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What is the New Covenant?

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Imagine going through 12 years of school and never being taught how to read or write. Your teachers taught you maths, music and physical education, but they neglected to teach you the basics of reading and writing.

That would be a serious oversight. You would leave school illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

You wouldn’t be able to apply for jobs, complete a mortgage application, receive texts, read contracts, or check the labels on medicine bottles.

Your life would be seriously impaired.

In the same way, there are some who have been in church for years who have never been taught about the covenants. Which essentially means they don’t know how to read the Bible. They are biblically illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

Okay, sure, they can read the Bible, but they see it as a single book when really it is a collection of covenants. (Check out the contents page of your Bible if this is news to you.)

Here are three questions every believer ought to be able to answer.

  1. What are the Biblical covenants?
  2. What is the New Covenant?
  3. How does the New Covenant differ from the Old Covenant?

In this article, we’ll look at the first two questions. In my next article, I will compare the Old vs the New Covenant.

What are covenants?

Some people say a covenant is like a contract. That’s like saying “getting married is like buying a car.” There may be some similarities, but they are very different.

A covenant is a binding agreement between people or groups that involves making promises and which is sometimes accompanied by ceremonies and rituals.

Unlike a contract, which is transactional, a covenant is relational. A contract is an exchange of possessions (this is now yours), while a covenant is more an exchange of people (I am now yours).

An example is a marriage covenant where two people bind themselves together in a formal agreement (vows) that is usually marked with a ceremony and various rituals (e.g., the exchange of rings).

As you can see, a covenant is much more than a mere contract.

Covenants in the Bible

In the Bible, there were covenants between people (e.g., David and Jonathan, see 1 Sam. 18:3), tribes (Jos. 9:1–15), and kings (1 Kgs. 5:12, 20:34).

Depending on how you define a covenant, there were at least five covenants made between God and man: (1) the Noahic Covenant, (2) the Abrahamic Covenant, (3) the Mosaic Covenant, (4) the Davidic Covenant, and (5) the New Covenant. You can learn more about these covenants in the Grace Glossary.

What is the New Covenant?

For fourteen centuries, the children of Israel related to God through the Mosaic or Old Covenant. This was a burdensome covenant based on the observance of laws and rituals. During this time, the prophets of God spoke of a coming covenant that would be a new kind of covenant:

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

What is the New Covenant? The New Covenant is a covenant of grace where God blesses us with new life and divine favor for no reason other than it pleases him to do so.

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them… (Jeremiah 32:40)

The New Covenant is totally unlike the law-keeping covenant of Moses. Instead of a law written on stones, God writes his law on the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:33).

Instead of being separated from God by the priestly-caste, we can all know God directly (Jer. 31:34).

Instead of being held accountable for our failings, God forgives and forgets and cleanses us from all our sin (Jer. 31:34, Eze. 36:33).

Perhaps the best feature of the New Covenant is God’s promise to give us his Spirit and make us brand new (Eze. 36:26). He literally gives us himself and invites us to live in fellowship with him.

There really is nothing like the New Covenant!

The New Covenant made by Jesus

I imagine the Israelites could not wait for the New Covenant. When would it start? For hundreds of years there were no announcements. Then on the night before he died, Jesus lifted the cup and said:

This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20)

The New Covenant began with Christ’s death and resurrection. From that moment, everything was different.

Instead of God blessing one tribe (the Israelites) if they did good, God would now bless the whole world because Jesus did good.

Instead of asking for sacrifices that never atoned for our sins, God said “Look to my Son whose sacrifice has done away with all sin forever” (Heb. 9:26).

And lest there be any confusion about the end of the Old Covenant, God tore the temple veil from top to bottom showing that the way to him was now open to all. Good times!

A grace-based covenant

God never changes, but the way we relate to him may change. God’s covenant with Abraham was based on grace, but his covenant with Moses was based on law.

What about us? Does God relate to us through law or grace?

On this question the scriptures are clear: We are not under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). We are not under the Old Covenant of law but the New Covenant of grace.

As believers, we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and the inheritor of all God’s promises to the father of the faith. But that’s just the beginning. In union with the Lord, we are the heirs of all things through Christ. Good news!

If you don’t know what makes the New Covenant new, you will be confused when reading the Bible. You will take other people’s medicine and end up lukewarm and barren.

Thankfully, there is a simple test to tell if you are walking in the New Covenant.

—

Further reading:
The top 12 blessings in the new covenant
The top 12 verses on the new covenant
Do we need a new covenant study Bible?
 

What is the New Covenant?

by

Imagine going through 12 years of school and never being taught how to read or write. Your teachers taught you maths, music and physical education, but they neglected to teach you the basics of reading and writing.

That would be a serious oversight. You would leave school illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

You wouldn’t be able to apply for jobs, complete a mortgage application, receive texts, read contracts, or check the labels on medicine bottles.

Your life would be seriously impaired.

In the same way, there are some who have been in church for years who have never been taught about the covenants. Which essentially means they don’t know how to read the Bible. They are biblically illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

Okay, sure, they can read the Bible, but they see it as a single book when really it is a collection of covenants. (Check out the contents page of your Bible if this is news to you.)

Here are three questions every believer ought to be able to answer.

  1. What are the Biblical covenants?
  2. What is the New Covenant?
  3. How does the New Covenant differ from the Old Covenant?

In this article, we’ll look at the first two questions. In my next article, I will compare the Old vs the New Covenant.

What are covenants?

Some people say a covenant is like a contract. That’s like saying “getting married is like buying a car.” There may be some similarities, but they are very different.

A covenant is a binding agreement between people or groups that involves making promises and which is sometimes accompanied by ceremonies and rituals.

Unlike a contract, which is transactional, a covenant is relational. A contract is an exchange of possessions (this is now yours), while a covenant is more an exchange of people (I am now yours).

An example is a marriage covenant where two people bind themselves together in a formal agreement (vows) that is usually marked with a ceremony and various rituals (e.g., the exchange of rings).

As you can see, a covenant is much more than a mere contract.

Covenants in the Bible

In the Bible, there were covenants between people (e.g., David and Jonathan, see 1 Sam. 18:3), tribes (Jos. 9:1–15), and kings (1 Kgs. 5:12, 20:34).

Depending on how you define a covenant, there were at least five covenants made between God and man: (1) the Noahic Covenant, (2) the Abrahamic Covenant, (3) the Mosaic Covenant, (4) the Davidic Covenant, and (5) the New Covenant. You can learn more about these covenants in the Grace Glossary.

What is the New Covenant?

For fourteen centuries, the children of Israel related to God through the Mosaic or Old Covenant. This was a burdensome covenant based on the observance of laws and rituals. During this time, the prophets of God spoke of a coming covenant that would be a new kind of covenant:

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

What is the New Covenant? The New Covenant is a covenant of grace where God blesses us with new life and divine favor for no reason other than it pleases him to do so.

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them… (Jeremiah 32:40)

The New Covenant is totally unlike the law-keeping covenant of Moses. Instead of a law written on stones, God writes his law on the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:33).

Instead of being separated from God by the priestly-caste, we can all know God directly (Jer. 31:34).

Instead of being held accountable for our failings, God forgives and forgets and cleanses us from all our sin (Jer. 31:34, Eze. 36:33).

Perhaps the best feature of the New Covenant is God’s promise to give us his Spirit and make us brand new (Eze. 36:26). He literally gives us himself and invites us to live in fellowship with him.

There really is nothing like the New Covenant!

The New Covenant made by Jesus

I imagine the Israelites could not wait for the New Covenant. When would it start? For hundreds of years there were no announcements. Then on the night before he died, Jesus lifted the cup and said:

This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20)

The New Covenant began with Christ’s death and resurrection. From that moment, everything was different.

Instead of God blessing one tribe (the Israelites) if they did good, God would now bless the whole world because Jesus did good.

Instead of asking for sacrifices that never atoned for our sins, God said “Look to my Son whose sacrifice has done away with all sin forever” (Heb. 9:26).

And lest there be any confusion about the end of the Old Covenant, God tore the temple veil from top to bottom showing that the way to him was now open to all. Good times!

A grace-based covenant

God never changes, but the way we relate to him may change. God’s covenant with Abraham was based on grace, but his covenant with Moses was based on law.

What about us? Does God relate to us through law or grace?

On this question the scriptures are clear: We are not under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). We are not under the Old Covenant of law but the New Covenant of grace.

As believers, we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and the inheritor of all God’s promises to the father of the faith. But that’s just the beginning. In union with the Lord, we are the heirs of all things through Christ. Good news!

If you don’t know what makes the New Covenant new, you will be confused when reading the Bible. You will take other people’s medicine and end up lukewarm and barren.

Thankfully, there is a simple test to tell if you are walking in the New Covenant.

—

Further reading:
The top 12 blessings in the new covenant
The top 12 verses on the new covenant
Do we need a new covenant study Bible?
 

What is the New Covenant?

by

Imagine going through 12 years of school and never being taught how to read or write. Your teachers taught you maths, music and physical education, but they neglected to teach you the basics of reading and writing.

That would be a serious oversight. You would leave school illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

You wouldn’t be able to apply for jobs, complete a mortgage application, receive texts, read contracts, or check the labels on medicine bottles.

Your life would be seriously impaired.

In the same way, there are some who have been in church for years who have never been taught about the covenants. Which essentially means they don’t know how to read the Bible. They are biblically illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

Okay, sure, they can read the Bible, but they see it as a single book when really it is a collection of covenants. (Check out the contents page of your Bible if this is news to you.)

Here are three questions every believer ought to be able to answer.

  1. What are the Biblical covenants?
  2. What is the New Covenant?
  3. How does the New Covenant differ from the Old Covenant?

In this article, we’ll look at the first two questions.

What are covenants?

Some people say a covenant is like a contract. That’s like saying “getting married is like buying a car.” There may be some similarities, but they are very different.

A covenant is a binding agreement between people or groups that involves making promises and which is sometimes accompanied by ceremonies and rituals.

Unlike a contract, which is transactional, a covenant is relational. A contract is an exchange of possessions (this is now yours), while a covenant is more an exchange of people (I am now yours).

An example is a marriage covenant where two people bind themselves together in a formal agreement (vows) that is usually marked with a ceremony and various rituals (e.g., the exchange of rings).

As you can see, a covenant is much more than a mere contract.

Covenants in the Bible

In the Bible, there were covenants between people (e.g., David and Jonathan, see 1 Sam. 18:3), tribes (Jos. 9:1–15), and kings (1 Kgs. 5:12, 20:34).

Depending on how you define a covenant, there were at least five covenants made between God and man: (1) the Noahic Covenant, (2) the Abrahamic Covenant, (3) the Mosaic Covenant, (4) the Davidic Covenant, and (5) the New Covenant. You can learn more about these covenants in the Grace Glossary.

What is the New Covenant?

For fourteen centuries, the children of Israel related to God through the Mosaic or Old Covenant. This was a burdensome covenant based on the observance of laws and rituals. During this time, the prophets of God spoke of a coming covenant that would be a new kind of covenant:

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

What is the New Covenant? The New Covenant is a covenant of grace where God blesses us with new life and divine favor for no reason other than it pleases him to do so.

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them… (Jeremiah 32:40)

The New Covenant is totally unlike the law-keeping covenant of Moses. Instead of a law written on stones, God writes his law on the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:33).

Instead of being separated from God by the priestly-caste, we can all know God directly (Jer. 31:34).

Instead of being held accountable for our failings, God forgives and forgets and cleanses us from all our sin (Jer. 31:34, Eze. 36:33).

Perhaps the best feature of the New Covenant is God’s promise to give us his Spirit and make us brand new (Eze. 36:26). He literally gives us himself and invites us to live in fellowship with him.

There really is nothing like the New Covenant!

The New Covenant made by Jesus

I imagine the Israelites could not wait for the New Covenant. When would it start? For hundreds of years there were no announcements. Then on the night before he died, Jesus lifted the cup and said:

This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20)

The New Covenant began with Christ’s death and resurrection. From that moment, everything was different.

Instead of God blessing one tribe (the Israelites) if they did good, God would now bless the whole world because Jesus did good.

Instead of asking for sacrifices that never atoned for our sins, God said “Look to my Son whose sacrifice has done away with all sin forever” (Heb. 9:26).

And lest there be any confusion about the end of the Old Covenant, God tore the temple veil from top to bottom showing that the way to him was now open to all. Good times!

A grace-based covenant

God never changes, but the way we relate to him may change. God’s covenant with Abraham was based on grace, but his covenant with Moses was based on law.

What about us? Does God relate to him through law or grace?

On this question the scriptures are clear: We are not under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). We are not under the Old Covenant of law but the New Covenant of grace.

As believers, we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and the inheritor of all God’s promises to the father of the faith. But that’s just the beginning. In union with the Lord, we are the heirs of all things through Christ. Good news!

If you don’t know what makes the New Covenant new, you will be confused when reading the Bible. You will take other people’s medicine and end up lukewarm and barren.

Thankfully, there is a simple test to tell if you are walking in the New Covenant.

—

Further reading:
The top 12 blessings in the new covenant
The top 12 verses on the new covenant
Do we need a new covenant study Bible?
 

What is the New Covenant?

by

Imagine going through 12 years of school and never being taught how to read or write. Your teachers taught you maths, music and physical education, but they neglected to teach you the basics of reading and writing.

That would be a serious oversight. You would leave school illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

You wouldn’t be able to apply for jobs, complete a mortgage application, receive texts, read contracts, or check the labels on medicine bottles.

Your life would be seriously impaired.

In the same way, there are some who have been in church for years who have never been taught about the covenants. Which essentially means they don’t know how to read the Bible. They are biblically illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

Okay, sure, they can read the Bible, but they see it as a single book when really it is a collection of covenants. (Check out the contents page of your Bible if this is news to you.)

Here are three questions every believer ought to be able to answer.

  1. What are the Biblical covenants?
  2. What is the New Covenant?
  3. How does the New Covenant differ from the Old Covenant?

In this article, we’ll look at the first two questions. In my next article, I will compare the Old vs the New Covenant.

What are covenants?

Some people say a covenant is like a contract. That’s like saying “getting married is like buying a car.” There may be some similarities, but they are very different.

A covenant is a binding agreement between people or groups that involves making promises and which is sometimes accompanied by ceremonies and rituals.

Unlike a contract, which is transactional, a covenant is relational. A contract is an exchange of possessions (this is now yours), while a covenant is more an exchange of people (I am now yours).

An example is a marriage covenant where two people bind themselves together in a formal agreement (vows) that is usually marked with a ceremony and various rituals (e.g., the exchange of rings).

As you can see, a covenant is much more than a mere contract.

Covenants in the Bible

In the Bible, there were covenants between people (e.g., David and Jonathan, see 1 Sam. 18:3), tribes (Jos. 9:1–15), and kings (1 Kgs. 5:12, 20:34).

Depending on how you define a covenant, there were at least five covenants made between God and man: (1) the Noahic Covenant, (2) the Abrahamic Covenant, (3) the Mosaic Covenant, (4) the Davidic Covenant, and (5) the New Covenant. You can learn more about these covenants in the Grace Glossary.

What is the New Covenant?

For fourteen centuries, the children of Israel related to God through the Mosaic or Old Covenant. This was a burdensome covenant based on the observance of laws and rituals. During this time, the prophets of God spoke of a coming covenant that would be a new kind of covenant:

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

What is the New Covenant? The New Covenant is a covenant of grace where God blesses us with new life and divine favor for no reason other than it pleases him to do so.

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them… (Jeremiah 32:40)

The New Covenant is totally unlike the law-keeping covenant of Moses. Instead of a law written on stones, God writes his law on the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:33).

Instead of being separated from God by the priestly-caste, we can all know God directly (Jer. 31:34).

Instead of being held accountable for our failings, God forgives and forgets and cleanses us from all our sin (Jer. 31:34, Eze. 36:33).

Perhaps the best feature of the New Covenant is God’s promise to give us his Spirit and make us brand new (Eze. 36:26). He literally gives us himself and invites us to live in fellowship with him.

There really is nothing like the New Covenant!

The New Covenant made by Jesus

I imagine the Israelites could not wait for the New Covenant. When would it start? For hundreds of years there were no announcements. Then on the night before he died, Jesus lifted the cup and said:

This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20)

The New Covenant began with Christ’s death and resurrection. From that moment, everything was different.

Instead of God blessing one tribe (the Israelites) if they did good, God would now bless the whole world because Jesus did good.

Instead of asking for sacrifices that never atoned for our sins, God said “Look to my Son whose sacrifice has done away with all sin forever” (Heb. 9:26).

And lest there be any confusion about the end of the Old Covenant, God tore the temple veil from top to bottom showing that the way to him was now open to all. Good times!

A grace-based covenant

God never changes, but the way we relate to him may change. God’s covenant with Abraham was based on grace, but his covenant with Moses was based on law.

What about us? Does God relate to us through law or grace?

On this question the scriptures are clear: We are not under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). We are not under the Old Covenant of law but the New Covenant of grace.

As believers, we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and the inheritor of all God’s promises to the father of the faith. But that’s just the beginning. In union with the Lord, we are the heirs of all things through Christ. Good news!

If you don’t know what makes the New Covenant new, you will be confused when reading the Bible. You will take other people’s medicine and end up lukewarm and barren.

Thankfully, there is a simple test to tell if you are walking in the New Covenant.

—

Further reading:
The top 12 blessings in the new covenant
The top 12 verses on the new covenant
Do we need a new covenant study Bible?
 

What is the New Covenant?

by

Imagine going through 12 years of school and never being taught how to read or write. Your teachers taught you maths, music and physical education, but they neglected to teach you the basics of reading and writing.

That would be a serious oversight. You would leave school illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

You wouldn’t be able to apply for jobs, complete a mortgage application, receive texts, read contracts, or check the labels on medicine bottles.

Your life would be seriously impaired.

In the same way, there are some who have been in church for years who have never been taught about the covenants. Which essentially means they don’t know how to read the Bible. They are biblically illiterate and ill-equipped for life.

Okay, sure, they can read the Bible, but they see it as a single book when really it is a collection of covenants. (Check out the contents page of your Bible if this is news to you.)

Here are three questions every believer ought to be able to answer.

  1. What are the Biblical covenants?
  2. What is the New Covenant?
  3. How does the New Covenant differ from the Old Covenant?

In this article, we’ll look at the first two questions. In my next article, I will compare the Old vs the New Covenant.

What are covenants?

Some people say a covenant is like a contract. That’s like saying “getting married is like buying a car.” There may be some similarities, but they are very different.

A covenant is a binding agreement between people or groups that involves making promises and which is sometimes accompanied by ceremonies and rituals.

Unlike a contract, which is transactional, a covenant is relational. A contract is an exchange of possessions (this is now yours), while a covenant is more an exchange of people (I am now yours).

An example is a marriage covenant where two people bind themselves together in a formal agreement (vows) that is usually marked with a ceremony and various rituals (e.g., the exchange of rings).

As you can see, a covenant is much more than a mere contract.

Covenants in the Bible

In the Bible, there were covenants between people (e.g., David and Jonathan, see 1 Sam. 18:3), tribes (Jos. 9:1–15), and kings (1 Kgs. 5:12, 20:34).

Depending on how you define a covenant, there were at least five covenants made between God and man: (1) the Noahic Covenant, (2) the Abrahamic Covenant, (3) the Mosaic Covenant, (4) the Davidic Covenant, and (5) the New Covenant. You can learn more about these covenants in the Grace Glossary.

What is the New Covenant?

For fourteen centuries, the children of Israel related to God through the Mosaic or Old Covenant. This was a burdensome covenant based on the observance of laws and rituals. During this time, the prophets of God spoke of a coming covenant that would be a new kind of covenant:

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” (Jeremiah 31:31)

What is the New Covenant? The New Covenant is a covenant of grace where God blesses us with new life and divine favor for no reason other than it pleases him to do so.

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them… (Jeremiah 32:40)

The New Covenant is totally unlike the law-keeping covenant of Moses. Instead of a law written on stones, God writes his law on the hearts of his people (Jer. 31:33).

Instead of being separated from God by the priestly-caste, we can all know God directly (Jer. 31:34).

Instead of being held accountable for our failings, God forgives and forgets and cleanses us from all our sin (Jer. 31:34, Eze. 36:33).

Perhaps the best feature of the New Covenant is God’s promise to give us his Spirit and make us brand new (Eze. 36:26). He literally gives us himself and invites us to live in fellowship with him.

There really is nothing like the New Covenant!

The New Covenant made by Jesus

I imagine the Israelites could not wait for the New Covenant. When would it start? For hundreds of years there were no announcements. Then on the night before he died, Jesus lifted the cup and said:

This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood (Luke 22:20)

The New Covenant began with Christ’s death and resurrection. From that moment, everything was different.

Instead of God blessing one tribe (the Israelites) if they did good, God would now bless the whole world because Jesus did good.

Instead of asking for sacrifices that never atoned for our sins, God said “Look to my Son whose sacrifice has done away with all sin forever” (Heb. 9:26).

And lest there be any confusion about the end of the Old Covenant, God tore the temple veil from top to bottom showing that the way to him was now open to all. Good times!

A grace-based covenant

God never changes, but the way we relate to him may change. God’s covenant with Abraham was based on grace, but his covenant with Moses was based on law.

What about us? Does God relate to us through law or grace?

On this question the scriptures are clear: We are not under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). We are not under the Old Covenant of law but the New Covenant of grace.

As believers, we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham and the inheritor of all God’s promises to the father of the faith. But that’s just the beginning. In union with the Lord, we are the heirs of all things through Christ. Good news!

If you don’t know what makes the New Covenant new, you will be confused when reading the Bible. You will take other people’s medicine and end up lukewarm and barren.

Thankfully, there is a simple test to tell if you are walking in the New Covenant.

—

Further reading:
The top 12 blessings in the new covenant
The top 12 verses on the new covenant
Do we need a new covenant study Bible?
 

945. A Covenant of Law and a Covenant of Grace: Recognizing the Differences

by

The Apostle Paul said: "But now we have been delivered from the law." We often apply a phrase such as this to us who are believers in Christ today who typically are not from a Jewish background. We'll offer a perspective on who Paul was specifically addressing from Romans 7 and how removing the dividing wall of separation (the law of commandments) brought Jews and Gentiles together in Christ.

When huddled with His disciples, Jesus said: "Do not think that I came to destroy (abolish) the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." While it was not the mission of Jesus to arrive on earth to declare the law as abolished, He did complete what He came to do—which was first to fulfill it—and this resulted in the law from the Old Covenant being abolished in His flesh and fully annulled and set aside (or cancelled).

When scanning the scriptures in the Bible or hanging out in a mixed-covenant church culture, understanding who was being spoken to, what was being said and when it was said will help us to avoid blending law and grace ... while growing in the knowledge of the truth about the gospel that offers a better hope than an obsolete covenant of works (which we were never alive to).



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944. You Are Not Under Law but Under Grace (No “Balance” Required)

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The Christian religion has notoriously attempted to mix the grace of the gospel of Jesus Christ with a hodgepodge of works-based rules and requirements that will vary with great extreme from one denominational brand to the next. Leapfrogging through various Bible verses which are often taken out of the context of the New Covenant can leave people in a place of uncertainty when it is based upon our doing instead of the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Our conversation will examine the inconsistencies in mixing various aspects of old covenant law with the assurance we have in Christ by faith. Paul made a simple and yet profound statement that is easily overlooked: "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace" (Romans 6:14).



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918. The New Covenant – Unchangeable Priesthood (Jesus Is Not the Law)

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There seems to be no shortage of contrasts when it comes to comparing the New Covenant to the Old. Sadly, most won't ever hear about it within the walls of their church building, so welcome to our podcast!

Perhaps nobody explains it better than whoever wrote the letter called Hebrews. While they were attempting to bring a revelation of Jesus to their Jewish brothers and sisters of that time, we have so much to gain by latching onto their explanation of what it would mean for all believers in Christ. The Old Covenant contained many offerings which couldn't take away sins, featuring many priests that were weak and sinful—who came and went because of death. It was a covenant deemed to be unprofitable with its many commandments which nobody could do.

Jesus came to fulfill the law within that Old Covenant by offering himself one time (once) for the sins of the world ... to be taken away forever. The Old way of stone tablet commandments given to Israel would be annulled, abolished, cancelled, and made obsolete. It would be completely out of service, null and void, because the new High Priest would be declared ... not by the law, but by the word of the oath (from God). Unlike the priests appointed by law, Jesus would hold his priesthood permanently, forever. Through his blood and the word of the oath, Jesus is now the mediator of a better covenant, it's a more excellent ministry than the Old, established upon better promises.



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909. False Assumptions: The Mosaic Law Was Divided Into (3) Different Categories

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In a land known as "seminary," it is commonly taught that the law of Moses was basically divided into three different categories, typically referred to as sacrificial laws, ceremonial laws, and moral laws. Dietary commands and many other "miscellaneous" statutes are usually considered as part of the ceremonial group. The misguided approach with this is that the ceremonial and sacrificial laws were brought to an end after the cross, but the "moral laws" are still to apply. This ideology is passed on to the church sheep as it is filtered through Bible teaching from those with educational degrees. The problem? None of this is true. It's completely fabricated. The Bible says no such thing about the law being broken up with some of it eliminated and a small portion of it still in place. Such a concept should be known as cheap law.

There was one law which came through Moses (not multiple laws) ... and it was all bundled together ... of which God declared that nothing shall be added to it or taken from it. The Jews were required to do all of it. Either it all had to remain in effect, or it all had to come to an end. Cherry-picking a few rules here and there while disregarding others is exactly what the law itself says cannot be done. It's interesting to notice that many individual laws the church ignores are mixed right into the very same passages as ones they think should be kept. It's a murky mixture of a covenant combination with glaring inconsistencies.

None of the law was going to pass until it was fulfilled. Jesus fulfilled the entire law, not to mention the Psalms and the Prophets. By establishing a new and better covenant, we now live in a more glorious ministry of the Spirit, where He guides us into all truth, and by grace teaches us how to live in godliness.



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What Does it Mean to Keep His Commandments?

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Here’s a verse that can really trip you up:

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. (1 John 5:3a)

What commandments is John talking about?

If you have not learned to read scripture through a new covenant lens, you might think he’s talking about the Ten Commandments or the Law of Moses. If so, you’ll be setting yourself up for disaster.

If you think you must prove your love or earn God’s love by keeping Old Testament laws, you have fallen from grace and cut yourself off from Christ.

“Keep his commandments” – but which ones?

As you may know, I recently started a project called The Grace Bible. This is a series of books designed to help you read scripture through a new covenant lens.

You may be wondering, why I began The Grace Bible with the three short letters from John? Because the 105 verses in those letters contain just about everything you need to know about the gospel of grace.

In his letters John proclaims the unconditional love of your heavenly Fatherand the complete forgiveness of your sins. His letters are full of grace treasures, but today I want to look at that verse linking love with commandment keeping: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments” (1 John 5:3a).

To keep his commandments does not mean obeying the Ten Commandments or the Law of Moses. How do we know? Read the rest of the verse:

His commandments are not burdensome. (1 John 5:3b)

The yoke of Moses is unbearably heavy (Act 15:10). No one can keep all the commandments of the old law.

So why does John say his commands are not burdensome? Because he’s not referring to the commands of Moses but his command, meaning the Lord’s command, and the Lord’s yoke is easy and light. Here it is:

This is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ… (1 John 3:23a)

John calls this a new command because it is a new covenant command as opposed to an old covenant command. In the old, you were commanded to keep long lists of rules, but in the new you are commanded to believe.

How do we keep this new command? It starts with a revelation of God’s great love for you. When you know how much your heavenly Father loves you, he is easy to trust and obey. It is his great love for us that empowers us to trust him.

That is the first part of the command; here is the second:

…and love one another, just as he commanded us. (1 John 3:23b)

Moses said “Love one another” and to this old command Jesus added five words: “as I have loved you” (John 13:34). John was there when Jesus said it which is why he refers to it as his command or the “commandment we heard” (2 John 1:6). He wants us to know this is the Lord’s command, not Moses’ command.

Just in case there is any doubt, John adds, “just as he commanded us.” It was Jesus not Moses who said love others as I have loved you. It was Jesus who came for us while we were sinners and went to the cross to set us free. And it is Jesus who intercedes for us at the right hand of the Father.

We don’t love others because it is required of us; we love others with the love we have received from the Lord. It’s both a new command and a new kind of command.

(For those taking notes: The new commandment is sometimes referred to as the law of Christ.)

One more verse:

The one who keeps his commandments abides in him, and he in him. (1 John 3:24a)

Again, what are “his commandments”? John has just told us: “His commandment is that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another” (1 John 3:23).

The one who keeps his commandments is the one who continues in the grace of God. Conversely, someone who tries to keep other commandments, such as those of the old law, is no longer walking in grace. They are trying to keep the old laws because they do not believe Christ fulfilled the requirements of the law on their behalf.

The one who keeps his commands (i.e., believes in Jesus) abides in him. But the one who trusts in his own law-keeping performance does not abide in him and is alienated from Christ (Gal. 5:4).

Short version: When we receive the love of God that is revealed to us through his Son, we are empowered to trust him and love others.

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If you liked this, you will love The Grace Bible: 1–3 John & Jude which is available in paperback, hardback, and also in the Kindle store.

853. The Will of God: The Sacrifice of Jesus

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Isn’t it interesting how God never desired burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin which were offered according to the law inside of the first (old) covenant? All of that work, toil, effort and slaughter … and God took no pleasure in any of it.

On the flip side, we discover the ultimate will of God was the sacrifice of Jesus, who came to earth to do this will of God—and it was by this will that He would completely wipe out the first covenant to establish a new and different covenant for the forgiveness, the salvation, and the sanctification of His creation.
 


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857. The Law Abolished – But First Fulfilled

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The law of commandments came through Moses during the first covenant made with Israel. There are some in both legalistic and grace circles who will teach things about this law from very different covenant perspectives, but will often both be of the persuasion that the law itself was not abolished. There may be many reasons for this ideology—with one of those having to do with something Jesus said during the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5.

Whatever your opinion may be on the subject, our goal during this series will be to help provide a viewpoint for consideration in order to bring as much consistency as possible when it comes to the message of the grace of the gospel.



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