Established on Better Promises

Established on Better Promises 
Living by Faith
Terry R. Baughman
“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” (Hebrews 8:6 NKJV). 

Who could be more trustworthy than Jesus Christ when He makes a promise? What contract or covenant could have more validation than that which was written in blood and affirmed by the Word of God?

In a politically divisive climate, especially during an election of a President, the environment becomes toxic as all sides are attempting to activate voters and swing the undecided in their favor. Many resort to fabricated stories, unfair practices, and smear campaigns or outright lies to convince the voters that they are the better candidate. The result of such practices is increased cynicism and it sometimes causes voters to become more divided or more apathetic toward the whole process. Many concluded that all politicians are crooked, corrupt, and liars. Unfortunately, that may not be far from the truth! 

When the preacher or teacher begins to talk about a more reliable witness, someone who keeps their promises, and something better than what we have previously observed, it is a difficult sale. We want to believe it, but we have been deceived for so long we find ourselves among the skeptics that suspect another con and a shaded story. 

Jesus came as the mediator of a better covenant and better promises! When we hear the title mediator we may think of a negotiator, someone who accepts a compromised position in order to close the deal or bring two sides together. Jesus was different. He was not negotiating with Satan or bargaining with evil for the souls of humanity, rather He was bridging the gap between God and man. Paul wrote, “There is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:5–6). Jesus was God in flesh, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19). 

The writer of Hebrews declared that Jesus, “obtained a more excellent ministry” (Hebrews 8:6). He was superior to the patriarchs and prophets. He came with the divine mandate to establish a better covenant. How could he do that? He was constructing the New Covenant upon the foundation of better promises. Paul said, “God will always be proven faithful and true to his word, while people are proven to be liars” (Romans 3:4 TPT). In another letter he said, “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us” (2 Corinthians 1:20 NKJ).

We have confidence in God’s New Covenant because we know His promises are true. God has never made a vow that He cannot fulfill. He has never made a promise He did not intend to keep. When Jesus took the cup and drank the fruit of the vine with His disciples He gave special significance to the act. He said, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20). It was not possible for them to understand the power of that statement until a few hours later when He was hanging on a cross, atoning for our sins through the sacrifice of His blood. 

This message has authority and power because it is established on better promises!
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Theme passage:
“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth” (Hebrews 11:13).

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