There is something remarkable about the promises the Lord made through the prophets concerning the coming of the Messiah and the gift of the Holy Spirit. The New Covenant is not only about the forgiveness of sins, as wonderful and important as that is. It is about transforming a people from the inside out, creating a renewed humanity that delights in knowing and serving the Lord. 

Through Jeremiah the Lord declared, “And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more” (Jer. 31:34). 

This promise reaches far beyond external obedience. Under the New Covenant, the Lord’s Torah, His instruction, is no longer written only on tables of stone or confined to scrolls. By the work of the Holy Spirit, His instruction is written upon renewed hearts, hearts that have been transformed by forgiveness and His purposeful forgetfulness. We are invited into a relationship in which obedience flows from love rather than mere obligation. 

Jeremiah also reveals another breathtaking aspect of the New Covenant. The Lord declares that He will forgive our iniquity and remember our sins no more. 

Take hold of this truth. The all-knowing Lord does not become forgetful. Rather, He chooses not to hold our sins against us. He purposefully refuses to bring them forward as a charge against those who belong to Messiah. His forgetfulness is not weakness; it is mercy. It is the deliberate decision of a gracious Father to remove our transgressions as far as the east is from the west (Ps. 103:12). 

Ezekiel completes this beautiful picture: “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules” (Ezek. 36:26-27). 

Take note of the progression. The Lord does not simply wash away our guilt; He renews the very center of our being. The heart of stone is replaced with a heart of flesh. The rebellious spirit is replaced by His Holy Spirit. The One who forgives is also the One who empowers. 

Too often the faithful live as though forgiveness were only a legal declaration while continuing to view themselves through the lens of former failures. But the Lord does not just erase the record; He recreates the person. Through Messiah Yeshua, He washes us clean, renews our hearts, and writes His Torah upon us, not as a witness to our failure, but as evidence of His transforming grace. 

The apostle Paul beautifully summarizes this truth: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins” (Ro. 3:23-25). 

Every one of us has fallen short. None can stand before Him on the merit of personal righteousness. Yet the Lord, in His immeasurable grace, has provided redemption through the blood of His Son. In His divine forbearance He has passed over our former sins. They no longer define our standing before Him because Messiah has borne them in our place. 

What encouragement this brings to weary hearts. 

Perhaps you still carry memories of failures that continue to accuse you. Perhaps regret whispers that you are forever marked by yesterday’s mistakes. The adversary delights in reminding the Lord’s people of sins that He has chosen not to remember. So why would we listen?

Do not confuse your memory with His covenant. We may remember our failures as reminders of His grace and the lessons He has taught us, but the Lord determined not to treat us according to those sins. He sees us clothed in the righteousness of Messiah. His forgiveness is complete, His mercy is sufficient, and His promises remain sure. 

This grace does not lead us toward complacency but toward grateful obedience. The Holy Spirit dwelling within us produces new desires. We begin to love what the Lord loves. We long to obey Him, not to earn His favor, but because we already possess it through Messiah. We desire to love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, and all our strength. We seek His will in every area of life. We proclaim the good news of redemption to a world longing for hope. We walk together in the fellowship of the ekklesia, encouraging one another as we await the return of our King. 

What a glorious exchange has taken place. Our guilt for His grace. Our stony hearts for hearts made alive. Our rebellion for His Spirit. Our condemnation exchanged for His purposeful forgetfulness. 

This is why the promise of the Holy Spirit is so central to the New Testament. The Spirit is not just a gift of power; He is the seal that the Lord’s New Covenant promises have been fulfilled in Messiah. Through Him we know the Father. Through Him His Torah is written upon our hearts. Through Him we are empowered to walk in faithful obedience. Through Him we live each day in the assurance that our sins have been forgiven and remembered no more. 

Live, therefore, as one who has been made new. Walk confidently in the mercy of the Lord. Refuse to be imprisoned by sins the Lord has forgiven. Rest in His grace, pursue His holiness, and rejoice that His covenant mercy is greater than your greatest failure. The Lord who has written His Torah upon your heart has also chosen not to remember your sins. That is the freedom of the New Covenant, and that is the life of all who belong to Messiah. 

The New Covenant is not just about the promise of forgiven sinners, but of renewed sons and daughters who walk in the Spirit with the Torah written upon their hearts.

Maranatha. Shalom. 

It was the 8th day (Sh’mini), the day of renewal and new beginnings. Aaron and his sons had been consecrated, and they were now adorned in their vestments. They have watched Moses set up and take down the Tabernacle for seven consecutive days. They know the pattern. They know their duty. Yet, the rabbis discern a hesitation in Aaron. We read in Leviticus 9:6-8:

וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה, זֶה הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר-צִוָּה יְהוָה תַּעֲשׂוּ–וְיֵרָא אֲלֵיכֶם, כְּבוֹד יְהוָה

“And Moses said, “This is the thing that the Lord commanded you to do, that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.” Continuing: “Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and for the people, and bring the offering of the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.” So Aaron drew near to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself” (Lev. 9:6-8).

The last time Aaron had acted as a leader and priest he failed. The memory of the Golden Calf was all too fresh in his mind. Could he really stand as the high priest of Israel now? קְרַב אֶל-הַמִּזְבֵּחַ , “Draw near to the altar” Moses says, and the glory of God will appear (Ex. 40:34-38) when you, Aaron, do what He has commanded.

But with the eyes of Israel upon him, knowing his sin, could he actually walk out his calling as high priest?

“But go, tell His disciples, and Peter…” (Mk. 16:7).

“And Peter,” two little words. One, a conjunction, the other, a proper noun. Yet, these two little words are powerful, restorative, and they allow us to see the forgiving heart of Messiah Yeshua/Jesus.

When the angel tells Mary to report Yeshua’s resurrection to the disciples, he is sure to mention Peter.

We all know Peter denied Yeshua (Mk. 15:66-72), his denial disqualified him. Peter attempted to stand for Yeshua in his own strength. His strength failed. This was Peter’s mistake. Peter lacked the strength to stand against a simple question or assertion. This strong and gruff man fell by the words of a young girl.

I am sure most of you are familiar with Peter’s restoration in John 21:15-17; but Yeshua already revealed His plan for restoration, even before Peter’s repentance: “and Peter.”

Before Peter could announce the Gospel to Jerusalem in Acts 2, to Gentiles in Acts 10, and defend the inclusion of those who should be excluded in Acts 15, Peter, the one who should be excluded, was not only included, but was used mightily. Peter personally experienced the power of Messiah’s restoration. Now he could live and share it.

When Aaron drew near the altar, even in his hesitation, he demonstrated before all the eyes of Israel that the Lord forgave him as His glory filled the Tabernacle. They would see, in the life of a forgiven sinner, the power of God’s forgiveness and restoration.

So you messed up. So he, she, they messed up. So I messed up. Paul writes, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Ro. 3:23). Even Paul messed up. Learn to say, “tell his disciples and ______ …” put your name in there, personalize it, remember His forgiveness is for you.

Dear reader, every week I stand before people or minister to or lead people around the world knowing full well that I’m the biggest of screw ups in His Kingdom. Yet as with Aaron, Peter, and everyone else He has called, I was drawn near, saved, forgiven and renewed by the blood of the Lamb. With the memories of my screw ups still fresh, I minister His Good News, as a recipient of it, not its author.

When you feel too disqualified to qualify to respond to His calling, as Moses told Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and the glory of God will appear.” Draw near to Messiah, His glory will appear, and He will use you for His glory. You can and will live it, and then share the Gospel, again, not as its author, but as a recipient of it.

He will make new your mess, and it will become His message in you.

Be well. Shalom.