Recently I showed a passage from the Old Testament to a friend of mine. It got her very upset, because it made God sound angry and vengeful. Her picture of God is the New Testament idea of a God of Light, a God of Love. But why COULN"T a God of Love get angry? Why couldn't a God of Light be vengeful?
Just look at the thing that the Old Testament said got God most upset. It was His people worshipping foreign gods and sacrificing their children to them. Over and over and over He told them not to do it, yet the practice just continued for generations even up to Jesus' time. In his time babies were burnt alive to serve Molech. There were even loopholes in the law so people could get away with it. If you had the power to go back in time wouldn't YOU try and stop this practice? Wouldn't You get angry and frustrated if no matter WHAT you did it didn't stop? The God of Love has compassion and would be upset at such horrible suffering. He would get angry and frustrated. I could totally relate to such a God. So why can't God get angry?
Friday, April 17, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
The Covenant of Paul: Series Part 1 of 3
Paul's Covenant
Paul taught that the death of Jesus brought about a New Covenant that canceled the one made between God and the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. He said:
Colossians 2:13-16 (NIV)
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.
Colossians 2:20-21(NIV)
Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"?
But Jesus taught:
Matthew 5:17(New International Version)
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them
Matthew 5:18 (New International Version)
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law
Matthew 5:19-20
Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands [of the Law] will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of
heaven.
Luke 16:16-17(NIV)
"The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.
How could Paul not know this? Where did he get his teachings from? Paul says:
Galatians 1:11-20 (NIV)
I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord's brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie.
Galatians 2:1-2, 9
Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles.
9James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.
So he wasn't taught by Jesus before the crucifixion, and aside from the fifteen days he spent with Peter he had no instruction from Jesus' original apostles. So did his teachings agree with theirs? Look at what happened at the Council at Jerusalem:
Acts 15:1-3, 5 The Council at Jerusalem
Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: "Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved." This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.
5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses."
They said this because at the time, Christianity was a JEWISH sect.
Now, if they believed that the old law had been set aside and the new one canceled out the old, they never would have said this!They would have abandoned the Law themselves, not tried to recruit others INTO it! Of course the apostles James, Peter and John didn't agree with this, but some of the others might have.
After much discussion Peter, Jesus' chosen leader of the apostles, agreed with Paul and decided that Gentiles didn't have to get circumcised or obey the Law of Moses.
Did this mean that he agreed that the Law was no longer in effect? No, the decision was merely whether Gentile Christians should convert to Judaism or not. Does that mean he decided Gentiles were apart from the Law? No. Under Jewish Law, Gentiles have a different set of rules to obey. They are known as Noahide Laws:
Do Not Kill
Do Not Commit Adultery.
Do Not Steal
Establish Laws and Courts of Justice.
Don't Eat Flesh Taken From a Live Animal.
Do Not Commit Blasphemy.
Do not worship idols
or possibly:
In another baraita the seven Noachian prohibitions are: (1) idolatry, (2) adultery, (3) murder, (4) robbery, (5) eating of a limb cut from a living animal, (6) the emasculation of animals, (7) the pairing of animals of different species (Sanh. 56b).
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=113&letter=L&search=laws%20of%20noah
In fact James, speaking on behalf of the Council, only gave the Gentiles four.
Acts 15:19-21
"It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath."
They didn't include the rules about not killing and stealing because they were obvious and taught in the Synagogue every Sabbath. And it was obvious from this and other passages that Gentile Christians did go to Synagogue.
So very clearly, the decision of the council was not that the law was repealed, but it concerned whether non- Jewish Christians should convert to Judaism or whether they should remain under the Noahide Laws alone. The decision was that they should stay Gentiles.
That didn't stop people from trying to convert the Gentile Christians, however. Paul had endless problems with this especially where the Galatians and Corinthians were concerned. They were under huge pressure to convert by the “super-apostles”. He doesn't mention names, but it does sound like they could very well have been some of Jesus original apostles, because they taught the Corinthians to “turn the other cheek”, a teaching Paul had obviously never heard of. Indeed he mocked them for this:
2 Corinthians 11:19-21(New International Version)
You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or pushes himself forward or slaps you in the face. To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!
It is in his letters that you can see how Paul felt about the Law. Being Jewish, he had to obey thousands of Laws that affected every facet of his daily life- his work, his relations with others, what food he ate, how he prepared it, what clothes he wore- the list was endless and the punishments severe. Eating pork brought the death penalty, for instance. He clearly hated being subject to them. Here's some things he said about the Law:
All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, (Galatians 3:10), and burdened by the yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1), the regulations “ indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence”(Colossians 2:23). He even said the Law caused him to sin:
Romans 7:7-9 (NIV)
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet."But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
Paul must have envied the Gentiles for their freedom from rules, their privileges of being able to eat and drink what they liked, and their ability to rely on their consciences when deciding what to do.
Romans 2:13-15 (NIV)
For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.)
When he spoke of Hagar and Sarah, he give sit a twist where it is the Jews who are the slaves, and the Gentiles who are free.
Galatians 4:21-26, 30-31 Hagar and Sarah
Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise.
These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.
30But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
He's saying the Jews are the slaves to the Law, but the Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles are free!
Romans 7:6
But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
Romans 10:4
Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
So, his way to escape these rules was to teach that the Old Covenant was over, the new one in place. One to set people free. One to set HIM free from the rules and regulations and rituals of his own religion. His interpretation of the new covenant allowed this to happen. The old Law was canceled! You were free to act on your conscience and live in Jesus example. You were justified by faith, not by acts of obedience. Believe in Jesus and you were saved from the curse of the Law. He wanted the freedom of the Gentiles, combined with the promise of blessings given to Jews, for everyone on earth. Even today that is the promise of Christianity. But is this the New Covenant that Jesus was talking about?
See next article down. Or click on Covenant of Jesus
For the third post in the series click on The Real New Covenant
...............................................................................................
note all quotes are from New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
as sourced from
http://www.biblegateway.com
Also, at the present time the first set of rules I mentioned are considered the true Laws Of Noah.
Paul taught that the death of Jesus brought about a New Covenant that canceled the one made between God and the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. He said:
Colossians 2:13-16 (NIV)
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.
Colossians 2:20-21(NIV)
Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"?
But Jesus taught:
Matthew 5:17(New International Version)
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them
Matthew 5:18 (New International Version)
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law
Matthew 5:19-20
Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands [of the Law] will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of
heaven.
Luke 16:16-17(NIV)
"The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.
How could Paul not know this? Where did he get his teachings from? Paul says:
Galatians 1:11-20 (NIV)
I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord's brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie.
Galatians 2:1-2, 9
Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles.
9James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.
So he wasn't taught by Jesus before the crucifixion, and aside from the fifteen days he spent with Peter he had no instruction from Jesus' original apostles. So did his teachings agree with theirs? Look at what happened at the Council at Jerusalem:
Acts 15:1-3, 5 The Council at Jerusalem
Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: "Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved." This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.
5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses."
They said this because at the time, Christianity was a JEWISH sect.
Now, if they believed that the old law had been set aside and the new one canceled out the old, they never would have said this!They would have abandoned the Law themselves, not tried to recruit others INTO it! Of course the apostles James, Peter and John didn't agree with this, but some of the others might have.
After much discussion Peter, Jesus' chosen leader of the apostles, agreed with Paul and decided that Gentiles didn't have to get circumcised or obey the Law of Moses.
Did this mean that he agreed that the Law was no longer in effect? No, the decision was merely whether Gentile Christians should convert to Judaism or not. Does that mean he decided Gentiles were apart from the Law? No. Under Jewish Law, Gentiles have a different set of rules to obey. They are known as Noahide Laws:
Do Not Kill
Do Not Commit Adultery.
Do Not Steal
Establish Laws and Courts of Justice.
Don't Eat Flesh Taken From a Live Animal.
Do Not Commit Blasphemy.
Do not worship idols
or possibly:
In another baraita the seven Noachian prohibitions are: (1) idolatry, (2) adultery, (3) murder, (4) robbery, (5) eating of a limb cut from a living animal, (6) the emasculation of animals, (7) the pairing of animals of different species (Sanh. 56b).
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=113&letter=L&search=laws%20of%20noah
In fact James, speaking on behalf of the Council, only gave the Gentiles four.
Acts 15:19-21
"It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath."
They didn't include the rules about not killing and stealing because they were obvious and taught in the Synagogue every Sabbath. And it was obvious from this and other passages that Gentile Christians did go to Synagogue.
So very clearly, the decision of the council was not that the law was repealed, but it concerned whether non- Jewish Christians should convert to Judaism or whether they should remain under the Noahide Laws alone. The decision was that they should stay Gentiles.
That didn't stop people from trying to convert the Gentile Christians, however. Paul had endless problems with this especially where the Galatians and Corinthians were concerned. They were under huge pressure to convert by the “super-apostles”. He doesn't mention names, but it does sound like they could very well have been some of Jesus original apostles, because they taught the Corinthians to “turn the other cheek”, a teaching Paul had obviously never heard of. Indeed he mocked them for this:
2 Corinthians 11:19-21(New International Version)
You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or pushes himself forward or slaps you in the face. To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!
It is in his letters that you can see how Paul felt about the Law. Being Jewish, he had to obey thousands of Laws that affected every facet of his daily life- his work, his relations with others, what food he ate, how he prepared it, what clothes he wore- the list was endless and the punishments severe. Eating pork brought the death penalty, for instance. He clearly hated being subject to them. Here's some things he said about the Law:
All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, (Galatians 3:10), and burdened by the yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1), the regulations “ indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence”(Colossians 2:23). He even said the Law caused him to sin:
Romans 7:7-9 (NIV)
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet."But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
Paul must have envied the Gentiles for their freedom from rules, their privileges of being able to eat and drink what they liked, and their ability to rely on their consciences when deciding what to do.
Romans 2:13-15 (NIV)
For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.)
When he spoke of Hagar and Sarah, he give sit a twist where it is the Jews who are the slaves, and the Gentiles who are free.
Galatians 4:21-26, 30-31 Hagar and Sarah
Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise.
These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.
30But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
He's saying the Jews are the slaves to the Law, but the Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles are free!
Romans 7:6
But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
Romans 10:4
Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
So, his way to escape these rules was to teach that the Old Covenant was over, the new one in place. One to set people free. One to set HIM free from the rules and regulations and rituals of his own religion. His interpretation of the new covenant allowed this to happen. The old Law was canceled! You were free to act on your conscience and live in Jesus example. You were justified by faith, not by acts of obedience. Believe in Jesus and you were saved from the curse of the Law. He wanted the freedom of the Gentiles, combined with the promise of blessings given to Jews, for everyone on earth. Even today that is the promise of Christianity. But is this the New Covenant that Jesus was talking about?
See next article down. Or click on Covenant of Jesus
For the third post in the series click on The Real New Covenant
...............................................................................................
note all quotes are from New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
as sourced from
http://www.biblegateway.com
Also, at the present time the first set of rules I mentioned are considered the true Laws Of Noah.
The Covenant of Jesus: Series Part 2 of 3
New Angle on the Covenant of Jesus
Matthew 26, Mark 14 and Luke 22 all mention a “blood of the Covenant” at the Last Supper.
For instance Luke 22:20 says:
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
So what does this mean? The Jewish Encyclopedia says this about a blood covenant:
An agreement between two contracting parties, originally sealed with blood.
Jesus said he was making such a contract with his disciples. Jesus was to give his life for his followers,
but Jesus made it quite clear that his followers also had to give their life for HIM!
John 10:14-15
"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep
Mark 8:35-36
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?
He had to suffer, but so did they.
Matthew 5:11
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me
Matthew 23:34
Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.
By symbolically eating his flesh and drinking his blood his disciples were accepting the conditions and obligations of this contract. (see my post on this xxxxx) But what were the terms of this agreement?
Well, usually contracts are a case where if you do x I'll do y. . There are obligations on both sides. For instance, in the covenant between God and the Israelites, the deal was, IF they worshiped God and kept all His commandments then He would give them land and lots of descendants and they would live in peace. If they didn't then the contract would be broken. Which it was.
So, what did Jesus want his disciples to do? First of all, they had to leave their families behind
John 12:26
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be.
Mark 10:29-30
"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.
and give up all their wealth and possessions and give them to the poor.
Luke 12:32-33
"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor.
Luke 14:33
In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Then they had to tell the sinners
Matthew 9:12-13
On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
of all Israel
Mathew 10:5-6
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
Matthew 15:24
He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel."
(and later the whole world)
Mark 16:15
He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
that Jesus was the Messiah
John 20:31
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Luke 24:44
He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms."
and that they should repent
Luke 5:32
I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
and be baptized
Matthew 28:19
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Mark 16:16
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
and obey his commandments
Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
so their sins would be forgiven
Luke 24:46-48
He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem
because Israel was going to be destroyed by the Gentiles
Luke 21:23-24
There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
and then after a while Judgment Day would come.
Matthew 25:31-34, 41, 46
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Matthew 23:33-36
"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
After that, the new kingdom of God would be established.
Luke 4:43
But he said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent."
Mark 1:14-15
After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
Luke 9:27
I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."
This would happen within their generation.
Mark 13:26-27, 30
"At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
Mark 9:1
And he said to them, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power."
(for more quotes on this go to: Is the Second Coming Late? )
He also wanted them to tell the people that only those who did repent and did obey his commandments and did acknowledge him as Christ would get to go to heaven,
Luke 13:5
I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."
But what were the commandments that these people were supposed to obey?
First of all, they had to to be diligent in following the Law.
Matthew 5:17-18
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 19:17
"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
Matthew 23:1-3
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you
They also had to follow the spirit of the Law. He wanted them to worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:23-24
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
They had to love God,and love all people as well,
Matthew 22:36-40
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
They had to love them even if they were mean.
Luke 6:27-31
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
The Sermon on the Mount said they had to thirst for righteousness,
Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
JewishEncyclopedia describes the Jewish idea of Righteousness in this way:
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=294&letter=R&search=righteousness
The Hebrew word for righteousness is tseh'-dek, tzedek, Gesenius's Strong's Concordance:6664—righteous, integrity, equity, justice, straightness. The root of tseh'-dek is tsaw-dak', Gesenius's Strong:6663—upright, just, straight, innocent, true, sincere. It is best understood as the product of upright, moral action in accordance with some form of divine plan.
After all, righteousness is a matter of relationships - with God, with things, and with other people. The biblical definition of righteousness involves the inherent quality of God. In one instance the word means being right; in another it is used to mean doing right; in still another case it means putting right.
So they had to be be meek.
Matthew 5:5
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Humble
Matthew 23:12
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
pure of heart,
Matthew 5:8
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Luke 18:15-17
People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."
full of faith
Mark 11:22-23
"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.
Merciful
Luke 6:36
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
and peacemakers.
Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
They had to be servants to one another and to others without expecting a reward.
Mark 10:43-44
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.
Luke 17:7-10
"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"
They should do the will of their Father in heaven,
Matthew 7:21
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
do to others what they would want others to do for them,
Matthew 7:12
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
forgive people with all their heart no matter how often they got hurt,
Matthew 6:14-15
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Luke 17:4
If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him."
Matthew 18:34-35
In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."
secretly pray,
Matthew 6:6
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
fast,
Luke 5:33-35
They said to him, "John's disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking."
Jesus answered, "Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast."
Matthew 6:17-18
But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
and give to the poor
Mark 10:21
Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven
Matthew 6:3-4
But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
and do other good deeds
Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
John 5:28-29
"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
such as helping strangers in need.
Luke 14:12-14
Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
Matthew 25:37-40
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
They shouldn't divorce, remarry, or marry a divorced woman,
Matthew 5:31-32
"It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.
Matthew 19:4-6
"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female, and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
They shouldn't swear oaths,
Matthew 5:33-37
"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
They shouldn't call themselves Rabbi, Father or teacher.
Matthew 23:8-10
"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.
They shouldn't judge or condemn anyone,
Luke 6:37
"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
They shouldn't cause anyone to sin
Matthew 18:6-7
But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!
They shouldn't be mean
Matthew 5:22
Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
They shouldn't lust.
Matthew 5:28-30
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
They shouldn't be angry,
Matthew 5:22
But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.
and shouldn't have anyone angry at them.
Matthew 5:23-26
"Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
"Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
They shouldn't defend themselves or retaliate when someone's mean to them,
Matthew 5:39-41
But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
and shouldn't hold grudges.
Mark 11:25
And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."
In short, Jesus wanted people to be perfect:
Matthew 5:48
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Not only did their actions have to be perfect, but so did their words
Matthew 12:36-37
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
and their thoughts.
Mark 7:21-23
For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man “unclean”.
.
What did Jesus offer his disciples in return? Well, he couldn't pay them in money, but he did promise them many heavenly blessings. He said that their names would be written in heaven
Luke 9:20
rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
and on the day of judgment he would acknowledge them
Matthew 10:32
"Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.
and they would get eternal life.
John 6:54
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
John 17:2
"Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.
He said they would get to go to paradise
Luke 23:43
Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
where they'd have rooms in heaven prepared for them so they could be with Jesus.
John 14:2-3
2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am
They'd get to feast in heaven with Abraham Isaac and Jacob
Mark 8:11
I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven
Luke 13:15
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God."
in the Kingdom of God
Matthew 25:34
Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
Matthew 13:43
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
and that they'd get to sit on 12 thrones and judge the 12 tribes of Israel.
Matthew 19:27-28
Peter answered him, "We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?"
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Not only that but they'd get to set the rules for heaven and the new kingdom.
Matthew 18:18
"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
Before all this happened. they'd receive the Holy spirit, the spirit of Truth.
John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
Luke 12:11-13
"When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."
They would get wisdom
Luke 21:15
For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
and have the power to forgive sins
John 20:22-23
And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
They'd be born again spiritually as God's children
John 3:5-6
Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.
John 1:12-13
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
They would know God
Matthew 11:27
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
John 17:3
Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
and He would love them
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
John 16:27
No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
and take care of them
Matthew 6:25-34
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.
and keep them safe from the Evil One.
John 17:15
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.
Luke 10:19
I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.
He'd give them whatever they ask for
John 16:23-24
In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
Luke 11:9-10
"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
and they'd be able to perform miracles.
Matthew 10:8
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
Mark 16:17-18
And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
Materially, They'd get hundreds of houses brothers, sisters , parents, children and fields to replace the ones they left behind when they went on this mission.
Mark 10:29-30
"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life
So, with all those promises and obligations spelled out throughout his ministry, the contract was sealed.
Mark 14:22-24
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body."
Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it.
"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them.
Anyone performing the same ritual is also entering into the same contract with the same obligations and the same payment.
John 6:51-58
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever
In summary:
Jesus said "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” The Jewish Encyclopedia says a blood covenant is an agreement between two contracting parties, originally sealed with blood. Jesus said he was making such a contract with his disciples. Jesus was to give his life for his followers, but Jesus made it quite clear that his followers also had to give their life for HIM! He had to suffer, but so did they.
So, what did Jesus want his disciples to do? First of all, they had to leave their families behind and give up all their wealth and possessions and give them to the poor. Then they had to tell the sinners of all Israel (and later the whole world) that Jesus was the Messiah and that they should repent and be baptized and obey his commandments so their sins would be forgiven because Israel was going to be destroyed by the Gentiles and then after a while Judgment Day would come. After that, the New Kingdom of God would be established. This would happen within their generation. He also wanted them to tell the people that only those who did repent and did obey his commandments and did acknowledge him as Christ would get to go to heaven.
But what were the commandments that these people were supposed to obey? First of all, they had to to be diligent in following the Law. They also had to follow the spirit of the Law. He wanted them to worship in spirit and truth. They had to love God, and love all people as well. They had to love them even if they were mean.
The Sermon on the Mount said they had to thirst for righteousness. This meant they had to be be meek, humble, pure of heart, full of faith, merciful and peacemakers. They had to be servants to one another and to others without expecting a reward. They should do the will of their Father in heaven, do to others what they would want others to do for them, forgive people with all their heart no matter how often they got hurt, secretly pray, fast, and give to the poor and do other good deeds such as helping strangers in need. They shouldn't divorce, remarry, or marry a divorced woman, They shouldn't swear oaths, or call themselves Rabbi, Father or Teacher. They shouldn't judge or condemn anyone, or cause anyone to sin. They shouldn't be mean. They shouldn't lust. They shouldn't be angry and shouldn't have anyone angry at them. They shouldn't defend themselves or retaliate when someone's mean to them, and shouldn't hold grudges.
In short, Jesus wanted people to be perfect: Not only did their actions have to be perfect, but so did their words and their thoughts.
What did Jesus offer his disciples in return? Well, he couldn't pay them in money, but he did promise them many heavenly blessings. He said that their names would be written in heaven and on the day of judgment he would acknowledge them and they would get eternal life. He said they would get to go to paradise where they'd have rooms in heaven prepared for them so they could be with Him. They'd get to feast in heaven with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of God and that they'd get to sit on 12 thrones and judge the 12 tribes of Israel Not only that but they'd get to set the rules for heaven and the New Kingdom.
Before all this happened. they'd receive the Holy spirit, the spirit of Truth. They would get wisdom and have the power to forgive sins. They'd be born again spiritually as God's children.They would know God and He would love them and take care of them and keep them safe from the Evil One. He'd give them whatever they ask for and they'd be able to perform miracles. Materially, They'd get hundreds of houses, brothers, sisters , parents, children and fields to replace the ones they left behind when they went on his mission.
So, with all those promises and obligations spelled out throughout his ministry, the contract was sealed. Anyone performing the same ritual is also entering into the same contract with the same obligations and the same payment.
So you see,Jesus' purpose and covenant was so much different than what Paul said it was! Paul said it was easy to be saved, but Jesus said it was almost impossible because if they didn't fulfill their obligations, they forfeited the contract and Jesus would disown them.This meant they would go to hell.
Matthew 7:21-23
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
Matthew 25:41-46
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment
Matthew 19:23-26
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?"
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Matthew 22:14
"For many are invited, but few are chosen."
So did this covenant replace the old one? Not at all. Jesus endorsed the old one and just made it stricter.
Some might say that he broke some of these laws himself, but these were Rabbinical laws or laws that were in dispute.Washing cups and plates were a custom, picking grains of wheat to eat was hardly work, healing on the Sabbath was in dispute because doctors were allowed to work on the Sabbath if it was an emergency and what is more of an emergency than being possessed by a demon? Even the Jewish accounts of Jesus said he was ritually pure at all times. Meaning he was obeying the Law. And if he had to obey it, then why wouldn't everyone else have to? This WAS a new covenant- a new contract, but was it the same as the one mentioned in Jeremiah? My next post in this series will cover that. In the meantime, if I left anything out of this article, let me know!
For Part 1 of the series click on:Covenant of Paul
For Part 3 of the series click on The Real New Covenant
All passages quoted are from Biblegateway:
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
Matthew 26, Mark 14 and Luke 22 all mention a “blood of the Covenant” at the Last Supper.
For instance Luke 22:20 says:
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
So what does this mean? The Jewish Encyclopedia says this about a blood covenant:
An agreement between two contracting parties, originally sealed with blood.
Jesus said he was making such a contract with his disciples. Jesus was to give his life for his followers,
but Jesus made it quite clear that his followers also had to give their life for HIM!
John 10:14-15
"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep
Mark 8:35-36
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?
He had to suffer, but so did they.
Matthew 5:11
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me
Matthew 23:34
Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.
By symbolically eating his flesh and drinking his blood his disciples were accepting the conditions and obligations of this contract. (see my post on this xxxxx) But what were the terms of this agreement?
Well, usually contracts are a case where if you do x I'll do y. . There are obligations on both sides. For instance, in the covenant between God and the Israelites, the deal was, IF they worshiped God and kept all His commandments then He would give them land and lots of descendants and they would live in peace. If they didn't then the contract would be broken. Which it was.
So, what did Jesus want his disciples to do? First of all, they had to leave their families behind
John 12:26
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be.
Mark 10:29-30
"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.
and give up all their wealth and possessions and give them to the poor.
Luke 12:32-33
"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor.
Luke 14:33
In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Then they had to tell the sinners
Matthew 9:12-13
On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
of all Israel
Mathew 10:5-6
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
Matthew 15:24
He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel."
(and later the whole world)
Mark 16:15
He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
that Jesus was the Messiah
John 20:31
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Luke 24:44
He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms."
and that they should repent
Luke 5:32
I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
and be baptized
Matthew 28:19
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Mark 16:16
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
and obey his commandments
Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
so their sins would be forgiven
Luke 24:46-48
He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem
because Israel was going to be destroyed by the Gentiles
Luke 21:23-24
There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
and then after a while Judgment Day would come.
Matthew 25:31-34, 41, 46
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Matthew 23:33-36
"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
After that, the new kingdom of God would be established.
Luke 4:43
But he said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent."
Mark 1:14-15
After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
Luke 9:27
I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."
This would happen within their generation.
Mark 13:26-27, 30
"At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
Mark 9:1
And he said to them, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power."
(for more quotes on this go to: Is the Second Coming Late? )
He also wanted them to tell the people that only those who did repent and did obey his commandments and did acknowledge him as Christ would get to go to heaven,
Luke 13:5
I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."
But what were the commandments that these people were supposed to obey?
First of all, they had to to be diligent in following the Law.
Matthew 5:17-18
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 19:17
"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
Matthew 23:1-3
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you
They also had to follow the spirit of the Law. He wanted them to worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:23-24
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
They had to love God,and love all people as well,
Matthew 22:36-40
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
They had to love them even if they were mean.
Luke 6:27-31
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
The Sermon on the Mount said they had to thirst for righteousness,
Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
JewishEncyclopedia describes the Jewish idea of Righteousness in this way:
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=294&letter=R&search=righteousness
The Hebrew word for righteousness is tseh'-dek, tzedek, Gesenius's Strong's Concordance:6664—righteous, integrity, equity, justice, straightness. The root of tseh'-dek is tsaw-dak', Gesenius's Strong:6663—upright, just, straight, innocent, true, sincere. It is best understood as the product of upright, moral action in accordance with some form of divine plan.
After all, righteousness is a matter of relationships - with God, with things, and with other people. The biblical definition of righteousness involves the inherent quality of God. In one instance the word means being right; in another it is used to mean doing right; in still another case it means putting right.
So they had to be be meek.
Matthew 5:5
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Humble
Matthew 23:12
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
pure of heart,
Matthew 5:8
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Luke 18:15-17
People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."
full of faith
Mark 11:22-23
"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.
Merciful
Luke 6:36
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
and peacemakers.
Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
They had to be servants to one another and to others without expecting a reward.
Mark 10:43-44
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.
Luke 17:7-10
"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"
They should do the will of their Father in heaven,
Matthew 7:21
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
do to others what they would want others to do for them,
Matthew 7:12
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
forgive people with all their heart no matter how often they got hurt,
Matthew 6:14-15
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Luke 17:4
If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him."
Matthew 18:34-35
In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."
secretly pray,
Matthew 6:6
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
fast,
Luke 5:33-35
They said to him, "John's disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking."
Jesus answered, "Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast."
Matthew 6:17-18
But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
and give to the poor
Mark 10:21
Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven
Matthew 6:3-4
But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
and do other good deeds
Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
John 5:28-29
"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
such as helping strangers in need.
Luke 14:12-14
Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
Matthew 25:37-40
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
They shouldn't divorce, remarry, or marry a divorced woman,
Matthew 5:31-32
"It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.
Matthew 19:4-6
"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female, and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
They shouldn't swear oaths,
Matthew 5:33-37
"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
They shouldn't call themselves Rabbi, Father or teacher.
Matthew 23:8-10
"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.
They shouldn't judge or condemn anyone,
Luke 6:37
"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
They shouldn't cause anyone to sin
Matthew 18:6-7
But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!
They shouldn't be mean
Matthew 5:22
Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
They shouldn't lust.
Matthew 5:28-30
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
They shouldn't be angry,
Matthew 5:22
But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.
and shouldn't have anyone angry at them.
Matthew 5:23-26
"Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
"Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
They shouldn't defend themselves or retaliate when someone's mean to them,
Matthew 5:39-41
But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
and shouldn't hold grudges.
Mark 11:25
And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."
In short, Jesus wanted people to be perfect:
Matthew 5:48
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Not only did their actions have to be perfect, but so did their words
Matthew 12:36-37
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
and their thoughts.
Mark 7:21-23
For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man “unclean”.
.
What did Jesus offer his disciples in return? Well, he couldn't pay them in money, but he did promise them many heavenly blessings. He said that their names would be written in heaven
Luke 9:20
rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
and on the day of judgment he would acknowledge them
Matthew 10:32
"Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.
and they would get eternal life.
John 6:54
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
John 17:2
"Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.
He said they would get to go to paradise
Luke 23:43
Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
where they'd have rooms in heaven prepared for them so they could be with Jesus.
John 14:2-3
2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am
They'd get to feast in heaven with Abraham Isaac and Jacob
Mark 8:11
I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven
Luke 13:15
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God."
in the Kingdom of God
Matthew 25:34
Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
Matthew 13:43
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
and that they'd get to sit on 12 thrones and judge the 12 tribes of Israel.
Matthew 19:27-28
Peter answered him, "We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?"
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Not only that but they'd get to set the rules for heaven and the new kingdom.
Matthew 18:18
"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
Before all this happened. they'd receive the Holy spirit, the spirit of Truth.
John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
Luke 12:11-13
"When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."
They would get wisdom
Luke 21:15
For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
and have the power to forgive sins
John 20:22-23
And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
They'd be born again spiritually as God's children
John 3:5-6
Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.
John 1:12-13
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
They would know God
Matthew 11:27
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
John 17:3
Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
and He would love them
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
John 16:27
No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
and take care of them
Matthew 6:25-34
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.
and keep them safe from the Evil One.
John 17:15
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.
Luke 10:19
I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.
He'd give them whatever they ask for
John 16:23-24
In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
Luke 11:9-10
"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
and they'd be able to perform miracles.
Matthew 10:8
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
Mark 16:17-18
And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
Materially, They'd get hundreds of houses brothers, sisters , parents, children and fields to replace the ones they left behind when they went on this mission.
Mark 10:29-30
"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life
So, with all those promises and obligations spelled out throughout his ministry, the contract was sealed.
Mark 14:22-24
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body."
Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it.
"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them.
Anyone performing the same ritual is also entering into the same contract with the same obligations and the same payment.
John 6:51-58
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever
In summary:
Jesus said "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” The Jewish Encyclopedia says a blood covenant is an agreement between two contracting parties, originally sealed with blood. Jesus said he was making such a contract with his disciples. Jesus was to give his life for his followers, but Jesus made it quite clear that his followers also had to give their life for HIM! He had to suffer, but so did they.
So, what did Jesus want his disciples to do? First of all, they had to leave their families behind and give up all their wealth and possessions and give them to the poor. Then they had to tell the sinners of all Israel (and later the whole world) that Jesus was the Messiah and that they should repent and be baptized and obey his commandments so their sins would be forgiven because Israel was going to be destroyed by the Gentiles and then after a while Judgment Day would come. After that, the New Kingdom of God would be established. This would happen within their generation. He also wanted them to tell the people that only those who did repent and did obey his commandments and did acknowledge him as Christ would get to go to heaven.
But what were the commandments that these people were supposed to obey? First of all, they had to to be diligent in following the Law. They also had to follow the spirit of the Law. He wanted them to worship in spirit and truth. They had to love God, and love all people as well. They had to love them even if they were mean.
The Sermon on the Mount said they had to thirst for righteousness. This meant they had to be be meek, humble, pure of heart, full of faith, merciful and peacemakers. They had to be servants to one another and to others without expecting a reward. They should do the will of their Father in heaven, do to others what they would want others to do for them, forgive people with all their heart no matter how often they got hurt, secretly pray, fast, and give to the poor and do other good deeds such as helping strangers in need. They shouldn't divorce, remarry, or marry a divorced woman, They shouldn't swear oaths, or call themselves Rabbi, Father or Teacher. They shouldn't judge or condemn anyone, or cause anyone to sin. They shouldn't be mean. They shouldn't lust. They shouldn't be angry and shouldn't have anyone angry at them. They shouldn't defend themselves or retaliate when someone's mean to them, and shouldn't hold grudges.
In short, Jesus wanted people to be perfect: Not only did their actions have to be perfect, but so did their words and their thoughts.
What did Jesus offer his disciples in return? Well, he couldn't pay them in money, but he did promise them many heavenly blessings. He said that their names would be written in heaven and on the day of judgment he would acknowledge them and they would get eternal life. He said they would get to go to paradise where they'd have rooms in heaven prepared for them so they could be with Him. They'd get to feast in heaven with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of God and that they'd get to sit on 12 thrones and judge the 12 tribes of Israel Not only that but they'd get to set the rules for heaven and the New Kingdom.
Before all this happened. they'd receive the Holy spirit, the spirit of Truth. They would get wisdom and have the power to forgive sins. They'd be born again spiritually as God's children.They would know God and He would love them and take care of them and keep them safe from the Evil One. He'd give them whatever they ask for and they'd be able to perform miracles. Materially, They'd get hundreds of houses, brothers, sisters , parents, children and fields to replace the ones they left behind when they went on his mission.
So, with all those promises and obligations spelled out throughout his ministry, the contract was sealed. Anyone performing the same ritual is also entering into the same contract with the same obligations and the same payment.
So you see,Jesus' purpose and covenant was so much different than what Paul said it was! Paul said it was easy to be saved, but Jesus said it was almost impossible because if they didn't fulfill their obligations, they forfeited the contract and Jesus would disown them.This meant they would go to hell.
Matthew 7:21-23
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
Matthew 25:41-46
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment
Matthew 19:23-26
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?"
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Matthew 22:14
"For many are invited, but few are chosen."
So did this covenant replace the old one? Not at all. Jesus endorsed the old one and just made it stricter.
Some might say that he broke some of these laws himself, but these were Rabbinical laws or laws that were in dispute.Washing cups and plates were a custom, picking grains of wheat to eat was hardly work, healing on the Sabbath was in dispute because doctors were allowed to work on the Sabbath if it was an emergency and what is more of an emergency than being possessed by a demon? Even the Jewish accounts of Jesus said he was ritually pure at all times. Meaning he was obeying the Law. And if he had to obey it, then why wouldn't everyone else have to? This WAS a new covenant- a new contract, but was it the same as the one mentioned in Jeremiah? My next post in this series will cover that. In the meantime, if I left anything out of this article, let me know!
For Part 1 of the series click on:Covenant of Paul
For Part 3 of the series click on The Real New Covenant
All passages quoted are from Biblegateway:
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
The REAL New Covenant: Series Part 3 of 3
The New Covenant is mentioned in Jeremiah 31. Christians believe this is the New Covenant that Jesus made with his followers.. So what does it actually say?
33 "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel
after that time," declares the LORD.
"I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,'
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,"
declares the LORD.
"For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more."
35 This is what the LORD says,
he who appoints the sun
to shine by day,
who decrees the moon and stars
to shine by night,
who stirs up the sea
so that its waves roar—
the LORD Almighty is his name:
36 "Only if these decrees vanish from my sight,"
declares the LORD,
"will the descendants of Israel ever cease
to be a nation before me."
37 This is what the LORD says:
"Only if the heavens above can be measured
and the foundations of the earth below be searched out
will I reject all the descendants of Israel
because of all they have done,"
declares the LORD.
38 "The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when this city will be rebuilt for me from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 The measuring line will stretch from there straight to the hill of Gareb and then turn to Goah. 40 The whole valley where dead bodies and ashes are thrown, and all the terraces out to the Kidron Valley on the east as far as the corner of the Horse Gate, will be holy to the LORD. The city will never again be uprooted or demolished."
After the New Covenant happens, Jerusalem will never be demolished ever again. But of course, it WAS demolished shortly after the covenant of Jesus, and strangely, he predicted it would be, so when he was talking about the New Covenant, he was obviously not talking about THIS ONE! A further clue is that Jerimiah 30 and 31 are talking about a future when exiles come back home to Israel and attain peace and prosperity there.
It was the writer of Matthew, I think, who made the mistake here. For instance, he says:
Matthew 2:16-40 (New International Version)
16When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
18"A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more."
This passage occurs in Jeremiah 31 before the New Covenant is mentioned. Only he got the meaning wrong.
The passage is followed by two others that explain it:
Jeremiah 31 says:
15 This is what the LORD says:
"A voice is heard in Ramah,
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because her children are no more."
16 This is what the LORD says:
"Restrain your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for your work will be rewarded,"
declares the LORD.
"They will return from the land of the enemy.
17 So there is hope for your future,"
declares the LORD.
"Your children will return to their own land.
So this isn't about children dying, it's about children being in exile. The children symbolize the Israelites and the Jews. So this New Covenant was going to happen AFTER the Jews and the Israelites returned to their land, and BEFORE Jerusalem gets rebuilt, never to be destroyed again.
Jesus was living in an entirely different time: one before exile, not after. So the New Covenant mentioned in Jeremiah has yet to occur. You'll know when it does though- it's when a two year old will know just as much about his faith as an eighty year old who has studied theology all his life!
Jeremiah 31:
34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,'
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,"
declares the LORD.
Hasn't happened yet!
You can see Part 1 of this series at: Covenant of Paul
Part 2 is at: The Covenant of Jesus
quotes are from:
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
33 "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel
after that time," declares the LORD.
"I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,'
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,"
declares the LORD.
"For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more."
35 This is what the LORD says,
he who appoints the sun
to shine by day,
who decrees the moon and stars
to shine by night,
who stirs up the sea
so that its waves roar—
the LORD Almighty is his name:
36 "Only if these decrees vanish from my sight,"
declares the LORD,
"will the descendants of Israel ever cease
to be a nation before me."
37 This is what the LORD says:
"Only if the heavens above can be measured
and the foundations of the earth below be searched out
will I reject all the descendants of Israel
because of all they have done,"
declares the LORD.
38 "The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when this city will be rebuilt for me from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 The measuring line will stretch from there straight to the hill of Gareb and then turn to Goah. 40 The whole valley where dead bodies and ashes are thrown, and all the terraces out to the Kidron Valley on the east as far as the corner of the Horse Gate, will be holy to the LORD. The city will never again be uprooted or demolished."
After the New Covenant happens, Jerusalem will never be demolished ever again. But of course, it WAS demolished shortly after the covenant of Jesus, and strangely, he predicted it would be, so when he was talking about the New Covenant, he was obviously not talking about THIS ONE! A further clue is that Jerimiah 30 and 31 are talking about a future when exiles come back home to Israel and attain peace and prosperity there.
It was the writer of Matthew, I think, who made the mistake here. For instance, he says:
Matthew 2:16-40 (New International Version)
16When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
18"A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more."
This passage occurs in Jeremiah 31 before the New Covenant is mentioned. Only he got the meaning wrong.
The passage is followed by two others that explain it:
Jeremiah 31 says:
15 This is what the LORD says:
"A voice is heard in Ramah,
mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because her children are no more."
16 This is what the LORD says:
"Restrain your voice from weeping
and your eyes from tears,
for your work will be rewarded,"
declares the LORD.
"They will return from the land of the enemy.
17 So there is hope for your future,"
declares the LORD.
"Your children will return to their own land.
So this isn't about children dying, it's about children being in exile. The children symbolize the Israelites and the Jews. So this New Covenant was going to happen AFTER the Jews and the Israelites returned to their land, and BEFORE Jerusalem gets rebuilt, never to be destroyed again.
Jesus was living in an entirely different time: one before exile, not after. So the New Covenant mentioned in Jeremiah has yet to occur. You'll know when it does though- it's when a two year old will know just as much about his faith as an eighty year old who has studied theology all his life!
Jeremiah 31:
34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,'
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,"
declares the LORD.
Hasn't happened yet!
You can see Part 1 of this series at: Covenant of Paul
Part 2 is at: The Covenant of Jesus
quotes are from:
New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
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