Category Archives: new covenant

Cosmic Convergence- Hebrews 12:18-24

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“Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God (the heavenly Jerusalem), to myriads of angels, a festive gathering, to the assembly of the firstborn whose names have been written in heaven, to a Judge, who is God of all, to the spirits of righteous people made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which says better things than the blood of Abel.”

The Hebrews writer develops a final, astounding contrast between the Old Testament law and sacrificial system and the gospel of Christ. While the messages of the two are inter-dependent (see Hebrews 11:40), certainly the greatness of the new covenant symbolized by Mt. Zion where God resides greatly exceeds and even overshadows the old covenant revelation at Mount Sinai.

The Hebrews writer declared that under the new covenant it’s like getting a glimpse of heaven! With the new covenant believers encounter God. Mediated by the blood of Jesus and the indwelling Holy Spirit, Christians on the Earth share in worship with innumerable angels and the great assembly of those who have come before and died in faith and are already in God’s presence.

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Planned Obsolescence– Hebrews 8-9

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“But Jesus has now obtained a superior ministry, and to that degree he is the mediator of a better covenant, which has been established on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion for a second one. But finding fault with his people, he says: ‘See, the days are coming, says the Lord when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah’ …. By saying a new covenant, he has declared that the first is obsolete. And what is obsolete and growing old is about to pass away” (Hebrews 8:6-8,13, CSB).

The Hebrews writer explained that the Old Testament covenant law has been replaced with the new covenant of the gospel of Christ. Although the old has been replaced with the new, both were necessary functions of God’s unfolding plan of redemption for rebellious humanity.

But, the Hebrews writer said the new covenant of the resurrected Christ was actually the fulfillment of the temporary atoning measures provided in the Mosaic law. In other words, the ministry of Christ was superior to the Mosaic law because it was founded on better promises than the old covenant. While the Mosaic law convicted of sin, the gospel of Christ conveyed eternal life.

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The Glory That Never Fades – Exodus 34:34-35

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“But whenever he went into the Tent of Meeting to speak with the Lord, he would remove the veil until he came out again. Then he would give the people whatever instructions the Lord had given him, and the people of Israel would see the radiant glow of his face. So he would put the veil over his face until he returned to speak with the Lord” (Exodus 34:34-35, NLT).

When Moses came down from Mt. Sinai (for the second time) with God’s commandments etched on stone tablets, the skin on his face was radiant from God’s glory because he talked with God face to face.

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