Beloved Family… there is a unique quality contained in the very essence of what a Blood Covenant is, and what it means. In these treacherous, demanding times, we would do well to ‘unpack’ and ponder it. To express it in one sentence, I would say that it is a perpetual, ever-reliable reassuring loyalty that one blood covenant friend gives to the other… the assurance that, “I am always here for you!”
In the flaky, hyper-changeable world in which we live, it’s almost impossible to trust anyone or anything! Have you noticed that because of the atmosphere in which we now live, people are forced to doubt and question the news they hear; and to mentally reverse the statements and promises many politicians keep making, in order to arrive at the truth of what they’re really saying? And have you noticed the shallowness and manipulation oozing out of so many news, and entertainment, and athletic celebrities that stand before a microphone?
But in sharp contrast to all of that, Scripture reveals that we can rely upon the airtight Credibility and Reliability of God and His Blood Covenant ways, with absolute confidence, rest and trust! The Truth is, that if we really do believe and trust God, we will most assuredly receive from Him everything we will ever need Him to be, and do, and supply for us… despite the treachery and perils our fallen world always presents!
This essential feature of reliability is what I’d like to highlight today… God’s flawless ‘Covenant Level Love and Trustworthiness.’ Undying love is the common element that is always to be expected and received in the world of blood covenants. And no one honors His promises as perfectly as God does. His infinitely perfect trustworthiness empowers us to receive, reflect and embody His Airtight Faithfulness and Reliability and Credibility to the people around us. Because of who He is, and the Fullness that is in Him and that He shares with us, we can afford to serve as our God’s image and likeness!
It’s obvious that the everyday worldly atmosphere around us is alien and opposed to the reality and spirit underlying that solemn and trust-inspiring reality called ‘God’s Blood Covenant Faithfulness (Chesed).’ Nevertheless, our God requires us to specialize in it! We’re expected to demonstrate and embody God’s Chesed… so the world may receive a Gospel that is backed by the Power and Reality of Almighty God, and not some cheap counterfeit substitute gospel foisted on people by tricky manipulative techniques and the underhanded ploys of men!
“And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’—anything more than this is from the evil one.” (Matthew 5:36-37 TLV, Emphasis added)
“As you come to Him, a living stone rejected by men but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house—a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Messiah Yeshua. For it says in Scripture,
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen, precious cornerstone. Whoever trusts in Him will never be put to shame.”
“Now the value is for you who keep trusting; but for those who do not trust,
“The Stone which the builders rejected—this One has become the Chief Cornerstone,”
And “a Stone of stumbling, and a Rock of offense.”
They stumble because they are disobeying the Word—to this they were also appointed. But you are a Chosen People, a Royal Priesthood, a Holy Nation, a People for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light!
Once you were “not a people,” but now you are “God’s People.” You were shown “no mercy,” but now you have been shown “MERCY!”
“Loved ones, I urge you as strangers and sojourners to keep away from the fleshly cravings that war against the soul. Keep your conduct honorable among the Gentiles. Then while they speak against you as evildoers, they may—FROM NOTICING YOUR GOOD (Covenant-honoring) DEEDS—glorify God in the day of Visitation.” (1 Peter 2:4-12 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
The Reality of God’s New Blood Covenant, as He expects and equips us to live it, must be well understood and accepted by anyone who decides to join Him in it. We must realize that anyone who would create and enter into such a bond with God, or with another person, or group of persons, is expected to possess and embody this airtight faithfulness at all times. And God has pledged Himself to live and work in us, in order to MAKE SURE that we’ll be able to meet His exalted Standards of Righteousness, Truth and Justice… because His Power will be the force that enables us to do it!
“Therefore, my loved ones, just as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence—work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For the One working in you is God—both to will and to work for His good pleasure!” (Philippians 2:12-13 TLV)
Our bond of oneness with God is what enables the awesome Power of God to work in and through us… to make sure we’re able to operate as one with God, on His level, according to His Perfect Blood Covenant level trustworthiness. And this awesome characteristic is very well highlighted in this passage:
“Now it was after these things that God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham.”
“Hineni, (Lord, here I am for You)” he (Abraham) said.
“Then He said, “Take your son, your only son whom you love—Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains about which I will tell you.”
“So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son. He split wood for the burnt offering, and got up and went to the place about which God had told him.” (Genesis 22:1-3 TLV,. Amplification and emphasis added)
What Airtight Covenant Faithfulness Looks Like
When we understand what Isaac meant to Abraham, his father, we will understand the wholehearted depth of the blood covenant loyalty and faithfulness that the Covenant Bond he had with God required Abraham to render. When Abraham said ‘Hineni,’ he was saying, ‘Lord, according to our Covenant, I’m here to be and to do whatever You need of me!’ But for Abraham’s poor fallen human flesh, what God was requiring, would have ripped the soul right out of him! Humanly speaking, he would not have been able to fulfill such a request!
But, according to His Covenant with God, Abraham trusted God with an airtight faith, no matter what situation or circumstance he might encounter. And the Covenant he had with God required Abraham to draw continually, whatever he might need, from God, who had pledged to be His Ever-Faithful Friend and Source. So whatever was being required of Abraham, had to come to him from God, in order for him to be able to obey and fulfill God’s standards and requirements.
So that ‘Hineni’ response is what is expected of anyone who is a true Covenant friend of God. This is because, according to our Covenant with God, we know He is committed to provide and supply everything and anything we will ever need… including that seemingly impossible requirement that compelled Abraham to sacrifice his own beloved son!
Scripture reveals that God will give us whatever we will need to obey and fulfill whatever He requires of us all! And this is to be understood and expected and relied upon by anyone who has become a Blood Covenant friend of the Creator of all things! Whatever we will ever need, God has told us that He has already created it and made it available to us!
“So the heavens and the earth were completed along with their entire array! God completed—on the seventh day—His work that He made, and He ceased—on the seventh day—from all His work that He made. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, for on it He ceased from all His work that God created for the purpose of preparing.” (Genesis 2:1-3 TLV, Emphasis added)
“What then shall we say in view of these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how shall He not also with Him freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:31-32 TLV)
“For we who have trusted are entering into that rest. It is just as God has said,
“So in My wrath I swore, ‘They shall never enter My rest,’” even though His works were finished since the foundation of the world. For somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works,” and again in this passage: “They shall never enter My rest.”
“So then it remains for some to enter into it; yet those who formerly had Good News proclaimed to them did not enter because of disobedience. Again, God appoints a certain day—“Today”—saying through David after so long a time, just as it has been said before, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So there remains a Shabbat rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered God’s rest has also ceased from his own work, just as God did from His.
“Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall through the same pattern of disobedience. For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword—piercing right through to a separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:3-12 TLV, Emphasis added)
As we’ve seen in other articles, when two people or two covenant representatives (who are standing for two groups of people) go through a blood covenant ceremony, one part of the ritual requires them to exchange a variety of items. For example, they exchange a portion of their personal names. So after God and Abraham became one in their Covenant, God came to be known as ‘The God of Abraham’ and Abraham was known as ‘the friend of Adonai.’
During the blood covenant ritual, the two individual parties (and in covenants that involve two nations or groups of people, their two respective representatives) exchange articles of personal clothing, and personal weapons. This signifies that each participant vows to share his goods with his blood brother(s), and to always be ready to protect and defend his blood brother(s) to the death, whenever they’re facing outside threats. This is the essence of the pledge being made:
“Whatever I am and whatever I have at my disposal is now yours. And, if you ever have need of anything that I can give, or do, to protect you and advance your interests in whatever way you may need, I swear, by the covenant bloods we shed and unite this day… that under pain of death, I will stand by you and provide for your needs at all times, even if it kills me! I swear, under pain of death, that whatever you need me to be, or do, or provide for you… will be yours!”
This is the awesome and extreme degree of self-giving that a true blood covenant bond obligates anyone who dares to enter into such an awesome commitment. But even though humans dare to make such deep promises to each other, with the best of intentions, we often have lapses and fail to back up our word! But God, who also commits Himself to us in this way, is Infinitely Perfect and Utterly Flawless! And He will NEVER violate His own Word! So ponder this beloved: the infinitely perfect, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, totally transcendent God, swears to be and to do for us, whatever we will ever need in this very dramatic and demanding Blood Covenant way!
So, when Abraham’s Divine Blood Covenant Friend asked him to give his beloved son Isaac back to Him, Abraham knew very well what that request required of him. And when he said, “Hineni,” he was saying, “Beloved Covenant Lord… I am here for you.” And to be ‘here’ for God means, that we will trust in His Power, Ability, and Goodness and Tender Mercy on our behalf no matter the cost. We will trust Him to give us WHATEVER it will take for us to honor our Covenant Bond with Him… with airtight, expectant, confidence!
And that is what Abraham did! This is why his response did not contain any outraged questioning or complaint or hint of bargaining or denial or quibbling. The Covenant required Abraham to comply with God’s request wholeheartedly, not because he was so able and reliable, but because God’s Ability and Reliability was more than enough to cover them both! And so, not only was Abraham’s immediate response made properly… but he proved he meant it, by following through… trusting, relying, and receiving what he needed from God… all the way to the point of actually being ready to perform the required act:
“The two of them (Abraham and Isaac) walked on together. Then they came to the place about which God had told him, and Abraham built the altar there, laid out the wood, bound up Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.” (Genesis 22:8b-10 TLV, Emphasis added)
Covenant Loyalty In Action
By being willing to go to go ‘all the way,’ Abraham proved his willingness to trust the heart motivation and Covenant faithfulness of His Divine Covenant Friend and Partner. Thus Abraham proved to be a genuine, wholehearted, ‘to-the-death’ faithful and true ‘Blood brother’ to his Lord. Through his display of authentic Covenant loyalty and integrity, he proved that he was actually trusting God to supply everything he would ever need! Thus he enabled God to reveal the depth and extent of His own Covenant Loyalty on behalf of Abraham, and everyone else from the fallen, Sin-murdered human race who would later be included with Abraham in this Covenant:
“But the angel of Adonai called to him from Heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!”
He said, “HINENI!” (Here I am for You!)
“Then He said, “Do not reach out your hand against the young man—do nothing to him at all. For now I know that you are one who fears God—you did not withhold your son, your only son, from Me.”
Then Abraham lifted up his eyes and behold, there was a ram, just caught in the thick bushes by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. Abraham named that place, Adonai Yireh,—as it is said today, “On the mountain, ADONAI WILL PROVIDE!”
“The angel (The Living Word) of Adonai called to Abraham a second time from Heaven and said, “By myself I swear—it is a declaration of Adonai—because you have done this thing, and you did not withhold your son, your only son, I will richly bless you and bountifully multiply your Seed like the stars of heaven, and like the sand that is on the seashore, and your Seed will possess the gate of His enemies. In your Seed (which I Myself will be) all the nations of the earth will be blessed—because you obeyed My Voice (My Living Word).” (Genesis 22:11-18 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
So the mysterious and wonderfully awesome depths of this interchange between God and His friend Abraham, served as a vehicle for conveying the most profound revelation imaginable! God was revealing and unpacking more and more of what He had promised to do to the Serpent, who had done everything possible to devastate and destroy His Creator’s precious ‘image and likeness’ human creation!
“I will put animosity between you and the woman—between your seed and her Seed. He (Her Seed, the Living Word of God made flesh) will crush your head, and you will crush His heel.” (Genesis 3:15 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added
Yes, the promised ‘Seed of the woman’ was going to be Almighty God Himself, who, in the fullness of time, would, through His Living Word, take on human flesh so that His own Word could be the legal Blood Covenant Representative and Covering for the entire human race. The Covenant God made with Abraham included this awesome Blessing: Because the Covenant makes Abraham to be one with God, and God to be one with Abraham, God shared His Living Creative Word with Abraham and his family, placing Him into their genealogical line, which in time, would come to be known as, Israel (The Woman). Yes, God entrusted His beloved Son, the Living Word, to Abraham and the rest of us. He spoke His Word into Abraham and commissioned and destined Him to be ‘Abraham’s Seed,’ on our behalf!
“In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that has come into being. (that is, He is the Supplier of Everything we will ever need.) In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the Darkness, and the Darkness has not overpowered it!” (John 1:1-5 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
“Brothers and sisters, I speak in human terms: even with a man’s covenant, once it has been confirmed, no one cancels it or adds to it. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his Seed. It doesn’t say, “and to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “and to your Seed,” WHO IS THE MESSIAH! What I am saying is this: Torah, which came 430 years later, does not cancel the Covenant previously confirmed by God (for Abraham), so as to make the promise ineffective. For if the Inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise. But God has graciously given it to Abraham by means of a promise.” (Galatians 3:15-18 TLV, Emphasis added)
In other words, beloved… when God put Abraham to the test, He was actually putting Himself to the test! Because Sin killed us all, God is the one who always has to do all of the work! And we are required to rest in Him with total confidence, receiving whatever we will need from what He has already created, paid for and made available to us! God has made sure that the integrity of His Covenant with Abraham will always be authentic, genuinely valid, airtight and reliable. But Abraham’s part in the Covenant also had to be real. His job was to remain firmly rooted in unassailable trust, rest and confidence in God. And that’s why God put him through that excruciatingly agonizing testing trial. And throughout Abraham’s ordeal, God was empowering Him to remain steadfast and ‘come through with flying colors!’ Abraham’s ‘Hineni’ response proved to be real, precisely because his trust in God was real, and that enabled God to sustain His Covenant friend from start to finish. And after the authenticity of Abraham’s Covenant-level faith was verified and established, God, in turn, responded to Abraham in His absolutely astounding Omnipotent Power and Goodness.
So, the rest of the human race that would later be grafted into Abraham’s Covenant lineage, received the blessings that flowed from that successful exchange between God and Abraham. And God is able to give to each one of Abraham’s true Covenant Family members, His own personal ‘HINENI’ response… whenever we call and rely upon, Him! “ I AM here for you!” is what each Covenant friend says to the other. So in effect, God could say to His friend Abraham:
“Now Abraham, My beloved Covenant friend, know for certain that when you, or anyone in your Covenant Household calls on me for protection and assistance, I too will be there for you! I will supply everything necessary for you all… to be and do what my will and plan and this Covenant Bond will ever require of you. Now, we can love and serve each other with authentic, airtight, ‘no holds barred’ Mutual Covenant Loyalty and Trust and Fulfilling Airtight Lovingkindness… FOREVER!”
And notice this also: through Abraham’s obedient faith, Father was providing the substitute sacrifice that was to take Isaac’s place, and the place of every other human who would ever become part of the Abrahamic Covenant! He was renewing the promise He had made to His friend Abraham at an earlier time. At that time, God promised to give Abraham a son named Isaac. But through Isaac’s bloodline, He was intending to give Abraham… another Son… in addition to Isaac. That second Son would be Israel’s Messiah! And that was actually the Son that God was asking Abraham to offer up to Him as a Sacrifice!
Can you see it dear ones? God was showing Abraham that He was going to give up His own Eternal Living Word. Yeshua was the Beloved Son God had in mind, because only He would be an adequate Sacrifice to offer for the Redemption of all of Creation! And so God destined His own Word as His Blood-sealed Pledge. One day in the future the Word would take on Abraham’s flesh and blood, and become a Son of Abraham… so that He could be offered as a Substitute Sacrifice for Isaac, and for all the rest of us!
Yeshua was given to Abraham on Mt. Moriah that day! Because Abraham had been willing and ready to give his son to God, through his airtight obedience of faith, God gave His Son for Abraham and his entire family! And this mutual exchange of sons enabled Abraham to have a Family, through Isaac, as God had promised. So Abraham’s airtight trust in God proved to be well-founded. And the numerical tally of this Family will turn out to be so great, that no one will be able to count or comprehend, or overcome it!
“After these things the word of Adonai came to Abram in a vision saying, “Do not fear, Abram. I am your Shield, your very great Reward.”
“But Abram said, “My Lord Adonai, what will You give me, since I am living without children, and the heir of my household is Eliezer of Damascus?” Then Abram said, “Look! You have given me no seed, so a house-born servant is my heir.”
“Then behold, THE WORD OF ADONAI CAME TO HIM SAYING, “This one will not be your heir, but in fact, one who will come from your own body will be your heir (Isaac). He took him outside and said, “Look up now, at the sky, and count the stars—if you are able to count them.” Then He said to him, “So shall your Seed be. (your other Son, the Son that I Myself shall be, will be your Seed. Yes My friend, I Myself will be part of your bloodline. And in your name, and that of your Family, I will provide The Sacrifice that will redeem the entire world!)”
“Then he believed in Adonai and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:1-6 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
“No one has gone up into Heaven except the One who came down from Heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life!
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. The one who believes in Him is not condemned; but whoever does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not put his trust in the Name (the Word) of the one and only Ben-Elohim (Son of God).” (John 3:13-18 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
Yeshua Is The Promised Seed
Notice what was said above in the Genesis text: “The Word of Adonai came to Abram.” This took place in the early days of Abraham’s Covenant relationship with God. And the Word was revealing to His Covenant friend that He Himself would be ‘THE SEED of Abraham.’ And through this awesome Infinite, Eternal Seed, the spiritual descendants of this God-chosen man, Abraham, would become an immense numberless host that would sing the praises and exalt the Goodness and Righteousness and Glory of God for all of Eternity.
“And they are singing a new song, saying:
“You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals. For You were slain, and by Your blood You redeemed for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them for our God a Kingdom and kohanim (a priesthood), and they shall reign upon the earth.”
“Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders—their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. They were chanting with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive Power and Riches and Wisdom and Might and Honor and Glory and Blessing!”
“And I heard every creature in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea and everything in them, responding,
“To the One seated on the Throne and to the Lamb be Blessing and Honor and Glory and Power forever and ever!”
“And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.” (Revelation 5:9-14 TLV, Amplification and emphasis added)
“Now before faith came, we were being guarded under Torah—bound together until the coming faith would be revealed. Therefore the Torah became our guardian to lead us to Messiah (the Seed of Abraham), so that we might be made right BASED ON TRUSTING.
“But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. For you are all sons of God through trusting in Messiah Yeshua. For all of you who were immersed in Messiah have clothed yourselves with Messiah. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female—for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua. And if you belong to Messiah, then you are Abraham’s seed—heirs according to the Promise!” (Galatians 3:23-29 TLV)
“At that time Yeshua said in response, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and discerning and revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was pleasing to You.
“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened (by earthly concerns), and I will give you Rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find (complete and perfect) Rest for your souls.’ For My yoke (being in Covenant Union with Me) is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:25-30 TLV, Emphasis added)
Dear ones… remember this interchange that took place between our Lord and His shocked and bewildered disciples:
“Now behold, one came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good shall I do to have eternal life?”
“Why do you ask Me about what is good?” Yeshua said to him. “There is only One who is good; but if you want to enter into Life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he said.
“Yeshua said, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.”
“All these I’ve kept,” the young man said to Him. “What do I still lack?”
“Yeshua said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you own, and give to the poor; and you will have Treasure in Heaven. Then come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving, for he had much property.
“Then Yeshua said to His disciples, “Amen, I tell you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God.”
“When the disciples heard this, they were utterly astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?”
“And looking, Yeshua said to them, “With men this is impossible, BUT WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!” (Matthew 19:16-26 TLV, Emphasis added)
God requires His true disciples to wholeheartedly say, “Hineni” whenever He calls on them to render Blood Covenant loyalty to Him. But He knows our Sin-corrupted and damaged state. And He has already provided and paid for everything we will ever need to fulfill His will and plan for us. Therefore, He requires us to look to His Living Word made flesh… and to draw from Him whatever it may be that has already been provided for us… so that He can empower us to do God’s will and to fulfill His plan for us.
“FOR THE ONE WORKING IN YOU IS GOD—both to will and to work for His good pleasure!” (Philippians 2:13 TLV, Emphasis added)
And as long as we are drawing everything we need from the Infinite Authority of God’s indwelling Word and Omnipotent Power of His Holy Spirit… then whenever we call upon the Name of our Awesome, Ever-Faithful Father… we can know for sure that His response to us will always be… “HINENI!”