How many of you love to read contracts or “terms and conditions?” Most of us don’t pull out the most recent contract we have signed and read over the terms and conditions do we?
Do you have a problem sleeping? I encourage you to go find your mortgage contract and read it tonight or perhaps the contract you signed when you purchased your last vehicle. Fun reading huh? I don’t think there will be a cliff hanger in the middle that makes you want to move on to the next page (that might seem like the next chapter) right?
In London, a security firm launched an experiment to see how few people actually read their contracts. An internet company agreed to include what they called “ A Herod clause” in the contract.
What they did was provide a lengthy list of terms and conditions that offered up free WI-FI in exchange for permanent ownership of the user’s firstborn child. Almost everyone signed off.
Do you know why? They didn’t read the contract.
As a matter of fact a recent study revealed that only 1% of people read “Terms and Conditions” in their contracts.
This evidently happens a lot in the UK, another company in on April Fool’s day a few years ago did something similar; they had shoppers sign a contract that read that they were signing away their immortal souls.
Explanation:
Do you know that the phrase “New Testament” means “New Contract”? That being said, “How much attention have you given to the terms and conditions of God’s contract for your salvation?”
That’s right: God has terms and conditions that relate to your immortal soul.
In Hebrews 8 we read about that contract. It is interesting that Jesus talked about that contract the night before He died. He said:
“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." For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. I Corinthians 11:25-26
Do you know what that means? It means that God loves us so much that He took out a contract on you. Today, I want to read to you the terms and conditions of that contract.
Transitional Sentence: Hebrews 8 provides the fine print about those terms and conditions. As we read this passage we learn several things about the contract. We learn:
I. Who Administers the Contract
vs. 1-6- “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 Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, not man.
Explanation:
In Hebrews 8 we are introduced to something Jesus did for us. He established a “covenant” to provide salvation for us. ‘
Now understand, the “covenant” is an agreement but it is different than ordinary contracts.
In an ordinary contract you and I make an agreement. We sit down and draw up an agreement that is based on me doing what I promise in the agreement, as well as, you doing your part in the agreement. If either of us fail to keep the terms of the contract; there’s problems.
In other words, if you do your part and I do my part, the contract stays in place but if either one of us fails to do our part; the contract is nullified and voided.
Yet, the contract that Jesus offers to us is different; that’s why Jesus called it: “A New Covenant.”
Prior to Jesus going to the cross; He said “A new covenant “ was being established. The word Greek word used for “Covenant” in Hebrews chapter 7 is a word that literally was used in Jesus’ day to describe: “A Last Will and Testament.”
Therefore, the best way to understand the contract or covenant that Jesus made with us before He died was like a Last Will and Testament. It was something He was giving to us as a type of contract that His death would provide for us.
So, in some of Jesus last words before His death; he basically spoke to each of us (that will become children of God by faith in his finished work) of what would be ours due to His death.
In Hebrews 8 we are told that Jesus has taken on two major roles since He returned to heaven:
1) He is our High Priest- We learned about that in Hebrews 7
2) He is also the administrator of the New Covenant - He administers His own Will.
In I Timothy 2:56 says: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Jesus Christ.” HE MEDIATES HIS OWN WILL.
What qualifies Jesus to ADMINISTER AND MEDIATE this Covenant or Will?
a) He is seated- (vs.8) - “who has taken His seat...” -What’s the significance of this? When do
we sit down? It’s when we get a job done.
1. In Hebrews 1:3 we read: “...after making purification for sins He sat down at the right hand
of the Majesty on high.”
2. In Hebrews 10:12 says: “but He offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, (and He) Sat down
at the right hand of God.
3. In Hebrews12:2- “he sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Jesus sat down because salvation is accomplished and the deal is done. He’s seated because when He said “It is finished” John 19:30
b) He is seated at the right hand- (vs. 8)- In Jewish New Testament culture the highest honor is
sit at the right hand of the host. Jesus sits at the right hand of God. He’s in the seat of greatest
honor in the throne room of God.
When Jesus spoke to Pilate he even spoke about this while on trial when asked if He was the Christ. He said: “I am”...”and you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Mark 14:62
Prior to the cross, Jesus clearly stated what His ministry would be in after it. His hanging on a cross would lead Him ultimately to being seated on the throne at the right hand of God the Father.
c) He completely paid for what’s in the last will and testament for His beneficiaries
(vs. 3-4)
Illustration: Pay off national debt
Strangely enough back in 1928 a man in Great Britain left more than L350m to pay off the national debt but specifically said, “The money will not be released until it is precisely the perfect amount to pay the debt off in full.”
Today, that money sits idle and will forever because the national debt is not and will not ever be that low so the country cannot and will not be able to use it to even pay down the national debt.
Application:
When Jesus died on the cross, God knew precisely the amount of sin He would have to pay for and when Jesus died, He paid it all. He paid it in full.
High Priests in the Old Testament would offer up a gift for sin. In verse 3-4 we read that “every High Priest is offered up something...” but the High Priest Jesus offered up something greater did He not?
In the previous chapter in Hebrews 7:27 says: “He offered Himself.”
d) He resides in the place of our greatest inheritance- (vs. 5)
Today, Jesus not only holds the last will and testament of His covenant but He safe guards the place and the possession that we desire the most!
In verse 5 he talks about heaven in the terms of “the tabernacle.” In the Old Testament a tabernacle was erected that looks like an earthly representation of what the throne room of God looks like in heaven.
In verse 5 we see that the earthly tabernacles was a copy or shadow of the heavenly things!
Yet, Jesus stands and safeguards the real thing. While in this building we worship God and the church building reminds us of our heavenly home; it is only a shadow of the things yet to come!
The earthly tabernacle was a copy, a blueprint, or a shadow of something greater! Jesus is standing in heaven awaiting the moment when he will give us what He died for. He died to make us part of God’s family and invite us into our heavenly home!
Transitional Sentence: Hebrews 8 provides the fine print about those terms and conditions. As we read this passage we learn several things about the contract:
II. How To Get Your Name Included on the Contract
vs. 7-13-“ For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second...”
Explanation:
Every day across the globe last will and testaments are read and benefits of them are distributed. Yet, this largely goes unnoticed by most of us because of one reason: Our names are not written in the contract. We were not included in the will.
Yet, when it came to the last will and testament of Jesus; He made a way for us all to be included in the will.
Now notice the differences between the “Old” Covenant that Moses established and the “New” Covenant that Jesus established.
In verse 7 we read: “For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for the second. For finding fault with them, He says: “Behold the days are coming says the Lord when I will effect a New Covenant with the house of Israel and the House of Judah.”
The Old Covenant was the rules and laws that we find in the Old Testament. God wanted to provide an inheritance to us but it was more like the contracts we make. We make contracts that depend on us perfectly keeping them for us to get the benefits.
For example: If you purchase a home, many times you don’t have the money to pay for it on the spot so you get a thing called a mortgage and you pay for decades on it until it is paid in full. Until then, you really don’t own the home.
Yet, when it comes to payment for your sins. You could not do it. You see, for you to have the benefits of a heavenly home it requires one of two things:
a) Sinless perfection
b) The Savior’s payment
The fact is: We are not sinless nor perfect. We blew opportunity #1. Yet, Jesus was and when He died, He paid the price for our sins. He made our payment because we could not.
The night before Jesus died He made a new covenant by his blood.
The reason why Old Covenant had to be replaced was because it was not working. We could not keep the laws of the Old Covenant so we needed a New Covenant. The covenant was established based on Jesus’ righteousness because we did and could not have righteousness on our own.
Notice how we get our names on the New Covenant or Contract:
a) We must accept God’s unconditional forgiveness- vs. 9- The Old Covenant was
conditional but the New Covenant is unconditional.
In verse 9 we read that under the Old Covenant God had a contract with His people. In verse 9 we see God’s people being led by God out of Egypt into the Promised land yet, while traveling to the Promised land do you remember what they did?
They doubted God. They Worshipped a golden calf. They broke God’s laws. Even Moses was so frustrated with them that he threw down the laws of God written in the tablet and shattered them.
At the end of verse 9 we read that as a result God says: “For they did not continue in my covenant and I did not care for them says the Lord.” In other words, they broke the contract of the Old Covenant and God rejected them.
But in the New Covenant God did something different. He made an unconditional covenant. In the New Covenant God never lets us go. He holds on to us.
b) We must become Jesus’ residence- vs. 10-He explains furthermore that people under the
New Covenant have more than a surface relationship with God; instead they have an internal
reality of God living within them.
In verse 10, we find that when Jesus comes to live in you He starts transforming you.
Illustration: Visualizing your future home
Have any of you ever moved into a new home. Perhaps when you first looked at the home you went in and saw what things looked like with another family or person living there. But, as you looked around you began to envision what it would look like when you moved in.
You started thinking about the different items of furniture you would put in the rooms. You started thinking about painting and changing the colors. You might even have thought about some structural changes. Some walls and renovations you’d make to make that place your own.
Application:
God says in verse 10: “...I will put my laws into the minds, and I will write them on their hearts and I will be their God and they shall be my people.”
God puts his word in your minds. Your thinking changes. We begin to think differently. My mind is on Jesus and His goodness. It’s real. It’s in our minds and hearts.
The Old Covenant was written on stone (Moses tablets) but in the New Covenant God’s Word is written on our hearts. We are into in because its written on our hearts. We really feel and believe these things.
c) We must confess Him before men- (vs. 10b-11) He is our God and we are His people but
notice what God’s people do, they confess Jesus before men.
In verse 11 we read: “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.”
The fact is that when we truly know and understand the Lord, we know that this good news is not something that is only for a few people but notice in verse 11, “it is for ALL people...”
One of the greatest tragedies today is latching onto a belief that God’s salvation is only for a few, chosen, specific people. When the book of Hebrews was written there were people who believed that only people who were of the nationalities of the Jew were able to be God’s people. Yet, the writer here wants us to know that all people can be saved and all people have an open invitation to come to Christ. The covenant was established for everyone.
In Ephesians 2:11 Paul makes it clear that in the Old Covenant the Jews were God’s people but in the New Covenant; everyone and anyone could be part of God’s family.
Ephesians 2:1-13 says: “Therefore remember that you the Gentiles in the flesh, who were called Uncircumcision by the so-called Circumcision which is performed in the flesh by human hands--- remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were formerly far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. “
As we accept Christ we confess Christ and our joy and priviledge of saying to everyone these words: “Know the Lord” -- we confess Jesus to all and are not ashamed.
Transitional Sentence: Hebrews 8 provides the fine print about those terms and conditions. As we read this passage we learn several things about the contract: We learn:
III. The Benefits of Being Included In the Contract
Vs. 12-13- “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more, when He said, A new covenant, He has made the first covenant obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.”
Explanation:
Why would anyone enter into a contract? The reason is simple: There are benefits that are spelled out in the contract. You receive something that you need, want, or desire.
The New Covenant that Jesus provides for us is full of benefits. As the writer of Hebrews closes this section of scripture he spells out those benefits clearly. As a matter of fact, the benefits are so amazing and appealing that I believe someone would have to be a fool to refuse the contract.
Illustration: People who started Microsoft
In 1980 this group of people started a little company that today is called “Microsoft.” How many of you would have invested in a company led by this motley crew? By their looks, they obviously were the place to go to become a billionaire right? 8 of 11 of these people are now Billionaires.
Inspired by the January cover of Popular electronics magazine these people started a company called “Microsoft” and in 1985 moved to Redmond, Washington and built the first operating system for IBM’s first personal computer.
Thousands missed out on the business opportunity of a lifetime because they didn’t believe in Microsoft. Today, they regret it. The reason why people did not invest? They didn’t think it was worth the risk. From looking from the outside; It seems understandable.
Application:
As I thought about that, the writer of Hebrews reveals that embracing the New Covenant.
He gives us three guarantees that come from accepting Jesus’ New Covenant:
a) We are guaranteed God’s mercy- God is holy, but choses to forgive (vs. 12)
b) We are guaranteed God forgets our sins- God is all knowing, but chooses to forget (vs. 12)
c) We are guaranteed God’s eternal grace- God wrote the Old Testament law; but applies to
us New Testament grace. (vs. 13) The Old Testament Covenant was for a short time; the
New Covenant is forever.
Conclusion: Obsolete words
Did you know that there are some words that used to be in the English language that are now considered to be “obsolete” and “abandoned” no longer found in the English language.
Linguists explain: “Believe it or not ... words do “disappear” ... For an English word to be considered obsolete, there can’t be any evidence of its use since 1755 – the year of publication of Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary.
Here’s a few of the words:
1) Bramble- It’s an obsolete word that means: “to quarrel.”
2) Cockalorum and Snoutfair- They are both obsolete words that mean: “ good-looking.”
3) Groak- It’s a word that means to stare at a person while they eat.
Yet, with believers here’s one obsolete word for you: Condemned.
We have broken God’s law, but Jesus died as the provision for your sins. We don’t get our life together and come to Jesus; we come to Jesus the way we are. We need His grace.
You will never be condemned. Do you know why? You are part of a new contract, a better covenant, a New Covenant, a new contract that is ours if we accept it, sign off on it, and receive it by God’s grace.
