Title: The Edenic Covenant/Genesis 1:28
Contents Eden's Covenant/Genesis 1:28
God created the heavens and the earth. The Bible says, "It was good to see," whenever God's Word created each one of them. Moreover, the Bible testifies of God's heart after God created man, saying, “It was very good.” What does “very good” mean? None of them are not beautiful, but they say that after God created man, He had a special heart than any other creature.
The Bible testifies about the special heart of God like this. “God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:28).
Human beings are the only beings made in the image of God among all creatures. It is not a word, but a creation created by God's hands. Therefore, the words “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth” are God's expressions of affection for man and a gift of joy.
1. Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
God wants all of your families to bear much fruit, but to bear abundant fruit. Therefore, fertility and prosperity are God's blessings given to man. Jesus said the same thing. “… … so that you may go and bear fruit, and that your fruit may abid, that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may receive it” (John 15:16).
God wants His children to have abundance in this world. He wants you to bear much fruit. He wants you to be with us ‘always’, even in drought or famine or typhoon sweeps away everything. If so, what would be the fruit?
Above all, God wants His children to be filled with abundance. God promised Abraham that he would have children. Abraham waited. But no matter how much he waited, there was no news of his child. Abraham was forced to spend his days in despair. Then God called Abraham in a vision and told him to take him out and see the world of stars in the sky. And then he said: "Purple.… … Your descendants will be like this.”
God showed Abraham, who was weary of his promises and heartbroken, how God's words would be fulfilled. “Your descendants will cover the whole earth like the stars in the sky!” It was unbelievable to Abraham, who did not have a single child, but Abraham believed these words. Only then did God acknowledge Abraham's faith.
God also spoke to Jacob. “Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and they will spread to the east, west, north and south; and all peoples of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants” (Genesis 29:15)
Jacob is running away from his brother. All he probably had was some clothes, dry bread, and water to drink in the wilderness. I'm going to a land I've never been to. Beasts and thieves go on an unknown path where they may be hiding. It is difficult to know how to live today, let alone hope for the future.
But God is telling Jacob, “Your descendants will spread like the dust of the earth.” What greater consolation could there be than this to the lonely Jacob of blood and blood?
What do these two cases have in common? This means that God will not abandon the people he has made a covenant with. What God has decreed once, never changes. Even if you lack faith or deceive someone, God will set that person up as a vessel of blessing.
God knows our condition. He sees the hardships of our lives. You know what we need now.
2. Conquer the land.
God gives earthly blessings to people of faith. God said to Abraham, “Go to the land I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). God said to Isaac, “I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants” (Genesis 28:4). God said to Jacob, “I will bring you back to this land” (Genesis 28:15). And God said to Moses, “Canaan, a land flowing with milk and honey, will be yours forever.” God is fulfilling the covenant he made with Abraham from generation to generation without exception.
Then, who can inherit the land of God? The first is the people who made a covenant with God. They are people who inherit the genealogy of Abraham by faith. Second, those who obey God. Jesus said: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). What does 'meek' mean here? It's not meant for general softness. Meekness means obeying the will of God. He is a person who humbly trusts and accepts that God's providence and history are working in it, although it is different from his own thoughts, although he cannot accept it now, but he cannot understand it.
3. Have dominion over the fish and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground
God has given man the authority to rule and rule over everything. This authority does not come from man. It didn't start from the ground. Only God is the foundation of authority over all creation. It is the word of God. Therefore, it must also be governed by the heart of God and the word of God. If that authority were used as a human heart, God would devastate the fertile soil. will give me thistle. I will cover it with thorns.
Man cannot use God-given authority before God. Because ruling over the order created by God is an expression of pride and greed, not obedience. Therefore, the authority of ‘ruling’ that God has given to man is the authority of service and the authority of humility.
We are just stewards. It is just a manager who manages on behalf of the owner. When the master comes one day, you have to give up everything you've been managing. And you will be counting.
What is clear is that fish, birds of the air, and creatures of the earth are not objects of love, but objects of rule. The only things that man should love are God and man. Many people love dogs. But now, he has gone too far and loves dogs more than people. Conversely, he is rather cold-hearted towards the person he should love. What does this mean? It tells the reality that the object of rule and the object of love are reversed.
God is still faithfully fulfilling the covenant he made with Adam, following the genealogy of people of faith.