There was a Man Named Abram…

We find an interesting story in Genesis, Chapter 15. There are several interesting stories from Genesis 1 to 15, but I am concerned about the events described in the 15th chapter and beyond. I have read this over and over, but have recently become aware of some things that had escaped me earlier. This may be old news to you, but to me it has been a revelation. I want to begin here and take a journey through the scripture and through time. Here begins a fascinating concept that threads it’s way through the Bible.

During Chapters 12, 13 and 14, we see the story of Abram begin to unfold. We also learn some things about Abram. He was not a perfect man. He was fearful and misled Pharaoh. However, Abram did seek to serve and obey God. Because Abram sought to serve God, God blessed him and made him some pretty remarkable promises. God promised Abram that his descendants would number as the stars in the sky. When Abram believed what God had told him, God reckoned it to him as righteousness. This was regarding the promise of a son and descendants. When God spoke of Abram possessing the land, Abram asked a question. "How may I know that I shall possess it?" Here is where God made a covenant with Abram and his seed. God told Abram to bring Him a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove and a pigeon. Abram brought the animals to God, and then cut them in two and laid the pieces to each side. This made a bloody path between the pieces of the animals. The birds were not cut in two. Perhaps they were the least of the animals offered. At this point, a very interesting thing happened. Abram fell asleep, and God spoke to him while he slept. Then God passed through the pieces two times. Remember, Abram was asleep, and the scripture tells us a smoking oven and a flaming torch passed between the pieces. The covenant signifies what is to be done by the parties of the covenant. If one of the parties breaks the covenant, he is to have the same thing done to him that was done to the animals. He is to die and his blood is shed. Another interesting note is that if one party breaks the covenant, it does not release the other party from the covenant. This is the difference between a covenant and a contract.

What God is saying through this act is simply this, "If I (God) break the covenant, may the same thing that was done to these animals be done to me." Then by going back a second time, God is saying, "If you break the covenant, may the same thing be done to me as was done to these animals." Some 2500 years later, God made good on His covenant when His only son, Yeshua, died on a tree, and was pierced through, spilling blood and water. God knew that Abram could not keep the covenant and that Abrams seed could not keep the covenant. When the covenant was broken by Abram and his seed, God still maintained the covenant and paid the ultimate price to uphold it. This is a pure act of grace!

The Passover lamb was a reminder of the covenant God made with Abram, as well as a type and shadow of the Lamb of God, who was to come. During the Passover meal there are 4 cups of red wine which are present in the meal. The names for these four cups are found in Exodus 6:6-7. 1. I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 2. I will rid (or deliver) you out of their bondage. 3. I will redeem you with stretched out arm. 4. I will take you to be my people and I will be your God. Or: 1. Cup of freedom. 2. Cup of deliverance. 3. Cup of redemption. 4. Cup of consummation.

The cup of wine, which the bride and groom drink upon their betrothal, is the cup of redemption. This is the cup that is shared when the bride price is paid and the betrothal has been sealed. This third cup of the Passover is the same cup that Jesus/Yeshua drank with His disciples when He instituted the Lord’s Supper. When reading the accounts, you will notice that the 4th cup was not drunk. In fact, when you read Matthew 26:29, Jesus says that He will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when He drinks it with us in His Father’s kingdom. Why? The 3rd cup was the cup of betrothal. What Jesus/Yeshua was saying is that He has entered into a betrothal with His bride. The marriage will not be consummated until we are gathered into the kingdom.

Let me put this another way. During a Jewish wedding the groom will take a cup of wine and drink half of it, then he offers it to his bride, and she drinks the other half. This signifies that he desires to marry her, and her drinking of it signifies the same thing and that she has accepted him as her husband. Jesus/Yeshua has drunk the first half of the cup of betrothal and has offered it to us. When we take communion, we are taking the second half of the cup and are signifying that we have accepted Him as our Husband, our Redeemer. We will drink the 4th cup of wine, the cup of consummation, when we are with Jesus in His Father’s kingdom. This also signifies God’s covenant with Abram. The red wine is spoken of as the blood of Jesus/Yeshua in Matthew 26:28. Jesus affirmed the covenant made with Abram. He paid for our sins, our breaking of the covenant, by His own death and the shedding of His own blood. He fulfilled the requirements of the covenant for us. Remember that Abram was asleep, and God passed between the pieces two times, Himself.

This understanding allows us to see why another event happened. Jesus is not going to drink the 4th cup, the Cup of Consummation, until He drinks it with His Bride. While hanging on the cross, Matthew 27:34, He was given vinegar mingled with gall, and when He tasted it, He would not drink. It was a common practice for some of the pious Jewish women to provide a drink for the condemned. It was wine vinegar that had gall (myrrh) mixed with it. When drunk, it produced a narcotic effect and helped to ease the pain and suffering of the dying. It was an act of kindness or charity on the part of these Jewish women. Jesus had made a promise that He would not drink of the fruit of the vine until He did it with His Bride in Heaven. Therefore, He suffered the utmost during His crucifixion, without the aid of the numbing effect of the drink. Again, He upheld His covenant made with us.

Can we ever partake of communion again with the same attitude as before?

Randy Felton
Potter’s Clay Ministries, Inc.
417 NW 42nd St.
Oklahoma City, OK 73118
Shalom2@cox.net
www.haydid.org/potter.htm


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