Chapter 2
Living under God’s Covenant

1.	What were the differences between the religion of Old Testament Israel and the religion of its heathen neighbors?
a.	Old Testament Israel – their religion was all about what God has done for man
b.	Heathen neighbors – their religion was all about what they must do for their god

2.	How did those heathen neighbors look upon their gods?
With fear and perpetual obligation to feed and care for them.  They saw them as unpredictable and temperamental.  
3.	How did their gods supposedly look upon human beings?
As people designed to satisfy their personal needs – they needed these humans in order for the gods to exist.
4.	By contrast, how does the Old Testament describe the relationship between God and his human creatures?
That God stooped down and declared his love and bound himself to be their very own.
5.	What is a covenant?
A binding contract between two people.

God’s covenant with Abraham
1.	What was the covenant God made when he called Abraham?
That Abraham leave his home and family and God would make him into a great nation.
2.	What was the essence of that covenant?
A land and a child – GRACE!
3.	Why did God obligate himself by making a covenant with the descendants of Abraham? 
Grace!  Because of his love for Abraham, but even more so, because of his love for humankind and his desire to save them.
4.	What evidence of God’s mercy do you see in that covenant?
We see God come to Abraham as “Lord.”  We see this covenant made with a man who was 75 years old with a wife who was 65.  We see God take the initiative.
5.	Why did God establish circumcision as a sign of his covenant with Abraham?
It was a physical sign that would be carried on the body, reminding male members that they belonged to God.
6.	If you had been an Israelite, what difference would this covenant have made to you personally?
Answers will vary.
	It would have been a daily reminder.  One that you could not escape or get away from.
7.	During the time of the Old Testament, did God limit his love only to ancient Israel?
No.  

8.	What good news is in the Old Testament for non-Jews like us?
Through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God was giving a witness to the true faith and him as true God to the nations in Canaan.  Through the Israelites, God would give witness to the nation of Egypt, and we hear of some of the Egyptians leaving with the Israelites.  We see Rahab at the time of Jericho.  We see people like Ruth who came to know the promised Messiah through God’s people Israel.
We hear phrases that the promise is for all people…to the ends of the earth.

9.	What good news is on the first page of the New Testament for non-Jews like us?
That God used non-Jews in the line of the Savior.
Not only that, but notice some of the history/background of the people he used.  Rahab had been a prostitute.  From the Judah the line of Christ continued – and that from Tamar (read Genesis 38 to see that sordid affair!).
10.	What good news did God’s covenant with Abraham have for his descendants when they fell into sin? when it seemed God had forgotten about his promise (Genesis 22:2; 37:28)?
a.	Lord is/would be faithful to his promise
b.	It assured them of God’s undeserved love

11.	Why do we call the covenant with Abraham an unconditional covenant?
Because it was not conditioned (dependent) on anything Abraham or his descendants did.  God asked nothing in return.  There were no strings attached.

The Sinai Covenant
1.	Why did God make a second covenant with Israel four hundred years later?
The covenant of promise had been forgotten, trampled on, or pushed to the side so they were in great need of training.  This would serve to refine, even discipline them.

2.	As they marched toward the Promised Land, what message did the Israelites’ behavior send to God?
It sent a message of ingratitude, unbelief and immaturity

3.	How did the Sinai covenant serve as a necessary discipline for some stubborn children?
It showed them how members of God’s family should serve God and their neighbors, and what the results would be if they didn’t.

4.	How did it serve as a teaching tool for some immature children?
It showed them how members of God’s family should serve God and their neighbors, and what the results would be if they didn’t.

5.	What were the two conditions God attached to the Sinai covenant? 
a.	If you obey = blessings
b.	If you disobey = curses

6.	Did the Sinai covenant replace the Abraham covenant for the people of Israel?
No

7.	What three purposes did the Sinai covenant serve for them? 
a.	As a mirror – so they would recognize their sinfulness and need for a Savior
b.	As a hedge – to keep them separate from heathen until Christ would come
c.	As a shadow – foreshadowing the blessings the promised Messiah would bring for them

8.	Some people consider the message announced at Mount Sinai to be the heart of all religion. Why is it important to remember that God’s law is only a preliminary message?
Otherwise work-righteousness becomes the heart of the Bible’s religion

9.	How can you know for sure how God feels about you?
Because God kept his promise to send Jesus and Jesus perfectly paid the penalty for all our sin at the cross

10.	When you feel insecure, unwanted, and unneeded, what does it mean for you to live under God’s covenant of grace?
To see/hear/know God’s declaration – “I love you!”

11.	How is your sense of worth affected by knowing God has promised: “You’re special”?
Answers will vary.
	Certainly this speaks to the depression that is found in our world today.  Certainly it speaks to the ever growing and increasing suicide rates in our country.  When we hold, know and take to heart the truth that I am special because God tells me I am…and he’s proven it in Christ, it gives joy in the midst of sadness, hope in the midst of hopelessness, comfort in the midst of sorrow, help in the time of need, etc.