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All the Old Testament prophets foretold the coming of Christ. Upon his arrival, he would perform glorious blessings — binding up the brokenhearted, proclaiming liberty to the captives, healing the sick and building a new church (see Isaiah 61:1). He would “give...beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” (61:3, NKJV).

I once conducted a funeral service for a young man from our church who died of cancer. When I arrived for the service, I was told the young man’s mother was the only surviving member of a family of five. Her husband had died three years earlier and her two other sons had also died. This was her fourth funeral and the third son she’d had to bury.

My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips” (Psalm 89:34). The term “covenant” plays an integral part in the Christian faith. Yet in all my years I have never heard a preacher or teacher adequately describe the significance of “covenant” in a Christian’s life. The Bible itself is divided into two Covenants (or Testaments), Old and New. Throughout the Old Testament, God makes one covenant after another with humankind. What are all these covenants about? More importantly, what do they have to do with us today?

Consider the great testimony of King David: “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; the God of my rock; in him will I trust” (2 Samuel 22:2-3, my italics). He said of the godly, “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord” (Psalm 112:7).

The Bible makes clear that, sadly, only a small percentage of God’s people in any age have ever truly trusted him as their deliverer. As you look around at believers today, how many people do you see operating with such peaceful trust?