The Greater Promise
Hebrews 8
SCRIPTURE READING: Hebrews 8:6-13
INTRODUCTION:
I was talking to one of the Pueblo Group leaders this week and they mentioned that their group “had a lot of fun last week with Melchizedek.” Maybe we should have called the lesson, “fun with Melchizedek.” To most people, Hebrews is a difficult book to understand. The part about Melchizedek is just one example of the obscure and sometimes difficult theology in the book of Hebrews.
It’s not a book for Spiritual Babies who only want milk. It is definitely a “meaty” book. But Hebrews does not have to be hard to digest. It’s like eating a big juicy steak. If you eat it one bite at a time --- and take time to chew --- it’s delicious. (Now everyone wants me to say “in conclusion” and break for lunch.)
We are about 2/3 of the way through Hebrews now. So far we have seen that ---
· Jesus is greater than the angels
· And greater than the prophets
· Jesus is the greater man
· And the greater High Priest
· He offers the greater rest to those who trust in him
· He is the fulfillment of the greater promise to Abraham
· He is the Greater Priest and King
· And in Chapter 8 we see Jesus brings a Greater Covenant.
Hebrews 8:6 says The ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises.
The secret to understanding chapter 8 of Hebrews is to understand the meaning of Covenant. About a year ago I taught a Precept Class on Covenant. One of the main things I remember from that class is the difference between a Conditional Covenant and an Unconditional Covenant. The Bible is actually divided according to those two Covenants. We call them the Old Testament and the New Testament, but we could also call them the Old Covenant and the New Covenant.
The Old Testament tells about a Conditional Covenant made between God and Israel. In short, God promised to bless Israel IF Israel would love and obey God. The New Testament introduces an UNconditional Covenant. Today we will examine the reasons why the Covenant of Christ is called a superior covenant that offers a better promise. For one thing, the New Covenant is AN INNER COVENANT.
1. An Inner Covenant Hebrews 8:10
This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. Hebrews 8:10
The Old Covenant was a set of Laws written in Stone. The New Covenant is written in our minds and hearts. Because of the New Covenant, we don’t have to answer to a long list of Laws we can’t even remember --- much less keep!
When people want to become Citizens of the United States, they have to pass a test on the Laws of our Nation. (And if they break those Laws, they can’t even apply for Citizenship.) Imagine what it would be like if they could go to a Free Clinic and get a “shot” that contained all the History and Laws of the Country. Everything they needed would be injected into their Minds and Hearts. There would be no need to pass a test.
That’s what God has offered to do for you. God will place His own Spirit within your Heart. The Holy Spirit marks you as a Citizen of God’s Country. The Holy Spirit leads you into Truth, and shows you God’s will by speaking directly to your conscience. The Holy Spirit lives within you, changing you from the inside out.
The New Covenant is Greater than the Old Covenant because the New Covenant focuses on the inner man. Transformation is much better than religious rules and rituals. Some people still think that religious rituals can make them holy. They don’t realize that a person can do seemingly Holy Routines and still have a Filthy Heart.
I was told this week about a person who wanted to get baptized here. He wanted to get a baptismal certificate and show it to a Priest so he could marry a Catholic girl. Obviously he had no understanding of the meaning of Baptism. He thought an outward ritual was all he needed. But no Certificate from a Church can give us the change of Heart that we so desperately need.
God wants more than outward obedience. It is God’s loving nature to relate himself to the humans he has created. That’s why His New Covenant is A RELATIONAL COVENANT. That’s why he says in Hebrews 8:10: I will be their God, and they will be my people.
2. A Relational Covenant Hebrews 8:10
God has made us his own people. We are Citizens of His Kingdom. But we are not just common run-of-the-mill citizens. We know the KING. In fact, we know the KING personally. And more than that, we are adopted as Children of the King. Think about what that means. The way God feels toward us is the way a Father feels toward his own child.
I like to watch golf on TV. (…especially on Sunday afternoons --- it’s good to sleep to) One of my favorites is a left-handed golfer named Phil Mickelson. Recently he won a big Golf Tournament in California. The first thing he did when he got his trophy was reach down and scoop up his little daughter. I can picture in my mind Phil Mickelson holding up the trophy with a big smile on his face while his little girl gave him a big kiss.
That’s the kind of relationship God wants to have with you and me. I believe God takes great JOY is sharing his victories with His children.
1 John 3:1 puts it this way: How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
This is an amazing promise. And it is a promise made to everyone who will believe --- because the New Covenant is AN INCLUSIVE COVENANT.
3. An Inclusive Covenant Hebrews 8:11
11No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. Hebrews 8:11
Under the Old Covenant the Jewish people would constantly go to the Rabbi to get his interpretation of the Law. The Rabbi was the expert who knew it all, and the people were ignorant followers who needed his constant input.
Some Christians act like they are still under that Old Covenant. They look to “experts” whether they are Priests or Pastors or Professors. But God did not want to create an elite class of Super-Believers for everyone else to follow. God wants us ALL to know Him … from the least to the greatest. You see, under the New Covenant, there is no “clergy-laity” divide. We are ALL “clergy.”
Look at what the Apostle Peter says in I Peter 2:9: You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Under the New and Greater Covenant, we can ALL come directly before God, as Citizens of His Kingdom --- as His own dear children --- with His Law written on our minds and hearts.
We don’t need a human mediator to come before God in our behalf. In fact, because of what Jesus has done for us, we can come boldly to the throne of grace ourselves. Hebrews 4:16 says Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Well, that sounds great, but the truth is, we don’t deserve that honor. We can’t live up to the standards of God’s Law. On our own merit, we do not dare approach the Throne of God. The bottom line is, there could not be a New Covenant without the astounding promise of Hebrews 8:12 For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.
Forgiveness the centerpiece of the New Covenant. Forgiveness is what makes it an Unconditional Covenant. And --- because it is Unconditional --- it is AN ETERNAL COVENANT.
4. An Eternal Covenant Hebrews 8:12
The Old Covenant was never intended to last forever. Hebrews 8:7 says, If there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another.
The Old Covenant was a 2-sided covenant made between God and the Nation of Israel. God promised His blessings if the Jewish people would remain faithful to Him. Now, there was nothing wrong with God’s side of the Old Covenant. But there was plenty wrong with the human side!
Time and again, the Jewish people failed to live up to their part of the Bargain. Because of this, God allowed them to suffer the Curses that were part of the Old Covenant. Over and over they disobeyed God’s Commands. They turned away and worshipped other gods. They grumbled and complained. Continually their hearts were far from God, even as they worshipped Him with their lips. Their obedience to God was spotty at best.
In case you don’t already know it, we are no different from the Israelites of the Old Testament. Our obedience to God is also spotty at best. Thank God for His New Promise to forgive our wickedness and remember our sins no more.
That’s why the New Covenant is Eternal. If it depended on our obedience, it could never last. Instead, it depends on God’s Unconditional Love and Forgiveness. And God will ALWAYS keep his Promise.
CONCLUSION: The New Covenant is Greater than the Old Covenant.
· The Old Covenant dealt with Outward Actions,
o but the New Covenant transforms the Heart and Mind.
· The Old Covenant is like a parole officer with his parolee,
o while the New Covenant is like a Father with his beloved Child.
· The Old Covenant was for those who measured up,
o while the New Covenant is for ALL who will believe.
· The Old Covenant was for it’s time,
o but the New Covenant will last Forever.
This New Covenant will never be made null and void by our actions.
It is based on a better promise of God’s grace.
· We aren’t born into God’s Kingdom through Jewish lineage.
o Instead we are re-born into God’s Family.
· We don’t earn our place in God’s Kingdom through our own merit.
o Instead, our citizenship is bought and paid for by the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross.
