Is the God of the New Testament different from the God of the Old Testament? Some people (even some Christians) would say yes, there is a difference between the two, but does the Bible support that point of view? Certainly God has made different covenants with men over the years. A covenant is defined as "a formal, solemn, and binding agreement between two or more parties". When God made his covenant with Abraham (Genesis 15), he promised Abraham that his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. The sign of this covenant was circumcision (Genesis 17:11). In return, Abraham was expected to remain faithful to God and do what God commanded. Although he made some mistakes along the way, when push came to shove Abraham was faithful to God, even when he was asked to sacrifice his only son Isaac (Genesis 22). Therefore, God commended Abraham for his faith, as we read in Genesis 15:6: "And he (Abraham) believed the Lord, and he (God) counted it to him as righteousness."
The Mosaic covenant was the agreement God made with the Israelites at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-24). This was God's proposal to the Israelites: "Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." (Exodus 19:5-6) Moses "took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient." (Exodus 24:7) God made a proposal and the Israelites accepted, therefore the covenant was binding, but a covenant only works if both parties follow their part of the agreement. God warned the Israelites that he would not keep his part of the agreement if they didn't keep theirs. "And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God." (Deuteronomy 8:19-20) Unfortunately, the Israelites didn't heed this warning. They repeatedly broke their covenant with God and then rejected his only son who was their Messiah. This led to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.
Later in the Old Testament, we see that the Mosaic covenant was only a temporary covenant. God promised a new covenant in Jeremiah 31:33-34. "For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." This is the covenant we live under, the one established through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we read in John 1:17: "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." But this covenant of grace is not a one sided agreement. To obtain God's grace we have to keep our end of the bargain. Hearing & believing the word, confessing our faith, repentance (which implies a change in behavior), baptism, and an honest effort to follow the teachings of Jesus - that's our part of the covenant. Grace is there when we fall short of perfection (as we all do), but it's not a license to sin. Surely the Lord did not suffer on the cross so that we could live any way we please. Jesus didn't say "if you love me, that's good enough". He said "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." (John 14:15)
Three covenants, three sets of rules, but what do they have in common? (1) God is always faithful if we are faithful in our actions as well as our words. (2) These three covenants are not random or unrelated. We read in Galatians 3 that the Mosaic covenant (the law) did not annul the covenant God made with Abraham. The purpose of the law was to make us aware of sin and therefore show that no one could be justified by observing the law. Galatians 3:22: "But the Scripture (that is, the law) imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe." So in Jesus Christ we see (a) the fulfillment of the law (Matthew 5:17) and (b) the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham that his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky, as we read in Romans 4:16: "That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his (Abraham's) offspring - not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all." God had a plan from the beginning, and Jesus Christ (who was with God in the beginning and through whom all things were created, John 1) is the beginning & the fulfillment of that plan. Knowing all these things, let's go back to the original question: is the God of the New Testament different from the God of the Old Testament? Psalm 102:25-27: "Of old you (God) laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end." Old Testament, New Testament, but in both we see the same eternal & unchanging God “who is and who was and who is to come” (Revelation 1:8).
Hebrews 12:1 reads as follows: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us." So we need to lay aside every weight, and sin is a weight. In Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", Jacob Marley told Scrooge the heavy weight of chain he wore came from the sinful life he lived. Marley said: "I wear the chain I forged in life. I made it link by link and yard by yard. I put it on of my own free will and by my own free will, I wore it." Sin is a weight we put on & wear of our own free will, but the only way it can be removed is through the blood of Jesus Christ. If you're here tonight and you're not a Christian, you may feel like the burden of sin you carry is crushing you. Come forward, repent of your sins, confess your faith in Jesus Christ, be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins, and be freed from your weight of sin, "for Jesus' yoke is easy and his burden is light". If you're struggling with some issue and need the help & prayers of the congregation, this offer is extended to you as well. If you have any need, come as we stand and sing.
