The Excellent Glory of the Gospel
The gospel of Jesus Christ is not a mere republication of the Mosaic law, nor a patchwork amendment to the ceremonial law, but a glorious, distinct, and everlasting covenant—a “better covenant, established upon better promises” (Heb. 8:6). Some would say it is a fulfillment. As we survey the whole body of Scripture, we find that the promised blessings of this New Covenant are not earthly and temporal, but spiritual, eternal, and inward. They are the very mercies of God distilled into the soul of the believer, purchased by the blood of the Surety, and sealed by the Spirit of promise.
The Promised Blessings of the Gospel and the New Covenant
The blessings promised in this covenant are the answer to the deepest needs of fallen humanity. They are not conditions to be met, but gifts to be received by faith. They include:
The Blessing of Justification: Pardon and Righteousness. The first and foundational blessing is the free and full remission of sins. God promises, “I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb. 8:12). This is not a mere suspension of punishment, but a judicial pardon based on the satisfaction of Christ. Coupled with this is the imputation of Christ’s perfect righteousness, so that the believer stands before God not in his own filthy rags, but in the spotless robe of the Son. This is the blessing of “abundant life” – a life of acceptance with God.
The Blessing of Regeneration: The Writing of the Law on the Heart. Under the Old Covenant, the law was written on tables of stone—external, commanding, and condemning. But the New Covenant promises an internal transformation: “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts” (Heb. 8:10). This is the new birth, the creation of a new nature that loves holiness and delights in the will of God. It is not a law of fear, but a law of love, inscribed by the Spirit, making obedience a delight rather than a drudgery. This is the promise of a “new heart” and a “new spirit” (Ezek. 36:26).
The Blessing of Reconciliation: A Personal and Intimate Knowledge of God. The covenant promises a knowledge of God that is not second-hand or mediated through priests and ceremonies, but direct and experiential: “They shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest” (Heb. 8:11). This is the blessing of adoption, whereby we cry, “Abba, Father.” It is a knowledge of God’s fatherly love, his intimate fellowship, and his guiding providence, granted to all believers, regardless of age, status, or intellect.
The Blessing of Preservation and Perseverance. The New Covenant secures not only the beginning of the work but its completion. God promises, “I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me” (Jer. 32:40). This is the blessing of final perseverance—the assurance that the Good Shepherd will lose none of His sheep, but will keep them by His power through faith unto salvation.
The Blessing of the Indwelling Spirit. The Spirit is the great “earnest” or down-payment of our inheritance (Eph. 1:14). He is the Comforter, the Teacher, and the Sanctifier. He applies the blessings of Christ, produces His fruit in our lives (love, joy, peace), and empowers us for service. This is the grand blessing promised by the Father, poured out at Pentecost, and given to all who believe.
The Blessing of Eternal Life and Glory. Finally, the covenant promises not just a life of blessedness now, but the fullness of joy forevermore. It promises the resurrection of the body, the glorification of the saints, and an eternal inheritance in the new heavens and the new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. This is the “hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began” (Titus 1:2).
The Great Gospel Ordinances: Their Nature and Contrast with the Old
The great ordinances and sacrements of the gospel are the visible signs and seals of these covenant blessings. They are the appointed means by which the Spirit applies Christ and His benefits to the believer. We call both of them ordinances because Jesus Christ commands us to do them. But we call them sacraments because through them God’s blessing and grace come to us in unique ways. The two great sacraments are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper (Communion) .
How They Relate to the Old Covenant Ordinances:
They stand in a direct line of continuity as God’s appointed signs of His covenant. Just as circumcision was the sign of the Abrahamic covenant, and the Passover was the memorial of redemption from Egypt, so Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are the signs of the New Covenant, pointing to a greater redemption and a greater spiritual reality. They are the “circumcision made without hands” and the “true Passover” which is Christ.
How They Differ from the Old Covenant Ordinances:
While they relate, they differ profoundly in substance, clarity, and efficacy.
Substance and Fulfillment:
Old: The ordinances (circumcision, sacrifices, washings) were shadows and types, pointing forward to a Messiah who was yet to come. Their value was anticipatory. They could not perfect the worshipper as pertaining to the conscience (Heb. 9:9).
New: The gospel ordinances are memorials of a Christ who has already come, died, and risen. They look back to a finished work. They are not shadows, but the clear reflection of the substance, which is Christ.
Clarity and Simplicity:
Old: The ordinances were numerous, complex, and carnal, consisting of “meats and drinks, and divers washings” (Heb. 9:10). They were designed for a people in a state of infancy, taught through types and figures. They were often burdensome and involved elaborate priestly rituals.
New: The gospel ordinances are few, simple, and spiritual. They consist of only two sacraments, which are easy to understand and administer. They are not about external cleanliness or dietary restrictions, but about the spiritual cleansing of the soul and the spiritual nourishment of the heart.
Efficacy and Power:
Old: The ordinances were efficacious only as they were connected to faith in the promised Redeemer. They had a moral and ceremonial cleansing, but they could not take away sins (Heb. 10:4). They could not give life or the Spirit.
New: The gospel ordinances are efficacious through the power of the Holy Spirit. They are not mere empty signs, but “means of grace,” whereby God works in the heart of the believer. Baptism is the “washing of regeneration” (Titus 3:5), and the Lord’s Supper is a spiritual communion with the body and blood of Christ, nourishing the soul for eternal life. They are not the cause of grace, but the channel through which the Spirit conveys it to those who receive them in faith.
A Specific Contrast of the Two Ordinances:
Baptism vs. Circumcision: Circumcision was a bloody, painful rite, applied only to male infants, marking them as members of a physical nation. Baptism is a bloodless, cleansing rite, applied to all believers, marking them as members of the spiritual body of Christ, the Church. It signifies the inward cleansing from sin by the Holy Spirit and the believer’s union with Christ in His death and resurrection. It is the seal of the New Covenant, replacing the seal of the old.
The Lord’s Supper vs. The Passover: The Passover was an annual, family meal, commemorating the physical deliverance from Egyptian bondage and the sparing of the firstborn by the blood of a lamb. The Lord’s Supper is a frequent, church-wide feast, commemorating the spiritual deliverance from the bondage of sin and the wrath of God by the blood of the true Lamb of God. The Passover looked forward to the sacrifice; the Supper looks back to it. The Passover fed the body for a journey through the wilderness; the Supper feeds the soul for the journey to the heavenly Canaan.
A Covenant of Grace and Glory
The New Covenant, as revealed in the gospel, is an “everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure” (2 Sam. 23:5). Its blessings are the very life of God in the soul of man. Its ordinances are the precious pledges of His love, given to strengthen our faith, confirm our hope, and inflame our charity. They are few, simple, and spiritual, in stark contrast to the many, complex, and carnal ordinances of the old. Let us, therefore, not neglect so great a salvation, but with thankful hearts, receive the blessings, and with reverent faith, attend to the ordinances, until we come to the full enjoyment of the substance in the kingdom of glory.