Then God made a covenant with Noah, his seed, and with every living creature (9:8-11). This covenant was mainly of one aspect—that never again would death come through the judgment of the death waters. The covenant here mainly typifies that in the church life there is no longer death, but life. The eight persons lived under that covenant. Since we do not share their background, it is difficult for us to understand their feelings upon leaving the ark. Suppose you were one of Noah's daughters-in-law. After coming out of the ark, you would still have been fearful, thinking that after awhile the flood might come again. Perhaps you would have said to yourself, "Before the flood, I had assurance. I looked at the sky, and it was clear. I was filled with assurance because the sky was clear. I had no fear. Now, through the experience of the flood, I have no assurance at all. The sky is clear, but perhaps the flood will come again." The people had no assurance; they were threatened and fearful. This signifies that even after we have been saved and brought into the church life, we are still under the threatening of death. Many are threatened by the besetting sins and the possibility of losing their temper. They hate their temper. Two weeks ago their sky was clear, but suddenly there was thunder and a great downpour—that was the loss of the temper. Whenever this happens, they are frightened. Many saints have told me, "Brother, it is so good in the church life. But we don't have the faith or assurance that every day will be the same. I am kind toward my wife today, but perhaps after two days I will lose my temper and be bankrupt. I have no assurance and no peace. I am full of fear." Some sisters have no peace with their husbands or with themselves. They are under the fear that the flood will come again, that the death waters will come once more.
Because of this sense of threatening that Noah and the others were under, God made a covenant with them. God seemed to say, "Be at peace and be assured. No flood will come. There will be no more waters of death." This signifies that we may be assured and at peace in the church life, for there is no more death. Now in Christ there is no condemnation (Rom. 8:1), no death water. We are in Romans 8 where there is no condemnation, no flood, no death, and no judgment. The more we say, "No more," the more we realize that we have no death. Do not believe your feelings and do not listen to your convictions. Your convictions are not dependable; they are lies. You must live under God's covenant. Do not live under your feelings, your convictions, or any environment. God's covenant declares that whenever the sky is cloudy, God will send a rainbow. When you see the rainbow, you know that the flood will not come. If your wife or husband has been so pleasant for two weeks and suddenly the sky becomes cloudy, do not believe it. You must say, "Lord, send the rainbow." Do not believe that your husband is going to lose his temper, but say, "Lord, You are faithful. You can take away the cloud and send the rainbow." If you say this, the sky will be clear.
Do not believe that you are weak. That is the lie of Satan. Do not believe that you will lose your temper, that you will fall. If you believe something negative and speak that thing, it will come to pass. Such prophecies are certainly fulfilled. If you are afraid of something and prophesy regarding that thing, it will happen. Do not believe your weaknesses. Do you believe them? Are you now living under your weaknesses or are you under God's covenant? The whole New Testament is called a new testament. A testament is even better than a covenant. We have a twenty-seven-book testament, a twenty-seven-book covenant. This covenant says, "There is now then no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:1). This covenant also says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness" (2 Cor. 12:9). Do you believe this? If we believe it, we should say a strong, "Amen." The covenant also says, "Christ..nullified death" (2 Tim. 1:10). Do you believe this? Do not look at yourself—look at Christ. Whenever you look at yourself, you will be trembling. We should not live under ourselves, but under God's covenant. We have a covenant! The covenant that God made with Noah was very short, at the most only half a chapter in length. But our covenant has twenty-seven books. Are you weak? You must say, "No, I am no longer weak, because the covenant tells me that I can `be empowered in the grace which is in Christ Jesus' (2 Tim. 2:1), and I can `boast in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ might tabernacle over me'" (2 Cor. 12:9). Spiritually speaking, I like the song that I learned as a child: "Jesus loves me—this I know, for the Bible tells me so." We may also say, "I am strong in the grace—this I know, for the Bible tells me so." We can declare, "I will be kept from stumbling—this I know, for the Bible tells me so" (Jude 24). Some of you may not have the faith to say this. You may think that this is too much and ask, "How can you say, `I will be kept from stumbling—this I know'? I dare not say this. If I were to say it tonight, surely I would fall tomorrow." Yes, you would fall, simply because you prophesied that you would. You would fall because you are living under your feelings, not under God's covenant.
In His covenant, God says, "No more flood, no more judgment by water." If you had been there at the time, would you have said, "Amen"? I would have said, "Amen," over and over again. When Noah saw the clouds, he had no need to be afraid, because he knew that the rainbow would come. So, when the cloud of temper arises, you can say, "Lord, I will not lose my temper. Send the rainbow. I don't care about the cloud—I care about the rainbow. The sky is dark and the cloud is great, but a colorful rainbow is coming. Look at the rainbow." When you say this, you call things not being as being through faith. This faith is not according to your imagination; it is according to the twenty-seven books of God's written covenant.
After the flood, the eight persons became people of the covenant. They were a covenant people. In the church life, in Christ's resurrection, we are the covenant people. We have a covenant. We are not living under any of our convictions, considerations, or lies; we are living under God's covenant. We are now living under the New Testament. Are you weak? Are you going to lose your temper, hit your wife, or love the world? You can say, "No, for the Bible tells me so." We are secured, guaranteed, and protected by the promises in God's covenant. These promises are great and precious, by which we may be partakers of God's divine nature and escape the corruption that is in the world through lust (2 Pet. 1:4).