Welcome to Reign of Grace. This
program is brought to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries,
an outreach ministry of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany,
Georgia. It is our pleasure and privilege
to present to you the gospel message of the sovereign grace
and glory of God in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that today's program
will be a blessing to you. Thank you for listening and now
for today's program. I'd like to welcome you to our
program today. I'm glad you could join us for the truth of God's
word preached through the Bible. And I'll be looking at 2 Corinthians
chapter 3 today if you want to follow along in your Bibles.
I began this chapter last week concerning this subject, the
glory of the new covenant. And I'll be talking about that
again today. beginning at verse six of 2 Corinthians chapter
three, where the apostle Paul is telling the Corinthian believers
that they have absolutely no scriptural mandate to follow
false teachers who desire to bring them back under the law
of Moses, which was a law given to national Israel on Sinai,
not to be a way of salvation or a rule of life, a rule of
spiritual life. It was a rule of life for them
because that nation was under that law, but not as a way of
salvation and spiritual life, but that it was given to them
to expose their sin and their depravity, to show them the impossibility
of salvation. being attained or maintained
by their law keeping, and to show them their need of God's
sovereign grace in salvation by Christ. And in that old covenant
law, there were types and shadows and pictures and prophecies of
Christ to come, who would be the Lord, the Lord righteousness
for his people. And so now he's showing them
the greater glory of the new covenant. And one of the points
that he makes is this, The Old Covenant law was an imposition
that God bore down and placed upon a rebellious, unwilling,
unbelieving people. Now, there were a few believers
in the nation of Israel, but their believing did not come
as the result of the Old Covenant law. It came as the result of
the everlasting covenant of grace, even though they were still,
as a nation, temporarily under that Old Covenant, but not for
salvation. Any Old Testament believer, any
person in the Old Testament who was saved, was saved by the grace
of God, and they didn't look to their law-keeping for their
salvation, they looked to Christ, the law-keeper, by promise and
the future. He who would come and be the
Lord their righteousness. And so Paul says in verse six,
he says that God is the power of salvation, Christ is the power
of salvation, who has also made us able ministers of the New
Testament or the new covenant. And remember the new covenant
is the establishment in time of the everlasting covenant of
grace made before time in Christ, where God chose a people, and
place all of the conditions of their salvation upon Christ,
the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God. And Christ willingly
agreed to be the surety and the savior of his people, which means
that he had to come in time and be born of a virgin. He had to
become incarnate and be born of a virgin. and he had to walk
the earth and keep the law perfectly and go to the cross to die for
the sins of his people to satisfy the justice of God and bring
forth righteousness whereby God could justify them. So Paul says,
now we're ministers, true gospel preachers, true believers. Now
our ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter, but of the
spirit, In other words, not of the written law, which he's referring
to, the Old Covenant law there, but of the Spirit. In other words,
now, many times in the New Testament Scriptures, there is some debate
over the word Spirit. Should this word Spirit be capitalized,
meaning the Holy Spirit? or should it be a small s, meaning
the spiritual life that God gives to his people in the new birth
from the Holy Spirit. And so I kind of take a view
of this that it could be either one. The new covenant ministry,
the gospel ministry, the ministry of God's grace is a ministry
of the Holy Spirit. You see, it is the Spirit's work,
the third person of the Trinity, who comes forth as sent by the
Father and the Son to apply the terms of the old covenant to
the hearts of God's people in the new birth. And what does
he do? He brings us under the preaching of the gospel. He's
the spirit of truth. And then he Under that preaching
of the gospel, he imparts spiritual life. He gives us a new heart. We talked about that last week.
In the prophecy of Jeremiah, God says, I will put my spirit
within them. I'll give them a new heart, all
right? I'll write my law in the inward
parts, in their heart, okay? That's the new regeneration.
Christ said, you must be born again. or you cannot see the
kingdom of heaven, kingdom of God. You don't have spiritual
eyes. You may have physical eyes. You
may have 20-20 vision physically. But until you're born again,
you're blind spiritually. And you must be born again or
you cannot enter the kingdom of God. Well, it is the Holy
Spirit's work under the new covenant to bring God's people under the
preaching of the gospel as the spirit of truth, and to give
them life, a new heart, a new mind, new spirit, new affections,
new will. And there he is, he's the spirit
of life. And then he indwells God's people permanently and
holds them, keeps them in looking to Christ, looking unto Jesus,
the author and finisher of our faith. And this new life is called
the spirit, the spiritual man, a spiritual. You know, the natural man, He's
spiritually dead. The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them. They're
spiritually discerned. But when God brings us to faith
in Christ, when he gives us life and brings us to faith in Christ
in the new birth, we become spiritual people. Now, that doesn't mean
we always act spiritually. Sometimes we can act carnally.
In fact, the Corinthians had that problem. Paul dealt with
it back in 1 Corinthians. He says, you're acting like babes,
you're acting carnally. Fleshly. But if we have the Spirit
of God within us and if we have spiritual life within us, we
will not totally forsake the ways of God. We will never totally
forsake Christ. He'll keep us. That's why Paul
said, I know whom I have believed and I'm persuaded that he is
able to keep that which I've committed unto him against that
day. And what have I committed unto him? My whole salvation.
Well, Paul had said here back in verse five, our sufficiency
is of God. And so he says in verse six,
read it again. Who also hath made us able ministers of the
new covenant, New Testament, not of the letter, but of the
Spirit. You see, there's the Holy Spirit
here and there's spiritual life too. It's not like the old covenant
where it was imposed upon a rebellious, unbelieving nation. Now again,
there was a remnant of God's people who truly believed from
the heart, the gospel. But as a whole, the nation broke
the old covenant. They were rebellious. They fell into false religion. They fell into idolatry. They
fell into immorality. They fell into, they compromised. But God held them together by
his power and providence until he was finished with them. And
that was the day that Christ came and did his work. And here's
what he says in verse six. For the letter killeth, but the
spirit giveth life. Now this is why I believe that
the word spirit should be capitalized here. Because it's talking about
the Holy Spirit who gives life from Christ, who is our life. Some of the old writers used
to talk about the resurrection life of Christ. And Ephesians
chapter one would bear this out. When it talks about the same
power, the power of God, that raised Christ from the dead,
the spirit of God raising him from the dead, is the same power
that gives spiritual life to a dead sinner in the new birth.
And you see, the life of God, the life that comes from the
divine in the new birth, spiritual life, comes because of Christ
and what He accomplished on Calvary in His death, in His burial,
and in His resurrection. Because in His death, Christ
established righteousness. Now you see, that's necessary. You cannot establish righteousness,
I cannot do it. Righteousness is perfect satisfaction
to God's law and justice. Now sin demands death, but righteousness
demands life. So Christ, putting away the sins
of his people, suffering unto death, was buried and what happened? He arose the third day. Why?
Because he established righteousness in his obedience unto death.
He lives and therefore his people will live and live eternally.
The Bible says in Romans chapter eight and verse 10 that this
body, if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin.
In other words, if Christ is in me by his spirit and by his
word, I'm still going to die the death, the physical death
of this body. I see the effects of it, feel
the effects of it as I get older. But the Spirit, the Holy Spirit
is life because of righteousness. Now who's righteousness? Christ.
Now the law, the letter here is the law could not do that. The letter killeth. All the law
could do for a sinner is condemn him. And that's why it's called
the letter that killeth. But the Spirit, the Holy Spirit,
gives life from Christ. But look at verse seven of 2
Corinthians 3. He says, but if the ministration
of death, now that's the old covenant. And incidentally, I've
got a preacher friend He was talking about in a message about
how people want to tack the Ten Commandments up on the wall.
And he said, really? He can save himself some time
and money, just tack one word up there, condemned. That's what
the Ten Commandments did, it condemned. Because we can't keep
it, and don't keep it. So he says, but if the ministration
of death, written and engraven in stones, now do you see that? He calls that ministration the
Old Covenant ministry. written and engraven in stone,
the ministration of death. Now if that was glorious, so
that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face
of Moses for the glory of his countenance, now look at which
glory was to be done away. Now what is he saying there?
I mentioned last week how if you read the Old Testament scriptures,
which are written about things that happened and things that
were spoken during the Old Covenant from Mount Sinai to the cross,
there's some great and glorious things there. I mean, think about
it. Even in the establishment of
that, when God brought them to, you know, think about the plagues
of Egypt, think about crossing the Red Sea and all of that.
Moses, the burning bush, all of that. And then other things
throughout the 1500 year period of the old covenant. But when
Moses received the law, this is what verse seven is talking
about. When Moses received the law and he came down from the
mount, there was a physical light that emanated from his countenance,
his face, that was so glorious that they could not steadfastly
gaze. upon Moses, had to turn their
eyes away. Now, Paul is saying if that was
glorious in the ministration of death, which glory was to
be done away? In other words, God did not create
it to last forever, it was to be abolished. Verse 8, how shall
not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? In other
words, the new covenant ministration of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit,
who gives spiritual life to dead sinners, that is much more glorious. You know, I've heard people say
before, they say, well, I wish I lived back in the days of the
Old Testament. If I had seen the Nile River
turn into blood, or if I had seen the Red Sea parted, I'd
believe. Well, Israel didn't. Do you know
those things cannot bring sinners to faith in Christ and repentance? You know what can bring it? There's
only one thing that can bring a sinner to faith in Christ and
repentance of dead works. and that's the power of God unto
salvation in the gospel, in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring
sinners to Christ, to see the glory of God revealed in the
face of Jesus Christ. That is a billion times more
glorious than standing on the shore of the Red Sea and watching
it part and walking across dry shop. I think about the parable,
the rich man and Lazarus where the Lord telling about this rich
man who died. And he looked up from his torment. And he said, Lord, send Lazarus. Remember the poor man Lazarus
who was in Abraham's bosom, the bliss of eternal life and salvation. He said, Lord, send Lazarus back
to tell my brothers about this so they won't end up where I
am in this torment. And remember what the Lord said?
He said, they have Moses and the prophets. They've got the
Word of God. You say, well, you're talking
about Moses and the Old Covenant. Here's the ministration of death.
The Old Covenant was. But you know what the Lord said
about Moses in John chapter five? He said, Moses wrote of me. If you believed Moses, you would
have believed me. You see, Moses knew that the Old Covenant law
was a ministration of death. Moses knew and believed that
he was a sinner who could not make himself righteous by his
law keeping. Moses knew that salvation was
not in the covenant of which he's identified with on earth,
but his salvation was in the Lord Jesus Christ who was to
come in the future. The word of God. And he says,
that's more glorious. The greater glory. of the new
covenant. And look at verse nine. He says,
for if the ministration of condemnation be glory. Now the ministration
of condemnation is the old covenant law, which condemns sinners,
because we all sin and come short of the glory of God. Galatians
3.10, cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things
which are written in the book of the law. You see that? The law condemns. If you're seeking
salvation by the law, you're condemned. And if that ministration
of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of
righteousness exceed in glory. Now the law could show you what
righteousness is and the righteousness God requires, but the law could
never make a sinner righteous. The law could show you your sin,
but it could never put away sins and pay for sins. But in the
New Covenant, what's the New Covenant all about? Remember
Christ, when he instituted the Lord's Supper, he said, this
is the New Testament, the New Covenant in my blood. Hebrews chapter 13, I believe
it's verses 20 and 21, he talks about the blood of the everlasting
covenant. You see that? You see, Christ's
blood is his death on the cross to pay for the sins of his people
and establish righteousness for them. The law will not make me
righteous because all the law can do is tell me I'm a sinner.
But Romans chapter 10 and verse four says this. Christ is the
end, the fulfillment, the perfection, the finishing of the law for
righteousness to everyone that believeth. Do you believe in
Him? Not just believing in Him, do
you believe in Him as He is identified and distinguished in the Scriptures,
in the Bible, God's Word, in the glory of His person, and
in the power of His finished work? You know, most people today
claim to believe in Him, but they don't really believe in
the Christ of the Bible. They claim that He died for everybody,
even those who perish. Let me tell you something. If
you believe in a Christ, whose death did not secure the salvation
of all for whom he died, but still leaves people to perish
because they don't do their part, then you don't believe in him.
You believe in your faith. Whatever makes the difference
between saved and lost, between heaven and hell, that's your
Savior. If it's you, then you believe in yourself. But you
see, this is a ministration of righteousness. This is the glory
of the new covenant. It's righteousness established
by the Son of God incarnate as the surety and substitute of
His people, whereby they are secure unto salvation and glory
by the grace of God. It's His righteousness imputed,
charged, accounted to His people. He went to the cross, having
the sins of His people, His sheep, charged to Him. He paid the debt
of their sins. He redeemed them with the precious
blood His own precious blood. He paid Himself a ransom for
many. How many? However many come to
believe in Him. And His righteousness was imputed
to them by God in the everlasting covenant of grace as Christ was
made their surety. And all to whom His righteousness
has been charged, the Holy Spirit will bring them under the preaching
of the gospel and give them life to believe. He'll bring them
to believe in Christ as their righteousness. So it's the ministration
of righteousness and it exceeds in glory. And look at verse 10. He says, for even that which
was made glorious had no glory in this respect by reason of
the glory that excelleth. The glory that excelleth. Now
what had glory? The old covenant. But if you
compare it with the new covenant, the grace of God in Christ, It
had no glory, there's no glory there. You see, this glory that
excels, why does it excel? Because of the excellence of
the Savior. Because of the excellence of
His person, who He is. The law came by Moses, but grace
and truth came by Jesus Christ, the Son of God, He is God. in
human flesh. He's the Word made flesh dwelling
among us. He's God manifest in the flesh. He's God with us. The excellency
of His person, the greater excellence of His person. It excels because
of the excellence of His redemptive work. He accomplished salvation. He drank damnation dry. He made
an end of sin. He finished the transgression.
He brought in everlasting righteousness. He sealed up the prophecy. He
did it all. He secured the eternal salvation
and glory of every sinner whom he represented, for whom he stood
a surety, and for whom he substituted himself on that cross. If he
died for a person, that person shall be saved. How do you know?
They will come to know and believe in Christ. It's the excellency
of Christ. It's not the excellency of the
church or because the church's excellency is Christ the husband,
the head of the church. It's the greater glory that exceleth,
and he says in verse 11, for if that which is done away was
glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. Now, if something that God put
in place for a particular time to begin and to end, if that
was glorious, then think about how much more glorious that which
is eternal. There was no eternal salvation
according to the terms of the law, the old covenant. There
was no spiritual life. There was no righteousness. There
was no justification. But in this that remains forever
and ever, my friend Peter called it an inheritance that is reserved
in heaven for his people that can never fade away. the Word
of God, this Christ, He ever lives to make intercession for
His people. He ever lives to plead the merits
of His blood and His righteousness for His people. It'll go on and
on and on and on. Whatever God says in His book
about Israel to come in the Old Testament, He's speaking of spiritual
Israel that'll have no end. He's not talking about a physical
temple. Listen, if there was a physical
temple rebuilt, it's gonna be destroyed one day because this
world's gonna burn up. The eternal temple is the church
of the Lord Jesus Christ in himself of whom he is the builder. It's
the church indwelt by God. It'll never be burned up. It'll
last forever. That's the excellence of its
glory. That's the glory of the new covenant,
which is the everlasting covenant of grace established in time,
but it goes on forever and ever and ever. It will never fail. And think about this, the righteousness
in which I stand before God in Christ can never be taken away. It can never be tarnished or
contaminated. It is forever and ever and ever.
Christ is the Lord my righteousness forever and ever. That's the
eternal glory. And Paul says in verse 12, he
says, seeing then that we have such hope, this kind of hope,
this glorious hope, we use great plainness or boldness of speech. Why do we speak so boldly? Why
do we speak so confidently? It's because we have this hope,
this hope of the glory of the new covenant, this hope of the
glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, this hope of the glory
that excels and the glory that remains in the ministration of
the Spirit, the ministration of life, the ministration of
righteousness. That's what it's all about. And
that's why we're so bold. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of
the gospel of Christ. For it's the power of God and
the salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and
the Greek also. For therein is the righteousness
of God revealed from faith to faith as it is written, the just
or the justified shall live by faith. And that's a glorious
thing, and it's a glory that'll never fade away, never be taken
away, never be tarnished or contaminated. It's the glory of the New Covenant,
which is the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ in the glory of
His person, in the glory of His finished work, the glory of His
righteousness. That's why we use great boldness
and plainness of speech. I hope you'll join us next week
for another message from God's Word. We are glad you could join us
for another edition of Reign of Grace. This program is brought
to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries, an outreach ministry
of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany, Georgia. To receive
a copy of today's program or to learn more about Reign of
Grace Media Ministries or Eager Avenue Grace Church, write us
at 1-1-0-2-3. Eager Drive, Albany, Georgia
31707. Contact us by phone at 229-432-6969
or email us through our website at www.theletterofgrace.com. Thank you again for listening
today and may the Lord be with you.