Though the specific term “covenant of grace” does not appear explicitly in Scripture, yet the concept of this covenant is foundational to God’s plan of redemption and appears in every single book of the Bible. Like the covenant of works, the covenant of grace is initiated by God, but it differs in that it is made with fallen humanity. This covenant promises eternal life, but it is established by God’s grace, not human effort, and is fulfilled through the work of Jesus Christ, the “Last Adam.” Jesus’ perfect obedience and sacrificial death are central to this covenant, making Him the sole Mediator between God and humanity (1 Timothy 2:5). In the covenant of grace, salvation depends entirely on Christ’s work, not on our own deeds.
First Adam, though a creature like all other living beings, yet it was God’s grace that He gave him stewardship to have authority overall living beings. This divine gift of dominion was not because of any inherent superiority, but because of God’s sovereign will to make Adam a caretaker of the earth.
God gave Adam four primary responsibilities and commands, each reflecting His trust and the purpose He had for Adam and his generation.
First, Adam was tasked to make the Garden of Eden clean and green (Genesis 2:15).
Second, Adam was commanded to love God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength by perfectly obeying Him (Genesis 2:16-17).
Third, Adam was given the responsibility to name all the animals (Genesis 2:19-20).
Finally, God blessed Adam and Eve to build His Kingdom (church) on earth by being fruitful and multiplying.
Concerning the covenant of works, Adam tragically failed to perfectly love and obey God, as well as to fulfill his calling to establish God’s kingdom (church) on earth. His sin and disobedience brought not only personal condemnation but also plunged the entire human race, whom he represented, into the darkness of sin. As Paul writes, “through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). This original sin bound humanity and their will to sin.
The root of Adam’s fall lies in the distortion of his affections. The love he once had for God now because of his sin changed into hate for God and in results he started to hide from God (Genesis 3:8-10). Similarly, the animosity Adam had for Satan and sin now changed into love for them. As a result, humanity, continuously depraved from Adam onward, became enslaved to sin and its desires, as described in Romans 6:17-18.
At the moment of Adam’s fall, when humanity was plunged into sin, God sovereignly intervened to rescue His people. In His grace, God judged Adam and Eve, but even the judgment of death became a blessing. Had God allowed them to live in their sin forever ?, they would have been condemned to eternal misery and separation from Him, bearing the full consequences of sin. Instead, God’s judgment was a merciful intervention, sparing them from eternal suffering.
In His mercy, God introduced the covenant of grace. He provided a hope to come by revealing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In Genesis 3:21, God made garments of animal skins to cover Adam and Eve, symbolizing the covering of their sins through the shedding of the blood of Christ. God also promised that the “seed of the woman” (Jesus Christ) would crush the head of the serpent (Satan) (Genesis 3:15), signaling that a Savior would come to undo the curse of sin and take away the kingdom from Satan.
The last Adam (Jesus Christ), would do everything that the first Adam failed to do. Jesus would perfectly love God with all His heart, mind, soul and strength by obeying God without committing any sin (Matthew 22:37-38; 1 Peter 2:22). He would establish God’s kingdom on earth, building His Church, and the gates of hell would not prevail against it (Matthew 16:18). Through Christ, all those whom God graciously chooses to save will believe in Him and become His people (Acts 13:48). As God promised throughout the Scripture, “I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33, Revelation 21:7). This gospel promise runs like a thread through every book of the Bible. God progressively revealed this promise over time to His people, with each step revealing more of His redemptive plan. In the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we see the Covenant of grace by complete fulfillment of God’s promise of salvation and the establishment of His eternal kingdom in Jesus Christ.
I would like to conclude this chapter with quotes from two of my favorite theologians, whose insightful reflections on the covenant of grace have greatly influenced my understanding.
“The covenant of grace is the means by which God reconciles sinners to Himself. It is not a matter of human merit, but divine mercy.The gospel is not a new law, but the promise of life through Christ.”
— John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion
“The covenant of grace, established in Christ, is the foundation of the entire history of salvation.Through it, God freely gives what man cannot earn: righteousness, forgiveness, and eternal life.”
— Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatic, Volume 3, The Doctrine of Sin
