Teach Covenantally
When teaching the Bible, we need to teach covenantally. Covenant theology is not a system of doctrine imposed on Scripture; rather, it is inherent in Scripture. It is God’s own way of speaking about His gospel in all of Scripture. Covenant is God’s sovereign initiation to have a binding relationship with His people, grounded in His grace and promises, and secured by His own blood. When we speak about teaching covenantally, there are four important characteristics to note.
The Promise of God’s Presence
From Genesis to Revelation, we read about God’s promise to all those who call upon the name of the Lord and look to Him alone for salvation, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (2 Cor. 6:16). This promise is proven true when God meets with His people in the garden of Eden, in the tabernacle, and in the temple. But the climax of God dwelling with His people comes when “the Word became flesh and dwelt [literally “tabernacled”] among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
The Person of Jesus Christ
Jesus teaches us that all Scripture points to Him (Luke 24:25-27, 44-45). When the prophets proclaimed the words of God, they anticipated the living Word of God, who is the final and perfect Prophet that reveals the will of God. When the priests repeatedly offered sacrifices to atone for the sins of God’s people, they anticipated the final and perfect Priest who offered Himself for the elect on the cross to satisfy God’s justice, reconcile us to God, and intercede for the children of God. The kings that reigned over Israel anticipated the final and perfect King who rules and defends God’s people and conquers all His and our enemies.
The People of God
From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible teaches that there has always been one people of God saved by grace alone through faith alone. From Adam to Noah to Abraham to Moses and Israel to David to “one new man in place of the two, Jews and Gentiles”, God chose to redeem:
A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy”.
1 Pet. 2:9-10
The Practice of God’s People
Immediately after Peter told God’s people who they were, he told them how they were to behave”
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul”.
1 Peter 2:11)
The reason why we should do this is because:
[Christ] bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness”. (1 Pet. 2:24).
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
As Bible teachers, we have the privilege to teach women how to understand the word of God through a covenantal framework. Since the covenants structure everything in Scripture and are imperative to a correct understanding of who God is, how we interpret His word, and how we understand the gospel, we need to better understand this interpretive grid, which is already woven into Scripture.
PRAYER
Father, I want those I teach to see Your Son in all of Scripture. Help me to teach covenantally, so that my listeners have a deeper understanding of Christ as the center of the story of redemption.
Heart Matters: Teaching the Bible with Purity and Purpose by Sarah Ivill – PCA
Sarah Ivill (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) has been leading, teaching or writing women’s Bible studies since she was eighteen. She has served at the Howard G. Hendricks Center for Christian Leadership, in Bible Study Fellowship, and as Director of Women’s Ministry in the local church, among other leadership positions. She is also a contributing blogger for enCourage (a blog of the PCA Women's Ministries), and has a regular blog, The Haven, with the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, and recently published Heart Matters: Teaching the Bible with Purity and Purpose. Sarah continues writing and teaching Reformed Bible studies for women, and speaking at women's retreats and conferences. A member of Christ Covenant Church (PCA), Sarah lives with her husband and four children in Matthews, North Carolina.
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Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.
