Remember our motto:
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY, that’s the issue.

And to put our beliefs ahead of the Scriptures is to really call into question the Word of God and
make God out to be a liar.

We are now going to look at some New Testament Scripture that address the Old Covenant, (the 10 Commandments) lets see what the New Testament has to say.
Paul here is going to be talking to those that had the New Covenant. However many were still operating under the Old Covenant system / reverting back to the works of the Old Covenant - the Law.

Interesting because that is something that man always tries to do, adding works to try and justify themselves approved of Salvation.
The flesh nature of man struggles with Salvation by Grace alone, so the flesh sets out "doing things" thereby justifying itself worthy of Salvation. The flesh uses the quote "faith without works is dead" to justify "good" works; however this adds nothing to Salvation. Works come out of relationship with God; works don’t establish relationship with God.

Our works should not be works of the law but of Love, more on this later.

However the world is full of sincere people doing things "FOR" God but are they doing it "IN" God.

Now on to the topic at hand: the New and Old Covenant;

2 Corinthians 3:1 – 4:6

2 Corinthians 3:1 Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some others, epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? 3:2 You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3:3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.

Here we see the fulfillment of Jer 31:31, note in 2 Cor 3:3 Not on stone but on their hearts through the Spirit of the living God! We have a new confidence because God has given us a new type of relationship, not on tablets of stone BUT now reaching in and CHANGING mans heart. Where the Old Covenant didn’t help us, it just left us HELPLESS, doing its job of condemning and requiring sacrificial atonement thus leaving man in need of a Saviour. The Saviour who would pay the ultimate Sacrifice and make final atonement for man.

Continuing the Corinthian text:
2 Corinthians 3:3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written
not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on TABLETS of STONE
but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. 3:4 And we have such trust
through Christ toward God. 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to
think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God,
3:6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the NEW COVENANT, not of the
letter but of the Spirit; for the letter KILLS, but the Spirit gives life.
3:7 But if the MINISTRY of death, written and engraved on STONES, WAS (past
tense) glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at
the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was
PASSING AWAY,

3:8 how much MORE will the ministry of the Spirit come in glory? 3:9 For if
there WAS glory in the ministry of CONDEMNATION, much more does the ministry
of justification abound in glory! 3:10 Indeed, what once HAD glory has LOST
its glory BECAUSE of the GREATER glory; 3:11 for if what was SET ASIDE came
through glory, much more has the permanent come in glory! 3:12 Since, then,
we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, 3:13 not like Moses, who
put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end
of the glory that WAS being SET ASIDE. 3:14 But their minds were hardened.
Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the READING of the OLD COVENANT,
that same VEIL is STILL THERE, since ONLY in Christ is it SET ASIDE. 3:15
Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a VEIL lies over their
minds; 3:16 but when one TURNS TO the Lord, the VEIL is REMOVED. 3:17 Now
the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
freedom.

Quick summary: Verses 7-17.
The Covenant that came on stone came with Glory but that glory faded.
Note the tablets of stone HAD glory it was a ministry of condemnation, it
brought death, also that THE TABLETS OF STONE ARE CALLED THE OLD
COVENANT IN VERSE: 14!
And when a man turns to the LORD the veil is taken away! Continuing in this
theme the next verse shows the contrast between OLD being (condemning, verse 7) and
NEW (Holy Spirit v16-17):"And where the Spirit of the Lord is liberty".

Does it say "And where the Spirit of the Lord is there (LAW? NO!)… LIBERTY! Amen!

3:18 And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as
though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from
one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.

When we come to the Lord there is not Law but Liberty.
The Old Covenant Law that binds, and is condemning, it focuses on condemning man as guilty, however the Spirit changes mans heart and appropriates, that in Christ, there is now no condemnation.
Note also that when we "behold Jesus"/ come to the Lord we are being transformed into the same image from Glory to Glory.
This appears not to be so under the Old Covenant.

Re: verse 18 on liberty: We do not use our liberty in a bad way for Paul says "do not use your freedom in Christ as an opportunity for the Flesh". (Gal 5:13)

Since we are not looking at Moses any more (The Law, note that the reading of
Moses is the reading of the Law). Since we are not looking at the law (Moses) any more,
what are we looking at? What is the New Glory? Lets look at 2 Corinthians 4:1-6

2 Corinthians. 4:1 Therefore, since it is by God's mercy that we are engaged in this
ministry, we do not lose heart. 4:2 We have renounced the shameful things
that one hides; we refuse to practice cunning or to falsify God's word; but
by the open statement of the truth we commend ourselves to the conscience of
everyone in the sight of God. 4:3 And even if our gospel is VEILED, it is
veiled to those who are perishing. 4:4 In their case the god of this world
has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light
of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
4:5 For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord
and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake. 4:6 For it is the God who
said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give
the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

In verses 5&6 We Preach Christ and the Glory and Light IS Jesus. Also note the words "the
GLORY in the Face of Jesus" as opposed to the former glory in Moses and in
context Paul is talking about the 2 tablets of stone! Paul was just talking about this in the previous paragraphs that Moses glory was fading, had faded, and gives us here the answer to what is the surpassing glory.
We look to Jesus not Moses. Where Jesus is preached not Moses (preaching Moses is symbolic of preaching the 10 Commandments the Law)


Let’s summarize a few points FROM THE SCRIPTURES: The Covenant given to
Moses IS specifically the 10 Commandments. (see message 2)

Paul in these Scriptures is showing the difference between the New and Old Covenant.

Paul states that he is a minister of the New Covenant in (3:6). Paul shows the fruit of the Old Covenant in the table above.

How do we know it is the Old Covenant that Paul is talking about? Well Paul identifies it as that which was a ministry of death engraved on stone (3:6) its obvious what was engraved on stone the 10 Commandments and then specifically identifies what he is talking about and quotes it as "the Old Covenant" in (3:14). Scripture clearly identifies that the Old Covenant is the 10 Commandments.

Can the New Covenant be the SAME as the Old Covenant but NOW on our hearts?
If so then it would still bring: death, condemnation, kill, have no glory, be fading, and a veil that keeps you from seeing Christ.

How can the content of New be exactly the same as the Old Covenant, the Old is fading (3:7 & 3:13), has no glory (3:9 & 3:10) whereas the New is Permanent (3:11) and is MORE glorious (3:9 & 3:11).

Jeremiah 31: 31: "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will
make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. -
31:32 "NOT ACCORDING to the COVENANT that I made with their fathers in the
day that I took them by the hand TO LED THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT.

What Covenant did God make after he led them out of Egypt? The Mosaic Covenant and 6 Scriptures confirm this specifically as the 10 Commandments as we have seen the in message 2.

The scripture in Jeremiah 31:31says NOT according to the Old Covenant.
Some translations say "NOT LIKE" the Old Covenant.

What is portrayed today by some is "VERY like", essentially in content exactly the SAME.

Who do we believe? People’s renditions of what they believe (sincerely) or
what the BIBLE actually says.

Do we NOT question people’s sincere beliefs, and then QUESTION the integrity of the BIBLE?
NO! The Bible is very CLEAR on what it is saying, despite the earnest genuine beliefs and teachings of some.
If a dispute or error arises, the error is not on the side of the Bible but rather on the people.

Today how can some "Christians" attempt to keep the 10 Commandments, and condemn or
question other "Christians" for not keeping them, when Scripturally it is:

Not I say this, BUT THE WORD.
New Covenant Christians have very valid reasons for not keeping the sign of that Covenant "the Saturday Sabbath" from a Scriptural point of view.
Remembering that the sign of the Covenant God made with HIS people that he took out of Egypt is the SABBATH.
As New Covenant believers we are no longer under that Covenant anymore. So why keep the sign of a Covenant that has faded, has no glory, is put aside in Christ and that we
as "New Covenant Christians" are no longer under.


Remember our motto?
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

To put our beliefs ahead of the Scriptures is to really call into question the Word of God.



Another KEY ground rule to our discussion:
Let CLEAR text determine the meaning of UNCLEAR text.
Meaning the book of Revelations and its (Speculations) of types, interpreted meanings are to be determined by clear text.
Not that speculation on interpreted meanings determines what clear text means.

The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible.
Clear determines unclear not the other way around.

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