by Todd Elder at Exploring Creation
The Almighty's relationship with His people comes in the form of a covenant. Throughout history, multiple covenants have been made with individuals, groups of people, nations, and all of mankind. The covenant is basically a spiritual contract with physical ramifications including blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.
The basic motivation of a covenant from the Almighty is love. He loves us, wants to care for us, and have relationship with us. Yet something must be done to allow an impure person to approach the Almighty who is pure. He has arranged how this can be done through the covenant laws and the sacrifices. The basic theme of such a covenant is: 'What is mine is yours. What is yours is mine. I will do everything I can to support and care for you even to the point of death.' This is the type of agreement we are in with the One Most High and He has already shown that he will die for us.
There are many ways to define and delineate the writings of Scripture. Perhaps one of the simplest and most powerful is to define Scripture as the books of the Covenant and the history of the Covenant. The books of the Covenant are generally the first five books of the Bible known as the books of Moses, the Torah, or the Pentateuch. The remaining books, showing the history of the covenant, collectively show what has happened to the Almighty's people through history as they have obeyed or disobeyed the covenant.
Many covenants have been made throughout history. The covenant with Adam, the first of all mankind, was broken and, therefore, death and curses entered into the world. The relationship that was had by Adam as the Almighty walked through the garden with him was lost, is lost, and shall not be completely restored until the new heavens and new earth.
Throughout history, multiple covenants have been made with individuals, groups of people, nations, and all of mankind. As with any relationship, to grow closer the individuals or groups involved must spend time together and build up a trust in each other. Often, there must be a set of rules that govern how the relationship will function. This is especially true when one side is to be honored above the other as the Almighty is honored above mankind. The giving of the ten commandments, all the laws, and even the sacrifices are the workings of the covenant. They do not make a relationship but instead explain how the relationship can grow and prosper.
The covenant is basically a spiritual contract with physical ramifications. The blessings and cursings in this covenant are a direct result of Israel's obedience or disobedience to the covenant laws. The Nation of Israel accepted this for themselves and for all their generations at Mt. Sinai and formally repeated it as an oath at Mts. Gerazim and Ebal when they entered the land of Israel. To sum up these passages, if we obey Him he will bless us and we will prosper and see good. If we disobey, we will be cursed and see evil. The history of Israel clearly shows the effects of how well they kept the covenant.
Righteousness and submission to the covenant are followed by judgment. Disobedience and the breaking of the covenant are also followed by judgment. A judgment can come on a personal, national, or global level and often comes in a physical form as a result of something that is spiritually right or wrong. One such example is Israel's eventual captivity and dispersion which was due to their complete abandonment of the Almighty. Such a punishment was exactly what the covenant details described.
We should realize that typically there is no room for mercy in a covenant. When one side messes up, there is a punishment waiting. However, the Father is Merciful. He makes provision for mercy through atonement. When someone would sin, it could be placed upon an animal and it would be torn up (sacrificed) instead. Yahshua's atonement on the cross was another great act of mercy ... the greatest act of mercy possible. Humans have broken the covenant many times, were it not for the mercy of Elohim, we would be long gone ... the covenant null and void. But through His love, it continues.
Scripture contains many prophecies about the creation, the nation of Israel, and the work of the Messiah. The start of the modern State of Israel shows the Almighty's continued work with His people. Scrpture also speaks of the future when there will be a new covenant between the Almighty and mankind. This covenant includes a new heaven and new earth as well as close eternal relationship with Himself for believers in the Messiah.
The battle with evil comes from many directions. One of the strongest attacks against the covenant relationship is the theology of dispensation. A dispensation is when an authority temporarily releases or exempts those under it from an obligation or rule. The primary dispensation that is used is the release from the commandments and laws of the Sinai Covenant. Instead, a series of manmade laws and regulations are set in place to guide how worship and relationship with the Almighty is to be accomplished.