God’s Relational Framework

Email to a Friend Hold down "Option" and click the link if you have pop-up blocker installed.

by Harvey L. Diamond

God created mankind in His image—an identity and capacity representing His likeness. His hope was for His children to live a life centered in the richness of His divine nature and real love so we would have a relationship with Him and be blessed through Him.

God defines relationships in covenant terms. His type of covenant contains specific promises; and His perfect nature is to be faithful to keep His promises. All His promises point to His purposes, which are redemptive in nature.

In return for His faithfulness, God looks for specific responses expressing true heartfelt gratefulness, honor, respect and faith—in other words, worship in spirit and in truth.

God, knowing mankind needs order to live a just life, designed a specific framework through which the covenant relationship would operate. The framework God designed encompasses processes by which we can engage with God in real and relevant ways.

In a similar fashion, all disciplines of life involve processes. Engineers and builders work within a framework of design processes, accountants and business administrators monitor the effective use of resources and performance of activities through audit processes, sales professionals engage prospective customers in a sales process, etc.

The process God designed to serve as a way of relating with Him encompasses a cycle of seven appointed ways of engagement He calls the Feasts of the Lord. The Bible provides God’s original instructions regarding these feasts in Leviticus 23. While rabbinic and cultural traditions have evolved as to how Jews observe these events, the apostle Paul explained how these feasts represent visual aids or shadows pointing forward to the relationship with God that would be more fully revealed in the Messiah, Jesus Christ. (Colossians 2:17)

The substance of the feasts provides a broad perspective of what being, living and praying “in Him” and “through Him” is truly about. In essence, it fosters a way to experience a relationship in unity with Him in the capacity of His Spirit, for such glorifies Him.

If we look beyond the outward nature of these rituals and practices, we have the opportunity to see real and relevant values God embedded in these activities to serve in fostering a rich relationship with Him. That’s our purpose behind the PATHWAYS TO GLORY Interactive Relational Devotional. Through seven levels of perspectives, we see ways God designed for us to engage, interact and relate with Him so we can grow in the knowledge of God and in relationship with Him.

Truly, by experiencing God’s ways in Messiah Jesus, we can come to learn the essence of His Kingdom life and real balance between heaven’s way of righteousness and justice, mercy and truth. This was the very nugget of God’s wisdom Israel learned in its greatest days of glory under King David—from whose physical and spiritual lineage Messiah came.

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Mercy and truth go before Your face. (Psalm 89:14)

May God’s grace be upon you as you engage with our living Lord and God