The Two Covenants (Part 1 of 2)

Brother Roger L. Decker

The Old Covenant

We want to focus our study on verse 17 of our Scripture text, which reads, "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Here we find two covenants and also two mediators: Moses and Jesus. To one the Law was given, but grace and Truth was brought by the other. Both were mediators of a covenant: one, the Old Covenant, and the other, the New. The Bible says that the Law was given by Moses.

We want to look at both covenants and compare them with each other. First, we will study the Old Covenant, or the Law. In reading the Word of God, especially the Gospels, you find that two Old Testament names stand out, and the children of Israel reverenced them: Abraham and Moses. Jesus was always measured in the light of those two names, wherever He traveled and whatever He did in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). His healings, His miracles, and His messages were always measured or contested in the light of Abraham and Moses. They were great leaders, and there was a close relationship between the life of Moses and Jesus Christ.

Moses was an orator, a historian, a leader, a patriarch, and a prophet. The Bible lets us know that he lived very close to God. Numbers 12:3 says, "(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)" That is quite a testimony to have recorded in God's Word. Several meek men are mentioned in the Word of God, but Moses towered above them all, except Jesus. Jesus said in Matthew 11:29, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."

How was Moses associated with Christ? He was associated with Christ through faith. Dear one, you ought to be thankful that you are under the New Covenant. Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ. Hebrews 11:23-27 says: "By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment. By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible."

When we think of the Law, we also think of the leader Moses, because the Law and Moses were inseparable. The first five Books of the Old Testament are called the Pentateuch, and those Books are also called the Law of Moses. The Law followed God's covenant with Abraham, and Abraham's covenant was one of justification by faith.

Under the covenant of the Law, certain conditions had to be met to receive the blessings. We read in Exodus 19:5-6: "Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: [That is still true today. If you live and obey the Gospel, then you will be a peculiar treasure above all people] for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel." The blessings under the Law were conditional. The little word "if " was before the word "then": "if you obey, then . . ."

Now, you need to understand what a covenant is. It is an agreement between two parties, and both parties must carry out the terms for it to be in force. For example, if you get a loan for the purchase of a home or a vehicle, you must sign an agreement. That agreement is in force by both parties, and it is conditional. Should you fail to make the loan payments, you will find that the right to live in that house or drive that vehicle will end. The bank will keep its part of the agreement, but you must keep your part. Both parties must carry out the terms for the agreement to be in force. The one who breaks it loses the right to claim any benefits from it.

You will find that if you get in trouble with God, it is never on God's part. God's part of the covenant is always secure, and it is always true. You will receive the blessings of it as long as you keep your part.

The Purpose and the Effects of the Law

What was the purpose of the Law? Why did God give a law if people could not keep it? Did He make a mistake? Certainly not. Did He just put a law on people and then punish them because they could not keep it? No. The Law was given to make people aware of their sins and to bring conviction of sin. In Galatians 3:19 the Apostle Paul wrote, "Wherefore then serveth the law? [we could paraphrase that and say, 'What was the purpose of the Law?'] It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator."

The difference between the Law and the Gospel was that the Law condemned, or brought conviction of sin, but the Gospel always points to a Deliverer, a Savior, One who is a helper. Without the Law the Gospel was not possible, and the Law without the Gospel was incomplete. When Jesus came, He did not do away with the Law; He fulfilled the Law. The New Testament church has to have a foundation, and the foundation is the Law. The Law and the Prophets were fulfilled in Jesus Christ; He is the end of the Law.

What were the effects of the Law? The Law made sin exceedingly sinful. I could illustrate it this way: Suppose you were to get involved in sin, and you felt bad. You would feel worse if you were to come around the Gospel. Sin becomes exceedingly sinful when the preacher names it out.

In Romans, Chapter 7, you can read the testimony of the Apostle Paul before he received New Testament salvation. In this chapter he was not testifying concerning when he had New Testament salvation. He wrote in verse 1, "Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?" He was talking to people who knew the Law, and he was telling them the effects that the Law had on his life when he was a Pharisee.

Paul wrote in verses 5-13: "For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead [or it was inactive].

"For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful."

What purpose did the Law serve? The Law was added because of transgressions. In other words, the Law was added to make man conscious of sin and to make sin exceedingly sinful. Again, verse 5 says, "For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death." Paul was saying, in the Law we were in a carnal state without the Gospel. He said the motions of sin (or the passions of sin), which were by the Law, worked in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. Without grace the inclination to sin excites our members. When the Law goes forth and an individual is not saved, it excites the passions, or the motions of sin. The flesh is going to rebel against the Gospel.

The Rebellious Passions of the Flesh

Again, verse 5 reads, "For when we were in the flesh, the motions [the passions, or the desires] of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death." Those motions of sin worked to produce sin, which has a penalty of death. When the Law commanded obedience, the rebellious passions of the flesh transgressed. The flesh rebels against the commandments of God. That is the reason the Apostle Paul said, "I keep under my body, and bring it into submission." The flesh does not want to serve God; you have to make it serve Him.

Paul was telling of his testimony when he was under the Law, not under grace. He said "the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death." The Law aroused those desires. Christian friend, when those desires got excited, they did not take you to Christ. They drew you away from the commandment, because the flesh did not want to be told what to do. The Law aroused these desires; they had been dormant. What did the Law say? "Thou shalt" and "Thou shalt not." The flesh did not want to take that. People without God will not take that. The carnal man says, "You aren't going to tell me what not to do." What happens? Those passions, or desires, get excited and no longer lay dormant; they take control. This was what was going on under the Law. Unsaved men and women have not changed today. They are as people were under the old Law. When the Gospel goes forth, it brings the commandments of God. Without grace the flesh will still rebel rather than obey.

One terminology quite prevalent in the religious world today is "inherited sin." Now, think with me for a minute. One who claims that he has inherited sin is an individual without the grace of God in his life to obey. You may say, "I have an inclination to sin." Then you need the grace of God in your life. Without the grace of God, you are going to follow the flesh. Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ. "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" (John 1:17). Without the Spirit of God, Who gives us the grace of God, nothing can empower you to mortify the flesh. There is no power to bring the flesh under. That is the reason the flesh becomes stronger and stronger when one becomes lean in his soul. Next, if the flesh has its way entirely, it will cut off the soul from the things of God; then that one will stop praying and reading the Bible. Next, he will busy himself in things not conducive to Christian living. That is the reason Paul repeatedly admonished people in his letters to be filled with the Spirit of God, to be led by the Spirit of God, and to walk in the Spirit. That is the only way one can overcome the carnal man, or the fleshly man.

Mortify Your Members

Now let us go to Romans, Chapter 8. There you will find that a change took place. In Chapter 7, Paul described the state of a man under the Old Covenant, without the grace of God. Romans 8:11-14 states: "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: [To whom was he speaking? He was talking to people who were alive spiritually; they were not dead. He said if you live after the flesh, you shall die. The same rule applies yet today.] but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." The word mortify means "to put to death, to kill, or to become dead."

Paul wrote in Colossians 3:1-13: "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

"But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth [or making something smutty of conversation, twisting people's words]. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye."

Paul said to mortify your members that are on the earth. He certainly was not instructing the saints to kill the members of the congregation. When He said to mortify your members that are on the earth, what members was he talking about? He was speaking of making your fleshly members powerless. In other words, he was stating that you must mortify, kill, or make them become dead to the things of sin.

When Paul said to mortify your members, he was talking about the different areas of the natural man, such as the mind, the eyes, the tongue, the feet, the hearing, the passions, the desires, and so on. Paul was telling the saints to make them become dead to sin. This is where holiness comes in. You must let the Spirit of God keep your members in check, and when the Spirit of God keeps them in check, they are rendered powerless; they no longer control the man. Now, you cannot do that in your own strength. That is the reason the Apostle Paul said, "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing" (Romans 7:18 ). You do not have the power within your flesh to do it.

Dead to Sin, But Alive Unto God Through Christ

In Romans 8:13 Paul said, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." The Apostle Paul made it very plain in Romans 6:11-14: "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace [where there is power to keep the Law]."

In essence, Paul said, "Do not yield your members to the service of sin, but yield yourselves unto God. Devote yourselves to God." You should devote your tongue to praise God and to promote the Gospel, the Truth, kindness, and hospitality. It should not be used to run down your brother or your sister; that will work death. You are yielding the wrong way. Your tongue is a little member, but it can get out of control more than any other member that you possess.

Your hands should be used to labor in the work of God for His cause. The Bible says to "lift up holy hands." You should use your hands to praise God. You should not be afraid to raise your hand in the song service or when someone is testifying or preaching the Word. There is not a thing wrong with lifting up your hands. As long as you are not out in sin, you have a right to lift up your hand, whether you are struggling or not. Almost everyone is battling something. I am not talking about advocating sin, but I am saying that people are working to get victory over things to become more useful in the Kingdom of God.

Your feet should be swift to carry out God's will, not to walk in the paths of iniquity. Your eyes should be used to look on good things and to be a guide or a help to your soul. Do not use them as instruments of the flesh. You need to be careful of what you let your eyes see. They have the power to retain images in the mind. Your ears should be used to hear the voice of God, not to listen to words of deceit or persuasion that would lead one astray.

Paul said to mortify your members. You must bring them in check. Do not let them get out of control. What is a sinner? A sinner is one whose members are out of control; they are not in check. Today finding a sinner is hard. They have some kind of label on them; nevertheless, it still comes down to right or wrong: holiness or sin. The reason many people do not receive help is that they do not think they are as bad as they really are. Friend, when you commit sin, the title of "sinner" goes with it. When you live godly, the word "saint" goes with it. There is no middle ground. The Apostle said to mortify your members, not gratify them.

The more you feed the members of your body, the more it intensifies the fleshly desires. For example, when one starts smoking cigarettes, he has a struggle. The body rejects them, but the more a person keeps at it, the more the desire intensifies. Next, the desire has a strong hold. The Christian does not gratify his members; he mortifies, or brings under his members. The only way one can do that is to be filled with the Spirit of God.

Serving God in Newness of Spirit

Let us read Romans 7:6 again: "But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter." Paul said we are delivered from the Law, or delivered from the yoke of the Law. Why? It sentenced every sinner to death but provided no grace, no pardon, and no deliverance for an individual. The Law did not have it. Oh, it had sacrifices, but no grace came with those sacrifices, and there was no power to deliver. That is the reason grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ.

The Law, which kills, ceases to bind us any longer. Why does the Law not affect you as a Christian? Why are you not under the law? You believe in Christ, and what does the Scripture say about that? Romans 10:4 says, "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." The Law made sin exceedingly sinful, but when you are no longer in sin, there is nothing to be made sinful.

When Sabbath keepers come around and tell you, "You should keep the Sabbath," you ought to tell them, "I don't want to go back under that sin-more-or-less condition. I have been delivered from the bondage of the Law." Why have you been delivered? Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes, that he should serve in newness of Spirit. God, through the Prophet Ezekiel said in Ezekiel 36:26, "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh."

Paul said in Romans 7:6, "But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter." What was he saying? When you come to Christ, your worship must be spiritual worship. It is no longer ceremonial rites and literal sacrifices. You go from an imperfect state to one of perfection and excellence.

Second Corinthians 3:5-6 states: "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." The letter without the Spirit kills. It makes sin exceedingly sinful. That is the reason people without the Spirit of God fight holiness, and that is the reason you have a hard time getting them to go to church. When ones have backslidden, that is the reason that getting them back into the fold is difficult. To them it is just some rules and laws, and it is a bondage to them. In essence, they are saying, "The flesh is free to do as I please." They have yielded their members to unrighteousness, and their flesh will not take the Law. The Law shows them their need of a Deliverer, a Savior.

Living a Life of Holiness

When one gets saved, that which he once hated becomes the number one priority in his life. He loves to hear about the things of God, he loves to hear the Gospel, and he loves to hear the commandments and the ordinances of God. Why? He has his members, or his desires and passions, in check. He still has passions and desires, but they are subject to the Spirit of God. He uses his members as members of righteousness in accordance with God's plan and His law.

Saint, you should be very thankful for the Gospel, because with the letter (or the Law), the commandments, and the ordinances come the grace to obey them. Again, verse 17 of our Scripture text states, "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Moses delivered the commandments to the children of Israel, telling the Israelites how they should live and conduct themselves. That is what those commandments were: they consisted of "Thou shalt" and "Thou shalt not." Moses told the Israelites how they should conduct themselves if they wanted to receive God's blessing upon them. I like to sum it up this way: one was told and the other was shown. The Law was given by Moses--it was told; but grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ. What does that tell you? It was in His life. Moses told the Israelites how they should live. But Jesus did not come telling; He came showing. This is how you should live. Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ.

One was told, and the other was shown; that is what I see as the difference between the covenants. Child of God, when you went to the house of God and got saved, you found others with grace and Truth in their lives. You were not just told how to live; that is the way sectism operates. Grace and Truth show you how you should live. As the Gospel goes forth, others are living the very message that is being preached.

Why is the Law not for us today? The Law was given for sinners, or the ungodly. Why should it affect a child of God when he is living godly and without sin? Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ. He showed us how to live a life of holiness, believing in Him all the days of our lives. The Gospel goes forth to give you life everlasting.

John 10:10 reads, "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." If you want to know how to live, what should you do? You need to look to the life of Jesus Christ. He showed us, for grace and Truth came by Him. I am so thankful that we have been shown grace and Truth.

In closing, I ask you, Are you yielding your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin or as instruments of righteousness unto God? Remember, the Apostle Paul said in Romans 8:13, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."

(Cassette C-4562M)

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