1. Study all of the verses pertaining to the New Covenant:
Jerimiah 31:31-34;
32:40,
Isaiah 59:21;
61:8-9,
Ezekiel 34:25-31;
37:26-28,
and Zechariah 13:7-9. What does God
promise in the New Covenant?
"Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,…
(Jer 31:31)" God will make a new
covenant with the whole Jewish nation. During Jeremiah's time, the nation was split in
two: Israel and Judah.
"…not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I
took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they
broke, although I was a husband to them,…
(Jer 31:32)" The New Covenant is
different and apart from the Mosaic Covenant. In addition, because of the Mosaic
Covenant, this unconditional covenant was made with the literal nation of Israel.
"But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel
after those days,… (Jer 31:33)" "'It
will come about in all the land,' Declares the LORD, 'That two parts in it will be cut
off and perish; But the third will be left in it. (Zech 13:8)'"
Fully 1/3 of all Jews will be regenerated. Note: there is no reference to Gentiles.
Regeneration refers to a new heart or decision-making process and a new spirit that
predisposes one to God.
"I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it;
and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. (Jer 31:33)"
"As for Me, this is My covenant with them, …My Spirit which is upon you, and My words
which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth,…
(Isa 59:21)" "I will make an everlasting
covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put
the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.
(Jer 32:40)" The New Covenant will bestow
something within the Jew: the Holy Spirit.
"They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother,
saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,
(Jer 31:34)" "My Spirit which is upon
you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor
from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring's offspring.
(Isa 59:21)" Once the regeneration of
the Jews begins, each successive generation will be regenerated.
"for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no
more. (Jer 31:34)" God will forgive sin!
This is a big departure from the Mosaic Covenant, which only covered the Jew's sin. The
New Covenant could do something that the Mosaic could not: complete removal of sin.
"...I will faithfully give them their recompense and make an everlasting covenant
with them. (Isa 61:8)" "They will no
longer be a prey to the nations, and the beasts of the earth will not devour them; but
they will live securely, and no one will make them afraid. I will establish for them a
renowned planting place, and they will not again be victims of famine in the land, and
they will not endure the insults of the nations anymore. (Ezek 34:28-29)"
God will bless Jews with a secure nation and a bountiful land.
"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant
with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. My
dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. And the
nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever.
(Ezek 37:26-28)" When God builds a
Sanctuary within the nation of Israel, the whole world will know that God sanctified the
nation of Israel.
2. Given that the New Covenant was made with the Jews, how is it that Gentiles are
spiritually blessed as well? Survey the New Testament with references to the New
Covenant: Matthew 26:28,
Mark 14:24,
Luke 22:14-20,
Romans 11:26-27,
1 Corinthians 6:19;
11:25,
2 Corinthians 3:2-6,
Ephesians 1:7;
2:11-16;
3:5-6;
4:32,
Hebrews 7:22;
8:6-13;
9:11-22;
10:16-18;
12:24;
13:20,
Titus 3:5, and
Colossians 1:14.
In the Abrahamic,
Mosaic, Land,
King, and New Covenants, God made these covenants with Abraham
and the physical descendants who received Abraham's inheritance, and who later formed the nation of
Israel. Gentiles were "excluded from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants to
the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world
(Eph 2:12)."
Regarding the Jew and Gentile, Paul tells the Ephesians that Christ brought "both
groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall
(Eph 2:14)." The "dividing wall"
between Jew and Gentile was the Mosaic Covenant, which prevented Gentiles from receiving spiritual forgiveness
and blessing from God.
Hebrews refers to Jesus as "the mediator of a new covenant
(Heb 9:15)."
Because of His sacrifice, the prophecy of Jeremiah is becoming fulfilled, "according to the Law,
one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no
forgiveness (Heb 9:22)."
Jesus Christ introduced the communion cup saying, "This cup which is poured
out for you is the new covenant in My blood (Luke 22:20,
1 Cor 11:25)." His reference to the "new
covenant" to the Jewish apostles referred to the only "new covenant" in the Old Testament.
The spiritual blessings of the New Covenant are: a) regeneration, b) indwelling of the
Holy Spirit, and c) the forgiveness of sins. The apostle Paul, in his ministry to the Gentiles, states
that Believers are regenerated (Ti 3:5),
indwelt with the Holy Spirit
(1 Cor 6:19,
2 Cor 3:3), and forgiven
of our sins (Eph 1:7,
Eph 4:32,
Col 1:14).
3. When will this covenant be fulfilled?
Christians now experience the spiritual blessings of the New Covenant; however, this
covenant has not been completely fulfilled. The New Covenant was made principally with the Jews and the
spiritual and physical blessings, promised to them in this unconditional covenant, will be fulfilled when
the other three unconditional covenants will be fulfilled (Abrahamic, Land, and King). When this occurs
at some future time, 1/3 of Israel will be repentant, accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah, regathered, and
restored within the land promised by God.
4. What is the significance of the New Covenant?
Despite Israel's efforts of obedience or lack of, the New Covenant was unconditional;
God said that it would be fulfilled because of Israel's disobedience, and that it would cause Israel's
obedience (Ezek 36:21-22,
Jer 32:39-40,
Ezek 36:27;
37:23-24)! In a similar fashion, regardless of one's
efforts, the New Covenant provided Gentiles an unconditional means for salvation; Gentiles could experience
the spiritual blessings of the covenant, and the New Covenant was the elaboration of the universal
blessings aspect of the Abrahamic Covenant.
"The concern of the scholar is primarily with what the text meant; the concern of the layperson
is usually with what the text means. The believing scholar insists that we must have both." Gordon
Fee and Douglas Stuart (1981)
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