I will put My laws into their minds...

Hebrews 8 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, ² a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man. ³ For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer. ⁴ Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; ⁵ who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, “See,” He says, “that you make all things according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.” ⁶ But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises.

A New Covenant

⁷ For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. ⁸ For finding fault with them, He says,

“Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, When I will effect a new covenant
With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah;
⁹ Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers
On the day when I took them by the hand
To lead them out of the land of Egypt;
For they did not continue in My covenant,
And I did not care for them, says the Lord.
¹⁰ “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds,
And I will write them on their hearts.
And I will be their God,
And they shall be My people.
¹¹ “And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen,
And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’
For all will know Me,
From the least to the greatest of them.
¹² “For I will be merciful to their iniquities,
And I will remember their sins no more.”

¹³ When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.

The promises of the old covenant were for the Israelites. Romans 1:16 says:  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Verse 13 says:  When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. We need to be careful though, by making the old covenant obsolete the new covenant did not eliminate God’s laws or the consequences of unrighteousness. God says: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts.  Jesus says:  “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. ¹⁹ Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:17-20)

The new covenant, established in and through the blood of Christ does not abolish the law or the consequences of sin. Rather Christ’s sacrifice on the cross fulfills the law. He paid the price we could not. Jesus says though: until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.    That statement nullifies the argument by those today who say that Jesus never specifically addressed certain sins and so He would approve of them. Quite to the contrary, Jesus paid a very high price, He was beaten and crucified on a cross to pay the price for sin. He doesn’t simply wink at sin in our lives, that sin cost Him His life. Regardless of which covenant we are under there is a price to pay for sin. Romans 6:23 says: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Jesus did not eliminate the consequence of sin, He did not abolish the law or the requirement for sacrifice, He Himself became the sacrifice. For those who are in Christ, those who have accepted the finished work of the cross of Christ, their sins are forgiven. God says, under the new covenant,  “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And I will remember their sins no more.”

There are two things to remember. First for those who choose to reject Christ, those who deny Him or their need for a Savior, the old covenant, the covenant of the law and the price of sin remains in effect. Whichever covenant we are under the price for sin does not change;  the wages of sin is death.  Second Jesus does not eliminate sin. The price He paid, His death on the cross, is not to give us freedom to sin, it is to give us freedom from sin. God says, under the new covenant;  I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts.     Jesus says:  I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. ⁸ And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; ⁹ concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; ¹⁰ and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; ¹¹ and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. (John 16:7-11) The law of God is written on our hearts and minds through the presence of the Holy Spirit and His conviction regarding sin, righteousness and judgment. If we deny or ignore the conviction of the Holy Spirit, it is the same as denying Christ Himself.

 Jesus says: “Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; ²⁹ but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” (Mark 3:28-29) To deny the conviction of the Holy Spirit regarding sin is to deny His deity, it is an unforgivable sin because it leads to unrepentance.  The only sin that the cross of Christ is powerless to pay for is the sin we choose to hold onto, the sin we are unwilling to confess and repent of.

God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  ¹⁸ “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. ¹⁹ And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. ²⁰ For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. ²¹ But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” (John 3:17-21)

The price of sin has not and will not change. The choice we have is which covenant we choose. Do we choose the law or the One who fulfilled the law, even the smallest letter or stroke, which shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.   “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:16)  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Thank You Father God that You so loved me that You sent Your Son to pay the price for my sin. Thank You Jesus, my Lord and Savior for suffering and dying for my sin. May I never take for granted the price You paid. Holy Spirit, thank You for convicting me of the sin in my life, that I might confess and repent. I humbly and thankfully choose Christ and the new covenant that He offers.   Amen.