The Old Man, The Old Covenant And The New Covenant - Zac Poonen

I want to speak today on Romans chapter six seven and eight I'm not going through the whole chapters but the main teaching of those chapters those of you who have hurt me and many of you heard me for many years know that my major emphasis the Lord's put on my heart for more than forty years is how to lead God's people into their full inheritance it's like the land of Canaan Moses could not lead the Israelites into Canaan so God raised up Joshua and another name for Joshua is Jesus it's the same name Joshua to lead them into Canaan the law could not lead people into this overcoming life where the Giants are killed one after the other but Jesus came to lead us into this promised land which is the New Covenant life where the Giants can be killed one by one we don't have to be discouraged when we see the Giants in our life we don't have to be like those ten spies who say oh we were like grasshoppers in front of them we can never overcome them we must be like Joshua and Caleb who had faith they didn't look at their muscles they looked at God and said if God helps us this these people will be like bread that we can eat that should be our attitude to every single sin in our life I feel that Christians need to see more seriously what sin is and the only way to see it I pass from for my life for I've been a Christian 59 years now since I was born again is by looking at the cross of Jesus meditating on that and seeing how much he suffered I don't mean the physical suffering when I was a kid I thought of the physical suffering oh how terrible it must have been to be whipped and the crown of thorns on his the nails I used to imagine all that I used to weep when I if ever I saw a movie of Jesus being crucified I'd weep but the next day I was just the same there's only temporary and I'm sure many of you have that feeling too you think about Jesus and then you feel a little sad and sorry and but then you go around and sin just the same the next day but when God opened my eyes to see something else on the cross and that was how the Father forsake him now we just read it my God my God why have you forsaken me but there's a lot of depth and I will encourage all of you to meditate on that sentence that Jesus spoke on the cross that for three hours he was forsaken by the Father and you know people talk of a God forsaken place there is no God forsaken place on this earth even the terrorists and suicide bombers have helped who gives it to them God do they deserve it No so there's no God forsaken place those terrorists have healthy children God is a good God he's good to evil people he makes the Sun to rise on the good and the evil so if the Sun is rising on us doesn't mean we're okay it just means that God is good the rain falls and waters our plants it doesn't mean we are okay it means God is a good God God is a good God but when we look at the cross of Calvary and we see Jesus hanging there and crying out and our earth shaking and the Sun being darkened what Jesus experienced in those three hours is eternal hell that's what it means to be forsaken that God the only God forsaken place in this universe is hell and it's very difficult for us to imagine that that's why Jesus used word pictures like burning fire and worms that never die in fire and brimstone those are all word pictures because we can't understand what it means to be forsaken by God it's the most terrible experience and I will not wish it on my worst enemy to tell you honestly I would not want my worst enemy to go to hell because it's such a terrible thing and for all eternity that's the punishment of man forsaking God and because Jesus was infinite God himself he could experience in three hours eternity for us to experience eternity it has to be eternity millions and millions and millions of years but for Jesus to experience eternity three hours was enough and what he experienced was not just for me for the billions of people who have born on this earth he died for the sins of the world it says in 1 John chapter 2 he's the propitiation for the sins of the whole world that's from the time of Adam all the billions of people who lived he took all their punishment faced eternal hell and what for for my sin and why look at that when I look at that I can never love sin I'll hate every single sin and by sin I mean anything on Christ like there are different definitions of sin in Scripture in 1 John chapter 3 it says going against the law transgression of the law that's sin that means the law told you to do something and you didn't do it or you it said don't do this and you did it the other definition of sin is a last part of James chapter 4 the last verse which says if you that's sin so then we have two definitions of sin 1 John 3 transgression of the law and James for the last verse knowing what is right and not doing it but here is the highest definition of sin that I've discovered in Scripture all have sinned Romans 3:23 all have sinned and come short of the glory of God now the phrase glory of God is such a vague type of thing that most of us don't understand we think of some bright light that's how I used to think when I used to read the Bible for his glory of God what does that mean but it's not just a bright light it's not the glory of heaven the glory of God James John 1:14 says was seen in Jesus Christ full of grace and truth that perfect life that Jesus lived full of grace and full of truth is the glory of God so when it says we've come short of the glory of God put those two verses together Romans 3:23 and Jay in John 1:14 and you see that all have sinned and come short of the life that Jesus lived that's what it means all have sinned and come short of the life of Jesus that is Romans 3:23 so my definition of sin goes beyond 1 John 3 and James 4 it is anything that is contrary to the life of Jesus or anything that I cannot do in fellowship with Jesus anything that raises the bar very high do I want it there or do I want the Old Testament standard which is the Old Covenant standard Ten Commandments most of the world the laws of the governments of the world one beings but Jesus raised the bar high now the question is at what level do we want to live do I want to I say this like living in the Stone Age in the Stone Age they didn't have electricity they didn't have cars they used horses and lamps you want to go back to that age nobody wants to go back there we all want to live in this age with all the facilities that is the difference between the New Covenant and the Old Covenant like comparing today's world with the Stone Age to me it's very clear like that and Jesus came to lift us higher and he lived his life to show us that that was possible because the devil is always whispering in our ears it's not possible for you it's not possible it's not possible and the Bible says let us look under Jesus and run this race it is possible every time the devil says it's not possible don't say you have attained it doesn't matter but I say I'm gonna get there even Paul at the end of his life when he was more than 60 years old having walked with God for thirty years says in Philippians 3 I'm not yet perfect I've not yet attained I have not yet become like Jesus but it doesn't mean I'm in the same level as I was when I was unconverted oh no I made a lot of progress up this mountain of becoming like Jesus I don't get discouraged because I didn't reach the top but I'm gonna press on I publicly confessed Paul said that I have not attained Jesus is perfect I am wanting to that's the goal I have because the Bible says in Romans 8:29 that we were predestined to become like Jesus Christ that's the destination written on our ticket to become like Jesus Christ that's why Christ came not just to forgive our sin because they had forgiveness of sins under the Old Covenant Psalm 103 1,000 years before Christ David says bless the Lord O my soul who forgives all your sins but what they didn't have was being saved from sin and the first page of the New Testament says angel tells Joseph this baby that Mary is going to have you got him name him Jesus the meaning of which is he will save his people from their sins not forgive their sin but that's already done but he will save his people from their sins by dying forgiving them and saving them two parts to it full salvation not just salvation from hell not you shall call his name Jesus because he will save his people from hell that is a false translation but that unfortunately is what many Christians believe I hope there's nobody here who believes that the New Testament is you shall call his name Jesus because he will save his people from a hell no version of the Bible has that he will save his people from what from sin so that's what you need to ask yourself this Jesus I believe in as he saved me from Hell or is he saving me from sin very important question the devil wants to rob us of our inheritance by saying he'll only save you from hell I say get behind me Satan he's also gonna save me from sin not all of a sudden from everything but progressively I learned that from the first chapter of the Bible the first chapter of the Bible the earth is dark and empty and without form and two things happen that dark empty formless world is a picture of my life unconverted and the Holy Spirit it says begins to brood over it and that's what happens to us when we were born again the Holy Spirit begins to come into our life and the second thing the word of God goes forth God said God said God could have made that earth perfect in one moment but he didn't to teach us a lesson he did it in stages over six days day by day by day by day the Holy Spirit and the Word of God first day it was a little better light came in the second a little bit still more third day still more finally on the sixth day after God has made Adam and Eve what does it say they were in the image of God and that's a lesson for us we start off dark empty Genesis chapter one verse two formless having lost the image of God no light full of darkness and the Holy Spirit works in us we come to new birth and we read them and hear the word of God regularly and day by day by day by day by day one day the image of God will be completely in us so we should never get discouraged and if you slip and fall in the race get up and run I've heard of people who slipped and fell in even Olympic races and got up and ran again in 10,000 meters races long races and won because they didn't just lie down and say oh no hope for me imagine a man running in an Olympic Games and so many people running with him and the people ahead of him and he trips and falls and it actually happened and he got up and he didn't give up he said okay these guys are ahead of me but I'm gonna run and win and he won that's the determination we Christians must have if you fall don't give up I'm gonna run and win and that verse that Santos quoted run in such a way 1 Corinthians 9 wanting to run in such a way that you will win and he says only one wins the race but he's telling the entire Corinthian church you can all come first that's the wonderful thing about the Christian life that everybody can come first not just one person in the earthly races one person comes first in the Christian life he's telling and who is he writing this to the corinthians were the most carnal worldly church in the first century Paul was so disgusted with them he said I'm your father shall I come to you with a rod give me your spanking because you're so indiscipline and defeated in your Christian life why does a father do that because he wants his children to come first all at such a heart he prayed for them he wept for them it was not a teacher spanking a student it was a father who didn't want to shame his children would wanted the best for his children just like we want the best for our children and he wanted them to come first and he Detmer shows me the most carnal people can come first are you defeated carnal you can come first to what does it mean to come first in the Christian race it means to enter Heaven and Jesus saying to you well done good and faithful servant that is what it means to come first to me that's what's means to come first I'm not looking for some physical crown on my head the Bible says those who have crowns will throw it at the feet of Jesus we won't have any crown sorry to disappoint you for this you won't have any crown when you move around in heaven we'll throw it all at the feet of Jesus who deserves it all but I do want to hear for many many years I have wanted to hear well done good and faithful servant when I come to the end of the race my dear brothers and sisters I hope that is your passion if he's just a weak desire you'll never get it you have to have a passion do you know how these people come first in the Olympics they trained for four years think of a man running the 26-mile marathon and he wants to get into the Olympics every day he'll run 26 miles I don't think he enjoys it but he's determined to get the prize he's only such people who get the prize and he's disciplined in his eating and his sleeping habits eating habits because he says I want to get that price and Paul says be disciplined like that not we're not talking about physical discipline and running we are talking about our attitude to sin I want to be disciplined there's something I want to do but I'm not going to do it that's discipline do you think those runners were running the marathon on not tempted when they see a bowl of ice cream and all the other things that will make them fat and heavy they won't be able to win the race they are tempted when they see that boy I really feel like eating that but I've got to win the race I'm gonna deny myself or they don't feel like getting up in the morning again at six o'clock and to run a marathon today you think they all feel like getting up now but they tell themselves I am gonna get up because I want to win the prize and I want to say to you my brothers and sisters temptation is real attractive but you have to discipline yourself say no I'm not gonna do that I'm not gonna retort in anger just because he spoke to me in anger I'm not gonna be bitter towards that person because he was bitter towards me no I'm not gonna speak evil of him if I heard that he spoke spoke evil of me I'm tempted sure like this athlete is tempted to eat up all that ice cream but he says I won't do it because I want to win the race say that the Holy Spirit of God filled me so that I will hear from the world from the mouth of Jesus my Savior one day well done good and faithful servant and every one of you children teenagers adults everyone can hear it we can all come first let that be a desire in your heart at least from today say Lord I'm sorry I've been indisciplined in the past with my eyes what I look at and read I want to be disciplined I've been very undisciplined with my tongue saying things here and there I want to be disciplined from today because I want to hear you say well done a good and faithful servant that's all and if I want to get that what the Lord has shown me is you remember the words that the father from heaven spoke at the baptism of Jesus you all know that when John the Baptist baptized Jesus a voice from heaven said this is my beloved son and let me expand it I have watched him for thirty years in Nazareth he's never done a miracle till today he's never preached a sermon till today just like many of you never done a mirror Nemus preach the sermon never mind this is my son who's never cast out a demon never healed a sick person just like many of us all he's done is lived at home faithfully with his mother with Joseph with four younger brothers and two younger sisters at least Joseph had died later on when Jesus grew up there were at least seven people in them he was working just like a lot of us work earning his living a much poorer job than many of us have working physically as a carpenter trying to get orders for tables and stools and whatever he was making he had to struggle to earn his living in Nazareth his aim was not to become the richest carpenter in Nazareth no his aim was to earn his living and take care of his family so he would never cheat he would never sell a table which had wood which is cracked and covered up with paste or something like that if it happened like that he'd tell the customer this is cracked over here I've just covered it up with some paste so you can pay less that's the type of carpenter he was and if some if some poor widow asked him to make something can you make a stool for me he'd make it and when the widow asked her Jesus what's the cost of that he said that's a gift for you he'd care for the poor how can you become the richest carpenter in Nazareth that that's the way you work this is the Jesus I want to follow and the father looked at that for thirty years the way he behaved at home the way he never got angry with his four younger brothers or two younger sisters he never got irritated with them though they try to irritate him so much and never once got angry never once got irritated and he studied the word you know the Bible says when he was twelve years old he could discuss Scripture with adult people I remember when I got converted I thought of that Jesus was 12 years old and he knew the Scriptures okay let's assume that he began to read when he was about 5 years old so he had seven years in which he know he wanted he could know the Scriptures and they had no Bibles like this at home those days so the Bibles are in parchment Scrolls is very very expensive for anybody to have nobody had it in their home that was one in the synagogue and I can imagine the six-year-old Jesus going to the rabbi in the synagogue and saying rabbi can you read something from Scripture for me can you read something from Isaiah and Jesus would listen and try to absorb it absorb it or maybe the rabbi had half an hour to spend he was excited that this little six-year-old boy is interested in Scripture probably nobody else would come to him like that he'd go home and he'd meditate on it and come again the next day rabbi can we go to the next chapter Arab I said sure imagine if you had a six-year-old boy like that boy I'd be proud of him is it too early for these little children to learn scripture I taught my boy scripture from a very young age I see you got it no scripture Jesus did it without hearing or even having a Bible at home he was serious about his Heavenly Father and he grew up grew up gruff and did that every day whenever he could he had to go to school to learn his normal education as well this was a little half an hour at some other time during the day and by the time he was 12 years old he had heard obeyed I hope none of you believe that Jesus came from heaven with all the norm scriptures crammed in his head no he was born like us he grew up like us he had to learn like us and he learnt the scripture just like any of our children can learn and it was more difficult for him because he had to go somewhere walk there and get somebody to open the Bible and read it to him and at the age of 12 he could confound the doctors in the temple those scholars by asking him things because you know he had meditated on what he heard a lot of people read the scripture don't meditate on it he meditated on it so these are the type of things Jesus did and at the age of 13 never having preached a sermon never having done a miracle exactly like us we have a Bible we can be faithful 90 percent of Jesus life 30 years was spent at home and in his place of work only 10 percent of his life three and a half years was in public ministry 90 percent of your life is spent at home and your place of work right absolutely 10 percent of your time is in fellowship with other Christians and some ministry you do exactly like that all of us 90 percent of our life is in our home and in our place of work and there Jesus was faithful and the father said this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased and I remember I asked the Lord I said father can you say that about me look down from heaven and say this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased even if I never preached a sermon never do anything forget ministry don't compare yourself never compare yourself with somebody who's got a ministry Jesus had no ministry public ministry what we call ministry in 30 years you don't need ministry for the father to say this is my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased you don't need to preach a sermon you don't need to cast out a demon you don't need to heal the sick you don't need to do any of these things which the world calls ministry and the father can say about you this is my beloved daughter in whom I am well pleased even if your little girl or a little boy the father can say just do one thing that Jesus did read the Bible and if you can't understand something ask your dad and mom to explain it to you try and read a little bit every day I'll tell you it's amazing what you can learn in seven years anyway I started at the age of 19 I was born again just I'd never read the Bible before that I was born again when I was 19 and a half and I grew up in an orthodox church I mean I was born into an Orthodox Church in my I knew Jesus died for my sins so many times I'd say Christ come into my heart but I was never very sure but I was sure when I was 19 now if Jesus came into my heart by based on one verse him that cometh to me I'll never cast out I believed it and for the last 59 years my ship has never drifted the anchor was cast so I want to encourage you to really seek for this voice of approval from God then you will come first in the race then you will hear when you get to heaven well done good and faithful servant so I started at the age of 19 to read this book the Bible all my spare time I wasn't married then and I in the midst of my work if I got a little spare time I would carry a little pocket Bible and it's so easy for you nowadays you can have it in your phone we didn't have phones those days smartphones I'm I had a little pocket new Testament but I would carry with me everywhere I went if I was sitting in a bus traveling in a train had opened it and read it and at home whenever those I had the full Bible that I would have in my room and I could read it and by the time I was 26 years old seven years that was my goal Jesus from the age of 5 to 12 years the scriptures I said I can know it too I really got to know the scripture well now I want to tell you today that the foundation from my ministry I didn't know those days God's gonna make me a Bible teacher or give me a ministry I never knew anything about that I just wanted to know Jesus I loved him so much because he was forsaken on the cross for my sin that's why I said lord I want to know you and there's only one book through Jagan oh yes I want to know it and the foundation for my entire ministry has been those first seven years when I study the Bible now I want to say to you my dear brothers and sisters encourage your children to study the scriptures you never know what ministry God has for them when they are 30 years old if you have laid a foundation in their heart of the knowledge of Scripture many parents are not doing that they hope the Sunday School will know the Sunday school is for children of unbelievers whose parents are not teaching them at home my children went to Sunday school all their childhood days up to the age of 15 or 16 in CFC Bangalore but I didn't trust the Sunday School to teach them scriptures I taught them Scripture at home and I was traveling whenever I was at home I would teach them scriptures and and he would teach them when she was there the Sunday school was extra so your children go to Sunday school is extra it's your responsibility the Bible says Father's instruct your children Ephesians 6:4 in the instruction teach them the instruction and discipline of the Lord it's the father's responsibility and if the father is an irresponsible person then the mother must do it like Timothy's mother Timothy's father didn't take that seriously to teach his son Timothy the scripture so the mother took on that responsibility so if the father is irresponsible there are a lot of irresponsible father's today or don't care to teach their children Scripture you mothers must do it which you can't afford to lose your son Timothy when he was 20 years old Paul looked at him and say hey I want him on my team imagine if your son grew up and at the age of 20 some apostle like Paul said I want him on my team boy that was the greatest honor that Timothy's mother got boy I don't want him to be a great businessman and a millionaire to be a co-worker with Paul what greater honor than that but that is because a mother did the faithful job of teaching that child the scripture and Mary also unsure helped Jesus to understand the scripture so I say that as an introduction in Romans six seven and eight we read about this victorious Christian life Romans six we have three stages in Romans six is our unconverted stage in Romans seven is the Old Covenant stage of our life and Romans eight is the new covenant stage and I want to explain it very simply so that everybody understands and I want to explain it like three marriages that we go through we are the bride you know the Bible says we are the Bride of Christ so we are the woman and we are married in six seven eight to three different men that's the picture here it's an illustration but I think it'll help you to understand what the Christian life is all about what is the difference between being unconverted what's the difference between Old Covenant and New Covenant because some people you know they hear me speaking so often the new company so once is all a new covenant new covenant I'll explain to you today what it means what does it mean in Romans six you're married to the old man Romans six and then you get baptized and it says in Romans chapter six Romans chapter six verse six baptism is a testimony it's mentioned in verse 4 but verse 6 is knowing this that our old man was crucified with Christ so that this body of sin might be done away with so again the emphasis is so that will no longer be slaves to sin because if you have died we are freed from sin so before we were converted Romans 6:6 is the conversion experience our old man is crucified with Christ the old man is this desire to sin not it's different from the flesh the flesh is the temptation to sin the old man is the desire to sin or to use another example the old man like a servant inside my heart when the thieves the robbers who are the lusts in the flesh come and say hey I want to come in and rob you of your purity I want to rob you of your joy I want to rob you of your peace and the old man says this servant says come right in steal whatever you like take away my joy take away my purity take away my peace whatever you want take away my love make me a hateful person the old man is an unfaithful servant and one day God killed it and put a new servant inside now the thieves are still alive the thieves are not killed that's why even after you're converted you find that thieves the lusts are still tempting you but when they come and knock at your door the new man says no I'm not gonna let you in the new man is the one who's a desire not to sin so then the question comes how does the believer sin the believer sins because the new man is too lazy to eat and take exercise and he's so weak that he tries to keep the door shut where he can't keep it shut and the lusts come in that's how a believer sins and all unbeliever sins by the new man old man opening the door so that's one illustration but here's I'm using another illustration here Jesus always spoke with illustrations there was no prophet in the Old Testament that spoke with parables and what word pictures like salt and light and keep your conscience like you keep your eyes and I've understood so much through the parables and word pictures of Jesus that I decided in all my life in my preaching I'm gonna use word pictures and illustrations to illustrate the truth because it helped me so much so here's the first marriage now forget the other illustration I used it's not applicable here the old man is the man I was married to before I was converted and you are married to when your unconverted in your unconverted state and he's an evil man he's an evil husband he tells you to do wrong from morning till night get angry hate lust commit all the sexual sins you can live to make money live to enjoy pleasure don't worry about God everything will be okay he's a wicked man keep a grudge against those person if you're jealous of somebody you should be jealous and don't take these sins seriously the old man is evil through and through and when you look at your unconverted days in my look at milan converted we did so many wrong things because the OVI was married to this old man but then a day came in your life and mind when we got fed up as we've come we approaching being born again we're coming to the Lord saying Lord I'm fed up of my sinful life all the wretched things I've done that hurts you I want to come to you you do something for me and the Lord kills my husband's crime free this man who always made me do wrong and to be subject to him he's dead now the old man is dead that marriage is over and now I want to be married to Jesus Christ I want to finish with this old man and I see this wonderful man now I want to get married to because I finished with my first marriage now I want to come to the second marriage Romans 7 where I see this wonderful man whose standards are so high very high upright man who never does anything wrong will never demand that anyone else should do wrong very high standards and I say boy this is the one I want to marry I think this is Jesus Christ okay this must be found because who else has such a perfect standard so I marry him and I decide I discovered that he never asked me to do anything wrong never he never asked me to hate anybody he never asked me to be jealous he never asked me to lust or steal or tell lies or love money or anything but he has very high standards to use one just one example of his high standard in area there are many areas but here's one area this new husband of mine says I want breakfast every morning at eight o'clock not 8:01 not 8:02 it must be 8 o'clock you know the name of this husband the law the old covenant and now I thought it was Christ but it wasn't it was the law and many Christians make this mistake they are born again and instead of marrying Christ they get married to the law to a bunch of rules and regulations which makes them miserable I went that way I went that way for many many years never being able to meet that standard do I say that to use one example breakfast at 8 o'clock and here I'm struggling and with a great struggle I'd make breakfast by 11:30 and the law says no it must be 8 o'clock and I struggle and struggle and struggle and fail you know just like a lot of people here here the commands of the New Testament and struggle and fail and struggle and fail there are tremendous commands of the New Testament rejoice always give thanks in everything pray without ceasing do all things without murmuring and grumbling this is what I mean by breakfast at 8 o'clock and here I am constantly failing 11:30 I struggle struggle struggle with great effort I'm a managed leaven 15 but it's nowhere near 8 o'clock and what do I do get discouraged but yet I know he's never asking me to do anything wrong he's not asking you to hate anybody or he's just as standard is so high that I just can't make it and then I say Lord I made a mistake here I got rid of my old husband but I married the wrong person and now the sad thing is this husband will never die like the other one because the law of God is perfect God will never kill it what am i doing my doomed for life to be married to this man and this man will never die because God will never kill his law I'm discouraged exactly like Christians who want to live a godly life but I'm not able to reach it get discouraged that's life under the Old Covenant it was like that for me years and years and years and years falling getting up falling getting up never able to reach that standard of eight o'clock breakfast I'm nowhere near it so this husband is never gonna die what is the solution you know what God does listen to this wonderful way I said Lord is there any hope for this situation and God since there is he kills the wife that's me marriage is broken again and and then you know God is the god of Resurrection raises me up my marriage to the law is broken thank God I'm finished with that guy and then he says God says this is Jesus you got a you made a mistake last time and my old marriage is broken you know death breaks a marriage I hope you know that God healed me broke that marriage it raised me up and married me to Christ that is the New Covenant Romans 7 verse 4 please read it you understand it much better now after you heard this illustration therefore my brethren you were made to die to the law the law didn't die you were made to die to the law of why so that you can be now married to another Christ who was raised from the dead that now we might have children through Jesus Christ which is fruit for the glory of God for the rest of your life you'll understand Romans chapter 7 verse 4 because of what you heard today now when I come to this new marriage I'm still the lazy person I can't make you know the other thing I'm the law was not only breakfast at 8 o'clock let me say all the other things when you wash my clothes they must be spotlessly clean that's the law they must be ironed perfectly not a wrinkle anywhere the house must be spotlessly clean everything breakfast eight o'clock just one thing and I could never manage it who'd never manage to keep the house clean never managed to keep wash all the clothes perfectly it was a demanding and yet he never asked me to do anything wrong that was life under the law and now when I come to Christ I discover that his standard is no less than the law exactly the same because God gave the law what does he say breakfast at 8 o'clock house must be spotlessly clean clothes was imperfectly washed ironed without a wrinkle on them but there's a difference he says to us let's do it together you and I I'll help you to make breakfast eight o'clock I'll help you to keep the house clean I'll even help you to wash the clothes I'll help you to iron the clothes wouldn't you ladies love to have a husband like that who wouldn't want a husband like that the standard is I but he's helping you in every single thing that is New Covenant and I cooperate with Jesus and with great effort after about a year I managed to make breakfast by 10:30 still not 8 o'clock and the Lord says never mind never mind we keep going keep going and I work with him and work with him after a few years have become ten o'clock still not near his standard I still haven't managed to wash the clothes perfectly or keep the house spotlessly clean or iron the clothes for fee but it's much better than it was as a progression and after about 20 years I managed to make breakfast by 9 o'clock Wow he's getting better and better and better and I believe one day I'll be perfect like Christ wants me to be but the wonderful thing is he's helping me all along all along dear brothers and sisters that is the new covenant message and that's what the devil has robbed Christendom off now I'll show it to you also from Romans 8 verse 4 you know it says here verse 3 what the law could not do what the law could not do law couldn't help me to do all these things God is now done because he sent his son in the likeness of sinful flesh condemned sin in the flesh so that this requirement of the law can be fulfilled now eight o'clock breakfast in clean house and everything else we can work towards that that's what the Bible says this is the New Covenant life married to Jesus Christ and in practical terms what it means is like I said that this progression to perfection that's why I said earlier at the beginning that Paul said I'm not perfect I haven't reached that standard of breakfast at eight o'clock but it's getting better and better and better and better I wasn't like the old days when I bread make breakfast at 11:30 it's an illustration but I hope you understand that and I hope it encourages you to believe that if you're making that progress you're on the right path don't wait until you've come to that day where you've got rid of all your anger and got rid of all your memory and all your grumbling and all your complaining and you never have any ending of those wrong attitudes it will come but you'll know you're progressing but if you are discouraged married to the law you'll go backwards this is why the Holy Spirit has come and I want to show it to you a little more clearly the Old Testament law was written in Exodus chapter 20 and I want you to see what it's like in Exodus chapter 20 this is Old Covenant life it says in Exodus 20 you know the Ten Commandments and I want to say to you that all the Ten Commandments were you shall you shall not that's all you shall have no other gods but me verse 3 you shall not make any idol you shall not take the name this is verse 3 and 4 you shall not take the Lord's name in vain verse 7 verse 4 verse 8 the fourth commandment you shall keep the Sabbath day holy fifth commandment you shall honor your father and mother verse 12 sixth one you shall not murder seventh you shall not commit adultery verse fourteen eight you shall not steal verse fifteen ninth you shall not bear false witness then you shall not covet your neighbor's our tenth commandment what are the Ten Commandments you shall you shall not you shall not you shall not you shall or shall you shall you shall that is Old Covenant so when you hear a voice only saying only saying you shall do this you shall do that you shall not do this you shall not do this and that's all you hear from day and night I am NOT disguise I'm not surprised if you are discouraged it'll discourage anybody it's like that husband's saying breakfast at eight o'clock this house must be spotlessly clean my clothes must be perfectly washed I'm not a speck of dust it's a miserable life this is Old Covenant Christianity for many people there are others who don't even bother about this they see how who's going to live this is impossible forget it they don't even attempt it and they go backslide and some of them finally lose their salvation but now I want to show you the New Covenant turn to Hebrews in chapter 8 this is a very important chapter this is the most important chapter in the Bible describing the New Covenant get to know it Hebrews is a great book and listen to this in Hebrews eight it says here in verse six Jesus has obtained a more excellent ministry he is the mediator of a better covenant that's like saying the third marriage is better than the second marriage you all agree that Jesus is better than the law as a husband he is the mediator of this new covenant do you know that Jesus used the word New Covenant only once only once at the last supper he took the cup and said this is my blood of the new covenant sacred words related to his blood which He shed on the cross for my sin so I never despised that phrase new covenant don't ever despise it it's the word Jesus used when he spoke of his blood and it's called here a better covenant established on better promises I'm surprised when people despise that phrase and say what do you say a new covenant Christian that's what I am and I'm proud of it my Savior used it when he took the cup and said this is my blood it's precious to me I didn't understand it for many years as a Christian but the more I understood it has become precious to me and I see the devil had robbed me of my inheritance and I look around and Christians are robbed of their enemies I want them to inherit it okay and then it says in verse 7 that first covenant the Old Covenant was faulty the Bible it says says the Old Covenant was faulty if you live under that life you live a faulty life it is faulty and that's why God had two choses make a second covenant it's not because God made a mistake he's just saying that all in other words the old covenant could not bring you to the place where God wanted you to be it was a law it was a husband who never helped you he just told you to do this do this do this never helped you Fawlty that's not the way God wanted it but it was a stage to bring you to the third stage you had to see the help your own helplessness and then you come to Jesus let me tell you give you an illustration do you remember in John 21 after the resurrection how Peter and his disciples went fishing that's Old Covenant from 6 o'clock in the evening till 5 o'clock next morning they fished and finished and fish and fish and fish nobody to help them and not a single fish that is Old Covenant life then in the morning Jesus comes and says well boys have you got any fish he has a sense of humor there he knows they got nothing but he taught them a lesson you try to live this life in your own effort you will fail and fail and fail and fail and get nothing now just listen to me throw your net on the other side and all of a sudden the net is full of fish that is New Covenant but this is different from all the other catch of fish that Peter ever had when he comes to shore with his huge fish he doesn't got it he doesn't have his chest out saying look what I caught no he's very humble I never did this Jesus did it all well not all I did cause my net I had to do a little part in it but Jesus filled a net with fish that's New Covenant the Old Covenant is struggle struggle struggle struggle from 6 o'clock in the evening till 5 o'clock in the morning and get 0 New Covenant is in a moment you work in that is there are many pictures of this if you look for it you'll see it everywhere Old Covenant is water Jesus turns it into wine that's New Covenant and that's better than all the other wine they drank before in the marriage in Cana okay now we come here here's the exact word Hebrews 8 verse 8 this is the new covenant I will make with the house of Israel house of Judah and that applies to the church today it's not like the Old Covenant it says and then he explains the new covenant please listen carefully the new this is the covenant he says in verses 10 to 12 and if you have never understood it before you'll understand it tonight today what is it I will put my law into their mind I will write them in their heart and I will verse 12 and they will all know me as father not only the mature Saints verse 11 the last part from the least to the greatest they won't have to verse 11 they won't have to teach each other oh brother no the Lord like the Old Testament prophets know the Holy Spirit will come in you you know the Lord yourself in the Old Testament only the hope prophet had the holy spirit and he had to tell people this is what the Lord is doing is what the Lord wants you to do but he says not like that now that's all covenant now I will come and dwell in you and you will know me personally as father from not from the greatest of the least from the least to the greatest means the youngest believer can know me and I will be merciful to their iniquities that means he'll forgive all our sins and I will not even remember their sins anymore it's going to be blotted out you know in the Old Testament sins were not cleansed you never read in the Old Testament that anybody sins were cleansed it says blessed is the man whose sin is covered psalm 32 the forgiveness there was only a covering of the sinned it's like if I take a thick cardboard piece he'll cover my sins here it's cover you can't see it it's hidden but if you lift the cardboard is there in the New Covenant it is cleansed it's wiped out and there's nothing underneath there's nothing to be covered it's all cleansed it's gone I will remember their sins no more this is new covenant what was covered under the Old Covenant is cleansed or think of a blackboard where all your sins are written down with a chalk but a sheet is put over is covered that's Old Covenant in the New Covenant they remove the sheet and take a wet sponge and wipe it all out there's nothing there I will remember their sins no more it's so much better that's why I don't live in condemnation you don't have to live in condemnation he says I won't remember your sins any more but the thing I want you to notice here is this go back what did what did I say the Old Covenant was you shall you shall you shall not you shall not you shall you shall not now see new covenant Hebrews 10 8 10 sorry chapter 8 verse 10 what we just read I will I will I will verse 12 I will I will five times I will I will I will I will see the contrast now the Old Covenant was you shall you shall you shall not you shall you shall not now the Lord says new covenant is not like that I will I will do this I will do this I will do this it's Jesus coming and helping us what do I have to do very little cost the net into the sea in every miracle you know Jesus could do everything himself if Jesus did everything himself in our lives we would be robots you know if God had made Adam like a robot moving like these robots he would come to the tree of knowledge of good and evil and the program inside would say no not this one and he would turn around and we would walk towards the Tree of Life God didn't make us like robots he wanted us to make a choice I have free choice and I reject what God told me not to eat I will take part of the Tree of Life that's why all he wants us to do say yes and he will help me to do it he says roll away the stone the easy part I'll do the 99% difficult part raise him from raise Lazarus from the dead now Jesus could have rolled away that stone on his own but he then it'll the work could all be his he said I want you to do one percent I'll do the difficult part you do the easy part this is New Covenant life in the Old Covenant was you do it all yours and you fail and fail and fail and fail in the new covenant in the old covenant is like that in the new covenant he says let's do it together but you got to do only 1% and little by little we find that God writes his law you know what does it mean when it says God writes his law puts his Lord to my mind verse 10 that means in my mind he gives me a desire to do his will to obey His commandments then he says I'll write it in my heart that means he'll give me the ability I need two things desire to do God's will ability to do God's will he says I'll put the desire in your mind and I want to tell all of you sitting here if you have a desire to do the will of God in to please God don't assume that it came from you God put it there never never forget where you came from I don't know whether you sing that song here about remind me remind me dear Lord roll back the curtain of memory once in a while Lord show me where you picked me up from and where you brought me show me what you've done for me but I am human and humans forget so remind me remind me dear Lord I sing that many times often with tears in my eyes to remind me Lord where you picked me up from and remind me where you've brought me but I'm human and I forget so remind me remind me dear Lord where were we and the Lord brought us here and the Lord wants to do a lot more in us and he does always it's the easy part you pour the water into the water parts the Lord says I'll turn it into wine the Lord could have filled the water pots himself that would be a robot Christian living no I want you to make a choice I want you to say yes and even that I put the desire in your mind Moses came down with two tablets of stone guarded written with his finger on two tablets of stone four commandments in one in six of the other four relating to God in six relating to our fellow man and now he says I will be the two tablets now are your mind in your heart with my finger the finger is the Holy Spirit he will write his lord give us a desire to do God's will and the ability to do God's will turn to Philippians in Chapter two Philippians chapter 2 is written there and simple words God works in you verse 13 Philippians 2 verse 13 God works inside you and whenever it says God works inside you it's always the Holy Spirit to do two things first he writes it in your mind to will his good pleasure then he writes it in a heart to work his good pleasure you see there it's the same thing what is written in Hebrews chapter 8 verse 10 is what's written in Philippians 2:13 God works inside me through the Holy Spirit to make me desire his will and make me do his will if God has already worked in your mind to desire his will that means he's written his law in their mind why won't he do the second part and write it in your heart as well that's Grace in Hebrews 13 it's says here in Hebrews 13 and verse 9 the middle of verse 9 it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace strengthened for what to do God's will that's the same thing god strengthening me to obey His commandments why don't we get that grace there's a law of God syrupy and said mentioned in 1 Peter 5 verse 5 he gives grace only to the humble he gives grace to the humble but he's opposed to the proud and if we have not got grace my brother sister to be strengthened to keep his Commandments put it down to pride no other reason sin will not rule over you Romans 6:14 because you are not under the Old Covenant but under the New Covenant under grace why don't I get that grace I know the times when I have slipped and fallen and got it spoken something rudely or thought a bad thought I said Lord why did I slip when it says sin will not rule over me at this particular moment I was not under grace and why didn't I get great I all rather not not that way I didn't get grace why didn't I get grace because somewhere I was proud show me where I was proud so when I fall into sin anytime I said I don't say Lord why didn't why did I fall I see a lord show me where I was proud because if I was not proud you would have given me grace then I don't overcome every time I say that and the Lord shows me my attitude to someone last week or something I said there or some other place where I didn't give the glory to God I took it to myself inwardly I repent and progressively I go one step higher this is the Christian life it's God working in us to desire his will to do his will progressively and the result is we become more and more like Christ and more and more the Lord can say about us this is my beloved son this is my beloved daughter in whom I'm well pleased let's trust him for this God wants to do this and this is why he has put teachers in the church to teach God's Word you know the Bible says as we approach the last days Paul told Timothy I want to read this in 2nd Timothy 4 in closing Timothy 2nd Timothy 4 very seriously he says it I solemnly charge you look at the number of phrases he uses must be something very important I solemnly charge you in the presence of God in the presence of Jesus Christ in the one who will judge the living and the dead by his appearing by his kingdom almost seven things there did he count it I solemnly charge you in the presence of God of Christ Jesus who judge the living in the dead by his appearing by his kingdom what is this you're emphasizing so much Timothy Timothy preach the full Word of God be ready to preach it when you feel like it and when don't Tony don't feel like it and what should he do with the Word of God reprove people rebuke people exhort people and be patient they may not like it but reprove them rebuke them exhort them why because a time is soon coming when they will not really like to listen to the message of holiness the word sound doctrine is a greek word from which we get the word hygiene hygienic doctrine you know how hospital floors are kept hygienic lee clean and operation theater is kept hygienic lee clean without any germs people will not like hygienic doctrine we say we don't even want one germ here we don't even want one sin in our life an operating theater in a hospital the doctor doesn't say well I'll keep it generally clean now you know how these ha stopped surgeons go for an operation they first scrubbed their hands for a number of minutes and even then it's not cleaner they put surgical gloves which which have been made pure in steam so that all germs are killed then they touch a patient that's hygiene and people will not like that type of standard in holiness ah what does it matter if there are a few germs that's how death comes in that's how death comes in an operating theater and people are killed within Paul tells Timothy don't be a preacher like that we just tolerate something here and there because you can keep people happy the time will come when they will not want to listen to this type of hygienic doctrine they want to have the ears tickled with people with teachers who according to their own desires woe unto a church where the congregation besides or the preacher is going to preach that's doomed to be Babylon teachers according to their desires and Christendom is full of people there are churches today what do the young people want you want this type of music you want these lights and all in there and rock music type of music in the poloidal let's have it they accumulate teachers according their own desires the songs may be evangelical but the whole spirit the spirit of the world you want a preacher will crack jokes and make make a lot of humour and keep you happy and never tell you about your sin the time will come Timothy when that will happen and we are already seeing it all over the world in many many churches and once you go down that path there's no limit to where further it'll go to all types of forbidden areas in marriage and all that divorce etc and not only they will get teachers according their own desires they'll turn away their ears from the truth what is the truth jesus said you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free from sin john 8:32 they won't want to listen to the truth that sets them free from sin they'll only want to hear how to go to heaven and they will turn aside to myths stories which will keep them unprepared for the kingdom of God and so that when Christ comes again what will happen it says in 1 John 2 when he appears there'll be two types of believers on earth when Christ appears 1 John 2:28 little children abide in him otherwise when he appears some will say Lord we're happy to meet you we're boldness to come to meet you and there'll be another group of believers who will shrink away from him in shame that is coming this is talking to believers little children when he appears don't be those like those people call I took sin so lightly now I realize how serious it is the Lord invites us today not to condemn us he says my son my daughter why do you want to liver that low level why do you want to live in a slum I got a palace for you to live in a hygienic clean place come up higher he who has ears to hear let him hear it's an invitation to come up higher not to discourage us remember it's not the law which gives you a standard it leaves you he says I'll do the difficult part you roll away the stone I'll raise the dead you pour the water I'll turn it into wine it's always like that you cast the net I'll fill it with fish that's always Jesus way you say yes I'll strengthen you to keep that commandment which now you think is impossible that's what he did for me many years ago it changed my life completely after being defeated for 16 years as a born-again Christian the Lord opened my eyes to see the wonder the glory of New Covenant life that's why I've got a inferred I pray that it'll bless you let's pray Heavenly Father we know that understanding these truths in our mind won't help us these are the words of eternal life many people rejected it when you preached it on earth people reject it today but Lord prayed the Holy Spirit will make it clear and true to all I believe so many here are hungry and needy please encourage them to believe that you will help them to come to this life pray in Jesus name Amen

Channel: CFC India

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Id: rMuKkLE1YQI

Length: 70min 33sec (4233 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 24 2018