The CHRISTMAS COVENANT-II—Jeremiah 31:31-34
God informed Jeremiah & Jeremiah the people, of the promise of a new covenant to supplant/fulfill/uphold/empower the ineffective covenant.
God’s people have the promise of an effective covenant.
What is the Christmas Covenant?
Why is the promise of a differing covenant encouraging to God’s people?
5 elements/encouragements concerning the covenant people of God.
The covenant people of God are promised...
Heb. 10:12-23—“But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws into their hearts, & in their minds I will write them,” then He adds, “Their sins & their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin. Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new & living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, & having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience & our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
We had found earlier that The Christmas Covenant is...
1. A PROMISED Covenant(:31a)
2—The Christmas Covenant is...
A NEW Covenant(:31)
Explanation:(:31)
:31—“Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel & with the house of Judah--”
There will be “a new covenant” to very effectively replace or rather to fulfill the ‘old’ covenant. This new covenant will be made with certain people...‘God’s people’ whom He raised up from a non-entity. God’s people are: “the house of Israel” as well as “the house of Judah.”
“The New[covenant] has an unconditional focus upon God, i.e., there can be no way for man to bring the covenant to pass. The covenant is entirely dependent upon God to bring it into effect. God is acting because of who He is & the participants in the covenant cannot change that aspect just as in the Old Covenant.”—Byron Sherman—Jeremiah Exam #2, Chapters 21-52 for Dr. Gary Galeotti-SEBTS—April 12, 1993
This “new covenant” is a promise from the God of Israel. The need for this “new covenant” was amplified by Israel & Judah’s division(brought about after Solomon’s death between Rehoboam & Jeroboam—1Kgs. 12:1-33).
Ezek. 37:26—“Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, & it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them & multiply them, & I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore.”
Hosea 2:18-23—“In that day I will make a covenant for them With the beasts of the field, With the birds of the air, And with the creeping things of the ground. Bow & sword of battle I will shatter from the earth, To make them lie down safely. I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me In righteousness & justice, In lovingkindness & mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the LORD. It shall come to pass in that day That I will answer,” says the LORD; “I will answer the heavens, And they shall answer the earth. The earth shall answer With grain, With new wine, And with oil; They shall answer Jezreel. Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; Then I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’” Lk. 22:20—“Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.”
1Cor. 11:25—“In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
2Cor. 3:6—“who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
Heb. 9:15—“And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”
Heb. 12:24—“to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, & to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.”
“Make”(See :32 & :33)—trk kaw-rath'—Qal Perfect—To cut, cut off, cut down, hew, cut off a body part, eliminate, kill, cut a covenant. Strong—a primitive root; To cut(off, down or asunder); by implication--To destroy or consume; specifically--To covenant(i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh & passing between the pieces).
“New”—vdx khaw-dawsh’—Adj.—1)New, new thing, fresh. Strong—New.?From—vdx khaw-dash'—a primitive root; To be new; causatively--To rebuild.
“Covenant”(See :32 & :33)—tyrb ber-eeyth’—Noun Fem.—1) Covenant, alliance, pledge—1a) Between men—1a1) Treaty, alliance, league(man to man), 1a2) Constitution, ordinance(monarch to subjects), 1a3) Agreement, pledge(man to man), 1a4) Alliance(of friendship), 1a5) Alliance(of marriage), 1b) between God & man—1b1) Alliance(of friendship), 1b2) Covenant(divine ordinance with signs or pledges); 2) (phrases)—2a) Covenant making, 2b) Covenant keeping, 2c) Covenant violation; Strong—A compact(because made by passing between pieces of flesh).?From—hrb baw-raw'—Verb—To feed, eat, consume(in the sense of cutting [like arb baw-raw'—Verb—to create, shape, form]).?**LXX very consistently replaces—tyrb ber-eeyth’ with—diayhkh—Noun Fem.—1) A disposition, arrangement, of any sort, which one wishes to be valid, the last disposition which one makes of his earthly possessions after his death, a testament or will; 2) A compact, a covenant, a testament—2a) God's covenant with Noah, etc. Strong—properly, a disposition, i.e. specially--A contract(especially a devisory will). Used 33X.?From—dia—1) Through, With, In, Throughout, During, By, By the means of; The ground or reason by which something is or is not done, By reason of, On account of, Because of for this reason, Therefore, On this account. Strong—Through(in very wide applications, local, causal, or occasional).—&—tiyhmi—To place(in the widest application, literally & figuratively.?**See Matthew 26:26-28—“And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed & broke it, & gave it to the disciples & said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, & gave thanks, & gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
Argumentation:
Isa. 43:16-26—“Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea And a path through the mighty waters, Who brings forth the chariot & horse, The army & the power (They shall lie down together, they shall not rise; They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick): “Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. The beast of the field will honor Me, The jackals & the ostriches, Because I give waters in the wilderness And rivers in the desert, To give drink to My people, My chosen. This people I have formed for Myself; They shall declare My praise. But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob; And you have been weary of Me, O Israel. You have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings, Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices. I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings, Nor wearied you with incense. You have bought Me no sweet cane with money, Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices; But you have burdened Me with your sins, You have wearied Me with your iniquities. I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. Put Me in remembrance; Let us contend together; State your case, that you may be acquitted.”
Mat. 9:14-17—“Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, “Why do we & the Pharisees fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, & then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, & the tear is made worse. Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, & the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, & both are preserved.”
Lk. 5:36-39—“Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, & also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins & be spilled, & the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, & both are preserved. “And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’”
Mat. 5:12-20—““Rejoice & be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out & trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp & put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, & it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works & glorify your Father in heaven. Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven & earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, & teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does & teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes & Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Col. 2:18-23—“Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility & worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, & not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished & knit together by joints & ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations-- “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” which all concern things which perish with the using--according to the commandments & doctrines of men? These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, & neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.”
Ps. 98:1-9—“<<A Psalm.>> Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand & His holy arm have gained Him the victory. The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations. He has remembered His mercy & His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, & sing praises. Sing to the LORD with the harp, With the harp & the sound of a psalm, With trumpets & the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the LORD, the King. Let the sea roar, & all its fullness, The world & those who dwell in it; Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD, For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity.”—Their “new song” was directly related to their new life/experience resulting from God’s actions.
2Cor. 1:21-22—“Now He who establishes us with you in Christ & has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us & given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”
2Co 5:4-9—“For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body & to be present with the Lord. Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.”
Eph. 1:13-14—“In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.”
Col. 3:5-11—“Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, & covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, & have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all & in all.”
2Cor. 5:17—“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Illustration:
One of the Georgia Baptist Children’s Home segments was a home for mentally challenged adults/Our church began a ministry there where every year during Christmas we would supply some needed items to the home & Christmas presents to the people housed there/Because of our personal experience with the reason for celebrating the birth of Jesus as well as a new sense of compassion thru His birth, the family of God had a glorious time reaching out to them!/Ours was a new mission!/We contacted certain people/We made specific plans to visit at a certain time/We brought specific gifts/A NEW Covenant
Application:
?Is The Christmas Covenant your NEW Covenant?
?You living in Covenant with God thru His only-begotten Son?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
The Christmas Covenant is...
2. A NEW Covenant(:31)
1. A PROMISED Covenant(:31a)
Christmas celebrates the fulfillment of these promises!
Pt.# 2 only! Presented 12/16/2018pm to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave. SE(SE Ave. A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 2-5 Presented 12/05/2004pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Road
Whigham, GA 39897
