Do you know what a Covenant is?

It is a promise made by somebody to perform certain actions for which they expect nothing in return. Unlike a contract where each party has an obligation to fulfill their own obligations.

God's covenants need to be understand from the perspective of an already rebellious humankind. There are consequences to ignoring God's word and favoring the ways of the world. Having said that - in a simplistic way, you might look at humankind standing out in the pouring rain and God's covenant is a promise to hold the umbrella over you while you keep dry and eat your sandwich.

Spiritually, each one of us has been born into a fallen world. A person doesn't have to have carried out any specific sin to be a sinner. Just like I didn't have any say in being born in England and being called an Englishman. We simply are sinners by virtue of our birth place - Planet Earth!

God's covenant with humankind is to perform certain actions to block the ills of the world. For example, illness is not a creation that came from God. However, under His covenant we can be kept healthy and protected from the curse of illness. Same with poverty - it is simply a lack of riches - spiritually and materially. So, under God's promise to protect us from the curse of poverty, we can then grow in the success and riches He naturally provided for us at Creation.

The "kicker" as to whether or not we are able to flourish under God's covenant is whether He knows us - spiritually, and we know Him. This is RELATIONSHIP. If you go to a stranger's house you would have to wait at the door before being invited in. If it is your parents' house, you can probably walk in and raid the fridge for a nice ice cold glass of lemonade - without any repercussions.

So, to be under God's covenants (of which there are more than one) we have to first choose to have a relationship - which means being positioned out of the "sin" neighborhood (spiritually) and moving to a place where we can learn of Him, His love and His covenants.