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Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1262
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 5:45 pm: |     |
Part VI
Romans 7:1-6 An Illustration from Marriage
Last time we studied a passage where Paul tackled head on the problem of the false teachers (Judaizers) in Galatia. We saw that the Bible teaches those who are under the Old Covenant given at Sinai are in slavery. Scripture tells us in no uncertain term to cast out the Old Covenant (the bondwoman) and those who promote it (her son). The Bible tells us that those who are under the New Covenant are free.
But what about keeping one foot in the Old Covenant and the other in the New Covenant? Should we continue to cling to the law just to be on the safe side? Doesnít the law still have some hold on us? The Bible answers these questions in Romans chapter 7 using a truly apt illustration from marriage.
quote:Romans 7:1-6 (NASB)
1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?
2 For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband.
3 So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man.
4 Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God.
5 For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death.
6 But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.
Reread this passage a couple of times slowly and carefully with prayer. Meditate upon what scripture is saying here.
If we were still under Old Covenant law, then it would be spiritual adultery to break any part of the Old Covenant or to join ourselves to any New Covenant. Itís like a marriage. You can only have one spouse at a time; anything else is adulteryÖ.that is, unless one of the spouses dies.
Christ fulfilled the law completely, both the righteous requirements and the penalty for disobedience (death). His perfect life and substitutionary death are credited to us. Because we are in Him, we die to the law he has already fulfilled, which allows us to live for Him.
The old marriage to the law is dissolved through Christís death. We are free from the law! We have been released from the law and joined to Christ. We are now Christís bride instead of being wed to the law. However, if we try and go back to the law, then we are committing adultery. We canít live as Christís bride and cling to the law. If we do this we are the equivalent of spiritual prostitutes.
We are called to no longer live by the old letter that kills, but to serve in the newness of the Spirit. We cannot keep one foot in the Old Covenant and the other in the New Covenant and still be faithful to the one who bought us. The old marriage is dissolved. We have a new Husband and He wants us to live completely and totally for Him, unencumbered by past lovers. Itís time to let those lovers go and be faithful to Christ alone.
Other passages say very similar things.
quote:Romans 8:1-2 (NASB)
1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
Galatians 5:18 (NASB)
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
So if weíre to die to law and live by the Spirit, this raises the question of why the law was ever added in the first place. Weíll explore that question next time.
Chris |
Javagirl
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Username: Javagirl
Post Number: 371
Registered: 6-2005
| | Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 8:39 pm: | |
Chris, welcome back! I was asking about you, and lifting up some prayer on your behalf.
One year free from the bondage of a cheap imitation for me, and all is well, actually, all is getting sweeter all the time---.
Argueing with you when I first started posting here, whether in my head or when I dared to post, helped clarify some things for me. Its a gift you have, to challenge people without making them feel shamed or stupid.
Thanks for the clear writing.
Lori |
Chris
Registered user
Username: Chris
Post Number: 1263
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 9:02 pm: | |
Lori, thank you for your prayers. I've checked in to scan through posts from time to time and have found your journey to be inspirational. From what you have posted I can see that you've been through some tough times and I've prayed for you as I've read some of your post. That's the awesome thing about FAF, we are able to share each other's journeys and to support each other in prayer as we travel. May the joy of Christ be with you always.
Chris |
River
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Username: River
Post Number: 647
Registered: 9-2006
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 2:47 pm: | |
Chris,
Now don't go away, my internet was down all morning and I have a question about that Ah-ha moment.
Between the time of Christ rising and Pentecost there is a space in time. The Holy Ghost being in us and the law being in us, so did the new covenant then arrive on the day of Pentecost? |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1264
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 5:45 pm: | |
Would a simple "I don't know" do? ....I didn't think so.....
I guess I would say this, I see the New Covenant as being closely linked to the "Kingdom of Heaven" that Jesus so often spoke of. It is clear that Jesus was ushering in the Kingdom of Heaven during His ministry. It was becoming a reality at that time and yet it wasn't fully realized at that moment. There is a "now and not yet" quality to the Kingdom.
We see a transitional quality to Jesus' ministry. As He is ushering in the Kingdom He is teaching his disciples about the realities of New Covenenant living. We see that Jesus does things like declaring all foods clean and allowing his disciples to pick grain on the Sabbath and yet Jesus himself perfectly kept and perfectly fulfilled the Law in every aspect.
We see something similar even with the giving of the Holy Spirit. In John 20:22 Jesus apparently gave a temporary filling of the Spirit to provide for the disciples spiritual needs prior to Pentecost. They received a prechurch age filling of the Spirit in anticipation of the Day of Pentecost. This may have been necessary to allow them to fully understand Jesus' instructions. Again, we see a transitional quality in Jesus' ministry.
In Acts we continue to see a transitional time as God chooses to pour out the Holy Spirit, with very obvious external signs, on particular groups of people at particular times as a way of graphically demonstrating that all these people groups are to be included in the Church. This is not necessarily normative, but demonstrative during this transitional period.
I believe that Jesus' ministry and the book of Acts were transitional for the New Covenant as well. In fact, I think that we could say that even now there is a "now and not yet aspect" to the New Covenant. Although the New Covenant is in effect now, in some ways the full promise of the New Covenant will not be realized until we are united with Christ forever in imperishable bodies and drink the cup of the New Covenant along with Him in the fully realized Kingdom of Heaven.
All that is a long winded way of saying, I'm not so sure we should try to nail down an exact date and time when the New Covenant began. I don't think we can say that that New Covenant began on a Sunday morning at 8:12 p.m. on May 3, 30 A.D. I think we can say that the New Covenant was ushered in by the life, death, and resurrection of Christ and that it was ratified at Pentacost. I think that's about as far as we can go and still support our conclusions from scripture.
.....I'll bet you wish I had just left it at "I don't know" ......basically that's what all that boils down to 
Chris |
Colleentinker
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Username: Colleentinker
Post Number: 5640
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 5:51 pm: | |
Interesting question, River. I'll be interested in Chris's insight.
I have understood it this way: the new covenant actually was inaugurated before Pentecost, but there was a process involved in the formation of the church. Remember at the mount of Transfiguration? Jesus told Peter, James, and John not to tell anyone what they had seen and heard until after his resurrection. Only then would the law and the prophets be fulfilled. Until then, the Mosaic covenant was what Israel had to live by.
Also, the curtain in the temple ripped from top to bottom when Jesus died. The price for sin had been paid, and no longer did humanity have to be kept away from God. (Hebrews 10 explains that Christ's body was the curtain.) Access to God had been made possible. The entire old covenant was now obsolete. No more need for sacrifices.
Before He went back to heaven, Jesus told the disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait. They weren't to go anywhere or do anything until the Holy Spirit came. Previously, before His death, He had told them that the Holy Spirit would come and teach them all things. The effects of the new covenant were fully realized at Pentecost when those disciples in the upper room became the first people in history to be permanently filled with the Holy Spirit and united directly with God for eternity.
So, I see the new covenant replacing the old when Jesus diedóbut it was a process that was fully realized when the Holy Spirit came upon those disciples.
But Chris, I'd like to read your take on it!
Colleen |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1265
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 5:59 pm: | |
I think we're saying something very similar Colleen.
Chris |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1266
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 6:01 pm: | |
Part VII
Galatians Chapter 3 ñ The Intent of the Law
Last time we saw that going back to the law is spiritual adultery. We are to die to the law so we can live for Christ by the Spirit. So what was the purpose of the law? Paul expounds upon the purpose of the law in Galatians chapter 3.
quote:Galatians 3:1-5 (NASB)
1 You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?
2 This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?
3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?
4 Did you suffer so many things in vainóif indeed it was in vain?
5 So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?
The believers in Galatia had been bewitched by false teachers who were telling them that they were obligated to keep parts of the Old Covenant, including holy days (see Gal. 4:8-11). Paul tells them that everything they have gone through for the faith is in vain if they now turn back to the law instead of continuing in the Spirit. In fact, he calls them foolish for turning back to the law. He now turns to Abraham who lived under a covenant of faith, not works, as an example.
quote:Galatians 3:6-9 (NASB)
6 Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.
7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.
8 The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, "ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU."
9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.
Gentile Christians, like those in Galatia, had something in common with Abraham; they were never under the Old Covenant. They were never required to observe holy days or any other part of the Old Covenant. Paul makes the point that those who are of faith are the true heirs of the Abrahamic promise, not those who are living by law. We are all justified in the same way as Abraham, through faith. We do not receive the blessings of God through the law, but by faith. Paul goes on to give a dire warning to those who want to be under the law.
quote:Galatians 3:10-14 (NASB)
10 For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO DOES NOT ABIDE BY ALL THINGS WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF THE LAW, TO PERFORM THEM."
11 Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident; for, "THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
12 However, the Law is not of faith; on the contrary, "HE WHO PRACTICES THEM SHALL LIVE BY THEM."
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usófor it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE"ó
14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Unless a person is able to keep the entire law perfectly, every bit of it from day one till death, they are cursed and are under the wrath of God. So obviously no one is going to be able to stand righteous before God through law-keeping. In fact, that is the exact antithesis of faith. The law is not of faith. But the Good News, the Gospel, is that Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law and from the wrath of God. Christ took the curse upon Himself and entirely fulfilled the law in His life and death. This made it possible for Gentiles to enter the blessings of Abraham even though they never received circumcision (entry sign of the Abrahamic Covenant) or kept Sabbath (repeatable sign of the Old Covenant). Christ fulfilled both covenants. He fulfilled the promises of both and accepted the curse of the latter. The gentiles were never under the Old Covenant. They entered a New Covenant and received the promise of the Spirit through faith alone.
quote:Galatians 3:15-18 (NASB)
15 Brethren, I speak in terms of human relations: even though it is only a man's covenant, yet when it has been ratified, no one sets it aside or adds conditions to it.
16 Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, "And to seeds," as referring to many, but rather to one, "And to your seed," that is, Christ.
17 What I am saying is this: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise.
18 For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise.
Notice here that the true objects of the promises made to Abraham are Abraham and the coming Messiah. They were not necessarily promises to ethnic Israel per se. The fact that ethnic Israel was given the Old Covenant 430 years after Abraham doesnít invalidate the promise made to Abraham and his seed (singular). The promise was not based on law or works. The law was only a temporary covenant that was added later. It had a beginning 430 years after Abraham and, for those of faith, an ENDING when the Messiah came and fulfilled the promise.
quote:Galatians 3:19-22 (NASB)
19 Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.
20 Now a mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one.
21 Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law.
22 But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
So here we finally see the purpose of the law. It wasnít given to invalidate previous promises, but to condemn us in sin and to vividly point out the need for a savior. As stated above, any failure at all puts us under the wrath of the righteous God of the universe. The law points out that no human mediator could ever save us from that wrath. Only God Himself can sovereignly save. The law illustrates like nothing else that we are dead in sin and there is absolutely no way we could ever be declared righteous by our own merit or works. The law proves beyond any shadow of a doubt that salvation must be by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. The law drives us to Christ and to His cross. But notice, it was only added UNTIL Christ. When we are in Christ we are no longer under the law.
quote:Galatians 3:23-29 (NASB)
23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed.
24 Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.
25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to promise.
The Greek word ìpaidagogosî, which is translated as ìtutorî, means ìchild-conductorî. It originally referred to the slave who conducted the boys from home to school. That was the purpose of the law. The law shows our need for a savior, drives us to Christ, and then ceases to have a function in the life of New Covenant Spirit-filled believers. We are no longer under a tutor! Let me say that again, WE ARE NO LONGER UNDER A TUTOR! The Bible could not be clearer on this. If we are of faith we no longer need the tutor. The law is not of faith and returning to the law is antithetical to life in the Spirit. It is a bewitchment! It is a foolish thing to return to the law.
This passage is also quite powerful proof that the law was only in effect for believers from the exodus to Christ (see verses 17 ñ 19). This passage should forever put to rest the idea that the law preexisted the exodus or that it continues to be a tutor or teacher for those who are living life in the Spirit.
Next time we will begin to explore the New Covenant and the implications of being under a covenant that is really new and different from the old.
Chris |
Colleentinker
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Username: Colleentinker
Post Number: 5645
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 8:05 pm: | |
Great study, Chris. Thank you again. I love your clarity and the detail of your explanations.
Colleen |
Agapetos
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Username: Agapetos
Post Number: 743
Registered: 10-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2007 - 5:34 am: | |
River, to add to the wonderful mess, it should be remembered that Christ gave His disciples the Covenant meal at the Last Supper, saying, "This is the blood of the new covenant." However, His blood had yet to be spilled.
It's a mystery that I think only God knows! Along with questions like, "Were the 11 apostles ever 'baptized into the name of Jesus'?" Some of them were disciples of John, receiving that baptism. But later when they taught about Christ, they baptized people into Christ who had only known John's baptism before.
I think that the New Covenant, like our own baptism, is something we don't understand fully when we first receive it. We get baptized with a childlike desire to fall into our Lord and serve Him, and being the loving Daddy that He is, He eats it up and says, "Yes, you're Mine!" But then as we go along, we have so many ups and downs and recharges that we often want to get baptized again, but we don't really need to.
In a similar way, I think the New Covenant came completely, but that as the days went on, more understanding of it "unfolded"... or was unveiled (doesn't the word for revelation or apocalypse mean something like that, "uncovering"?). For example, first they only told Jews the good news. But then as God pulled back the veil on this great present more and more, they realized that non-Jews and all nations were included. In the New Testament, think that we can see the church (and particularly Paul) gradually beginning to realize the far-reaching implications and ramifications of what Christ's death and resurrection mean.
I think Paul, in particular, learned much of the ramifications of the Gospel because of the way that his conversion came -- by complete grace, given to someone who did not deserve it at all. He harped on grace so much because that is how God saved him. Because he had lived as an enemy of Christ more literally than any of the other disciples had, Paul was able to see that in fact we all were God's enemies. They wouldn't have been able to see it, but because Paul had experienced it and God had shown him grace, Paul could say it and they would recognize, "Yes, that's right, by our sins, we too were His enemies, even though we were His friends."
Anyway, sorry for the digression, Chris! |
River
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Username: River
Post Number: 652
Registered: 9-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2007 - 6:37 am: | |
Well Chris, That question just sort of popped into my mind as I tried to take in the revelation of of what you were saying about that ah-ha moment,what you said is truth.
I agree with you that I am not sure either that there is a day or hour that we should try to nail down.
Thank you again for this study of the old and new covenants. I had not previously made a foray into the old and the new covenants.
However the study has enriched my life and as Doc said, the problem of not understanding the old and new covenants laps over into many of our Christian churches. I am saving the study to go over again completely when it is done.
The ah-ha moment you had brings home the realization of the new covenant to my heart in a new and meaningful way.
River |
Colleentinker
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Username: Colleentinker
Post Number: 5650
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 4:36 am: | |
Chris, I hope you will be able to re-posts the entries we lost from April 4 until now. We're sorry this happened, but we are looking forward to continuing to read your studies.
Colleen |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1267
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 8:15 am: | |
Yes, I had posted the last installment of the study last night. I will plan to repost parts VIII - XIV tonight when I get home.
Chris |
River
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Username: River
Post Number: 654
Registered: 9-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 12:01 pm: | |
Hi Chris,
And thanks again for the study on the covenants.
I do look forward to a solid study on "Soul Sleep" if you can do that also.
As an evangelical I am very weak in this area and I believe it may be important to my work with Adventist.
In Christ
River |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1268
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 12:11 pm: | |
River, I'll plan on starting a study on the "State of the Dead" next. I agree that it's an important topic.
Chris |
Colleentinker
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Username: Colleentinker
Post Number: 5659
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 3:51 pm: | |
Chris, I'm totally excited! I'm looking forward now to your State of the Dead study, too!
Colleen |
Chris
Registered user
Username: Chris
Post Number: 1269
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:27 pm: | |
Part VIII
Hebrews Chapter 8: A New Covenant
The book of Hebrews was written to Jewish Christians who were undergoing hardship and persecution from other Jews. They were sorely tempted to turn again to their Jewish roots and customs. They were sorely tempted to turn back to the law and the things of the Old Covenant. Hebrews was written to encourage them to stay the course and to remind them of the superiority of Christ to all the shadows in the Old Testament.
The author of Hebrews spends several chapters discussing Christ as our high priest. Chapter 7 is devoted to showing how Christ is not from the order of Aaron, but of Melchizedek. The basic idea of this comparison is that the Aaronic priesthood was temporary, but Jesus’ priesthood is without end. This comparison leads naturally into a discussion of the Old and New Covenants in chapter 8. The Old Covenant was temporary, but the New Covenant is without end.
quote:Hebrews 8:1-5 (NASB)
1 Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,
2 a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.
3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer.
4 Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law;
5 who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, "SEE," He says, "THAT YOU MAKE all things ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN."
Before we skip too quickly over this, let’s note that Christ’s priesthood and the gifts He brings are not according to the Law. Those things in the Law were only a shadow of what was to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Jesus’ ministry is truly new; it’s not just a continuation of the same Old Covenant.
quote:Hebrews 8:6 (NASB)
6 But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises.
Note that not only is Jesus’ ministry more excellent, but He is the new mediator of a new and better covenant. This New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant. The New Covenant is better than the Decalogue. The new covenant has better promises. It truly is new. It’s not just the same old covenant warmed up. It’s not just the ministry of condemnation, the Decalogue, transferred off stone and onto flesh. Such an idea is foreign to the text.
quote:Hebrews 8:7 (NASB)
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second.
Now note that the Old Covenant was not faultless. Many want to say that the Decalogue is the ultimate law of God, but that does not square with the idea expressed here. The Decalogue was good and holy to be sure, but it was not the ultimate law that God would bring. All the Decalogue could do was to condemn. It couldn’t save and it couldn’t produce holiness. The Decalogue rightly pointed out the depravity of man and condemned them to death under the righteous wrath of God, but it had no power to change this wretched condition. A totally NEW covenant was required, not just some reworking of the Old Covenant; not just transferring the Decalogue from one place to another.
quote:Hebrews 8:8-9 (NASB)
8 For finding fault with them, He says, "BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH;
9 NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS THE LORD.
This couldn’t be clearer. The New Covenant really is new. It’s not like the Old Covenant, the Decalogue. Let me say it again for emphasis, the New Covenant is not like the Decalogue.
quote:Hebrews 8:10-11 (NASB)
10 "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 INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.
11 "AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, 'KNOW THE LORD,' FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM.
There are many things that are new about this New Covenant. We will see later in our covenant study that God seals us with the Holy Spirit by actually putting Himself in our hearts! It is not the old Decalogue that God puts in our heart, but the third person of the Trinity. Because of this, scripture tells us that we have the very “mind of Christ” (I Cor. 2:16)! This is how God’s laws are written in our heart. We’re not talking about the Decalogue dwelling in our heart. That concept borders on sacrilege. We’re talking about the indwelling presence of God the Spirit.
The ultimate law of the universe is God Himself. God’s very nature, essence, or being is the very definition of righteousness and truth. Through the presence of the Holy Spirit we partake in the righteousness of God. No one needs to tell us “know the Lord” because we know Him in the most intimate of ways. We have His very righteousness within us through the person of the Spirit. The ultimate lawgiver of the universe dwells within us. We will explore what the Bible calls the “Law of Christ” or the “Law of Liberty” later in our study. Suffice it to say for now that the Decalogue is not and never was the ultimate law of God, it was only a shadow of what would come.
quote:Hebrews 8:12 (NASB)
12 "FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE."
Here’s another contrast. The Decalogue was the ministry of death and the ministry of condemnation. The Decalogue highlighted sin and condemned all under the wrath of God. The Decalogue had absolutely no power to change this sorry state. Under the New Covenant our sins are remembered no more! That really is new!
quote:Hebrews 8:13 (NASB)
13 When He said, "A new covenant," He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.
The New really is new and the Old really is obsolete, growing old, and ready to disappear. The Decalogue is obsolete. The Decalogue is growing old. The Decalogue is ready to disappear. The Decalogue no longer plays a role in the life of the regenerate believer. The Decalogue is obsolete because we now have the Holy Spirit, God Himself, dwelling in us. The Decalogue is obsolete because the Holy Spirit conforms us to the Law of Christ. The Decalogue is obsolete because we have a new covenant, a better covenant, a covenant that is not like the Decalogue. The Decalogue that came through Moses is obsolete because we have a new and better mediator, Jesus Christ Himself. Everything about the New Covenant is truly new and better. Even the promises Jesus Christ has given us are better promises. Next time we will explore the better promises of the new and better New Covenant.
Chris |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1270
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:27 pm: | |
Part IX
The Promise, Condition, and Sign of the New Covenant
In part eight of our study we saw that the Old Covenant is obsolete. The New Covenant is not like the Old Covenant. Christians have been given a New Covenant with a better Mediator and better promises. Tonight I would like to explore the New Covenant further by looking at the promise of the New. We will also look for the other two major components in most covenants, the condition and the sign.
Read through the following verse and try to determine what the promise is:
quote:John 3:16 (NASB)
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
The promise we receive in Jesus is eternal life. But what is this covenant promise based on? Is it based on faith like the Abrahamic covenant or is it based on works like the Old Covenant? To whom do the promises of this covenant apply? Do all humans receive eternal life or is the promise only applied to some?
These are the questions I am asking when I speak of a “condition” for the New Covenant. However, in speaking of a “condition” I am not in anyway suggesting that there is anything at all that a person can do to earn or deserve the promise of the New Covenant. The New Covenant is a unilateral covenant within the Triune God and no person can do anything to merit having a part in the covenant. Benefiting from the promise of the New Covenant is by grace alone. It is a gift. If you find the word “condition” objectionable, please feel free to substitute the question, “Upon what is this covenant based and to whom do the promises apply?”
quote:John 3:14-18 (NASB)
14 "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up;
15 so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
17 "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
18 "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Romans 3:21-22 (NASB)
21 But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,
22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction;
Romans 10:8-13 (NASB)
8 But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART"—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching,
9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
11 For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."
12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him;
13 for "WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED."
So the condition of the New Covenant is faith/belief. Again, if the word “condition” is objectionable to you, please transpose this to say, “The New Covenant is based upon faith, not works. The promises of the New Covenant are only applied to those who are of faith.” The main idea here is that the New Covenant is not like the Old Covenant which was a covenant of works. The New Covenant is like the Abrahamic covenant which was based on faith alone, not works.
So we have the promise and the condition. That just leaves the sign of the New Covenant. The New Covenant has a new sign, not like the sign of the Old Covenant. Examine these verses for the sign of the New Covenant:
quote:Mark 14:22-24 (NASB)
22 While they were eating, He took some bread, and after a blessing He broke it, and gave it to them, and said, "Take it; this is My body."
23 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.
24 And He said to them, "This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.
Luke 22:19-20 (NASB)
19 And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
20 And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (NASB)
23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread;
24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.
So the repeatable sign of the New Covenant is the Lord’s Supper. Every time we observe this sign we proclaim the fact that we are in the New Covenant purchased through the blood of Christ. Every time we eat of the bread and drink the wine we testify that Jesus is our suzerain Lord and savior.
Interestingly enough, the New Covenant also has a new entry sign:
quote:Colossians 2:11-12 (NASB)
11 and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;
12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.
So baptism replaces circumcision as the entry sign to the New Covenant. Circumcision was only a shadow of what was to come. Baptism is an outward acknowledgement of what Christ has done once for all. There is no reason to continue the entry sign of the Old Covenant because we are not under the Old Covenant. The Old Covenant was replaced by a New and better covenant. The old entry sign was replaced by a new and better entry sign that witnesses to Christ’s complete work.
But all this leaves the questions of, “What about the repeatable sign of the Old Covenant? Should New Covenant Christians still be required to observe both the Old Covenant repeatable sign and the New Covenant repeatable sign? Are those who don’t observe the Old Covenant sign sinning, or being disobedient, or lacking in holiness? Should we try to correct New Covenant Christians who aren’t observing the Old Covenant sign?”
The Bible is not silent on these questions. We will explore them further next time.
Chris |
Chris
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| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:28 pm: | |
PART X
Romans 14:1-6
Last time we saw that the promise of the New Covenant is eternal life. This promise is by faith alone. We also saw that the old entry sign, circumcision, has been replaced by a new entry sign, baptism. We further saw that there is a new repeatable sign, the Lord’s Supper.
So this raises the question of how we should regard the repeatable sign of the Old Covenant. Are signs from the Old Covenant required for New Covenant Christians in addition to the signs of the New Covenant? Fortunately, the Bible is not silent on this matter. The fledgling Church was given inerrant inspired teaching in this matter.
Today I would like to look at a passage in Romans that addresses the question of observing holy days. The Roman Church was a mixed church made up partly of Jews living in Rome who had accepted Jesus as Messiah and partly of gentile Romans who had come to Christ. As you can imagine there were some tensions as cultures clashed and as the Old Covenant began to give way to the New Covenant. Many Jewish Christians were clinging to their customs of observing Old Covenant annual feast Sabbaths, New Moon Sabbaths, and the weekly Sabbath. In addition, they were clinging to Old Covenant food laws. The gentiles, who were not circumcised, had never entered the Old Covenant and did not observe holy days or food laws. These differences were dividing the Church and they needed direction on how these differences should be handled.
It is in this climate that the Apostle Paul wrote the book of Romans under the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Now if gentile Christians were required to observe any Sabbaths (annual, monthly, or weekly) or if they were required to observe food laws, this would have been the perfect time for the Apostle to say so. There was obviously a debate in the Church and Paul had the perfect opportunity here to set the record straight for the entire Church age. Paul’s inspired direction clarified the situation not only for the Romans, but for all New Covenant believers who would come after.
quote:Romans 14:1-6 (NASB)
1 Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions.
2 One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only.
3 The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him.
4 Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind.
6 He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.
Paul could have taken this opportunity to tell the gentiles that they really were required to observe Old Covenant Sabbaths, but he did not do so because it was not true. Instead Paul sought peace in the Church by saying that the observance of any holy days is purely a personal matter, not an obligation. If a person decides to observe a particular day, then they’re doing it for the Lord and that’s okay. If a person decides to regard everyday as just the same, that’s okay too!
For New Covenant Christians the observance of days is a non-issue. It’s not a salvation issue. It’s not a sanctification issue. It’s not a holiness issue. It’s not an obedience issue. It’s not a truth issue. It’s not an issue at all. At most, it’s a personal choice. Paul stresses that we are not to judge other’s based on their personal choice. That cut both ways for both Jews and Gentiles. The Jews weren’t supposed to judge the gentiles for not observing food laws and not observing holy days. The gentiles were not supposed to judge those who were weaker in faith (the Jewish Christians) for continuing in their traditions of food laws and observing Sabbaths. There was to be harmony and unity in the Church even though there were different practices.
The only thing that would break that unity is if someone began to teach that these Old Covenant traditions were actually required for New Covenant Christians. Such teaching requires a stronger response. Next time we will see how the Apostle Paul handled such false teaching.
Chris |
Chris
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| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:29 pm: | |
PART XI
Colossians 2:13-17
In part ten of our study we saw how Paul addressed the issue of holy days in the Church at Rome. We saw that, for the New Covenant Christian, the observance of special days is a matter of personal choice that should not divide the Church. One person might consider one day more special than another, while another person considers every day alike. Whichever way a person chooses, it should not be a matter of judgment against others. It’s a personal choice, not an obligation or requirement for Christians.
Tonight I would like to examine how Paul addressed a different situation in the Church at Colosse. Here the situation was different than in Rome. In Rome, Jewish and gentile Christians were learning to live together in love and needed basic instruction on what things were within the realm of Christian freedom. The Church in Colosse was largely gentile, but was being infiltrated by a few false teachers. Among the heresies these false teachers were spreading were the heresies that New Covenant Christians were required to keep food laws, observe annual festival Sabbaths, monthly new moon Sabbaths, and the weekly Sabbath day.
Paul addresses these heresies in a much more firm way when writing to the Colossians:
quote:Colossians 2:13-15 (NASB)
13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,
14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.
Jesus Christ canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, or as the NIV translates the Greek, “the written code with its regulations”. Jesus Christ took the written code and it’s regulations out of the way by nailing it to the cross. Now I have heard those of a sabbatarian persuasion protest, “Yes, but not the Sabbath day! The Sabbath day was never taken out of the way and nailed to the cross!” But what does inspired scripture say about this? Paul uses an important transitional word “oun”, usually translated as “therefore” or “then” or “so then” to transition to verse 16. By using this transitional word, Paul is telling us that the following things in verse 16 were taken out of the way, nailed to the cross by Christ, and no one should judge on the basis of these things any longer.
quote:Colossians 2:16-17 (NASB)
16 Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—
17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.
Paul uses a familiar sequence to describe all the prescribed Sabbaths. This sequence is used in either ascending or descending order throughout scripture, but it always encompasses all the Jewish Sabbaths, annual, monthly, and weekly Sabbaths. The gist of the argument that Paul is making is this; Christ nailed the written code to the cross, therefore the following shadows have been taken out of the way: food laws, annual festival Sabbaths, monthly new moon Sabbaths, and the weekly Sabbath day.
Now, I have heard some sabbatarians argue that Paul is not referring to the weekly Sabbath here, but only to what sabbatarians refer to as “ceremonial Sabbaths”, meaning the annual festival Sabbaths and the monthly new moon Sabbaths. But this argument does not hold up to scrutiny for three reasons:
1. When this familiar sequence is used in scripture it is used to encompass all the prescribed Sabbaths, not just the annual and monthly Sabbaths. This sequence always includes the weekly Sabbath day as well.
2. To insist that the weekly Sabbath day is excluded from Paul’s statement turns his sentence into redundant nonsense. Such an assertion would make the Apostle Paul say, “Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival Sabbath or a new moon Sabbath or a festival Sabbath day or a new moon Sabbath day.” This makes no sense at all. Why would Paul mention the annual festival Sabbaths and new moon Sabbaths, and then refer to them again by saying “or a Sabbath day”? Paul is not being redundant; he is listing all three types of Sabbaths; annual festival, monthly new moon, and weekly day.
3. The Greek word Paul used for “Sabbath day” is “sabbaton”. “Sabbaton” is translated as “Sabbath” 61 times in the New Testament. All sabbatarians would agree that the other 60 times all refer to the weekly Sabbath day without fail. Only here in Colossians 2 would sabbatarians want to argue that “sabbaton” no longer means the weekly Sabbath day. This is highly inconsistent. Upon what linguistic basis should “sabbaton” mean something different here? This is merely an attempt to avoid and deny the plain teaching of scripture.
There does not seem to be any good contextual, logical, or linguistic reason to understand Paul’s statement to mean anything other than that ALL the Sabbaths; annual, monthly, and weekly Sabbath day were taken out of the way and were nailed to the cross. All were only shadows of Jesus Christ and all were completely fulfilled in Him. Jesus is the substance, not the shadow. This is consistent with what is said in scripture about other Old Covenant rituals.
quote:Hebrews 10:1 (NASB)
1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.
Sabbath observance is in the same category as animal sacrifices. It was only a shadow, not the very form of things, not the substance. Because we now have the substance, Jesus, there is no need to continue to cling to shadows like Sabbath observance or offering animal sacrifices. Now that the real thing has come, continuing to cling to shadows is a form of spiritual adultery.
This reminds me of an illustration from Pastor J. Mark Martin. Imagine that your spouse has been gone for a very long time and all you have had is a picture to help you think of him/her. You go to the airport and he/she gets off the plane. You go running towards him/her, but when you get there you fall on the ground and start kissing his/her shadow and trying to hug the shadow. You start saying, “Oh I love you shadow, I love you so much shadow!” He/she would probably look at you like you were nuts. He/She would probably say, “Hey! I’m right here! Love me, not my shadow!” If you persisted in clinging to the shadow they would probably get pretty frustrated with you. In fact, if you kept trying to make love to the shadow instead of your actual spouse, you would be engaging in a form of adultery. In order to truly embrace Jesus, we must first relinquish our grip on the shadow.
Next time we will continue to explore what scripture has to say about Christ as our true Sabbath rest, the fulfillment of the shadow.
Chris |
Chris
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| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:29 pm: | |
PART XII
Hebrews 3:1 – 4:16
Happy Easter everyone! What a blessed, wonderful, and joyous day this has been! I have been so moved today by the celebration of our Lord’s resurrection and by the fellowship I have enjoyed with other believers. We have so many awesome blessings through our risen Lord. I can’t think of a better day to address the topic we will be talking about tonight.
Last time we saw that the written code and its regulations was taken out of the way and nailed to the cross. We saw that those things which were nailed to the cross included dietary laws, annual festival Sabbaths, monthly new moon Sabbaths, and the weekly Sabbath day (sabbaton). We saw that both animal sacrifices and the Sabbath were mere shadows, but the reality is found in Jesus Christ.
Tonight I would like to continue to explore the biblical concept of Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of the Sabbath shadow. We will examine two key chapters in Hebrews that present Jesus as our true Sabbath rest.
The book of Hebrews was written to Jewish Christians who were being persecuted by their fellow Jews because of their belief in Jesus as the Messiah. These Hebrew Believers were sorely tempted to turn back to their Jewish roots and practices. The author of Hebrews writes to warn them against turning back and to remind them of how much better Jesus is than all the Old Covenant shadows. The writer methodically goes through nearly all the major shadows in the Old Covenant and explains how Jesus fulfills them and surpasses them. In chapters 3 and 4 the writer tackles the Sabbath shadow and shows how Christ fulfilled it.
quote:Hebrews 3:1-6 (NASB)
1 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession;
2 He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house.
3 For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house.
4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.
5 Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later;
6 but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.
Let’s not miss what the author of Hebrews is strongly implying here. Moses is representative of the entire Old Covenant Mosaic Law. The author is saying that Moses was just a servant, but Jesus is a Son. Jesus is better than Moses. Jesus is not on an equal plane with the Mosaic Law, but transcends the Old Covenant Mosaic Law.
quote:Hebrews 3:7-11 (NASB)
7 Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE,
8 DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME, AS IN THE DAY OF TRIAL IN THE WILDERNESS,
9 WHERE YOUR FATHERS TRIED Me BY TESTING Me, AND SAW MY WORKS FOR FORTY YEARS.
10 "THEREFORE I WAS ANGRY WITH THIS GENERATION, AND SAID, 'THEY ALWAYS GO ASTRAY IN THEIR HEART, AND THEY DID NOT KNOW MY WAYS';
11 AS I SWORE IN MY WRATH, 'THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST.' "
Even after God led the Children of Israel out of Egypt, they still did not enter His rest. Even though they kept the Sabbaths for forty years while they wandered, they still did not enter God’s true rest. But God is calling His people into His true rest and He is calling them “TODAY”; not Saturday, not Sunday, not Monday, but TODAY! We see the first use of “today” in verse 7, but we will see it several more times throughout the passage.
quote:Hebrews 3:12-19 (NASB)
12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.
13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end,
15 while it is said, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME."
16 For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?
17 And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?
18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?
19 So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.
In verses 13 and 15 we again see the focus on entering God’s rest “today”. It was not failure to keep a certain day that caused the Children of Israel to fail to enter God’s rest. They were keeping the Sabbaths. It was unbelief that kept them out of God’s true rest.
quote:Hebrews 4:1-5 (NASB)
1 Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it.
2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.
3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said, "AS I SWORE IN MY WRATH, THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST," although His works were finished from the foundation of the world.
4 For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: "AND GOD RESTED ON THE SEVENTH DAY FROM ALL HIS WORKS";
5 and again in this passage, "THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST."
So we see that there is still a promise of entering God’s rest, but we only enter it through faith. That’s the Good News! That’s the Gospel! The Sabbath was only a physical shadow of the spiritual rest that we would be given through faith in Christ. In Christ, the perfect spiritual rest that Adam and Eve lost when they sinned has now been restored.
God’s creative works were finished in six days and on the seventh “day” (yom) he rested from His creative work. God is still in that rest today. God has never ceased His rest. Unlike the other six days, the seventh “day” (yom) of creation had no evening or morning, no end. God is still in the seventh “day” (yom).
Adam and Eve would have remained in the rest of God if they had not sinned. The children of Israel could have entered that rest if they had believed. The Israelites were given a ceremonial symbol of that rest, but they failed to comprehend who it pointed to. You and I are being called into that rest today through faith in Jesus Christ. We are not being called into a shadow, but into the reality. We are being invited back into the spiritual rest of Eden.
quote:Hebrews 4:6-7 (NASB)
6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience,
7 He again fixes a certain day, "Today," saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS."
Let’s note again that this rest is not a certain day of the week. It’s not Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. It’s TODAY! It’s right now, everyday!
quote:Hebrews 4:8-11 (NASB)
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that.
9 So there remains a Sabbath [sabbatismos] rest for the people of God.
10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.
11 Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience.
Even after the Children of Israel entered the Promised Land under the leadership of Joshua they still did not enter the true rest of God. The Promised Land, like the Sabbath, was only a shadow of the rest that God wanted to restore to people. There is still a rest for us to enter, but it’s not a certain piece of land or a certain day of the week. It is the spiritual rest that was lost at Eden and only restored through faith in Christ.
In verse 9 the writer coins a new Greek word to describe this rest, sabbatismos. Sabbatismos means a Sabbath-like rest. Notice that the writer does not use the Greek word for the weekly Sabbath day “sabbaton”. Instead he refers to a Sabbath-like rest. We are not being invited to enter the weekly Sabbath day (sabbaton), but the eternal rest of God (sabbatismos). We are not being asked to rest for one day out of the week, but to rest eternally in Christ and in His finished work.
We’re told in verse 10 that the only way we can enter God’s true rest is to first rest from our own works. If we continue trying to enter God’s rest through our works, then we are being just as disobedient and are lacking in faith just as much as the Israelites. Like the Hebrew believers this letter was written to, we cannot turn back to the Old Covenant which was a covenant of works. We must rest, through faith, in the finished work of Jesus.
quote:Hebrews 4:12-16 (NASB)
12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.
15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.
16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Jesus is our high priest. He is the fulfillment of all the shadows in the Old Covenant. He is better than the shadows and transcends them all. In Him we can have confidence to approach the very throne of God and enter His presence even as the Old Covenant High priest approached the Ark with its mercy seat. Everything in the Old Covenant pointed to Christ. Everything in the Old Covenant was fulfilled in Him, even the Sabbath.
So if the Sabbath was only a shadow that is now fulfilled in Christ, can it possibly be true that a day of the week is God’s seal on New Covenant Believers? Most of us were taught this concept growing up and accepted it without question. But what does scripture really say about on this topic? We’ll explore this further next time.
Chris |
Chris
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Username: Chris
Post Number: 1274
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| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:30 pm: | |
Part XIII
The Seal of God
Last time we studied through Hebrews 3 and 4 and learned that we enter God’s true rest (sabbatimos) through faith in Jesus Christ. We enter that rest, not on a certain day of the week, but today and everyday. Jesus is our sabbatimos rest. Jesus is the reality that the Sabbath day (sabbaton) only pointed to.
So if Jesus Himself is our Sabbath rest, what about the teaching many of us grew up with that the Sabbath day is the Seal of God? We’ve all heard the following passage in Revelation:
quote:Revelation 9:3-4 (NASB)
3 Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
4 They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
Doesn’t Revelation teach that the seal of God is the Sabbath day? Actually there’s no hint of any such thing in this passage or anywhere in Revelation. We’re simply not told what the Seal of God is in Revelation. Fortunately, we don’t have to guess who the seal of God upon New Covenant Christians is. New Covenant Christians had already been told, more than once, in earlier books who the seal of God upon them was. Read the following passage and determine who God’s seal upon us is:
quote:2 Corinthians 1:21-22 (NASB)
21 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God,
22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.
God has given us the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit as a pledge of salvation and eternal life. It is not a day of the week that seals us, but the person of the Holy Spirit. It is not a ceremonial shadow that seals us, but God the Spirit. Now let’s turn to the book of Ephesians.
quote:Ephesians 1:13-14 (NASB)
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory.
Again, we see that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. Only God Himself can guarantee the promise of salvation through faith. A day has no power to do this. Let’s look further in the same book.
quote:Ephesians 4:30 (NASB)
30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
So we can now see that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit and by the Holy Spirit guaranteeing our redemption. A day of the week does not guarantee our salvation, only the Seal of God in our hearts can do that. We also have just a hint of what the “mark of the beast” might be. It’s not a day of the week, but a rejection of the Spirit.
Now I have heard some object that despite what the Bible says the Holy Spirit cannot be God’s seal upon us because man-made seals were inanimate objects. But this argument doesn’t hold up because God’s seal upon us is not a man-made seal. Our sovereign God can seal us in anyway he chooses. How wonderfully mind-blowing it is to realize that He has chosen to seal us with Himself. When our spirits are made alive in Christ, God the Spirit tabernacles in us. God’s very presence dwells within us guaranteeing the promise of eternal life with Him. He is the seal! This is the testimony of scripture.
What better seal could we ever hope for or ask for? Truly, we who live in the New Covenant age are blessed beyond all measure. But the promise of eternal life does not exhaust the treasure of blessings we are given through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Through the life changing presence of the Spirit we are also conformed to Christ. We pass out from under the Mosaic Law and are, through the power and presence of the Spirit, now conformed to a better law: the Law of Christ.
Next time we will explore the Law of Christ.
Chris |
Chris
Registered user
Username: Chris
Post Number: 1275
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:31 pm: | |
PART XIV
The Law of Christ
I have spent a great deal of time thinking and praying about the topic discussed in the last part of our study. In the past, I have been unsure as to the best way to approach the discussion of the Law of Christ. I believe that the Holy Spirit, working through God’s Word, has blessed me with a personal “ah-ha” moment in regards to this topic. As I was thinking and praying over this, a particular Biblical passage came to mind as well as a mental picture of a diagram to help illustrate the point.
We all agree that there is a “law” written on the hearts of New Covenant Christians. However, there seems to be abundant confusion as to what “law” is actually written on our heart. The word “law” is used in many different ways in scripture. Even on our FAF discussion board we tend to use the word in multiple ways without defining exactly what “law” we are talking about. It would be most helpful to observe the way the word is used in scripture and how it is applied to different groups.
The passage that I have been meditating upon is found in I Corinthians. Paul is describing how he, in some cases, restrains and in other cases exercises his Christian liberty. He does all this to win others to the Gospel.
quote:1 Corinthians 9:19-23 (NASB)
19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more.
20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law;
21 to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law.
22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some.
23 I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.
To briefly summarize Paul’s points:
• When Paul was with Jews who were under the Mosaic Law, he acted as if he were under the Mosaic Law (v.20).
• Paul, as a New Covenant Christian, was not under the Mosaic Law (v.20).
• When Paul was with Gentiles who were never under the Mosaic Law, he did not observe the Mosaic Law either (v.21).
• New Covenant Christians are not without “the Law of God” (v.21).
• New Covenant Christians are under “the Law of Christ” (v.21).
So we see Paul using the word “law” in three different ways:
I. The Mosaic Law –
a. Ethnic Jews were under this law.
b. It was only in place from Sinai to the cross (Gal. 3:15-25).
c. People who lived before Sinai were not under this law (Rom. 5:12-14).
d. Gentiles were never under this law (1 Cor. 9:21, Rom. 4:12-15).
e. New Covenant Christians are not under this law (1 Cor. 9:20, Rom. 6:14, Gal. 5:18).
II. The Law of God –
a. There is an eternal transcendent law that is defined by God’s very being. It is who and what He is. All that is consistent with God’s nature is lawful. All that is against God’s nature is sin.
b. All creatures at all times have been and always will be subject to this ultimate law because they are creatures and God is the Creator.
c. All those who fall short of this eternal law are condemned (see the first 5 chapters of Romans especially chapters 1-3 for biblical support for points II.a.-c.).
III. The Law of Christ –
a. This law is variously referred to in the New Testament as “The Law of Christ” (1 Cor. 9:21, Gal. 6:2),
b. “The Law of the Spirit” (Rom. 8:2),
c. “The Law of Liberty” (James 1:25, 2:12),
d. “The Perfect Law” (James 1:25), and
e. “The Royal Law” (James 2:8).
f. This is the law that New Covenant Christians live under.
We can represent this information using a simple diagram: CLICK HERE TO VIEW DIAGRAM.
At the very top is a line representing “The Law of God”. The arrows point to infinity in both directions to illustrate that “The Law of God” is eternal and transcendent. This law transcends time and creation because it is defined by the eternal being of God. All creatures at all times have always been under this eternal law and always will be.
The very bottom line represents the progression of world history, from creation to the end of time as we know it. We see that from the time of Adam to Moses (Sinai) the Mosaic Law was not yet in effect. None the less sinners were still condemned by God’s eternal transcendent law (Rom. 5:12-14).
From Sinai to the cross the Law of Moses was in effect, but post cross it is no longer in effect (Gal. 3:15-25, Heb. 8:13). The Mosaic Law was holy just and good in that it was a shadow of God’s eternal transcendent Law. The Mosaic Law pointed to God’s ultimate law, but it was not in and of itself the ultimate law, merely a representation of it.
New Covenant Christians who live post cross do not live under the Mosaic Law. Christian believers live under a better covenant with a better mediator, better promises, and a better law. Moses was a mediator between God and Israel, but Christ is the ultimate mediator between God and man. Moses was used to reveal aspects of God, but Jesus Christ is the ultimate revelation of God to man. Moses was given a law that came with glory, but Jesus Christ is the ultimate law giver. The Law of Christ comes with glory that far surpasses the Mosaic Law. Just as Jesus is the greatest revelation of God, so the Law of Christ is the greatest revelation of God’s eternal transcendent law.
While New Covenant Christians are not under the Decalogue, they are under the commandments of The Law of Christ. We are told in scripture that those who have faith in Christ will keep His commandments:
quote:Revelation 14:12 (NASB)
12 Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments (entole) of God and their faith in Jesus.
Although John does not define these commandments (entole) in Revelation, he does so in his other books.
quote:1 John 3:23 (NASB)
23 This is His commandment (entole), that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us.
John 13:34 (NASB)
34 "A new commandment (entole) I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
We also see several other places in scripture were the commandments contained in the Law of Christ are given. We also see that these commandments are the ultimate fulfillment of the law. Not only do they fulfill the Mosaic Law, but they transcend the Mosaic Law fulfilling the Law of Christ as well. These commandments are the greatest revelation of the eternal transcendent law of God.
quote:Matthew 7:12 (NASB)
12 "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 22:37-39 (NASB)
37 And He said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.'
38 "This is the great and foremost commandment.
39 "The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'
Romans 13:8-10 (NASB)
8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
9 For this, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET," and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."
10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Galatians 5:14 (NASB)
14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."
Galatians 6:2 (NASB)
2 Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
But how are the Law of Christ and the lofty commandments that accompany it written upon the hearts of New Covenant believers? The only way this could happen is if God Himself were to indwell us, then and only then could the eternal transcendent Law of God be within us. It is an awe inspiring truth to realize that this is exactly what God has done through the person of the Holy Spirit. Not only are we sealed eternally for salvation by the Spirit, but we are given new birth, a regenerate spirit that can commune with God’s Spirit. By this sovereign gracious act of God we are given the very mind of Christ through the indwelling presence of the Spirit.
quote:1 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NASB)
14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.
16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.
Through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit it can truly be said that the Law of Christ is written upon our hearts. No one needs to tell us to know the Lord because we know Him in the most intimate of ways. We begin to see sin as He sees it. We begin to be transformed into the very likeness of Christ. Though the presence of the Sprit in the hearts of New Covenant believers, the prophecy has been fulfilled.
quote:Hebrews 8:7-13 (NASB)
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second.
8 For finding fault with them, He says, "BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH;
9 NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS THE LORD.
10 "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 INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.
11 "AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, 'KNOW THE LORD,' FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM.
12 "FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE."
13 When He said, "A new covenant," He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.
Truly we have been given a New Covenant that is better in every way. It has a better Mediator, better promises, better signs, and a better law. The Old Covenant with its old law is obsolete. We are so blessed to live on this side of the cross. Let us never turn back to the shadows now that we have the substance, Jesus Christ.
This concludes our study of the covenants. I hope that it has been helpful and that you will spend time prayerfully studying through the passages and books we have touched upon. May the Lord Jesus grant you wisdom and understanding. May the Holy Spirit protect you from falsehood, and illuminate Truth. May the Father bless you and keep you in the joy of the Lord as you study and apply these things.
Chris |
Colleentinker
Registered user
Username: Colleentinker
Post Number: 5661
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 5:43 pm: | |
Chris, thank you so very much. I love your diagram—it makes the concept so very clear. Thank you for taking the time to define the ways "law" is used.
It has been an amazing thing to me to realize that the Law written on our hearts is the Eternal God Himself. All law—moral, physical, etc.—flows from the Person of God. This Living Law is Who resides in us!
Thank you again, Chris—this was an excellent study altogether, and this last installment about the law of Christ was particularly vivid.
We will be posting your entire study on the Studies page of this website.
Colleen |
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