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Covenants

Rather than simply abolishing the Old Testament laws, Christ fulfilled them (Matt. 5:17). Again, we see the unity of Scripture. The law of Moses was given “until the offspring [Christ] should come to whom the promise had been made” (Gal 3:19). The judicial, ceremonial, dietary, and civil laws of Israel would find their end in the person and word of Jesus Christ. The old covenant that included these theocratic laws has been abrogated by the new covenant in Him. That was why the writer of Hebrews said, “In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete” (Heb. 8:13).

Thus, Christians do not stone adulterers (Matt. 5:38-48; John 8:1-11). The church is not to wield the sword of justice; that’s the responsibility of the civil government (Rom. 13:1-7). Christians are free to eat barbecue, meat, and other foods previously forbidden (Acts 10:12-15) because we are made clean, not by diet, but through the Spirit of Christ. The veil of the laws of Moses has been removed.

While the old covenant community’s worship was centered in Jerusalem, the new covenant community’s worship is decentralized.

Why? Because Christ has become the sacrificial Lamb on behalf of His people from all nations and is the only Mediator between God and man (1 Tim 2:5). Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, “woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father… God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:21, 24).

To be sure, both Old Testament believers and New Testament believers were saved through faith and not by works (Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4). Christians, too, are “sons of Abraham” by faith (Gal. 3:7). Again, we see the continuity and unity of Scripture. But while the nation of Israel was set apart from the surrounding nations by faithfully obeying the various laws of Moses, Christians (made up of converted Jews and Gentiles alike) are set apart as holy through faith in Christ, which is expressed in obedience to the “law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2).