This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Hebrews 8:10
Whenever we join an organization, or start a new job, we’re the outsider. They’ve been there for years and years and we’re the new kid on the block. They know how everything works and we haven’t got a clue.
That’s why we get a set of their rules to help us fit in. It can be something printed on a form or in a manual. It tells us what to expect. What to do. What not to do. Where to go for help. Who to talk with about our problems and questions.
Someone I know just took a new job. When they arrived, they had to watch a whole bunch of videos about the company and their Human Resource rules. They also got an electronic copy of all the guidelines and regulations. It also listed things that they could get fired for.
And this is sort of the same to what God did with the nation of Israel. When God made them his people, he gave them all the rules and regulations that they needed to have a successful relationship with him. These came in all the written laws and directions in the Old Testament.
So, after getting the laws from God, it didn’t end there. The people had a role to play. It involved a whole lot more than just reading all that stuff and then setting it aside to get dusty on the shelf. They had to tie all those laws around their neck so they could get to them anytime there was a question.
But there was more. They were told to write all those laws on their heart[1]. They were to not just memorize the laws, they were to think about them day and night. They were to delight in them, chewing on them all the time[2].
So, when the writer of this letter to the Hebrews is trying to get the attention of all the people who are thinking about going back to the old ways, they compare that to the new covenant with Jesus. And there are some really big differences that are going to rock their world.
The first is that God is the one who makes the agreement with them. He takes responsibility for the whole thing. He does all the doing. He takes all the actions needed to make this new covenant. This new agreement. This new testament.
Second, there are no more laws to be read off stone tablets[3]. Instead of going to something on the outside to figure out what to do and how to live, God’s going to put that deep inside. He’s going to write them on the hearts of his people. This means that we’re going to want to do what pleases the one who loves us. Instead of us trying to just follow a bunch of outside rules, we’re going to want to do what’s right from the inside.
This makes it possible for God to be our God. No more will our relationship with God be dependent on us doing all the right things. Now, it’s because God has chosen us to be his people. His children. His sons and daughters. Gone will be the days of being measured by some set of rules.
Did you ever want to get on a ride as a kid, but you were just too short[4]? They made you stand next to some kind of ruler to see if they’d let you go inside and enjoy the attraction with the rest of your family. But because you were too short, you just had to wait outside as you heard them scream with delight inside?
No more heavenly height requirement with Jesus. When we receive his once-for-all payment for all our sins, we instantly are changed into his children. No more outside rules that try and scare us into following them. His loving sacrifice makes us want to please him in everything we do.
But there’s more. He’s not just going to sit up in heaven on some eternal throne where he’s separated from us. He’s not just going to act like God. Oh no. He’s actually going to serve us as God. He’s the loving God that takes away the sins of the world[5].
Yes, God does it all. He’s the one who makes the covenant. He’s the one who pays our price. He’s the one who comes down from heaven. He’s the one who keeps both sides of the covenant. Talk about a great deal!
Go ahead, look at all the other religions in the world and you won’t find anything close to this. They all make you and me do all the work. We have to follow all the rules. And heaven help us when we break one of the rules. The weight is all on us and there’s no one to help. But in Jesus, everything’s different. We move from nothing but rules to a total Heavenly Father and beloved child relationship. No more rules, only an eternally, intimate bond that nothing can break[6].
Noodling Questions
What’s your first reaction when you see a list of rules? Why?
How did you feel when some rule said you couldn’t do something?
Explain how Jesus fulfilling all the rules makes us new. Makes us free.
[1] Proverbs 3:3
[2][2] Psalm 1:2
[3] Exodus 31:18
[5] John 1:29
[6] Romans 8:38,39
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