Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Welcome to the World Changers Church Gold Coast Podcast. Join us as we listen to today's message.
[00:00:07] Thank you, Jesus. You can be seated. Thank you, Jesus. Can we just give Jesus praise? Give Jesus praise. Thank you, Lord. Amen. Worship team. Thank you so much. Thank you, guys. Appreciate you guys.
[00:00:17] Just before we get started, can we just.
[00:00:20] Whoa. I'm super hot, man. That's real loud. Is that all right, you guys? Is this too loud for you guys? All right.
[00:00:25] Where'd Pastor Kyle go, man? It's good to have you back, Pastor Kyle. It's so good to have you back, man.
[00:00:31] We're all glad to have our senior pastor, Pastor Tina. Thank you for the amazing last three weeks. Did you guys enjoy the word from Pastor Tina the last three weeks? Amen. Amen. You know, when you're doing communion there and you said my name, I thought you're about to call me out on something, man. I was thinking, what have I done? Do I need to repent? What have I done?
[00:00:47] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. It's good to be back up here. I was thinking I haven't. I haven't shared with you guys for a little while, and a lot's happened in the last few weeks or months since I was last up here. I turned 40.
[00:00:58] I turned 40.
[00:01:00] Whoa.
[00:01:02] I made it, Jesus. I did it.
[00:01:06] And now it's supposed to get, like, better from here, right? Because it's downhill, so it's faster. It's like, it's just easier, right? I just get to sit back. It's down, it's up, it's uphill, it's up, it's up. I'm gonna just run my race and let Jesus sort it out. All right?
[00:01:20] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. So I'm really excited to share the word with you guys this morning. God's been really ministering to me over the last few weeks about this topic that I'm going to share on. Some of you might have seen on the post about what we're talking about, but we're talking about the glory of the New Covenant. The glory of the New Covenant. Does everybody know that we live in a new Covenant? Amen. Say, I got a new Covenant. I got a new Covenant. And so God's been showing me some really awesome things, some really, truly awesome things. And one thing I've seen in so many genuine Christians, people that love the Lord, people that are sold out for Jesus and want to, you know, serve him with all they've got, that are loving their families, that are Ministering him every chance they get. I see so many people that are living in either an old covenant law based relationship with God which is full of self effort, full of constantly focused on the don't do's and the do do's of Christianity, the doo doo's. I think that's why Paul called it all dung, called his self effort all dung, all the doo doos of walking out this life with Jesus. That's what they're focusing on. This relationship with God is all based on these do's and don't do's and am I doing enough, that kind of thing. And then what I see is even worse than that. It's not just law and law based religion, but this mixture of grace and law where they're living in this place of where they know about the grace of God, they understand his goodness towards them, that they've been forgiven of their sins and that they have this relationship through Jesus, but they're still full of this doubt. They don't doubt that God can do it, they doubt that he'll do it for them.
[00:02:58] And that's that mixture of law and grace where you're in this place of God can do anything and the impossible was made possible through the blood of Jesus. And I know that he'll make a way, but will he do it for me?
[00:03:08] And that's that mixture of law and grace. But God's so good, but yet is he good to me? Have I done enough? And it's all about performance in that place. It's all about doing enough. If I do X, Y and Z, then God will do this right? It's that sort of formula based relationship with God. If I do these things, if I pray enough, if I fast, if I do all these perfect things, read my Bible, then God will do, right? That's that mixture of law and grace where I'm almost trying to convince God that he should do something for me because I've been good enough, right? And that is not the gospel, that is not what Jesus paid a price to give. And that's an old covenant mindset. Amen. You guys good with me? You happy?
[00:03:47] So performance Christianity is hoping to please God and hoping that it's enough to deserve his blessing.
[00:03:54] Both of these things, this law based relationship with God or this mixture of law and grace, they lead to only three things. Spiritual death, it leads to spiritual death. Where your relationship with God is just dead, it's lifeless, there's nothing in it that brings you joy or hope because you're constantly in this Performance of have I done Enough? So it brings spiritual death. It brings dissatisfaction in your life. Like, oh, just if I need. I need to do more. I need to do something else. I'm just. I'm not satisfied. I'm not getting the fullness of God in my life. And it leads. This one is really important. It leads to delayed destinies.
[00:04:25] So many people don't fulfill the call of God on their life because they're living in a mixture of law and grace. They don't think they're worthy. They don't think they're anointed enough. They don't think it's possible for them. Someone else can do it. God's on their life. They've done enough. But not me. God can't use me. I'm not good enough. I need to get some things right in my life before God will use me. And both of those mindsets are just going to. They're going to kill your walk with the Lord. They're going to crush your relationship with Jesus, and they're going to lead to a place where you don't fulfill all that God has for you and this wonderful, wonderful covenant that we now have in Him. Amen. So you're excited to break this down with me?
[00:04:59] All right. All right. So it's essential that we understand this covenant that God has made with us and the reason for it.
[00:05:05] Amen. A lot of people are missing out on living in a beautiful relationship with the Lord, experiencing his fullness in their lives, because they don't understand how God has made an eternal promise, say eternal promise and an eternal covenant with us, his bride, to never leave us, to never forsake us, to never punish us, to never curse us, and to never hold our sins against us.
[00:05:30] God is not looking. Catch this. God is not looking for a reason to kick you out of his kingdom.
[00:05:42] God is not looking for a reason to kick you out of his kingdom.
[00:05:47] He did everything to get you in.
[00:05:51] Why all of a sudden we'd be looking for a reason to kick you out?
[00:05:55] God did everything to bring you in. He's a father to the fatherless.
[00:05:59] He's a husband to the widow.
[00:06:02] He brought everything. He did everything. Bible says if he was going to give up his own son, how not freely. Would he also give us all things if he was willing to give up Jesus to get you in? He's not looking for a reason to kick you out.
[00:06:14] Amen.
[00:06:16] He's not waiting for you to mess up so he has a reason to hold back a blessing.
[00:06:24] Amen.
[00:06:25] That's old covenant.
[00:06:27] That's old covenant. That's old covenant. Hallelujah. Amen. Let's go to Jeremiah 31:31:34. So this is a prophecy in the Old Testament of the covenant that God was going to bring us into through Jesus. Right? So this is God speaking to the Hebrews and the Israelites talking about the time when he was going to do a new covenant. The old was going to pass away and a new was going to come. So let's read this together. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord.
[00:06:52] We live in those days. Just catch that. We live in these days when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
[00:07:01] Not according to the covenant I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. That was the covenant made at Sinai, which was the law.
[00:07:10] My covenant, which they broke though I was a husband to them, says the Lord.
[00:07:15] But this is the covenant that I will make with them. Make with the house of the Lord after those days, says the Lord. I will put my law in their minds and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Verse 34. No more shall every man teach his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, know the Lord, for they all shall know me. From the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity and their sin. I will remember no more. Notice that I highlighted this part. For they all shall know me. This is what the new covenant is all about.
[00:07:52] It's about a relationship with the Lord knowing God, not through what you do or how you perform or how well you do Christianity, but through what Jesus has done on the cross for us. This was God's idea to bring about this new covenant. Israel and Judah were doing all the wrong things. They were doing everything in opposition to the covenant that they had under the Old Testament. And in that place, God had that mercy on his heart to say, I'm going to do a new covenant. And this covenant is going to be about not what they do, but it's going to be about my promise. And this covenant is not going to be based on how well they perform.
[00:08:28] It's going to be based on my willingness to move in their lives, my faithfulness towards them. Amen. Amen. So that was the Old Testament prophecy that was laid out in the book of Jeremiah, foreshadowing something that Jesus was going to do. So let's Fast forward to second Corinthians 3 and 6.
[00:08:46] It says here that God, he has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not written on laws, but of the Spirit.
[00:08:57] The old written covenant ends in death, but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life. So Jeremiah was foreshadowing a time where there would no longer be a covenant that was based on laws and written code, but based on the Spirit of God living and indwelling you now and writing those laws on the tablet of your heart now giving you a new nature, giving you a new way of thinking and living and behaving, not based on something you've done or performed, but based on who he is now inside of you through Jesus and through the union that you have with him through the cross.
[00:09:29] Amen. That the Spirit gives life, but the law gave death.
[00:09:33] You see the difference of that? Why would we want to live in this mixed law and grace relationship with the Lord where it's all about do's and don'ts and do do's, right? When that brings death and condemnation to our lives, when we could live in this spirit based relationship with the Lord where His Spirit has now been made one with our Spirit and we have union and communion with God not through any good works or sacrifices or deeds we have to do, but simply because we shall know him and all shall know him, says the Lord. Amen. Because it's his idea.
[00:10:05] Amen. I get it, I get it. I get that it's hard for us to understand this because, you know, God is faithful to His Word. But we've all had people go back on their words in our lives. We've all been tainted in some way from broken promises and from failed agreements and through, you know, humans, just humanity just breaking their word towards us. I get it. So we carry that into this relationship that we have with God. And it taints this idea that we have about eternal promise and eternal covenant and that God would be faithful to his word. But look at this. In numbers 23 and 19, look at this. It says, God is not a man, so he does not lie.
[00:10:43] He is not a human, so he does not change his mind. Humans change their mind. Human. Humans lie all the time. We say, we're gonna do something and we don't turn up. We make a promise and it doesn't happen. You know, Shelly will call me up and she'll say, hey, can you pick up some food on the way home? And in my heart I'm like, yep, I'm gonna fulfill that. I'M gonna get that done, and then I'll drive home and a million other things will be going through my mind. And I'll forget the bread. Right? Cause I'm just. I'm human.
[00:11:07] I'm human. But this is saying that God does not change his mind. He does not lie. If he says he's gonna do it, it's going to happen. It's done, it's finished, it's fulfilled. Amen. So we have to understand his character. Because if we can understand his character, then it's easy for us to believe this covenant that we're living in. Amen. So look at this. Has he ever spoken and failed to act?
[00:11:29] Wow.
[00:11:32] Wow. Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
[00:11:36] And this is Old Testament. This is under the old covenant. This is the revelation that the prophet had.
[00:11:41] Actually, we're in numbers. So this is the revelation that the Levitical priest had around God and his character, that he's not a man, that he should lie, that he doesn't change his mind, that he fulfills what he says he's going to do.
[00:11:52] Amen.
[00:11:53] So good. So good.
[00:11:57] Amen.
[00:11:58] God the Father has made a covenant promise through the blood of Jesus the Son.
[00:12:04] This is what he's made his covenant to deliver us, to bless us, to redeem us, to restore us, to stand with us in the face of adversity, to walk with us through the challenges of life, and to teach us through the gift of His Holy Spirit. And ultimately, that covenant promise is about bringing you into glory with Him.
[00:12:25] Amen.
[00:12:26] That's the fulfillment of his covenant promise. There's all these beautiful, beautiful blessing that culminates in this eternal covenant to say, we, when it's all said and done, enter into glory. Well done, good and faithful, that you get to go and live with him forever and abide with him forever in eternity. Amen. Amen. That's the gospel.
[00:12:46] He is good for His Word. Amen.
[00:12:48] All right, so let's unpack this. I want to break this down a little bit. I'm going to look at the word covenant, and we're going to look at that in the Greek. So we got a slide there. Here it is. Oh, it's a little bit small. Can everyone read that? Okay.
[00:13:00] If not, just ask Jesus to help your eyesight.
[00:13:04] I'm going to read it out anyway. So we're looking at the Greek word for covenant, and the word is diatheca. And you can. I love that it says pronounced right there so you guys can all understand. So, dearthake. And this is the meaning and the root idea of the word. It means a disposition, an arrangement, a testament or a covenant. And it comes from these root words, dia, which means through or on the basis of. And then the other word, which I'm not going to attempt to say, which is to set place or establish. So what this means, it means it's literally something that has been established or set in place through a binding agreement. All right, so that's what a covenant means in the Greek. It means that something's been established, something's been set in place through this arrangement, through some sort of agreement that's taken place. Amen. Well, let's look at the Hebrew word real quick.
[00:13:57] So the Hebrew word which is the mern bereth, and it means to cut, referring to the cutting of the flesh or a sacrifice we're making coming. So all the Old Testament was about this cutting, the sacrifice of these animal sacrifices. And it takes that Hebrew. So the Greek word diathoke, it takes that concept of cutting or sacrifice, and it adds a legal and relational element to it. So it's not just a contract between equals, it's a divine arrangement initiated by God himself.
[00:14:25] So in essence, what does this mean? It means the Old Testament was cut between two parties. There was two people involved in this. It was you and me. Me, me and God. You and God, Right, in the Old Testament, meaning that both had to keep it. But we see time and time and time again that Israel failed to keep up their end of the covenant, their end up of the agreement. Right. But in the New Testament, this agreement, this covenant, it's granted to man, it's given to us.
[00:14:51] Right? It's granted to man. And it means that God guarantees it. So essentially what God is saying is that I've written this all out, this binding agreement. It's divine, it's written out, it's done, it's signed. And now all you've got to do is enter it to it by faith.
[00:15:06] All you've got to do is just accept it. Now, there's nothing you have to do to earn to get into this agreement. There's nothing you have to do to try and, you know, make yourself go, oh, yeah, and I've got to sign on this now, or I've got to perform, or I've got to keep my end of the bargain. God says, no, I've done it.
[00:15:19] Jesus has signed it in blood.
[00:15:22] Accept it by faith, enter into it by grace.
[00:15:25] God guarantees it.
[00:15:27] Amen.
[00:15:28] So here's what we can't negotiate the terms or add an extra clause to this contract. There's nothing like that we can do. It is simply entered into by faith on the basis of grace.
[00:15:40] On the basis of grace. On the basis of God's goodness, his mercy and his love towards you. And all we have to do is say, I'll take that.
[00:15:48] I'll enter into that. I'll have that.
[00:15:51] And God says, okay, done.
[00:15:53] That's all you got to do. That's it. I know. It's so hard, right? No, surely there's got to be something I've got to do. Surely I've got to do something. Surely I've got to be holy. Surely I've got to stop doing this and start doing that.
[00:16:05] Surely I've got to do this.
[00:16:07] No, no. We add that. That's that mixture of law and grace. It's like, God's so good. So good. But I've got to do something, you know? It can't be all about him. No, it's all about him.
[00:16:21] It's 100% all about him.
[00:16:24] Jesus plus you equals nothing.
[00:16:26] Jesus plus nothing equals everything.
[00:16:31] You can't be 99% Jesus and 1% you.
[00:16:35] That's 100% wrong.
[00:16:39] It's just behind Jesus, man.
[00:16:45] Okay, okay, all right, all right. Let's do a little comparison between the old and the new. We got that. That table, brother. All right. So Old Covenant and New Covenant. Old Covenant between God and man.
[00:16:56] The new covenant is between God and Christ.
[00:17:00] The old covenant was based on man's obedience, but the new covenant is based on Christ. Christ's obedience.
[00:17:06] Old covenant, man failed repeatedly. Christ fulfilled it completely. Amen. The old covenant was based on temporary sacrifices. The new covenant is based on one perfect sacrifice of Jesus. The old covenant brought condemnation.
[00:17:21] The new covenant brings righteousness and life.
[00:17:24] In the old covenant, the glory faded. And in the new covenant, the glory increases.
[00:17:30] It increases.
[00:17:32] That's good, right?
[00:17:33] Just seeing that is actually really powerful. Hey. To see the difference between. So why do you want to live in the old Covenant? Guys, seriously, why do you want to live in this relationship where it's based on what you do and how you perform?
[00:17:45] I want to end that today. I really do. I'm not saying that you get to go out and do whatever you want. If you think that, then someone dropped you on your head. Seriously, that is not what I am saying this morning, actually. Like, I live. This is where I live. I live in this place right here where it's 100% not based on me and it's all about Jesus. And that doesn't cause me to go and do whatever I want. It caused me to run to him more.
[00:18:07] I just want to. Like, we love because he first loved us, right? And so I see that love for me. I see that sacrifice. I see what he did for me on that cross. I see how he's brought me into this covenant. And it's not about me, and it's not about what I do or what I say or how good I am. It's all about how good he is and his promise.
[00:18:24] And I just want to run to that. I just want to be a part of that.
[00:18:29] We can pray for you. If you got dropped on your head, by the way, that's totally fine.
[00:18:33] There's redemption for that. Hallelujah.
[00:18:36] Hallelujah.
[00:18:37] When Jesus died, he didn't just forgive our sin. Ready? He activated the will of the new covenant.
[00:18:44] He ushered in this new covenant.
[00:18:47] When he died, it wasn't just about the forgiveness of your sins. It was about ushering in this new agreement between God and us through the blood of Jesus Christ that we enter into now by faith, through grace. Amen.
[00:18:59] Amen. Look at Hebrews, chapter 9, 16, 17.
[00:19:05] His death put the new covenant into effect.
[00:19:08] For where there is a testament, which is that word diatheca, where there is a testament, there also, of necessity, the death of the testator.
[00:19:19] For if a. For where there is a testament, there must also be, of necessity, a death of the testator. For a testament is enforced only after men are dead, since it has no power at all while they live. Like a will only comes into place once the person who wrote the will is deceased. Right.
[00:19:36] So for us to live into this new covenant, like I just said, it was all based on the sacrifice of Jesus. Not your sacrifice, the sacrifice of Jesus.
[00:19:45] Jesus was the one that brought about this new covenant. He activated this will that God had written that had in place, and we get to be the beneficiaries of that will now. All of the blessings, all of the promises, all of the mercy is activated and given to us now because of what Jesus has done. And we just receive it by faith. I'm going to be saying that a lot. We receive it by faith because faith has become this word that gets kind of twisted a little bit into, you know, I gotta use my faith and I've gotta speak. And I believe in all of those things. But faith, without understanding, this right here, it's dead works. This is. That. That's the faith that's dead, is when we don't actually speak from a place of understanding whose we are and who we are.
[00:20:32] And when we declare that from that place, when we speak from that place, from that understanding of what Jesus has done for us through the cross. And faith is quite.
[00:20:40] Because we see what he has done and the work that he's done. And we're speaking not out of religious works or religious words or trying to make something happen. We're speaking because we're saying, father, I believe that you've done it.
[00:20:52] Father, I believe that you are good and merciful, and you are kind, and you are the healer and you are the provider. And I believe that with all of my heart, Jesus. And I know that I'm not perfect, but you are. And your word is true. And you're not a man that you should lie. And you are faithful to complete the word that you have sent for from your mouth. Amen.
[00:21:09] That's faith. That's activated faith.
[00:21:14] Thank you, Jesus. Because you must believe that he is. And he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.
[00:21:19] Jesus didn't. Jesus didn't just sign the covenant, he became the Covenant.
[00:21:24] Read Hebrews 8 and 6 together. Let's see this. Somebody say, I got a better covenant.
[00:21:29] I got a better covenant. Let's read this. Hebrews 8:60, verse 6. We got that one.
[00:21:36] There it is.
[00:21:37] But now, Jesus, our high priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood. For he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God based on better promises.
[00:21:51] Amen. So if the first covenant had been faultless. Oh, we get more bonus. So if the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it.
[00:22:02] That's actually really powerful. Let's leave that up for a minute. Yeah. Thank you, Jesus. I forgot that was in there.
[00:22:08] If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it.
[00:22:17] Yeah.
[00:22:21] So what was the first covenant?
[00:22:25] This is exactly right. It was the law. Right. And it was a ministry of death.
[00:22:29] It brought death. Right. That was the first covenant. And it was powerful because it showed Israel their need for God. It showed them that they couldn't do it without him. It showed them that they thought that they could fulfill the law.
[00:22:41] That was the whole point. They were like, oh, we can do this. Thank you, Jesus. We got this. Thank you, God.
[00:22:47] But yet all it did was show them how sinful they truly were.
[00:22:52] And all it did was lead to more death and more destruction and more dissatisfaction. And all those things that we. Spiritual death all that stuff we talked about.
[00:23:01] So if it had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant.
[00:23:07] Can we go back to verse six real quick?
[00:23:11] But now, Jesus. Someone say now Jesus, our high priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood. So the old priesthood was all about bringing your sacrifices, was all about your works, all about what you did.
[00:23:25] For he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God based on better promises.
[00:23:33] Amen. And God did some pretty amazing things in the Old Testament, didn't he?
[00:23:37] But we live in a place of better promises now.
[00:23:40] Amen.
[00:23:41] Hallelujah. Got a little bit off track. Sorry.
[00:23:44] All right.
[00:23:47] I have a better covenant. Let's go back to 2nd Corinthians 3, and we'll look at verse 6 and we'll go through to around about verse 12. Somewhere in there.
[00:23:57] We'll start in verse 3.
[00:23:59] For he has enabled us to be ministers of this new covenant. This covenant is not written of laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death, but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives law. So many people still minister like an old covenant. And, you know, like, even when I'm out sort of witnessing or evangelizing and stuff like that, there's a lot of people that preach the law and preach that. You know, you've got to do these certain things. But this says, we've been made ministers of a new. Of the new covenant. We've been made ministers of this covenant. That's about God's grace towards us, God's love towards us, that we've been made right by the blood of Jesus.
[00:24:37] Amen.
[00:24:38] Many people are still preaching law and works.
[00:24:42] Amen. Let's go to the next verse. Verse 7.
[00:24:44] The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death. That's what Tony was just saying. Though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses, to look at Moses face, for his face shone with the glory of God, even though that brightness was already fading away. So even at the moment the law was given, it had already begun to fade away.
[00:25:06] That's what that scripture is saying. The minute it was given, it was fading away. Because God had a better covenant in mind. He had a better one planned. Next verse.
[00:25:16] Shouldn't we expect far greater glory under the new way now that the Holy Spirit is giving life?
[00:25:23] If the old way, which brings condemnation, so the old way brought condemnation, was glorious.
[00:25:28] How much more glorious is the new way which makes us right with God?
[00:25:33] Come on, in fact, the first glory was not glorious at all compared to the overwhelming glory of the new way.
[00:25:40] That's good right there. So if the old way, which has been replaced, someone say replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new which remains forever?
[00:25:52] Amen. Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold.
[00:25:59] Just give the word of God a hand clap of praise. Because that's good. That's good right there.
[00:26:03] That is good right there.
[00:26:06] Oh, hallelujah.
[00:26:08] We could be very bold. Why can we be very bold? Anybody got any ideas on why we can be very bold?
[00:26:15] Because it's not about you. Hallelujah.
[00:26:19] It's about Jesus. Amen. Amen. Living under the old covenant was born.
[00:26:24] All it resulted in was condemnation. We read that. By living in the new covenant, what does it show us? Shows us our righteousness, shows us our identity, shows us who we are in Christ now and how God sees us. That's a good word to me. You like that? Hallelujah. The old was fading, but the new remains forever. Somebody say, I got a better covenant. Do you believe that? Do you actually believe that?
[00:26:46] Are you going to live in that?
[00:26:48] You're going to live here, right? You gotta live in this place where it's all about how good Jesus is, Right? It's all about his blood. And it's not about you. And when you come before him to pray and when you come before him to seek his face, you're not going to come with him with your laundry list of things you have and haven't done.
[00:27:03] You're just going to come to him and you say, God, you're so good.
[00:27:06] You are so good. And you've made a better covenant.
[00:27:08] And God, you just love me so much. And it's got nothing to do with me. It's all about Jesus and God because you love me. I just want to give you everything. I want to surrender my whole life to you. You. And I want to walk with you and I want to know you. Would you just show me what this covenant is all about, God? Would you just lead me, God, by your spirit?
[00:27:24] And I don't want to. I don't want to have a relation that's based with you, based on what I do or what I say or how good I am. I want it to be all based about Jesus and who you've made me because of Jesus.
[00:27:34] Amen. I got a better covenant. Hallelujah. All right, here's something cool. God showed me this.
[00:27:41] So there are seven covenants in the Bible, six in the old Testament and one in the New. Okay, seven. Seven in total. There's six in the old and one in the new. I'm gonna ask you a question. How many days were there in creation?
[00:27:54] Seven. Yeah, there was seven. Right? How many days did God work?
[00:27:58] Okay, what happened on the seventh day?
[00:28:01] All right, we're getting somewhere. You guys are Bible scholars, man. I love this. We got some Bible scholars, Pastor Kyle. These guys know their word around here. I don't know if that's intimidating or not. Let's go to Genesis 2. 2, verse 3.
[00:28:15] And on the seventh day, God ended His work, which he had done. And he rested on the seventh day from all his. All of his work which he had done. Verse 3. And then God blessed the seventh day and he sanctified it, because in it he rested from all his work which God had created and made.
[00:28:33] So during the six days of. There was. During those six days of creation, God was working. He was creating, forming, ordering and preparing.
[00:28:41] And likewise through the Old Testament, the six covenants that were previously. God was working throughout history, revealing Himself step by step and preparing the world for redemption, preparing the world for the seventh covenant.
[00:28:54] And on the seventh day, it became a day of rest, blessing and holiness, a day of completion and satisfaction. In the same way, through Jesus, God's redemptive work is finished. The new covenant is the seventh covenant, and it is the covenant of rest.
[00:29:10] If you don't believe me, let's go to Hebrews, chapter 4, verse 10.
[00:29:14] Ready? For he who has entered his rest has himself also ceased from his works, as God did from his.
[00:29:25] Amen.
[00:29:28] So the seventh covenant that we now have through Jesus and what he's done, the new covenant, we enter into this rest in the same way that God entered that rest on that Sabbath, on that seventh day of creation. And it says that God ceased from his works.
[00:29:43] And now it's time for us to cease from our works, to be made righteous, our works to be made holy, our works to be made right with God, to get something from God. We just enter into this rest that God's provided through the blood of Jesus.
[00:29:56] Come to me, all of you who are here heavy laden and burden, and I will give you rest.
[00:30:02] Amen.
[00:30:03] Amen. And that doesn't mean we don't do anything again. We dropped. That's not what I'm saying. I'm not saying that it's about doing nothing.
[00:30:12] I'm saying it's about being totally dependent on what he's done.
[00:30:16] It's not about self effort. It's not about Trying to get something from God. He's already given you everything through Jesus. It's simply now by faith saying, God, I receive it by your grace, not by my works, not by my efforts, not by my self righteousness, but by your grace, God, I've been given it.
[00:30:33] Amen.
[00:30:35] Is that good? You guys enjoying this?
[00:30:37] Hallelujah.
[00:30:39] Jesus completed the work of redemption perfectly, eternally and fully. And just as God rested on the seventh day, now we now rest in the finished works of Jesus Christ.
[00:30:50] All right, here we go. Here's the tidbit. Under the old covenant, man worked to earn righteousness. Under the new covenant, man rests because righteousness has been given to him.
[00:31:06] Amen. Amen. Okay, okay, I'm going to say it over here. So under the old covenant, man worked to earn righteousness. Under the new covenant, man rests because righteousness is given to him.
[00:31:21] He got it. One person got it. Hallelujah. Amen. Amen. You guys, I still love you guys. I really do, honestly.
[00:31:29] Amen.
[00:31:31] They're taking it. Yeah. Way to be positive. Amen. It's good to have you back, Pastor Kyle. You're so positive.
[00:31:36] The new covenant is not about striving. It is about resting in Jesus's finished work. The work is done. The rest has been hallelujah.
[00:31:45] Somebody say I got a better covenant.
[00:31:48] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[00:31:51] So what am I saying? What am I saying to you guys this morning?
[00:31:55] I'm saying that God has made a covenant with you. And it is a better covenant than the old one of works and law.
[00:32:02] Jesus doesn't need you to add anything in order for him to redeem you or save you or bless you. He. He has already done it all. And he is seated at a place of rest at the right hand of the Father.
[00:32:15] And what's more, he has seated you with him in heavenly places.
[00:32:20] So quit thinking. Somehow you've got to do something.
[00:32:24] And now, by faith, I want you guys to pray this with me. Simply say, father, thank you, that it's already done.
[00:32:32] I'm not going to stress, try and earn anything or trust in my efforts.
[00:32:41] I'm going to, by faith, enter into this rest you've already provided in Jesus.
[00:32:50] Amen. I agree. I add my yes and amen to that prayer this morning, church. I add my yes and amen to that, church, that prayer this morning, church.
[00:33:00] And this is where I live. I live in this place of being totally convinced of his faithfulness, totally convinced of him being able to keep his promises in spite of me, in spite of me. It's got nothing to do with my performance and everything to do with his promise. Amen.
[00:33:15] I live there. That is absolutely. I am absolutely assured of his goodness towards me. Are you assured of his goodness towards you this morning? Have you seen it in the Word this morning?
[00:33:24] His goodness towards you that you don't live in this old covenant. You live in a new covenant that's completely done and finished. And you rest now in what Jesus has done.
[00:33:33] Amen.
[00:33:35] I'm absolutely assured of that. You have to be assured of that. You have to know that in your heart. I know that I'm blessed not because of anything I do or how good I am or whether or not I get it right. I'm blessed because I have a covenant with my God.
[00:33:46] I have a covenant with my God. Amen. I'm convinced that he will make good on His Word and I am convinced that he is faithful to watch over that Word and perform it not because of me, but because of Jesus.
[00:33:59] This is what faith confessions look like.
[00:34:03] Somebody say I got a better covenant.
[00:34:05] Let's go to this scripture in Hebrews 8, 6, 7 again. I want to read this again.
[00:34:11] But now he, Jesus.
[00:34:13] Hebrews 8, 6, 7. But now Jesus our high priest has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood. For he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God based on better promises. Verse 7. For if the first covenant had been faultless, there would be no need for a second to replace it. Jesus didn't die to enact a new. Jesus died to enact a new and a better covenant that is not based on our ability or our ability to adhere to a list of do's and don'ts. Jesus did not die to start another religion.
[00:34:49] Jesus did not die to start another religion.
[00:34:56] That's what do's and don'ts look like. It's religion. Do this, don't do this.
[00:35:01] Go ahead. That's religion. Jesus didn't die to start another religion.
[00:35:06] He died for relationship.
[00:35:08] And all shall know me was the prophet Jeremiah.
[00:35:12] I'll write my laws on their hearts. I'll put my spirit inside of them and all shall know me, says the Lord. He didn't die to start another religion.
[00:35:21] He died to bring you into relationship.
[00:35:25] There's so many people that are still living in a performance based mindset with God.
[00:35:30] And God doesn't see that. God remembers your sins and your iniquities no more. He doesn't see your faults and your flaws.
[00:35:37] He sees his son, Jesus. He sees the covenant he made with you through the cross, he sees the covenant he died to establish a new and a better covenant, a covenant of grace. God did the work. Jesus signed it with his blood. And the Spirit keeps it alive in you.
[00:35:53] This covenant is entered by grace, through faith. And we are secure in it. Not because of our performance, but because of his promise.
[00:36:00] As I finish up, because I've already hit my time, I can't believe that we are stepping into a time where this world wants to shape us and push us down a particular way of thinking and doing.
[00:36:12] And if we don't know this covenant that we have and the promise, and not more than the covenant we have, but the promise that God is faithful to his covenant, that's so important.
[00:36:24] The covenant's great, but you have to believe that God is faithful to his covenant.
[00:36:29] Because if you don't believe that God's in God's character and his faithfulness to keep his covenant and the covenant's useless.
[00:36:36] You have to believe that he is faithful, that he is not a man, that he should lie, that he does not change his mind about you, that he will do what he says he's going to do. You have to believe that part because that's what brings that covenant into effect. That is the faith that God is looking for. Not perfect faith.
[00:36:53] Not knowing what to say and when to say it and having all the Bible memorized, knowing who he is.
[00:37:03] Trying to think of the Scripture, baby. Is it Hebrews 11 and 6?
[00:37:08] Yeah, Hebrews 11, 6 is that without faith, it's impossible to please God. Because you have to believe that he is and that He's a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him. That is what faith looks like. It's believing that he is who he says he is. He will do what what he says he's gonna do. And he's done what he said he'd done.
[00:37:30] That's the faith.
[00:37:31] And that's the faith we need as we step into this new season where everything's trying to push us in one direction. And we have this covenant with our God, that we have to know who he is and that he's faithful to that word.
[00:37:43] So I don't know what you're believing for this morning. I don't know what you've put out before the Lord, but I can tell you this with absolutely wholeheartedness. Wholeheartedness. God is faithful to his word.
[00:37:54] God is faithful to his promise.
[00:37:58] Amen.
[00:38:02] The new covenant is not a system of rules.
[00:38:05] It is a relationship built on grace.
[00:38:07] The Cross ended the old covenant and grace reigns where law once ruled. Someone say, I've got a better covenant.
[00:38:16] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[00:38:19] Would you just stand to your feet this morning?
[00:38:23] If you're here this morning and you've been living in a place where you feel like it's been about your good works, or maybe it's been a little bit about your performance, and maybe like, just really subtly, you've just been thinking that way where you've sort of said to yourself, even in your heart, thank you, Jesus, that I'm not getting this because I've done. Or maybe God will do this if I do.
[00:38:47] Can I just say this morning that that's not the gospel.
[00:38:51] The gospel is not based on you.
[00:38:54] It's the good news of Jesus Christ.
[00:38:57] It's the good news of what he'd done for us on the cross.
[00:39:00] And this morning by the spirit of God. I just believe that God is unlocking that in your heart. He's removing that place from your heart of that doubt to whether or not he will or won't move because of you.
[00:39:10] And he's replacing it with this faith to believe that it's the spirit of God in you that he blesses, that he loves, that he sees, and that he's going to move because he is faithful, not because you're faithful.
[00:39:24] Thank you, Jesus.
[00:39:27] Amen. Amen. Amen. Well, Father, we just thank you this morning, Lord God, for a new and a better covenant, God, that, Lord God, you prophesied this thousands and thousands of years ago, Lord God, that we would live in an age where we would be in this new covenant, Lord God. And we live in that now. We live in this better covenant now, Lord God, because of Jesus that, Lord, when we fall, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous Lord, that he ever lives to make intercession for us. He ever lives to keep this covenant, Lord God. It's sealed with his blood. It's signed with his blood, Lord God.
[00:40:06] And Father, thank you, Lord God, that you are faithful to keep your word. And whatever area that looks like this morning, Lord God, in our lives, whether it's with our marriages, whether it's with our finances, with our homes, with our health, Lord God, you are faithful to your word. You are faithful to your covenant, Lord God.
[00:40:22] We believe, Lord God, that you uphold your covenant through the power of your word. We believe in your character to fulfill it. We can believe in your character to sustain it, to do the things that you've said because you are faithful, God And Lord God, we know that this doesn't cause us to run away from you, but run to you when we see more of you, when we taste and see that you are good. Lord God, we can't help but want more of you and to surrender our lives to you.
[00:40:50] And Father, if there's anybody in this room that doesn't know the Lord with every head bowed and every eye closed, Lord God, if that's you, if you don't know Jesus, would you just raise your hand right now if you'd like to get to know the Lord? Thank you, Jesus.
[00:41:03] Amen. Amen. Amen. We're all saved in here. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus.
[00:41:09] Amen. And if you just want to receive this word this morning that we've had, would you just raise your hand if you want to receive this word about a better covenant and living free from law and free from works and professional and just living in the rest and the grace that God's have of you, would just raise your hand. Thank you for the hands. Thank you Jesus for the hands this morning. Lord God Church, would you pray this prayer with me? Dear Lord, thank you for a better covenant.
[00:41:34] Lord, I receive this by faith today, that by grace, Lord God, you have brought me into a place of rest. And Lord, I no longer I'm going to base my relationship with you on how good I am or what I do.
[00:41:51] But I'm just going to see you, Jesus and what you've done, and I'm going to trust you, Jesus and what you've done and I'm going to believe your word. God, Father, help me to know and live in this covenant you've provided in Jesus name and everybody said Amen. Amen. God bless you guys.
[00:42:13] Thank you for tuning in to today's message. To connect or find out more, you can reach us online at worldchangers.life. Remember to subscribe for more uplifting messages from our pastoral team and may you continue to walk in faith and transformation until we meet again.
