“And I will remember My covenant.” — Genesis 9:15
Mark the form of the promise. God does not say, “And when ye shall look upon the bow, and ye shall remember My covenant, then I will not destroy the earth,” but it is gloriously put, not upon our memory, which is fickle and frail, but upon God’s memory, which is infinite and immutable. “The bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant.” Oh! it is not my remembering God, it is God’s remembering me which is the ground of my safety; it is not my laying hold of His covenant, but His covenant’s laying hold on me. Glory be to God! the whole of the bulwarks of salvation are secured by divine power, and even the…
minor towers, which we may imagine might have beenleft to man, are guarded by almighty strength. Even the remembrance ofthe covenant is not left to our memories, for we might forget, but our Lordcannot forget the saints whom He has graven on the palms of His hands. Itis with us as with Israel in Egypt; the blood was upon the lintel and thetwo side-posts, but the Lord did not say, “When you see the blood I willpass over you,” but “When I see the blood I will pass over you.” Mylooking to Jesus brings me joy and peace, but it is God’s looking to Jesuswhich secures my salvation and that of all His elect, since it is impossiblefor our God to look at Christ, our bleeding Surety, and then to be angrywith us for sins already punished in Him. No, it is not left with us even tobe saved by remembering the covenant. There is no linsey-wolsey here —not a single thread of the creature mars the fabric. It is not of man, neitherby man, but of the Lord alone. We should remember the covenant, and weshall do it, through divine grace; but the hinge of our safety does not hangthere — it is God’s remembering us, not our remembering Him; and hencethe covenant is an everlasting covenant.
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Producer: Todd Adkins
Voice Artist: Ian Cullen