Glynlea Grace United Methodist Church l Southside l Arlington l Jacksonville Florida

Scripture

Jeremiah 31:31-34

"Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, ³² not like the covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. ³³ But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ³⁴ And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, `Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."

Luke 22:19-20

And he took bread, and when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." ²⁰ And likewise the cup after supper, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

Summary and Function

Summary: The Ancient Israelites were under the Old Covenant. Under this covenant, God would be their God and make them into a kingdom of priest and holy nation as long as they fully obeyed God’s Law of love. They were not, however, empowered to obey God’s Law by the Holy Spirit. They were expected to completely obey the Law on their own ability. No group of people can succeed in doing that. A new covenant was needed. So, Jesus Christ came along to fulfill the old covenant and establish the new covenant.

Under the New Covenant we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus. As fully God and fully human, Jesus was able to live a sinless life and become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. He paid the penalty for our sins. On the third day he rose from the dead, conquering sin, death and evil on our behalf. We are now able to receive God’s forgiveness because Jesus paid the penalty for our sins. In this way, we have a re-established personal love relationship with God. As people with a re-established personal love relationship with God, we receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit changes our hearts as we walk with God. In this way, we are empowered to live up to God’s Law of love. The more we walk with God the better we love God and neighbor.

There are three empowerments that we receive as a result of living under the new covenant. They are: 1) Power over sin, 2) Power to be the hands, feet and mouth of Jesus and 3) The power to change the world. If you want this Holy Spirit power, simply decide that you no longer want to live a life of sin but want to live a Godly life characterized by love and then place your trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord.

Function: To encourage the congregation to use their Holy Spirit power to make disciples and change the world.

The Sermon

I. Introduction: There are times when people are responsible for doing something but are not empowered to do it.

A. Teachers

· Responsible for imparting knowledge which requires the maintenance of discipline

· When disciplining a student, teachers often incur the wrath of the parents. For this reason, teachers are not always able to properly discipline the students.

· In this way, they are not empowered to teach.

B. My experience as a Juvenile Probation Officer (JPO)

· Responsible for supervising Juveniles on court ordered probation. Expected to help the juveniles recognize the errors of their ways and to make better choices.

· Some parents would undermine my efforts by making excuses for the juvenile and not disciplining the child at home.

· In this way, I was not empowered to encourage the juvenile to make the right choices.

C. The Ancient Israelites

· Under the Old Covenant God would make them into a kingdom of priest and holy nation as long as they fully obeyed God’s Law of love.

· They were not, however, empowered to obey God’s Law by the Holy Spirit. They were expected to completely obey the Law on their own ability. No group of people can succeed in doing that.

· A new covenant was needed. The prophet Jeremiah predicted the coming of this new covenant

II. The need for a new covenant pronounced by the Prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31-34)

A. Jeremiah prophesied during time of the Babylonian conquest of Judea. The Ancient Israelites continued to sin despite numerous warnings from various prophets. As a consequence, God allowed the Babylonians to conquer their homeland and deport the majority of the population to various cities to serve the Babylonian Empire.

B. During this tumultuous time, Jeremiah preached a word of hope by announcing the coming of a new covenant. Verses 31-32: "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD.” (emphasis added) Under this new covenant, the following conditions will apply.

· God will change people’s hearts so that it becomes our nature to obey God’s Law of love: Verse 33a “I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts;”

· With a changed heart, people will be able to have a personal, love relationship with God: Verse 33b-34a “and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, `Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD;”

· All this will be made possible by God’s forgiveness: Verse 34b “for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."

III. Jesus fulfilled Jeremiah’s prophecy. He fulfilled the old covenant and instituted the

New Covenant.

A. Jesus made this declaration during the Passover meal when he instituted the last supper: Luke 22:19-20: And he took bread, and when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." And likewise the cup after supper, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” (emphasis added)

B. So, exactly how did Jesus fulfill the old covenant and institute the new covenant?

· As fully God and fully human, Jesus lived the perfect life and then willingly went to suffer and die on the cross as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

- Under the old covenant, the Israelites were able to sacrifice an animal to pay the penalty (atone) for their sins. This was a temporary solution. Sacrifices had to be made year after year. After a while, the animal sacrifices became a mere ritual because the Israelites made the sacrifices out of habit without true repentance.

- Jesus, however, became the one sacrifice necessary to atone for all our sins.

· On the 3^rd day, Jesus rose from the dead, proving that He is fully God and fully human. In His resurrection, Jesus conquered sin, death and evil on our behalf.

· Because Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, we can receive God’s forgiveness. This restores our love relationship with God. We become children of God.

· As children of God, we receive the Holy Spirit into our hearts. The Holy Spirit changes our hearts as we walk with God. In this way, we are empowered to live up to God’s Law of love. The more we walk with God the better we love God and neighbor.

C. We enter this New Covenant simply by trusting Jesus as our Savior and Lord. When we trust Jesus as our Savior and Lord, the Holy Spirit enters our hearts to change and empower us.

D. There are certain ways in which the Holy Spirit empowers us under the new covenant.

IV. The ways in which the Holy Spirit empowers us under the new covenant

A. The Holy Spirit gives us power over sin

· The Holy Spirit enables us to resist temptation and live Godly lives characterized by love

- If you are having problems with any addiction or sinful attitude, go to God and say, “God, I trust Jesus as my Savior and Lord but I’m still having trouble with this particular sin. Deliver me from this sin. Take this sinful desire away from me!!”

- God will answer this prayer. He may do it immediately or he may do it gradually but He will do it!!!

· 1 John 3:6&9

B. The Holy Spirit empowers us to be the Body of Christ

· Jesus is literally present here on this earth because the church is here. The church is the Body of Christ

· When the church preaches the good news and reaches out to those in need, it is Jesus preaching the good news and reaching out to those in need.

· 1 Corinthians 12:27

C. The Holy Spirit empowers us to change the world

· The same Holy Spirit power that was available to Jesus when He walked the earth is available to us today.

· Just think, Jesus healed the sick, raised the dead and brought people into a saving relationship with God through His preaching. The Holy Spirit can do the same miracles through us!!

· The Holy Spirit can empower us to accomplish any task God gives us: The Family Promise story

· John 14:12

V. Conclusion

A. Jesus declared his fulfillment of the old covenant and initiation of the new covenant when he instituted Holy Communion during the last Passover meal he had with his disciples.

B. Jesus invites all into the new covenant. Declare Jesus as your Savior and Lord and receive empowerment from the Holy Spirit. Live in the New Covenant. Be the person God created you to be!