As followers of Jesus, we have common needs for assurance of forgiveness, a sense of belonging, having purpose, and more. Jesus meets these needs in the New Covenant. Before going any further, let’s review the promises God made to his people in the New Covenant prophesied by Jeremiah.
(Jer 31:31-34) In this covenant, God promised:
to write his laws on the hearts of His people,
an enduring relationship that He will be their God and they will be His people,
forgiveness of their sins AND forgetting those sins.
OK, the New Covenant was promised to Israel, so how do we gain access to this covenant? When we declared with our mouths that “Jesus is Lord” and believed that God raised him from the dead, this faith qualified us to be sons and daughters of Abraham, with full benefits of the New Covenant. Paul declared our beneficiary status in Galatians:
Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham… And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise. (Galatians 3:7 and 29)
This is so good, and there is more! When the promises of the New Covenant are applied to us, our sins are cleansed and forgotten, God remains in relationship with us in each moment, and His laws are written on our hearts to guide us into righteousness. According to the Apostle Paul we become new creations! (2 Cor 5:17)
As new creations, we receive incredible blessings and benefits such as:
Forgiveness of sin and a clean slate
God’s presence and guidance
Belonging to God’s family,
Purpose and meaning,
Reconciliation with God,
A purpose to live as Ambassadors of Christ who represent His Lordship and to invite others to live as citizens of the Kingdom of God.
Our life in Christ is an everyday walk and journey with Him and His design is that we do not walk alone. When we walk with Christ, He brings other new creations with Him. We are united with other believers through our union with Christ. This is mind-blowing! We cannot comprehend being connected with every Christ follower. So, this is why local churches with embodied people (not virtual) are essential for our discipleship.
Our identity in Christ in the New Covenant connects us to communal discipleship that teaches and encourages willful obedience to His teachings. We receive and experience the benefits of the New Covenant through gathered worship, reading and learning scripture together, praying with and for one another, remembering our Lord at His table of communion, loving one another in tangible ways, uniting with one another to love our neighbors, and ultimately loving our neighbors by offering them the good news of Jesus and an invitation to join with His body at FPCB.
Our identity in Christ under the New Covenant reveals that we are new creations, forgiven by God, friends of God, and ambassadors of a Kingdom with Jesus as our Lord!
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