By Maggie Bell, Acting Level 1 Proposal Writer
At Covenant Consulting, the concept of a “covenant” inevitably permeates everything we do. Our business is founded on the Grant family marriage covenant and our passion for living by our covenant drives our purpose. But what exactly is a covenant? And how does covenant living impact our relationships with clients and partners?
Defining Covenant
By definition, a covenant at its most basic level is an oath-bound relationship between two or more parties. It is derived from the Latin con venire, meaning to come together. Covenants are usually solemn, formal agreements that signify a long-term commitment. When we think of the word covenant, marriage or long-term business deals are often the first types of relationships that come to mind. While covenants are most commonly formed between humans, they can also be formed with the Divine. Many covenants, such as the Christian marriage covenant, invite the Divine to witness the promise that both parties are making. In the Bible, God often enters covenants, in which He makes promises concerning the future of the relationship, with His people. Covenants can contain both conditional and unconditional elements, requiring one or both parties to keep agreed-upon tenants. While they may vary in type and purpose, all covenants share a deep commitment to strong relationships and integrity.
History of the Biblical Covenant
Our records of ancient life reveal the importance of the covenantin everyday life. Before the days of established legal systems or government, people pledged terms to one another to signify the arrangement of their relationship. Some of the earliest known records of covenants are found within the Bible. In fact, the entire Christian religion is based on the principle of the covenant. As Christians, we look to Biblical examples as guiding principles for our lives, including how we develop and practice our business. We see in the Old Testament (or Old Covenant) that God establishes a relationship with his creation and enters into binding agreements by His own promises. These covenants are not made lightly. Throughout Scripture, blessings come when covenants are kept, and there are consequences when they are broken.
Examples of Biblical Covenants
One of the first Biblical covenants that we encounter in the Bible can be found in Genesis 6. God promises Noah that he will never again destroy the earth by flood. Although God hoped for righteous behavior from Noah and his family when he made the covenant, it is an unconditional promise that He makes. He declares this covenant by making an oath unto Himself.
In Genesis 15, God tells Abraham to prepare a sacrifice by halving the animal and separating its parts to form two parallel lines with a path between them. When a covenant was made in ancient times, both parties would walk between the halves to officiate the covenant. However, only God walked the path, as Abraham was in deep sleep. The Abrahamic Covenant is an unconditional covenant, one in which God demonstrates that He alone can fulfill both halves of the covenant.
The Abrahamic Covenant promised many conditions to Abraham and his descendants: 1) A promised land for his people to dwell in; (2) many descendants, including nations and kings; (3) and future blessings and redemption (through the coming of the Messiah). God fulfills all these blessings, and they themselves span centuries. From the Abrahamic Covenant also emerges the Davidic Covenant, which promises a descendant who would sit on his throne forever. This descendant is Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah. In the New Testament (or New Covenant) Christ establishes a covenant with all of humankind: A Covenant of Grace. The Covenant of Grace reveals God’s plan for salvation and eternal life for those who have faith in Him. Through this new covenant, we know that no matter how unfaithful people may be to one another, God cannot and never will be unfaithful to his covenants. All our covenants today are modeled after this example of a perfect covenant.
Covenant-Informed Business
Covenant Consulting is derived from the Grant family marriage covenant, which states: “We are committed to using our gifts and resources to serve others and further God’s kingdom.” Our foundation and roots are essential to our integrated approach, solutions, and the clients with whom we choose to partner. Our marriage covenant is based on examples of Biblical covenants, such as those described above. We live by Christian principles which drive our purpose and in turn the God-given purpose of our clients.
We recognize our human covenants are only a reflection of God’s New Covenant with us. However, our commitment to living in faithfulness to our covenants, both with God and our fellow humans, persuades us to continually put our partners above ourselves. Covenants require faith and trust in the other party. We always assume positive intent and seek understanding in all circumstances. As with the covenants we have described, our business deals have conditional components. However, we also hope that the relationships we create are unconditional. We enter business covenants because we truly desire to see long-term, impactful change result from our partnerships, even after our job is done.
Both the Abrahamic Covenant and Davidic Covenant were multigenerational covenants. The promises God made to both men spanned centuries after their lifetime to impact the future. We hope that our covenant with you will also extend beyond our lifetimes to create positive futures and sustainable impact. We are not in the business of breaking covenants. Even after we have provided you with our services and completed projects, we remain committed to our covenant relationship, to the success of your mission, and to your growth in the long term. This is a small picture of what it means for us to establish covenants with our clients. We hope that you will also see the value in this transformative way of doing business and partner with us to impact generations.
About Covenant Consulting
We partner with organizations with strong values and a mandate for empowerment. We respect all faiths and treat them with kindness. We know and understand that living by our covenant, or covenant living, is an important part of many religions. When people ask us what makes Covenant Consulting different, we do not hesitate to say that it is our covenant to clients and our founders’ faith in Jesus. Ready to build a covenant with us and empower the globe through capacity building and training? Get in touch with us today.