CHURCH OF CHRIST BIBLE CORRESPONDENCE COURSE

 

LESSON 2

 

THE COVENANTS

 

Next to believing in the inspired Word of God, one of the world's

greatest needs is to understand the difference in the Old and New Covenants. We

live today under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ. Many people understanding

that all of the Bible is true believe that all applies to us today. Certainly

all of the Bible is true but only the New Testament or Covenant now applies to

us. Peter says in 2 Peter 1:12 that we need to be established in the present

truth. There is such a thing, then as past and present truth. God told Abraham

to offer Isaac upon the altar; that is past truth. We are not expected to offer

our sons upon the altar. God told Noah to build an ark. In Hebrews 8:8, God

said, "I will make a new covenant." In Galatians 5:1, Paul declares that we are

to stand fast in the freedom of Christ." In Jude 3, Jude speaks of the faith

delivered and in Ephesians 4:4, Paul says there is but one Lord, one faith, and

one baptism. This is the present truth.

 

THUS WE SEE THE TWO COVENANTS CONTRASTED:

 

OLD COVENANT NEW COVENANT

1. Founded on the blood of bulls 1. Founded on the blood of Christ.

and goats.

2. Men, who had sin themselves, 2. Christ, the sinless Son of God, is

were mediators of the Old the Christian's mediator.

Covenant

3. Humanity for the High Priest. 3. Christ, who is Divine,is our High

Priest.

4. Imperfect covenant. 4. Better covenant built of better prom-

ices

5. They looked to Moses. 5. We look to Christ.

6. The Old Law given by Moses. 6. The New Law given by Christ.

 

In 2 John 9 , we are told to abide in the doctrine of Christ. The doctrine of
Christ excludes such practices of the Old Law as (1) animal sacrifices,
(2) the burning of incense, (3) going up to Jerusalem to worship,

(4) circumcision as a sign of covenant relationship with God, (5) keeping the

sabbath as a day of worship and (6) keeping feast days and new moons.

 

1. "For if the first had been faultless, then should no place have

been sought for the ." (Hebrews 8:7)

Those who still seek to serve God under the first covenant serve Him

under a covenant that is not faultless. The covenant of Jesus Christ, the New

Testament, has no fault, therefore we return to an inferior covenant when we go

back to the Law of Moses for our law in this dispensation.

2. God said that the New Covenant would not be the Old.(Hebrews 8:9)

3. The Old Covenant was founded on the blood of and (Heb.9:11-14)

4. The New Testament or Covenant is founded on the blood of (Heb. 9:14)

 

 


 

5. Jesus Christ is the of the New Covenant.(Heb. 9:15)

Christ is the only mediator that the Christian has or needs. There is no

need for saints, popes or priests to be our mediators since Christ is

perfectly capable of performing the task.

6. Paul declares that the blood of bulls and goats take away

.(Heb. 10:4)

.

The Old Covenant, founded upon the blood of bulls and goats, could not

take away a sinner's guilt, but the New Testament, founded upon the blood of

Christ can and does make the sinner righteous. Why go back to the Old

Covenant?

7. Christ sealed the New Testament with His . (Heb. 9:14-23)

The New Testament is the book of Law for the Christian today because it

was made authoritative when Christ sealed it with His own blood.

8. The writer of the Hebrew letter declares that we should look to Jesus,

the and of our faith. (Heb. 12:2). We are not to look

to Moses or to the Old Testament but to because He is the author

and finisher of our faith.

9. The Bible teaches that Christ became the of eternal salvation

to all them that obey Him. (Heb. 5:9) We are, therefore, subject to .

10. The New Testament teaches that under New Covenant all children of God

are married to Christ. Paul teaches in Romans 7:4 that even the Jew had become

to the before they could become married to another. In the same pass

age Paul teaches that no man could be married to Christ until Christ was

from the dead. This clearly shown that men become married to Christ or

become Christians after the New Testament pattern when Christ was raised from

the dead. Before the resurrection of Christ, men lived and died under the Old

Covenant but after the resurrection men were made Christians according to the

laws of the New Covenant.

The careful student will now know that we live under the last will and

testament of Jesus Christ; That He is the author of eternal salvation and that

we are children of New Covenant and the New Covenant only.

 

Paul plainly teaches that the Old Covenant was nailed to the cross.

Turn to Colossians 2 and begin reading with verse 14 to verse 17. List four

(4) things that Paul uses to illustrate that the Old Law was nailed to the

cross....Four things that were in effect under the Old Law but that are not to

be used to judge the truthfulness of a man's religious convictions today.

 

(1)

(2) Example: drink

(3)

(4)

There are those who will say,"If we do not live under the Old Covenant, then why do we have it in the Bible today?" Why did not God destroy it? The following reasons are given in the Bible for the Old Testament scriptures:

(1)For their moral lessons 1 Corinthians 10:6, 11

"Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust

after evil things, as they also lusted." " Now all these things happened unto t

hem for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends

of the world are come." " Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed

lest he fall."

 

(2) To prove, by prophecy, that Christ is the Son of God.(2 Peter 1:19)

"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; where unto ye do well that ye take

heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the

day star arise in your hearts:"

 

(3) To prove the New Testament system of faith by the type in the Old

Testament. (Heb. 10:1) "For the law having a shadow of good things to come,

{and} not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which

they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect."

 

We can now see that after these reasons are studied the Old Testament

is preserved for our good, but not for the faith once delivered. (Jude 3) We do

not find the doctrine and practice of Christ in the Old Testament but in the

New. God does not intend for His children to learn by trial and error. The Old

Testament contains moral examples that tell of 4,000 years of God's dealings

with His people.

 

Let us look to Christ, the author and finisher of our faith, and not

go back to the law of Moses. (Read Galatians 5:1-4) "(1) Stand fast therefore

in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again

with the yoke of bondage. (2) Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be

circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. (3) For I testify again to every

man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. (4) Christ is

become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are

fallen from grace."

 

Colossians 2:14, " the handwriting of that

was against us, which was to us, and took it out of the

nailing it to his ."

 

Here we learn that Moses' law, here referred to as ordinances, was

taken away when Christ died on the cross. We live now under Christ's law, the

New Testament.

 

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