The Way to Wealth (Part 2): Covenant Relationships (2 Corinthians 5:21;8:9; Genesis 12:2-3;14:13,18-24;22:16-18;34:16,23;Hebrews 11:17-19;John 3:16; Galatians 3:8,13-14;Acts 3:25;Matthew 8:17)

2 Corinthians 8:9 contains these two contrasting characterizations:

1) Extreme Wealth

2) Extreme Poverty

"Do you remember the generosity of Jesus Christ, the Lord of us all? He was rich beyond our telling, yet He became poor for your sakes so that His poverty might make you rich" (Phillips).

The only moment in time where the Lord Jesus Christ "became poor", was on the cross, where He divested Himself of all wealth and riches, and literally, became poverty, became destitute, taking on extreme poverty, which is a spiritual condition, so that we may become rich or wealthy.

COVENANT CONDITIONS

To understand the true import of this scripture, and other very similar truths, it is essential to be cognizant of covenant. God, our Father, made a covenant with Abraham. He told Abraham:

I will make of you a great nation

I will bless you

I will make your name great

You shall be a blessing

I will bless those that bless you, and curse those that curse you

In you shall all families of the earth be blessed (Gen.12:2-3).

In Genesis 14:18-24 Abraham ['father of many nations', then called Abram, 'exalted father'], had a covenant meal with Melchizedek, who 'brought forth bread and wine' (14:18) [kind of like,... no, actually, exactly like the Lord's Supper 1 Cor.11:23-34, remembering the ratification of the covenant. In other words, 'the Lord's Supper' is a continual identification that we are in covenant with our Father God, whose covenant was sealed with the sacrifice of His Son, to provide us with the benefits of the covenant], and 'he was the priest of the Most High God' (14:18).

Melchizedek blessed Abraham, and said:

'Blessed be Abram of the Most High God, Possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the Most High God, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand' (14:19-20).

Abraham's response:

'And he (Abraham) gave him tithes of all' (14:20)

[The tithe was the obligation, and commitment, on the part of the Lesser, to the Superior, demonstrating that God was his God, and that (1) He owned all things...would provide for Abraham...and (2) He was the Deliverer/Savior for Abraham, from all of his enemies, and the tithe was the acceptance of the covenant relationship].

It is a matter of historical record, that people groups, and individuals, made covenants with equals, but more often than not, it was the Lesser with a Superior, specifically, for the Lesser, to have protection from the Superior, against the Lesser's enemies, from loss or extermination. However, the other aspect of the covenant was that everything that the Lesser had, now belonged to the Superior, and everything the Superior had, became a share of the Lesser.

SHECHEM COVENANT

In a most deceitful display of biblical history comes the story of Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob, and her being defiled by Shechem, the son of Hamor [Gen.43:1-31]. Sparing venturing into the sordidness of the affair, the emphasis of importance, is that Shechem wanted Dinah as his wife, and to facilitate this transaction they were in the process of making a covenant with Jacob and his family, the outcome for both parties, according to the sons of Jacob, would be, "...we will dwell with you, and we will become one people" (Gen.34:16). Hamor and Shechem went to the gate of their city, where legal transactions took place, to speak with the men of the city (Gen.34:20). Their argument, in convincing the men of the city to enter into a covenant relationship with Jacob and his family, was "Shall not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs be ours?" (Gen.34:23).

COVENANT ALLIES

When Abraham went to war to recover Lot and his family, one of the facts often overlooked, is that his covenant allies also went to war alongside him, "...for he dwelt by the oaks of Mamre, the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram" (Gen.14:13), which is why, after the battle, Abraham wouldn't take anything for himself, because he had made another covenant agreement, but he asked for his covenant allies, "...the men that went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion" (Gen. 14:24).

In legal covenants, not only did everything that each party had belong to the other, but they were bound by covenant to fight and defend each other, and everything Abraham won in victory became a legal right of possession to those with whom he was in covenant with.

SACRIFICING ISAAC

The sacrificing of Isaac seems among the most barbaric of acts, unbecoming of what some would consider the mercy and compassion of the Lord God (Gen.22:1-19). However, as a result of Abraham's obedience, the LORD said, "...because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son; that in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies [the place of legal authority where decisions of leadership took place]; and in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice" (Gen. 22:16-18).

Hebrews 11:17-19 says, "By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, 'In Isaac shall your seed be called'; accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which also he received him in a figure".

The word 'figure' (parabole), 3850, in 46 of its 50 uses in the NT, is correctly translated 'parable', which is a natural story or narrative, to illustrate a spiritual truth or principle. The sacrifice of Isaac, where Abraham gave 'his only begotten son', allowed, but also obligated, as conditions of the covenant, that God, our Father, "...gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

THE GOSPEL COVENANT

The scripture, foreseeing that God would grant the rights of inheritance and authority to the Gentiles, "...announced before the good news to Abraham, saying, 'In you shall all nations be blessed' " (Gal.3:8). That is the gospel/good news! However, the good news is only to those who actually embrace, accept, or enter into covenant relationship, with the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ.

This specific Greek word for 'blessed' (eneulogeo), 1757, is only used in Galatians 3:8, referring to the covenant, and Acts 3:25, "You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, 'and in your seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed' " The covenant was to bless all humanity. It is the good news [gospel]. The basic meaning of the Greek word is to speak [logeo], good [eu], or to proclaim or declare good, over someone. The Hebrew meaning is 'to endue with power to succeed'.

THE COVENANT BENEFITS

Part of the benefits, for those that enter into covenant relationship with the Father, is that we become recipients of the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ, and like those in covenant with Abraham, who won a great victory, in recovering Lot and his family, we have a legal right to the spoils of that victory.

Christ was "made a curse [a spiritual condition] for us" (Gal.3:13), "that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit, through faith".(Gal. 3:14). [The blessing of Abraham is not wealth, or money, it is, as the verse plainly states, 'the promise of the Spirit'. Receiving the Spirit of God, Himself, is 'the blessing', but if you have Him; you have everything!].

"He [God the Father] has made Him [the Lord Jesus Christ], who knew no sin, sin for us [He became sin; a spiritual condition], that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him [the Lord Jesus Christ]" (2 Cor. 5:21).

"...though He was rich, [a spiritual condition], yet for your sakes He became poor [a spiritual condition], that you through His poverty might be rich" (2 Cor. 8:9).

"When the evening was come, they brought to Him many that were possessed with demons; and He cast out the spirits with His word, and healed all that were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah, the prophet, saying, 'He Himself took [a spiritual condition] our infirmities [deliverances from demonic oppression], and bore [a spiritual condition] our sicknesses" (Matt. 8:17).

SPIRITUAL CONDITIONS

He became a curse....we are blessed [power to succeed]

He became sin.........we are righteous [a legal right of authority]

He became poor.......we are rich [spiritual produces the physical].

He became sick........we are healed [spiritual produces the physical].

JOSEPH'S SPIRITUAL CONDITION

Joseph was a slave to Potiphar, but the scripture says, "...the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man...and his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand" (Gen.39:2-3). Joseph goes from being a slave to a prisoner, but, "...the LORD was with him, and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper" (Gen.39:23).

God called Joseph prosperous, when he not only had no money, or position, but he was a slave. 'Prosperity', being blessed, being righteous, being rich, being healed, are all spiritual conditions, and if you are 'prosperous' on the inside, it will eventually show up on the outside. If you are blessed on the inside, it will show up on the outside, if you are righteous, on the inside, that authority will manifest on the outside. If you are rich, on the inside, material wealth and financial prosperity will show up on the outside. If you are healed on the inside, the manifestation will show up in your physical body.

You are God's Best, and God's Best is Yours