The Lord Jesus Christ gave baptism and communion as the outward and visible signs of the new covenant; and he gave the Holy Spirit as the inward and invisible seal of the new covenant.
JAVA RANCH
THURSDAYS @ 7PM
Come join us at Java Ranch as we explore the meaning of the signs and seal of new covenant grace.
As we have learned, the eternal covenant was sworn by God in eternity, secured by the blood of Jesus at the cross, and sealed by the Spirit in history. God is not just a covenant-maker, he is also a covenant-keeper.
JAVA RANCH
THURSDAYS @ 7PM
The Lord Jesus is the messenger of the covenant (Mal.3:1). He gave baptism and communion as the visible signs of the new covenant; and he gave the Holy Spirit as the invisible seal of the new covenant.
Come join us as we explore the meaning of the signs and seal of the new covenant.
For the past several months we have been studying the the eternal covenant of God. As we have seen the eternal covenant was sworn by God in eternity, secured by the blood of Jesus at the cross, and sealed by the Spirit in history. God is not just a covenant-maker, he is also a covenant-keeper.
JAVA RANCH
THURSDAYS @ 7PM
This week our conversation will center on Hebrews 11. We will see the covenant structure of history – from creation to crucifixion and beyond. Also, we will see that there is only one way of salvation. From beginning to end God saves sinners by grace through faith.
The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith. As it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Next week we will look at the Signs of the New Covenant — water, bread, and wine.
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Notes on Covenant Structure — Hebrews 11 – The GhostWriter’s Exhortation
Come join us for tabletalk over coffee and scripture.
God is the author of our salvation and the perfecter of our faith. The eternal covenant was sworn by God in eternity, secured by the blood of Jesus at the cross, and sealed with the Spirit in history.
Our conversation will center on the following texts for the next two or three tabletalks. Acts 7; Acts 13; Hebrews 11
The covenant of grace – from creation to crucifixion to consummation — promises that God saves sinners by grace through faith. From first to last, start to finish, there is only one way of salvation.
Christ alone is the sacrifice for our sins and the Savior of our souls.
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Notes on Covenant Structure
+ Acts 7 – Stephen’s defense
+ Acts 13 – Paul’s sermon
+ Hebrews 11 – Writer’s exhortation
Marks of the New Covenant
Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:8-13; Hebrews 10:14-18
(1) Spiritual – the new covenant is initiated and perfected by the triune God alone
(2) Communal – not for individuals only, but for individuals in community with other individuals
(3) Legal and Evangelical – the word of God is put in our minds and written on the hearts by the Holy Spirit
(4) Relational – God is our God, and we are his people
(5) Familial – All covenant members (including infant children and elderly adults) shall know God
(6) Moral – God forgives and forgets our sins by the grace of Christ’s shed blood
(7) Eternal – God will remember our sins no more forever. The new covenant will never be made null and void.
The prophets of God played a crucial role in shaping the theology and worldview of God’s covenant people. They preached the word of God as historians and theologians: “That is what happened; this is what it means.”
Also, they prepared God’s people for the coming of Christ by reminding them of God‘s everlasting covenant. They preached the word of God as covenant theologians.
Here are a few examples of the way the prophets appealed to God’s covenant promises — from Adam to David — explained them, and applied them to God’s people before, during, and after the Exile. In this way the prophets prepared the world for the arrival of Jesus the Christ — the Last Adam, the seed of woman, the ark of peace, the son of promise, the Prophet, and the King.
ADAMIC COVENANT – GENESIS 3:14-20
In the Garden of Eden God pronounced a series of curses on the serpent, sinful humanity, and the rest of creation. Then God promised to send a savior into the world to crush the serpent’s head and to reverse the curse of sin and death. The prophets connected their hearers to the covenant promises.
Hosea 6:6-7 – God desires grace not works. “But like Adam they transgressed the covenant; there they dealt faithlessly with me.” In Adam’s fall we sinned all. Israel transgressed the covenant when their father Adam transgressed the covenant. (See Romans 5:12-21.)
Isaiah 7:14-15 – The Lord God gave a sign: a virgin shall be with child. The seed of woman would come into the world just as God promised.
Isaiah 9:6-7 – To us a son is born, a child is given. The ancient seed-of-woman promise is fulfilled in the son born of the virgin.
Isaiah 24:4-6 – The curse of sin and death infects the whole world and makes it formless, chaotic, and desolate. Creation groans and mourns under the sin curse “waiting for the sons of God to be revealed” (Rom.8:19-22).
Isaiah 49:1-23 – The Anointed One is the Covenant of Peace, a light to the nations, the seed of woman. He will reverse the curse and establish salvation.
Isaiah 65:17-25 – The Christ will establish the new heavens and new earth. Eden will be renewed and paradise will be restored.
NOAHIC COVENANT – GENESIS 9:18-18
God established a covenant of peace with the whole creation in the days of Noah. The prophets re-iterated God’s covenant promises and explained that God would (re)create the heavens and the earth.
Hosea 2:18 – God will make a covenant of peace with the whole creation – beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. God will break the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and make his creatures lie down in safety.
Isaiah 54:9-10 – As it was in the days of Noah, so God will (re)establish his covenant of peace with his people.
Isaiah 66:22-23 – God will establish the new heavens and new earth for his covenant people and their children forever.
Ezekiel 34:25 – God will make a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts from the land, so that his people may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.
Ezekiel 37:26 – God will make a covenant of peace with his people. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And he will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set his sanctuary in their midst forevermore. (Compare Revelation 22)
ABRAHAMIC COVENANT – GEN. 12:2-3; 15:8-18; 17:1-14; 22:15-18
God chose Abraham and called him out of Ur to the promise land. God cut a covenant with Abraham and promised to bless all the nations of the world through him. The gospel was announced to Abraham — that God would justify the Gentiles by faith. The prophets developed the covenant promises to bless the nations.
Micah 7:18-20 God will show the same steadfast love to faithful covenant members that he showed to Abraham the patriarch.
Joel 2:28-29 – God promised to pour out his Spirit on all flesh, not on Jews only, but on Jews and Gentiles. (See the Apostle Peter’s comments in Acts 2 and Acts 11.)
Isaiah 2:1-4 – In the latter days the nations will flow into the covenant community for salvation and worship.
Isaiah 42:1-9 – A savior, born of a woman, will be the signal light of salvation for all the nations of the world.
Isaiah 51:1-3 – God will comfort his people and keep all his covenant promises made to Abraham.
Jeremiah 33:25-26 – The same God who established a covenant of creation will keep his covenant of redemption. God is a faithful covenant-keeper. All the promises made from David to Abraham will be realized.
MOSAIC COVENANT – EXODUS 19:5; 24:4-8; 34:27-28
God established his Law in Israel to make the nation a light to the world. The prophets reminded the people of the Law of Moses and its covenant of blessing and curses: faithful obedience resulted in blessing; faithless disobedience resulted in curses. And the prophets reminded the people of God’s covenant grace: God will save his people from sin and death.
Haggai 2:4-6 – God will shake off the shadows – physical temple and political throne – in order to establish realities – his eternal kingdom and sanctuary. See Heb. 12:26-29.
Isaiah 63:9-14 – God’s remembered Moses and his covenant community, therefore mercy triumphed over judgment.
Daniel 9:11-14 – Israel broke God’s covenant, so the covenant curses were poured out on the whole nation. They spent seventy years in Babylonian Exile.
Micah 6:3-8 – God is the Savior of his people. Covenant grace requires fruit of the Spirit, not works of the flesh.
Malachi 4:4-6 – This text marks a transition from the Law of Moses to the Gospel of Christ. Christ is the end-goal of the Law; the Law is a tutor that leads us to Christ.
[Malachi 2:4-9 – God established a covenant of life, peace, and reverence with the Levitical priests. They were bound by covenant to teach the word of God to Israel.]
DAVIDIC COVENANT – 1 SAMUEL 7:11-16; PSALM 89:3-4; PSALM 110
God promised to anoint an eternal king from David’s line and to establish his kingdom. The prophets re-iterated God’s promises and gave the people hope for the future. The future king deliver God’s people from all enemies and establish peace forever.
Amos 9:11-12 – God promised to restore David’s fallen tent so that the remnant of mankind and the nations may seek the Lord. (Compare Acts 15:13-19)
Isaiah 9:6-7 – The son born of the virgin will rule over the world on David’s throne.
Isaiah 55:3 – The Christ will sit on David’s throne and rule nations known and unknown. He will rule over Jews and Gentiles.
Jeremiah 33:14-22 – As surely as God is a covenant keeper as Creator, so God is a covenant keeper as Savior. The Christ will reign on David’s throne.
Ezekiel 37:24-28 – The Messiah will be the shepherd-king of Israel and he will establish an everlasting covenant of peace with his people.
Tonight we will continue our study of God’s covenant with King David.
God promised to establish his throne and kingdom through one of David’s offspring — forever.
How did God keep his covenant promise to David? Why does it matter to christians?
Our tabletalk will be based on texts from the Old and New testaments. Click here for the list.
CLICK HERE FOR A MAP TO JAVA RANCH.
Here are a few sketches from a recent tabletalk at Java Ranch. We were discussing the Mosaic Covenant from Exodus 12-14.
1. Passover – God established the Jewish calendar on the Passover Event. It marked a new beginning.
2. Households – The paschal lamb was sacrificed for the whole family. All covenant members from oldest to youngest who were able to eat solid food ate the passover meal. The covenant meal was/is also a community meal, not to be taken in isolation. Individualistic worship was prohibited.
3. Paschal lamb – A male without defect or blemish. The lamb represented the Lord Jesus Christ (the true paschal lamb that was sacrificed for the sins of God’s people, 1 Cor. 5:9). It was slaughtered and the blood was painted on doorframes of house with hyssop. The flesh was roasted over fire. This conjures up images of the Lamb of God enduring the fury of wrath and “descending into hell” (Apostles’ Creed) for our sins.
4. Signs and Symbols – Blood (12:13); circumcision (12:48); unleavened bread (13:9); redeem firstborn son (13:16). All these signs and symbols point to Christ Jesus.
5. Catechesis – Fathers are commanded to catechize (instruct) their children, to teach them the word of God and explain what it means. Explain the meaning of the festivals such as Passover (12:26-27), Unleavened Bread (13:8), Consecration (13:14-15). A good Question and Answer catechism encourages a living conversation between fathers and children.
6. Crossing the Red Sea – The Israelites were baptized in water (cloud and Red Sea) into Moses unto salvation. The Egyptians were baptized in the same water unto destruction. What was the difference? One was water-baptized along with the Holy Spirit (as symbolized by the strong wind) and the other was not (1 Cor. 10:1-3; 12:13).
Note: Water-baptism is a human responsibility; Spirit-baptism is divine sovereignty and responsibility. We cannot cause ourselves or anyone else to be Spirit-baptized. That work is performed by God alone; it is God’s prerogative to give the gift or not.
7. Wasteland – God was not pleased with the majority of the Israelites who escaped Egypt and were baptized into Moses. Many Israelites were unbelievers before baptism (Exo. 14:10-12) and continued to be unbelievers after baptism (Exo. 15:24; 16:2-3; 17:2-3). Many Israelites were just baptized unbelievers, aka “Egyptians-at-heart,” and they perished in the wasteland without faith. God was not pleased with them because they did not believe him. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”
8. Apostasy and Warnings – All Israel experienced the power of God, tasted the spiritual food and drink, and shared life together in covenant community, yet many fell away and persished in unbelief. They walked by sight not by faith. Those who perished were Hebrews-on-the-surface, but Egyptians-at-heart. They were Jews outwardly but not inwardly.
A biblical principle states: not all national Israel are true spiritual Israel. Likewise, not all the water-baptized are Spirit-baptized; not all “christians” are true christians. Do not presume on God’s grace. If you think you are standing firm, take heed lest you fall (1 Cor.10:11-13).
9. Sacraments – The covenant sign and covenant meal create family solidarity.
Circumcision foreshadowed Baptism. Jewish covenant households were marked by circumcision. All the males from the least to the greatest bore the sign of the covenant in their bodies. Christian covenant households should be marked by baptism. All the family members, male and female, from the least to the greatest, should be marked with the sign of the new covenant. No uncircumcised male was a covenant member under the old covenant, and no unbaptized person is a covenant member under the new covenant.
Note: Abraham and all the males in his household from the least to the greatest were circumcised. Those who were not were counted as covenant-breakers. According to Paul, all Israel from the least to the greatest were baptized into Moses (1 Cor. 10:1-3). And Paul himself baptized whole households wherever he established churches (1 Cor. 1:14-16; 16:15).
The Passover Meal foreshadowed the Lord’s Supper. Since old covenant households were commanded to eat the passover meal together, it seems fitting that all members new covenant households should eat the Lord’s supper together provided they are (1) able to eat solid food (2) able to believe the gospel (3) able to examine themselves (4) able to perceive Christ in the supper (5) baptized. As scripture says, “We must keep the festival for Christ our paschal lamb has been slain.”
Foreigners, aliens, and uncircumcised males were prohibited from eating Passover. The same rule applies to the Lord’s supper. No covenant outsiders (unbelievers and unbaptized persons) should be permitted to eat the bread or drink the wine because they are not in fellowship with Christ the Lord.
JMT 
