your grace, never close myself
up to You"?
Yeah, "I promise to be open to You,"
most important promise.
Can anybody think, either of that promise,
a time when you made
that promise to God,
or an important promise you made to God?
Anybody think of a time
you made an important promise? Travis?
(Travis) Yeah, it was a few years ago.
I was in a tree reading a book...
(Derek) What were you doing
in a tree, Travis?
(Travis) I was actually...
(Derek) You mean, like Zacchaeus?
(Travis) Actually that's the story
that got my attention
in the book I was reading,
and I realized then and there
that I wanted to live the rest of my life
in ministry, working for Jesus.
And I told Him, that's what I'll do.
And I've had bumps along the way,
but still going.
(Derek) So, that promise was to just say,
"God, take my heart,
I cannot give it."
I mean, "Here I am.
I give myself to You; hold onto Me."
Bumps along the way.
Anybody else have a testimony?
Jason and then John.
(Jason) Towards the end
of my collegiate experience,
I was trying to figure out
where I should go in life,
and I was struggling
with different opportunities and paths.
And during that time,
I had a conversation with God,
and the conclusion of it was,
"All right, Lord, I promise
that whatever direction You show me,
I'm going to go; do You want me
to go to this school?
Do you want me to go to this job?"
And He ended up sending me
to be a student missionary for a year
before sending me on a career,
and I know I needed to make that promise.
I needed to open myself to God's will
so that He could put me
where He wanted to put me
along the path that He had for my life.
(Derek) And maybe you hadn't thought
about the student missionary for a year,
but God says, "As part of the plan,
I need you to go here,"
which was where, by the way?
(Jason) In Central America.
(Derek) In Central America.
All right. John.
(John) In 2013 my wife
was involved in an accident
while she was jogging.
A vehicle struck her from behind.
She had been life-flighted
to the nearest trauma center.
A policeman showed up at my door
with the police chaplain
and told me about it.
And during the hour-and-a-half drive
to the hospital,
not knowing her condition
other than she was flown,
and all these things
going through my mind,
I had made a promise to God
that I will never doubt
His goodness and love,
regardless of the outcome.
The promise was, "I'm going
to serve You still."
And I can praise God
that she's restored fully,
but I was going to serve God regardless.
(Derek) Powerful.
That's a Holy-Spirit-enabled promise,
right, because the enemy says,
"Curse God and die."
But, "No, I will trust You still."
That's kind of Job, isn't it?
"No matter what happens,
I'll trust in You."
Well, God wants us
to enter into that promise.
What do you do...
Maybe someone comes to you,
and we don't have a lot of time,
you're just going to have
to quote the text for me,
someone comes to you and says, "Derek,
I made that promise up in the tree,
but I had a bump along the way,
and I feel like I broke my promise.
I went out and I did something stupid
after I had made a promise.
I just wanted to follow Jesus
no matter what."
What would you say to that friend
if she came to you and said,
"I guess it didn't work out
for me," Brittany?
(Brittany) I think about the story
of Peter
and how he promised
he would never leave Christ,
and then Jesus said to him,
"I'll pray for you,
that even after your faith fails you,
that you will come and return to Me."
And Jesus said that to Him
even before he failed.
He said, "I'll be praying for you."
And so that's something
that we can remember.
Jesus knows when we're going to fail;
He knows when we're going to stumble,
but He's still praying for us.
He knows that we'll come back; He's giving
us the opportunity to come back.
(Derek) So there are stories,
there are promises.
Someone else in the Scripture
that gives us hope? Gladys?
(Gladys) Yes, I love the story of David
when he fell, and in Psalm 51
he said, "A broken and contrite heart,
You will not despise."
So even when we fail, God doesn't.
(Derek) I love those words
in Psalm 51, verse 10,
"Create in me a clean heart, O God;
and renew a right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence,
or take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me..."
(Derek, Team) "... the joy
of Your salvation."
(Derek) So it's coming back
into that intimate relationship
with a God who loves us how?
With an immeasurable and unfailing love.
You know, we cannot fail when we fall
into the arms of a loving Savior;
we can't.
There's one last thought in our study.
We've just got a couple of minutes left.
Did you notice, talking about caring
for the house of God.
Go back to Nehemiah 10 and verse 39,
at the end of this renewing
of the covenant.
Nehemiah makes this interesting record
in chapter 10, Nehemiah,
chapter 10, and verse 39.
Brittany, would you read
that verse for us?
(Brittany) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Nehemiah, chapter 10 and verse 39:
(Derek) Why is that last phrase
so important?
Why is it important today, too,
but let's go back there,
"We will not neglect
the house of our God"?
Why is that important?
God doesn't need that house, or does He?
Why is it important that they said,
"We're not going to neglect
the house of our God"?
Short answer, Travis.
(Travis) Because that was
the picture of salvation
of the land that was going to be...
(Derek) That is telling the story
about a God who loves us
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
Hyperspace forward to our time.
What does that mean for us today?
We'd say, "Okay, we're followers of Jesus,
preparing for His soon return."
How many does Jesus
want to be saved in His Kingdom?
(Team) All.
(Derek) "We will not neglect
the house of our God."
What does that mean
for us today? Stephanie?
(Stephanie) I think it means showing up
and being presently active.
(Derek) Okay, so you'd say
it's very physical, actually going
and being active in what?
(Stephanie) In ministry.
(Derek) In, in...?
(Stephanie) The ministry of the church.
(Derek) In the ministry of the church,
which is what, Harold?
What is the ministry of the church?
(Harold) To share the gospel.
(Derek) That's right, to share
the good news about a God who loves us
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
Now, back then it took sacrifice, right?
They brought their tithes;
they brought their offerings.
Does it require sacrifice today?
(Team) Yes!
(Derek) What kind of sacrifices?
(Team Member) A living sacrifice.
(Derek) A living sacrifice
because, actually, while God
does want us to return our faithful tithes
and to honor Him with praise and prayer,
what He wants more than anything is...?
(Team) Our hearts.
(Derek) He wants us,
that living sacrifice that will love Him
with all of our hearts
and will go out and...?
(Team) Share...
(Derek) Share the good news
about a God who loves us
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
What we'll discover
is that when we do that,
out of the context
of an intimate relationship with God,
what's going to happen
when we go out to share with people
about a God who loves them?
Out of the context
of a life-changing relationship with God,
what's going to happen?
(Team) We'll be changed.
(Derek) It's going to change lives,
including...?
(Team) Ours.
(Derek) That's right.
You know, when God asks us
to do something,
it's not just because He
can't find anybody else.
He could ask angels,
but He wants us to experience
his immeasurable and unfailing love
as we join Him in His harvest work.
We will not let it be said of us
in this last generation,
we will not neglect the house of our God.
And that covenant that He initiated,
that He will put His love
in our hearts, right,
His law in our hearts,
embrace us in an intimate,
life-changing relationship.
Do you want that today?
Every day that's a choice we can make.
Every day, "Lord, I'm here, open to You."
Let's pray; Father in Heaven,
let that be each of our prayers,
that we may see clearer
and yet clearer revelations
of your immeasurable and unfailing love,
and that through us that love
would be revealed to those around us.
In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Someone else needs to konw
that God loves her
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
Someone else, maybe that you work with,
needs to know that God loves him
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
Take that good news and be a blessing
to those around you.
♪ theme music ♪