The Better Covenant

The eleven Chapter of Hebrews mentions various type of sufferings and hardships men of God (heros of faith - Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthae, David and Samuel) had to go through under the Old Covenant:

"Others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented - of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountain, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us" (Hebrews 11:36 - 40, NKJV, emphasis added).

The "promise" of Verse 39 refers to the promised Messiah. They were people of faith and through faith "obtained a good testimony." But they didn't see the fulfillment of that promised in their days. Since God has provided some better things for us, we are not obligated to all the things they suffered under the Old Covenant. We have a better Covenant. It is established on better promise.

The writer of Hebrews said: "But now He (Jesus) has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises" (Hebrews 8:6).

Many of us are wondering why all this happened to them. Why they were not delivered? I hope to answer some of these questions. To begin with, God is not to be blamed for their sufferings. But He had provided a way of escape.

God makes way of escape

The Scripture reveals a few ways of escape. First let us look at what Paul said concerning temptations and trials that come our way of life.

"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it" (1 Cor. 10:13, emphasis added).

I have heard the above being quoted - "God won't put any more on you than you are able to stand."

But that was not what the Apostle Paul said. Let me paraphrase what Paul actually said:

"Satan can't tempt you supernaturally. He has to tempt you by that which is common to man. He can't come with some supernatural temptation. He has to come to you through the five senses. We, as believers, have the advantage of supernatural weapon because the weapons of warfare are not carnal, but they are mighty through God. But Satan's temptation is limited to the carnal things."

Satan is the tempter and destroyer

Did you notice that Paul did not say God sent the temptation? So many believers interpret this to mean that God sent the temptation or the trial. But Jesus, used "The parable of the sower" in Mark 4 to indicate that it was Satan who brought the trials and the afflictions of life.

Jesus said: "Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful" (Mark 4:18, 19).

The way of escape ignored

Let us now go back to what Paul said: "... but with the temptation (God) will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it" (1 Cor. 10:13).

It is clear that, as Satan brought in the "temptation," God provided a way of escape. It is therefore valid to say that those men of God mentioned in Hebrews 11 either they didn't find the way of escape or they chose not to take it, but to suffer persecution.

I believe you could die in the service of God, but it is much better to live and serve Him. Present your bodies a living sacrifice and you will be able to serve Him better alive.

Paul said: "For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you" (Phil. 1:23, 24).

Someone aptly put it: "You don't win a war by giving up your life for your country. You win a war by getting your enemies to give up their lives."


The New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant


Why is the New Covenant better than the Old Covenant? The Scripture clearly says that there are some promises people have in the New Covenant that people did not have under the the Old Covenant.


Under the Old Covenant


To get some insight into some things what happened under the Old Covenant, we have to go to Ecclesiastes to get Solomon's assessment of life under the Old Covenant:


"Then I returned and considered all the oppression that is done under the sun: And look! The tears of the oppressed, but they hve no comforter - On the side of their oppressors there is power, but they have no comforter" (Eccl. 4:1).


The problem is that people under the Old Covenant didn't have the Holy Spirit who is our comforter and guide. Under the Old Covenant they didn't have a comforter. They didn't have one called alongside to help, to teach them all things.


The oppressor had power, but those who were oppressed didn't have any power, because they didn't have a comforter.


Solomon went on to say: "Therefore I praise the dead who were already dead, more than the living who are still alive. Yet, better than both is he who has never exested, who has not seen the evil work that is done under the sun" (Eccl. 4:2, 3).


Solomon summed the whole thing up by saying, "You would really be better off dead than alive under this situation." Then after thinking about it, he said, "You would really be better off if you had never been born than to have been born and dead."


Under the New Covenant, Jesus said that when the Holy Spirit (Spirit of truth) is come, He will guide you into all truth; He will show you things to come (John 16:13, 15).


Under the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit came only upon the prophet, the priest, the king and a few who were used by God for special services. The average layman did not have access to the Holy Spirit in those days.


Under the Old Covenant, there wasn't much people could do about the oppressor and his power. If they stayed under the umbrella of the Covenant God made with them (the book of the Law), then they had divine protection. But once they go out from under the umbrella of protection, then they were legal game for Satan, and they had no power to overcome him. This was the curse of the law.


Under the Old Covenant, there was no remission of sins. There was only atonement or a covering of sin. The sin was still there. People were still conscious of their sin. Only under the New Covenant does the blood of Jesus take away the consciousness of sin.


Under the New Covenant


Under the New Covenant, we are redeemed from the curse of the law (Gal. 3:13). Also, under the New Covenant we have authority to use the Name above all names, the Name of Jesus. We now can resist the Devil and he will flee from us because there is power in that Name.


Jesus said to His disciples: "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you" (Luke 10:19).


Under the New Covenant, Jesus gives us power and authority over the Devil. So we have the advantage. Satan's temptation is limited to that which is common to man (in the five senses). We have now supernatural weapons the people didn't have under the Old Covenant.


A man to stand in the gap


God said: "And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none" (Ezekiel 22:30, KJV).


God also said: "And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor; therefore his arm brought salvation for Him; and His own righteousness, it sustained Him" (Isaiah 59:16, NKJV).


The man needed to stand in the gap is the intercessor. God seemed to say: "We are going to do something about it, for this is not right. I need a man to fulfill this purpose."


Our intercessor has come


John said: "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1, NKJV, emphasis added).


The word "Advocate" means "Intercessor." Our Lord Jesus Christ is our Ingercessor.


Paul said: "It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us" (Romans 8:34).


The writer of Hebrews said: "Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermos those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them" (Heb. 7:25).


So we see, for those men of God mentioned in Hebrews 11, there was no intercessor. There was no man to stand in the gap and make up the hedge. But now we have a man. His Name is Jesus. He is our Intercessor. This will answer many of our questions about why things happened as they did under the Old Covenant.


The flood of the enemy


Isaiah said: "When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will life up a standard against him" (Isaiah 59:19).


Notice that when a flood comes, it overflows everything. There is no way to contain a flood. If it could be contained, it would not be a flood. Therefore, there is no way to contain the enemy when he comes in like a flood. This is true under the Old Covenant. When the people did not keep the Law, their enemy did come as a flood, and there was no power under the law to stop him. There was power on the side of the oppressor, but none for the oppressed. So for the people under the Old Covenant, there was no way of containing the enemy, once they stepped outside of the Covenant.


The flood of the Holy Spirit


Today, under the New Covenant, we are living in the fulfillment of Isaiah 59:19. The standard has been lifted up. His arm (Jesus) brought salvation (Isaiah 59:16). The tide has turned, so to speak. The Holy Spirit is in us, and the enemy can no longer come as a flood. Instead the flood of the Holy Spirit is coming from the believers, and Satan can't stop it.


If Isaiah was living under New Covenant, he would have written:


"When the enemy shall come in, like a flood, the Spirit of God shall lift up a standard against him."


Take note of the punctuation. The phrase "lift up a standard against him" in the context, means "put him to flight." So, we can read it this way: "When the enemy shall come in, like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall put him to flight."


The role of the Holy Spirit in prayer


John said: "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38, emphasis added).


The phrase, "will flow rivers of living water" means "will have flowing stream of living water."


Paul said: "Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered" (Romans 8:28).


In other words, when the enemy comes in and we don't know how to pray, that river, that flowing stream of God's Spirit within us, begins to release the flood.


When you don't know how to pray, you should pray out of your spirit in other tongues. When the enemy comes in, the Holy Spirit begins to pray through your spirit. Out of your spirit come rivers of living water. That is the flood. It is the Spirit of God lifting up a standard against the enemy. And the enemy will be contained.


Sword of the Spirit


Paul said: "And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with perseverance and supplication for all saints; ... (Eph. 6:17, 18, KJV, emphasis added).


Notice that the sword of the Spirit is not just the Word of God which many Christians believed. It is the Word of God praying. There is a difference here. In other words, it is the Holy Spirit, through your spirit, praying the Word of God. Therefore, the Word of God is not a sword until it is in your mouth. God's Word spoken out of your mouth becomes the sword of your (human) spirit.


Jesus in you praying the Word of God


Jesus came inside you when you were born again. We know Jesus intercedes for us. I believe He does it through your sprit, and through your voice. In other words, it is the Spirit of truth (Jesus, the Holy Spirit) through your spirit, praying the Word of God.


If God were to pray for you, He would pray His Word over you. God wouldn't say one thing in prayer that He hasn't already said in His Word. If you had lack, He would pray abundance over you. If you were in darkness, He would pray light over you.


Jesus is our intercessor, and He speaks only what He hears His Father say. So Jesus, our intercessor, would be praying the Word of God over us.


Conclusion


The writer of Hebrews said: "God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us (Heb. 11:40).


Therefore, we are not obligated to all things the people suffered under the Old Covenant. We have a better Covenant. It is established on better promises.