The Law – The New Covenant - Part II
“A covenant is a chosen relationship between two parties based on specific promises” According to the dictionary it is an agreement, usually formal, between two or more persons to do or not do something specified. In the case of God’s people, “Covenants are simply God’s way of relating with his people”. The New Covenant is the promise that God makes with mankind that He will forgive sin and restore communion with such of the peoples who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. Further, Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant, and His death on the cross is the basis of the promise. He defeated death by His resurrection and restored life for those who believe in Him. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
The Lord had already revealed His new covenant in the Old Testament. In Jeremiah 31:31-34 and Ezekiel 36, God will enter into a relationship with his people. And now God's law will not be external, but it will be actually written on their hearts. God will make his people new. He will cleanse them from their sins. He will wash them and be in their midst in a way that they never experienced. His people over here refer to those who shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. These are those who understand the truth and have a lasting relationship with the Lord. Unlike the world which makes a lot of noise on the convenient new covenant and misses the same written in their hearts.
In Hebrews 6:13-20, we are told that God’s covenant with Abraham was confirmed with an oath. This new covenant is based on Son. He makes one perfect offering, which because of its perfection, needs no encore. This Son is able to accomplish all God’s eternal purposes. The Kingdom of God is based on him. The system of animal sacrifice which lasted hundreds of years provided only a temporary respite. The new covenant, through the crucifixion of Jesus on the cross, resolved the problem of sin once and for all. Thus, the Old Testament is the story of God’s promises and the New Testament is God’s fulfillment of all he has promised”.
• Under the new covenant, the Son has shut the mouth of sin as He has paid the wages of sin for humanity in its entirety.
• It is by virtue of the old covenant, that the new covenant is fulfilled in Christ Jesus and we stand to be saved in the kingdom of heaven.
• According to Romans 6:6, “our old self was crucified with him” so that “we should no longer be slaves to sin”. Accordingly, God’s people are righteous and united with the Lord.
• God will live with his people as he intended to in Eden.
• Since Christ has fulfilled the old covenant purpose of the temple, “Through him and by the Spirit, we all have full access to God’s presence and the throne room of grace”
• Through our union with Christ, we are also united with one another, forming a “new covenant community.
Hebrews 9:15 - And for this cause, he is the mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
Dr Ashwin Drummond