November 7
Ezek 16:42-17:24 | PS 106:13-31 | Prov 27:7-9 | Heb 8:1-13
There are seven covenants in Scripture. Four of them were made with the nation of Israel (unconditional, and one, the Mosaic covenant was conditional). Three of the covenants were made between God and mankind in general (Adamic, Noahic, and the New Covenant). The New Covenant is perfect in that God promises to forgive sin and remove it through the blood of Jesus Christ. This frees us from the penalty of the law as described in the law of Moses. When one sinned under the Mosaic Covenant they would offer a sacrifice at the temple and their sins would be temporarily covered. But the sacrifice was not perfect, and was therefore not permanent. Also, in AD 70, the Temple was destroyed, and this ability to atone with a Temple sacrifice was erased (as prophesied in Hebrews 8:13). But we read of the better effects of the New Covenant in Hebrews 8:12, "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” There it is, our sins are forgotten, no memory of them. This covenant or agreement between God and mankind is unconditional. The only thing that we must do is come to Him, in a spirit of humility and repentance, and put our full trust on Jesus' finished work on the cross. Our covenant was signed with His blood, and is permanent.
We read this New Covenant on Hebrews 8:8-11, which is quoted from Jeremiah 31:31-34, "Behold, 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— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them." After a very difficult realization through a riddle written by the prophet Ezekiel, depicting the rebellion of the Jewish people and their expulsion into Babylon, God through the prophet points to the coming Messiah, and the New Covenant, with the "highest branch of the cedar" in Ezekiel 17:22-24 referring to our Messiah, Jesus.
The New Covenant is great news for everyone. There are no barriers, and it will never be removed once you enter into it. It is not based on the imperfect works of man, but is based on the perfect work of Jesus Christ on the cross. This illustrates the foolishness of so many as they seek to base their eternality on their own goodness, going back to a law of their own writing, a law that all of those before them could not keep, and all of those present cannot keep. If eternity in heaven was based on our ability to uphold the law, it would be empty, except for our Triune God and the angels. We would all miss the mark. Please, place your trust in Jesus. Enter into the New Covenant. Become part of the family of God, brother and sister. Part of a family that can never be replaced.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: