The New Covenant Understood in the Five "I Wills"

“But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law in them, and write it in their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”—Jeremiah 31: 33-34

I am convinced there are a host of problems in the way God's people think about the state of our world today. Many Christians live in fear and bondage because they're looking for something to come instead of faith and boldness in what has already appeared. Evangelicals seem to have little understanding that Christ "made obsolete...and caused to disappear" the Old Covenant and inaugurated a New Covenant through His blood for both Jews and Gentiles alike (see Hebrews 8:13). Many Christians take demands for obedience to the Law and calls to repent for non-performance of the Law and merge these two things (the Law and the Prophets) with the New Covenant message of "love, hope and faith" through Christ's obedience and perfect fulfillment of the Law on our behalf.

After Jesus inaugurated the New Covenant through His death and resurrection in AD 30, there was a forty year period of transition for national Israel to move from the old way of relating to God toward the new. This forty year time period (AD 30 to AD 70) were the "last days" of the Old Covenant; for it was "made obsolete... and was soon to disappear" (Hebrews 8:13). When the New Testament speaks of "the last days," it refers to "the last days" of the Old Covenant demands for obedience to the Law of God in order to receive blessings from God.

Obedience in the Old Covenant required Temple worship in Jerusalem, sacrificial offerings brought to the Temple, and the observance of seven major festivals or holy days (i.e. "holidays"). From AD 30 to AD 70 the Temple still stood. The Jews still brought their sacrifices to the Temple. God's chosen people from the Old Covenant still celebrated the festivals. All the early followers of Christ were Jewish and they preached the good news of Jesus Christ at the Temple in Jerusalem and in the Jewish synagogues throughout the land and even participated in the Jewish Temple festivals.

John, the writer of Revelation, writes to encourage these early Jewish Christian that though they were about to see "the end" of everything Jewish -  the destruction of the Temple,  the fall of Jerusalem, and the furious retribution of the Romans as they marched through the valley of Megiddo to destroy the Jewish way of life - the followers of Christ were never to forget that Jesus is the Christ of God and has established His Kingdom over all, and "the gates of hell" will not prevail against Him building His church. "The end" of the Old was coming; but the New Way of nearness to God through "the obedience of faith" (Romans 16:26) was dawning.

Andrew Murray wrote an outstanding book in 1898 called The Two Covenants (available for .99) where he says the problem with many Christians is that they come to Christ with an Old Covenant mentality - fear of God, repentance toward God, hope in God, and promises to change for God - but find that throughout their Christian life the Old Covenant way of thinking only leads to more fear and bondage. The Old Covenant mentality of "If I obey God, then God will bless me" (Jeremiah 7:23) will never remove the desire for sin from me. Murray says that every believer in Christ must progress from an Old Covenant way of thinking to a New Covenant way of resting in the performance of Jesus Christ who perfectly fulfilled the Law, securing all the promises of God's blessings for His people.

But most Christians don't understand what it means to come to Jesus to rest. When Jesus says His "yoke is easy" and His "burden is light," He meant it. He inaugurated a New Way of thinking about our intimacy and closeness with God. I will only draw near to God in full assurance of His love and blessing for me when I see the New Covenant that Jesus established has nothing to do with my performance. In Jeremiah 31:33-34 God reveals to the prophet five things God will do for His people in the New Covenant inaugurated and established by His Son.

Think through these are the five things and learn to rest in Christ.

(1). God will make the covenant for me - "This is the covenant I (God) will make..."

The New Covenant is unconditional; it requires no conditions from me. Whereas the Old Covenant a quid pro quo covenant -- an agreement where "one thing is returned for another," as in God's blessing for my obedience -- the New Covenant is an unconditional agreement where God's grace is given to me without any conditions.  "This is a trustworthy statement, deserving of my full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all" (I Timothy 1:15).

(2). God will put His law in me - "I will put My law in them, and write it in their hearts..."

Whereas the Old Covenant was an agreement of Law imposed upon a hardened people, the New Covenant is an agreement with the "law of love " impressed upon a softened people. "By this," Jesus said, "will all people know you are My disciples, by your love for one another" (John 13:35).  This internal law of love which is stamped on the regenerate heart is new in the New Covenant. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another" (John 13:35). This new "law" (command) is "written on my heart." I am compelled to love others for "the love of Christ compels me" (II Corinthians 5:14).

(3). God will be forever with me - "and I will be their God..."

 In the Old Covenant God said "Obey my voice, and I will be your God (Jeremiah 7:23 and 11:4). God set conditions on the old agreement,  "There is blessing from me if you obey me" (Deuteronomy 11:27). However, in the New Covenant, "if we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny who he is" (II Timothy 2:13). God's promise to me in the new agreement is that He will "never fail me." He will "never leave me." He will "never abandon me." (Hebrews 13:5). This New Covenant blessing from God, properly understood,  keeps me free from the love of money and possessions, as well as anxiety over material things (see Hebrews 13:5).

(4). God will forgive even my intentional sins - "for I will forgive their iniquity..."

A person who murdered someone unintentionally in the Old Covenant could flee to a City of Refuge (Deuteronomy 19:4-12). However, the intentional murderer - the one who "lies in wait in hate" (Deuteronomy 19:11) -- would find no mercy, but was handed over to death by the "avenger of blood." Not so in the New Agreement. Even my sins which are clearly intentional, what the Bible calls iniquity, are completely forgiven by God. "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). Some might object, "But God can't forgive any future sins which I intentionally commit! He only forgives my past sins for which I'm sorry and seek forgiveness." I ask, "Which of your sins were future when Christ died and how many of your sins, if any, are truly unintentional?" Forgiveness is through Christ's blood "at-one-ment." In the Old Covenant sin separated the sinner from God; in the New Covenant, the work of Jesus Christ brings an "at one moment" (atonement) between God and sinners.

As long I measure whether or not I'm intentional in committing sin instead of focusing on God's initiative in forgiving all my sin -- intentional or not -- I'll never be free from the power of sin. In the New Covenant I am forgiven without conditions. My sin is obviously destructive by sin's very nature; but God's gracious new agreement with me by the blood of His Son insures my forgiveness. When you see a sign that says "Wet Paint: Don't Touch" you immediately want to touch it. The law seems harshly imposed. A sign that says "Wet Paint: Feel Free to Touch It But Know That You'll Get Stained" has a tendency to keep you from touching because someone is lovingly and graciously encouraging you to avoid something harmful to you. The first paint sign “Don’t Touch” represents the Old Covenant. The second paint sign "Feel Free" represents the New Covenant.

(5). God will remember no more my sins - "and I will remember their sin no more..."

When God says "I will remember their sin no more," He sets me free to "boldly enter into the presence of God in my time of need" (Hebrews 4:16). God's new agreement with me through the Person and work of Jesus Christ insures that my struggles in this life never keep me from closeness with God. Instead of worrying about my performance, I rest in Christ's performance for me.

My deliverance is from the Lord.