The new covenant.
Heb 8:6-7, 13.“But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood for He is the One who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. 7 If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it.……When God speaks of the New Covenant, it means He has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear.
Scripture reading:Heb 8.
Introduction.
The unity of the Old and New Covenants is seen in that the Old speaks of the coming of the new:…Jer 31:31.“The day is coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.”
The Old Covenant had a distinct part to play in God’s redemptive plan.
The Old Covenant was the covenant of law between God and Israel. The New and better way is the Covenant of Grace—-Christ’s offer to forgive our sins and bring us to God through His sacrificial death.
This covenant is new because it goes beyond Israel and includes all the nations.
During the 600 years between the prophecy of Jeremiah and the birth of Christ, the Israelites were convinced that their captivity in Babylon was as a result of breaking the law and were determined that it should never happen again. They were never guilty again of idolatry but in fact they made the law an idol, even hedging its in with man-made commands.
Content.
1.The dividing line.…The dividing line between the old and new covenant is the death-resurrectionand ascension of Christ who became the Eternal High Priest.
The Old began with Moses and the New with Christ.
Both Moses and Jesus Christ are part of God’s revelation but they are not equal. Moses is a servant in the house whilst Christ is the Master of this house.
Heb 3:3 5-6 “But Jesus deserves far more glory then Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself. Moses was certainly faithful in God’s house as a servant. His work was an illustration of the truths that God would reveal later. But Christ, as the son of God, is in charge of God’s entire house. And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ.…Knowing the Old Testament is the best foundation for understanding the new Testament.
In reading the old Testament we see:
How God used His people to accomplish His purposes.
How God used events and personalities to illustrate important truths.
How, through prophets, God announced the Messiah.
How, through the system sacrifices, God prepared people to understand the Messiah’s work.
2.The supremacy of the new covenantHeb 8:10-13.
God’s revelation came in many ways to many souls at different times, but His final Word came through Christ. Heb 8:1-2. The Old Covenant shed much light on our relationship with God. But it was like car headlights on a dark night shining only a short way down the road. With the coming of the full light of day, one is no longer aware of the car lights. The whole countryside, as far as the eye can see, lies in the brilliance of the streaming sunlight. The car lights do not fail with the rising of the sun, they are merely swallowed up by the greater is illumination. And so it is with the Old Covenant as it stands beside the new.
Heb 8:10-11…“10 But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day,( Greek after those days) says the Lord:I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.…11 And they will not need to teach their neighbours, nor will they need to teach their relatives,( Greek their brother.) saying, 'You should know the Lord.' …For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already.
This New Covenant is not written on stone tablets but on people’s hearts. Obedience comes, not out of fear of punishment, but out of our love for God. To open your heart to Christ is to have the New Covenant inscribed on your heart. The person with Christ in his heart is not dependent on religion or rules that are taught by others for a knowledge of what is right.
The old covenant had no dynamic force no dynamic power.…It was not meant to, but was pointing towards the coming power of the New Covenant. …Rom 8:3-4…” The Law of Mose was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent His own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in the Body, God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving His Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us ,who no longer follow our sinful nature, but instead follow the Spirit.”In the Old Testament times, animal sacrifices were continually offered at the Temple. …The sacrifices were to show the Israelites the seriousness of sin. Blood had to be shed before their sins could be pardoned. …But the blood of animals could not really remove sins. Those sacrifices only pointed to Jesus’ sacrifice which paid the penalty for all sins once and for all. After Christ’s ascension, the Holy Spirit came upon believers at Pentecost, marking the entrance of power into the New Covenant. …Disciples today depend on divine strength to serve God.…
The New Covenant is said to be based on more glorious promises. Heb 8:6.“But now Jesus, our High Priest ,has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for He is the One who mediates for us a far better covenant with God based on better promises.”…The New Covenant goes beyond the present life. The land of promise is no longer Canaan but heaven itself. The recipients are not only the physical descendants of Abraham, because all are invited. All nations are to be blessed through Abraham.
The new covenant, sealed in Christ, is the final consummation of redemptions story. … Heb 7:19.“So God has given both His promise and His oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to Him for refuge ,can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. …This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into Gods inner sanctuary. “The redemptive death of Jesus Christ guaranteed our inheritance which is clearly set forth in the New Covenant. …There can only be a will written by someone who has died. Since Jesus Christ rose triumphant over death, He remains the heir of all. V 2 …“God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance.”…And we had been made heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. …Rom 8:16 .…“For His Spirit joins our spirits to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are His children we are His heirs.”
Conclusion.
The Old Testament has great value even today, because it reminds us that God is in control of the destiny of nations and that He works to bring about His purposes.
The Old Covenant reminds us that we cannot live a perfect life in the law and that we need salvation.
The Old Covenant adds to God’s grace and love and His patience and steadfastness.
There is no place in God’s kingdom for "Old Testament Christians" because Jesus Christ is forever God’s final covenant.
People accept or reject Christ on an individual basis.
Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet because of the sinful condition of his people. But even amid his tears he spoke of a new covenant.
When Jesus Christ came to bring in the New Covenant, He to wept over Jerusalem and yearned to gather in the multitudes that they would not come.
His offer still stands today.
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