Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 2

January 2;      Hebrews 8:7;       211/260(III);        ‘A New Covenant’

Hebrews 8:7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second.

The Law was given by the Lord to show the Jews how the Lord wanted them to live and conduct themselves.  In reality, He gave them the Law to show them that they could not live up to the standards that He had for them.  Why would the Lord give them commandments that they could not keep?  He did this to show them that they needed Someone to help them do what they could not do.  In Deuteronomy 28:1-14 the Bible lists all of the blessings that belong to anyone who keeps the Law.  The Bible teaches that no one keeps the Law.  Why then would the Lord put all of those blessings in the Word if no one qualifies for those blessings?  Here is the grace of God.  The Lord Jesus kept the Law.  He never sinned and deserved the blessings.  We know that Jesus never took the blessings, He took the penalty for sin upon Himself, being punished in our place, so that we could have the blessing He deserved.  The Old Testament Law was a ‘sign post,’ pointing us to Jesus.  The New Testament Law is love.  As we learn of Jesus and His love and commitment to us, we desire to follow Him.  When we are born again, our heart of stone is removed, recreated and the love of God is deposited into our spirit by the Holy Spirit.  Our desire now becomes to live a life free of sin.  It does not mean that we do not sin, but it does mean that we no longer desire to live a life displeasing to the Lord because of our deep love for Him.  Want to, not have to is so much better.