NEW COVENANT

The new covenant delivers a level of freedom and holiness that many would not have thought possible. The reason is not only that Jesus is ‘in place of you’ in every possible way. The reason is that He Himself is your life – that He comes to live in your flesh by the Spirit and impart Himself to you. If it were not for this fact – this incarnation – the words ‘Be holy as God is holy’ would be a taunt and an irritation. But they are real for us because the reality for this state of being is Christ Himself. He is our life. Theologians call this the vicarious humanity of Jesus. This is a fuller description of grace. It’s the fact that Jesus is ‘all things us’ towards God, ourselves and the world in which we are called to have an adventure.

ASSUMPTIONS

Eastern religions can assume that the good life is to be found in coming to terms with the knowledge of good and evil. Christ assumes and declares by His life that the good life is found in God. Jesus' Kingdom differs from religions in that life is not found in the culture or the tenets of its beliefs. Life to the full is found in Christ's life as yours.

INCARNATION

You would not be odd if you imagined that Jesus came to rule over the knowledge of good and evil and enable us to master it with His help. This is the assumption of much teaching and what large segments of Christianity stand for – the upholding of morality. But that’s not it. It may be the effect of it but it is not the Kingdom Jesus began. The Kingdom that would arise following His resurrection and the Spirit Out-Pouring would be the new creation – His life as ours.

A NOW LIFE

This life is available to all today. It’s way ahead of proof-texting our prejudices and distorted teaching. It belongs to all and can be acquired by all. The Kingdom of not about behaviour modification. It’s about His life becoming our life – because we have agreed to that this is so, and because we rest in the reality of this truth.

Michael Kapler writes, “Like many believers, I had developed the desire to perform in a way that I perceived would be pleasing to God. But I was always starting over, trying again and falling short of whatever imaginary goal I thought God intended for me to achieve. This didn’t apply to just Bible reading, but various aspects of what I thought were meant to be a part of the life of a believer. I hadn’t yet realized this was the very thing Jesus came to deliver us from.” (1)