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Pastor Andrew Brackmann Hebrews 8:1-13 “New Covenant”

11-2-14Heb 8: New Covenant!

"Privacy Policy Paranoia" in our day: every business, website, and health care provider has you sign-off their privacy policy for how they can/can't use your personal info.

EULA: End-User License Agreement: how you can/can't use the software (i.e. don't share or sell it)

There's so much paperwork these days! It's cool to go paperless- save some trees- but does anyone really read it now that it's an email?! I never really cared about the paperwork. I care less about the digital version than the paper copy I think! I get many "Privacy and Security Policy" updates in email and I delete them all! Sometimes I want to bring in close the company or doctor and whisper, "Nobody cares!" But my wife reads every word. She calls me to ask if she should click the "OK" box on something and before she finishes saying, "The computer's asking me to…" I just say, "click OK." B+C: These are all examples of something people have done for millennia. Today they're called 'policies' and 'agreements'; they used to be called "COVENANTS." Nations made covenants with other nations; families and individuals made covenants with other families and individuals; and God made covenants with individuals and families and nations.

- Adam (multiply; curse for fall; provision for sin) - Noah (no global flood) - Abraham (people) - Israel/Palestinian (land) - Moses (Law) - David (king, kingdom) - New (for all people)

We don’t have time to examine all the covenants and that's not the point today. Today we are looking at Hebrews 8 and what it says about Jesus being God's "new" covenant with humanity, and how He is far superior to the old law covenant specifically. But if we had a few weeks, you'd see how each covenant is merely an echo of God's promises met in Jesus. Covenants had terms and conditions, like our policies today. If you kept your end of the covenant, the covenant maker would keep his end. Covenants were for good ends: follow them and life will be better. For God's covenants, some were conditional- based on obedience/disobedience, and some were unconditional- no matter what the recipient did, God would keep his promise. Conditional both sides gain UnconditionalGiver risks losing if recipient breaks terms Now before we go any further, if God is making a covenant with you:

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Who do you think is more able to keep their end of the deal: infinite, all-powerful God? or you?

Would you rather the terms of that covenant be conditional upon your abilities, or conditional upon God's abilities? (God, unconditionally because we can't keep our end of things.)

FCF: Suppose God came to you and said, "I will employ all of my power, perfection, knowledge, and control to protect + prosper you if you will live like me, doing what I would do, thinking like I think." At first you'd be excited! "Wow! God's offering me everything I ever wanted!" But maybe after pondering it for some time or the next day, it would hit you: "Oh no! What have I gotten myself into?! I can't live like God! I don't have nearly the capabilities He has! I'm doomed!! This agreement is flawed from the start because it depends on me!" That's just, in fact, what God said to people long ago, through the Israelites. That's why God's first plan to save people from their own incapability and their own evil problems couldn't depend on human resources at all. A God-sized promise required God-sized players. God's terms needed to be met by God Himself, the One-and-Only! That's why we have Jesus! He is God's first plan and final covenant to save people! The Bible points to Jesus in every story and word. He is the centerpiece. Those who think it's a book of rules to live by have completely misunderstood it!

Turn to HEBREWS 8 to read how: Jesus is God's first plan & final covenant to save people.

Verse by verse 1-6: (1-2)- Priests acted as mediators- middle-men- between holy God + sinful man.

- You'll see this word "mediator" refer to Jesus again in v. 6. It means "one who intervenes to restore peace between two parties, especially to fulfill a compact or covenant."

- (ch.7= Jesus a superior priest to the Jewish priests) - (ch. 9= Jesus is superior to the forms + rituals of the Hebrews, from their worship

building ("tabernacle/temple") to the priests' offerings, etc.) (3)- If Jesus is a priest, He needed to offer something to mediate God & people. What was it?? (TBA in chs. 9 + 10… Setting us up for anticipation of something grand and ultimate, of which kind the gifts + sacrifices of Israel's Levitical priests were, again, only types and shadows.) (4)- Jesus from Judah, not Levi. He couldn't be a normal priest anyway! "Those priests…[ They] (5)- William Barclay: "[The earthly Temple, worship and priesthood] all point beyond themselves to the reality of which they are shadows… God had shown Moses the real pattern of which all earthly worship is the ghost-like copy."

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Ancient Greeks had a concept of the universe from Plato that saw things in two worlds: real + unreal. "Somewhere there was a world where there existed the perfect forms of which everything in this world is an imperfect copy." Plato called these perfect forms "ideas." So somewhere there was a world where a perfect idea of a chair existed, which our chairs resemble imperfectly. Somewhere a perfect guitar… Somewhere a perfect cupcake… Somewhere a perfect car… Somewhere a perfect Math teacher… Somewhere a perfect husband or wife (ok, maybe not !) The Greeks' hope was to get from this world of shadows to the "ideal" world.

(6)- Jesus is superior; "Only Jesus can lead us out of the frustrating actuality into the all-satisfying real." (Barclay)

Now author will show us the difference between the "old" covenant involving earthly priests, temples, and sacrifices, and the "new" covenant embodied in Jesus.

*(read vs. 7 ff.)* "and he'll quote from Jer. 31"

2 questions begged from this passage: "What was the first- "old"- cov.?" & "What was wrong with it?" 1. What was the first covenant?

a. Deut 5:1-2 (then 10 Commands), 6:4-6; 24-25

1Moses summoned all Israel and said: Hear, Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them. 2The LORD our God made a covenant with us at Horeb.

…10 Commands follow…

4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 25And if we are careful to obey all this law before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us, that will be our righteousness.”

i. God had imbedded in the old Law covenant His desire to be in their hearts and minds. But it was still a conditional covenant, requiring their best strength + obedience… 25obedience = righteousness" (i.e. "acceptable to God"… disobedience=unacceptable!)

2. What was wrong with Law covenant?

a. Vs. 9- people didn't/couldn't perfectly obey God i. 613 laws (~300+ "dos", ~300- "don'ts")

ii. Sounds hard, but achievable… Till Jesus' revelation of the Law's intent in Matt 5 is factored in: adultery= lust; murder= hatred!

iii. The results of the old covenant were bad: o The people were not faithful to God; they broke contract… o "God turned away from them"

b. Vs. 11- the Law produced only external righteousness

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i. That is, it couldn't repair the broken part of you- called sin- that kept breaking the laws! It could tell what to do/not to do, but couldn't mend the source of disobedience. It'd be like a community dealing with contaminated water from an

industrial plant upriver. The best scientists could identify the contaminants, the best water treatment plants could remove them, but as long as the pollution flowed in upstream, there would never be an end to water problems! You have to go to the source of the pollution; you have to shut down its power, terminate its outlets into your river, then fix the factory so it doesn't pollute!

ii. The Law was merely diagnostic & only treated the symptoms of sin. 1. Told you what to do/not do to stay on good terms with God, and how

to delay God's punishment when you messed up. 2. Rom 7: Law shows us our sin by comparing our behavior to God's

desires, revealing the stark contrast! 3. Paul called the Law "a tutor to lead us to Christ so that we may be

made right with God by faith" (Gal 3:24).

Learner's permit: purposed to train and prepare the driver for the freedom of a full license (graduated, then full). Nobody would be satisfied always driving with their parents, before a curfew, with limited passengers! The permit sets up the driver for success in the full license, and builds anticipation and gratitude (and right use!) of the real license in its proper time.

o The Law's purpose isn't over; we still need to realize we can't satisfy God on our own!

o Law prepares us for grace by faith, not works! B/c we don’t have to meet the Law's requirements of perfection- but Christ did for us- we rejoice! (forgiven much…love much!)

"What is the new cov?" "Why is it superior?" To see what it is, is to see its superiority! What's in the new Cov?

a. Vs. 13- 2 Gk. Words for "new": "neos" & "kainos." - Neos= new in relation to time. May be exact copy of former, but produced after the others. When buying guitars, every model has a serial #. That # indicates what number guitar it

was in its series. Though all guitars were made the same, some were built first, others last.

- Kainos= new in relation to time & quality. "new + improved," "superior" (v.6) Our 747s are "kainos" versions of the Wright Brothers' airplanes. Our Fords are "kainos"

versions of the old Model T. This is what this New Covenant is supremely; there won't be another covenant better! This was God's first plan + final covenant!

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1. Vs. 10- "Laws in minds + hearts." Internal Work.

a. Not externally imposed rules, but internally formed character. i. Rules you can agree/disagree with. You must obey, no matter your

feelings. ii. But when God puts His laws into you, He is formed in you; His ways= your

ways; they're things you care about, they make sense, you envision yourself obeying God and desire to because it's who you are now. Obedience from the inside-out, not outside-in.

C. Spurgeon: "the best way to make a man keep a law is to make him love the law-giver."

Old law was written literally in stone [tablets]; new law written on hearts, hearts that were once stone cold and hard, but softened by grace!

o (Ezk 36:26-27 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from you… 27“I will put My Spirit within you….") iii. This is significant for those Bible thumpers still trying to conform people

to God's laws. They're impossible to perfectly follow without God! 1. Before: "do these things and you'll know my blessing." 2. Now: "Know ME and you'll live this way- my way!"

You come to God first, you don't clean up first.

2. V. 10- God is our God; we are His people. Healed, whole relationship. a. V. 11b- "from least to greatest" All know God on a level basis; no longer

distinction between sinner + priest! God has come and walks among us! We go straight to Him, no stopping at a human mediator anymore!

b. Obedience from relationship, not fear of punishment c. For Israel, God was kept separated from them. Now Jesus= "God with us!"

3. V. 12 Forgiveness

a. Here's what makes all these possible!! Our internal problem- the source of our pollution- is conquered and cleansed!

a. "FORGIVE" means lots! The word here and other words translated "forgive" mean:

i. Propitiate- appeasing divine wrath + restoring the relationship to friendship again

ii. "to pay a debt" - In those days, businesses kept a slate on the wall to record when they extended credit to anyone. They wrote their name and how much was owed on the slate so that everybody could see it. That encouraged paying the bills. Then when the debt was paid, two Greek words described what the business owner did. One word meant you draw a line through it, like stamping paid on an invoice.

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The other word meant the merchant took a wet rag and wiped the record clean. There was no more record of that debt. That's what it means when it says our sins are forgiven- they're wiped clean. There’s no more record of it because the debt is paid.

o Col. 2:13-14 calls the Law a "certificate of debt consisting of decrees

against us" that Christ "canceled" by "nailing it to the cross.” Rom 8:1 tells us there is then "no more condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus"

iii. "to take away"- used of the lifting of the gates of horses at a race track, so they could run the race all out. (Eph 1:7, col 1:14)

Your sins and guilt are wiped clean by Jesus' blood; your debt to meet God's standards, which you are woefully incapable of, has been paid by Jesus' life; the prison of sin you are in has been broken open by Jesus' resurrection! This is the new covenant; it doesn't hinge on your efforts but on Christ's work for you. Out of love for Him you live and obey.

"it's a covenant marked by believing + receiving instead of earning + deserving."

b. And God goes further: "He remembers your sins no more!" (v. 12). Did you know God can forget?! He chooses to forget your sin. He doesn't just wave his hand at your sin and say "abracadabra, it's gone." Jesus endured all the divine punishment and guilt for you so God holds nothing against those who receive Christ's work for them. God says, "My Son went through everything on your behalf. That sin is paid for. How dare you bring it up again. I'm not."

great missionary to India, E. Stanley Jones, said "God buries our sins in the

sea of His forgetfulness and puts up a sign that reads, 'No fishing here.'" o It is I who sweep away your transgressions for My own sake and remember your

sins no more. (Isa 43:25) When you feel crushed by past guilt + shame, Jesus stands for you in forgiveness and justification before God. That's the last beautiful aspect of the new covenant we'll see now:

4. Jesus embodies the new covenant, continually ministering its promises to/for us! a. "sat down at right hand" (v. 1)

i. No priest ever sat on the job! There were no chairs in the tabernacle. The only one "seated" was God on what was called the mercy seat above the Ark of the Covenant.

1. Heb 10:11- "Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins."

2. It was a working ministry, never ending as sin never ended and God's wrath was never satisfied by animals' death

ii. Right hand= sign of honor and power

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"serves" (8:2,6)= λειτουργός (~liturgy)= In classical Gk- "one who

discharges a public office at his own expense. That is, "a servant (Jesus) of the state (God), for the people (us); at his own expense (cross)."

This is the big news of the new cov! It's why it's called the "gospel"= "good news"! We don't have to keep sacrificing; Jesus is our sacrifice and He gave + continues to give forgiveness from the very throne of God! Moreover, the NT says we are seated with Christ on high! (Eph 2:6) This news would've floored the ancient Jews + Cts receiving this news!! And Jesus was always God's plan!

1 Pet 1:20 He was chosen before the creation of the world Rev 13:8 He's…the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world. Col 1:15 He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation

His plan just had a long time span and several steps. Apply: Come into the New Covenant!! "God, be my God. I believe Jesus lived a perfect life for me, but died to pay for my sin and guilt. I don't deserve to come to you, but I do, Oh I do!, because He paid my debt, set me free from sin and shame, and gives me new life in Him. Please forgive me; live in my heart and mind; make me new; bring me into your new covenant." And God promises He will! It's interesting that Israel's tribes all were allotted land like sons are allotted portions of inheritance. But Levites- the tribe of priests- weren't given such an allotment. Instead, God said "I will be your inheritance" (Num 18:20). Now, today, Jesus became our eternal High Priest of a New Covenant, and He calls us "priests" in His New Kingdom (1 Pe 2:9)… Our inheritance as children of God adopted by Christ's work is God Himself!