Devotion - Monday, January 23

In Hebrews 8, the writer speaks of the covenant. The intent is to show the new covenant as a promise contained in the old covenant.

The first covenant is established with Abraham. (Jewish teachers encourage us to refer to it as the "Prime Covenant," a reminder that this covenant has not become outdated, as the word "Old" would suggest. Rather, it is the prime covenant upon which another is built.)

The second covenant comes to us through Jesus.

I speaking of this covenant, God says, "I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more." In this covenant, we are released from our worry and our anxiety; we are set free to love and serve God.

If this is the promise God has made with us, what is our promise to God? Think of the opportunity you have to establish a new covenant, a covenant between you and God. This may be your first or prime. It might be a second, or perhaps a third or even an eleventh. Regardless, what might be the earmarks of a new covenant between you and God?

Martin Luther taught that as he washed his face each morning, he remembered his baptismal covenant and began the new day with a new relationship with God. Begin this day, with a new covenant in place between you and the God who sets you free from fear and anxiety.