Quick question... how many of you out there know the difference between a contract and a covenant? Go ahead... raise your hands... to be honest I hadn't really thought about it too much at least not in the last 25 years...
The last time i learned about what a contract is... probably around 1986... i learned about the Suzerain-Vassel treaty of the late bronze age (nice huh?!?). See the deal is, the "suzerain" is the king... the one who promises to do the "stuff" and the vassel... well the vassel is the person (or persons) who isn't the king. Basically the treaty or the contract is for the benefit of the king (of course that's who has the power) and not the vassel. All of that to say contracts have a way of working out well for one of the parties involved and disastrous for the other. There is built-in animosity and potential distrust.Covenants on the other hand are about a relationship. The desire in a covenant relationship is to work toward understanding... not the contractual "take/take" or what-can-I-get-out-of-this-relationship but rather a "give/give", how can we "work-this-thing-out? By the way, the covenant relationship is far more satisfying and fulfilling. This is actually the way God chooses to deal with us, the fact that He does this says volumes about who He is.
So here is my question... How do most of us live out our closest relationships... with our friends or our children or with our spouses? My suspicion is that if we were really honest, too many of us think we are the suzerain and everyone else is a vassel.
3 comments:
Rob,
This goes even further than just wanting to be King. When you enter into a marriage convenant, people treat it like a contract.
Loving your spouse the way Christ loves the Church means willing to sacrifice yourself for them without gain. Often times we do for our spouse, yes because we love them. But in the back of our minds we are keeping a list in hopes that our spouse will "repay" our kindness.
It comes down to the list wars:
"I do this, this, that, this, that and what do you do?!"
"Well I did this, and this, and that".
We should just do for others because we love them, not expecting something in return.
Rob:
A contract, including a mortgage, puts down requirements and limitations for both parties to agree to in advance. It's purpose is to make a primarily legal relationship clear and bind all parties to it.
On the other hand, a covenant is a mutual agreement, usually with a common goal in mind, asking for the commitment of all parties to participate in the completion of that goal, as they are best able to do that. It's a living growing, heart-felt agreement to get somethere and do something together. It's really only as good as the hearts and intentions of those who sign on. But a truly sincere covenant can take you to wonderful places.
A marriage is a binding agreement, as such a contract, but a good marriage, committed to one another, is truly a covenant. OR
The marriage certificate is a contract -- The Christian marriage ceremony is a covenant. Also applies to Baptism, Christening, and all other rites and sacraments of the church.
Now just for fun: The infamous movie, Plan Nine from Outer Space, by the much maligned, but universally recognized as the worst movie director of all time, Ed Wood, used that term to refer to the Big Shot from outer space.
Not my thoughts, but a quick pull of the definitions the internet....
A contract is an exchange of promises between two or more parties to do, or refrain from doing, an which is enforceable in a court of law. It is a binding legal agreement. That is to say, a contract is an exchange of promises for the breach of which the law will provide a remedy.
A covenant, in its most general sense, is a solemn promise to engage in or refrain from a specified action.
More specifically, a covenant, in contrast to a contract, is a one-way agreement whereby the covenanter is the only party bound by the promise. A covenant may have conditions and prerequisites that qualify the undertaking, including the actions of second or third parties, but there is no inherent agreement by such other parties to fulfill those requirements.
Consequentially, the only party that can break a covenant is the covenanter.
However these definitions are not without controversey....
The definition of covenant listed here is fundamentally flawed. Covenant relationships are most definitely two-way and are essentially contracts. Both parties must agree to the terms of the covenant and be willing participants. What makes covenantial relationships different from others is that they are unbreakable. Many covenants were "to the death" in that the parties entering into covenant agreed that they would rather die than forsake the terms of the covenant. Today, we see a growth in what's called Covenant Marriages (very much a two-way relationship) where the parties agree to make their vows intentially hard to break. Both parties are most definitely bound by the terms of the covenant.
Biblically, the word covenant comes from the Hebrew word "Berith". The greek word is "diatheke". It was the translation of "diatheke" as "testament" instead of covenant (I believe it was in the King James Verson of the Bible) that has caused many to believe that this is much like a "Last Will and Testament" or a one-way agreement. Most translations today, correctly translate this word as "covenant" giving it an entirely different (and appropriate) conotation from testament.
Sounds like there are some controversies about these defintions....
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