CHOOSING IS THE HEART OF COVENANT

At the last supper Jesus spoke not only about the bread being his body given for us but also about the new covenant in his blood. Last week as the wedding of Doug and Tracy approached, and as I thought about preparing a communion meditation, I couldn't help but think about how marriage is a sign of the covenant God has given us in Christ.

There are many connections between marriage as a covenant and the new covenant that we have in Christ but certainly one of the most important is the fact that at the heart of each is choosing.

In marriage, two people have chosen each other and expressed their choice in the vows they make. It may have begun with just one of them choosing the other but it will never work until both choose the other. Over sixty years ago, unknown to her at first, I began the choice of Frances when I saw her singing in a women's trio at church. Thankfully, the time came when she chose me as well. Once both have chosen the other they are able to join in saying with the woman in The Song of Solomon, "I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine."

After Genesis 3 and the separation from God that it describes, the entire story of the bible can be summarized in terms of God choosing to love his creation. God chose Noah and established an everlasting covenant with him. God chose Abraham and made a covenant of love with him to make him a great nation and to bless all the families of the earth through him. Out of divine love God chose the Jews, as Moses wrote, "to be a people for his own possession ... not because you were more in number than any other people ... but because the Lord loves you" (Deut 7:6-8). And in the New Testament we are told over and over that God has chosen us in Christ.

Paul put it beautifully in Ephesians 1 when he spoke of how God "chose us in Christ ... and destined us for adoption as his children." Here is the beauty of it -- God hasn't chosen people in general. He hasn't chosen a crowd. He has chosen me, you, each of us personally, out of his love.

But have we chosen Him? He will never go back on his promises, He will never stop loving us with an unconditional love. He will be true to his covenant. We will always be God's beloved, and He longs to hear us say that He is our beloved also.

At this covenant meal we can not only experience the joy of knowing that he has chosen us, we can recommit ourselves to him. We can do it now as we say together the good confession of faith.