If we misunderstand the covenant that we are under with God, we are going to feel like He is pleased with some days and mad at us on other days. Some days we will feel qualified for His favor and some days we will feel like we need to earn it because we have not lived up to His standard. That type of reasoning reveals a mindset that does not understand what has changed when Jesus stood in our place before God and took all of the curse that we deserved so that we could receive all of the blessing that He deserves. Understanding the change in covenants unveils the relationship God wants us to enjoy and the means by which we are qualified to receive His favor.
If we read scriptures like, “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever,”1 and take it to mean that there is no difference in God’s dealings with His people whether they were under the Old Covenant or the New Covenant and that there is no distinction between the old and the new, this dilutes and defuses the work of God and devalues the awesome work of Christ. It makes the cross a “rubber stamp” kind of formality. It’s as if nothing really changed, even though Christ suffered everything for us!
Isaiah prophesied regarding the huge change that would take place at the cross:
Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. “Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it?” (Isaiah 43:18-19, NASB)2
He asked the question, “Will you not be aware of it?” Are you still calling to mind the former things (the Old Covenant) and not realizing that God did something new (the New Covenant)?
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)3
The two major covenants that God has made with mankind over history are the Old Covenant of law and the New Covenant of grace. All of the other covenants can be categorized under these two covenants. There are many covenants that are described throughout the Bible, and the types and shadows of the other covenants all find their fulfillment and substance in the final covenant: the everlasting covenant that is in Christ Jesus.
When we understand covenants, we understand how God deals with people. A covenant is stronger than an agreement or a contract, and the only way a covenant is enacted is by death. The reason that Jesus had to die was to bring all people out of the covenant of law (the Mosaic covenant) into the covenant of grace (the New Covenant).
In the context of the new order of things under the New Covenant of grace, Jesus told the people who were under the law that if they did not believe in Him, they would die in their sins. Then He said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free!”4
What we believe is everything.
(from pages 207-208 of Unveiling Jesus)
Want more from Tricia Gunn? Check out excerpts from the Unveiling Jesus 20-part series!
Unveiling Jesus, by Tricia Gunn, is a verse by verse study of the pure gospel of grace. It’s an amazing journey of love, identity, and freedom in Christ.
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1Hebrews 13:8
2Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible®,Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973,1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
3Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
4John 8:32″
