The New Covenant of the New Kingdom // Kingdom Come

Jesus came to usher in the Kingdom of God. But it was not the kind of Kingdom anyone expected. Or for that matter, it wasn’t what the religious people wanted. They had in mind the kind of Kingdom and the kind of King they wanted, and this wasn’t it. But God loves us and knows exactly what we need, and Jesus embodied all of it. As he announced the Kingdom of God, it angered powerful people and he ended up dying a sacrificial death on the cross. But in three days he fulfilled his own prediction—he came back to life under his own power, and declared death and sin defeated! He proved that his Kingdom HAS come, and it is an everlasting Kingdom that knows no end. YOU are invited to belong. The Kingdom has come for you.

The blood and resurrection power of Jesus provided life and power for the whole world. Performance is over. The rule of the day is grace.

Message Notes

The death and resurrection of Jesus provided a new covenant for the whole world.

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.”
Luke 22:20

Salvation is no longer about what I do.

It is about what Jesus has done.

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. If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. But when God found fault with the people, he said:

“The day is coming, says the Lord,
when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel and Judah.

This covenant will not be like the one
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
and led them out of the land of Egypt.

They did not remain faithful to my covenant,
so I turned my back on them, says the Lord.

But this is the new covenant I will make
with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord:

I will put my laws in their minds,
and I will write them on their hearts.

I will be their God,
and they will be my people…

And I will forgive their wickedness,
and I will never again remember their sins.”
Hebrews 8:6-13

When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete.
It is now out of date and will soon disappear.

The new covenant is forever sealed by grace—no condemnation.

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.
Romans 8:1-4

The new covenant gives us power to live God’s way.

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21

Bottom Line:

The new covenant is forever sealed by grace.

Next Steps

1. Live in grace.

2. Extend grace.