Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 108

April 18, 2018;    Hebrews 8:6;    108/260(II);    ‘A Better Covenant’

Hebrews 8:6 But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises.

We are no longer under the Law, the old covenant.  The Law served its purpose, pointing us to Jesus Christ, the Messiah who was to come.  The relationship of the Old Testament saints was based on their believing on the Messiah who was to come in the future.  They were not saved by keeping the Law, since no one did.  In addition, what the Lord has always wanted was a personal relationship with Him based on love.  David loved the Lord.  It was so evident in the psalms he wrote and in the times of prayer with the Lord, recorded in the Word.  Again, the Old Testament saints were ‘saved’ by putting their faith in the Messiah who was prophesied to come.  We under the new covenant are saved by putting our faith in Jesus, the Messiah who did come and fulfilled all of the old covenant prophecies.  The Lord Jesus is our Mediator.  A mediator represents two parties and the mediator’s goal is to bring the two parties together.  The Lord Jesus could do this perfectly.  He can represent God because He is God and He can represent man because He became a Man.  The new covenant, set in place by the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus is based on love.  Love fulfills the Law.  If I love you with God’s love, I will never do you wrong.  If I love the Lord, I will always honor Him and never allow anything to be more important to me than Him.  The blessings of the old covenant were earned by absolute obedience, which no one did.  The new covenant blessings are ours based on our relationship with God the Father through our salvation, by trusting on the Lord Jesus Christ.  The new covenant blessings are based on better promises, the finished work of the Lord Jesus on our behalf.  Our wonderful Mediator.