Day Nineteen
”AND THE COVENANT WHICH I HAVE MADE ON EARTH,”
Today’s Scripture Reading
Now these are the commandments, the regulations, and the case laws that the LORD your God commanded me to teach you to follow in the land you are entering to possess, so that you will fear the LORD your God by keeping all his regulations and his commandments that I am commanding you—both you and your sons and daughters—all the days of your life and so that you will lengthen your life. Listen to them, Israel! Follow them carefully so that things will go well for you and so that you will continue to multiply exactly as the LORD, your ancestors’ God, promised you, in a land full of milk and honey.
Israel, listen! Our God is the LORD! Only the LORD!
Love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your strength. These words that I am commanding you today must always be on your minds. Recite them to your children. Talk about them when you are sitting around your house and when you are out and about, when you are lying down and when you are getting up. Tie them on your hand as a sign. They should be on your forehead as a symbol. Write them on your house’s doorframes and on your city’s gates.
Deuteronomy 6:1-9
Reflection
A bold reminder that this prayer is more than passing thoughts or fleeting words, Wesley makes a promise when he prays, “And the covenant which I have made on earth.” More strongly stated than the word promise, we could essentially say that Wesley makes a contract. A contract is a formal spoken agreement, and using a word like contract (or pact, treaty, or accord) takes this prayer from something we might have an inclination to undervalue—as human promises hardly carry the weight they ought to—and assigns an unmistakable significance to the prayer.
The majority of phrases in the Wesley Covenant Prayer require that they be tied to either the preceding or succeeding statement to fully grasp the context and appreciate and comprehend the main idea. This particular phrase, to be held in context, must be understood as linked to the succeeding statement of “let it be ratified in heaven.” While the covenant is made on earth, it requires God’s blessing to be wholly authorized.
Wesley wishes to elevate his commitment, or take it up a notch, and makes a covenant to prove his words are more than mere lip service to surrender, suffering, humility, and the like. Unlike the covenants in Scripture, in which God outlines the roles and responsibilities and which there is no negotiation, Wesley makes a human attempt to raise the stakes of the prayer left undone. Wesley knows he will struggle to perfect the prayer. The practical reality is that there will be times he fails to do as his words say he will, and so is true for us. However, his desire is that he not fail and that he perfects the prayer by flawlessly living out the principles and precepts.
What is required of a Christian? What exactly are we saying yes to when we choose to follow Jesus? I realize that Wesley’s covenant is in the context of the previous statements made in the prayer. Through the prayer, Wesley surrenders himself, even to the possibility of suffering, and commits to serve God in honor or in humility. Wesley also chooses to live in community with God and participate in God’s missional commitment to restore the world. Wesley is naming the requirements for him (and others who wish to follow) to fully live into God’s mission, beginning with the realization that he is no longer his own and continuing to the commitment that he is bound to the remarks he is making in the prayer. As Christians, without even any knowledge of the Wesley Covenant Prayer, what are we committing to when we become Christians? What are we contracting with God to do?
There are many ways to answer the question of the Christian commitment. For me, the most basic way to answer the question, “What is required of a Christian?” is summed up in what we call the Great Commandment, to “love God and love others.” When they say yes to following Jesus, Christians commit to strive to perfectly love God and perfectly love others. Jesus said, “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind,” and, “You must love your neighbor as you love yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39; see also Mark 12:30-31 and Luke 10:27).
When they say ‘yes’ to following Jesus, Christians commit
to strive to perfectly love God and perfectly love others.
To be faithful Christians, we must grow inwardly in our adoration of God and outwardly in our expression of love to others. This is what Christians say yes to. This is what it means, in part, to be a follower of Jesus. This inward growth means that we surrender to God, abide with God, and worship God with all of our lives, which begins on the inside, in the heart. The outward growth means that we live in such a way that speaks truth or bears witness to God’s love. We seek to restore a community of people, reminding them that God has not forgotten them, and we impart life or give away our own interests and desires for the sake of the world, placing God’s kingdom activity first. The inward and outward formation in our lives, loving God and loving others, happens in harmony. This means these two areas of formation are inseparable—you don’t do one without the other. We can’t choose which one we like better and then live by only that one. A virtuous life in the way of Jesus is about the identification of and, ultimately, the working out of both inward and outward formation, in chorus.
Now, back to the Wesley Covenant Prayer. Wesley isn’t trying to usurp God’s authority by originating the covenant. Instead, Wesley, by praying, “And the covenant which I have made on earth,” is actually placing himself under the authority of God by inviting God to hold him accountable for his actions or inactions. This is a critical element of the prayer as Wesley, and all of us who pray with him, is opening up his heart as if to say, “Search me, know me, and discipline me, as I may stray.”
Each of us is prone to wander, and Wesley knows this. Therefore, the covenant is a sincere act in which the desire to surrender to God’s work is intensified. Deeply committed disciples know they wander, but the earnest desire of their heart is faithfulness that leads to perfect love.
Today’s Challenge:
PROMISE-KEEPER TEST
Ask a friend, relative, coworker, or neighbor (someone who knows you well) to answer this question:
[Insert your name] keeps his or her promises:
•all the time
•some of the time
•rarely
•never
Personal Reflection
•Do I keep my promises? Would others say I keep my promises?
•What is most significant to me about this part of the prayer?
Group Discussion
•Do you agree that covenants on earth require God’s blessing to be authorized? Why or why not?
•What can we do, as a group, to hold one another accountable to the promises we make to God and others?
•Why do transparency and faithfulness matter?
•What would you say is the main idea of this part of the prayer?
Departing Prayer
Search us, O God, and know our hearts. Lead us in your everlasting and good ways. We submit ourselves to you as a living sacrifice, God, for your use and the use of your Kingdom. Let us no longer be conformed to this world, but be transformed that we may be a sacrifice to your perfect will. Amen.