Jeremiah 31:33-34 - The New Covenant: God's Law In Our Mind and Heart.
Jeremiah 31:33-34 (NIV) "This is the
covenant I will make with the people of Israel after
that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law
in their minds and write it on their hearts. I
will be their God, and they will be my people. 34
No longer will they teach their neighbor, or
say to anyone, 'Know the LORD,' because they
will all know me, from the least of them to the
greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their
wickedness and will remember their sins no more."
INTRODUCTION
The old covenant, broken by the people,
would be replaced by a new covenant... It offers a
unique personal relationship with God himself, with
his laws written on individuals' hearts instead
of on stone. Jeremiah looked forward to the day
when Jesus would come to establish this covenant.
But for us today, this covenant is here. We have
the wonderful opportunity to make a fresh start
and establish a permanent, personal relationship
with God (29:11; 32:38-40). [Life Application
SB]
God would write his law on their hearts
rather than on tablets of stone, as he did the Ten
Commandments. In 17:1 their sin was engraved on their
hearts so that they wanted above all to disobey.
This change seems to describe an experience very
much like the new birth, with God taking the
initiative. When we turn our lives over to God, he, by
his Holy Spirit, builds into us the desire to
obey him. [Life Application SB]
The same law that was engraved upon the
tables of stone is written by the Holy Spirit upon
the tables of the heart. Instead of going about
to establish our own righteousness we accept
the righteousness of Christ. His blood atones
for our sins. His obedience is accepted for us.
Then the heart renewed by the Holy Spirit will
bring forth "the fruits of the Spirit." Through
the grace of Christ we shall live in obedience
to the law of God written upon our hearts.
Having the Spirit of Christ, we shall walk even as
He walked. PP370-2
COMMENTARY PEARL
Hardwired For Happiness
We have the desire for happiness deeply
ingrained within us. In other words, God has hardwired
us to be happy. So where do we find this
happiness?
We wont find it is in this world,
because the world bases happiness on how well things
are going. If things are going reasonably well,
then were happy. If things are not going so
well, then were unhappy.
When you obtain everything, when you have
all your dreams fulfilled, when you reach all
your goals and maybe surpass them, you find how
empty it is. And then you realize that happiness
isnt in those things at all.
I think in many cases, the people you
follow on social media and those you admire or look
up to may have a far more miserable life than
you have.
One Gallup study on the subject of
happiness found that spiritually committed people are
twice as likely to report being very happy than
the least spiritually committed people.
Ill take that a step further: Godly
people will be the happiest people. As the Bible
says, Happy are the people whose God is the
Lord! (Psalm 144:15 NKJV).
C. S. Lewis put it this way: God
designed the human machine to run on Himself. He
Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to
burn, or the food our spirits were designed to
feed on. There is no other. That is why it is
just no good asking God to make us happy in our
own way God cannot give us a happiness and
peace apart from Himself, because it is not there.
There is no such thing.
The more we chase after the Lord, the
more godly well become - and the more well
find the happiness that has eluded us for so
long. [Greg Laurie from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com re Psalm 144:15]
COMMENTARY
Knowing God
In the days of the prophet Jeremiah, God
refused to break the covenant He had made with His
people. Despite His steadfast love, though, God's
people continued to sin. This presented a problem:
how could God fulfill the promises He had made
to bless His people when they continually
demonstrated their unfaithfulness to Him?
As a part of His great plan, God pledged
a new covenant - a work of inner re-creation.
As the theologian Alec Motyer writes, "When his
people could not rise to the height of his
standards, the Lord does not lower his standards to
match their ability, he transforms his people."
This new covenant is the purpose and
promise of God to regenerate hearts through the
blood of the Lord Jesus. He takes our hearts and
He makes them the perfect shape - like fitting
a piece in a jigsaw puzzle - so that His law
becomes a delight to us.
In God's declaration of this new
covenant, the verb "know" is key. In the original
Hebrew, its meaning is clear from the very beginning
in Genesis: the straightforward statement that
Adam "knew" his wife and they bore children
(Genesis 4:1) demonstrates the level of intimacy it
conveys. God is saying that when His people come to
an understanding of His love, they won't simply
be doing Bible studies at arm's length; they'll
be people who truly know Him.
What Jeremiah spoke of in the future
tense, we are able to enjoy in the present; for in
between his prophecy and our time, the Lord Jesus
held up a cup of wine the night before He died
and announced, "This cup that is poured out for
you is the new covenant in my blood" (Luke
22:20). By God's grace, you and I may know the King
of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Not only this,
but He also knows each of our names,
individually; and He knows our needs and is committed to
our well-being. Jesus bears our names before the
Father - and because of all He is and all He's
done, those names are written in the Book of
Life.
What kind of King is this? The answer is
beyond our ability to fully comprehend. Someday, we
will see Him face-to-face and understand far more
than we do today. But still, today you can go
about with the confidence that comes from knowing
that you know the God who redeemed you through
His Son, who dwells in and works in you by His
Spirit, and in whose throne room you will one day
stand. [Truth for Life by Alistair Begg]
CLOSING THOUGHT
Who Says We Cant Change?
Heres some good news. You arent
stuck with todays personality. You arent
condemned to grumpydom. You are tweak-able! So
what if you were born a bigot? You dont have
to die one.
Where did we get the idea we cant
change? Where do statements come from such as,
Its just my nature to worry, or Ill
always be pessimistic. Im just that way. Or,
I have a bad temper. I cant help the way I
react? Who says? Would we say, its just my
nature to have a broken leg. I cant do anything
about it. Of course not. If our body
malfunctions, we seek help. Shouldnt we do the same
with our hearts? Cant we seek aid for our sour
attitudes? Of course we can. Jesus can change our
hearts! He wants us to have a heart like his! [Max
Lucado Daily Devotional at maxlucado.com]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS TOPIC
John 17:3 - A Supreme Relationship with
Jesus Christ is Eternal Life.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2018/20180823-1030.html
Jeremiah 31:33, 34 - The New Covenant: God's
Law In Our Minds.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2005/20050725-1103.html
YOUR COMMENTS
If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in
hearing from you. Thanks in advance and let's keep
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred
Gibbs
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
Most Important Decision in Life:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0
A Man without Equal by Bill Bright:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiVa7UoruIo
Steps to Peace by Billy Graham:
https://stepstopeace.org/
Seeking God Made Real:
http://vimeo.com/31489782
Prayer Made Real:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES
Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies:
http://www.liftingupjesus.net/
Amazing Facts Bible Studies:
http://www.amazingfacts.org/bible-study/bible-study-guides.aspx
Voice of Prophecy Discover Bible Study
Guides:
https://www.voiceofprophecy.com/study/discover
Glow Tract Video Bible Studies:
http://www.bibleresearch.info/
LINKS FOR BIBLE PROPHECY SEMINARS
Unlocking Bible Prophecies by Cami Oetman of
Adventist World Radio: https://www.awr.org/bible
Panorama of Prophecy with Pastor Doug
Batchelor: https://www.panoramaofprophecy.com/
Hope Awakens by John Bradshaw of IIW:
https://itiswritten.tv/programs/hope-awakens
Prophecies Decoded by Pastor Ron Clouzet:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657
Islam and Christianity in Prophecy, The
Third and Final Conflict by Tim Roosenberg:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHSJB-fuHLU&list=PLWhQIHGTHlkaGg5Cwe3NDzWtFX8vNSpsE
