Mosaic Covenant to New Covenant
The transition between the old (Mosaic) and new covenants can seem complex to some people, but hopefully this breakdown will give you clarity. Let’s unpack it together and combine the covenant of the ten commandments, which is the old Mosaic covenant, and Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection (new covenant). The ten commandments are in Deuteronomy 5:7-21 (also in Exodus 20) and for those of you who need a gentle refresher here are the commands: don’t worship any other gods except God, don’t make any idols or statues, don’t use the Lord’s name in vain, keep the Sabbath day holy, honor your father and mother, don’t murder anyone, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t tell lies about others, and don’t want another man’s wife or possessions. Those are all the things that we should and shouldn’t do, and those are the ways that we hold up our end of the agreement that we have with the Lord.
Deuteronomy 28:1-13 explains how God will bless us if we fully obey Him and follow His commandments and other instructions that He personally gives to us, setting us high above other nations. And here are the blessings that we should expect from God: He will bless us in the city and in the field, give us many children, bless our land and crops, bless our animals with many babies, bless us with calves and lambs, bless our baskets and pans with plenty of food, and bless everything that we do. The Lord will also help us defeat our enemies and let others see that we are called to be His people making them afraid of us. He will bless us tremendously and always send rain at the right time for our land causing us to prosper more and more. And with this abundance of blessings, we will be able to lend to others and not need to borrow from anyone. In addition to those things, our God will make us the head and not the tail and we will always be on top not the bottom. All those blessings are ways God keeps His solemn covenant promises to us when we obey Him. To further expound on this Mosaic covenant and Jesus’ fulfillment of it let’s look at Matthew chapter 5. In this chapter, Jesus concisely reiterates the blessings that belongs to us for our obedience to God, love for God, and love for others. Also, in chapter 5 of the book of Matthew, Jesus assures us that He didn’t come to destroy the Law of Moses and that nothing will be taken away from it, but He came to give full meaning to the law (commandments).
When Jesus died on the cross, He became sin, died for our sins, and defeated death and evil, establishing a new covenant between God and us through Him, making Himself a sacrifice for humanity. The blood of Jesus represents this new contractual arrangement between God and His people, according to Matthew 26:28, Luke 22:20, and 1 Corinthians 11:25. After Jesus ascended to Heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us, but only those who are born-again believers have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of them. Yes, there must be a spiritual rebirth through baptism and acceptance of Christ as Lord and Savior to possess the indwelling gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The Holy Spirit convicts unbelievers of sin, righteousness, and judgment, but does not live inside of them because they don’t know Him (John 14:17, John 16:8-11).
The Spirit of the Lord in us is also a sign of this new covenant, a part of the salvation package of this agreement, and a reminder that we will receive everything that God has planned for us when we do our part. And being that we have accepted all the “terms and conditions” of the agreement we have with God, we are now His children and joint heirs with Jesus, therefore we will share in His suffering and His glory. In addition to that, we are not our own because we were bought at a price by Jesus’ death, which is why our bodies are temples for the Holy Spirit, so out of respect and gratitude, we should honor God with our bodies (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). And since this new covenant covering is based on our Father’s grace and favor, not works, we can rest in the Lord, rely on His strength, not our own, and trust that Jesus came to give us an enjoyable life—a life full of abundance (John 10:10) and freedom (John 8:36).
Yet, Christ paid the full price to set us free from the curse of the law. He absorbed the curse completely as He became a curse in our place. For it is written: “Everyone who is hung upon a tree is cursed.” Jesus Christ dissolved the curse from our lives, so that in Him all the blessings of Abraham can be poured out upon gentiles. And now through faith we receive the promised Holy Spirit who lives in us.
~Galatians 3:13-14 TPT