Each January, many people announce ambitious resolutions. The cultural practice is familiar. We pledge to read more, eat differently, increase our exercise, manage our time, and reorganize our lives. Few would deny the value of purposeful change. Yet few would deny the failure rate of such resolve. The statistics vary, but the testimony of ordinary experience is consistent. Human willpower can be easily compromised and quickly collapse. Scripture provides both diagnosis and remedy. The diagnosis is that unaided resolve cannot produce righteousness or sustained transformation. The remedy is a Covenant, initiated by God and sustained by grace, into which the believer enters by faith and within which the believer renews devotion through ongoing repentance, remembrance, and reliance upon God's promises.
Christians should aspire to something more than a New Year’s resolution. The Bible offers a richer pattern, the renewal of the Covenant. The contrast is not simply between bad and good, or between secular and sacred rituals. The contrast is between a humanly generated pledge and a God-formed relationship. A resolution primarily trusts the self. A renewed Covenant returns to the God who “keeps covenant and steadfast love” and who himself enables obedience by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. As the Apostle Paul writes, transformation is “by the renewal of your mind” that comes from presenting oneself to God as a living sacrifice in view of the mercies of God (Romans 12:1-2, ESV). The phrase “in view of the mercies of God” is the key distinction. The Christian does not begin with willpower. The Christian begins with grace.
In what follows, we will clearly distinguish between the anatomy of a secular resolution and the dynamics of Biblical covenant renewal. We will exegete key Hebrew and Greek terms that anchor the doctrine of the Covenant and the practice of renewal. We will trace patterns of renewal throughout the Bible, culminating in the New Covenant realized in the blood of Christ and enacted in the life of the Church through Word and Sacrament. Finally, we will propose practical and liturgical steps for turning the New Year into a season of grace-fueled commitment grounded in God’s faithfulness, rather than a season of short-lived resolve grounded in the self.
The Anatomy of a Resolution
A resolution in ordinary speech is a determination, a fixed decision to do or not do a particular thing. In the language of the New Testament, resolve can be approximated by terms such as thelō (θέλω, “to will, to desire”), boulomai (βούλομαι, “to intend, to plan”), or prothesis (πρόθεσις, “purpose, plan”). Scripture does not condemn purposeful planning. Proverbs commends prudence and diligence, and Paul speaks of holy ambition. Yet the Bible consistently warns against confident self-reliance that neglects dependence upon God. James rebukes the presumptive planner who says, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit,” without submitting the plan to the sovereignty of God. “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that’” (James 4:13–15, ESV).
Resolutions commonly falter because they rest on the unstable foundation of human strength. Jesus’ words are unambiguous: “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, ESV). The flesh, in Pauline terminology sarx (σάρξ), is not merely the body; it is human nature in its weakness and fallenness apart from the Spirit. Practices that “have indeed an appearance of wisdom,” including self-made religion, asceticism, and severity to the body, “are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (Colossians 2:23, ESV). A secular resolution often functions as self-made religion. It can discipline outward behavior for a time, but it cannot crucify the flesh, renew the heart, or bear the fruit of the Spirit.
The Bible also warns about vows offered lightly. Ecclesiastes admonishes, “When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay” (Ecclesiastes 5:4–5, ESV). Jesus Himself cautions against manipulative oath-taking or speech that seeks to secure control, rather than resting in truthful dependence on God. “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’” (Matthew 5:37, ESV). The point is not that commitment is wrong, but that commitment, divorced from the fear of the Lord and the help of the Lord, becomes hubris.
The verdict is clear. Resolutions that presume upon human capacity are destined to waver. Resolutions that arise from faith and are rooted in the grace of the Covenant, however, operate within a different economy. To see the difference, we must turn from human resolve to divine Covenant.
Covenant in Scripture
The central Old Testament term is berith (בְּרִית), commonly translated “covenant.” The verb that often accompanies it is karat (כָּרַת), “to cut,” hence the frequent idiom “to cut a covenant,” recalling the sacrificial rite by which parties passed between severed pieces, invoking the sanction of death for breach. In Genesis 15 God cuts a covenant with Abram. “When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram” (Genesis 15:17–18, ESV). Notably, God alone passes through the pieces, signifying that the covenant’s certainty rests on his unilateral commitment.
The theological atmosphere of berith is enriched by two additional Hebrew terms. The first is ḥesed (חֶסֶד), usually rendered “steadfast love.” It denotes covenant loyalty, love in action, mercy steadfastly committed to the beloved because of the promisor’s own fidelity. Deuteronomy summarizes, “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations” (Deuteronomy 7:9, ESV). The second term is ’emunah (אֱמוּנָה), “faithfulness, steadfastness,” and its cognate ’emet (אֱמֶת), “truth, reliability.” These words signal the moral backbone of the Covenant. God is not fickle. He is faithful.
Covenant renewal in the Old Testament frequently involves another Hebrew word, shuv (שׁוּב), “to turn, to return.” Prophetic calls to renewal employ this verb as a summons back to the Covenant Lord. “Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord” (Hosea 14:1–2, ESV). The psalmist prays for inner renovation using ḥādeš (חָדֵשׁ), “renew.” “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10, ESV). Covenant renewal is not merely a new plan; it is a renewed spirit granted by God, so that the people turn from sin to keep the Covenant by grace.
In the New Testament the primary term is diathēkē (διαθήκη), translated “covenant” or sometimes “testament.” The New Testament does not prefer synthēkē (συνθήκη), a mutual compact between equals. Instead, diathēkē emphasizes a disposition established by a sovereign party, gracious and binding. Jesus declares at the table, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood” (Luke 22:20, ESV). The adjective kainos (καινός) here means new in kind or quality, not merely recent. The New Covenant is not a newer version of the same thing. It is the fulfillment and transformation of the Covenant in Christ’s once-for-all atonement and the gift of the Spirit.
Two additional Greek terms clarify the dynamic character of this Covenant. The first is charis (χάρις), “grace,” the unmerited favor of God that not only forgives but also empowers. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness” (Titus 2:11–12, ESV). The second is pistis (πίστις), “faith,” not bare assent, but a covenantal entrustment of oneself to the Lord. Faith receives and answers grace within the Covenant that God has made and guaranteed with an oath. As Hebrews proclaims, “When God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath” so that believers “might have strong encouragement” (Hebrews 6:17–18, ESV). Covenant renewal, therefore, is faith awakening afresh to grace that cannot fail.
Biblical Patterns of Covenant Renewal
The Bible does not leave renewal to imagination. It provides liturgies and narratives that display how the people of God have returned to their Covenant Lord.
Sinai and the Book of the Covenant: In Exodus 24 Moses reads the Book of the Covenant to the people, who respond, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient” (Exodus 24:7, ESV). Blood is sprinkled, binding God and people in a sacrificially mediated relationship, pointing forward to the blood of the New Covenant.
Shechem and Joshua’s Call: In Joshua 24 the people gather at Shechem. Joshua rehearses God’s saving acts, summons the people to exclusive loyalty, warns against syncretism, and leads them in formal recommitment. “Choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served… But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15, ESV). The renewal is grounded in a historical recital of grace and a solemn choice.
Josiah’s Reform: In 2 Kings 23 King Josiah “stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments” with all his heart and soul, resulting in sweeping reform (2 Kings 23:3, ESV). The rediscovery of the Book of the Law precipitated this renewal. Word precedes reform.
Ezra and Nehemiah’s Renewal: In Nehemiah 8–10, the Law is read and explained. The people confess sin, remember God’s faithfulness, and bind themselves with a “firm covenant in writing” to obey the Lord (Nehemiah 9:38, ESV). The covenant document specifies practical obedience regarding worship, marriage, Sabbath, and giving. Renewal is not vague sentiment; it is concrete submission.
These scenes share a pattern. There is a corporate gathering, the reading of Scripture, a remembrance of grace, a confession of sin, a solemn recommitment, and the establishment of practices that sustain obedience. If Christians long to practice something more durable than a resolution, they can recover precisely this pattern under the New Covenant in Christ.
Why Secular Resolutions Fail and Covenant Renewal Endures
The failure of secular resolutions is not a surprise to anyone who has wrestled with the inner conflict that Paul describes in Romans 7. “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out” (Romans 7:18, ESV). Desire alone cannot overcome disordered loves and deep habits. The Apostle concludes that liberation requires a deliverer. “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:25, ESV). Deliverance is not granted through sterner resolve but through union with Christ in his death and resurrection, applied by the Spirit. “If you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Romans 8:13, ESV).
The language “by the Spirit” is determinative. Christian transformation is Spirit-enabled and promise-shaped. It is not self-engineered. This is why Paul warns the Colossians against rigorous practices that mimic wisdom but “are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (Colossians 2:23, ESV). By contrast, the logic of Covenant renewal begins with what God has done and continues to do. Lamentations gives voice to this logic at the threshold of every morning and therefore at the threshold of every year. “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22–23, ESV). Renewal arises from the fountain of new mercies. The New Covenant promise goes further. God promises internal renovation and Spirit-empowered obedience. “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you… And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:26–27, ESV).
The deepest difference between a resolution and a Covenant renewal is the locus of trust. A resolution says, “I can.” A renewal says, “God has promised, Christ has fulfilled, the Spirit enables, therefore I will trust and obey.” This is why Jesus institutes the Lord’s Supper as the sign of the New Covenant, placing in the believer’s hands and on the believer’s lips a continual means of remembrance and participation. “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV). The renewal of Covenant is a habit of grace, not a flash of determination.
Exegeting “Newness:” Kainos, Neos, and the New Covenant
The New Testament offers a nuanced vocabulary for “new.” Neos (νέος) generally denotes newness in time, recently arrived. Kainos (καινός) denotes newness in kind, qualitatively fresh. The New Covenant is kainē diathēkē, a Covenant new in quality. In Christ one is a kainē ktisis, a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV). The God who promises new mercies each morning does not merely reset the clock. He gives a new heart, new desires, and a new power to walk in his ways. The believer’s “newness of life” is sacramentally signified in Baptism and practically expressed in Spirit-led obedience. “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4, ESV). The relevant point for the New Year is plain. Christians do not seek novelty for novelty’s sake. They seek the qualitative newness that flows from union with Christ.
Grace-Fueled Commitment
If a resolution begins with the self, a Covenant renewal begins with the oath of God and the mediation of Christ. Hebrews declares that Christ “has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6, ESV). The promises are “better” because Christ fulfills every shadow. “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him” (2 Corinthians 1:20, ESV). The believer renews Covenant by returning to these promises. The result is not passivity but energized obedience. Paul describes the synergy in Philippians 2. Work out your salvation “with fear and trembling,” he insists, “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12–13, ESV). The phrase “to will” is striking. God’s grace not only empowers doing; God’s grace renovates willing.
This grace-fueled dynamic preserves believers from two dangerous distortions. On one side is legalism, the attempt to secure God’s favor by rule-keeping, which always collapses into either pride or despair. On the other side is antinomianism, the denial that God’s commandments matter, which collapses into bondage. The Covenant path avoids both. Grace saves, and grace trains. “For the grace of God has appeared… training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” (Titus 2:11–12, ESV). Covenant renewal welcomes the training of grace.
Practicing Covenant Renewal at the Turning of the Year
How might a Christian household, a small group, or a congregation practice Covenant renewal rather than merely making resolutions when a new year dawns The Bible’s renewal scenes suggest a Gospel-shaped pattern.
Gather Before the Lord
Renewal is not only a private matter. The Church is a Covenant people. Hebrews exhorts believers not to neglect meeting together, but to “consider how to stir up one another to love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24–25, ESV). A household can gather around the table. A congregation can assemble for a service of the Word and prayer. Shared renewal strengthens individual resolve by placing it in the context of shared grace.
Read and Rehearse the Word
Renewal begins with remembrance. The Scripture is read and explained. A fitting lection might include Deuteronomy 7:6–11; Joshua 24; Psalm 51; Jeremiah 31:31–34; Luke 22:14–20; Romans 12:1–2; Hebrews 8; and Hebrews 13:20–21. The reading should rehearse God’s saving acts, culminating in Christ. The purpose is not to stir up self-confidence but to awaken faith in the promises.
Confess Sin Specifically
Nehemiah 9 models corporate confession that tells the truth about God and about us. Scripture commands confession with assurance. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, ESV). In the spirit of Hosea 14, “take with you words” and return to the Lord. Confession must be concrete and Gospel-saturated, not vague and self-accusing without hope.
Renew Baptismal Identity and the Lord’s Supper
Baptism signifies death to sin and newness of life. The Lord’s Supper is the ongoing covenantal meal of remembrance and proclamation. In many traditions, a New Year service of Covenant renewal includes communion, wherein believers hear again the voice of Christ, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood” (1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV). The sacramental signs root resolve in grace.
Offer Ourselves as Living Sacrifices
Paul’s appeal is an ideal frame for a new year. “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice” and to “be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Romans 12:1–2, ESV). The verb “present” signals decisive consecration. The “renewal” of the mind signals ongoing transformation. Both are responses to mercy.
Name Practices That Align with the Means of Grace
The early Church “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42, ESV). Covenant renewal should name simple, concrete practices that align with these means of grace. Commit to a pattern of Scripture intake, gathered worship, table fellowship, intercessory prayer, and generous giving. These are not techniques to win favor; they are ordinary pathways by which grace trains.
Craft Vows Carefully and Humbly
The Bible neither requires nor forbids written commitments. It cautions against rash vows and commends truthful promises made in the fear of God. Ecclesiastes warns against careless speech. Psalm 119 shows holy promise: “The Lord is my portion; I promise to keep your words” and “I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments” (Psalm 119:57, 60, ESV). A humble covenant prayer can gather biblical commitments without presumption, always conditioned by “if the Lord wills” and always anchored in promises.
Seek Accountability in Love
Renewal thrives in community. The aim is not surveillance but encouragement. Hebrews calls us to “stir up one another to love and good works” and to do so “all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24–25, ESV). Share commitments with trusted believers. Pray for one another. Celebrate evidence of grace, not merely compliance with plans.
Expect Ongoing Repentance and Fresh Mercy
Resolutions often die when they are broken once. Covenant renewal begins with the expectation that sanctification includes struggle and that mercy is new every morning. When you fail, return quickly to the Father, for the Covenant rests on his oath and Christ’s blood, not your performance. “If we are faithless, he remains faithful” (2 Timothy 2:13, ESV).
Exegetical Notes on Key Terms for Renewal
The practice of Covenant renewal gains depth when Christians understand the original language terms that Scripture employs.
Berith (בְּרִית, Covenant) and Karat Berith (כָּרַת בְּרִית, to cut a covenant)
The imagery of cutting recalls the solemnity of entering covenant under sanction. Genesis 15 portrays God alone passing between the pieces, dramatizing unilateral commitment. This underwrites assurance. The believer’s renewal is not an attempt to re-earn relationship. It is a return to a relationship that God established and secures.
Ḥesed (חֶסֶד, Steadfast Love)
Often paired with berith, ḥesed is covenant loyalty that does not let go. Psalm 136 repeats “for his steadfast love endures forever” in every line, braiding Israel’s history with God’s unending love. Renewal is therefore gratitude-driven. We remember ḥesed and respond with obedience.
’Emunah (אֱמוּנָה, Faithfulness) and ’Emet (אֱמֶת, Truth)
These words describe God’s reliability and the faithful response of his people. “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant” (Deuteronomy 7:9, ESV). Renewal rests in divine dependability.
Shuv (שׁוּב, Return) and Ḥādeš (חָדֵשׁ, Renew)
Hosea’s call, “Return, O Israel,” highlights the directional nature of renewal. It is a turning, not merely a trying. Psalm 51’s prayer, “renew a right spirit within me,” teaches that renewal is God’s work in us, asked for in prayer and received by faith.
Diathēkē (διαθήκη, Covenant) versus Synthēkē (συνθήκη, compact)
The New Testament preference for diathēkē underscores divine initiative. God sets the terms graciously and binds himself to fulfill them in Christ. The believer responds with the obedience of faith.
Charis (χάρις, Grace)
Grace is not only pardon. It is power that trains. Titus 2 witnesses that grace becomes the teacher of holiness. Covenant renewal depends upon charis that precedes, accompanies, and follows every act of obedience.
Pistis (πίστις, Faith) and Metanoia (μετάνοια, Repentance)
Faith receives and rests upon Christ and his righteousness. Repentance is a change of mind and direction toward God. Renewal weds these two continuously: turning from sin and entrusting oneself anew to the Savior.
Kainos (καινός, New in kind) and Neos (νέος, New in time)
The New Covenant brings qualitative newness. The believer is a new creation. This is assurance for the struggler. Renewal is not cosmetic. It is participation in a new reality that Christ has inaugurated.
A Covenant Renewal Framework for the New Year
The following framework adapts Biblical elements into a practical order for Christian households or congregations at the beginning of a year.
Call to Worship and Invocation
Open with Psalm 90:12, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (ESV). Pray that the God of the Covenant would draw near by his Spirit.
Reading of Scripture
Read selections from Deuteronomy 7:6–11, Joshua 24:1–24, Psalm 51, Jeremiah 31:31–34, Ezekiel 36:24–27, Luke 22:14–20, Romans 12:1–2, and Hebrews 13:20–21. The final passage provides a benediction that explicitly names “the blood of the eternal covenant.”
Recital of God’s Saving Acts
A leader summarizes the Gospel: creation, fall, promises to Abraham, the Exodus, the giving of the Law, the monarchy and exile, the prophetic hope, the coming of Christ, his sinless life, atoning death, victorious resurrection, ascension, and the sending of the Spirit. Emphasize that “all the promises of God find their Yes in him” (2 Corinthians 1:20, ESV).
Corporate Confession of Sin
Use the language of Scripture. “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10, ESV). Confess particular sins that the Spirit brings to mind, both individual and corporate.
Assurance of Pardon
Announce the promise. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (1 John 1:9, ESV). Remind the congregation that Christ is the mediator of a better covenant.
Renewal of Baptismal Vows and Partaking of the Lord’s Supper
Invite believers to confess the Apostolic faith, renounce the works of darkness, and profess allegiance to Christ. Receive the Supper with reverence, hearing again, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood” (1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV).
Covenant Commitments for the Year
Encourage specific, grace-shaped commitments connected to the means of grace. Examples include daily Scripture reading, weekly gathered worship without neglect, intentional fellowship and hospitality, regular prayer, generosity in giving, and service to the poor. Tie each practice to Scripture. “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act” (Psalm 37:5, ESV). “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established” (Proverbs 16:3, ESV). State commitments humbly, adding “as the Lord wills” in the spirit of James 4:15.
Intercession for Endurance
Pray Hebrews 12:1–2, asking to run “with endurance” and to look “to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (ESV). Ask the Spirit to bear fruit. Ask for mutual love and accountability.
Benediction
Conclude with Hebrews 13:20–21, which ties the equipping of God’s people directly to “the blood of the eternal covenant” and to God’s working in us “that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ” (ESV).
Resolution versus Covenant Renewal
To fix the distinction, consider six contrasts.
Source
Resolution: originates in the human will.
Covenant Renewal: originates in God’s promise and Christ’s mediation.
Power
Resolution: depends upon the flesh.
Covenant Renewal: depends upon the Spirit.
Aim
Resolution: seeks self-improvement, even when morally worthy.
Covenant Renewal: seeks the glory of God in the obedience of faith.
Means
Resolution: relies on technique and timing.
Covenant Renewal: relies on Word, Sacrament, prayer, and fellowship.
Security
Resolution: collapses when broken.
Covenant Renewal: returns again and again to mercy that is new every morning.
Outcome
Resolution: produces temporary behavior modification.
Covenant Renewal: produces growing holiness, because grace trains and God equips what he commands.
A Model Covenant Renewal Prayer
The following prayer is offered as a model. It gathers Biblical phrases and theologically ordered petitions. It is not a formula. It is a map.
O faithful God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love to a thousand generations, we come to you at the threshold of a new year to renew our covenant in Christ. We confess that apart from Jesus we can do nothing. We confess our sins. Create in us clean hearts, O God, and renew a right spirit within us.
We praise you that the Lord Jesus Christ has established the New Covenant by his blood. In Him all your promises are Yes and Amen. By the same Spirit who raised him from the dead, equip us with everything good that we may do your will. Work in us that which is pleasing in your sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.
We present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to you, in view of your mercies. Transform us by the renewal of our minds, that we may discern what is your good and acceptable and perfect will.
We commit ourselves to you. We devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. We resolve, as you give grace, to walk by the Spirit and not gratify the desires of the flesh. When we stumble, bring us quickly to confession and restore to us the joy of your salvation.
O'God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, keep us steadfast in faith, abounding in hope, and fervent in love until the Day of Christ. Amen.
The Church as a Covenant People and the Communal Dimensions of Renewal
A final word is necessary about the communal character of Covenant renewal. The Bible never imagines salvation as a private contract between an individual and God. The Covenant gathers a people. God says, “I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33, ESV). Renewal therefore, has ecclesial shape. Pastors and elders can lead congregations in annual or seasonal services of Covenant renewal. Households can renew Baptismal identity together, cultivate family worship, and set shared commitments. Friends can form spiritual bands that meet for confession and prayer. All of this locates personal resolve within the living fellowship of the Church, where Christ has promised to be present. He feeds his people at the table. He speaks through the Scriptures read and preached. He gathers wandering sheep through the care of undershepherds. He upbuilds through the gifts of the Spirit shared among the saints.
The communal context also guards against two errors that commonly accompany resolutions. The first error is perfectionism, the illusion that if we plan correctly, we will perform flawlessly. In the community, we remember that sanctification is a shared pilgrimage marked by patience. The second error is discouragement unto withdrawal, the belief that failure disqualifies us. In community, we learn to confess, to receive assurance, and to begin again in the strength that God supplies.
Entering the Year Anchored in the Eternal Covenant
A New Year offers a gracious opportunity to remember the brevity of life and the faithfulness of God. A secular resolution can be a modest tool, but it is not a sufficient strategy for holiness. It trusts the self too much and grace too little. Scripture invites believers to something greater and deeper, a renewal of Covenant anchored in God’s steadfast love, sealed by the blood of Christ, and empowered by the Spirit. The vocabulary of Scripture confirms it. Berith speaks of a bond cut in blood. Ḥesed assures unwavering love. Diathēkē heralds the sovereign grace of a better covenant. Charis trains us to live holy lives. Kainos promises newness of a different order, not merely the turn of the calendar.
Therefore, as this year begins, let us gather with the Church and renew the Covenant. Let us read the Bible, confess our sins, remember the Gospel, and come to the Table. Let us present our bodies as living sacrifices, submit our plans to the Lord’s will, and walk by the Spirit. Let us craft humble commitments tethered to the means of grace. Let us encourage one another and, when we fail, return quickly to the Father whose mercies are new every morning. Most of all, let us place our confidence not in our resolutions but in the faithfulness of God, who has sworn by himself to keep his promises. “Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will” (Hebrews 13:20–21, ESV). This is more than a resolution. It is covenant life, renewed in grace, sustained by promise, and directed toward the glory of God.
No comments:
Post a Comment