Much More Glorious
Dearly beloved of God, God made us able ministers of the new covenant. If we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ we can do the works he did and greater because he went to the Father to make it available.
Jesus Christ made entrance into the kingdom of God available to us by being born again. The words “born again” mean begotten from above.
He said, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, You must be born again.” John 3:6 and 7
When we confess Jesus as Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead we are saved, begotten of the spirit from God, and we have everlasting life.
This was not available under the old covenant. During the times of that covenant not every Israelite had the spirit from God on them. Someone like a prophet, or a judge, or perhaps a king may have had God’s spirit upon them, but not everyone under the old covenant had it; we do.
Under the new covenant everyone that is a part of it has the spirit from God born within them! According to I Corinthians 15:45, “…the last Adam [Jesus Christ] was made a quickening [life giving] spirit.”
“But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be the spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of His.” Romans 8:8
Under the terms of the new covenant everyone under its jurisdiction has the spirit of God born within them, has entrance into the kingdom of God, and has everlasting life!
Rejoice and live unto the praise of His glorious grace! Jesus Christ came that we might have life, and have it more abundantly.
Today it is not only a prophet or king that has God’s spirit upon them, everyone who confesses that Jesus is Lord and believes that God raised him from the dead partakes of the new covenant and is born again of God’s spirit.
But wait, there is more. The new birth enables us with “power from on high” so that we can be witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ. We can do the works he did like heal the sick, cast out devil spirits, and raise the dead, and greater; we can minister the new birth and eternal life to people.
The new birth makes us the sons of God, and as sons we have sonship rights, privileges as God’s sons, and spiritual ability that enables us to do the works Jesus Christ did and greater; he said so himself. It’s recorded in John 14:12.
We have the firstfruits of the spirit and we are awaiting the inheritance that is ours as part of this sonship – the redemption of our bodies.
Dearly beloved, we have the ministry of the spirit. If the old covenant was glorious, and it was (God said He would make a covenant and do marvels such as had not been done in all the earth. See Exodus 34:10), the new covenant exceeds that covenant in glory; it is much more glorious!
“Now the Lord is that spirit: and where the spirit from the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all [How many? ALL] with open face [unveiled face] beholding as in a glass [mirror] the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image [The what? The SAME IMAGE!] from glory to glory, even as by the spirit of the Lord.” II Corinthians 3:17 and 18
The new covenant begins with the glory of the new birth and it reaches to the future glory that will be revealed to us in the ages to come.
When the Lord Jesus Christ returns he will transform these bodies of humiliation so that they will be fashioned like his glorious body. We will inherit eternal life when he comes, dearly beloved, and that is only the beginning of the glory to come! It is glory unto glory, dearly beloved.
The new covenant is much more glorious than the old one!