Living As a Covenant Community - Constant...

Living As a Covenant Comm

unityCorene W

Davis

God’s C

ovenants

Care &

Grace

Adam

& E

ve

Blessing

Abraham

Guidance &

Law

Eternal R

ule

God’s C

ovenants

Care &

Grace

Adam

& E

ve

Redem

ption & S

afetyN

oah

Blessing

Abraham

Guidance &

Law

Eternal R

ule

God’s C

ovenants

Care &

Grace

Adam

& E

ve

Redem

ption & S

afetyN

oah

Blessing

Abraham

Guidance &

Law

Eternal R

ule

Moses

God’s C

ovenants

Care &

Grace

Adam

& E

ve

Redem

ption & S

afetyN

oah

Blessing

Abraham

Guidance &

Law

Eternal R

ule

Moses

David &

Jonathan

God’s C

ovenants

Care &

Grace

Adam

& E

ve

Redem

ption & S

afetyN

oah

Blessing

Abraham

Guidance &

Law

Eternal R

ule

EV

ER

LAS

TING

Moses

David &

Jonathan

JES

US

As you arrive,

Take an index card and write this:

1) Nam

e

2) One goal you have for this study

Place your card on table up front.

Welcom

e to M

ission u 2017

Living as a Covenant

Com

munity

Corene D

avis

Study Leader

Session O

ne

God as C

ovenant Maker:

The Covenant of C

are and G

race

Session One G

oals:!

To develop an understanding of the meaning of

“covenant” from our personal understanding, the H

ebrew

words, and from

traditional and contemporary Jew

ish com

munity understandings

!To explore covenant m

aking as God’s w

ay of establishing a relationship w

ith humanity through the biblical accounts of

God, creation, and Adam

and Eve.

O

UR GO

D IS AN AWESO

ME G

OD

https://youtu.be/M3I0gv_xp1A

Overall goals of the study -

To see G

od as:

Covenant maker

Covenant keeperCovenant equipper

Introducing ourselves

What would you like to be called?

A definition or experience of “covenant”

in your own life

Classroom Covenant

Listen to understand, not to respondG

ive everyone a chance to respondM

ake “I” statements

More?

Two H

ebrew w

ords with covenant m

eanings:

berit

h – traditionally referred to covenant that signified agreem

ent between tw

o parties

hesed – (less frequent use) is the kindness or

graciousness of God tow

ard humanity in

establishing a relationship

Journaling our thoughts to the first covenant (G

enesis 1:26-28, 31)

Consider the second aspect of this first covenant in light of the tem

ptation. (G

enesis 3, particularly verses 4-5)

What do you think w

as going through the minds of

Adam and Eve (the com

munity), w

hen they were in

the midst of this w

onderful creation?

What is the difference betw

een being created “reflecting G

od’s nature” and the voice of temptation

saying, “You’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be

just like God.” W

hat does the experience tell us about hum

an nature? Did Adam

and Eve create a crisis w

here there did not have to be one?

Imagine being a part of that first covenant

comm

unity: Put yourself in the minds of Adam

(“she gave it to m

e”) and Eve (“the serpent seduced m

e”). Can you develop some additional

justifications for their response to the serpent? W

hy did they choose to eat from the tree of

knowledge? W

hy did they want to be just like

God? D

oes anything like that ever happen to us as a com

munity or as individuals?

The Covenant Com

munity Today

What m

ight be some sim

ilarities between the author’s experience and that of Adam

and Eve? (page 30)

The Covenant Com

munity Today

Work in pairs to share sim

ilar stories from your own

faith journeys, mom

ents of crisis that led to depending upon yourselves rather than on the

promises of G

od.

Work in two groups

Group 1 – develop a list of positive exam

ples of UM

W and

other covenant comm

unities’ work on current crises like

climate change.

Group 2 – recall contem

porary experiences and make a list

of the hard places/opportunity mom

ents for covenant m

aking stewardship as reflected in G

enesis 3, where there

is a temptation to follow

our own know

ledge rather than listening for the guidance of G

od.

(Refer to Appendix A for assistance)

Develop your ow

n brief covenant, w

riting “psalms” from

your conversation together. (See Appendix C)

Write “psalm

s” reflecting:

➢Praise for the care and grace of our covenant

God.

➢Com

plaint about the difficulty of the task of obedience in the m

idst of fear and crisis.

➢Praise for the joy of “reflecting G

od’s nature” in our responsibility for the care of creation.

Light the covenant candle(s), add water to the

covenant container, form a circle.

O

ur God Is An Awesom

e God

(TFWS, #2040)

Guide for closing prayers:

(Praise) I waited patiently for G

od…

(Nam

e your own exam

ples of blessings, personal and com

munal)

(Complaint) Troubles surround us…

(N

ame the tem

ptations and challenges of the covenant com

munity you identified)

Save us, God. Com

e quickly. We are needy and

need help. (N

ame a second praise about the joy of the

responsibilities for the care of creation and the work for

social justice.)

God, you are m

y guide; God, you are m

y God.

Please act right away. H

elp us. (O

ffer a prayer of thanksgiving for beginning this work

together and for our covenant-making G

od.)

Am

en.

G

etting ready for the next session:

Half the class will read the Noah texts – Gen. 6:5-13 and G

en. 6-9:17

Half the class will read the Abraham texts – G

en. 12:1-7; Gen. 15:1-6; G

en. 16-17

Also read chapters 2 and 3 of the text

Session Tw

o

Covenant-K

eeper God and

Faithful and Obedient

Covenant P

eople: The C

ovenant of Redem

ption &

Safety and the C

ovenant of B

lessing

Session Two Goals:

! To learn how

God expands the covenant

relationship in periods of crisis and fear for the covenant com

munity.

! To consider the im

portance of great trust and acts of faithfulness by the covenant com

munity.

G

reat Is Thy Faithfulness“G

reat is Thy faithfulness,” O G

od my Father,

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;Thou changest not, Thy com

passions, they fail notAs Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

“G

reat is Thy faithfulness!” “Great is Thy faithfulness!”

Morning by m

orning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—

“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto m

e!

Listening to the Biblical Texts: G

roup 1 – Noah: The Covenant of Redemption and Safety

(Gen. 6:5-9; 8:20-22; 9:1-16)

Group 2 – Abraham

: The Covenant of Blessing (Gen.

12:1-3; 15:5-6; 17:3-14)Review the total story. M

ake notes on attitudes and responses. Create a m

onologue or dialogue about the character’s response to G

od’s covenant blessings.

The Covenant Comm

unity Today

Share personal experiences of trying to live the covenantal life – personal crises and crises of faith that are sim

ilar to Noah (the storm

s of our lives) and Abraham

(the unknown).

Then think about the situations facing today’s covenant com

munities that require obedience and

faith. (See Appendix A)

Three large murals of our experiences:

1.Situations that feel like evil all around and the uncertainty in the m

odern world.

2.Signs of the rainbow, of G

od’s covenant, in the faith experience of your com

munity.

3. Ways in w

hich the covenant comm

unity can be a “rainbow

” or an “ark.”

Questions to help us reflect on

“rainbow” or “ark” experiences:

a. What are the actions of the com

munity of

justice? b.W

here is God calling the com

munity to

challenge the status quo? c. W

here has the covenant comm

unity become

stuck? d.W

hat risks need to be taken (See Appendix A)


covenant pitcher, form a circle.

Use the three lists w

e just made to create a

prayer. Follow

ing each individual prayer, the comm

on response w

ill be, “God, your servants are

listening.” At the end, all will say, “A

men.”

Sing Trust and Obey

(UMH, #467)

Getting ready for the next session:

Review Chapter 4 and Exodus 19-20

Session Three

God the E

quipper and G

od’s Covenant N

ation: The C

ovenant of G

uidance and Law

Session Three Goals:

! To increase understanding of the law

s handed dow

n by Moses.

! To ponder the relevance of the

comm

andments and law

s to our lives today.

What Does the Lord Require

of You(TFW

S, #2174)

Opening W

ords(in unison)

I am the Lord your G

od, who brought you out of

the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before m

e” (Exodus 20:2-3).

“You shall love the Lord your God w

ith all your heart, and w

ith all your soul, and with

all your mind, and w

ith all your strength…

’You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other com

mandm

ent greater than these” (M

ark 12:30-32).

Covenant PollDo Christians need the com

mandm

ents?

List the crises facing the covenant com

munity from

Exodus 19

Use Lectio D

ivina

Listen to these passages with eyes closed. Listen to

these comm

andments several tim

es, with a pause in

between, focusing on and w

riting down w

ords or ideas that resonant w

ith you:

Exodus 20:2-3

Deuteronom

y 6:5 E

xodus 20:7

Discuss Loving G

od: (C

omm

andments 1-3)

How

does an individual live up to this comm

and?

What are som

e examples of w

hat it might m

ean?

Is it about acts of worship or acts of justice?

Discuss Loving G

od: (C

omm

andments 1-3)

What are the tem

ptations for idol worship that

represent barriers to being able to faithfully respond to the com

mandm

ents, such as the idols of privilege and w

ealth and education and nationality and race?

How

well are w

e really doing at loving God?

Discuss B

eing a Good N

eighbor: C

omm

andments 4-10 (U

se Appendix A

)

In Second Testam

ent terms, com

mandm

ents 4-10 are about loving others.

The Praxis of E

conomic

and Environm

ental Justice for a Nation

In groups, consider these scriptures:

Leviticus 25:1-7 S

abbatical Year

Leviticus 25:8-9 Jubilee Year

Design a m

ural to reflect on how these law

s build econom

ic and environmental justice.


covenant pitcher. Q

uietly reflect: What is the response of the

covenant comm

unity regarding the challenges represented on our m

urals?

Share out loud som

e of your reflections on: W

hat is the response of the covenant comm

unity regarding the challenges represented on our m

urals?

…A

nd thanks be to God, the Covenant Keeper,

who show

s us how to be a blessing to our

comm

unity and receive a blessing from the

comm

unity. Am

en.

W

hat Does the Lord Require of You(TFW

S, #2174)

G

etting ready for the next session:

Read Chapters 5 and 6 of the text.

2 Samuel 7:1-17; Jerem

iah 31, Chronicles 17, Psalm

89:3-4, 1 Samuel 18-20,

Acts 10:34-43, and Philippians 2:1-5

Session Four

Covenant-Fulfilling G

od and G

race-Filled Covenant

Com

munity:

The Covenants of E

ternal R

ule, Everlasting

Friendship, and the E

verlasting Covenant

Session Four Goals:

! To understand G

od’s Covenant of Eternal Rule w

ith David

à To review the Covenant of Everlasting Friendship

between D

avid and Jonathan

à To consider how the m

inistry and life of Jesus represent the fullest articulation of G

od’s relationship w

ith the covenant comm

unity in the Everlasting Covenant

Lord I Lift Your Nam

e on High(TFW

S, #2088)

Listening to the Biblical TextsW

orking in two groups !

1) The Covenant of Eternal Rule: God’s Covenant

with D

avid

2 Sam. 7:1-17

2)Covenant of Friendship between D

avid and Jonathan

I Sam

. 18-20

David did not m

eet his personal goal…

…to build the tem

ple.

How

important are the buildings and

structures of the church? M

ight David have had w

hat the author described as “the dark night of the soul” – a sense of frustration at not being able to com

plete the temple him

self? Have you

ever felt that way?

David did not m

eet his personal goal…

“As a people, the church is really not a place to w

hich we go but the dynam

ic comm

unity that actively reaches out in Christ’s love to the needy and underprivileged of our society” (chapter 5).

Considering David’s Covenant of Everlasting Friendship with Jonathan

What can w

e learn from the elem

ents that sym

bolized the friendship between D

avid and Jonathan – the exchange of arm

or, the exchange of nam

es, and the willingness to sacrifice?

Can you think of a time w

hen you have been asked to enter into such a radical friendship?

W

hat would be contem

porary examples w

hen such a radical friendship is called for or w

hen political rivalries, and conflicts of pow

er and privilege, create situations of injustice? Is there anything in the relationship betw

een D

avid and Jonathan that seems sim

ilar to the sacrifices m

ade by Jesus?

Listening to the Biblical Texts

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Pause

What w

as the context into which Jesus w

as born?

How did Jesus fulfill the covenants?Exam

ples of Jesus’ covenantal actions:

Care—

e.g., the healing of the blind man

Grace—

e.g., the promise of grace in the gift of the H

oly Spirit R

edem

ptio

n—e.g., w

oman possessed by dem

ons

Safety—

e.g., calming the storm

Ble

ssin

g—e.g., creating a new

social order that overturns oppression

of the money changers in the Tem

ple G

uid

ance—

e.g., Beatitudes E

ternal r

ule—

e.g., a new understanding of pow

er in relationships: the tax collector and the rich, young ruler

Testim

ony of the Covenant Fulfilling Activity of Jesus

“I am a w

itness to the goodness of God…

”

Give a one m

inute testimony of the covenant-

fulfilling activity of Jesus, beginning with the

above words.

The M

eaning of the Covenant Today: Exploring the Power of Living in the Covenant

Using P

hilippians 2:1-4

Pause to quietly reflect

What w

ould putting your neighbor first look like?

Write your personal covenant com

munity

comm

itment (including w

hen, where, and how

often) based on insights from

the study including com

mitm

ents to prayer, advocacy, intentional grow

th and comm

unity life.


covenant pitcher.

Share comm

itments.

Closing Litany in unison:W

esley’s Covenant Prayer (adapted)W

e are no longer our own, but yours.

Put us to what you w

ill, Place us w

ith whom

you will.

Put us to doing, put us to suffering. Let us be put to w

ork for you or set aside for you,

Litany continued…Praised for you or criticized for you. Let us be full, let us be em

pty. Let us have all things, let us have nothing. W

e freely and fully surrender all things to your glory and sacrifice. A

nd now, a w

onderful and holy God,

COVEN

AN

T MA

KER, COVEN

AN

T KEEPER AN

D

COVEN

AN

T EQU

IPPER,

Litany continued…A

nd now, a w

onderful and holy God,

COVEN

AN

T MA

KER, COVEN

AN

T KEEPER AN

D

COVEN

AN

T EQU

IPPER, You are ours, and w

e are yours. So be it. A

nd the covenant, which w

e have made

on earth, Let it also be m

ade in heaven. Am

en.

The Sum

mons

(TFWS, #2130)

Benediction(unison)

“Now

to [God] w

ho by the power at w

ork within

us is able to accomplish abundantly far m

ore than all w

e can ask or imagine, to [G

od] be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. A

men.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

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