YOUR BLOOD BROTHER, JESUS
Jeremiah 31:31-34, "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, [a]though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their [b]hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” (NKJV)
Jeremiah 31:31-34 tells us there will be a new Covenant coming replacing the Old Covenant of sacrificing animals for the covering of sins. This new Covenant would be the final one with the sacrifice of God's only Son. When Christ shed His blood on Calvary He was actually "cutting" that New Covenant. Hebrews 9:15 tells us that Jesus is the Mediator of the New Covenant, making the old obsolete. (Hebrews 8:13) Romans 8:17 tells us we become "heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ" when we accept Jesus a Savior, thereby entering into the New Covenant. Hebrews 1:2 says that the Son has been “appointed heir of all things.” Being a co-heir with Christ means that we, as God’s adopted children, will share in the inheritance of Jesus. That also means that as a child of God and a co-heir with Christ, Jesus becomes our Brother, our Blood Brother.
THE COVENANT RELATIONSHIP
Long ago, when men would come into an agreement, they did something which guaranteed both men would keep the contract. They performed one of the oldest, most respected, and most sacred of rituals known to man. They would "cut a covenant." To cut a covenant means that the men would kill an animal and split it in half. The two halves of the animal were then spread out on the ground and the men would walk around the pieces.
THE CURSE OF COVENANT
As they walked, they would look down at the dead animal and swear that if either man ever broke the contract or covenant, the same should happen to that man, he should be split in two and die just as it happened to the animal. That was the "curse of the covenant."
THE BLESSINGS OF COVENANT
Then they would come together while standing over the two bloody halves, and, while facing each other, each man would make a small cut in one of his hands and take the other man's cut hand into his. The blood of one was now mixing with the blood of the other and, because life is in the blood, the life of one was now flowing into the life of the other. Their lives were mixing into one. Raising their clasped hands to heaven they would promise their loyalty to each other.
From that day, whatever was owned by one man became the property of the other. The strength of one now became the strength of the other. Where there were needs in one life, now those needs were met by the other. If one of them needed to to to battle with an enemy, his Blood Covenant Brother would be there to help him in the battle. If someone came to one of them to collect on a debt and the money wasn't there, each man was free to call on the other partner for help in paying the debt. Yes, for each man’s life now would become quite different. The fears of each person turned to faith in the promises of his Blood Covenant Brother.
But the blessings didn't stop with the two men. Their descendants were also included in the covenant. When one of the Blood Brothers died, his children then became the responsibility of the other brother, even children yet to be born. That is the nature of a Blood Covenant Relationship.
The Covenant was "sealed" because their blood had mixed. Now they would be considered closer than natural brothers. They had become "one" in spirit, and the scar of the cut in their hands would always remind them of their blood covenant partner and the promises made.
Friend, long before you were born, you were already included in a Blood Covenant. The Covenant was even established long before the world was created. The Covenant was between God and His only Son, Jesus Christ. You see, Adam, the first man, was created by God. Adam was made perfect, and without fault, that way he could be friends with God, who is perfectly holy and without fault. But Adam was not controlled in the way he would think, act and believe. It had to be his own decision to be a friend of God. That's just the way God is; He loved Adam so much that He would rather have Adam return His love by choice, not by a command from His Creator.
Then God created a woman so Adam would have a companion. Her name was "Eve." They were given a Garden called "Eden" to live in and to care for in perfect peace. That was their agreement, or Covenant, with God. It was Adam and Eve's decision to be friends with God or to turn against Him by doing something He had told them not to do. That's called 'sin". To sin is to turn against God, and death is the penalty or curse for breaking Covenant and turning against God. Without God, there is no life. But they sinned anyway.
GOD KNOWS THE FUTURE
Long before Adam or before the world was created, God, the Father, and Jesus, His Son, looked down into time and space and knew that Adam and Eve were going to be tempted to sin and that they would "give in" to the temptation. By doing this, they would be breaking their Covenant with God. That meant they could no longer be friends with Him and would have to suffer the curse of the Covenant, death.
GOD ALWAYS MAKES A WAY
That was the problem that was before God, to lose Adam, Eve, and all their descendants to eternal death or to make way for them to be restored into His friendship. God chose to make a way. It's called God's Plan of Salvation. It is a Blood Covenant based on the death of a “second” Adam. Someone who would be willing to represent everyone ever born.
In this plan or Covenant, another Adam, born perfect and without sin, would have to live a life without sin. That would be a new covenant with God and was not to be broken by this second Adam. Still, He would have to suffer the curse as if He had broken the covenant Himself.
TAKING THE CURSE UPON HIMSELF
This Man would have to be willing to die for no wrongdoing of His own but for the sins of every descendant of the first Adam, even ones who would hate Him. He would be put to death as an innocent, sinless sacrifice but, His death would make way for Adam’s descendants (which includes you) to come back into friendship with God. He would be a substitute for the Covenant sacrifice and, at the same time, also represent every person as their Blood Brother in this New Covenant with God.
GOD IS ALWAYS RIGHT ON TIME
So, in the fullness of time, God sent His Son, Jesus, to earth as the second Adam. He was born of a woman yet; He was also born without the sin of the first Adam because God implanted pure, sinless seed into a virgin girl who then brought Him into the world. When born, He was still God but He was also very much a human so He could represent you in this New Covenant.
While on earth, He lived a life full of temptations but never sinned once. He came as your representative in the New Covenant and He represented you perfectly up until He suffered a cruel death. Men who failed to recognize who He was, cruelly beat, spat upon, and mocked Him. Then they led Him to a hill called Golgotha, where they nailed His hands and feet to a wooden cross, planted it into the ground, and watched Him slowly die.
A PERFECT SUBSTITUTE FOR YOU
Jesus not only lived a perfect life, but He died a perfect death. As a sinless "second Adam', He had been punished but He willingly took the punishment for you and all of Adam's descendants. He was not only your representative in the Covenant but He also represented you in suffering on the Cross and even in death.
YOUR NEW BROTHER IS JESUS
In this New Covenant that was made for you, Jesus became your Brother, your Blood Brother. You are also His descendant. He took the curse of the Covenant for you but the blessings are passed on to you. After He died, Jesus rose from the grave and went to Heaven where He sits at the Right Hand of God, the Father. He ever prays for you, and His nail-scarred hands are an eternal reminder to Him of the Covenant established on your behalf.
WHERE DO YOU STAND?
True, you are, and always have been a sinner, a "Covenant breaker", and, like the first Adam, you deserve to die as a sinner and suffer eternal punishment in Hell. But, Jesus took the punishment and died for you. That is the way God planned before the beginning of time. It was a plan to bring you back into good standing with your Creator. Now you can be more than a "friend with God. Now you can be His adopted child and live forever with Him. The work has been completed for you. Your Blood Brother, Jesus, has taken care of the details and now He offers the gift of salvation to you. All you have to do is accept Him as your Blood Covenant Brother Who died for you.
If you believe this, you are ready to enter the Covenant. All you have to do is let God know by saying the following prayer to Him:
"God, I have broken Covenant many times by sinning against you. Please forgive me. I accept Jesus as my Savioür and Blood Brother. I believe He was without sin and a Perfect sacrifice. I believe He died, was buried, and He rose from the grave. I believe He is In Heaven, where He waits for me. Thank you for adopting me as your Covenant child. Amen."
CONGRATULATIONS!
If you truly believe and have prayed that prayer, you are now a child of God, not because of anything you have done, but because of the Covenant of Love revealed through Jesus, your Blood Brother. Things will be different for you from now on. In a sense, you have been re-born. You are starting life over again as a new, sinless person. By accepting the Blood of Jesus, which has been shed for you, your blood is supernaturally mixing with His Blood, and you are becoming "One" in nature. From this day forward, your battles will be His battles.
Since Jesus, your covenant Brother, has more power than the Devil, you are no longer the Devil’s slave to sin. From now on, you may boldly approach God, the Father in Heaven, by the authority of your Blood Brother, Jesus. Now you can pray in the Name of Jesus and your prayers will be answered in ways that are always best for you but in God’s perfect time. As your Blood Brother, Jesus has promised never to leave nor forsake you. For a guarantee, He sent His Holy Spirit as a “Seal” to the Covenant to live inside you, to help and remind you that you are a child of God.
NOW LEARN MORE & TELL OTHERS!
Through this same Spirit, authority and power are given to you to carry the good news of the Covenant to others. You should find a church. The church should also believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, that He is the Son of God, that He has come to earth in the flesh, died for our sins, rose from the grave, now sits at the Right Hand of His Father and is preparing to return to earth as King of Kings.
Begin to fellowship with them and they will help you to learn more. Get a Bible, God's book of Covenants, and as you read, you will begin to understand more about this wonderful Covenant of His Love and Grace. May God richly bless you as you do!
