board allowing room for completing the verses for this New Covenant.
“Galatians 3:29—If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
“Tell me John, how does a Jewish person define himself as a Jew?” Joshua took a minute to eat part of another cookie and sip from his glass, while I pondered the question.
“Isn’t it because they are a descendent of the line of Abraham?” I replied with mild uncertainty.
“Yes! Jews are the seed of Abraham. It deals with inheritance and is a product of lineage. A Jewish person is a member of Abraham’s family, the father of the nation of Israel. They are the chosen people of God and can trace their lineage back to Jacob who was renamed Israel and from there, back to Abraham. This lineage is found in the physical. There are indeed physical Jews based on their genetic lineage with Israel. But God does not think only in the physical, he also thinks spiritually.
“Gentiles, who are physically non-Jews, cannot trace their lineage back to Abraham, but have also become a member of God’s chosen people because of their faith in Christ. This does not occur in the physical but rather in the spiritual and in the spiritual sense, all Christian believers have become Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise of God. Let us re-examine what the Bible says on this subject.”
He held the book in one hand as he wrote with the other.
“Galatians 3:26-29—You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
“This verse explains why the new covenant with Israel also applies to you. You are not a physical Jew, but have become a recipient of this New Covenant, simply because of your belief in Christ!”
“That is very cool, Joshua!” I raised my glass to toast my spiritual inheritance. He returned the gesture with a smile and looked back at the board to continue.
“Declares the Lord.
“Is God kidding here?”
“No, Joshua, he is not kidding about his promises.” I smiled in appreciation of his repetitive humor and continued to watch his marker hard at work.
“I will put my law in their minds.
“God placed his new law in the mind of all believers. Because of your faith in Christ, you instinctively know right from wrong as a gift from God. Your mind has been transformed and renewed by the Holy Spirit living within you. I prefer the King James interpretation for this verse.”
He spoke from memory.
“Romans 12:2—And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
I raised my glass and said, “I’m beginning to understand.”
He nodded in acceptance and continued explaining the New Covenant, verse by verse.
“And write it on their hearts.
“God wrote his new law not only on your mind but also on your heart. God scripted his old laws on stone tablets or would tell men who eventually wrote them down. Then the priests would have to explain the old Law of God to his people. But the new law is written directly on your mind and heart, so that everyone who believes in Jesus has immediate access to the new law of God. The ability to read a particular language is no longer required to know the truth about God and his promises. As a believer in Christ, God’s law has become a part of you and lives in your mind and heart. This allows you to become closer to God, conform to his will, and receive the blessings of a loving father.”
I sat back in my chair as I mentally acknowledged the truth of his words. There was no doubt that I held an innate spiritual compass of God’s moral code deep in my heart. And now I was acutely aware of how it got there. His voice broke into my thoughts.
“I will be their God, and they will be my people.
“You must realize the beauty of this statement. God is claiming you as his child and he to be your father. Abraham was the father of the children of Israel, and they were God’s chosen people, but now, Gentile believers are also considered spiritual seeds of Abraham and therefore, God’s chosen people, as well.” He turned back to look at the whiteboard.
“No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know me.
“In other words, Christians will not have to teach one another about what is right or wrong from a sheet of paper or stone tablets. God has written his law on their hearts and minds and they will all know him, his law, and his Divine Nature, if they believe.”
I could feel the truth of his statement travel deep into my soul.
“Let us step away from reviewing this new covenant for a moment and examine what the Apostle John said about knowing God and how that effects the sin in your life.” Joshua continued to teach as he wrote.
“1 John 3:5-6—But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.
“As you can see, the Apostle John explains how if you continue to sin, you have not seen or known Jesus. But God says under the new covenant, you will all know him. So, I must ask you once again, do you continue to sin? Are you a sinner?”
He began reading the next verse he had written, before I could answer.
“1 John 4:15—If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.
“Tell me John, do you acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God? Yes? Then God lives in you and you in him. Yet, no one who lives in him keeps on sinning. Therefore, we need to revisit our original questions. ARE you a sinner? Or, WERE you a sinner?
“On the issue of sin, do you think, believe, and live under the old Law of Moses known as the law of sin and death? Are you like the children of Israel prior to the gift of Christ on the cross? Or, because of the grace of Jesus, do you live under the new law of the Spirit of life, the New Covenant, and possess the perfection of Christ within you? Tough question!”
He finished his cookie and smiled at his spiritually challenging remarks.
“No doubt, these are hard questions, Joshua!” I said in full agreement.
He nodded his head with certainty before he continued.
“Let us return to exploring this New Covenant God has established with all who believe.” He picked up his glass before he wrote the next line on the board.
“From the least of them to the greatest.
“Here on earth, all believers are equally important to God, no matter what their heritage or earthly accomplishments may be. Recall Galatians.” He pointed to the line that he had previously written on the board as he read it out loud.
“Galatians 3:26-—You are
