
Originally Posted by
randyk
JLU, I need to explain what I do believe to figure out where you stand with respect to my position. I believe the New Covenant, as explained in Jer 31, refers not to when that Covenant was first initiated, but rather, when it will initiate a transformation of the nation Israel into a Christian nation. That hasn't happened yet, and so Jer 31.31 has not yet been completely fulfilled.
And yet Jesus did initiate the New Covenant at his first coming. He symbolically represented this at his Last Supper when he initiated the Communion ceremony, designed to show how the New Covenant is initiated in his death and new life, given for many.
The Covenant God made with Abraham was designed to initiate the nation of Israel first, and then a company of nations that join together with Israel in a single faith, the faith of Abraham.
The Contract of Law, initiated by Moses, was "faulty," as you indicated, because it could not entirely remove sin from Israel. That is obvious because Israel continued to sin all the way through their history, and was at their worst when they crucified Christ.
And so, the Contract of Law was "faulty," and required another Covenant, the Covenant of Christ. This one separates the "sheep from the goats," selecting out Israelites who are willing to put their faith in Christ. The rest of the nation are to be cast off, and the new nation will be created out of a Christian remnant at the end of the age. And so, Jer 31.31 is fulfilled at the end of the age, when Christ returns.
As to whether Christ's New Covenant was for Israel or for the Church I must agree that Christ at least started out giving it only to the faithful Israeli remnant that believe in him. But at the end of his earthly ministry Jesus instructed his disciples to carry his gospel to all the earth, to all nations.
So yes, the New Covenant of Christ was given to the whole Church, and not just to Israel. The history of redemption began with Israel as a prototype, but was meant to expand outwards to encompass all nations. But Israel still has to be included in those nations who obtain Christian redemption, since at this point only a small remnant has accepted Christ.
Bookmarks