In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”
And Hebrews reads:
By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.
What is being communicated in these two text is not what we have been taught to believe. If we look at the word 'new' which is in both the Greek and the Hebrew Bibles we can get an idea of what we have been missing. Also, if we look at the passion that is raised when the generally accepted interpretation of these texts is challenged, we can get an idea of just how much we can change with a different perspective. Just how much we can change when we develop an interpretation that is more compatible with the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.
Both Luke and Hebrews describe a new covenant with God. This covenant is meant to replace the old. If you look at what most people believe, though, you will get the impression that the only difference between the old and the new covenant is the sacrifice. Now, if something is new it is by definition different. Think about it. When you go out and buy a new pair of shoes, for instance, you don't look for shoes that are just like the ones that are worn out. You don't look for shoes that have scuffs and scratches all over them. You don't want shoes that have the same run over heels and support your feet feel just like your old. No. You look for shoes that are different. Better. Shoes that are what you need today, not yesterday.
Let's look at the old covenant quickly. In Genesis 17 we learn that Abram is instructed to circumcise himself and all the faithful men as a sign of the covenant that they have with God. This is when God changes his name to Abraham and promises that a faithful Abraham will be the father of many nations. In Genesis 22, Abraham is instructed by God to sacrifice his son. God tells him to go out and kill his son to prove that he is still faithful. Just as Abraham is about to sacrifice his son, an angel stops him and tells him to kill a nearby ram instead. Now, these are summaries of the stories. I encourage you to go to your Bibles and read both.
Let's look at the new covenant. Jesus Christ lived in ancient Israel and ministered to people for about three years, we believe. Christians believe that he is the son of God who came, lived, and died to pay for our sins. In other words, because Jesus suffered and died, we are worthy of being forgiven by God for our sins. Or, Jesus was the ram in the thickets. I don't know about you, but this just doesn't work for me. This is not new. The covenant is still the same. The only difference is that instead of a ram, a man was sacrificed. With this interpretation, innocence is still killed because people are not. People are not innocent, so someone who is must die. Another way to put this is innocence is sacrificed because people do not. People do not work to stop causing damage and pain, so innocence must be sacrificed.
During his ministry, Jesus consistently challenged those who were comfortable with the status quo. He cared for the people who were hurting, and included the outcasts. He surrounded himself with people who were the every day Joe Blows of his time. Fishermen, tax collectors, carpenters, prostitutes, everyday working class people who were living from one paycheck to the next were the people with whom Jesus connected. Jesus taught people just like most of us today to love our neighbor as yourself, and to love God with all your heart and soul. He told us to take the cinder out of our own eye before we talk about the speck in our neighbor's. In other words, look at your own short-comings before you point to the flaws of another. Jesus taught us to be responsible to, and for, one another, and to speak up against the wrongs that we saw. If we follow what Jesus taught, said, and did, we cannot conclude that the current interpretation of the passion and death of Christ is correct.
I'm inviting you to join me in a sermon series that will lay the groundwork for an understanding of the real new covenant. We will explore the events and decisions that were made by people leading up to the crucifixion. We will explore how things might have been different if particular people had made other choices. For instance, how do you think things would be different today if Judas had said 'go to hell' when he was asked to point Jesus out for thirty pieces of silver? We will then look at the resurrection with the new insight from this series, and start living according to what we have learned. Because what we will read and study in this series will tell us that Jesus did not die for our sins, he died because of our sins. He died because of our sins of greed, cowardice, jealousy, and... you fill in the blank.
The last time we were together I gave you what I call lifework Lifework is like the homework that we do as students. We get new information in class, then we do homework to turn the information into the knowledge that broadens our understanding. Lifework is what we do to let go of some of the old information that we have so that we can turn to a new perspective on how to live. Your lifework has been to find a comfortable place, take 15 minutes every day, and just sit with your thoughts and feelings without censoring them. If you haven't heard my last sermon, you can download it from my website: www.turningitaround.com and get the details for this lifework assignment.
Today, your lifework is to continue as before with this change: recite the passage from Psalm 119:64a before you sit with your thoughts, and at the end of your 15 minutes.
The earth is filled with your love.
The earth is filled with your love.
The earth is filled with your love.
Until next time, may God continue to bless and keep you.Amen,
Reverend Deborah Elandus Lake
