Christ-Centeredness and the Covenant of Grace: Two Expressions of One Glorious Reality

Introduction: Seeing Christ in All of Scripture

In a day when many seek to exalt Scripture while resisting the theological frameworks that help us rightly interpret it, it is vital that we pause and ask: What does it mean to be Christ-centered? And further: If we truly embrace the Christ-centeredness of Scripture, what does this necessarily imply about God's eternal plan of redemption?

The term "Christ-centered" does not explicitly appear in the Bible. Neither does the phrase "Covenant of Grace." Yet both describe the same essential reality revealed throughout Scripture: God's single, unified purpose to redeem sinners through Jesus Christ, unfolding across all of history.

Christ-centeredness emphasizes the person at the center of God's redemptive plan. The Covenant of Grace emphasizes the structure by which that plan is revealed and fulfilled. They are not two separate doctrines — they are two perspectives on the same divine truth revealed in God's Word.

I. The Christ-Centeredness of Scripture: What Jesus Himself Taught

The Testimony of Jesus on the Road to Emmaus

The most compelling reason to read the Bible with Christ at the center is that Jesus Himself taught us to do so. Speaking to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus following His resurrection, we read:

"And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself." (Luke 24:27, NKJV)

Later, Jesus appeared to the gathered disciples and declared:

"These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. (Luke 24:44-45, NKJV)

This passage reveals several crucial truths:

1. The entirety of the Old Testament ("Moses, Prophets, and Psalms") bears witness to Christ

2. This Christ-centered reading was not an innovative interpretation, but the true meaning of these texts

3. Spiritual illumination is necessary to grasp this Christ-centered nature of Scripture

Jesus had earlier confronted the religious leaders with this same truth:

"You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me." (John 5:39, NKJV)

For Jesus, a proper reading of Scripture necessarily leads to Him. The Bible is not primarily a collection of moral lessons, historical accounts, or religious rules—it is the progressive revelation of God's redemptive purpose in Christ.

The Apostolic Witness

The apostles followed Jesus' interpretive approach. Peter declared that the prophets "testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow" (1 Peter 1:10-11). Paul wrote that "all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen" (2 Corinthians 1:20). The author of Hebrews consistently shows how the old covenant shadows find their substance in Christ.

To deny the Christ-centeredness of Scripture, therefore, is to reject the interpretive method that Jesus Himself taught and that the apostles faithfully practiced.

II. The Covenant of Grace: God's Unified Plan Revealed in Scripture

What is the Covenant of Grace?

If the Bible is truly centered on Christ, then God must have a unified purpose that spans all of redemptive history. This is precisely what Scripture reveals: a single plan of salvation, unfolding through various covenantal administrations, but with one Mediator and one way of salvation throughout.

This unified plan—initiated by God after the Fall, progressively revealed through promises and covenants, and ultimately fulfilled in Christ—is what theologians have called the "Covenant of Grace."

It is a covenant because it represents God's binding commitment to save His people. It is of grace because it flows entirely from God's unmerited favor toward sinners. As the Westminster Confession of Faith summarizes: "Man, by his fall, having made himself incapable of life by [the covenant of works], the Lord was pleased to make a second, commonly called the covenant of grace; wherein He freely offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ..."

Biblical Progression of the Covenant of Grace

The Covenant of Grace unfolds progressively throughout Scripture:

1. Genesis 3:15 — The first gospel promise, where God declares that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent's head. Here, immediately after the Fall, God initiates His plan of redemption.

2. God's Covenant with Noah (Genesis 9) — While primarily concerned with the preservation of the created order, this covenant provides the stable platform on which redemptive history would unfold.

3. God's Covenant with Abraham (Genesis 12, 15, 17) — God promises Abraham descendants, land, and blessing to all nations through his seed. Paul explicitly identifies Christ as the ultimate seed of Abraham (Galatians 3:16).

4. God's Covenant with Israel through Moses (Exodus 19-24) — The law was given not as a means of salvation but to reveal sin and point to the need for Christ. As Paul states, "the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ" (Galatians 3:24).

5. God's Covenant with David (2 Samuel 7) — God promises David an eternal kingdom and a son who would reign forever. The New Testament repeatedly identifies Jesus as this promised "Son of David" (Matthew 1:1; Luke 1:32-33).

6. The New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Luke 22:20) — The culmination of God's covenantal promises, established in Christ's blood, bringing forgiveness of sins and the indwelling of the Spirit.

This is not a collection of disconnected divine acts but one coherent plan, progressively unveiled and ultimately fulfilled in Christ.

The Essential Unity of the Covenant of Grace

Throughout these diverse historical administrations, the Covenant of Grace maintains essential unity in:

1. One Divine Initiator — In every case, God initiates the covenant relationship

2. One Mediator — Christ is the ultimate mediator of the covenant (1 Timothy 2:5)

3. One Way of Salvation — Always by grace through faith (Genesis 15:6; Romans 4:3)

4. One Ultimate Goal — The glory of God through the redemption of His people in Christ

The diverse forms of the covenant across redemptive history reflect God's wisdom in progressively revealing His redemptive purpose as humanity was able to receive it.

III. Unpacking the Necessary Connection

The Christ-centeredness of Scripture and the Covenant of Grace are not two separate truths but two ways of describing the same reality from different perspectives.

Why Christ-Centeredness Implies the Covenant of Grace

If we truly believe that Christ is the center of all Scripture (as Jesus Himself taught), then several things necessarily follow:

1. Scripture Must Have a Unified Purpose — If Christ is the focus of all Scripture, then the Bible cannot be a collection of disconnected religious texts but must possess an overarching unity.

2. This Purpose Must Unfold Historically — Since Scripture records God's acts across time, Christ-centeredness requires a framework that explains how earlier texts relate to later fulfillment in Christ.

3. This Purpose Must Include Both Promise and Fulfillment — The Christ of the New Testament must be related to the promises of the Old Testament in a coherent way.

The Covenant of Grace provides precisely this framework—a single divine purpose, progressively revealed, finding fulfillment in Christ. When we confess that Scripture is Christ-centered, we are implicitly affirming the substance of covenant theology.

Why the Covenant of Grace Is Necessarily Christ-Centered

Similarly, a biblical understanding of the Covenant of Grace necessarily exalts Christ:

1. Christ as Covenant Architect — As the eternal Son, Christ participated in the divine counsel that established the covenant before creation (Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:20).

2. Christ as Covenant Promise — The central promise of the covenant from Genesis 3:15 onward was the coming Messiah Himself.

3. Christ as Covenant Mediator — "Therefore He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death..." (Hebrews 9:15).

4. Christ as Covenant Sacrifice — Every lamb, every drop of blood under the old covenant, pointed to "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).

5. Christ as Covenant Fulfiller — "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill" (Matthew 5:17).

6. Christ as Covenant Inheritance — The ultimate blessing of the covenant is Christ Himself and union with Him (John 17:3).

A truly biblical covenant theology is radically Christ-centered. It does not view the covenant as an abstract theological system but as the living means by which we are united to Christ.

IV. The Contrast with Imposed Systems

The Problem with Dispensationalism

Unlike the Christ-centered covenant approach derived from Scripture itself, dispensationalism imposes an artificial framework onto the biblical text. Where the apostles saw continuity centered on Christ, dispensationalism inserts fundamental discontinuities between God's dealings with Israel and the Church.

Dispensationalism arose relatively recently (19th century) and divides biblical history into distinct "dispensations" with different principles of divine operation in each. This approach:

1. Fragments Scripture rather than seeing its unity in Christ

2. Minimizes the centrality of Christ in the Old Testament

3. Creates artificial distinctions between God's people across redemptive history

4. Obscures the unified message of salvation by grace through faith

Most problematically, traditional dispensationalism teaches that God has separate purposes for Israel and the Church, undermining the New Testament's teaching that in Christ, God has created "one new man from the two" (Ephesians 2:15).

The Biblical Alternative: Deriving Truth from Scripture

The covenant framework, by contrast, grows organically from Scripture itself. We do not impose a "covenant system" onto the Bible. Rather, we observe the Bible's own testimony to God's unfolding redemptive purpose in Christ and give this reality the label "Covenant of Grace" as a summary of biblical teaching.

The difference is crucial:

• Dispensationalism starts with a system and reads Scripture through that grid

• Covenant theology observes Scripture's self-testimony and summarizes what it finds

As Herman Bavinck wisely noted: "Scripture explains Scripture." The Christ-centered, covenantal understanding does precisely this—it allows the Bible's own witness to Christ and God's unified redemptive purpose to shape our theological framework.

V. Practical Implications

For Bible Reading

Embracing the Christ-centeredness of Scripture and its covenantal structure transforms how we read the Bible:

1. We See Christ Throughout Scripture — Not through fanciful allegorizing but by recognizing the Bible's own typological structures and promises.

2. We Understand Progressive Revelation — Each text is read both in its immediate historical context and in light of the unfolding covenant purpose.

3. We Grasp the Bible's Unity — The diverse genres and books of Scripture are not fragmented but unified in their witness to Christ.

4. We Apply Scripture Christologically — Old Testament commands and promises are always filtered through their fulfillment in Christ.

For Preaching and Teaching

For those who teach God's Word, this understanding means:

1. Christ-Centered Exposition — All texts, even obscure Old Testament passages, are preached in light of their connection to Christ.

2. Covenantal Context — Individual texts are situated within God's unfolding covenant purpose.

3. Grace-Focused Application — Law is always presented in the context of grace, never as a means of earning God's favor.

For the Christian Life

For every believer, this understanding shapes our spiritual life:

1. Christ-Centered Identity — We understand ourselves primarily as being "in Christ," united to Him by covenant bond.

2. Covenant Security — We find assurance in God's unchanging covenant faithfulness rather than our fluctuating performance.

3. Covenantal Worship — We approach God through the mediator of the covenant, Jesus Christ.

Conclusion: Embracing Scripture's Own Testimony

In summary, to be truly biblical in our approach to Scripture, we must allow the Bible to teach us how to read it. Jesus Himself taught us to read all Scripture as centered on Him. When we do so faithfully, we discover a unified divine purpose unfolding across redemptive history—the Covenant of Grace.

These are not human frameworks imposed on Scripture but Scripture's own self-testimony. The labels "Christ-centered" and "Covenant of Grace" simply give names to what the Bible itself teaches from Genesis to Revelation.

In contrast to systems like dispensationalism that fragment Scripture and minimize its Christ-centeredness, the covenantal approach humbly submits to Scripture's own witness. It does not elevate theological constructs above the Bible but carefully summarizes what the Bible itself proclaims—that God has one redemptive purpose centered on Christ, progressively unfolded through covenant promises, and gloriously fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus.

"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people... to perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant" (Luke 1:68, 72, NKJV).

May we ever cling to Christ as the center of all Scripture, and rejoice in the covenant of grace that secures our redemption.

Soli Deo Gloria.

For Further Study

Dispensationalism: Rightly Dividing the People of God? by Keith A. Mathison

Wrongly Dividing the Word of Truth by John Gerstner

The Christ of the Covenants by O. Palmer Robertson