THE OLD AND NEW COVENANT.
By Oscar Einerson
I. Old Covenant Made at Sinai.
GOD suggested the making of a covenant with the children of Israel at Mount Sinai, in order to reveal the Gospel in a visible way to the whole world; therefore God said, "If ye will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine: and ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation." Ex. 19: 3-6. The people did not realize the importance of that which God required of them, and without taking any time to consider, they thought that in their own strength they were able to meet God's requirement, and they answered, "All that the Lord hath spoken we will do." Verses 7, 8. But God in His love moved slowly forward, so the people might see that all things connected with His service must be carefully observed. By special arrangement, and under terrible solemnity, the Lord spoke the Ten Commandments from Sinai. But the people's minds were so blinded and corrupted thru slavery and heathenism, that they could not comprehend the principles of the Ten Commandments. So, in order that the moral connections of the law could clearer be apprehended, other statutes were given, which revealed and applied the principles of the Ten Commandments, Exodus 21 to 23. These statutes God spoke from the thick darkness to Moses only. Ex. 20: 21. And Moses told all these words to the people, and they answered the second time, "All the7words which the Lord hath said will we do." Ex. 24: 3. Then "Moses wrote all the words of the Lord" in the book of the covenant. Verse 4. Then Moses sent young men, who sacrificed burnt and peace offerings of oxen unto the Lord. "And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people." The conditions of the covenant were solemnly repeated, and all were free to declare whether they would obey or not. But none had discerned the great truth, that without Christ man can do nothing, and for the third time the people answered, "All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient." Ex. 24: 7. Then "Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words." Verse 8. Thus the Lord set them apart from the world, to be "a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation" (Ex. 19: 6) in order that He could trust them with a holy commission. In this way the Lord made visible the truth that the true Israel must be separated from the ways of the world, and carry forward the commission that Christ gave to His disciples, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature." Mark 16: 15. After Moses had completed his work, he went up to the Lord in the mount, to receive tables of stone inscribed with the Ten Commandments that God had written. And Moses was on the mount forty days. Ex. 24: 12, 15-18. While the people waited for Moses to come down from the mount, they had opportunity to consider the book of the covenant and prepare their hearts to receive further instructions. But they neglected to do this, and they soon became inattentive and lawless. They were impatient and wanted to start on the way to the promised land, the land which flowed with milk and honey. It was only on this condition that they would be obedient, but they soon forgot this, and worshiped an idol. Ex. 32: 1-6. Moses was overcome by this dreadful degradation of Israel. He became angry, and in order to show his disapproval of their sin, he threw the tables of stone down, which thereby were broken to pieces, in the sight of all the people. This showed that as they had broken God's law, the covenant between them and God had likewise been broken. The Trouble with the Old Covenant.
This proves that not one soul was saved by or thru the old covenant. This is called the first or old covenant because it was the first that was ratified with blood, and was the first that was made with the Jewish people as a nation. In this covenant the people promised to keep the commandments of God, and thereby be qualified for God's kingdom. This was really a promise to make themselves righteous, for God did not promise to help them, but only to reward them. But Christ says, "Without Me ye can do nothing." John 15: 5. The fault in the old covenant consisted in this; that the people had not experienced the new birth. They promised to keep the covenant, the same as people now promise at the "confirmation." They promise to believe in Christ, and to forsake the devil and all his works. But immediately after they have made this holy covenant, their lives are just as worldly as before. The object of the Jewish covenant was to lead the Jews, as well as the whole world, to see that it is impossible for man to live in obedience to God's commandments in his own strength, and by this to bring before us the need of the Gospel. Since the covenant was broken by the Jews, and dissolved by God when Moses broke the tables of stone on the mount, then it remains only as a warning and an object-lesson for succeeding generations. [The New Covenant will follow next week.]