Covenants

05
Dec
2022

Christian, What Covenant Are You Under?

Covenant

Lots of Christians are confused by the covenants of the Bible. While everyone knows that Christians are bound to the New Covenant, we don’t know what to do with the Old Covenant. 

To make matters even more confusing, conventional wisdom tells us that we should obey the Ten Commandments, but the Ten Commandments were part of the Old Testament law. How do we reconcile these confusing mixed messages? Is it really that hard to sort out? The Bible makes it pretty clear how to understand the testaments, but “conventional wisdom” tends to muddy the waters.

Let’s take a look at the covenants, when they were made, who they were made with, and the reasons they were made. This will help us sort it all out.

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Posted by Eddie Lawrence in Covenants
21
Nov
2022

The Ten Commandments Are Not For Christians!

It is assumed by most people that Christians are obligated to obey the Ten Commandments. Is this true? The question shouldn’t really be about whether Christians must obey the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments were part of the Mosaic covenant and therefore part of the law:

“And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments, and he wrote them on two tablets of stone.” (Deut. 4:13 ESV)

Therefore, the question should be, “Are Christians required to obey the law of Moses?” This is a question that has resulted in confusion for centuries. There was confusion about it in the earliest days of the church and there has been confusion ever since.

We can see in the New Testament that Christians continued to observe certain Old Covenant commands. Yet, the authors of the New Testament are silent about other Mosaic laws. This leaves us wondering how we are to know which laws from the old covenant Christians are required to obey. 

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Posted by Eddie Lawrence in Covenants, Misconceptions
15
Nov
2021

The Bizarre Story Of Abraham Cutting Animals In Half

In Genesis 15 we find Abram (later renamed Abraham) performing a really strange ritual involving cutting animals in half. This incident was in response to God reiterating His promise that Abram would become the father of offspring as numerous as the stars (Gen 15:5). God had made this promise years earlier, but so far had not made good on it. Abram is beginning to despair and is resigning himself to the possibility that his heir might end up being his servant Eliezer (Gen 15:2).

After being reassured, Abram took God at His word and believed the promise (Gen 15:6). This promise was not only about offspring, but also about a place where Abram’s descendants could call  home. God said that place would be the land where he now dwelt; the land of Canaan. Abram wanted to formalize this promise. He wanted it to be “official.” Therefore, God told Abram:

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Posted by Eddie Lawrence in Ancient Customs, Covenants, Genesis