Tag: obsolete
God Says: “I will”
Scripture reading for October 23: Hebrews 8
““For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” 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.” Hebrews 8:10-13
When God speaks a Word, we can believe it and know that it is true. God Alone has the ability to know all things and all power to bring what He has spoken to pass. According to Solomon, not one Word of any of God’s promises to Moses had failed! (1 Kings 8:56) When God makes a promise or oath, He swears by Himself, as there is no one higher in authority. (Hebrews 6:13) The Old Covenant contained the Law and was given to Israel. It was conditional upon their obedience. If disobedient they must make sacrifices as prescribed by law as necessary to cover the sins. But this ‘Old Covenant’ was becoming obsolete and was passing away to be replaced by a New Covenant based on better promises, a better Sacrifice, and the perfect High Priest Who would mediate for sins,
Jesus Christ, as God’s Son, would come to earth to show God the Father’s mercy towards sinners. He would perfectly fulfil and obey the first covenant and offer Himself, body and blood, as the final sacrifice for sins by death on a cross. He would raise from the dead establishing a New Covenant through faith in His sacrifice and the Father’s Gift to each believer of the Holy Spirit. Jesus would mediate this New Covenant seated at the Father’s right hand. The Holy Spirit would enable each person to know God personally and His law would be written on their hearts. Their sins would be cast away and remembered no more! Through faith as a Gift from God, the “I will’s” of the New Covenant become eternal reality. Amen!
Do you struggle to believe the promises in this passage that God makes when He says, ‘I will’? If you dared to believe these promises and live by faith, how would your life be different? Which of the ‘I will’ statements is most encouraging to you right now?
Prayer: Amen! Thank You for Your amazing proclamations of Your finished work on our behalf! Thank You that You are my God and that I know You through faith in Jesus Christ. Thank You for Your great mercy to forgive my sins and remember them no more. Thank You for Your laws on my heart. Amen!
Obsolete and passing away
Scripture reading for February 25th: Leviticus 21-23, Hebrews 8
Hebrews 8:6-7 “But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant He mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second.”
The old covenant of Law mediated by the Aaronic priesthood was made obsolete when God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to mediate a new covenant. The old covenant was written on tablets of stone and every violation required a blood sacrifice. The priests had to offer sacrifices for their own sins as well as the sins of the people. These sacrifices could not remove sin, but only cover it temporarily. The new covenant through Jesus Christ was enacted on better promises. The appointed Priest would live forever and be seated at God’s right hand. He would forgive their sins and remember them no more through the sacrifice of His own blood. The law would be written on tablets of human hearts and each person would personally know God and have access through Jesus Christ, their High Priest. Lay hold of the new today, and let the obsolete pass away!
Hebrews 8:10-13 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God and they shall be My people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more. 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.”
Prayer: Father God, thank You for the new covenant through the sacrifice, once for all, of Jesus’ body and blood. Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit Who writes Your laws and Word on my heart and causes me to want to obey and love You and others. Empower me to proclaim the powerful message of freedom through the new covenant to those still living in the obsolete and vanishing dead religion.
Leviticus 22:1-2 “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons so that they abstain from the holy things of the people of Israel, which they dedicate to Me, so that they do not profane My Holy Name; I am the Lord.”
The New Covenant of Grace!
Scripture reading for October 23rd: Hebrews 8, Psalm 62, Proverbs 27
Key Scriptures: Hebrews 8:6-7, 13 “But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant He mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. . . . 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.”
Christ’s ministry was far superior to that of Moses. Moses was the mediator of the old covenant of law. Those who obeyed would live, an impossibility because of our sin nature. Christ’s covenant was one of grace through faith. If we repent of trusting in our own good works and believe on Jesus, we will be saved. The old covenant is obsolete–out of date! It has been replaced by something new and better–forever!
Faith Confession: I thank God for the new covenant based on grace through faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I live by faith in the gift of eternal life and receive grace to stand forgiven before God in Christ Jesus my Lord. Keep me from the danger of self-righteousness.
Proverbs 27:12 “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.”