A New Covenant Established – A Messianic Prophecy

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord.  But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord:  I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.  And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord.  For I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more.’” –Jeremiah 31-31-34 (ESV).

The new covenant with God’s people will be written in the hearts of the people the prophet Jeremiah declared (Jeremiah 31:33).  God had really intended that relationship all along, since His first covenant with Abraham.  But His called-out people time and again had forfeited the intended relationship with God.  They had spurned the knowledge of God and made mockery of His forgiveness.  They had kept outward  observances of the law, as circumcision for the males and sacrifices offered for sins. Even observances of festivals and seasons had failed to remind the people of their true allegiance to God.  Their hearts continued in rebellion.  Deep questions troubled Jeremiah and other spiritual leaders.  Was there any hope for a called-out people?  Could there be any assurance that a covenant really could hold the people close to God and assure that their fellowship with Him would be permanent?  “The days are coming declares the Lord when I will make a new covenant…”

Jeremiah foresaw the Messiah’s coming into the world and His sacrificial death as the “New Covenant.”  When Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper, He told His disciples, “For this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).  The new covenant carried with it permanence and complete sufficiency.  “Once and for all” the Messiah’s sin offering would be the complete atonement required by God.  Many times in the Old Testament are recorded instances of renewal of the covenant between God and His people.  Moses renewed it before the nation entered the Promised Land.  Joshua, before his death, (see Joshua 23-24) led the people in acknowledging and reaffirming the sacred covenant.  Others led in reminding the people of God’s covenant and renewing it. Some outstanding covenant-renewers were Samuel, and Kings Hezekiah and Josiah.  But the new covenant predicted by Jeremiah and fulfilled in Jesus Christ is not just a renewal of the old.  The emphasis of the new covenant is personal—it will be written on tablets of the believer’s heart.  Anyone who places his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His atoning work of salvation is a recipient of the new covenant.  God revealed to Jeremiah that in time anyone could come to the fullness of His truth and write that truth on his heart.  Through Jesus the requirements of the New Covenant were accomplished.  Through the wooing of the Holy Spirit the New Covenant is made known to all who will accept and believe in the regeneration Jesus offers.

Prayer.  Lord, it is astounding to see the revelation of Your covenant to all generations and all people.  Thank you that today believers can stand secure in the covenant You provided.  Amen.

Jesus’ Teaching on Oaths

“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn’  But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is His footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.  Let what you say be simply, ‘Yes’ or “no’; anything more than this comes from evil.” –Matthew 5:33-37 (ESV).

An oath involved invoking God’s name, or substitutes for His name.  By thus speaking, it was to indicate a guarantee of the truth of the statement.  Moses taught this about taking vows, as we read in Numbers 20: 1-2 (ESV): “Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the people of Israel, saying, ‘This is what the Lord has commanded.  If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word.  He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth’”  Jesus was essentially saying that it is not necessary to reinforce your speech by vowing by something you think is solid and sure, as “I swear by heaven,”  or “As I live and breathe…” A Christian’s word should be his bond without the necessity of adding anything to make the vow sound more authentic.  Jesus’ followers are not to swear at all.  Their very character and lifestyle should stand for truth so that they will be believed by their very words.  To swear by something is not ever necessary.

What about being asked to serve on a jury, or to appear in a court of law as a witness?  Is taking an oath forbidden under these circumstances?.  We know that law requires us to swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.  In Jesus’ admonition to ‘swear not at all,’ was he forbidding Christians to participate in these obligations of our society?  Hardly.  He was looking forward to a time, (ideal, indeed), when truthfulness will be so binding that oaths will not be necessary, even in the courts of the land.  We certainly have not come to this point yet in our society.  Even at His own trial before the Sanhedrin, Jesus allowed Himself to be put on oath:  “And the high priest stood up and said, ‘Have you no answer to make?  What is it that these men testify against you?’ But Jesus remained silent.  And the high priest said to him, ‘I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.  Jesus said to him, ‘You have said so.  But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:62-64, ESV).

We sometimes fall into undesirable speech patterns.  I cringe when I hear someone say, “I swear” and then they go on to state what they have to say.  Even by the prefactory phrase, “I swear” a flag goes up and I listen—and also observe the speaker—to see if I can discern whether the truth is actually being spoken.  To swear by God, by heaven, or by something substantial in nature or in society does not add an iota of truth to one’s statement.  Jesus is teaching that the truth should be told at all times, and that the character of the speaker should be beyond reproach so that hearers will know the person speaks the truth.  It is not necessary to preface what we say by an oath.  Jesus is teaching in Matthew 5:33-37 that our conversation should be so honest and our character so trustworthy that we do not need crutches such as oaths to have people believe us.  Words attributed to Solomon in Proverbs 10:19-20 fit well as we consider that oaths are not necessary to our speech:  “When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.  The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; the heart of the wicked is of little worth.”  May we remember Jesus’ teaching about oaths the next time we are tempted to use an oath to preface what we say.  Just say what you mean and mean what you say.

Holy Week Day by Day-Friday-Trials and Crucifixion-“It Is Finished!”

“When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And they bound Him and led Him away and delivered Him over to Pilate the governor…So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves. And all the people answered, ‘His blood be on us and on our children! Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered Him to be crucified.” – Matthew 26:1-2, 24-26 (ESV). “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour…And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit.” –Matthew 27:45, 50 (ESV). “And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.”-Matthew 27:29-51 (ESV).

From the time Jesus was taken captive in the Garden of Gethsemane until His body was laid in a tomb provided by Joseph of Arimathea, a ‘disciple of Jesus,’ the last day of His life was filled with unbelievable occurrences. Judas went to Gethsemane with a band of soldiers and officers of the chief priests. The Lord readily owned to being Jesus of Nazareth when they inquired which was He, and, surprised, they “fell to the ground” (John 18:6). Impetuous Peter took out his sword and cut off an ear of the high priest’s servant, but Jesus touched the ear and healed it (Luke 22:51). They took Jesus first before Annas, the immediate-past high priest who was looking for legitimate evidence that would bring on a verdict of capital punishment. The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus dead. Annas was influential with the Jews and with the Roman procurator. It was in the courtyard of Annas’ house that Peter denied the Lord three times, as Jesus had predicted; and then the cock crew. While Peter was denying Jesus, the Lord was on trial protecting Peter and the others. Jewish law required that witnesses be called to testify on behalf of the accused. Annas hired false witnesses. In stage two of the Jewish trial, Jesus was taken before Caiaphas and some members of the Sanhedrin, assembled at night. They found him guilty of blasphemy which had the penalty of death, but the Jews had to get the Roman ruler to levy the death sentence. Then came appearances before Pilate, Herod, and Pilate again, who could find no fault in Jesus. But the sentiment of the crowd was for Jesus to die; Barabbas was released and Jesus condemned to be crucified.

The worst suffering we can imagine took place on the cross. Death by crucifixion was the most cruel and shameful of all punishments. Jesus was offered a pain-reducing drink but He refused it. His physical suffering was excruciating, for He had a human body. His seven statements from the cross have great significance: He thought of others, those who crucified Him: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34). He assured the believing thief: “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). He made arrangements for His mother’s care: “Behold your Mother, ' And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home” (John 19:27) He felt momentarily His separation from God: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). As He was bearing the sins of the world on His body, He felt the wrath of God against all sin. His anticipation of this moment as He was in Gethsemane was prelude to the darkness. Now He was experiencing it and bearing it in His body and His spirit. The last three statements focus on Jesus Himself: His body, “I thirst!” (John 19:28). Jesus received a sponge with vinegar to wet His lips. His soul, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). And His spirit: “Father, inyou Your hands I commit my spirit!”(Luke 23:46). The Lord Himself gave up His spirit at the “ninth hour,” which would have been about 3:00 p. m. The penalty for sin was finished, once for all, forever. The mission God the Son came to earth to accomplish had been completed. The soldiers made sure he was dead. They inadvertently were fulfilling prophecy about the Paschal Lamb, the Son of God: They did not break his legs, fulfilling Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12 that specified the sacrificial lamb’s legs were not to be broken. Zechariah 12:10 states that His side was to be pierced. Water and blood flowed out. His body was removed from the cross and quickly taken to a tomb owned by a secret disciple, Joseph of Arimathea. Nicodemus, who had come to Jesus by night according to John 3, assisted Joseph. By touching a dead body, these two Jewish men could not participate in the Passover. Dr. Warren Wiersbe notes: “What difference did it make? They had found the Lamb of God!” (Wiersbe Bible Commentary, New Testament, 2007, p. 308). Because the Sabbath began at sundown, they had to quickly lay the body in the grave. There was not time for embalming with spices. A heavy stone was rolled over the entrance. Roman guards were assigned to watch. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were observing across from the tomb.

In Christendom, we call this day “Good Friday.” What was good about the Savior’s trial, scourging, suffering, shame, humiliation and death? Before the Sabbath began, Jesus had finished the work He came to earth to do. A New Covenant was established. “”The old has passed away; behold, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17b). From then and forever believers glory in the cross and in the Lord who gave His life a ransom for mankind. This is the goodness and unfathomable glory of the day Christ died. It centers on Jesus and His love, His great sacrifice. Jesus could take His rest. “It is finished!” What a crowning declaration of Good Friday! We and all believers are safe under the New Covenant. Praise be to God!

Holy Week Day by Day – Thursday–The Lord’s Supper and Agony in the Garden

“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, ‘Take, eat, this is my body.’ And he took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” –Matthew 26:26-29 (ESV). “And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but Yours be done.’ And there appeared to Him an angel from heaven, strengthening Him.” -Luke 22:41-43 (ESV).

We call the Thursday before Easter Sunday “Maundy Thursday.” The term actually derives from the Latin, “mndatum novum do vobis,” “ A new (mandate) commandment I give to you,” In Luke’s account of the Lord’s Supper (that of the bread and wine following the Passover Meal), Jesus said: “This do in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19b, ESV). Paul, in instructing about the observance of the Lord’s Supper, wrote: “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, sayingk, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.” (I Corinthians 11:24b-25, ESV). The ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is a very solemn and serious time of self-examination and deep reflection to see if the believer understands the atoning sacrifice of Jesus’ death for others. “This do in remembrance of me” takes into account the sacrificial death of Jesus, the breaking of His body and the shedding of His blood for the remission of my sins. In remembrance of Him I think of His incarnation, His life, the new covenant He established, and a means of koinonia—fellowship—sharing in the hope, through faith, that we have in the new covenant and new way Jesus established. I also remember His teachings and how He showed me a new and better Way. I remember that He said, “”If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23, ESV). In that Upper Room, they sang a hymn (probably a selection from the “Hallel’ hymns contained in Psalm 113-118 and 136). Then they went out, walked across the Kidron valley and went to the Garden of Gethsemane.

In the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives, Jesus went apart to pray, leaving the disciples at a distance from him to watch. But each time He returned from prayer he found them sleeping. A reprimand was in order: “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation” (Luke 22:46, ESV). This is not to excuse the disciples, but it had been a long day, and they were physically and emotionally exhausted. Their inability to be alert at a very crucial time to Jesus and to themselves is a lesson to us. His warning to His disciples applies to all of us: “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41, ESV). When he returned to His disciples the third time, Jesus had won the victory through prayer. It was not that He had not known His mission all along. He had already told His disciples that he would die and rise again the third day. He knew why He had come to earth. Jesus is facing the most severe trial of His life. “This cup” signifies that He is to accomplish His mission—to bear the sins of the world. In Luke’s account, His agony was accompanied with drops of sweat like blood that fell down upon the ground (Luke 22:44). Luke’s account also has an angel coming to minister to Jesus in His agony. Jesus rises from his knees, returns to His disciples, and straightaway, Judas comes to betray Jesus with a kiss and He is arrested and taken away to Annas first for a series of trials.

As we read and study the events of Thursday—Maundy Thursday—may we spend time praying and considering the ordinance Jesus instituted as a remembrance. May we take courage at His example of prayer under great duress. The humanity of Jesus and the immediacy of His mission and suffering were very real, cogent and near at hand in the Garden of Gethsemane. James Montgomery’s hymn well expresses Jesus’ condition as described in the scripture: My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Matthew 16:38, NIV): “Go to dark Gethsemane, You who feel the tempter’s power; Your Redeemer’s conflict see; Watch with Him one bitter hour; Turn not from His griefs away; Learn of Jesus Christ to pray.”

Holy Week Day-by-Day: Tuesday ~ Multiple Lessons from the Master Teacher

“Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter, remembering, said to Him, ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.’ So Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea’, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will come to pass he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.’” –Mark 11:20-26 (NKJV).

Tuesday of Holy Week was a very busy day for Jesus. He and his disciples were on their way from Bethany where they had spent Monday night back to Jerusalem and the Temple where Tuesday of Passover Week would be spent in teaching. It was almost as if Christ wanted to both reinforce what he had already taught and get in some very important last lessons for his disciples and other listeners before his passion and death on Friday. Only three days remained of His major earthly ministry. There on the road was the fig tree Jesus had cursed on Monday. Peter, the outspoken disciple, called their attention to how it was withered. Jesus made it an object lesson on both prayer and forgiveness. Scholars note that the fig tree should have had fruit on it, but there was none. When leaves appear on a fig tree, and no fruit is present to be gathered, it is a pretension: seeming to be fruitful when there is no fruit. A much larger lesson lies here: don’t have a pretense of righteousness when a changed life does not result. It was also an indirect condemnation of the ultra-righteousness of the Sadducees and Pharisees who made much pretense of following the law, but compassion and loving kindness were far from them. It was amazing to Peter that so quickly the fig tree would be withered at a word from the Lord. Jesus then told the disciples to have unwavering faith in God, and to believe that what they prayed for would indeed come to pass—even mountains, like towering Mt. Olivet that was beside the road as they passed—and mountains of trials and problems which they would surely face. And link praying with forgiveness, for God cannot bless those with unforgiving spirits. No doubt, ever after that Tuesday of Holy Week, the disciples would remember these important lessons from Jesus every time they saw a fig tree or a mountain, or problems loomed like mountains to be overcome.

But the lesson of the fig tree was just one of many on this busy Tuesday. I challenge you to read from the Gospels to see how many great lessons Jesus taught. You can see them fully, (and I encourage you to pursue the study) by reading Matthew 21:20 -24:1-25, 46; Mark 11-20 –13:37; and Luke 20:1-21:36. (Since John’s gospel is not as chronological as the first three, these teachings are more scattered in his gospel.) I will mention them here briefly: The religious leaders question Jesus’ authority to teach. He gives a lesson on tribute money to Caesar (taxes, anyone?). Which wife will be the brother’s in eternity (no marriage and giving of marriage in heaven)? What is the first and greatest commandment? What do you think of the Christ? Woes are pronounced on the Pharisees (beware of hypocrisy in religion!). Jesus in the Temple treasury and the widow’s mite. Greeks come seeking Jesus and He gives a lesson on His coming death and on serving Him (see John 12:20-26). Jesus laments over Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37-39). Then came the prophecy of the fall of Jerusalem and the Olivet Discourse in which Jesus teaches about the Last Times and the Advent of His Second Coming, relating His prophecy to that of ‘The Abomination of Desolation’ found in Daniel. You may read this discourse in Matthew 24:1-25, Mark 13:1-37 and Luke 21:5-36. I merely give you an outline of Jesus’ teachings on Tuesday of Holy Week to show you what a variety of subjects He covered and what depth and breadth of spiritual truth He presented. Countless books have been written and scholars have debated during the centuries since concerning all Jesus meant on this full day of His last week of teaching.

Then we read of Jesus announcement to his disciples, perhaps made to them as they walked back to Bethany after the busy day. And behind the scenes at the end of this full day for Jesus, a major plot was contrived. “when Jesus hadfinished all these saying, He said to His disciples, 'You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.' Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill Him. But they said, 'Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.’” –Matthew 26:1-3 (ESV).

On Tuesday of Holy Week came the walk in the morning when they saw the withered fig tree and the lessons gained from it. Then ensued a long, busy day in the Temple during which Jesus gave profound teachings, some of which, especially the Advent of His Second Coming, have not yet transpired. We marvel at how He could be under such pressure with the weight of death by crucifixion looming in the immediate future. Yet He taught with marvelous clarity, insight and wisdom. He was Emmanuel, God with us, showing us the way to God, for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. May we look afresh and anew at these precious teachings of Jesus, knowing that they were given for our understanding of what kingdom persons should be and do. Praise be to God!