Two great obsessions often impede the worship of many saints as they gather with their local church. The first is an obsession with feeling. The second is an obsession with relevance.
The obsession with feeling is symptomatic of a poor understanding of the Holy Spirit’s work. It is wrongly believed that the Spirit works primarily by estatic experience. The Spirit is stifled by order and if things are slow, intentional, and in order then a move of the Spirit simply can’t be “felt.”
Of course, the problem with this understanding is that it’s contrary to the very way God orders worship in both the Old and the New Testament. Israel’s liturgy rehearsed God’s redemption out of Egypt. Isreal was not to sacrifice in any order, but in a particular order: the sin offering ➡️ burnt offering ➡️ peace offering. In this order, the Passover deliverance is rehearsed with intention. Isreal’s worship wasn’t about having a new emotional experience, it was about remembering and being shaped by what they had experienced! All so that they might dwell with God and as his people. For Israel the rehearsed journey was the point, because worship is about God and entrance into his presence.
We might believe things change with the sending of the Spirit in the New Testament, but the early church was devoted to the ordinary means reminiscent of the gospel of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:42). When positive commands are given about worship in the church, we read, “let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). Corporate prayer (1 Tim. 2:1-7) and the public reading of Scripture (1 Tim. 4:13) are the slow, ordinary way of New Testament worship. An obsession with feeling runs the risk overlooking the very acts through which God promises the Spirit to work.
An obsession with relevance is symptomatic of misunderstanding what worship is and who worship is about. It centers man in worship, by demanding an answer to, “so what?” Worship is about God and entering into the presence of God through the means he ordains: Word and Ordinance. In worship, the presence of God is the point. It needs no further justification or application. God is under no obligation to explain to us why he matters.
When relevance is an obsession corporate confession of sin, corporate prayer, and the public reading of Scripture may indeed seem boring, but this judgment is often an attempt to avoid a deeper issue. It is easier to deal with ourselves than it is to deal with God. A loud, individual, and unpredictable manner of worship may help distract us from the purifying power of God’s presence but it will be to our detriment. In corporate worship God gathers us to himself, forgives us as we confess sin, assures us by his grace, teaches us as we hear his voice through the Word, feeds us at his table, and sends us blessed in his very name. God’s presence is the point.
Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:28-29)
Sermon Idea: The New Covenant of grace is fulfilled by the sacrificial death of Christ, purifying the people of God for the presence of God once and for all.
Introduction: One of the most beautiful pictures of God’s redemptive plan in the New Testament is the temple curtain being torn in two when Jesus dies on the cross.
37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mk 15:37–39)
The crisis of the biblical story, and thus the crisis of human history, is the separation that sin has brought between God and those created in His image. The most significant consequence of Adam’s sin was being exiled from the garden. How is it that sinful people can enter again into the presence of God?
The Bible is the true story of God restoring a people to dwell, live, and worship in his very presence. It is a story about God’s kingdom, where He rules and reigns over His people through covenant.
The people of God dwelling in the presence of God was the fundamental purpose of the covenants that God made with Abraham, Israel, and David, through which God could fulfill his promise to deliver the promised seed of the woman (Gen. 3:15) who would crush the head of the serpent, establish a New Covenant, and open a way into God’s presence once again.
This journey back into God’s presence was sewn into the very fabric of Israel’s worship. When God instructs Israel to build the tabernacle, he commands that cherubim be sewn into the curtain that separates the holy place from the Most Holy Place. When Solomon builds the temple, cherubim are sewn once again into the curtain which hangs before the Most Holy Place.
This is so fascinating because God set cherubim to guard the garden. The presence of cherubim in Genesis 3 signals that the presence of God is not accessible to the sinner.
24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. (Ge 3:23–24, garden)
“And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. (Ex 26:31, tabernacle)
And he made the veil of blue and purple and crimson fabrics and fine linen, and he worked cherubim on it. (2 Ch 3:14, temple)
Both the tabernacle and the temple curtain represent God’s work in restoring a people to His presence. Every year on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would enter into the Most Holy Place, atone for the sins of the people by shedding the blood of a spotless sacrificial lamb.
The curtain represented the work of God in restoring His presence among the people, but it also represented the separation that was still a reality. Only the High Priest could enter through the curtain, and while that cherubim-marked curtain remains, it signifies that the holy presence of God is not accessible to the sinner. The Old Covenant was good and gracious in many respects, but it could not bring the people of God into the presence of God.
This is why the tearing of the curtain is so significant. Through the sacrificial death of the spotless lamb, Jesus Christ, the way has now been made open. The tearing of the curtain symbolizes the removal of the cherubim from the entrance to the garden. The angels no longer guard the presence of God, because a way is now open through the Son of God, whose death establishes a New Covenant of grace.
In Hebrews 9, the author demonstrates how the New Covenant, established by the death of Jesus Christ, fulfills all that the Old Covenant anticipated through the types and shadows of the sacrificial system.
The New Covenant of grace is fulfilled by the sacrificial death of Christ, purifying the people of God for the presence of God once and for all.
As we consider this passage together, I want you to hear how God has brought us into His presence through the death of Jesus Christ. When we gather on the Lord’s Day, we are not a people at whom God looks from a distance. He invites us again to be in his presence through our Lord Jesus Christ, to hear his Word, and to commune with us. We experience that not through Word and Spirit, and one day we’ll experience it in full.
If you’re here this morning and you’re not a Christian, I invite you to consider that access to God is possible through faith in Jesus Christ. It is the only way by which our sins can be forgiven and the only way we can become like the God in whose image we have been created.
I.) The earthly, preparatory nature of the Old Covenant (Hebrews 9:1-10)
Everything about the Old Covenant—the tabernacle, temple, and the sacrificial system—was given as a grace to life in the promised land. It pointed forward through types and shadows to greater realities, but everything about it concerned earthly things. Notice how the author of Hebrews described the Old Covenant in Hebrews 9:1.
Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly place of holiness. (Heb 9:1)
The earthly place of holiness refers to the tabernacle. To call it earthly is not derogatory, but to say that the tabernacle was a holy place on the earth. As such, it is pointed forward and prepares us for a greater reality, a better sanctuary: not one of the earth, but of heaven.
The author of Hebrews summarized the structure and furniture of the tabernacle. The key here is to note the two sections of the tabernacle: the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.
2 For a tent was prepared, the first section, in which were the lampstand and the table and the bread of the Presence. It is called the Holy Place. 3 Behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place, 4 having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant. 5 Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail. (Heb 9:2–5)
What the author then does in verses 6-10 is show how the priestly service of the Old Covenant cannot bring the people into the presence of God. This is achieved by highlighting the repetitive nature of the priestly work in the tabernacle and noting that only the High Priest could enter the Most Holy Place.
6 These preparations having thus been made, the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, 7 but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people. (Heb 9:6–7)
Notice the language that emphasizes the priests’ never-ending service. The priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties. The High Priest enters the Most Holy Place once a year to offer the sacrifice of atonement. All of these things—the earthly nature of the tabernacle, the repetitive service of the priests, the division of the two holy places—indicate its inability to bring people into the presence of God truly.
8 By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing 9 (which is symbolic for the present age). According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, 10 but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation. (Heb 9:8–10)
There is a lot to note, but I want to highlight two primary points.
The first is the way the author of Hebrews identifies the Holy Spirit as the one who indicates the temporary and preparatory nature of the Old Covenant. God, by His Spirit, intended for the Old Covenant to point forward and foreshadow the new.
The second is that the primary problem with the sacrificial system was that it could not purify the worshipper, and so it could not bring people into God’s presence. They were good sacrifices for the purpose that God instituted them, for life in the land, but they could not purify the worshipper, finally deal with sin, and usher people into the presence of God.
In all these ways, the Old Covenant points forward to the New. When God fulfills his promises, a sacrifice will be made once; it will purify the worshipper and bring them into the presence of God.
II.) The heavenly, permanent nature of the New Covenant (Hebrews 9:11-22)
The death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God incarnate, and the shedding of his blood established a New Covenant of grace, fulfilling all that the Old Covenant merely pointed to.
But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption (Heb 9:11–12)
To highlight the superiority of Christ’s sacrifice, his priestly work, and the New Covenant he establishes, the author of Hebrews identifies three things that Jesus does.
1.) He entered once into the holy places. Unlike the priests who served regularly, and unlike the High Priest who entered the temple only once a year, Jesus entered the temple only once. The New Covenant of grace not only has a heavenly sanctuary, but a permanent sacrifice.
2.) He entered not by the blood of bulls and goats, but by his blood! He is the atoning sacrifice! The author of Hebrews reflects later on the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice in 10:12-14.
12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. (Heb 10:12–14)
3.) His sufficient sacrifice through which he enters into the heavenly sanctuary secures eternal redemption! The result is that Jesus does what the Old Covenant priests and sacrifices could not do: purify the worshipper and bring them into the presence of God!
13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. (Heb 9:12–14)
The New Covenant promises made in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel regarding the forgiveness of sin and the purification of the sinner are fulfilled in the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ. The Old Covenant sacrifices could make one ceremonially clean by purifying the flesh, but the sacrifice of Christ purifies the whole person.
When I was in High School, I was required, as I am sure many of you were, to read Macbeth by William Shakesphere. There is a scene in this famous play that captures the effect of guilt on the human conscience more effectively than any other I have seen or read.
In short, Lady Macbeth conspired with her husband to kill King Duncan with the hope that her husband, a general in Scotland, would become king. Spoiler alert: They kill King Duncan. They both suffer from guilt for this, and Lady Macbeth in particular begins to sleepwalk.
She imagines she is trying to wash Duncan’s blood off her hands, saying:
“Out, damned spot! Out, I say!” She believes she still sees Duncan’s blood on her hands and cannot cleanse herself of the guilt. No matter what she does, the guilt remains, and no matter how much she tries, her conscience remains stained.
The gospel of Jesus Christ, and only the gospel of Jesus Christ, is the remedy for the guilt-ridden conscience. It is the remedy for the power of sin in our lives. It is freedom from the guilt and condemnation that our sin has brought upon us. Through the gospel of Jesus Christ and his shed blood, we are purified, forgiven, and freed to serve the living God.
Since Christ is the better and greater sacrifice for sin, since he is the great High Priest who has entered into the heavenly sanctuary, he is the mediator of the New Covenant.
15 Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. (Heb 9:15)
God fulfills his covenant promises in Jesus Christ, the mediator of the New Covenant of grace. The inheritance promised to Israel in the land pointed forward to an eternal inheritance, life in God’s presence as the people of God in the New Heavens and New Earth (Hebrews 11:10; Rev. 21)
Peter also makes the connection between the New Covenant and the promise of inheritance.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, (1 Pe 1:3–4)
The New Covenant of grace, although first promised in Genesis 3:15 and then preached to Abraham in Genesis 15, was further revealed through types and shadows of the sacrificial system and was not formally established until the death of Jesus Christ. Just as the shedding of blood ratified the Old Covenant, the shedding of blood was needed to ratify the New Covenant.
18 Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. 19 For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20 saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” 21 And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. 22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. (Heb 9:18–22)
The point is straightforward. The death of Jesus and the shedding of his blood establish the New Covenant. His blood is superior to lambs, bulls, and goats, because he is the very Son of God in human flesh. The blood of Christ has been shed, the New Covenant of grace has been established, and the forgiveness of sins is available through faith in Christ.
This is why many hymns frequently mention blood in their lyrics. It is the blood of the New Covenant, shed in the death of Jesus Christ, that purifies us, forgives our sins, so that we might enter into the presence of God.
III.) The present and future grace of the New Covenant (Hebrews 9:23-28)
These truths about the heavenly and permanent nature of the New Covenant have numerous implications for the Christian life and the church’s worship as we gather each Lord’s Day. As a church and as individual believers, we live with the blessing of present grace and have the promise of future grace. What is the present grace of the New Covenant? If we consider all that the New Testament teaches, it encompasses all the blessings of salvation; however, we can be more specific.
For the author of Hebrews, the present grace of the New Covenant is taught in reference to Christ as our great High Priest who has entered into heaven on our behalf.
For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf (Heb 9:24)
For Christ to appear in the presence of God on our behalf means that those whom Christ represents are accepted into God’s presence. Through Jesus Christ, we are not only saved from God’s wrath, but we are invited into his presence. This is the truth we sing about when we sing Before the Throne of God Above.
Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea:
A great High Priest whose name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on his hands,
My name is written on his heart.
I know that while in Heav’n he stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart,
Christ has entered into the very presence of God on our behalf. We are not only accepted but also invited, through faith in Christ, to draw near to God. This is why the immediate application given by the author of Hebrews is to draw near to God.
21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Heb 10:21–22)
It is why the encouragement in the Epistle of James is genuine and not theoretical. In Christ Jesus, believers can draw near to the presence of God.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. (Jas 4:6–8)
Beloved, do you live your life this way? Are you someone who draws near to God by listening to His Word and responding in prayer? Is the gathering on the Lord’s Day a priority, so that you can draw near to God’s presence? It is no surprise that the immediate application of “draw near” in Hebrews 10 is a command to be committed to gathering to the local church.
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (Heb 10:24–25)
That is the present grace of the New Covenant. Jesus Christ is our great High Priest who brings us into the very presence of God. What is the future grace?
But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. (Heb 9:26–28)
The future grace of the New Covenant is that those who are in Jesus Christ only await salvation at the return of Jesus Christ. In Jesus, our sin has already been judged. In Baptism, our sins have been buried in the grave, and we’ve been resurrected with Christ to new life. For the Christian, what we await is not judgment, but salvation—the completion and the consummation of all that God is doing.
so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. (Heb. 9:28)
The sacrifice of Jesus Christ was so sufficient in dealing with sin and the New Covenant so gracious, that the second coming of Jesus has no reference to sin at all—only the salvation of those who await him and the judgement of those who reject him.
The New Covenant of grace is fulfilled by the sacrificial death of Christ, purifying the people of God for the presence of God once and for all.
For so many of us, that is our story: we have been brought into the presence of God through our great mediator, Jesus Christ.
If you’re here this morning and you’re not a Christian, or you’re here and not you’ve been merely pretending to be one, listen to the inescapable reality of verse 27, And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment…
Death is the result of sin, and sin separates people from the very presence of God. Sin can only be forgiven, separation from God can only be restored, and death can only be defeated through faith in Jesus Christ. Please don’t carry your sins with you to the deathbed, don’t carry them into judgement.
Trust in Jesus Christ through faith, bury your sins in the waters of baptism, and be raised anew with an invitation into God’s presence. Be among those Christ comes to save who are eagerly waiting for him.
Sermon Idea: The promised new covenant is the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan in Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman, who mediates a better covenant of grace.
Introduction: For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Je 29:11)
These hopeful words from Jeremiah 29:11 are among the most frequently quoted verses in the entire Bible. You can find numerous high school and college graduation cards with these words engraved on the inside. They’ve been stitched or printed on the blankets of newborns. It is a popular verse featured on coffee cups, magnets, and T-shirts. It is the Old Testament equivalent to John 3:16.
Christians can read these words, apply them, and be blessed by them. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Israel, is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. All of his words are good for us.
That said, we will benefit from them the most when we remember the context in which they are given.
The promise of Jeremiah 29:11 comes not at a time of celebration like that of a graduation or the birth of a newborn baby. They do not come as words of affirmation after the nation’s success and prosperity.
Far from it. These words come to God’s people in their lowest valley and their darkest hour.
When we last left off, God had covenanted with David and promised him an eternal kingdom, an eternal throne, and a descendant who would sit on that throne forever. God will fulfill these promises, but they will be fulfilled through a faithful and obedient king, one who is like a son to the Father.
The problem that follows is that unfaithful kings and unfaithful priests too often represented God’s people. There was a prosperous season under the reign of David’s son Solomon, who built the temple in Jerusalem. He, too, would fall, seduced by the false, foreign gods of his wives. Things get worse when Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, fails to listen to the concerns of the people, and the kingdom is divided into two. The northern kingdom maintained the name Israel, while the southern kingdom was known as Judah.
The kings in Israel did not lead faithfully, nor did the kings in Judah. To emphasize this point to the reader, a recurring theme is found throughout 1 Kings. The language isn’t always identical, but the fact is the same.
And he walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. (1 Ki 15:3)
He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin which he made Israel to sin. (1 Ki 15:26)
The people need a faithful, righteous king. They need a faithful, righteous priest.
Both the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom fell into idolatry. They were covenant breakers and would feel the weight of the covenant curses.
In 722 B.C., the Lord raised up Assyria to conquer the northern kingdom (2 Kings 17:6-23) and take the people into exile.
In 586 B.C., the Lord raised up Babylon, which conquered the southern kingdom (2 Kings 25) and took the people into exile. Babylon not only took the people into exile, but also set fire to the king’s palace and destroyed the temple.
Where is God? What has happened? The kingdom is divided, Israel and Judah are in exile, and the temple has been destroyed.
This is the context in which God gives the famous words found in Jeremiah 29:11. Amid exile, grieving the consequences of their sin, God speaks hope into the darkness. God does know the plans He has for His people, and He will keep all of His promises. Israel and Judah will not be left in exile; instead, they will be reunited.
The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you. For behold, days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the LORD, and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it.” (Je 30:1–3)
Although this is good news, it is accompanied by even greater promises in the books of Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah. Days are coming when God will not only restore His people, but also establish a new covenant that is different from the old covenant that the people broke. God’s people and the nations to be blessed through them need a covenant that they can’t break, an unconditional covenant, a covenant that can circumcise the heart rather than the flesh.
The first gospel promise subtly made in Genesis 3:15 is explicitly promised in Jeremiah 31. With the coming of the promised seed of the woman would come a new covenant.
The promised new covenant is the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan in Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman, who mediates a better covenant of grace.
Next week, we will explore the fulfillment of the new covenant in Jesus Christ, but this morning, we want to reflect on the promise of the new covenant. To do that, we’ll reflect on the need for the new covenant, its newness, and the nature of the new covenant.
I.) The need for the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-32)
The text makes it clear that the new covenant is needed because Israel and Judah have broken the covenant God made with them.
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD (Je 31:31–32)
The old covenant was gracious in many ways, but it was not the covenant of grace. The nature of the old covenant can be summed up by the maxim, “Do this and live.” The blessings of the covenant were conditional on Israel’s obedience.
I am the LORD your God. 5 You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the LORD. (Le 18:4–5)
The perpetual problem throughout the Old Testament was not the Old Covenant itself, but rather the stubborn and rebellious hearts of the people, who struggled to keep the covenant. Since Adam’s fall into sin, the human heart has been dead and in bondage to sin. The Old Covenant does not address that problem because it was not designed to. It could not provide the inward change of a new heart.
What is needed is a covenant that can affect and change the people from within. They need a new covenant, to be circumcised in their heart rather than the flesh.
As Israel and Judah are suffering the consequences for their perpetual failure, God promises a covenant that will provide its members with the ability to keep it.
II.) The newness of the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:33-34)
Before we discuss how the new covenant is new, I would like to clarify that it is indeed a new covenant. It is not a renewal of a former covenant; it is new in substance. After the author of Hebrews quotes Jeremiah 31:31-34 in full in Hebrews 8, we are told that the old covenant is now obsolete.
In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (Heb 8:13)
The Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic covenants will find their fulfillment in what God will do in the New Covenant. What is it, then, that is new about the new covenant?
1. A Promised New Nature of God’s People
In the Old Testament, one became a member of the Old Covenant by being born and/or receiving the covenant sign of circumcision. It was based on natural, biological birth. The result was that the Old Covenant community was a mixed community. It was made up of faithful members who loved the Lord and believed his promises and others who were covenant members by birth and circumcision, but whose hearts were stubborn, rebellious, and far from the Lord.
The new covenant promises that every member will be a believing, faithful member whose heart has been changed to desire and be able to keep God’s law. God will write his law on the heart of every new covenant member. In other words, God will change the members of the new covenant within by His Spirit.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, 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. (Je 31:33)
This promise is similar to the one prophesied in Ezekiel 36, in which God promises to give His people a new heart of flesh.
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. (Eze 36:26–27)
This is none other than the promise of the new birth, the regenerative work of God by His Spirit to bring people from spiritual death to spiritual life. This is how one becomes a member of the new covenant community: by being born again through faith in Jesus Christ.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (Jn 1:12-13)
2. A Promised New Structure of God’s People
Unlike the Old Covenant, every member of the New Covenant will know the Lord from the least to the greatest.
And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. (Je 31:34)
This is significant because in the Old Covenant, the Spirit of God was not poured out on all the people. God put His Spirit on prophets, priests, and kings, but not on the entirety of the people in the covenant. So there was a difference in both access to God and knowledge of God under the Old Covenant.
In the New Covenant, God will pour out his Spirit on every member, so that they are born again and indwelt by the Spirit. Every member will have the same access and knowledge of God, because the Spirit of God will indwell every member. Knowledge of God will no longer be limited through the mediation of human prophets, priests, or kings, but all will know the Lord from the least to the greatest through the one mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:5).
These two points are essential for determining the proper participants of New Covenant signs of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. If the New Covenant is made up of born-again believers, it is not a mixed community. In that case, only professing believers should receive the New Covenant sign of baptism, and only baptized believers should partake of the covenant meal, the Lord’s Supper.
As Baptists, we believe in believer’s baptism not only because infant baptism is never described in the New Testament, nor is it ever prescribed, or commanded. Those are fine points, but the primary reason for believing in believer’s baptism is that the newness of the New Covenant demands it. In the New Covenant, you enter not by natural birth, but by the new birth, and only those born again should receive the New Covenant sign of baptism.
3. A Promised New Sacrifice for God’s People
In the New Covenant, the nature of God’s people is transformed. Hence, the structure of God’s people changes, and this is all possible because there is a new sacrifice for God’s people—a better sacrifice that definitively forgives sins.
And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (Je 31:34)
I love the way Samuel Renihan explains the deficiency of the Old Covenant in dealing with sin.
“The Old Covenant had a sacrificial system that forgave sins in the context of Cannan. But the Old Covenant could not forgive sins in the court of heaven.”
As the author of Hebrews makes clear, For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. (Heb 10:4)
The better sacrifice is the sinless substitute, Jesus Christ. It is his one-time sacrifice that fulfills the entire sacrificial system that pointed to him in types and shadows.
And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering, he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. (Heb 10:10–14)
From this better and perfect sacrifice come all the salvific blessings of the New Covenant—justification, regeneration, adoption, sanctification, and glorification—all of which are found in Jesus Christ, the mediator of the New Covenant.
And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption (1 Co 1:29–30)
The promised new covenant is the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan in Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman, who mediates a better covenant of grace.
When we put all this together, we can say that the New Covenant is superior to the Old because…
The New Covenant has a better mediator (Heb. 8:6)
The New Covenant has a better sacrifice (Heb. 9:6-10)
The New Covenant has better provisions (the Holy Spirit, Ezekiel 36:24-28)
The New Covenant has better promises (a new heart, Ezekiel 36:24-28)
We’re now left to make one final observation: What is the nature of the new covenant?
III.) The nature of the new covenant
As we’ve studied the biblical covenants, I have made a point to emphasize both the unconditional and conditional elements of each one. Have you noticed what is missing from Jeremiah 31:31-34? There are no conditions. There is no “if you will.” Only, “I will.”
The New Covenant of Grace is freely offered to anyone who repents and believes in Jesus Christ. In the New Covenant, all the works needed have been provided by our faithful savior, Jesus Christ. He is the perfect, obedient Son, and because he fulfilled his mission in obedience to the Father, even to death on a cross, what is offered to us is grace, the grace of God in Jesus Christ.
For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (Jn 1:16–17)
For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. (Ro 6:14–15)
Jeremiah 31:31-34 is not the formalization of the New Covenant; rather, it is a promise of the New Covenant.
When Jesus broke the bread and lifted the cup with the twelve disciples, it was the New Covenant he was referencing that would be fulfilled by his death, burial, and resurrection when he said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. (Lk 22:19–20)
There are only two groups of people here this morning. Some need to remember the great grace of the New Covenant because they’re members of God’s people in Jesus Christ. Remember, reflect, and respond with gratitude. Others need to repent and believe in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins, reconciliation with God, and membership in the people of God under the New Covenant.
The promised new covenant is the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan in Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman, who mediates a better covenant of grace.
Sermon Idea: The Davidic Covenant develops God’s holy nation into a kingdom dynasty, governed by God’s law, through whom God will bring about the seed of the woman —a son of David —who will fulfill all of God’s promises.
Introduction: William Golding’s debut novel was published in 1954, about a group of young boys stranded on an island after a plane crash. No adults are present, so these young boys have to govern themselves. There is no righteous moral authority, no righteous moral leadership—just the boys doing what is right in their own eyes.
Ralph tries to lead with the help of a young boy named Piggy, but the other boys challenge Ralph at every turn. Piggy is eventually killed, and Simon, another young boy, is murdered after warning the group that the supposed “beast” they all fear on the island is the wickedness in themselves as they turn against each other. At the end of the book, Ralph is on the run for his life, but is saved by the arrival of a naval officer who spotted smoke and fire coming from the deserted island.
The Lord of the Flies is a dark tale forced upon many high school students, which reflects on the fallenness of human nature and the chaos that ensues when the moral leadership and societal structures are removed.
Israel’s history after the Exodus and the giving of the law is one of both faithfulness and failure. The faithfulness comes from God, who fulfills his promise to bring Israel into the land of promise. The book of Joshua tells the story of the conquest of Canaan and then the allotment of the land among the twelve tribes of Israel.
It does not take long, however, for a new generation of Israelites to forget their history and ignore God’s law. Rather than being a light to the nations, they became like the nations.
The book of Judges narrates the same sad cycle: Israel sins, God disciplines them by allowing a foreign power to oppress them, the people cry out for mercy, God in covenant faithfulness raises a judge to deliver them, and once saved, the people start disobeying all over again.
Samuel Renihan captures the essence of the problem well: “There is no centrality, no leadership, no cohesion to the nation. And there is a very important statement in Judges, mentioned a few times throughout the book, including the last verse of the entire book. “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25).
All of this and more is the context of the covenant God makes with David. Israel needs not only a king, but also a God-chosen, righteous king who can rule and reign faithfully over God’s people.
The Abrahamic Covenant set apart a particular people through whom God would bring the promised seed of the woman, Jesus Christ, who would fulfill all of God’s promises.
The Mosaic Covenant develops God’s set-apart people into a holy nation, governed by God’s law through whom God will bring the promised seed of the woman, Jesus Christ.
The Davidic Covenant develops God’s holy nation into a kingdom dynasty, governed by God’s law, through whom God will bring about the seed of the woman —a son of David —who will fulfill all of God’s promises.
Before we can appreciate the Davidic covenant, we need to remember that he was not the first king of Israel. This brings us to our first point: the need for a faithful king is the context of the covenant.
I.) The need for a faithful king is the context of the covenant (1 Samuel 8-16)
God had given Samuel as a judge over Israel, and he is faithful to his task with one exception. In his old age, he fails to discipline his sons appropriately when they become judges of Israel after him. The Bible tells us they did not follow the way of Samuel, but they took bribes and perverted justice. (1 Samuel 8:3)
This leads to Israel asking Samuel to appoint a king over Israel.
Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them (1 Sa 8:4-7)
It will be helpful for us to remember that God reiterated to Israel numerous times that kings would come from them. First to Abraham in Genesis 17:6, then again to Jacob in Genesis 35:14, to Judah as Jacob blesses his sons in Genesis 49:10, and in the laws to Israel in Deuteronomy 17. In doing so, there were essential particulars that accompanied that promise.
The first particular was that the king of Israel would be from the tribe of Judah.
The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. (Ge 49:10)
God will give Israel a king, but that king will come from the tribe of Judah.
The second particular is found in Deuteronomy 17, in the law to Israel about kings.
“When you come to the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, ‘I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,’ you may indeed set a king over you whom the LORD your God will choose. (Dt 17:14–15)
Can Israel ask for a king? Yes, but it will be a king that the Lord chooses from the tribe of Judah.
Israel has no interest in waiting on the Lord, nor do they care if their king is from the tribe of Judah. They want a king like the nations, and even after Samuel warns them against demanding a king in this way, they ignore his warning and again demand a king like the nations.
Saul became the first king of Israel, and it was a failure. Saul proved to be prideful and disobedient to the Lord in numerous ways (1 Samuel 13-15).
Are there not several lessons for us here? It is always better to wait on God, rather than taking matters into our own hands. You can pursue the right thing in all the wrong ways. How might we avoid this mistake? The best way to do that is to know the Bible well. God had given clear instructions about kings in the law. Israel disregarded those instructions and lived to see the consequences of that disobedience. Fundamental to living faithfully before God is to know His Word and to trust that his commands are for our good.
The need for a faithful king is the context for God’s choosing of David and the covenant that God makes with David.
Ultimately, the Lord rejects Saul and raises a shepherd after God’s own heart, David from the tribe of Judah, to be the king of Israel.
The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” (1 Sa 16:1)
Think with me for a moment about the mercy, grace, and faithfulness of God. Israel does not deserve a king after God’s own heart, but that is what God gives them in David, even as Israel rejects the LORD by demanding a king of their choosing, God remains faithful in bringing about all of his promises.
Israel immediately feels God’s kindness and mercy after God chooses David, who stands in for Israel, as a giant Philistine, Goliath threatens the people of Israel. The language used to describe David’s defeat of Goliath echoes not so subtly God’s gospel promise in Genesis 3:15.
And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground. (1 Sa 17:49)
Could this be the one? Has God fulfilled his promise to the seed of the woman in a king from Judah?
David, like Noah, Abraham, and Moses before him, will prove to be a godly but imperfect man. David is not the promised seed of the woman, but the covenant God makes with David promises that the seed of the woman will be a son of David, and that’s no small thing.
God is revealing his one, eternal redemptive plan through his covenants. This brings us to our second point: an established throne and the promise of God’s presence are the blessings of the covenant.
II.) An established throne and the promise of God’s presence are the blessings of the covenant (2 Samuel 7:1-13)
In 2 Samuel 7, David desires to build a house, or a temple, for the Lord. David is unsettled by the fact that he lives in a house of Cedar, while the ark of the Lord dwells in a tent, a reference to the tabernacle.
As good as David’s motives appear to be, it is essential to remember that you cannot outdo the Lord. We can serve him, worship him, and praise him, but we cannot out-bless him.
In response to David’s plan, the Lord makes several covenant promises to David in 2 Samuel 7:8-16. Some of these promises will be realized in David’s lifetime: his name will be made great, an established place for the kingdom of Israel, and rest from Israel’s enemies.
Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. (2 Sa 7:8–11)
God fulfills these promises. David’s name is made great, the kingdom is established under his rule in the land, and Israel experiences rest from their enemies.
David’s son Solomon later would reflect on God’s faithfulness and testify that not one word of God failed. “Blessed be the LORD who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised. Not one word has failed of all his good promise, which he spoke by Moses his servant. (1 Ki 8:56)
We cannot afford to miss, however, that God makes several promises to be fulfilled beyond David’s lifetime in 2 Samuel 7:11-13, 16: God promises David an eternal throne, an eternal kingdom, and a descendant who will sit on David’s throne forever.
Moreover, the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. (2 Sa 7:11–13)
And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever (2 Sa 7:16)
What puts kingdoms in jeopardy is the uncertainty of childbirth. Human beings have little control over the sex of their children. The continuance of a royal throne is dependent upon the continual birth of a son, who can inherit the throne.
The covenant that God makes with David promises that his kingdom will be eternally established. David and his descendants will have sons to inherit the throne, or perhaps a descendant who will live and never die.
The eternal nature of these promises means they are unconditional. God will be faithful to his covenant promises and be true to his word. However, just as we have seen with the Abrahamic covenant and the Mosaic covenant, there is still a condition.
All of God’s covenant promises will be fulfilled, but they will be fulfilled in one, obedient descendant of David.
III.) Keeping God’s law is the condition of the covenant (2 Samuel 7:14-17)
In between the unconditional promises of God is a condition that gets to the heart of the gospel first promised in Genesis 3:15.
I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. (2 Sa 7:14–15)
The covenant leaves open the possibility that any given king of Israel can be disobedient, covenantally unfaithful, evoking the discipline of the Lord.
In Deuteronomy 17, the law makes it clear that Israel’s ability to stay in the land experiencing God’s covenant blessings is dependent on the obedience of the king.
“And when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself in a book a copy of this law, approved by the Levitical priests. And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left, so that he may continue long in his kingdom, he and his children, in Israel. (Dt 17:18–20)
Unfortunately, Israel experienced the consequences of unfaithful, disobedient kings throughout its history. Israel experiences God’s discipline as they were exiled from the land not once, but twice. The Old Testament leaves readers longing for a faithful king.
The covenant promises are unconditional in one respect, but conditional in another respect.
The condition of the covenant is that it will be fulfilled not only by a faithful father but by an obedient son!
The New Testament makes it clear that Jesus of Nazareth, born to Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, the son of David, who now sits on David’s throne, is that faithful and obedient son.
The book of Matthew opens very purposefully with a genealogy of Jesus, “The book of genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” (Matthew 1:1)
It is this son of David that God declares, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17)
Unlike David, who fell with Bathsheba, unlike Solomon, seduced by the gods of the nations, and unlike every sinful king after them, Jesus always did what pleased the Father.
And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” (Jn 8:29)
Jesus is the faithful and obedient son of David, the promised seed of the woman in whom all of God’s promises are fulfilled.
God’s people forever have a righteous king, so that the church never has to settle for doing what is right in our own eyes.
The best example of how to respond to a sermon like this is given to us by the Apostle Peter, who in Acts 2 preached that the resurrection of Jesus proves that God has made him both Lord and Christ.
36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Ac 2:36–38)
God has kept his promise through his faithful, obedient. That son now sits on the throne of an eternal kingdom. Will you share in its blessings? Will you be among his people?
Sermon Idea: The Mosaic Covenant develops God’s set-apart people into a holy nation, governed by God’s law through whom God will bring the promised seed of the woman, Jesus Christ.
Introduction: There are some words that, upon hearing them, do not evoke feelings of comfort or joy. For example, consider the word exam—a perfectly fine word, except we probably associate it with something unpleasant. Whether it be a math exam or a rectal exam, neither of these things is very pleasant.
We might also consider the word work—another perfectly fine word—but I’m willing to bet it does not evoke thoughts of comfort and joy. Whether it’s housework, yardwork, or homework, these tasks are mundane and not particularly enjoyable.
What about the word “law?” What thoughts or feelings are evoked when you hear that word? Old Testament scholar Carmen Imes says most of us don’t perk up when we hear the word law, especially the Old Testament law.
She writes, “Laws are dry and tedious, and they take away freedoms we’d rather have. Laws keep us from parking in the most convenient places and require us to take off our shoes at airport security checkpoints. Silence your cellphone, and no flash photography and don’t chew gum and don’t bring in ourtside food or drink and keep your hands and arms inside the car. This is why Moses’ response to the law catches us off guard.”
Consider, for example, Moses’ reflection on receiving God’s law in Deuteronomy 4.
See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? (Dt 4:5–8)
This passage serves as a beneficial summary of so much of what I want us to understand about the covenant God makes with Moses and Israel.
Notice that the statutes and rules that the Lord commanded were to be done, “in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.” What land is Moses referring to? The land that was promised to Abraham and his descendants: the promised land of Canaan. The law is given to govern God’s people for life in the land.
Also, notice that as God’s law governs his people in the land, it serves as a testimony to the nations about God’s greatness and goodness (Deut. 4:6-8). If Israel faithfully obeyed God’s law in the land, it would be a light to the nations, reflecting God’s character. Through Israel, God will make himself known to the world.
The Abrahamic Covenant set apart a particular people through whom God would bring the promised seed of the woman, Jesus Christ, who would fulfill all of God’s promises.
The Mosaic Covenant develops God’s set-apart people into a holy nation, governed by God’s law through whom God will bring the promised seed of the woman, Jesus Christ.
The goal of this morning is consistent with the previous weeks. We cannot be exhaustive, and should not intend to be. Much of what could be said will be left unsaid. Instead, we want to understand how the Mosaic Covenant relates to the covenants which came before it, and how it prepares for those that come after it, and how it progressively reveals God’s redemptive plan.
To do this, we’ll trace the three major movements of the covenant in Exodus 19-24: the context of the covenant is redemption from Egypt, the conditions of the covenant are God’s law, and the ratification of the covenant is through the shedding of blood. After that, we’ll consider the function of the covenant, which is the governance of Israel’s kingdom and worship.
I.) The context of the covenant is redemption out of Egypt (Exodus 19:1-6)
The context of the Mosaic covenant is the redemptive event of the Old Testament—God’s redemption of Israel out of Egypt.
while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel:‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” (Ex 19:3–6)
As God had foretold, Israel lived in Egypt for 400 years (Genesis 15:13-16). Although they experienced some prosperity and peace during the life of Joseph, the majority of the time was spent in harsh slavery. God redeemed them out of Egyptian slavery through Moses and a series of plagues. The defining plague was Passover, where the angel of death struck down the firstborn sons of Egypt while passing over the houses of Israel because they were covered in the blood of a spotless lamb.
The people to whom God gives his law are a redeemed people, delivered from bondage to belong to God. What is important to remember, especially in our series, is that God’s redemption from Egypt was an act of faithfulness to His covenant promises to Abraham. Numerous passages in Exodus link God’s redeeming of Israel to his promises to Abraham.
I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant…I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.’ ” (Ex 6:3–5, 8)
To say, then, that the context of the Mosaic Covenant is God’s redemption out of Egypt is to say that the Abrahamic Covenant is the context of the Mosaic Covenant. They are linked. God gave the Mosaic Covenant, and God’s laws are to govern the people in the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
God is always faithful to his promises. The God who kept his promise to Abraham and Moses is the same God who has made promises to us in Jesus Christ. He will not forget us, friends. He will not forsake his church.
Paul tells us in Titus that the church is, “… waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ (Tt 2:13-14). We will undoubtedly have to wait for that day to come, but we do not have to doubt if it will come. The God Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the God who remembers his covenant is our God in Christ Jesus and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. He will remember his promises and be faithful to them.
The faithfulness of God precedes the giving of the law, and that means the grace of God precedes the giving of the law. We cannot stress this point enough. The Mosaic Covenant, with all its commands, statutes, and rules, comes to a people redeemed by the grace of God. Grace precedes law.
‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant (Exodus 19:4-5)
Grace is the motivation and foundation for obeying God’s law. They are to obey God’s law first because they’ve been redeemed and set apart as the people of God!
God’s faithfulness to the Abrahamic Covenant and His redeeming grace from Egypt are the context for God’s Covenant with Israel. However, the covenant itself contains specific promises for obedience and curses for disobedience, contingent upon Israel’s obedience to God’s commands.
This brings us to our second point: the conditions of the covenant are God’s law.
II.) The conditions of the covenant are God’s law (Exodus 20-23:19)
God’s laws are the conditions of the Mosaic Covenant. If Israel is going to experience the promised blessings of God, it must keep and obey the law of the covenant. This is a covenant arrangement that Israel accepts. Look at Exodus 19:7-8.
So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the LORD had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” (Ex 19:7–8)
The laws in the Mosaic Covenant were designed to govern Israel’s life and worship in the land conditionally. If they obey, they will experience God’s blessing in the land, but if they disobey, they will experience the curse of judgment, such as exile from the land. Consider Deuteronomy 30:15-18.
“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you today, by loving the LORD your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. (Dt 30:15–18)
As Samuel Renihan explains, “Based on the laws, the promises, and the threats of the covenant, the Mosaic Covenant is a covenant of works for life in the land of Canaan…Insofar as Israel obeys the Mosaic law, they will enjoy guaranteed blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant. Insofar as Israel disobeys the Mosaic law, they will experience the guaranteed curses of the covenant.”
What are the laws of the covenant? The answer to that question is found in Exodus 20-40, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. We can’t cover that much ground, so we’ll have to summarize the law of God in a manner fitting for a sermon like this.
Historically, the law of God has been understood and explained by three divisions: moral law, civil law, and ceremonial law. I would like to briefly explain these divisions, provide a brief scriptural warrant for them, and then reflect on their importance.
The moral law is based on the very righteous character of God and is unchanging. It is summarized in the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:1-17. The Ten Commandments can be thought of as made up of two tables. Commandments 1-4 are the first table concerning man’s relationship with God, and commandments 6-10 concern man’s relationship with one another. This is why Jesus rightly says that loving God isthe greatest commandment, and the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself.
The civil (judicial) law consists of laws that govern Israel’s life in the land as a nation. These laws are the Ten Commandments applied to specific cases pertinent to the life of Israel in the land. Examples of these laws are found in Exodus 21-23.
The ceremonial law consists of laws that govern Israel’s worship. Laws regarding the construction of the tabernacle, the sacrificial system, the feast days, and festivals are ceremonial laws. Examples of these laws can be found in Exodus 25-30.
Along with the support for this division from Exodus: moral law (Exodus 20), civil law (Exodus 21-23), ceremonial law (Exodus 25-30), texts like Deuteronomy 4:13-14 make the same division.
And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments, and he wrote them on two tablets of stone. And the LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and rules, that you might do them in the land that you are going over to possess. (Dt 4:13–14)
The Ten Commandments, together with the civil and ceremonial laws, are the laws of the covenant that Israel must obey to experience life and blessing in the land of promise.
There is a lot that we could say here, but let’s at least reflect on the kindness and mercy that God’s law brings to Israel. Without the ceremonial laws, for example, Israel would not have lasted long in the promised land. The law is a grace that allows God’s dwelling place to be among His people. Let’s consider Leviticus as an example.
Exodus ends with a dilemma. The tabernacle is built, and the glory of the Lord indwells it. God’s glorious presence so fills the temple that not even Moses can enter the tabernacle.
And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. (Ex 40:35)
Leviticus is God’s merciful solution to this problem. The sacrificial system (Leviticus 1-7) and the priesthood (Leviticus 8) established by the Lord enable Israel to approach the tabernacle, atone for their sins, and live closely with God in the land as His people.
It is important to remember, though, that this kindness and mercy are for a particular reason: life in the land. This sacrificial system does not cleanse or offer forgiveness for sin. It does not provide salvation. As the author of Hebrews tells us, For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins (Heb 10:4)
The priesthood, the sacrificial system, and the tabernacle are types and shadows of God’s gracious new covenant of grace. Every lamb sacrificed on the altar casts a long shadow, the substance of which is the slain lamb of God on the cross. The tabernacle filled with the glory of God points forward to the very glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, the Word who became flesh and dwelt ( or tabernacled) among us. (John 1:14).
With the conditions of God’s law stated, the covenant can be ratified through a ceremony.
III.) The ratification of the covenant is by the shedding of blood (Exodus 24:1-18)
God’s law has initiated this covenant and communicated the covenant conditions. Now it is time to ratify that covenant. God calls Moses and the seventy elders to come near the mountain. Moses is the only one, as of now, who goes all the way up. He then descends to communicate the law to Israel. Israel then agrees to God’s conditions and commandments.
And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do. (Ex 24:3)
After the acceptance comes the ceremony. Let’s look at Exodus 24:4-6.
4 And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD (Ex 24:3–5)
First, Moses built an altar just as the Lord instructed, and the young men of Israel offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings. The burnt offering would have been consumed with fire, and the meat would have been eaten.
Moses then uses the blood from the sacrifices to purify the altar and the people.
6 And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. 7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” 8 And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.” (Ex 24:6–8)
Note that before the sprinkling of blood is the second reading of the book of the covenant and a second agreement by Israel. They accept God’s covenant, God’s conditions, and affirm that they will do all that he has said. God initiates this covenant, but Israel does respond in affirmation and agrees to all its terms.
The presence of the altar represents the presence of the Lord. The sprinkling of blood on the altar and on the people officially covenanted them together. The blood purifies Israel because the sacrifice is an atoning sacrifice and ordains them for their mission as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
Jesus uses this language as he shares the Last Supper with his disciples. 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. (Mt 26:27–28)
Jesus is saying that he is about to perform a new exodus, a deliverance from the bondage of Satan, sin, and death.
Jesus is saying that he is about to ratify a new covenant, one that is not confirmed by the shedding of animal blood, but his own blood. This is the blood sufficient for the forgiveness of sins, for the new covenant is superior to the old.
God’s law has been communicated, the conditions have been agreed to, and the covenant has been confirmed with the shedding of blood. What happens next is truly the point of everything. God’s people in covenant with him are about to commune with him.
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. 11 And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank. (Ex 24:9–11)
In covenant with God through the shedding of blood, they can behold God and have communion with Him in His presence. I don’t know what all they were allowed to behold, but it couldn’t have been more than Moses, so it is veiled to a degree.
The Lord’s wrathful hand is not raised against them because they are there by God’s invitation. Communion follows the covenant made with blood. As the Scriptures end, we learn of another meal in God’s presence. The meal that all will share will be sprinkled with the blood of the new covenant. We will be there by God’s invitation.
IV.) The function of the covenant is the governance of Israel’s kingdom and worship
The function of the Mosaic covenant was the governance of Israel’s kingdom and worship. It governed the people, the priesthood, the prophets, and the king.
In other words, the Mosaic Covenant is tightly wedded to the nation of Israel specifically. For that reason, the Mosaic Covenant is temporary and, in the providence of God, becomes obsolete once God’s purpose for the nation of Israel reaches its fulfillment.
In the words of Samuel Renihan, with the coming of Jesus Christ and the new covenant of grace, the kingdom of Israel gives birth to the kingdom of Christ, and the Old Covenant gives birth to the New Covenant of Grace.
In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (Heb 8:13)
Nathaniel R. Martin 