It All Points to JesusSample

Saturday, April 19

New Covenant

By John Nesco

Mount Pleasant Campus, Contributor

“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord.
“I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
Jeremiah 31:33 (NIV)

God gave us the most incredible gift possible—to walk with Christ and receive his forgiveness and grace. But sometimes, I think we can take it for granted if we are not careful. Just how long did God persevere and plan to save humanity through his Son? When we read both the Old and New Testament, it becomes very clear that he planned it from the beginning. Our God plays the long game.

Christians know, of course, that the Bible is made up of two testaments. But what is lesser known is that testament, as referenced in Hebrews and Galatians, is synonymous with covenant. So, it is important that we connect scripture in its entirety, or we underappreciate the singularity of God’s plan for us of eternal life through Christ.

The Path From Old to New

In the Old Testament, we see God make some foundational covenants with giants of the faith like Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David, all precursors to the New Covenant that Christ would later fulfill.

The Noahic Covenant is the first stated “covenant,” and one of grace, where the Lord promises Noah to never again send a flood to destroy all life. It is followed by The Abrahamic Covenant in which God promises to bless the world through Abraham’s descendants.

Next is The Mosaic Covenant, in which God deems the Israelites his chosen people who are to live by the law he gives to Moses. This covenant was never intended to be the means of salvation for sinners. The Lord included sacrifices in the law precisely because he knew we could never keep the law perfectly and would need ongoing atonement.

Lastly in the Old Testament, we see The Davidic Covenant where God identifies David and his family, descendants of Abraham’s line, through whom God would accomplish all the promises to his people.

A New Hope

In Jeremiah 31, God said the days were coming when he would make a new covenant with Israel and Judah—one that would not look like the old one. This New Covenant would be everlasting. “…declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people (v. 33).”

Whereas the old covenants demanded works, the New Covenant fulfilled God’s promises through the completed work of Jesus. The old covenants identified sin and condemned it, while the New Covenant declared love, grace, and the mercy of God.

Access to the Holy Spirit is no longer reserved for certain people. Under the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit is poured out freely on all who receive him by faith and is extended to all nations and races under Heaven.

On this Holy Saturday, we wait for the darkness of Good Friday to pass and the light and hope of Easter Sunday to arise. I think it is best said in 1 Corinthians 15:26-27, 54-57: Death, the last enemy, has been swallowed up in Christ’s victory.

God’s plan for humanity has always been forgiveness and restoration for those who believe in his Son. He offers us forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus, our faithful king from the line of David. Jesus has restored in the New Covenant, all that was broken.

Reflect

How do you see the old covenants of works and the new covenant of Jesus at work in your life?