Covenant and Community

The Spiritual Practice of Covenant and Community

(Joe Colletti, PhD)

As a spiritual practice, covenant and community are two interrelated actions that help us fulfill sacred and solemn agreements that abound in scripture. We can choose to fulfill these agreements or covenants individually and collectively. Personal covenants with God can be found throughout the Old and New Testaments. The psalms are filled with such expressions. Collective covenants with God can also be found within both testaments. As the scriptures attest, we can become part of a larger group of persons who collectively fulfill a sacred and solemn agreement.

Personal Covenants with God

For me, the idea behind covenant and related community actions as a spiritual practice stems from scripture reading. Reading scripture as a prayerful dialogue with God involves understanding the words that we read as God speaking to us. The dialogue is completed by responding to God in prayer. As a result of our divine dialogue, we can be moved to make personal covenants. For instance, in the verses below, we may hear God saying to us “I was with you from the cradle and will be with you to the grave.” In the Old Testament1, Isaiah states

The Lord Called me Before I Was Born, While I Was In My Mother’s Womb He Named Me.

and in a verse later he notes God saying

“You Are My Servant . . . in whom I will display my splendor.

(You) Have Been Borne By Me From Your Birth, Carried From The Womb;
Even To Your Old Age I Am He,
Even When You Turn Gray I Will Carry You.2

1 Isaiah 49. 1b, 3. 2 Isaiah 46.3b-4a.

Isaiah also states

Our responses to these scriptures can move us into our own personal covenant with God by praying “you did call me before I was born and named me while I was in my mother’s womb” and also saying “I am your servant in

whom you will display your splendor.” Thus, our personal covenant with God becomes a mutual promise of service till our grave.

The more we dialogue, the more personal and multifaceted our covenant with God may become. Using the development above as an example, becoming God’s servant may be easier said than done. As we go forward in life, we will experience circumstances that may feel trying and overwhelming. Hearing God speak to us through scripture often comforts us while we are in the midst of such experiences. As a passage in Isaiah notes

I Have Called You By Name, You Are Mine.
When You Pass Through The Waters, I Will Be With You; And Through The Rivers, They Shall Not Overwhelm You; When You Walk Through Fire You Shall Not Be Burned, And The Flame Shall Not Consume You.
For I Am The Lord Your God,
The Holy One Of Israel, Your Savior.
…You Are Precious In My Sight,
And Honored, And I Love You.3

The personal covenant with God above can further develop through trying and overwhelming circumstances. There is already an acknowledgment that we have been called by name and that we are God’s. However, we can prayerfully deepen the relationship by saying “when I walk through the waters God will be with me and I will not be overwhelmed” and “when I walk through fires I will not be consumed.”

The level of intimacy with God can also be deepened through such dialogue with God. Reading the end of the passage above as God speaking to us can be very powerful. Doing so, allows God to express affections that can be very touching such as “you are precious in my sight”, and “honored”, and “I love you.” Our intimacy with God can grow every time we respond by expressing our affections in return such as “you are so precious to me” and “I so love you.”

Our personal covenant with God can further develop through opportunities for ministry. There are many words from God throughout the scriptures that remind us that we are servants. The following verses express some of these words.

3 Isaiah 43.1b-4.

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Here Is My Servant, Whom I Uphold, My Chosen, In Whom My Soul Delights;
I Have Put My Spirit Upon Him;
He Will Bring Forth Justice To The Nations.4

As we read these words, we can not only hear God saying to us “Here is my servant” but “whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights.” A dialogue can ensue that can express our appreciation of being chosen and a soul’s delight.

In addition, we can be reminded that the spirit of God is upon us and that we can bring forth justice to the nations. Other scriptures, particularly in the Psalms, remind us why. The Psalms make it clear that justice is at the core of God’s identity as expressed in the following verses:

• Psalm 37. 28a states emphatically that “the Lord loves justice.”
• Psalm 99.4a proclaims “Mighty King, lover of justice, you have

  established equity.”

• Psalm 97b notes that “righteousness and justice are the foundation of

  his throne.”
  The Psalms also make it clear that God administers justice for

• the oppressed (9.9; 10.12; 103.6; 146.7);
• the orphan (10.17; 68.5; 82.3; 146.9);
• the poor (12.5; 41.1; 72.4; 72.12; 140.12);
• the needy (12.5; 72.4; 72.12; 82.4; 109.31; 140.12);
• the widows (68.5; 146.9);
• the desolate (68.6; 82.3);
• the weak (72.12; 82.3);
• the hungry (107.9; 146.7); and
• the brokenhearted (147.3).

  Our level of intimacy with God can also be furthered by responding in dialogue to the above verses. “God, you are a lover of justice,” can open are dialogue followed by such statements as “I will administer justice on your behalf to the oppressed, orphaned, poor, needy, widows, desolate, weak, hungry, and brokenhearted.

  Further affirmation of our deepened, intimate, personal covenant with God can be made as we continue to read other scriptures such as “Thus says the

  4 Isaiah 42.1

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Lord: Maintain justice, and do what is right”5 and “Learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed defend the orphan plead for the widow.”6 Our responses can focus on our desire to seek and maintain justice and do what is right such as rescuing the oppressed.

Collective Covenants with God

Collective covenants with God can be found throughout the Old and New Testaments. As the scriptures make plain, we can become part of a larger group of persons who collectively fulfill a sacred and solemn covenant. Two primary ways in which we can become part of a collective covenant with God is through congregations and small groups.

Congregational Covenants

Congregational life should be understood in the context of a collective covenant with God. It is meant to be a personal intimate time of relationship between a group of individuals and God. Also, it should not only include interaction between a group of individuals and God. It should include interaction between the individuals.

Congregational life should also be understood as a way of life. Most, if not all, congregations have a dedicated day of corporate worship. A dedicated day can consist of various activities meant to provide reverence to God and commitment to ministry. The scriptures are filled with suggested activities. The New Testament notes teaching, praying, singing, and the celebration of the Eucharist.7 The Psalms note singing of hymns, community confessions, and specific postures of worship such standing before God, bowing down in worship, and kneeling before the Lord.8

Ministry should also be understood as a way of congregational life and part of a covenant with God. Many of the teachings of both testaments are incorporated into the songs and the sermons of the dedicated day. These teachings include the need for justice for people in need. As noted in the previous section above, God loves justice and wants it administered to various persons in need. The teachings of Jesus in the gospels underline this divine desire. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick are a few of the responsibilities that Christ describes.

5 Isaiah 56.1a
6 Isaiah 1.17
7 See Colossians 3. 16-17; Ephesians 5.19; and 1 Corinthians 14.26. 8 Psalms 5.7; 63.2-3; and 95.6.

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Small Group Covenants

Small group covenants should also be understood in the context of a collective covenant with God. The can be a personal intimate time between a group of individuals and God and between the individuals. The basic hallmarks of small groups can be found in the New Testament. Early Christian groups “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”9 As noted in the above section, other New Testament books clarify that teaching, praying, singing, and the celebration of the Eucharist is characteristic of small groups.

As a member of a small group, we can become part of a larger group of persons who collectively fulfill a sacred and solemn covenant. A level of intimacy with God can be deepened through several spiritual practices that include sacred reading. Other spiritual practices such as the examination of consciousness, confession, and intercession are a few that can further an intimate collective relationship with God.

Ministry can also be characteristic of small groups and understood as a way of collective life and an integral part of the group’s covenant with God. The scriptures stress the need for justice for people in need and how God loves justice and wants it administered to those in need. Also, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick are not just a few of the responsibilities that Christ describes for individuals but for collective groups as well. Thus, a small group covenant should include a solemn promise to engage in ministry.

9 Acts 2.42.

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