The Better Covenant (Hebrews 8:1-13)
Hebrews • Sermon • Submitted
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· 223 viewsA short message preparing for the significance of celebrating the Lord's Supper.
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Transcript
INTRO
INTRO
I want to look at our passage briefly today and let it help lead us into a time of celebrating the Lord’s Supper.
begins with: Now the point in what we are saying is this...
Now the point in what we are saying is this...
So all of the talk of high priests and Jesus as the greatest high priest is coming to a head. He’s summarizing all of that now and it is captured in its fullest in v.6— that Jesus mediates a better covenant between God and his people.
There is an old covenant and a new covenant in Scripture as it relates to God’s redemption. We have the Old Testament of the Bible and the New Testament.
v.7 — for if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second.
So the question obviously would be what was faulty about the first covenant, or the old covenant?
First, we must note that the Old Covenant was not faulty in the sense that it broke down and then needed repaired. The New Covenant, brought in through Jesus Christ, was thought of before the ages. It wasn’t a fix to something that broke.
The Old Covenant was faulty in that it was not final. Logically, if the Old Covenant was all that was needed, then there would not be a need for the New Covenant. There would have been no occasion to look for a second.
The Old Covenant was faulty in that it could not provide full and final atonement for sin. Under the Old Covenant, priests had to continually make sacrifices. And a priest would have to make atonement for his own sin in addition to the sins of others.
But not so under the new covenant. There is so much power in Jesus’ words on the cross when He said It is finished.
There is no greater sacrifice.
Nothing more is needed for you and me to be made right with God, our Creator and Father.
Notice that is a quote from . This is a new covenant that God would make with his people.
The apostle Paul understood that Jesus’ crucifixion, which is symbolized in the Lord’s Supper, was the establishment of the new covenant, when he wrote in during the instructions. There, he is making mention of what happened in the upper room between Jesus and his disciples before he was taken to be crucified.
(ESV)
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” 30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Jesus would not drink from this cup again with his disciples. He knew he wouldn’t do it on earth, but he would join them again one day in glory in the great marriage supper of the Lamb. What he was going to do would finally, completely, and forever accomplish that for which he came.
The new covenant would be established. All you and I need—the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.