( Sermon shared with NLAG OMR Community on 31st of May 2026)
Today we embark on one of the most profound journeys through scripture – the story of God’s covenants and Living in the authority of the
new covenant The Bible is not a
loose collection of inspiring stories or moral lessons. No – it is one unified
breathtaking narrative of a covenant-making – covenant-keeping God who pursues
relationship with rebellious humanity at an infinite cost to Himself.
From the garden
of Eden to the cross of Calvary and onward to the new Heaven and new Earth, God
reveals Himself through sacred, binding agreements rooted in His unchanging
grace. A covenant isn’t a casual promise we might break – it is a solemn bond,
often sealed.
What is a covenant?
A covenant is a relationship between two people who make binding promises to
each other & then work together to reach a common goal.
Quite often we
use the word covenant interchangeably with the word contract. But there is a
big difference between the two in terms of a relationship. While a contract
involves a promise and an exchange of goods, a covenant involves an oath – a
swearing of oneself.
In ancient
times, a covenant is usually sealed with blood. A blood binding pact between
two parties called by shedding of blood & then mingling the blood to create
an unbreakable bond. Shared life & mutual protection was guaranteed. It
sometimes involved rituals like cutting palms, exchanging weapons, sharing
meals – symbolising that all assets & liabilities are shared.
Covenant relationships are found all throughout the
Bible. There are personal covenants between two individuals. For e.g.:
David & Jonathan – 1 Sam 23.
King Solomon & King Hiram – 1
King 5 as a leader or partners.
Abraham &
Abimelech, a peace treaty in Gen 21.
The God who
spoke the universe into existence binds Himself to us in a covenant – why?
He desired relationship –
intimate eternal fellowship with you & me.
Let us first trace
this covenant thread.
The Edenic Covenant –
Dominion & Responsibility
We begin from the beginning.
God creates Adam
from dust, breathes life into him & declares him to have dominion over the
fish of the sea, birds of the air, and over livestock.
In the original
covenant – God grants humanity dominion – delegated authority & to rule
creation as His representatives.
- It had specific instructions:
- Populate the Earth
- Subdue the Earth
- Exercise dominion and only one
restriction
- to refrain from the fruits of the
tree of knowledge
Tragedy strikes
when Adam & Eve disobey; sin enters. Dominion is fractured. The ground is
cursed. Fellowship breaks & death begins.
- Toil becomes painful. Pain of
childbearing.
- Flesh will decay and return to the
dust.
Satan has a
temporary success. But even in this judgment we see the mercy of God through
the provision of an eternal sacrifice.
vs: 29 – Adam
& Eve could have all the plants for food. They could not consume the
animals. This was new learning to me as I
studied this topic
The Noahic Covenant — Preservation of Humanity
Humanity spirals
into corruption. God grieves and finds a righteous man, a blameless man in his
generation (Gen 6:9).
God establishes
a new covenant with 8 people of the flood.
God reestablishes the covenant with a notable addition:
- The principle of a human government,
which includes responsibility of suppressing the outbreak of sin and
violence so that it will not be necessary to destroy the earth again by a
flood.
- The responsibility to populate the
earth is reaffirmed.
- Subjection of the animal kingdom is
reaffirmed.
- Man is permitted to eat the flesh of
animals but refrain from the blood.
- God preserves the world so
redemption can unfold.
- He promises a rainbow as a testimony
of the existence of this covenant.
Without this
covenant, the story would have ended. God could have wiped out everything and
started afresh. But He had already made a covenant with Adam and so he continued.
God
is faithful.
The Abrahamic Covenant
— Promise & Faith
Genesis 12 :1-3
This is the
first covenant pertaining to the rule of God.
This is an unconditional covenant depending solely upon God who obligates
Himself in grace.
This covenant
will bring to pass blessings in three areas:
- National – I will make you a great nation.
- Personal – I will bless you and make your
name great, and you shall be a blessing.
- Universal – In you all the families of the
earth shall be blessed.
This covenant is
unique in the sense that God first gave a broad outline and later confirmed in
great detail to Abraham.
Starting in
Genesis 12, God formalizes it. Abraham believes and starts walking on it, and
that is why it is accounted to him for righteousness.
This covenant is
an important link that God began to do and has done throughout history and will
continue to do so till the second coming of the Lord.
Personally,
to Abraham
- To be a father of a great nation.
- To receive personal blessing.
- To receive personal honor and
reputation.
- To be a source of blessing to
others.
Universal
Aspects
- Blessing to those peoples and
nations which bless Abraham.
- Cursing upon peoples and nations
which curse Abraham.
- Blessing upon all families of the
earth — eternal promise.
There was sign to this covenant - an odd peculiar thing of circumcision- why such a delicate cutting of the flesh
To signify this
covenant that God made with Abraham and Abraham's descendants. It was to be a
perpetual practice. And the answer is because God wanted an indelible mark
placed at the source of reproduction to always remind the Jewish people that
they no longer belonged to the flesh, but they belonged to God and that they
should reproduce children in like manner to perpetuate that legacy that these
were a people who belong to God
The Mosaic Covenant — Law & Holiness Exodus 19
This is a covenant
God is making with the Israelite community . Moses is only the leader who is
standing in between God and the nation of Israel.
This is a conditional
covenant. After God delivered Israel from Egypt:
“If you will obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My
treasured possession.” (Exodus 19:5–6)
The covenant was
given to the nation Israel so that those who believed God’s promise given to
Abraham would know how to conduct themselves.
The Ten
Commandments, civil laws, ceremonial laws, tabernacle, sacrifices, etc., all
point to God’s holiness and our sin.
This covenant
governs three areas of their lives:
- The commandments govern their personal lives related
to God.
- The judgments govern their social lives — related
to one another.
- The ordinances govern their religious lives so
people could know how to approach God.
The Mosaic
covenant was added alongside the Abrahamic covenant so that the people would
know how to conduct their lives until Christ comes and makes the perfect
sacrifice.
The Mosaic
covenant was never given so that by keeping it people would be saved, but so
that they realize that they cannot do what God wants them to do even when God
writes it down on tablets of stone.
This law was
given that man might realize that he is helpless and hopeless when left to
himself and realize that his only hope is to receive the righteousness of God
by faith in Jesus.
The Mosaic
covenant cannot save — it leads us to Christ (Galatians 3:24-25). It prepares
the way for grace.
Galatians 3:24-25
Therefore the law was our tutor to
bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But
after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor
The mosaic covenant
had three great purposes and uses
It is a guardrail
keeping humanity on a moral path
It is a mirror for them to reflect their status and correct themselves.
It is a guide showing the heart
and desire of God for His people.
Davidic Covenant – An Eternal King
David is
promised three things: 2 Samuel Ch 7
- Land forever (vs 10) I will appoint a place for My people
Israel, and will plant them that they may dwell in a place of their
own and move no more
- Unending dynasty (vs 16) And your
house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you
- Everlasting Kingdom (vs 13,) He
shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of
his kingdom forever.
His throne
continues through his seed is cursed in the person Jeconiah who was king when
the nation was carried captive to Babylon.
Jeremiah
prophesies that no one whose genealogical descent could be traced back to David
& King Solomon through Jeconiah would ever sit on David’s throne. (Jer 22:24)
Joseph, the
legal but not physical father of Jesus, traces his lineage to David through
Jeconiah as recorded in the gospel of Matthew.
Nathan, the
other son of David whose line was not cursed, is through whom we can trace the
lineage of Mary the mother of Jesus as recorded in the book of Luke 3.
Notice the care
and the extent to which God goes to keep His word and to preserve its truthfulness.
The virgin birth was absolutely essential not only to assure the sinless
character of Jesus but also to fulfil the Davidic covenant.
The virgin birth
guarantees that one of David’s line will sit on the throne forever and rule
while at the same time preserving intact the curse and restriction on the line of descent through Jeconiah.
The New Covenant – Promise & Fulfilment
Jeremiah
31:31–34 prophesies about the new covenant.
There are four
provisions made in the new covenant:
- Regeneration – God will put His law in their
inward parts & write it in their hearts (vs 33)
- National
Restoration – Yahweh
will be their God & the nation will be His people (vs 33)
- Personal
ministry of the Holy Spirit
– They will be taught individually by God (vs 34)
- Full
Justification – Their
sins will be completely removed.
That blood which
guarantees to Israel its new covenant also provides for the forgiveness of sins
of all the believers. This new covenant actually accomplishes what the Mosaic
covenant could only point to – Child of God “
living in a manner that is consistent with the character of God.
The new covenant
is fulfilled in Jesus Christ , In the Gospel of Mathew 26:26-29
And as they were
eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and
gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My
body.”
Then He took the
cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from
it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I
say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until
that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
At the cross the new covenant reaches its fulfilment.
What Adam lost
Christ Restores.
At Calvary
- The sacrificial system was
fulfilled.
- The penalty for sin was paid.
- Access to God was opened up to all.
The physical
manifestation of this took place when the veil was torn apart in the temple.
The new covenant
was finally sealed with the blood of Jesus Christ.
Do you notice
how each of the covenants build progressively upon one another forming a
complete redemptive storyline.
God prepared the
world through Noah after the fall.
He initiated redemption through Abraham.
Established the nation of Israel through Moses.
Promised an eternal shepherd king through David.
Then fulfilled all of this through Jesus.
With each
covenant, God’s promises & plans to save the world through the seed of the
woman became clearer.
The final
redemption will happen at the second coming of Jesus Christ.
What does
this hold for us today?
Psalms 115:16
The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s;
But the earth He has given to the children of men...
The earth He has given for us to rule and have dominion over. We are to be in
this world doing His works and not our selfish goals
He has sent us as ambassadors to fulfil his work.
2 Corinthians
5:20 :- Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though
God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be
reconciled to God.
An ambassador represents a nation in a foreign land. As a believer of Jesus
Christ, we also represent His kingdom on Earth
An
ambassador carries the authority, values, and message of the nation they
represent.
They carry
the message of their country and
They carry
the value of their nation
We live in this
world, but our true citizenship is in heaven.
Jesus Christ is our king and
The earth is our assignment field.
We should realize that like and ambassador is chosen by a nation they represent
in a foreign land
We have
been chosen by GOD
We are being sent with a clear mission
We are empowered to speak and act on behalf of the king.
We are protected by the authority of the heavenly nation
Many believers
know Jesus as Savior, but they struggle to walk in their identity and
authority. Some live defeated lives, overwhelmed by fear, temptation,
insecurity, and spiritual weakness because they do not fully understand who
they are in Christ
As believers, we
may live in this world, but we do not belong to the system of this world.
2.
Ambassadors Reflect Their Kingdom
Wherever
ambassadors go, they reflect their homeland. They might be going to a poor
country but they do not live as per the conditions of the nation they are in.
They live as the condition of the nation they represent.
Likewise,
Christians are called to reflect Christ.
People should
see:
·
Christ’s
love in us
·
Christ’s
humility in us
·
Christ’s
purity in us
·
Christ’s
compassion in us
·
Christ’s
truth in us
·
The world may
never read the Bible, but they will read our lives.
When people
observe our life:
·
Do
they see peace or bitterness?
·
Are
they seeing our Faith or fear?
·
Are
they able to see Love or anger?
·
Are
we showing Integrity or compromise?
An ambassador
who dishonors their nation loses credibility. In the same way, believers must
live lives worthy of Christ.
If an ambassador behaves
dishonourably, people
judge the nation he represents.
Likewise, when
Christians live carelessly:
·
The
name of Christ is affected
·
The
testimony of the Gospel is weakened
But when
believers walk in love, truth, humility, and power, people see Jesus.
3.
Ambassadors Carry a Message
.
Romans 1:16
says:
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for
salvation.”
God has
entrusted believers with the ministry of reconciliation; the Gospel is not merely
information; it is transformation.
We are not
called to blend into the culture. We are called to influence the culture.
God has
strategically placed you:
·
In
your family
·
In
your workplace
·
In
your school
·
In
your community
You are God’s
representative there.
II. What is
the Authority of Ambassador
1. All
Authority Belongs to Jesus
At the end of proclaiming the great
commission In Matthew 28:18: Jesus
says “ “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”
Jesus defeated Sin , Satan Death ,and the grave . He is now proclaiming that He
has the authority and we as believers share in His Victory. We have this authority . This is delegated to
everyone who believes.
Believers have
authority because we stand in the name of Jesus.
Luke 10:19:
“Behold, I have given you authority… over all the power of the enemy.”
This does not
mean believers become powerful independently from God. Our authority flows from
relationship with Christ.
Authority in
Christ includes:
·
Authority
to resist temptation
·
Authority
to overcome fear
·
Authority
to pray boldly
·
Authority
to stand against spiritual attacks
·
Authority
to proclaim truth
Our Authority flows from our relationship to Jesus Christ.
The enemy wants
Christians to live intimidated and powerless.
But Scripture
says in 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of
power and love and of sound mind.”
Jesus is reminding us that we have power vested within each of us.
How do we Walk in this Authority?
1. Know Who
You Are.
Ephesians 2:6
says God has:
“raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ
Jesus.” We are seated along with Jesus in the
heavenly places as Sons and Daughters of the Most high God. We do not realise
the power of sonship. We live as servants.
You are:
·
Forgiven
·
Redeemed
·
Chosen
·
Adopted
·
Empowered
by the Holy Spirit
The enemy will
keep on reminding us about our past failures and why we are not worthy He is a BIG Liar.
But Romans
8:1 says:
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
We have been forgiven and cleansed, we are still human and we make mistakes but
our Father is waiting loving for us to accept our mistake and forgive us.
2. Stay
Connected to God Through Prayer
Jus like Jesus often withdrew from others to find time
to pray, we should also develop our
times of prayer and being intimate with God.
Authority
grows through intimacy with God.
Prayer: Strengthens faith
Brings discernment
Defeats fear
Releases God’s power
A powerless Christian is often a prayerless Christian.
The early church
prayed, and the Bible records that God moved powerfully through them. If we
want the Spirit of God to move Mightily among us, we should all improve our
times of prayer and develop our relationship with God.
Each of us are responsible for prayer and uplifting the church. The growth of
the church is not delegated to a few evangelists, pastor or teachers. Everyone
is responsible for it. If we want a revival to happen All of us are called to
pray.
If we want
authority, we must cultivate relationship with God.
3. Know and Exercise
the Word of God daily
Jesus used
scripture when he was tempted by Satan in the wilderness
Every temptation
was answered with:
Ephesians 6
calls -“The sword of the Spirit.” A
familiar passage to all of us about the armour of God. How many of us notice
that there is only one weapon mentioned. All the rest are for protecting
oneself and the only weapon is the Sword of the Spirit which is the word of
God.
So, if you need to fight your spiritual battles, you need to know the word of
God.
A Believer
who neglects God’s Word become spiritually weak.
If you feel you are spiritually weak it is time to examine the time you spend
reading the word of God.
4. Be Filled
with the Holy Spirit
Acts 1:8
says:
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.”
The Holy Spirit
empowers believers to:
·
Witness
boldly
·
Live
victoriously
·
Discern
spiritually
We cannot fulfil
God’s mission with our own human
strength. We need the power of the Holy spirit to dwell with us and work in us.
The Christian
life was never meant to be lived apart from the Holy Spirit.
How do we
enforce this authority ?
Am ambassador cannot create his own policy. He
needs to follow the policy of the nation whom he is representing. Even if he
differs in opinion, he will only speak the language of his country.
Every time there
is a terrorist attack in the Kashmir region, we see a few days later that the
Pakistan high commissioner is called and warned against the attack. Even though
there is proof that the infiltrators came from that country , the ambassador maintains
the line that they are not from Pakistan.
Even if he is personally convinced, he cannot but follow the dictates of
the parent nation.
We are called to represent Christ on earth> We have to follow the dictates
of our heavenly king.
We are called to do the same.
Mathew 6 :10 The model prayer as
Jesus taught his disciples we often repeat
Your
kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Many of us just repeat this by rote in out prayer without even thinking of what
we are saying.
What does it mean when we say As it is in Heaven?
In Heaven there is no sickness,
In heaven there is no pain.
In heaven there is no Torment
In heaven there is no fear.
We are called to
Implement this This is God’s will for us
to live victorious lives.
To understand this let me give this example
Say if we have a
loan from a bank. The first year the loan is paid and in the second year or
third year we miss one payment. The bank will call you on the 6th
and inform that your payment was due on the 5th You will definitely make the payment. However,
if you continually default on payments, then the bank personnel might land up
at your door. In India we have heard of the bank agents who threaten etc. Even
people have lost lives in India. What does
the agent do . He comes to your place with a piece of paper which says
that you have a contract with the bank and that you are supposed to make
payments on time.
We have a blood covenant which is far more precious than the paper which is
brought by the agent. Every drop of blood was shed for the covenant to be
renewed in our lives. Jesus has already purchased our victory at the cross. We
also need to speak like the bank agent. He uses legal terminology so should we.
We should say boldly to Satan that he has no right over my family
Satan you have no right over our children
Satan you have no right over our finances.
We have to speak legally
as legal representatives . All of us have got the authority. This
authority is given to every believer irrespective of their age, gender
qualification. Even a child in school
can pray for his or her friend or classmate and they will be healed .
Mt 10 : 7-9 Jesus is asking the
disciples
Go Heal the sick
Cleanse the lepers,
Raise the dead and
Cast out demons.
Jesus did not ask them to pray for the sick instead He said Heal / Raise the
dead etc.
We have the perfect example in Jesus as
a role model while He was on the earth . He spoke to the diseases and people
were healed. He spoke to Lazarus and he came out alive. He Spoke to the storm
and the seas and they were still.
So should I
prayers be We should not be praying if it is your will heal the sick. Instead, we should be speaking to the disease
and command it to leave the body.
Every
conversation that we have
every prayer that we pray
Every act of obedience that we follow is counted in the kingdom.
Let me close with one of my favourite verses. John 14: 12-14
“Most assuredly,
I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and
greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And
whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may
be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in
My name, I will do it.”
Jesus is telling His disciples that greater works than what He did will
be done by those who ask in His name. Jesus is teaching this to each believer
This is our authority in the new covenant to live with
power over every power of darkness and disease and failure.
A couple of weeks back while coming down a flight of stairs in the office I twisted my ankle. While I drove home I did not feel the pain. However the next morning there was a swelling and pain. Immediately my wife and myself sat down and prayed. We spoke to the bones and the muscles to be healed. In about half an hour the pain was gone. I did go to office the next day.
By the evening the swelling subsided and In about 2-3 days the pain was completely gone We had decided to implement what we were learning and use it on ourselves first.
The same kind of power is residing in every one we need to just exercise the same.
Let us pray.
Father,
we thank you for giving us your authority to rule over
this world. Let us not use it for our selfish gains but for your kingdom to be established
on this earth where we are your ambassadors. We ask that you guide our paths,
you give you the right words to speak.
We give you glory and honor. All this we ask in the precious name of our Lord Jesus
Christ
You can reach out to me on gpkoshy@yahoo.com for any queries and will be gladly willing to help you
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