A death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.
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Hebrews 9:15
Have you tried to shop a sale only to realize you are a day late? Maybe you have even heard a salesperson mutter “that was then, this is now” in response to your disappointment at missing the discount. The timing makes a big difference in everything from sale prices to relationships.
The Bible is the recorded history of God’s relationship with humankind. While the character of God is never changing, His agreements with people do change. The beauty of God’s contracts with humanity is that He continually moves closer, making it easier and easier for His creation to know Him. The covenants found in the Old Testament establish God’s relationship with the ancient nation of Israel and testify that He fulfills every promise He makes! The people living under the old covenant, the Mosaic Law, experienced faith by looking into the future, believing their promise-keeping God would also rescue them from sin, someday.
The prophet Jeremiah foretold of a time that people could actually see God’s rescue and experience His redemption in knowledge and understanding: “I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, I will be their God and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33).
Now is the appointed time, an opportunity for people to hear the message of God’s salvation through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray that many from Washington to your hometown will recognize the celebrated Child of Christmas as, more importantly, the sacrificial Lamb of God, the resurrected Lord, their Savior, accepting Him as the One making possible a new and close relationship with God.
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