Consideration

For a contract to be enforceable, the promise or promises it contains must be supported by consideration, which is defined as “the value given in exchange for the promises sought.” In an insurance contract, consideration is given by the applicant in exchange for the insurer’s promise to pay benefits, and it also consists of the application and the initial premium. This is why the offer and acceptance of an insurance contract are not complete until the insurer receives the application and the first premium. The consideration clause or provision in a life insurance policy specifies the amount and frequency of premium payments that the policyowners must make to keep the insurance in force.

In the Covenant of Consummation, we find consideration — a value given in exchange for a contractual promise. Expounding on this, Apostle Paul wrote, (II Corinthians 1:20-22) “All the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen for his glory. And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”

God ensures the preservation of his people in covenant, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The ability to persevere, that is, to continue in the covenant, is not from ourselves. It is a gift of God, who gives this ability to all who are born again (Philippians 1:6, I Peter 1:5). Those who are guarded by God in this way continue to trust in Christ throughout their lives (II Corinthians 13:5, Colossians 1:23, Hebrews 3:14), because God protects us through the faith He gives us.

In ancient covenants, an official seal indicated authority or ownership and guaranteed protection (cf. Esther 8:8, Daniel 6:17, Haggai 2:23, Matthew 27:66, Revelation 7:3). Under the new covenant, God seals us, not with an impression of wax, but with the Holy Spirit in our hearts (Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30). This inward work takes place in a person only once, when he receives and rests on Christ alone for his salvation.

Other Bible translations render II Corinthians 1:22 as, (NIV) “[God] set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come,” and, (HCSB) “He has also sealed us and given us the Spirit as a down payment in our hearts.” The Greek word transliterated arrabona means a “deposit,” a “down payment” or an “earnest” that is part of the total and guarantees the whole payment will be made. The Holy Spirit is the guarantee, the agent of sanctification throughout the Christian life, and part of the complete salvation yet to be realized (II Corinthians 5:5, Romans 8:23, Ephesians 1:13-14).

Salvation, from beginning to end, is a work of the Lord (Jonah 2:9, John 6:27-29). In saving his people, God obtains for us an eternal life insurance policy that requires a payment in order to make it binding; he seals it with a token of his own faithfulness — formerly, circumcision, and currently, baptism (Genesis 17:1-27, cf. Romans 4:9-12, Colossians 2:11-12); and he even makes the rest of the payments, until a claim is finally and inevitably made on the policy and its proceeds are awarded (Philippians 1:6, 2:12-13, 4:13, I Thessalonians 5:23).

Is there a better “insurance policy” to be found than that?

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Covenant theology