Jesus, the Disciples and the Church: Jesus: Part 3

A major part of God's plan of redemption for man and Jesus being sent from heaven to earth, is the establishment of the new covenant that God made with His people. To understand the new covenant, there is need to review and understand the old covenant. Though this is a highly controversial subject among Christians, what I have written below describing both the old and new covenants is what I am personally coming to understand and believe by reading the Scriptures, not by popular dispensational teachers. Anyone is welcome to disagree with me and believe what you want. But God's plan of salvation for anyone who believes in Jesus, and that God has only one special people, the church compromised of Jew and Gentile, seems crystal clear and evident to me wherever I read in the Bible. 

The Old Covenant

When the children of Israel were enslaved to Egypt, they cried out to God to save them. God raised up Moses, who came to Pharaoh King of Egypt with signs and wonders. Pharaoh eventually gave in to God and allowed the children of Israel to leave, only after suffering the personal loss of his own son by the hand of God. Not long afterwards though, God once again hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he would pursue the people he had released from Egypt's bondage. However, God protected the people He had led out of Egypt by miraculously parting the Red Sea so that the people could cross through it on dry ground. When Pharaoh and his army began to cross, God lifted His hand and the Red Sea went back, killing all the army of Pharaoh who had tried to cross the sea.

Prior to leaving Egypt, God commanded the Hebrews to plunder the Egyptians, so when they left they had gold, silver and clothing, as well as livestock. They also had unleavened cakes of dough that would be their food until it ran out, at which time God would provide. God had provided everything they needed to leave Egypt and survive in the wilderness. 

When they left Egypt, there were six hundred thousand men, plus children and probably women, as well as "a mixed multitude" who were not of Hebrew descent. Millions of people left Egypt that day, both Hebrew and non Hebrew. God led them and made a covenant with the entire group, calling them all "the children of Israel" and His "kingdom of priests and a holy nation", if they would indeed obey His voice and keep His covenant.

Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” - Exodus 19:5‭-‬6 

This means that the special people of God's covenant, Israel, were compromised of a "mixed multitude" of people, not only Hebrews, and they were to be the special people who would compromise His Kingdom, as long as they obeyed Him and kept their covenant with Him. The covenant was not only with people of Hebrew descent, and it was conditional.

All throughout Israel's history recorded in the Bible, God calls them "a stiff necked people" because of their continuous disobedience to Him. God also said that Israel had "prostituted themselves", "played the harlot", and "fornicated" with the gods of other nations. Interestingly, Jesus gave one reason for divorce between a husband and wife: fornication.

Marriage is a binding vow between  husband and wife and God. According to Jesus, nothing can break that vow except unfaithfulness which occurs through fornication. Jesus said that divorce is allowable if one of the marriage partners has been unfaithful to the other by fornication. In Israel's case, God said that they had continuously committed fornication with other gods, thereby breaking their covenant with Him. Therefore, by His own standards, God divorced Israel and made a new covenant with a people who would be faithful to Him.

The New Covenant

God made the announcement of His new covenant through His prophet Jeremiah.

In about 627 BC, God called the prophet Jeremiah to deliver a message to the people of Israel because many had turned away from Him. He warned them that they were going to be conquered, taken into captivity, and Jerusalem was going to be destroyed unless they turned back to God. In about 589 BC, Jeremiah's prophecy of destruction for Israel was fulfilled. Israel was conquered by Babylon, the city of Jerusalem and the Jewish temple were destroyed, and the people were taken into captivity until 538 BC. 

Jeremiah also shared God's message of a new covenant that He would make with His peope since they broke the first one (Jeremiah 31:31-34). The new covenant would be the forgiveness of sins through belief in the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus. Because of the new covenant, the old is obsolete (Hebrews 8:13). 

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, declares the Lord.
“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.” -  Jeremiah 31:31-34

The writer of Hebrews quoted Jeremiah and said that there was fault with the old covenant, therefore a new one was made, making the first obsolete:

For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Because finding fault with them, He says: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

Hebrews 8:7‭-‬13

The apostle Peter wrote to "the elect pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father...": 

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

I Peter 2:9‭-‬10

The "elect pilgrims of the Dispersion" who Peter is writing to consisted of both Jews and Gentiles, and the way he describes them sounds very similar to the way God described Israel when He made His covenant with them. He said that if they obeyed His voice and kept His commands, they would be a "special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’"

But Peter said to the Christians who consisted of both Jews and Gentiles, "God had called them out of the darkness and into His marvelous light. You who once were not a people are now the people of God; a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people".

Who are those who were living in darkness who were called into light, and who were once not a people, but are now the people of God?

Though much of Israel were blind to God and especially Jesus, they were not living in darkness. They had the Torah and should have recognized Jesus as the Christ when He arrived. They were also the people of God.

Gentiles were living in darkness because they did not have God. God was the god of Israel, not of the Gentiles. However, under the new covenant, God would be the god of anyone who believes in Jesus, either Jew or Gentile, and they would be His people, a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. They would comprise His Kingdom that He sent Jesus to establish under His new covenant.

Jesus, the Disciples and the Church: Jesus: Part 2

Jesus: Part 2

Why Jesus Came: Part 2

To Begin the Establishment of God's Everlasting Kingdom

When you put all of the reasons why Jesus came together, it is evident that God sent His Son Jesus to begin the establishment of His Kingdom. Even more important than our own personal salvation is the establishment of God's Kingdom. From the beginning through Adam and Eve, then through Israel, God's plan has been to establish His Kingdom - a holy nation - with His special people as its royal priesthood. 

The reason Jesus called all people (both Jews and Gentiles) to turn to God, was because those who do, and accept that Jesus is the Son of God who was sent as the Way to be reconciled with God are the royal priesthood of His Kingdom, His chosen generation, His holy nation, and His own special people. Essentially, the church is the Kingdom of God. Not the institutional church, but the church as defined in the Bible as the members of the body of Christ and as described in 1 Peter 2:7-10:

Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,” and “A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. - I Peter 2:7‭-‬10

I have observed four phases to the work Jesus did while on earth to begin the establishment of God's Kingdom:

Phase 1: The Torch-Bearers

Since Jesus was eventually going to go back to heaven with the Father, one of the things that He had to do was appoint men who would be faithful to continue the work of establishing God's Kingdom after He left. Jesus spent an entire night in solitude and prayer with God regarding who these men would be. In the morning He called all of His followers to come to Him. From this large group of followers, He chose twelve men whom He would disciple to continue the work He had started. 

Each man whom He chose to disciple possessed certain qualities and characteristics that were required by God. Probably the primary characteristic was that each man would be of the remnant of Israel. This one characteristic would assure complete and utter loyalty and faithfulness to Jesus. Being of the remnant would produce other attributes that would be required to continue their work as well, such as courage and boldness. I will discuss each of these men in more detail later.

When God had determined that the men Jesus was discipling were ready to continue the establishment of God's Kingdom, this part of the work that Jesus was given to do was finished, and it was time to move onto Phase 2 of His mission.

I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. - John 17:4 

Phase 2: The Suffering and Death of Jesus

With Jesus's successors prepared and in position to establish God's Kingdom, the next part of His assignment would include tremendous suffering before eventually dying as the sacrificial Lamb, who would atone for the sins of mankind. The sacrifice that Jesus would make would allow God to forgive men of their sins, which is required for men to be reconciled with God the Father. 

Jesus's death would also bring about the installment of God's everlasting Kingdom on earth, where He would reign as King. At the start of His ministry He preached, "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is near". To say that the Kingdom of God is near, is to say that it is in the not too distant future. He was saying, "Turn to God, because if you do, you can enter His Kingdom which is coming very soon". "Very soon" was just a few years after He first preached the message.

The Kingdom of God was one of the primary subjects that Jesus spoke about. He described it as a mustard seed that would grow into a huge tree that the birds would nest in. He described it as leaven that grows and takes over the dough. He also spoke of it as being very precious, costly and difficult to enter.

He spoke about the Kingdom of God in parables so that only those who had ears to hear would understand, because He was not interested in persuading just anyone to follow Him and enter His Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is only for those who are completely devoted to God. By speaking in parables, He could discern who these people were, and separate the wheat from the tares. 

When He taught His disciples how to pray, He instructed them to pray, "Thy Kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven". He knew God's Kingdom was coming soon, so it was important for them to continue to pray about it. 

To pray, "Thy Kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven", is to ask God to cover the earth with His glory, His goodness and His righteousness. It is to ask God to expand His Kingdom throughout the earth like leaven expands throughout the dough. It is to ask God to take back the territory from the devil that belongs to Him. Whenever someone enters the Kingdom of Heaven, God's territory expands, thereby growing the Kingdom of God. It is to ask God to grow His church - not the institutional church, but members of the body of Christ. Whenever someone becomes a follower of Jesus, they become a member of Christ's body, and the church grows thereby increasing God's territory/Kingdom, and decreasing the devil's territory.

This is essentially what Jesus had instructed His disciples to pray.

Jesus's willingness to sacrifice Himself so that God's Kingdom could be established on the earth, and man's sin could be forgiven so that they can enter His Kingdom and God can be with them, finished Phase 2 of Jesus's assignment.

So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. - John 19:30

Phase 3: The Resurrection

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead would be the next phase that would destroy death and the works of the devil, give hope to man that they no longer need to fear death, and provide evidence of God's power so that those who saw it would tell others about it. 

When some of the women who were following Jesus went to His tomb to anoint His body after He was crucified, an angel of the Lord met them and instructed them to tell His disciples that He had risen from the dead and to meet Him in Galilee.

There, Jesus informed them that He had been given all authority in heaven and on earth, and He gave them their assignment to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that He commanded them.

He also informed them that He would always be with them, and to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit comes upon them. After that, they would go to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Jesus's promise to them that He would always be with them was fulfilled by the Holy Spirit who came upon them and filled them, hence He was always with them because they are One. He is also their King in God's everlasting Kingdom, therefore He is always with them.

Prior to meeting with His eleven disciples in Galilee, Jesus revealed Himself to about 500 others as well so that they could also be witnesses to His resurrection from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus displayed God's miraculous power over death, and those whom He appeared to would be witnesses of His resurrection so that they could also tell others about what they had seen. The resurrection of Jesus would be a powerful testimony to God that would cause many who were told of it to turn to Him.

The resurrection completed Jesus's assignment. His work on earth was now finished, but God had another phase of Jesus's earthly ministry that He would use to draw many people to Himself before Jesus takes His throne next to Him in heaven.

Phase 4: The Ascension

With Jesus's work on earth now complete,  He ascended to heaven to be seated on His throne at the right hand of God the Father. He allowed His eleven remaining disciples to see so they could be witnesses of His life on earth, His resurrection from death and His ascension to heaven. Therefore they were able to give accurate, eye witness accounts of what they had seen. 

Where Jesus's death at the cross began God's Kingdom on earth, His ascension to heaven began His Kingship over it. Having been obedient to His Father in His mission, God gave Him all authority over all heaven and earth. Jesus now sits enthroned at God's right hand where He reigns as King over God's Kingdom and over all of creation.

Jesus, the Disciples and the Church: Jesus: Part 1

Jesus, the Disciples and the Church

Who was Jesus, who were His disciples, and who were the members of the early church? Why did Jesus choose the men that He did to be His disciples? Why did God send Jesus from heaven to earth? That's what this series is about.

Jesus: Part 1

Why Jesus Came: Part 1

Much of modern day American Christianity teaches that Jesus came to save me so that I can have a personal relationship with God. It is heavily focused on God's love, grace, mercy, family, and what God has done and can do for me:

• Jesus died for me, so that I will go to heaven when I die

• Jesus died for me, so that I can have a better life

• God will help me to become a better husband, wife, father, mother, employee, and person

• God will bless me and give me good things and a good life

• God's grace and mercy covers all my sins

The message of several of the top Christian songs of 2021 is that "God is good because of what He has done for me". God is good and I'm forever grateful for what He's done for me, but the truth is, God is good even if He hasn't done anything for me. Most new music of the Christian genre is more about "me" than about God, and could be considered idolatry by way of self worship.

They also have heavy emphasis on Jesus's grace and mercy, as if those are His only characteristics. I suppose that's because songs about God's judgement and wrath won't sell albums or get people to come to their church. 

Though having a relationship with God is extremely important, and it's true that God is a God of mercy and grace and He does bless us and places extremely high value on family and personal integrity, there is a much bigger picture that goes beyond those things. God's plan is to  build an everlasting Kingdom comprised of a people who have been reconciled back to Him, and who faithfully worship Him, and where He can be among them. The people of His Kingdom are His children, thereby making them mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, brothers and sisters with one another - ie a spiritual family. This spiritual family is the body of Christ, also known as the church. The reason God sent Jesus to earth was to begin the establishment of His Kingdom.

 When you read the Bible, you will run across various verses and passages that provide reasons of why Jesus came. Each one applies to us individually in our personal relationships with God, but they ultimately point to the establishment of the Kingdom of God.

The following passages identify some of the reasons God sent Jesus to come down from heaven to us.

To Defeat the Devil and His Works

Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. - 1 John 3:7‭-‬10 

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, - Hebrews 2:14

To Defeat Death

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, - Hebrews 2:14

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. - John 10:10

To Set His People Free From the Fear of Death and the Devil's Bondage

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. - Hebrews 2:14‭-‬16

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” - Luke 4:18‭-‬19 

To Atone for the Sins of the People

Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

To Preach the Good News of the Kingdom to the Poor, Wherever God Would Send Him 

And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.” And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea. - Luke 4:42‭-‬44

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” - Luke 4:18‭-‬19 

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” - Mark 1:14‭-‬15

To Call His People to Return to God

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” - Matthew 4:17

And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” - Luke 5:30‭-‬32

To Seek and to Save the Lost

And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” - Luke 19:8‭-‬10 

To Save the World 

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 3:16‭-‬18

To Do the Will of the Father

And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” - John 6:35‭-‬40 

To Judge the World

Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him. And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.” Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains. - John 9:38‭-‬41

To Be the Door to Salvation

Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. - John 10:7-9

To Provide the Way to Reconciliation with God

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. - John 14:6

To Provide an Abundant Life

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. - John 10:10

To Give His Life for His People

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. -John 10:11

To Bring the Gentiles Into His Sheep Fold

I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. - John 10:14‭-‬16

“Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?” They said to Him, “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.” Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’? “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder.” Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet. - Matthew 21:33‭-‬46

To Implement and Be the Mediator of the New Covenant that God Established Between He and His People 

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. - Matthew 26:26‭-‬28

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel - Hebrews 12:22‭-‬24

But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Because finding fault with them, He says: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. - Hebrews 8:6‭-‬13