Distinguishing Israel's New Covenant from the Church's New Testament Spirituality
Orientation
A common error is to assume the church is under Israel's New Covenant, which leads to legalism and false expectations of sinless perfection.
- The New Covenant is God's promise to Israel for their future role as priests in the millennium.
- The church's spiritual reality is distinct, based on the Everlasting Covenant secured by Christ's blood.
- Confusing these two realities undermines assurance and freedom in Christ.
For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: (Hebrews 8:8)
— Hebrews 8:8
Clarification
The church is not under a covenant of law written on the heart, but under a testamentary ministry that distributes Christ as our inheritance.
- Israel's New Covenant results in God causing perfect obedience in a mortal nation.
- The church's New Testament spirituality involves stewards distributing the riches of Christ through the Spirit.
- Our participation is active, setting our minds on the Spirit and the inheritance revealed in apostolic teaching.
Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. (2 Corinthians 3:6)
— 2 Corinthians 3:6
Structure
Biblical logic shows two distinct divine programs: one for Israel's national transformation and one for the church's participation in Christ's glory.
- The New Covenant (for Israel) uses the Spirit to write God's law on the heart for perfect priestly service.
- The Everlasting Covenant (for all) uses Christ's blood to secure forgiveness and an inheritance of glory.
- The New Testament ministry uses apostolic stewardship to write Christ as a 'weight of glory' into believers.
But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. (Jeremiah 31:33)
— Jeremiah 31:33
Weight-Bearing Prose
The core assertion is a Pauline dispensational distinction. The New Covenant (Jeremiah 31, Ezekiel 36) is exclusively for Israel, effecting a national heart transformation that enables perfect obedience as mortal priests in the millennium. The church, however, is testamentary heir to the Everlasting Covenant, mediated by Christ’s blood. Our spirituality is not law-written-on-heart obedience but a New Testament ministry of glory (2 Corinthians 3-5). This ministry is a stewardship: apostles, as stewards, distribute the inheritance of Christ—Himself as glory—through the Spirit. This writing is dual: the Spirit writes Christ into the minister through suffering that consumes the outer man, and into the recipient through the ministry of the word. This produces the ‘weight of glory,’ Christ wrought into our being (2 Cor 4:17). Objections that blend these programs create legalism, imposing Israel’s covenantal expectation of sinless perfection on the church, which lives in grace with remaining flesh. The Pauline category is clear: we are epistles of Christ, not tablets of law (2 Cor 3:3). Our active participation is to set the mind on the Spirit (Romans 8:5-6), which the Spirit witnesses to in our spirit (Romans 8:16), mortifying the flesh’s deeds and enabling us to gain Christ (Philippians 3:8). This is not automatic transformation but participatory renewal through the revealed inheritance.
Integration
Your standing is secure in the Everlasting Covenant, sealed by Christ’s blood. You are not under a system that demands perfect obedience from your flesh. The pressure is off. Your walk is not about achieving a sinless state but about knowing Christ, your inheritance. The Spirit within your spirit bears witness to this reality, producing life and peace as you set your mind on Him. Any sense of failure or shortcoming is met with grace, not condemnation. The daily renewal you need is available because your flesh remains, but your spirit is alive in Christ. This is your assurance. Christ is your portion, your glory, your life. Rest in Him. The ministry of the New Testament continually points you back to this all-sufficient Person, in whom you are complete.