The hermeneutic of the New Covenant theologian is Christocentric: to let the New Testament interpret the Old Testament. This means that when the NT interprets an OT promise differently than the plain reading, then NCT concludes that that is how God interprets his promise—and it may be surprising to us.[5]
Example: Acts 15 and Amos 9
As an example, Amos 9:11–12 is quoted by James in Acts 15 and is interpreted by him to associate rebuilding "David's fallen tent" with the Gentiles' salvation. This would be a highly surprising interpretation to the Jewish believers, since there is no precedent for it to be interpreted as anything other than a promise to the nation of Israel. NCT would say that God has given His interpretation of that passage, through James.[6]
Consequences
The consistent Christocentric interpretation of the OT in light of the NT (Luke 24:27, 44; Rom. 10:4; 2 Cor. 1:20) results in the following theological distinctives:[7]
The Plan of God
One plan of redemption, centered in Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:10; 2 Cor. 1:20; Col. 1:18), implemented according to the God’s eternal purpose (Eph. 1:11; 3:11; 2 Tim. 1:9), and securing the salvation of God’s elect (Rom. 8:28-32).
The Biblical Covenants
The covenants of Scripture progressively unfold God’s kingdom purpose (Matt.6:10) in history, culminating in the New Covenant.
The Old Covenant
The conditional (Exod. 19:5-6) treaty which God established with the ethnic descendants of Jacob at Mount Sinai – a covenant which formed the nation of Israel as a geopolitical entity, the sign of which was the Sabbath (Exod. 31:15–17), which was temporary in terms of its purpose and duration (Heb. 8:7–13), and which was superseded by the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31–33).
The New Covenant
The promised everlasting covenant (Heb. 13:20) established by Christ Jesus (Luke 22:20; Dan. 9:26-27) that fulfills all preceding biblical covenants – a covenant in which all believers have full forgiveness of sins (Jer. 31:34), are permanently indwelt by the Spirit (Ezek. 36:25-27; Eph. 1:13-14), and are empowered by the Spirit to please God (Jer. 31:31-33; Phil. 2:12-13).
The People of God
All God’s elect, consisting of believing Jews and Gentiles (Eph. 2:15), first formed as the body of Christ, which is the Church, at Pentecost (Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-41), not before (John 7:39; 17:21; Col. 1:26-27; Heb. 11:39-40), as one corporate spiritual body in New Covenant union with Christ (1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 2:19-21; Col. 1:18, 24).
The Nation of Israel
The ethnic descendants of Jacob (Gen. 28:13-15) formed into a geopolitical entity at Sinai via the Old Covenant (Exod. 19:5-6), consisting of both believers and unbelievers (1 Cor. 10:1-5; Heb. 3:16-4:2), typological of Christ (Hos. 11:1; Matt. 2:15) and His Church (Exod. 19:5-6; 1 Pet. 2:9), the believing remnant (Rom. 9:27; 11:5) of which was transformed into the Church at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-10, 41).
The Law of God
The two greatest commandments – love of God and neighbor (Matt. 22:36-40) – constitute God’s absolute or innate law, which is righteous, unchanging, and instinctively known by man (Rom. 2:14-15) created in God’s image (Gen. 1:27), and of which each system of covenantal law is a temporary, historical outworking (Heb. 7:12) in accordance with God’s eternal purpose (Eph. 1:11; 3:11; 2 Tim. 1:9).
The Law of Moses
The covenantal outworking of God’s absolute law under the Old Covenant – the exhaustive, indivisible (Jas. 2:10; Gal. 5:3) legal code, summed up in the Ten Commandments (Exod. 34:28), covenantally binding upon the nation of Israel (Exod. 19:5–6; 24:3), temporary in its duration (Heb. 7:11–12; Col. 2:14), and fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Rom. 10:4; Matt. 5:17–18; Col. 2:16–17).
The Law of Christ
The covenantal outworking of God’s absolute law under the New Covenant – the gracious law of the New Covenant (Rom. 6:14), which is covenantally binding upon the Church (1 Cor. 9:20–21) and consists of the law of love (Matt. 5:44; Gal. 6:2; Jas. 2:8; Rom. 13:8–10), the example of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 13:34; Phil. 2:4–12), Christ’s commands and teaching (Matt. 28:20; 2 Pet. 3:2), the commands and teachings of the New Testament (2 Pet. 3:2; Eph. 2:20; Jude 1:17; 1 John 5:3), and all Scripture interpreted in light of Jesus Christ (Matt. 5:17-18; Luke 24:27, 44; 2 Tim. 3:16–17).
The Kingdom of God
The everlasting reign of God over the universe and His people, progressively unfolded via the biblical covenants – ultimately realized in the messianic reign of Jesus Christ in heaven with His saints (Heb. 1:1–4; Rev. 20:4; Eph. 2:6), that was eschatologically inaugurated at His ascension (Dan. 7:13–14) in fulfillment of the biblical covenants (2 Sam. 7:12–16; Acts 2:25–36), is advanced through the Spirit-empowered preaching of the Gospel (Acts 1:7–8), and will be consummated in the new heavens and new earth at the Second Coming when Christ subdues all His enemies (1 Cor. 15:24–28).
Theological background
New Covenant Theology is a recently[timeframe?][4] expressed Christian theological view of redemptive history that claims that all Old Covenant laws have been cancelled[3] in favor of the Law of Christ or New Covenant law of the New Testament. This can be summarized as the ethical expectation found in the New Testament. New Covenant Theology does not reject all religious law, they only reject Old Covenant law. NCT is in contrast with other views on Biblical law in that most others do not believe the Ten Commandments and Divine laws of the Old Covenant have been cancelled, and may prefer the term "supersessionism" for the rest.
New Covenant theologians[who?] see the Law of Christ or New Testament Law as actually including many of the Divine Laws; thus, even though all Old Covenant laws have been cancelled, many have been renewed under the Law of Christ. This is a conclusion similar to older Christian theological systems on this issue, in that some Old Covenant laws are seen as still valid or renewed, but this conclusion is reached in a different way.
New Covenant theologians view their theology as a middle ground between a Reformed and dispensationalist view of how the Old Testament, and in particular the Mosaic Covenant, applies to the Christian today. New Covenant Theology is markedly different from dispensationalism,[8] and probably has more in common with Reformed Covenant Theology.[9] On the issue of the law, dispensationalism is most similar to NCT but their core belief is that the age of the Old Covenant is in the past, not that it has simply been cancelled. But NCT rejects the idea that the Bible can be divided into dispensations or ages. Some have criticized NCT for proposing that the Ten Commandments have been cancelled.[10]
Theological distinctiveness
New Covenant Theology is an Evangelical position,[citation needed] but within evangelicalism there are divergent views on a number of topics. One of those topics is how the salvation history fits together, and the relationship of the covenants within salvation history.
Christ's work on the cross is the New Covenant, by which people are reconciled to God sola gratia, and it includes various promises given in Old Testament times.[11] The Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants were temporary covenants—the latter were for the (generally unbelieving) people of God, Israel[12]—and had their fulfillment in the New Covenant.[13] The New Covenant law is the Law of Christ, which includes the commands of his Apostles.[11]
The New Covenant is the spiritual fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant.[citation needed] Adherents believe that the New Covenant came into effect with ministry of Jesus, such as at the Last Supper when Jesus said in Luke 22:20 "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."
This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Thus, the New Covenant is a gracious covenant. Those included in the covenant are reconciled to God by grace alone, apart from anything they do. Jesus purchased a people by his death on the cross so that all those for whom he died receive full forgiveness of sins and become incurable God-lovers by the Holy Spirit. They have thus become his new creation.
New Covenant theologians[who?] believe that the Abrahamic covenant reveals God's plan to save a people and take them into his land. The Old Covenant with the Israelites and the promised land is a temporary picture of what is accomplished by the New Covenant, where Jesus actually purchased a people and will take them to be with him forever in the "new heavens and new earth" (Rev 21–22).
The Old or Mosaic covenant is a legal or works covenant that God made with Israel on Mount Sinai. This covenant is brought to an end and is fulfilled at the cross. It was never intended to save people, but instead its purpose was to demonstrate the inability of even God's own chosen people to eradicate sin and guilt until the coming of the Messiah.[citation needed]Hebr.10:11. The fallen world, since the fall of Adam and Eve, can only increase in sin and guilt. Israel, under the Mosaic covenant, was the physical fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant, a foreshadow of the superior New Covenant of grace.
New Covenant theologians and advocates, such as Steve Lehrer of New Covenant Bible Fellowship in Tempe, Arizona; Peter Ditzel of Word of His Grace Ministries;[14] and John G. Reisinger of Sound of Grace Ministries, hold that since "the whole Old Covenant is obsolete", "none of the commands of the Mosaic Law are binding on believers today."[15]
The version of law in the New Covenant era is the Law of Christ, which includes the commands of Christ that pertain to the New Covenant era and the commands of his Apostles, but contain the Apostolic Decree.[citation needed]The Acts of the Apostles.15:20,29
Others[who?] believe that at least portions of the Old Testament law is binding on Christians, although there is some variation on which parts and how they apply.[citation needed]
New Covenant Theology holds that circumcision was the physical picture of the changed heart promised to believers in Christ. It signifies that people were physically born into the people of God of Israel. It was given to all Israelites, irrespective of repentance and faith. Baptism is the outward sign that regeneration has occurred. It signifies that someone has been spiritually born into the believing people of God (a new creation), the church. It is given to all those who give evidence of regeneration, which is repentance and faith.[16]
Critics claim NCT does not have any non-Biblical historical writings to help validate their system of theology. Many critics such as Richard Barcellos in his book In Defense of the Decalogue: A Critique of New Covenant Theology find fault with NCT treatment of the Ten Commandments as having been abrogated. They also claim that NCT makes the mistake of claiming a different form of salvation between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant even though the 'salvation act' had not yet been carried out in the Old Testament. One such example would be from the book New Covenant Theology by Tom Wells and Fred Zaspel. Page 31 deals with the gospel preached to Abraham and says that it was not "the gospel" but the "promise of the gospel". Referring to Romans 1:2, the book states, "Paul looks on the gospel as 'promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures' plainly implying that it had not yet come in OT times." Luke.24:44.
Lehrer, Steven, New Covenant Theology: Questions Answered (2006)
Reisinger, John G., Abraham's Four Seeds (Frederick, Maryland: New Covenant Media, 1998).
Scarborough, C., The New Covenant and the Law of Christ: A Biblical Study Guide. (Published privately and available from New Covenant Media/1-800-376-4146).
Wells, Tom and Zaspel, Fred. New Covenant Theology: Description, Definition, Defense (Frederick, Maryland: New Covenant Media, 2002).
Journal of New Covenant Theology, Steven Lehrer, editor
↑ MooArchived 2010-08-27 at the Wayback Machine , p.375; Gibson, ALL Old Testament Laws Cancelled, pp.48, 143, 144
1 2 ALL Old Testament Laws Cancelled: 24 Reasons Why All Old Testament Laws Are Cancelled and All New Testament Laws Are for Our Obedience, Greg Gibson, 2008, p.7: "New Covenant Theology ... [has] ... a better priest, better sacrifice, and better covenant (containing a better law)."
↑ In Defense of the Decalogue: A Critique of New Covenant Theology, Richard Barcellos, Founder's Press, 2001. Barcellos is an associate professor of New Testament Studies at the Midwest Center for Theological Studies.
↑ Page 343: "The entire Mosaic law comes to fulfillment in Christ, and this fulfillment means that this law is no longer a direct and immediate source of, or judge of, the conduct of God's people. Christian behavior, rather, is now guided directly by 'the law of Christ'. This 'law' does not consist of legal prescriptions and ordinances, but of the teaching and example of Jesus and the apostles, the central demand of love, and the guiding influence of the indwelling Holy Spirit." Page 376: "The content of all but one of the Ten Commandments is taken up into "the law of Christ", for which we are responsible. (The exception is the Sabbath commandment, one that Heb. 3–4 suggests is fulfilled in the new age as a whole.)"
Richard C. Barcellos, In Defense of the Decalogue: A Critique of New Covenant Theology, (Winepress Publishing, 2001).
External links
Books
New Covenant Theology Steve Lehrer, 235 pages, defines the NCT understanding of scripture, and answers questions about it. (Archived Webpage from Mar. 7, 2016)
Supersessionism, also called replacement theology, is the Christian doctrine that the Christian Church has superseded the Jewish people, assuming their role as God's covenanted people, thus asserting that the New Covenant through Jesus Christ has superseded or replaced the Mosaic covenant. Supersessionists hold that the universal Church has become God's true Israel and so Christians, whether Jew or gentile, are the people of God.
Dispensationalism is a theological framework of interpreting the Bible which maintains that history is divided into multiple ages or "dispensations" in which God acts with his chosen people in different ways. It is often distinguished from covenant theology. These are two competing frameworks of Biblical Theology that attempt to explain the continuity of the Bible as a whole. The term "dispensationalism" is attributed to Philip Mauro, a critic of the system's teachings in his 1928 book The Gospel of the Kingdom.
Antinomianism is any view which rejects laws or legalism and argues against moral, religious or social norms, or is at least considered to do so. The term has both religious and secular meanings.
Covenant theology is a Biblical Theology, a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall structure of the Bible. It is often distinguished from dispensational theology, a competing form of biblical theology. It uses the theological concept of a covenant as an organizing principle for Christian theology. The standard form of covenant theology views the history of God's dealings with mankind, from Creation to Fall to Redemption to Consummation, under the framework of three overarching theological covenants: those of redemption, of works, and of grace.
The New Covenant is a biblical interpretation which was originally derived from a phrase which is contained in the Book of Jeremiah, in the Hebrew Bible.
The Hebrew Bible makes reference to a number of covenants with God (YHWH). These include the Noahic Covenant set out in Genesis 9, which is decreed between God and all living creatures, as well as a number of more specific covenants with Abraham, the whole Israelite people, the Israelite priesthood, and the Davidic lineage of kings. In form and terminology, these covenants echo the kinds of treaty agreements existing in the surrounding ancient world.
Arno Clemens Gaebelein was a Methodist minister in the United States. He was a prominent teacher and conference speaker. He was also the father of educator and philosopher of Christian education Frank E. Gaebelein.
Kerygma is a Greek word used in the New Testament for "proclamation". It is related to the Greek verb κηρύσσω (kērússō), literally meaning "to cry or proclaim as a herald" and being used in the sense of "to proclaim, announce, preach". Amongst biblical scholars, the term has come to mean the core of the early church's teaching about Jesus.
"The law of Christ" is a New Testament phrase. The related Bible verses are in the Pauline epistles at Galatians 6:2 and parenthetically at 1 Corinthians 9:21.
In Protestant Christianity, the relationship between Law and Gospel—God's Law and the Gospel of Jesus Christ—is a major topic in Lutheran and Reformed theology. In these religious traditions, the distinction between the doctrines of Law, which demands obedience to God's ethical will, and Gospel, which promises the forgiveness of sins in light of the person and work of Jesus Christ, is critical. Ministers use it as a hermeneutical principle of biblical interpretation and as a guiding principle in homiletics and pastoral care. It involves the supersession of the Old Covenant by the New Covenant and Christian theology.
In Evangelical Christian theology, progressive dispensationalism is a variation of traditional dispensationalism. All dispensationalists view the dispensations as chronologically successive. Progressive dispensationalists, in addition to viewing the dispensations as chronologically successive, also view the dispensations as progressive stages in salvation history. The term "progressive" comes from the concept of an interrelationship or progression between the dispensations. Progressive dispensationalism is not related to any social or political use of the term progressive, such as progressive Christianity.
Biblical law is the legal aspects of the Bible, the holy scriptures of Christianity and Judaism.
The Mosaic covenant or Law of Moses – which Christians generally call the "Old Covenant" – played an important role in the origins of Christianity and has occasioned serious dispute and controversy since the beginnings of Christianity: note for example Jesus' teaching of the Law during his Sermon on the Mount and the circumcision controversy in early Christianity.
Interpretations of the law in the Bible within the Seventh-day Adventist Church form a part of the broader debate regarding biblical law in Christianity. Adventists believe in a greater continuation of laws such as the law given to Moses in the present day than do most other Christians. In particular, they believe the 10 Commandments still apply to today, including the Sabbath in particular.
This is a glossary of terms used in Christianity.
The Sabbath is a weekly day of rest or time of worship given in the Bible as the seventh day. It is observed differently in Judaism and Christianity and informs a similar occasion in several other faiths. Observation and remembrance of Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments considered to be the fourth in Judaism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and most Protestant traditions, and the third in Roman Catholic and Lutheran traditions.
Sir Anthony Farquhar Buzzard, 3rd Baronet, ARCM, is a biblical scholar, unitarian Christian theologian, author and professor on the faculty of Atlanta Bible College.
While most Christian theology reflects the view that at least some Mosaic Laws have been set aside under the New Covenant, there are some theology systems that view the entire Mosaic or Old Covenant as abrogated in that all of the Mosaic Laws are set aside for the Law of Christ.
The Pillars of Adventism are landmark doctrines for Seventh-day Adventists. They are Bible doctrines that define who they are as a people of faith; doctrines that are "non-negotiables" in Adventist theology. The Seventh-day Adventist church teaches that these Pillars are needed to prepare the world for the second coming of Jesus Christ, and sees them as a central part of its own mission. Adventists teach that the Seventh-day Adventist Church doctrines were both a continuation of the reformation started in the 16th century and a movement of the end time rising from the Millerites, bringing God's final messages and warnings to the world.
Commonwealth Theology describes itself as a consolidation of mainstream Christian theologies that better conforms the relationship between the Christian Church and today's Israel to the relationship prophesied in the Old Testament and confirmed by the writings of the Apostolic Age Church. Commonwealth Theology derives its name from the Commonwealth of Israel, which describes a commonwealth inhabited by "one new man." This corporate body with its citizens is understood to represent both a present reality achieved by Christ's atoning sacrifice and a yet-to-be-realized future united community of believers, known as the Commonwealth of Israel, who hail the Jewish House (Judah). From the House of Joseph, i.e., Ephraim, the Ten Lost Tribes "swallowed up" by the nations/gentiles – bringing the "rest of mankind" with them into the United Kingdom of David.
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