While the whole world was turned away from God he turned towards one man, Abraham.  He made a covenant with Abraham promising to bless him and make him a blessing to the nations.  This covenant promise was a freely-given and undeserved relationship of blessing. Abraham didn’t do anything to merit such a promise. God’s covenant relationship was an act of his free grace.  It was unconditional.

God made this unconditional covenant of promise with Abraham and his offspring, Israel.  He promised that they too would be blessed and a blessing to the nations.  But was the covenant with Israel unconditional? There were many laws that Israel must obey to enjoy blessing.  Nevertheless, the basis of this covenant with Israel was the unconditional covenant of promise with Abraham.  And Paul makes the point that the law that came 430 years after Abraham was a temporary measure that does not annul the unconditional covenant of promise.

The covenant God proved faithful to his unconditional promise by sending his Son into the world for us. The Father’s Son was the faithfulness of God towards us in saving action.  He was also our covenant faithfulness towards God for he lived before his Father as us.  And now we put our faith in his faithfulness so that in him we are the faithful ones before our Father.  Faithful, not through our own faithfulness, but only through the faithfulness of Jesus.

The covenant God also proves faithful by sending the promised Spirit into our hearts.  He does so that we may live faithfully in union with Jesus through Spirit enabled transformation.

It’s all unconditional grace!