Tag Archives: commandments

The Two Covenants — Part 5

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In previous articles in our Two Covenants series we’ve discussed the relationship between the Old and New Covenants, and reasons why the Old Covenant was given.

To review, we’ve discussed the concept that the Old Covenant was a type of the New Covenant. It was given as an introduction to living spiritual principles. But as it was a shadow, or type or figure of the New, it was not the full reality of what the New Covenant encompasses. For example, the sacrifices under the Old Covenant were among other things a type of Christ’s sacrifice, but they were not the reality of the sacrifice itself.

Reasons for the giving of the Old Covenant that we discussed included:

(1) The Separation and preservation of a people for God.

(2) A tutor or schoolmaster pointing to Christ.

(3) A form of knowledge and truth.

(4) To teach the nature and effect of sin.

(5) To reveal the need for the Holy Spirit.

Later in this article our focus shifts to the New Covenant.

But first, we will briefly list some other important reasons for the giving of the Old Covenant in addition to the five already discussed. This list is not intended to be exhaustive, but will furnish food for thought.

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The Meaning of the Weekly Sabbath

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The Sabbaths God commanded have practical, spiritual, and prophetic meaning. Rod Reynolds explains from the Bible the meaning of the weekly Sabbath.

“The Meaning of the Weekly Sabbath” by COGMessenger is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Examine Yourself

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When God set his hand to deliver the Israelites from Egypt, he commanded a Passover sacrifice to be offered, and afterward, it was to be offered yearly on the fourteenth of the first month of the sacred calendar. Only those who were ritually clean were, under ordinary circumstances, permitted to partake of the Passover sacrifice.

To be ritually clean, one had to know what that meant, what measures had to be taken to meet the standard of cleanliness required. To do that implies that one had to examine his behavior, and his condition, based on certain standards.

Faithful Christians baptized into the body of Christ, having learned to keep his festivals as he commands, are also expected to examine ourselves, especially as we approach the Passover, not only at this time of year, but on a continual basis. Let me explain from the Scriptures what that means and how to go about it.

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In Prosperity Beware!

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In the modern age Americans and many others around the world are enjoying unprecedented wealth. Luxuries previous generations could not even dream of are taken for granted by today’s generation. But how are we faring morally and spiritually in the midst of such abundance?

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Can Anything Be Done About the Weather?

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Many, perhaps the majority, of people in our land think little about the real source of the tremendous blessings we have enjoyed in the U.S.A. over the past 200 plus years. Similar blessings have been enjoyed by Great Britain and countries settled by the British, and other nations inhabited predominately in modern times by the descendants of Abraham.

These blessings have spilled over into many other countries as well, and through blessings promised to Abraham and his descendants, all nations have been blessed. This is true not only from a spiritual standpoint, but to a degree, it includes physical blessings as well.

One blessing in particular, that we need to take notice of, is favorable weather. It’s been said that people are always talking about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. Yet the question remains, “Can anything be done about the weather?” As we will see, the answer is yes, there is something we can do about the weather. Continue reading →