Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:12-16
Relationships of the Old and New Covenants
Intro.
1. Covenant: Agreement; A solemn obligation bound by the superior (God) upon the inferior (man), Deut. 4:13, 23.
2. The veil that shrouded the Jewish heart still hardens men against the fact that the OT (covenant) is no longer in force, 2 Cor. 3:12-16.
3. Must not ignore the relationship of the Old and New Testaments.
a. Proper use of Scripture (OT), proper respect for and application of Bible authority (2 Tim. 2:15; Matt. 28:18, 20).
b. That our hope of salvation is based upon the proper covenant.
I. GOD ANNOUNCED HE WOULD MAKE A NEW COVENANT, Jer. 31:31-34.
A. The New Covenant Would be Distinct from the Old Covenant.
1. The days come (not then present), 31:31.
2. Not like Sinai, 31:32 (Heb. 8:6-9).
3. Nature of new covenant (better), 31:33-34.
B. Christ’s Death Dedicated the New Covenant, Heb. 9:15-17.
1. He fulfilled the law (Matt. 5:17; cf. Rom. 10:4).
2. He took away the first (Col. 2:14-15; Eph. 2:14-15).
3. He established the second (Heb. 10:9).
II. THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE COVENANTS.
A. Old and New, Heb. 8:13 (Jer. 31:31).
1. Jeremiah’s prophecy made the first covenant obsolete.
2. The first covenant was not designed to last forever.
B. Moses and Jesus Christ, Jno. 1:17 (Gal. 3:19; Heb. 9:15).
1. We must hear the authority of Jesus today, not Moses, Matt. 17:3-5; Acts 3:22-23.
2. Your soul hangs in the balance, Acts 3:23.
C. Written on Stone and Written on Hearts, 2 Cor. 3:3; Heb. 8:10-11.
1. While some who lived under the old law put it in their hearts (Psa. 119:11), the nation of Israel hardened its heart and rebelled against it (God), Heb. 8:9; Zech. 7:12.
2. Under the new covenant, only those who take God’s law (gospel) into their hearts will be His people (Heb. 8:10-11).
D. Temporary and What Remains, 2 Cor. 3:7-11.
1. Contrast here is between the glory of each covenant.
a. Glory of the old was passing away, 3:7 (13).
b. Glory of the new exceeds the old and remains, 3:8-11 (is the glory of Christ, 4:4).
2. Old covenant done away in Christ, 3:14.
E. The High Priests of the Covenants, Heb. 7:23-28.
1. Priests serve men in things pertaining to God, Heb. 5:1.
2. The superiority of our High Priest is evidence that the new covenant is “better” (7:21-22).
3. Our high priest accomplishes what OT priest never did.
F. The Sacrifices of the Covenants, Heb. 9:25-10:18.
1. Man needs a sacrifice for his sins to satisfy the law of sin and death (i.e., when you sin, you die).
2. Old covenant didn’t offer perfect forgiveness; New covenant does (remission, 10:18); “faulty,” Heb. 8:7-8; cf. Gal. 3:21-22.
G. Shadow and Substance, Col. 2:16-17; Heb. 10:1.
1. Shadow is an outline of the true substance; not the substance.
2. Old covenant shadowed what Christ would do (has done) – cf. Its authority, duration, glory, priesthood, and sacrifices.
3. Salvation is not based on a shadow.
Conclusion
1. Both covenants are from God, but we are only under one covenant (2 Tim. 3:15-16).
2. But our salvation is through the new covenant of Christ, not the old covenant that was done away.
3. Our authority is the new covenant, not the old (Matt. 17:5).
4. Our hope is based on the new covenant, not the old.
By: Joe R. Price
Posted February 8, 2021