Introducing a New Covenant

 

There seems to be no real consensus about the year each of the gospels was written, but it is fairly clear that the synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written before A.D. 65, while John’s Gospel was not written until somewhere between A.D. 90 – 100. At the end of the first century, the Christian world was made up mainly of Gentiles, while the early gospels appeared during a time dominated by Jewish Christians. In addition, the 30+ year time difference represented a maturing of the Christian community regarding its understanding of doctrine since the lion’s share of New Testament works had been circulating among the churches for many years. It also meant that doctrinal deviations and heresies were appearing. John's Gospel and his letters addressed some of these heresies, including Gnosticism and Docetism, which challenged the humanity of Christ and the value of the material realm. Ultimately, John accepted and acknowledged to others his agreement with the facts presented in the first three gospels; the Holy Spirit inspired him to address certain events and miracles that would speak to believers on a deeper level.

Therefore, many other signs [semeion – miracles with a spiritual end and purpose] Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book, but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.                                   John 20:30-31 

The four Gospels record 35 different miracles. John selected seven for special consideration so that people might come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah, and the Son of God. These seven symbolize the introduction of the new covenant to the Jew and the Gentile and essential elements that define the unique features that make it far superior to the old covenant as defined by the Law of Moses. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (Romans 8:3-4). The Holy Spirit takes this new covenant into the supernatural realm, where the power of God is unleashed in the believer based on his faith that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

1.   Changing Water into Wine

Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." So, they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So, they took it to him. When the headwaiter tasted the water, which had become wine and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now." This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.                   John 2:7-11

The first and second of Jesus’s miracles occur in Cana of Galilee, the birthplace of Nathanael. This location corresponds to present-day Kerr Kenna, about 15 miles northwest of Tiberias and 6 miles northeast of Nazareth. When Jesus changed the water into wine at the wedding, He revealed one of His priorities in His first coming: introducing the new covenant as spoken to Jeremiah (31:31-34). It is no coincidence that it would take place at a wedding since the fulfillment of the new covenant for the Church will be the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:7-9). The new covenant believer will be married to Jesus, the Messiah, at that event. 

The Gospel of Mark tells us that the water pots were a requirement of the old covenant for the cleansing of people as well as the washing of kitchen utensils. And when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots) (Mark 7:4). The wine symbolizes the new covenant: The Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain, a banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, and refined, aged wine (Isaiah 25:6). Jesus was introducing a change of covenants. He would fulfill that covenant (Matthew 5:17) to reveal a new relationship with God through Jesus as Messiah. The event also illustrates that the new covenant is not a modification of the old covenant but rather totally new.

2.   Healing a Royal Official’s Son

Therefore, He came again to Cana of Galilee, where He had made the water wine. And there was a royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and was imploring Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. So, Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe." The royal official said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies." Jesus said to him, "Go, your son lives." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started off. As he was now going down, his slaves met him, saying that his son was living. So, he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. Then they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour, the fever left him." So, the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives," and he himself believed and his whole household. This is again a second sign that Jesus performed when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.                John 4:46-54

The second miracle describes an important aspect of the new covenant: faith in God is dependent upon believing God's promises. Jesus told this royal official that his son was healed without Jesus visiting the child: "Go, your son lives."  The Apostle Paul explained in Romans 4 and Galatians 3 that the covenant made with Abraham in Genesis 17:1-5, a covenant dependent on believing the promises of God, would be integral within the new covenant:

For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void, and the promise is nullified; for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation. For this reason, it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.                  Romans 4:13-16

God made promises to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3 and Genesis 17:4-5 that the covenant made to him was for all the families of the earth. Although the covenant known as the Law of Moses came more than 400 years after the Abrahamic Covenant, it was not nullified by the Law since it depended on faith. In Genesis 17:4, the Lord told Abraham, “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you will be the father of a multitude of nations.” The righteousness of faith is His righteousness that comes to each believer as a gift and on the basis of the believer’s faith in who Jesus is and what He accomplished. The new covenant is extended beyond the Jew to all those who are of the faith of Abraham. 

3.   Healing a Paralytic

A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, "Do you wish to get well?" The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me." Jesus said to him, "Get up, pick up your pallet, and walk." Immediately, the man became well, and picked up his pallet, and began to walk. Now, it was the Sabbath on that day.                      John 5:5-9

“Grace keeps giving me things I don’t deserve; mercy keeps withholding things I do” – Wayne Watson

These words come from Wayne Watson’s song, “Grace,” and says that because of grace, I get things I do not deserve, and because of mercy, I do not get what I deserve. That covers much ground and reminds us that He is always trying to find ways to bless each one despite his shortcomings. The paralytic wrestled with his condition for 38 years, waiting for someone to help him into the pool at Bethesda (Hebrew meaning “house of mercy”), where he might be healed. When Jesus observed his struggle, He asked the man, "Do you wish to get well?" His answer was yes, and Jesus healed him on the spot. In the process, Jesus illustrated to those watching that salvation is a free gift given to each believer by grace and based on his faith. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells the story: For by grace, you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Human effort is not a part of the equation.

Later in this John 5 account, Jesus spoke to this man and said, “Behold, you have become well, do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you” in verse 14. What a picture of the saved man! Salvation provides forgiveness for sins, but committing sin has a negative effect on a man’s walk. This is why we need confession. Our position for God is perfect, but our experience still needs to be cleansed. In 1 John 1:9, when we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive and to cleanse from all unrighteousness. Because sins have an inherent energy to be repeated, the cleansing process deals with the proclivity to repeat the effects of sin. 

4.   Feeding the 5,000

5 Therefore, Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, "Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?"  6 This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. 7 Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little." 8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, 9 "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?" 10 Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." Now, there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise, also of the fish as much as they wanted. 12 When they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost."  13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. 14 Therefore, when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world."                    John 6:5-14

The account of Jesus feeding the 5,000 is one of the few that all four gospels cover. Upon crossing the Sea of Galilee with his disciples, Jesus sits down and recognizes a large crowd joining them. Then Jesus asks Philip where the food to feed them will come from since the crowd will need to be fed. Philip suggests that two hundred denarii could not buy enough bread to feed the crowd. Instead, the young lad provided five barley loaves (bread) and two fish, and Jesus miraculously made that enough to feed everyone with leftovers. 

To give more insight into these events, Mark 6:40-41 says that the people were divided into fifties and hundreds, and the disciples received the food from Jesus and delivered it to the people. When the meal was over, the disciples collected twelve baskets full of leftovers, suggesting that everyone had their fill. 

If we look underneath the surface of this event, we have a picture of Jesus feeding His Church in the new covenant age. Jesus quoted from Deuteronomy 8:3 when He was tempted by the devil in the wilderness in Matthew. 4:4 when He said, “It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.” The bread is a reference to “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” and Jesus, the very Word of God in John 1:1, is delivering it to the pastors (disciples), who will, in turn, give it to the people, His Church, divided into fifties and hundreds. The new covenant church will be fed by God’s Word and it will satisfy every believer. In fact, there will be twelve baskets of leftovers. Twelve refers to the twelve tribes of Israel in the Old Testament and the twelve disciples in the New Testament. In Ephesians 2:20, the twelve apostles will be the church's foundation and will continue to assist Jesus in feeding the new covenant church through accurate doctrine. 

5.   Jesus Walked on the Sea 

Now, when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat, and they were frightened. But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." So, they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately, the boat was at the land to which they were going.                      John 6:16-21   

The west wind often picks up in the evening and catches them in the open water. They were headed directly into it without much progress. The Sea of Galilee is notable for its sudden and severe storms. They had rowed three or three and a half miles, so they were in the middle of the lake. They were terrified to see a figure walking on the water. They thought it was a ghost (Mark 6:49). This occurred in the "fourth watch" of the night, between 3 and 6 o'clock in the morning. Jesus demonstrated that He had supernatural powers to overcome gravity and overpower nature. He is a deity, God in the flesh, and can handle any crisis and come to the believer’s aid in any circumstance. In Matthew 28:20, Jesus says to His disciples, “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

6.   Healing a Blind Man

As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was neither that this man sinned nor his parents, but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him." We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. "While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world." When He had said this, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied the clay to his eyes, and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So, he went away and washed and came back seeing.                        John 9:1-7

To most, this passage is about a blind man being healed by Jesus on the Sabbath, but it is much more about healing from sin and the blindness caused by that sinful condition. The new covenant is the means by which every believer can find a victorious life and deliverance from the effects of sin, which places believers in its bondage. Jesus was illustrating the power of the cross by opening the eyes of believers to the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven which God has reserved for new covenant saints (Matthew 13:11). Spiritual blindness is the by-product of spiritual warfare. 

In whose case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.                  2 Corinthians 4:4-6 

Not only is the god of this world blinding the minds of all unbelievers to be against Jesus and the gospel, but there is a hardening of the heart that burdens all unconverted Jews during the new covenant age, resulting in a veil over their hearts (2 Corinthians 3:14-16). Whenever the Jew recognizes Jesus as the Messiah, the veil is lifted; therefore, his blindness is resolved in Christ. This warfare is centered on man not seeing the glory of God in the face of Christ. When the Light begins to shine in their hearts, the enlightenment of God illuminates the minds of those who seek him with sincerity. Then, there is a new understanding of the God Who leads one to salvation. A great example of this process is seen in the salvation of the apostle Paul in Acts 9:3-6, when a light shone, and he could hear the Lord speaking directly to his heart amid his blindness. The new covenant provides sight to the blind, as the Lord revealed to Isaiah: "I will lead the blind by a way they do not know; in paths they do not know, I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone" (Isaiah 42:16-17). 

7.   Raising of Lazarus 

So, the sisters sent word to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." But when Jesus heard this, He said, "This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it."                         John 11:3-4

The final of these seven miracles of John’s Gospel may be Jesus’s greatest: raising Lazarus from the dead after he had been dead four days. That was vital since the Jewish mind believed that man’s spirit remained in the body for three days. This miracle could only be for the glory of God so that the Son of God may be glorified by it. The pivotal point of this account is Jesus’s words in verses 25-26, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” What point was He trying to make?

He was speaking about two aspects of the resurrection promised to believers in the new covenant age. The first is a coming resurrection of all believers, dead or alive, at the Rapture of the church: For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up [Greek –harpazo, Latin - rapturo] together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). The church's Rapture is the next major event on the church calendar. 

Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore, we have been buried with Him through baptism into death so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. Now, if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all, but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so, consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.                     Romans 6:3-11

According to Romans 6, resurrection life also produces a higher quality of life since it provides the answer to the problem of sin and sin’s control over mankind. Walking in newness of life (verse 4) or resurrection life is the personal identification with Jesus’ death and resurrection. Verse 5 tells us that becoming united with Him in His death is the doorway to identification with his resurrection. In Galatians 2:20, I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. Resurrection life is the very life of Christ living within each new covenant believer. When one considers (logizomai, meaning to reckon, to recognize as true) himself to be dead, it is death to the self-life, containing the sin nature, and that death sets one free to live for God since one is no longer trying to earn recognition or favor of self. Instead, walking in this newness of life is receiving the free gift of His righteousness and recognizing its value and priority.

In Summary

Although Jesus’s public ministry began at His baptism, His miracles, which began at a wedding in Cana, were the means so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. Jesus changed the water in the waterpots to wine to introduce a new covenant, superior to the old covenant, since it has been enacted on better promises (Hebrews 8:6). Since the nature of the water was entirely changed to wine, He was also illustrating that He has made the first obsolete [aphanismos – disappearing or vanishing] (Hebrews 8:13) superseding the old covenant. Jesus taught, "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17).

The other six miracles in John’s Gospel provide further dynamics associated with the new covenant. The healing of the royal official’s son appears only in the Gospel of John and illustrates the requirement of believing the promises of God. Abraham’s covenant, a covenant of promise, was not made obsolete by the Law of Moses but became essential to a living relationship with God. Healing the paralytic in John 5 at the pool of Bethesda (Bayith – house, chesed – mercy, lovingkindness) was intentionally included to symbolize that the new covenant is not about works but, by grace, a gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9). The kindness of God leads you to repentance (Romans 2:4). 

The old covenant centered on two elements: the Torah and the temple. The worship and religious activity defined by the Torah took place within the temple. The new covenant centers on the believer’s relationship with Jesus, the mediator of the covenant. The food necessary to feed the people would come from the Logos, the Word of God, represented by the bread. Feeding the 5,000 illustrates Jesus giving the bread of the Word to the pastor who feeds the people in groups of fifties and hundreds.

The coverage of Jesus walking on the water is also found in Matthew and Mark. The disciples were afraid, even stating that they were seeing a ghost. Jesus was revealing His deity, that He had complete command over nature and weather, and nothing would keep Him from His commitment in Hebrews 13:5-6, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU," so that we confidently say, "THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?" “For nothing will be impossible with God" (Luke 1:37).

The Jewish mindset of Jesus’s day recognized a direct link between sin and suffering. The disciples asked Jesus who was to blame for the man’s blindness as if every human affliction can be traced to some active failure by someone. Jesus’s answer to the question was telling, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” He was saying that human affliction can have more to do with revealing God’s glory than identifying someone to blame. Healing this man demonstrated Jesus’s ability to heal a birth defect, requiring the ability to create. Man is born with a sin nature and needs a savior, one who can heal him of his sin and its effects.

Lazarus’s resurrection is intended to reveal that all believers have a secure future, a resurrection or rapture to meet Jesus in the air to be with him for eternity. In the meantime, Christ believers can experience His life, resurrection life now, as they become united with Him in the likeness of His death so that we too might walk in newness of life.

Finally 

Understanding the framework of the new covenant provides the believer with the greatest opportunity to find the structure of the spiritual life in Christ. The new covenant defines the boundaries of the spiritual man since it identifies God’s love and how to function within that love. The spiritual man is “able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ.” Being “filled up to all the fullness of God” is the end result of being rooted and grounded in love, preoccupied with the love of Christ. This rooting in love takes us deep and this grounding establishes a solid foundation in that love. Since God is love (1 John 4:8, 16), everything He does is defined by that love; He cannot do anything outside of that love. Once the believer sees the details of his life as the ultimate by-product of God’s love, he discovers the spiritual man.