March 1

A COVENANT WITH MY CHOSEN
by Ray Prinzing

"I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations.  For I have said, Mercy shall be built up forever: Thy faithfulness shalt Thou establish in the very heavens.  I have made a covenant with My chosen..."                                                                                             (Psalm 89:1-3).

There are covenants which God has made and foresworn to keep.  There are vows which He hath taken upon Himself to fulfill.  There are many promises given in the Word which are conditional, when God says, "If My people will do this, then I will do this," and our action of obedience brings into effectiveness that which He has spoken.  But there are some things which go beyond all conditional promises, and David declared, "In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.  Thy vows are upon me, O God."  (Psalm 56:11-12).  The vows, the oaths of the Lord - "Because He could swear by no greater, He swear by Himself."  (Hebrews 6:13).  When God takes an oath, when God makes a covenant, let hell rage and the people imagine a vain thing, but they shall not disannul that which He hath spoken.  So now, I will sing of the mercies of the Lord, because He hath made a covenant with His chosen.

The word "chosen" is very interesting in its shades of meaning, but above all else it means TO CHOOSE OUT OF.  The term is used to apply collectively to Israel as God's chosen people, and individually to those whom God has apprehended out from among them.  But going deeper, it holds the thought of being tested and found approved, for one of the forms of the word means TO CHOOSE AFTER TESTING.

Many steps and dimensions of God's working in our being called and chosen.  HE makes us His choice and calls us to follow in His footsteps, and then goes on to thoroughly test us.  When we are found to meet His approval and specifications, then comes the final seal of His choosing, to say, "THIS ONE HAVE I CHOSEN," they become the elect of the Lord.  With them He has made a covenant - to use them to confound the things which are mighty, and to bring to nought the things that are (1 Corinthians 1:26-29), for His glory.