© 2004, Robert M. Kelley. Reprinted by permission

The Old Covenant

CHAPTER 4

© 2004, Robert M. Kelley

Look up all Scriptures in your own Bible. Read and/or write the Scriptures on paper. Writing Scriptures on paper slows down your mind and causes the Bible verses to be more deeply burned into your mind.

All Scripture is inspired and true. However, you cannot learn everything at once. Therefore, the most important Scripture on this subject is in bold type and the next most important Scripture on this subject is underlined.

1. Some people are biased against the Old Testament. They wonder, "Why is the Old Testament so big? Of the 66 books in the Bible, the Old Testament consists of 39 books and the New Testament consists of 27 books. The Old Testament, then, comprises about two-thirds of the Bible. People wonder why. (Even worse, some have estimated that as much of one-fifth of the New Testament consists of direct quotations from the Old Testament.)

The New Testament is concerned with the New Covenant and the Old Testament is concerned with the Old Covenant. (In fact, the NRSV New Testament has this title: "The New Covenant commonly called the New Testament.")

If the Old Covenant cannot grant eternal life (it cannot, as will be seen later) then why did God ever create it? If the Old Covenant cannot work (it cannot, as will be seen later) then why did God create it? Why did God wait about 4,000 years—from about 4000 BC to about the year zero—to introduce the New Covenant? Why didn't God introduce the New Covenant first? (These vital questions will be answered in this Chapter 4 and in Chapter 5, "The New Covenant.")

The New Covenant cannot be understood without knowledge of the Old Covenant. In fact, many people do not understand the New Covenant because they do not understand the Old Covenant. The Old Testament & New Testament are inextricably linked; the Old Covenant & New Covenant are inextricably linked.

2. A covenant is an agreement or contract between two parties. The Old Covenant was an agreement between the twelve-tribed nation of Israel and God. Essentially no others could participate in the Old Covenant. If one was not a citizen of Israel, then one could not participate in the Old Covenant.

3. The Old Covenant consisted of a written agreement. The Old Covenant agreement consisted of two parts: (a) the Ten Commandments, stated in Exodus 20:10-17 (repeated in Deuteronomy 5:6-21), and (b) the judgments and statutes of Exodus, chapters 21-23. The Ten Commandments told people what not to do. The judgments and statutes told the people what was to occur if anyone disobeyed the Ten Commandments. Moses wrote the Old Covenant down in a book, called the "Book of the Covenant":

"Moses then wrote down everything the LORD had said." (Exodus 24:4 NIV)

4.  A formal ceremony occurred in which the Israelites agreed to the Old Covenant. This ceremony is described in Exodus, chapter 24. Blood was used as a symbol to confirm the Old Covenant. Moses describes the confirmation:

"Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, 'We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.'

Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, 'This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has' made with you in accordance with all these words.'" (Exodus 24:7-8 NlV)

5. The essence of the Old Covenant Was physical blessings and curses. If the Israelites obeyed the physical laws of God, then God would give them physical blessings. If Israel failed to obey the physical laws of God, then God would give them physical curses. The blessings and curses of the Old Covenant are carefully spelled out in the chapters of Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28.

6. There is nothing spiritual about the Old Covenant. There was no promise of eternal life in the Old Covenant: The Old Covenant dealt with this physical life only.

7. Faith was not a requirement of the Old Covenant. One does not need faith to avoid murdering his or her neighbor (the Sixth Commandment). A few Old Testament examples of individual faith are given in Hebrews 11. 'However, overall, Paul, in the New Testament, continually used the Israelites in the Old Testament under the Old Covenant as examples of faithlessness. The children of Israel did not exercise faith when they followed Moses out of Egypt: They were scared by the power demonstrated by God through Moses. They saw Pharaoh's army following them and they saw the Red Sea parted; they took a physical way of escape by walking between the sea walls. They were carnal, not faith-filled.

8. The Old Covenant welded together government and religion. Moses headed the government portion. Aaron, via the Aaronic priesthood, headed the religion portion. The Old Covenant represented a theocracy in which God ruled the nation of Israel.

9. The entire Old Testament is based on the Old Covenant. When Solomon dedicated the Temple (in II Chronicles 6) he essentially repeated the Old Covenant terms: The nation would be physically blessed for obedience, and physically cursed for disobedience. The Old Testament books of Psalms and Proverbs are, for example, loaded with Old Covenant thinking. If one obeys God, then God will send rain to make one's crops abundant, one's animal (sheep and goats) offspring will multiply, one will have a full barn, one will have abundant, healthy children, etc. However, if one disobeys God then terrible physical curses (the opposite of physical blessings) will overcome one.

10. Many people confuse the Old Covenant with the New Covenant. An example of this confusion is the "prosperity gospel." The "prosperity gospel" is based solely on Old Covenant promises (from the Old Testament). The "prosperity gospel" is nothing more than a repackaging of the Old Covenant.

Summary.

1. Some people are biased against the Old Testament. The New Covenant cannot be understood without knowledge of the Old Covenant.

2. The Old Covenant was an agreement between the twelve-tribe nation of Israel and God.

3. The Old Covenant consisted of a written agreement.

4. A formal ceremony occurred in which the Israelites agreed to the Old Covenant.

5. The essence of the Old Covenant was physical blessings and curses.

6. There is nothing spiritual about the Old Covenant.

7. Faith was not a requirement of the Old Covenant.

8. The Old, Covenant welded together government and religion.

9. The entire Old Testament is based on the Old Covenant.

10. Many people confuse the Old Covenant with the New Covenant. An example of this confusion is the "prosperity gospel."

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