A Reflection on Genesis 9:8-17 for Sunday, February 26, 2012 

“As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you..." - Genesis 9:9

This passage out of Genesis is probably familiar to many readers.  It comes from the end of the story of Noah and is one of the first covenants in the Hebrew Scriptures.  After the ark had come to rest and the animals had all departed for dry land, God establishes a covenant with Noah, Noah's descendants, and all of the animals that there will never be another flood to wipe humans off the face of this world.  God then states that the rainbow will be a sign of this covenant.

In the United Church of Christ we use the language of covenants quite a bit.  This is a phenomenon that happens both at the local church level as well as throughout the national settings of the denomination.  We say that each setting of the UCC (national offices, general synod, conferences, and local churches) are held together through covenant with one another.  We also enter into covenant with one another when we become members of a local church.  When we install ministers at Plymouth, we also enter into covenants with them.  Our church is replete with covenants.

Despite all of our talk, the nature of covenants has vexed me for quite a while.  My first experience with a covenant was in Youth Forum.  When we went on Mission Trips each of the youth signed a covenant agreeing to some basic ground rules for the duration of the trip.  At the time, this seemed contractual to me and seemed as though it was lacking some of the pieces of a covenant.

In the time since those YF covenants I have spent a lot of time thinking about the nature of covenants.  In that time one of the things that I have realized (through the help of others) is that a covenant has three (or more) parties involved and one of those present is often forgotten about.  The party that I believe is often forgotten about is God.  When we enter into covenants, we not only enter the agreement with the other person but also with God.  We agree to try our hardest through the Grace of God to uphold the expectations of the covenant.  We also recognize that if the covenant is not upheld, it is through the Grace of God that both parties can hold each other in love and mutual support as they try to work through the issues at hand.

I now realize that when I entered into covenant on each of the Mission Trips, I was accepting responsibility to uphold the agreement with God's help.  I also realize that if I had not upheld the covenant, the adult leaders had entered into covenant with me. Their covenant with me was that they would seek resolutions to the issue that acknowledged the love and support of everyone involved.  In the midst of conflict, that love and support is easier said than done.  We must rely on the Grace of God to get us through the conflict while maintaining love for each other.

Our covenants might seem slightly different than Noah's covenant with God, because ours are agreements between two parties and God rather than just Noah and God.  They are fundamentally the same however, because of the recognition that only through God's Grace can we enter into truly covenantal relationships.

 

Loving God,

We seek on a daily basis to forge relationships with one another.  Yet, we recognize that you are the one who is at the center of each of these relationships.  We ask for your love and Grace as we attempt to enter into covenant with one another. Amen

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Kevin Bechtold is a member of Plymouth Church and is studying in the School of Theology and Ministry at Seattle University. Contact Kevin at kevbec AT comcast DOT net.