An important difference between the covenant of grace and the covenant of works is that the covenant of works provided no redeemer since man did not need one. But God entered into the covenant of grace to deliver his elect out of their sin and misery by a redeemer, by that promised offspring who would bruise the head of the serpent and save God’s people. And who is the redeemer of God’s elect? As the Shorter Catechism says, “The only redeemer of God’s elect is the Lord Jesus Christ, who, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continueth to be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever.”
Ultimately, "the covenant of grace was made with Christ as the second Adam, and in him with all the elect as his seed" (Larger Catechism, 31). For Christ's part, he would satisfy divine justice and obtain salvation and an everlasting inheritance for those whom the Father had given him by his perfect obedience and his sacrifice of himself. He accordingly took the form of a servant and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross, and therefore was highly exalted. All those who receive Christ freely receive all the benefits of his redemptive work. "And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:11–12).
All along, the promise of salvation had been based upon the promise of the Christ and his redemptive work. A thousand years after King David, God had not forgotten his covenant, nor had his promised mercy come to an end. In order to keep his holy covenant and to practice his promised mercy, the Father sent his only-begotten Son, God of God, to take on human nature and be born the promised heir of David.
Just as God had visited his people in Egypt and delivered them from bondage (Gen. 50:24, Ex. 3:7-8, 16-17), so now God “visited and redeemed his people” (Luke 1:68). Just as God had delivered Israel from Egypt because of his covenant promise to their fathers, so now he delivered his people through the birth of Jesus because of his covenant promise to their fathers (Luke 1:72).
God fulfilled his oath by raising up “a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David” (Luke 1:69). A “horn” was symbol of power. A “horn of salvation” is a Savior. And this Savior was raised up in the house of David, as the heir of David, a king to deliver and shepherd God’s people forever. This king would deliver them by giving them the forgiveness of their sins and by guiding their feet into the way of peace (Luke 1:77-79).
Thus, Jesus was born to fulfill God's covenant oath "to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days" (Luke 1:73-75). Jesus was born to save all those who trust in him from Satan’s power and might.
The devil had led mankind into death by leading them into condemnation. Jesus came to save his people from condemnation and death, bearing and dying for their sins and providing them with his righteousness. God delivers us the domain of the evil one and transfers us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Col. 1:13). As Hebrews 2:14–15 says of the Son, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” We are delivered into a kingdom that is forever, in which we shall be blessed in the presence of the Lord all our days.
The devil had led mankind into rebellion and moral corruption. Jesus not only provides forgiveness, but he also renews his people more and more to a practice of holiness and righteousness as God’s children. As 1 John 3:8–9 says, “Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.”
The Redeemer was born in weakness and humility, sharing in our infirmities, yet without sin. He came to save us, not through human might, but through human weakness and divine power. He would endure trials, resist temptation, and offer himself a perfect sacrifice for sin in our nature. Therefore, he rose from the dead on the third day, exalted by the Father. He now reigns over all creation and administers the covenant from the right hand of the Father in a new and glorious way to all nations. The sunrise has visited us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death (Luke 1:78b-79a).
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