GraceUncovered

Authors home articles Gracelife

GRACE BLOGS COLLECTION

645. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 16): Contradictions or Different Covenants?

by

Why did Jesus sometimes tell Jewish people to keep the commandments and obey the law? How do we reconcile that with writings from the Apostle Paul and others who revealed in Scripture that all people have been freed from that very same law? The contrast is clear, yet it is seldom addressed head-on by Church Incorporated. Religious tradition has adopted most of what Jesus taught as a new Christian teaching, when instead He was frequently ministering the law to people from Israel who were under that law. Gentiles were never under the law of commandments which came through Moses, and in fact, we find in New Testament writings where they (we) were never to be considered under that former ministry. Jesus delivered people from it, and brought them into a New Covenant (Himself), to live within a new life by the ministry of God’s Spirit.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

642. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 13): The Law, the Prophets & the Psalms Are Fulfilled

by

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” Paul wasn’t referring to the four books known as the gospels, but the passages from the law which came through Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. The Old Testament is filled with many hundreds of references to Jesus Christ, subtly pointing the Jewish people to a coming Messiah who would provide an eternal deliverance for the world. Jesus revealed to His disciples what all of the old Scriptures meant, as they referenced Him and His mission.

Luke 24:44: “Then he said to them, ‘These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’”

Jesus Christ fulfilled the Scriptures, including the law, on our behalf.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

641. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 12): The Psalms: They’re More About Jesus

by

It can change the way we see everything. Reading Old Testament passages from a New Covenant perspective, through the eyes of grace. There were those who recognized Jesus as the Messiah because of what they knew to look for in the Mosaic law, the Psalms, and the Prophets. After Jesus was resurrected, He opened the minds of the disciples to understand the (Old Testament) Scriptures, by revealing what they said about Him. “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44). Christians often see verses out of context when they are seeking a special Word from God within the Psalms for application in their personal life situation. While this can certainly occur, in reality, quite often it may be written from the perspective of someone who was trapped under the curse of the law, or looking forward to something better (Christ). We don’t live under that heavy requirement of those commands, but now abide in Christ. Instead of relying on some of these passages to figure out where we are supposed to go, we can look back and begin to see them as a road map that brought us to where we already are… in Jesus. That’s where we find wisdom, peace and comfort - while being led by the Spirit.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

640. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 11): The Psalms: Beware of Old Covenant “Law Talk”

by

It’s common for Christians to seek comfort and direction when reading the Bible, and the Psalms and Proverbs are often one of the first places people will turn for guidance. However, it is frequently assumed that everything within the Psalms is pointing us towards precepts and principles that are not necessarily meant to be applied for us who are in Christ, living in a New Covenant. We’ll find all kinds of passages written from a very different perspective from those who were under the burden of the impossible law… something from which people have been delivered from since the cross.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

639. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 10): The Law Was Never Meant to Be the Answer

by

Wrapping up this portion of the Summarizing the Scripture series, we take a look at the some common misconceptions about the law of commandments, and contrast it with what God accomplished for us through a finished work in Christ. Christians will be told by the religious authorities that the world will be a better place if everyone would just try harder to keep the Ten Commandments, along with a few other hand-picked rules and statutes. Is this really true? We’ll address this with an answer that might surprise many.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

638. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 9): What the Church Hasn’t Told You About the Law & Commandments

by

While scores of Christians throughout the centuries have been told to embrace the law which came through Moses, the Apostle Paul and other New Testament writers received a revelation that is quite different from that approach. While church teaching tells us some of the law has ended, while other parts are still in effect, the law itself declares nothing can be added or deleted. Approval was never given to alter it. While those who claim believers should strive harder to keep the commands, their hypocrisy is exposed by eliminating large, inconvenient chunks... and nobody can seem to agree on exactly what should remain on the list. Our program this week will provide vital information on the ministry of the Mosaic law, and why God replaced it with something far better.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

636. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 7): A Promise of Faith Contrasted With A Covenant of Works

by

The promise of a covenant bringing righteousness by faith or belief as it was given to Abraham, would eventually bring what we often refer to as the New Covenant, which was ushered in through Jesus Christ. Several hundred years after God made this covenant with Abraham, another covenant would be established with the people of Israel, and would include the law which came through Moses. This law would bring a curse requiring that all of it be kept perfectly, causing God to find fault with the people in that covenant. Fortunately, that covenant of law would not nullify the covenant of promise made 430 years earlier. The promise of faith would end up kicking the law of works to “kingdom come” (because the law is not of faith). This week in our series, we’re transitioning from Abraham to Moses and the Law.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

634. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 5): Abraham and the Child of Promise

by

Hundreds of years before God gave the law to Moses, there was Abraham. Through him God brought forth a promise, where he would become the father of many nations that would occur through a child promised to him and Sarah. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. It was by faith the promise arrived, not works. The Apostle Paul explains how Abraham’s two sons represent the two covenants—both the Old and the New. The son born from Hagar (the bondwoman) was born according to the flesh, whereas the son from Sarah (the freewoman) through promise. One gave birth to bondage, symbolic of Mount Sinai, and the other gave birth to freedom, which would include justification for Gentiles through faith.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

630. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 2)

by

We continue to lay the foundation for our series, as we look at some key parts of the Bible that led from Adam to Jesus, and then to the New Covenant. Is everything written specifically to us today or was it simply given as a reference point to help us see the redemptive plan God had for man all along? What motivated Adam to make the wrong choice? Why did God give Moses the law, and why did the Israelites agree to the (old) covenant? Are the Psalms and Prophets telling us how to seek comfort in our lives, or were they more about pointing Israel to the Messiah, who had not yet appeared? What was is it about the Old Testament that had convinced some of the Jews that Jesus was that Messiah? What was the purpose of Jesus’ ministry and when did the New Covenant begin? We’ll be covering some of this and more in future programs, after this week’s second half of our introduction.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

629. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 1)

by

This will be the first program in a series where we will focus on key points in the Scripture with the goal of helping us to see the bigger picture when it comes to the Bible. Our primary stops on the route will include Adam, Abraham, Moses and the law, the Psalms and the Prophets, and also Jesus and the New Covenant. The idea is to step back from the many trees (verses) that are often taken out of context in order to gain a better view of the forest and help summarize the Biblical map. Ultimately, our hope with this series is to gain an improved understanding of the gospel and God’s Word as a whole.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

629. Summarizing the Scripture (Part 1)

by

This will be the first program in a series where we will focus on key points in the Scripture with the goal of helping us to see the bigger picture when it comes to the Bible. Our primary stops on the route will include Adam, Abraham, Moses and the law, the Psalms and the Prophets, and also Jesus and the New Covenant. The idea is to step back from the many trees (verses) that are often taken out of context in order to gain a better view of the forest and help summarize the Biblical map. Ultimately, our hope with this series is to gain an improved understanding of the gospel and God’s Word as a whole.



Download  GIGBite  YouTube

Hard-hearted Religion

by

Religion.  The very word evokes negative responses from so many.  Religion has been the cause of wars and disputes for thousands of years.  It has been the source of debate for countless numbers of arguments over which religion is right, which is wrong.  Even within my “religion” of Christianity, there is so much division that

Categories

Recent Posts