A covenant is an agreement or contract. If we remember, there was the Old Covenant, and there is the New Covenant with God. Both of these covenants were agreements or contracts between God and his people. With a contract, it is typically written down to serve as a reminder of the agreed upon terms and conditions.

“³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” – Jeremiah 31:33 (ESV)

The New Covenant will be written down, only written on the hearts of God’s people (reminder of the agreed upon terms and conditions). Notice the words used “my people”. It is important to know that the law will be written for God’s people. How will we know God’s people, well that is between God and them. Once a Christian, you have become God’s people and the New Covenant will be within you and are now God’s people.

“³⁴And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more.” – Jeremiah 31:34 (ESV)

We will no longer be called on to teach our Christian brethren to “Know” God, for they already do. And they should not be teaching us to “Know” God for we already do. We should be focusing our attention to others.

God will write on our hearts his New Covenant. We will know God on our heart and the New Covenant is alive in us.

Are you looking inward to the contract/agreement we have with God? Is God’s Law written on your heart? Do you know the Lord on you heart?

“⁵Thus says the Lord, The God of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.” – Jeremiah 24:5 (ESV)

The Flisowski Family has felt like “exiles” for quite some time. We have been doing our level best to get by and every time we feel like we have turned a corner, we have another setback.

“⁸But thus says the Lord: Like the bad figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah the kin of Judah, his officials, the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.” – Jeremiah 24:8 (ESV)

We see the prosperity of those around us and feel as though they have something we do not and therefore we take ourselves deeper into despair.

We must remember that adversity brings us closer to God. When things are going great, we tend to take our eyes off of God and rely on ourselves. We are poisoned by prosperity. The adversity we feel is there to keep us humble. When we face that adversity and turn to God, a heart to know him is manifest.

“⁷I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.” – Jeremiah 24:7 (ESV)

“I will” is the phrase I focused on here. We face the adversity and then God gives. Until then, we must demonstrate our obedience and wait. As that adversity hits, God will show his favor on us and make us to return to him with our “whole heart”.

We have to continue looking to do the will of God in all situations and know that when it is more than we can handle, God “will give them a heart to know” and we will know that God is there for us and will allow us to be the children he already knew us to be.

Are you finding it difficult to make it? Are you feeling like the exile and wondering about why you are not having the prosperity you thought you should have? Maybe God is allowing the adversity to draw you closer to him. Will you come out of it with a “heart to know”?

Lori and I have certain expectations for our boys Byson and Aarron. They are to graduate high school and move on to educate themselves even more. We understand that in today’s society, there is a “need” for knowing more than what you learn before high school graduation.

“¹⁶I said in my heart, ‘I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.’” – Ecclesiastes 1:16 (ESV)

Even the Preacher (Solomon as is commonly understood to be) spent time gaining great knowledge and wisdom in the world. He was known as one of the wisest of all time, so we must be doing something right in regard to seeking to know more.

“¹⁷And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly, I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind. ¹⁸For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.” – Ecclesiastes 1:17-18 (ESV)

Have you ever tried to catch the wind? We may think we can, however once we have gathered the air moved by the wind, that wind is gone and now only air. So we really did not capture the wind at all.

The Hebrew word for vanity is vapor (as identified in the footnote of my ESV) and it, like wind, is fleeting, yet we continue to chase it. Our human knowledge when it is all said and done has no real value. We are chasing the wind and even though we may catch it, we are disappointed in the value once we have it.

Please do not mistake my words above to mean that you should not be seeking a further education and knowledge, for that is far from the truth. I am referring to seeking as the, be all end all. We should seek to understand, however if we are going to seek for true wisdom as Solomon, we should be seeking the Word of God.

True wisdom is knowing and living the Word of God. The Word gives us life and we are then able to proceed with happiness and fulfillment that this world and the knowledge it has cannot offer. Seek the knowledge and wisdom that God provides and we are able to know all that we need to be fruitful.

When you seek knowledge and wisdom, where are you looking? Are you seeking to know all you can on this earth? Where has that ultimately gotten you? Are you willing to seek the wisdom from the Word of God? Will you know God and true wisdom?

How many of us look to the future? Whereas it is useful in some things, in our daily walk with Christ we have to be in the present.

“¹Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.” – Proverbs 27:1 (ESV)

We as Christians are to be working in the present and not concerned with the future.

I know that I am personally a planner and what to be prepared for what might come. This is slightly different that boasting about tomorrow. Preparing is correct, worrying and shouting about how good things will be are certainly not. We cannot control tomorrow and therefore can only prepare for them.

“¹³Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’ – ¹⁴yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” – James 4:13-14 (ESV)

We don’t know if we will even make it to tomorrow so how is it that we can boast about it. It will serve us better to focus on today and doing the work of God and when tomorrow comes, do the same.

Are you concerned with tomorrow? What kinds of things are there for you to accomplish to only prepare for tomorrow and live today? Do you know what is today?

Each day I have a 20 mile commute to the office and during that commute, there are a few spots that slow down due to heavy traffic. On occasion I will exit the highway and take the frontage/feeder road to avoid the traffic (you may see where I am going with this). And much to my surprise, I have increased my commute time due to my haste. Everyone had the same idea and got caught at the light and created even more traffic on the frontage/feeder road. If I would have just stayed where I was and followed the path traveled, even though it was a little bogged down, I would have been just fine.

“²³Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! ²⁴And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” – Psalm 139:23-24 (ESV)

We should be asking God each day to search us through and through and squash any thoughts of getting off of his path. When we do, we allow God to keep us moving the right direction for his glory. We will have difficulty on that path and it will not be a lot of fun from time to time, however, it is the right path because it is God’s path for us.

I wonder how much easier it would be if we just listened to God and followed his way? Would we find ourselves getting to the “right” place “on time” and in “good condition”? Will we be able to be known and go God’s way?

When we were children, and our parent came to us to ask about what happened to the cat’s fur, I wonder if we all were like: What, I don’t know what you are talking about. What happened to the cat?

“³For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” – Psalm 51:3 (ESV)

David knew he had sinned and was working through coming clean. He knew that God was aware of his sin. We knew we have/are doing wrong. Mom and Dad knew and they were looking for honesty, and we, like David had the opportunity to come clean.

We are human and will sin as it is in our nature, and you can see here that we know our sin. But, we have the opportunity to come clean with our Heavenly Father just as we have/had that opportunity with our earthly parents.

Sin is a part of your life, are you denying it? Do you know of your sin? Are you coming clean?

Have you ever been to some event and been in complete awe of what was going on? Lost track of time? Really focused your attention on the event and the happenings of that event?

Have you done that in your quiet time with God?

In the mornings I sit and study God’s Word and where I do know that I am gaining knowledge and understanding, I still have a long way to go. More importantly, I have the opportunity to really dig in to God’s Word.

“¹⁰Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” – Psalm 46:10 (ESV)

To “Be Still” is to fully focus. Our mind is not wandering, our eyes are on the prize, our hearts are full.

What if I sat still and marveled at the wonder of God? What if I was in constant awe of Him and allowed God to overcome me? Will you be still and know God?

This morning I have a passage I have looked at twice before. This time I was drawn to the word “make”.

“⁴Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths.” – Psalm 25:4 (ESV)

In the NIV “make” is written as “show”. I prefer the word “make” as it generates in me a bit more urgency. I see this as a pleading of David to God, as he asks for guidance. It is more of a forcing.

I am not suggesting that God physically beat us down, but, how often have we experienced something physical that forced us to go a different path. Imagine a wall suddenly popping up and we had to turn left. Or the park we were going to was closed and we had to find another option. What if God physically put obstacles in our way to drive us down his path?

HE DOES!!! We are likely not paying close enough attention. If we are asking God to “make me to know your ways” shouldn’t we be paying closer attention?

What have you asked for and maybe should have pleaded for? Where you paying attention to the actions required? Did you avoid obstacles to get around them, or did you take the direction that God wanted you to go another way? Are you pleading to know God’s Way?

As I work through this life, I take on many tasks and some are successful and others fail. I tend to focus on the failure (which is 1 out of 5ish). What about the other 4 times I succeeded? Shouldn’t I look at those times more intently?

“²I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.” Job 42:2 (ESV)

Wow, God does not fail. Everything He sets out to accomplish is a success. That includes my failure. When I am doing the work of God, I may not see the success, but God does and knows my intent and heart. Everything I do is for the success of God. I may not count the task as a success in my thinking, however my actions may (likely are if grounded in God’s Word) be just what God was looking for.

Are you looking at your tasks from a succeed/fail perspective, or as doing God’s work for his success? What is next on your agenda that you can look to obey God and not worry about your success or failure? Do you know that God does not fail?

“²⁵For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.” – Job 19:15 (ESV)

Job knew and was willing to state aloud and wanted for far greater declaration.

“²³Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! ²⁴Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever!” – Job 19:23-24 (ESV)

Here we are about 3500 years later and Jobs words are written. Ours is to love and know and to allow God to do his work in his timing. When we know God will prevail, we are allowing him to work in our lives. We may not see his work here on earth, for like Job, we may only be required to know and state, but we will see our righteous work in heaven as our reward.

Are you doing God’s work? Are you looking for the immediate gratification and reward? Or, are you simply shouting from the rooftops and continuing to work for God? Do you know that your Redeemer lives, and make it know that you do?