Kingdom Disciples

The promises, types, and shadows of the Hebrew Bible are fulfilled in the Son of God and Messiah of Israel, Jesus of Nazareth . An accusation heard in popular preaching is  “Replacement Theology,”  a barely disguised charge of Antisemitism. This dreaded label is hurled against those who claim that a promise from the Hebrew Bible made to Ancient Israel is fulfilled in Jesus and his Church. This term misses the point – The New Testament focus is on  fulfillment , not  separation  or  replacement .

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations of the Abrahamic Covenant commenced . The “ Promise of the Father ” is the Gift of the Spirit, which the Apostle Paul links to the Abrahamic Covenant. The promises made to the Patriarch are fulfilled in the New Covenant inaugurated by Jesus Christ. The bestowal of the Spirit on his Assembly on the Day of Pentecost marked the commencement of the “ Last Days ,” the Age of the  Spirit when the promises of God are  achieved . Because of his Death and Resurrection, Gentile believers become full heirs of the Covenant along with believing Jews.

Avec l'effusion de l'Esprit le jour de la Pentecôte, les bénédictions promises à Abraham pour toutes les nations ont commencé . L'Apôtre Paul appelle le Don de l'Esprit la “ Promesse du Père ”, et il relie le Don promis à l'alliance abrahamique . Les promesses faites à Abraham et à “ sa Postérité ” trouvent leur accomplissement dans la Nouvelle Alliance inaugurée par la Mort et la Résurrection de Jésus de Nazareth.

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced . The Apostle Paul calls the Gift of the Spirit the “ Promise of the Father ,” and he links the promised Gift to the Abrahamic covenant . The promises to Abraham and “ his Seed ” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.

The Spirit of God imparts life, especially the everlasting life of which the Gift of the Spirit is the foretaste and guarantee . The Spirit of God is life-giving. “ God is Spirit ,” and where His Spirit is, there is life! By His Spirit God created all things, including the “ hosts of the Heavens .” In contrast, sin kills men, and it does so through the “ letter of the Law .” Death’s “ sting ” is sin, “ and the power of sin is the Law . ” However, God’s Spirit gives us life, and where His Spirit is, there is also “ liberty ” - (John 4:24, 6:63, 1 Corinthians 15:56, 2 Corinthians 3:6, 3:17).

The Gift of the Spirit is essential to the New Covenant promised by God in the Hebrew Bible for His people . The New Testament connects the “ Promise of the Spirit ” to the “ Blessings of Abraham .” God would bless the nations through the Patriarch. The Gift of the Spirit is an integral part of the covenant promises given to Abraham, and this promise is fulfilled in the “ New Covenant ” inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. His sacrifice made the ancient promises of renewal and circumcised hearts a present reality.

Jesus is the Seed of Abraham, the heir of the covenant promises, and receipt of the inheritance is based on how we respond to him . The  Gospel of Matthew  declares Jesus to be the “ son of Abraham .” The lowly Nazarene is the Messiah and King of Israel, the promised “ Seed ” of the Patriarch. Christ brings the covenant promises to fulfillment since he is  the covenant heir, and our participation in the inheritance is based on the “ faith of Jesus ,” and consequently, our faith in him.

The disciples of Jesus are the Heirs of Abraham, and the future possession of the full inheritance is guaranteed by the Gift of the Spirit . Israel’s possession of Canaan was an earlier stage in God’s redemptive plan, which always envisaged something larger than Israel and a small plot of land in the Middle East. With the arrival of the Messiah and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the covenant promises found their fulfillment in the true “ Seed of Abraham ,” and therefore in his “ brethren ” and “ coheirs .”

The Gift of the Spirit is part of the New Covenant. It is the first fruits of the New Creation and the gathering of the nations . The history of Israel includes national sins that caused her expulsion from the Land of Canaan. God foresaw her failures and determined to institute a new covenant  energized and characterized by His Spirit . It would include the salvation of the nations and culminate in the “ New Heavens and the New Earth .” With the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost, the Age of the Spirit commenced in earnest.

The New Covenant includes the Gift of the Spirit, the first fruits of the New Creation, and the gathering of the nations . The National sins of Israel caused her expulsion from the Land of Canaan. God foresaw her failures and determined to institute a new covenant  energized and characterized  by His Spirit . It would include the salvation of men from every nation and culminate in the resurrection of the dead and the “ New Heavens and the New Earth .” With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the New Covenant began in earnest.

The types and shadows of the former covenant find their substance in the Son of God, his priesthood, sacrifice, and New Covenant  – Hebrews 8:1-5. The eighth chapter of  Hebrews  highlights the incomparable benefits believers receive under the New Covenant inaugurated by Jesus. If the fulfillment of the promises arrived in him, especially in his Death and Resurrection, returning to the incomplete revelations of the past would mean embracing the glimpses and “ shadows ” of the “ coming good things ” rather than the substance we now have our “ Great High Priest .”

The Letter to the Hebrews is built on a series of comparisons that demonstrate the superiority of the word that God has “ spoken in ” His “ Son ” over every past revelation “ spoken in the prophets .” The former prophetic “ words ” were true but partial and preparatory. But now, “ upon the last of these days ,” God has unveiled His definitive “ word ” in one who is a “ Son .” That “ word ” is complete and superior to all others since Jesus alone “ achieved the purification of sins ” that is so vital to His people.

The promise of the Spirit is vital to the redemption of humanity and the Covenant of God with His people, the Assembly of Jesus Christ . The New Testament links the “ Promise of the Spirit ” to the “ Blessings of Abraham ,” the promise that God would bless the nations through the Great Patriarch.  The Spirit is the gift believers receive “ through the hearing of faith .” It is part of the  Covenant Promises  given to Abraham, and the Apostle Peter connected this gift to the “ blessings ” for the nations during his sermon on the Day of Pentecost.

Jesus inaugurated the superior New Covenant through his Death and Resurrection, rendering the old covenant obsolete  – Hebrews 8:6-13. The definitive “ Word ” that God has spoken “ in the Son ” surpasses all past revelations made in “ the prophets ,” including Moses, the Great Lawgiver. Only Jesus “ achieved the purification of sins ,” therefore, he “ sat down ” at the right hand of God as our Great High Priest and instituted the long-promised “ New Covenant .”