DANGERS TO COVENANT RELATIONSHIPS

A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master. If then I be a father, where is Mine honour? And if I be a master, where is the fear of me?saith the Lord of hosts unto you, o priests, who despise My name. And ye say, "Wherein have we despised Thy name."

Malachi 1:6

The only place outside of heaven where you can be perfectly safe from the dangers of love is hell.

 Anonymous

          Having looked at a wider study in the past three lessons, it is of utmost importance to understand what the dangers to covenant relationships.

          There are pitfalls and signals that could terminate a covenant relationship if not observed with a keen eye and cause harm to one or both parties in the relationship.

The following are some of the dangers that should not be taken lightly when protecting a covenat relationship:

1)     1) Familiarity: It is said that familiarity breeds contempt. The success of any key relationship is ring dependant on honouring one another. When familiarity creeps into a relationship, the ‘wall of respect’ crumble down and within a short while you will realize that the core values that kept the relationship going are no longer important. Accountability ceases, excuses are exchanged for spending quality time together and communication skills are compromised. Familiarity breeds pride in the relationship which usually comes before a fall.

2)     2) Pride: This fuels reactions especially when one is confronted regarding an issue, or when does rebuke comes their way. The Bible says that “where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work.”- James 3:16. Pride makes one arrogant and not ready to be corrected. This will kill the relationship if the person on the wrong does not admit they are wrong and humble enough to accept correction.
3)     3) Disloyalty: This is another word for betrayal especially in times of hardship or adversity. The Bible says that a friend loves at all times and a brother is born for adversity – Proverbs 17:17. If one of the parties in this relationship goes against or rather violates the terms of agreement in the covenant relationship, he or she is considered disloyal. It is going against the will and the purpose of the covenant which can result to pain and bitterness between the friends.

4)      4)Unfaithfulness: To truly understand this example, we shall look at the marriage covenant. “The integrity of the upright shall guide them; but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them-Proverbs 11:3. When unfaithfulness permeates a marriage relationship or any covenant relationship, it becomes damaged because vows which are terms that bind the relationship are violated. At the end of all this is pain/resentment. Both parties in this relationship must fight to keep this element away.

5)     5) Offense: We must learn how to respond to offense and not to react. When we react to offense we end up not tackling the issue at its root. Offense comes when we do not handle crisis with wisdom and humility. If we resolve to pursue peace we will find hope and rest in our covenant relationships.

                                                          From Pastor