Introduction

The central event of the New Testament is not the overthrow of the Old Testament, but the overthrow of death by way of Jesus Christ’s resurrection, which forever linked the two testaments, establishing the continuity of covenant architecture. But if there is continuity between the covenants, why is it called the New Covenant?

Christ—The New Indicative

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

Jeremiah 31:31-34

The New Covenant promises internal transformation (Jer. 31:33). Yet the Old Covenant also includes internal transformation (Dt. 10:16; 30:1-10; Jer. 4:4; 9:26; Ez. 18:31; Rom. 2:28). So then, in what sense is the New Covenant new? In what sense is the internal transformation of the New Covenant different from the internal transformation of the Old Covenant?

The Old Testament’s promise of internal transformation anticipates a time of complete fulfillment that will be more fruitful.  This time is invariably known as the latter days, the New Covenant, the new creation, the gospel, and the Messianic Age. Deuteronomy 30:1-10 is an anticipatory passage that anticipates the complete fulfillment of the internal transformation. In the New Testament, the promise of internal transformation is strengthened.

Consider an example of how this works. The Old Covenant contains commands. So does the New Covenant. What is the difference between the commands in the Old and the commands in the New? The difference is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God doesn’t dispense with commandments in the New Testament. The Epistle of James is 108 verses long and has fifty imperative commands. The commanding power of the law is strengthened in the New Covenant because the indicative of the New Covenant is strengthened.

God’s commands are always based on indicatives of grace. Before giving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, God said, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Ex. 20:2). God’s moral commands come out of the graciousness of saving the nation from slavery in Egypt. God reminds them of his abundant grace before giving commands. Grace precedes command. God never expects his people to have the moral ability to obey his commands apart from his grace.

Grace precedes command is also the pattern of the Sermon on the Mount. Immediately before the sermon, in Matthew 4:23, we read, “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.” Then Jesus preaches the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus’ commands come out of the grace and mercy of Jesus’ actions. Grace before task. God gives himself first and gives commands second. God’s grace paves the way for obedience, which is why God’s grace demands more, not less. The commanding power of the law is strengthened in the New Covenant because the indicative power of the New Covenant is strengthened.

Likewise, the internal transformation of the Spirit is strengthened in the New Covenant because the indicative of the New Covenant is strengthened. The potential for internal transformation is intensified because Christians live in the age of the Spirit in which the promises of God have been fulfilled in Christ.

The internalization promise of the New Covenant highlights the weakness of the Old Covenant (Heb. 8:8). The source of internalization in the Old Covenant was unfulfilled. The source of internalization in the New Covenant is Christ crucified and resurrected. The gift of the Holy Spirit applies the benefits of Christ to his people. Christians obey the law, not because of intrinsic moral ability, but because of Christ’s resurrection power applied through the Spirit. By faith in Christ, the triune God applies the gospel inside out. The Father (1 Jn. 4:12f), the Spirit (Rom. 8:11), and the Son (Eph. 3:17) together fulfill the internalization promise of the New Covenant. The triune God abides in his people, empowering obedience, granting assurance, and giving comfort. God convicts them of sin, establishes repentance, and transforms the elect. This internal work of God manifests through outward good works (Eph. 2:10).

Signs

The sign of the Old Covenant was circumcision and the sign of the New Covenant is baptism. The Israelites performed the rite of circumcision on believers and their children. This wasn’t a cultural sign. It wasn’t a national or fleshly sign.  It was a spiritual sign. According to Jeremiah, Old Covenant circumcision represented a circumcised heart (Jer. 4:4), and this, as Abraham says, involves living faith (Gen. 15:6). According to Ezekiel, New Covenant baptism represents a new heart through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”

Ezekiel 36:25-27

The Old Covenant sign was external and internal (Rom. 2:28f). It was visible and invisible (Col. 2:11f). It was earthly and heavenly. It was fleshly and spiritual (Rom. 4:11). The New Covenant sign is also all of these things (Zech. 13:1; Mt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 7:1; 1 Pet. 3:21), but there is a difference. Christ makes the Old Covenant obsolete (Heb. 8:13). How so? Jeremiah contrasts the New Covenant with the Mosaic Covenant when he says the New Covenant is “not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt” (Jer. 31:32).  The testatory of the Old Covenant was the law. The testatory of the New Covenant is Christ crucified and resurrected. The need for the priesthood, sanctuary, and sacrificial system of the Old Covenant is now removed. The provisions of the Old Covenant are at the heart of what is made obsolete by Christ.[1]

Conclusion

The New Covenant of Christ’s blood (Lk. 22:20) is “better” (Heb. 8:6) than the sacrificial system (Heb. 8-10). The New Covenant prophecies highlight forgiveness and internalization. Does that mean there was no forgiveness in the Old Testament? Does that mean there was no law on the heart of God’s people in the Old Testament? No, there was forgiveness and internalization in the Old Testament, but of a kind the sacrificial system could support. Old Testament forgiveness and internalization were but shadows of the fullness of forgiveness and heart change made possible in the death and resurrection of Christ. In the Old Testament, they did not enter God’s rest because of unbelief. The church is warned that they ought not to make the same mistake (Heb. 3:7 – 4:16).

[1] Peterson, D. G. (1994). Hebrews. In D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer, & G. J. Wenham (Eds.), New Bible commentary: 21st century edition (4th ed., p. 1338). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.