(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] ["O Come All Ye Faithful"] What that means is that children and infants are always welcome in the service. We don't separate children from their parents for any reason. We do have mother-baby rooms and daddy rooms available for your convenience. So if you have a child that's been distracting during the service, or if you need some privacy, we would encourage you to use those mother-baby rooms as needed. If you look at the announcements and upcoming events, on Sunday mornings we're going through a series called the School of Prayer. We're with Christ in the School of Prayer, and we're learning from Jesus how to pray. We just finished up with the famous Lord's Prayer, but there's other teachings from Jesus on prayer that we're going to continue with. In fact, this Sunday morning I'm going to be preaching a sermon called Don't Be a Prayer Dropout. So you're in the School of Prayer. Some of you dropped out of actual school. That's all right. We're not mad at you, but don't drop out of this school, all right? The School of Prayer. We're going to talk about that this coming Sunday. We encourage you to be with us. Last Sunday we finished the book of Joel, and I'll be preaching a different sermon this Sunday night, and then of course the book of 2 Corinthians tonight. You are invited to the wedding of Joshua Lunsford and Rebecca Thompson this Friday, October 29th at 2 p.m. The address is there for you if you've not yet RSVP'd. You can do that on the communication card. And then this Sunday night, October 31st, is our harvest party. And of course we'll have our normal Sunday evening service like we normally do, but right after the evening service we'll have our harvest party, so we'll have jump houses for the kids back here. Every child in the service will receive a small bag of treats, and we'll have our annual chili cook-off, of course. That'll be the dinner for the night. And we'll have a $50 gift card for the first place winner, a $25 gift card for the second place winner. And if you'd like to volunteer to bring desserts or cornbread, we have sign-up sheets in the foyer, so make sure you go by there and fill that out. Also there's a baby shower coming up. Please are invited to a baby shower for Miss Jackie O2 and Miss Kiki Morales on Saturday, November 6th at 3 p.m. So make sure you are aware of that. On Monday the guys did the prison mailer's upcoming cleaning crew. Check for your name there. We appreciate your faithfulness. Homeschool group, they've got P.E. class tomorrow, Thursday, October 28th, so don't forget about that. Please don't forget to turn your cell phones off or place them on silent during the service so that they're not a distraction to anybody. If you look at the back of the bulletin, birthdays and anniversaries for this week, and all these birthdays are past, but we had Emma Gonzalez's birthday on October 25th, and Abraham Jimenez and Ron Kolat's birthday on October 26th. Praise Report, Money Matters, all those things are there for you to look at, and I think that's it for all of the announcements. So let's go ahead and take our songbooks, and we're going to go to page number 202. Page number 202, as we prepare to receive the offering tonight, 202, I will sing of my Redeemer. Let's go ahead and sing it out on the first. I will sing of my Redeemer And His wondrous love to me On the cruel cause He suffered From the curse to set me free Sing, O sing of my Redeemer With His blood He purchased me On the cross He sealed my pardon Paid the debt and made me free Good, 202, sing it out on the second. I will tell the wondrous story How my loss is safe to save In His boundless love and mercy He the ransom freely gave Sing, O sing of my Redeemer With His blood He purchased me On the cross He sealed my pardon Paid the debt and made me free I will praise my dear Redeemer Triumphant power I'll tell How the victory giveth Over sin and death and hell Sing, O sing of my Redeemer With His blood He purchased me On the cross He sealed my pardon Paid the debt and made me free Good, sing it out on the last. I will sing of my Redeemer And His heavenly love to me He from death to life hath brought me Son of God with Him to me Sing, O sing of my Redeemer With His blood He purchased me On the cross He sealed my pardon Paid the debt and made me free Amen. Good singing. We'll have the guys come up and help us with the offering at this time. And let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, Lord, we do come to you tonight asking that you bless the offering. Lord, we pray that you bless the gift and the giver. And we ask that you meet with us tonight as we take time to pray. And, of course, as we take time to study the Word together. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We pray. We pray. We pray. We pray. Amen. Well, let's take our bulletins, not our bulletins, our prayer sheets. If you did not get a prayer list on your way in, raise your hand and one of our ushers can get one for you. If you need a prayer sheet, just put your hand up and we'll get one for you. I do want to remind you that the way you add a request to the prayer list is through your communication card. On the back of the card there's a place for you to write a request. Make sure you write whether it's public or private. If it's public, we'll put it on the list. If you write private only, I will see it. If you don't mark it, we'll do our best to figure it out, but we usually don't put those on. Just know that once they do go on there, they go on there for a couple of weeks and then they're removed. Let's go ahead and take these requests to the Lord. I'll pray out loud as you follow along in your mind and your heart. Let's bow our heads and pray together. Heavenly Father, Lord, we come to you asking for these requests from our church family. Lord, we begin with these health requests. Also, Joe Maples praying for his friend, Jeff Hume, who will be having stomach surgery and praying that that will go well. Also, Miss Diane praying for her sister, Chandra, who's been diagnosed with terminal cancer and has only been given one to two years to live. She's praying for her salvation as well, but right now we're just asking for her health. Lord, that you put your healing hand over her. I hope her to live much longer than that and to recover if it's your will. Miss Brandy praying for health concerns of her brother, Dylan, and her sister, Tara, and also for her mom and for our church family to stay healthy and strong. Miss Lindsey praying for Skyler's health, healing, and answers. Brother Salvador praying for his health. Brother Brandon praying for his health. Miss Docma praying for quick recovery for the operation of her son-in-law and also for her health. I know she wasn't doing well this last week, Lord, and she's praying that you would give her strength. And we pray for Lord Uretzi that you would continue to keep her healthy and strong, Lord. We just pray for all these individuals that you'd put your healing hand over them, help them to recover soon, and give wisdom to the doctors, nurses dealing with them. Lord, we also pray for the ladies in our church that are expecting. We pray for Miss Laura Beth and Miss Jackie, Miss Melody, Miss Victoria, Miss Selena, Miss Angel, Miss Kiki, Miss Ruby, and Miss Sarah. Praying that you would keep all these ladies healthy and strong, keep the babies healthy, Lord. Help them to not have any complications or any issues. And then, Lord, we pray for these that are praying for the salvations of their loved ones. Miss Tamara praying for the salvation of her brothers Robert and Ben. Miss Diane praying for the salvation of her sister, Chandra, who was diagnosed with cancer. And for the Ron praying for his mom and his family's salvation. Miss Brandy praying for her family members, Brittany, Wyatt, Jiminy, Micah, and Kenzie, asking for their salvations, Lord. And we ask for all these individuals, Lord. We pray that you would help them all to come to the place where they'd be willing to get saved. Lord, we realize it's their choice. We can't force them. Nobody can force them. You won't even force them, Lord. But we pray that you would move circumstances around and help them to come to the place where they'd be willing to hear the Gospel. And that a soul winner would communicate the Gospel clearly to them. Lord, we also pray for these that are praying for their friends and family. Miss Tamara praying for Ashley's husband to get his visa. And Miss J.C. praying for her mom Rita. And Christine Ortiz praying for her son Tyrone, who is just struggling financially in other areas in life. Lord, we ask for these individuals, Brother Salvador and Brother Brandon praying for their family. Lord, we ask for these individuals that you would help them, that you would strengthen them, that you would be with them. Lord, we also pray for Brother Allen who's praying just that the Lord would help them to continue to be content in every area of his life. Lord, we pray that you would help him and continue to bless him. Lord, we pray for Brother Salvador, Brother Brandon, for their physical needs, work and finances and current jobs and future jobs. Lord, that you would help them in regards to that and bless them in regards to that. Then, Lord, we pray for these that have unspoken requests. Ms. Tamara, Brother George having an unspoken request. Ms. Cricket and Lord, we also pray for Brother Salvador and Brother Brandon. All of these having unspoken requests. You know what their petitions are. You know what they're asking for. Lord, we pray that you would answer according to your will. And Lord, we pray that you would continue to bless our church and help our church here in Sacramento and also our church plants in Manila and Fonponga, that you keep these locations safe and healthy and growing. Lord, I pray that you would meet with us tonight as we open up your word and study the Bible together. Lord, I pray that you would even now begin to work on our hearts and our minds. Lord, that we might be ready to receive the word and hear it and learn it, understand it, grow as a result. Lord, we love you. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. Let's open our mouths to 2 Corinthians chapter 3. 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. If you need a Bible, put your hand up and I'm not sure how I'm going to bring you a Bible. 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. If you need a Bible, keep your hand up and I'm sure we'll come by. 2 Corinthians 3. We will read the entire chapter as our custom. 2 Corinthians chapter number 3 beginning in verse number 1. Do we begin again to commend ourselves or need we as some others epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men. For as much as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart. And such trust have we through Christ to Godward, not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God, who also hath made us able ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more did the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that exceleth. For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech. Not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished, but their minds were blinded. For until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament, which veil is then away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. Nevertheless, when it shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away. Now the Lord is that Spirit, and when the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding us in a glass of glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for this evening. God, I thank you for our church, Lord. And I say please meet with us tonight, God. And I say please be the pastor to strengthen him and fill him with the Spirit. We love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Alright, well we're there in the book of 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. And of course on Wednesday nights we are studying the book of 2 Corinthians as our Bible study, verse by verse, chapter by chapter. And if you remember last week, we made it through chapter, through verse 6 of chapter 3. We went through verses 1 through 6. And tonight we're going to finish the chapter. We're actually going to begin back at verse 6 and go through the rest of the chapter. And the Apostle Paul, if you remember from last week, he's been on this kick, or he's been on this theme of ministry. And he's been talking about ministry. And then in the verses that we have tonight, he kind of shifts gears a little bit. And he talks about something very specific. He talks about the New Covenant or the New Testament. And the word testament is simply, it means covenant. And often when we think of the New Testament or the Old Testament, we think of the division of our Bible. But it's called the New Testament and the Old Testament because of those covenants. The Apostle Paul talks about the New Covenant versus the Old Covenant. And he does that by giving us an illustration. And I want to just show that to you quickly and then show you the story that he's referring to so you can understand the context in which he's speaking. You're there in 2 Corinthians chapter 3. Look down at verse number 6. The Bible says this, Who also hath made us able ministers. Remember from last week, he was talking about being in the ministry. But now, I want you to notice these words. He says, Of the New Testament. We are able ministers of the New Testament. And when you see the word testament there, understand he's referring to the covenant. We're under a new covenant. There was an old covenant, which is why the first part of your Bible is called the Old Testament. Because most of the things that are covered there are under that old covenant. And he says that God has now made us able ministers of the new covenant. He says, Not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. So he mentions there the new covenant. That's the context that he's going to speak about for the next few verses. Notice verse 7, he says, But of the ministration of death. Notice he's referring now to the old covenant. He says, Written and engraven in stones was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away. So I want you to notice that in verse 6, he mentions that we are now able ministers of the New Testament, then the new covenant. Then in verse 7, he mentions the ministration of death, a reference to the old covenant. And you'll say, Why is it called the ministration of death? We'll talk about that here in a minute. He tells us that it was when the law was written and engraven in stones. And of course, that should be familiar to you because you know that Moses went up on Mount Sinai and he came down with two tablets of stone on which the law was written. This is what Paul is referring to. He says that it was written and engravens with stone. And then he references this very well-known Old Testament story of Moses. He says, So that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was done away. So keep your finger right there in 2nd Corinthians chapter 3. That's our text for tonight. And go with me if you would to the book of Exodus, Exodus chapter 34. In the Old Testament, you have the book of Genesis and you have the book of Exodus, Exodus chapter 34. And I don't want to just assume that you're familiar with the story, so I want to show it to you quickly because what the apostle Paul is going to do is he's going to take this story, this Old Testament story of Moses when he came down from the mount and the Bible says that his face shone, he's going to take that story and use it as an allegory or as an example or an illustration of the Old Testament versus the New. Now the story that he's using is a literal story. It actually happened to Moses, but he's using it as an allegory of the Old Testament and the New Testament. Notice there, Exodus 34 verse 28. I just want you to be familiar with the story, Exodus 34 and verse 28. And by the way, when you get to Exodus, do me a favor and put a ribbon or a bookmark there because we're going to leave it and we're going to come back to this area of the Bible, so I want you to be able to get there quickly. Exodus 34 and verse 28, the Bible says this. Some of you may not be familiar with the story. The Bible says this, And he, referring to Moses, was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. If you remember, Moses went up to the mount and he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. Now for those of you that are not familiar with the story, let me just give you some context. He actually did that twice. Moses went up to the mountain, spent forty days and forty nights fasting with the Lord, and he came down with two tablets of stone. If you remember, the Bible tells us that God cut out the stone with his own hands, with his own finger, and he wrote on there with his own finger. And when Moses came down, if you remember, Aaron had led the children of Israel to worship the calf. And they were dancing and they were naked and they were fornicating and all these things. And Moses, in his anger, threw the tablets down and broke the tablets. And of course, after that whole thing and that whole mess was fixed, he went back up a second time. That's what we're reading about here in Exodus 34. He went back up a second time, but the second time, God said, You're going to cut out the stones and you're going to write them in because you let your anger get out of control there and you broke the stones I gave you. So this is what we're reading about. Moses spends a total of 80 days with God. But here on this second time, verse 28, the Bible says, And he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. He did neither eat bread nor drink water, and he, Moses, notice, wrote upon the tables. Because remember, God did it the first time. But now the second time, God says, Okay, mister, can't control your temper, you cut out the stones this time. And you, you know, you engrave them with your own hands. And God kind of put them to work. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. Now, of course, we know that there's more commandments in the Bible and in the Old Testament and in the Old Covenant than just the Ten. But the Ten Commandments are really the basis and they are the representation of all of the commandments. Because God gave all sorts of commandments, but he gave ten. If there's ten you're going to keep or if there's ten you're going to remember, these are the ten. And then in the New Testament, Jesus boils that down to two commandments and that's a sermon for another day. But here we see that Moses comes down with the Ten Commandments and it is a picture or a representation of this new covenant that God, at the time it was a new covenant, let me be clear about that. We call it the Old Covenant or the Old Testament because we've been given a new covenant. Verse 29, And it came to pass, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hands, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wished not, the word wish means to know or have knowledge, he wished not or he did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. So Moses, remember, has now spent a total of 80 days and nights fasting. There's a break in between fasting with the Lord. The second time he spent 40 days and 40 nights with God, with the Lord, if you remember verse 28 there, with the Lord, 40 days and 40 nights on Mount Sinai. And being in the presence of God, being in the glory of God, and as a result of that, having access to the glory of God, the Bible says that Moses' face shone and there was a shine to his face, notice verse 30, And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come nigh him. And Moses called unto them, and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him, and Moses talked with them. Now, I don't know exactly what this looked like, but I envisioned that his face had some sort of a glow to it. And it, you know, he's like a night light or something, I don't know, he glowed in the dark. But he had this glow, notice verse 32, And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh, and he gave them in commandments all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. So Moses goes up the mountain, speaks to the Lord, spends time with the Lord, comes down and then tells the people this is what God said. And because he spent time with God, his face now shone, the Bible says, notice verse 33, And so Moses had done speaking with them, he put a veil on his face. So his face is shining, it's shown, it's making people uncomfortable, it's maybe scaring them a little bit. So the Bible tells us that he put a veil over his face because his face was shining. Look at verse 34, But when Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he took the veil off until he came out. And he came out and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded, and the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, and the skin of Moses' face shone, and Moses put the veil upon his face again until he went in to speak with him. And of course this is a well-known passage of scripture if you read the Bible. It's not that well-known if you don't read the Bible because they don't usually add this story, you know, to the Ten Commandments movies, right? Maybe they do, I don't know, I haven't seen them, but I doubt that they had that Charleston Heston or whatever come down with his face shining in the movie. Maybe they did. But this is a story in the Bible where Moses' face shone as a result of spending time with God on the mount. He came down and told the children of Israel what God had said, but while he spoke with the children of Israel because they were afraid of the shine on his face and the glory on his face that he received from God, he put a veil over his face and he would remove the veil when he went into the tabernacle and spoke with God and he would put the veil on when he would speak to the people. So I want you to understand that story because this is what the apostle Paul is going to use. Go back, keep your finger there in Exodus if you would, and go back to 2 Corinthians chapter 3. This story of the veil upon the face of Moses is what Paul uses to illustrate the Old Testament covenant or Testament. And he's going to compare and contrast it to the New Testament. And he uses Moses as an illustration of the Old Testament for several reasons. First of all, Moses is connected to the law. Often times the Bible refers to the writings of Moses as the law and throughout the Bible people would talk about the law and the prophets and they would equate Moses to the law. So Moses just as an individual is a representation of that Old Testament. And then of course here, Moses himself comes down with the two tablets of stone and his face is shining, he puts a veil on his face and Paul is reminding these New Testament believers about that Old Testament covenant. So go back to 2 Corinthians chapter 3, look at verse 7 and let me give you some thoughts in regards to the Old Testament versus the New Testament from this passage. And if you're taking notes I'd encourage you to maybe jot these things down. There's two major headings we're going to look at tonight as we look at these verses. The first one is this, why the New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant. Paul begins by talking about, he not only compares but he also contrasts the Old with the New and he explains why the New is better, why the New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant. Now he begins by explaining some things about the Old Covenant. And here they are, number one, the Old Covenant or the Old Testament was glorious. Notice there, 2 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 7. He says, but if the ministration of death, again that's a reference to the Old Covenant, written and engraven in stone, talking about the fact that the Ten Commandments were literally written in stone. He says, but if the ministration of death written and engraven in stone was glorious, now he's going to compare that to the New Covenant, but I want you to notice that he does state that the Old Covenant was glorious. It was a glorious covenant. What do you mean, what do we mean by that or what does Paul mean when he says that? Keep your place there, go to Deuteronomy chapter 4. If you kept your place in Exodus, you've got the books of Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Right after that, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy chapter 4, when we're talking about the Old Covenant, and what you need to understand is that there's several covenants that the Bible refers to. I preach sermons on the covenants and giving an overview on the covenants, and I don't have time to go into that today, but of course we have the Abrahamic covenant. That was given to Abraham and his descendants. The New Testament tells us it was specifically given to the Lord Jesus Christ as the descendant of Abraham. Then we have the Davidic covenant. That was a covenant given to David that his descendants would be rulers on the throne of Jerusalem. That covenant also is fulfilled and will be fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ during the millennial reign when the Lord Jesus Christ rules and reigns from Jerusalem and he is a descendant of David. Those covenants, those are two covenants that were given to men, Abraham and David, and they are fulfilled in Christ. But then we have the Mosaic covenant, and this is what's often referred to when we refer to the Old Covenant or the Old Testament. We're not necessarily referring to the Abrahamic covenant, although dispensations love to talk about the Abrahamic covenant, and we can talk about that another day. What's being referred to is this Mosaic covenant, and the Mosaic covenant was a law, was a set of laws that was given to the children of Israel on Mount Sinai. Moses gave the law, and the children of Israel entered into a covenant with God that if they were to keep those laws, that if they were to live by those laws, that God would bless them, and God would help them, and they would have the blessing of God upon their lives. Deuteronomy chapter 4, here's what you need to understand. There's nothing wrong with the Old Covenant. The Old Covenant was glorious, and here's why Paul is making that point, and why I want to make that point very thoroughly, is because today you have people who will say, oh, we're under the New Covenant. We're New Testament believers. We're under grace. And then they act like the old was just like this worthless piece of junk that's not needed. Now, please don't misunderstand me. The old has been done away with. We're going to talk about that in a minute. It's been replaced. I believe in replacement theology. You say, why do you believe that? Because that's what the Bible teaches, and that's what Paul's going to teach us here in a minute. But with that said, let's remember that the Old Covenant was a glorious covenant, and there's nothing wrong with the Old Covenant because it was a glorious covenant that God gave to the children of Israel. Deuteronomy 4, are you there? Look at verse 8. Notice what the Bible says about this covenant. It says, And what nation is there so great that has statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law which is said before you this day? Here's what the Bible says. No nation, including the United States of America, by the way, for all of you Fox News Baptists out there listening on YouTube, including the United States of America, no nation has ever had laws as glorious and as wonderful as the Old Testament nation of Israel, period. You say, better than our Constitution? Better than our Constitution. Better than the Declaration of Independence? Better than the Declaration of Independence? There's no nation that has ever had such a glorious law given to it. Now you say the Old Covenant has been done away. You say, what does that mean? And we're going to talk about that in a minute. But let's be clear about some things. What was done away was the ordinances. The Bible's clear. If you just get your head out of a commentary and just actually read the Bible, it's super clear that there are ordinances which the Bible says were not criminal law, they were not moral laws, they were simply ceremonial religious observances that all represented, foreshadowed, pictured the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. All those things have been done away. We're talking about the sacrifices, we're talking about the washings, we're talking about the feast days. All those things were a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. They've been done away because Jesus Christ came. You say, what about the criminal laws and the moral laws? Well, none of those things apply to us today, not because they're not good, just because we live in the United States of America. But there's nothing wrong with those laws. Those laws are good. In fact, if we had a righteous nation, we would adopt those laws. So you need to understand how to think about the old covenant. The old covenant's been done away in the sense that there is no longer a nation upon this earth. And by the way, even if we just got a bunch of guns together, a bunch of conservatives, and said we're going to take over, that's done. That's done. There's no us bringing the old law and becoming, the United States of America, becoming God's chosen people. Do you understand that? That idea, that ideal that there could be a nation upon this earth that followed those laws and would be God's people as a result, that was done away. And that will never come back until the Lord Jesus Christ rolls and reigns upon this earth. But that doesn't mean that it was not a glorious covenant. That doesn't mean that you can't learn from the Book of Leviticus. You can't learn from the Book of Numbers. You can't learn from those sacrifices. You can't learn from those foreshadows about the Lord Jesus Christ. And it doesn't mean that you can't learn about justice and judgment from the criminal and the moral laws found in it. It really was a glorious covenant. So the old covenant, the Old Testament, was glorious. But I want you to notice, secondly, keep your place there. Go back to 2 Corinthians chapter 3. Not only was the old covenant a glorious covenant, but something else that we must understand is that the old covenant was limited. It was glorious, yes, but it was limited. Notice there in 2 Corinthians 3 verse 6, who also has made us able ministers of the New Testament. And look, if you say, I don't care about old covenant, new covenant, I don't even know what you're talking about, just stay to the end. I'll give you an application that will help your life, okay? Just don't fall asleep. Don't drop out on me. Who also have made us able ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. I want you to notice what he says. And he's talking about the ministration of death that was engraven in stones, the letters that were engraven in stones. He says, for the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. Now I want you to understand, and we'll talk about it here in a minute, the major contrast between the old covenant and the new covenant is the letter versus the Spirit. It's the fact that one covenant was given a letter, was given words and laws, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's a glorious covenant. The other covenant was given a spirit. Now notice it says, for the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. Here's what it's saying. The old covenant kills, the new covenant gives life. Notice verse 7. But if the ministration of death, notice what the old covenant is called. It's called the ministration of death. All it ministered was death. Why? Because the letter killeth. But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses, for the glory of his confidence, which glory was to be done away. Here's what I want you to understand. The Bible says, and Paul is explaining here, that that old covenant was the ministration of death. They were given laws. He says the letter killeth. It's a ministration of death. You say, what does that mean? It means that that old covenant was limited because all it was was a law. Go to Galatians chapter 3. Galatians chapter 3, if you would. You're there in 2nd Corinthians. Go to the next book, the book of Galatians. And I shouldn't say all it was was this law because obviously the law of the Lord is perfect. But what it was, it was the law. Galatians 3 verse 10. Here's what the apostle Paul is trying to explain, and here's what I mean by the old covenant was glorious, but the old covenant was limited. The Old Testament law is a glorious law. It's a beautiful law. We would do well to adopt it. But the Old Testament law, all it can do is kill and condemn. Galatians 3, are you there? Look at verse 10. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse. Now look, people need to understand this because today you talk to most quote unquote Christians and they all teach a works salvation. Go to the Catholic church and ask them, what do I need to do to be saved? And they'll say, get catechized, go to the confessional booth, take the sacraments. They'll give you a whole list, how many sacraments they want you to do. You've got to do all these things. And look, all false religions are like that. Go to the Mormons, they're going to tell you you've got to repent of your sins, you've got to live a good life. Go to whoever you want. Many Christians, they'll say, oh yeah, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, but you also have to turn over a new leaf, you've got to quit smoking, you've got to repent of your sins, you've got to live right or you never had it, you've got to live right or you'll lose it. Look, live right or you never had it, live right or you'll lose it. This is all just adding works to salvation. And he says, for as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse. If you are trying to earn your salvation by keeping the law, you are under the curse. You say, why? Because all the law can do is condemn you. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse, for it is written, cursed is everyone that continueth not all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. You say, well, what's wrong with trying to earn my way to heaven? Here's the problem with trying to earn your way to heaven, is that if you're trying to keep the law, you've got to keep all of it. You can't just say, oh, I'm pretty good, I keep 70% of it. No, the curse of the law is that, the curse is this, that cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. If you want to work your way to heaven, you've got to do everything the law says and you're unable to do that because you're a sinner. You've already disqualified yourself. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It's not that I've got to do pretty good. You've got to be perfect, sinless. Only Jesus Christ could do that. So the curse of the law is that you must continue in all things. And we're not just talking about the ten. We're talking about the hundreds of commandments that God gives throughout the entire Bible. But let's just be honest with ourselves. You can't even keep the ten. People are like, oh, you can keep the six hundred and something out of commandment. No one even keeps the ten, the big ten, no one keeps those. Not all of them, much less every command in the Bible. And then the Bible says that the thought of foolishness is sin, so just thinking something stupid is a sin. Then the Bible says that to him that do it to do good and do it to not, to him it is sin. So it's not just sins of commission, of things you do that are wrong, but there's sins of omission when you fail to do that, which is right, that's a sin. You say, what are you trying to say? Here's what I'm trying to say. All the law can do is condemn you. It's limited. Now it's needed, but it's limited because all it can do is condemn you. And here's what I mean, it cannot save you. Look at Galatians 3 and verse 11. But that no man is justified by the law. I mean, could the Bible be any clearer than that? No man is justified by the law and the sight of God, it is evident. He's saying, look, but that no man is justified by the law and the sight of God, it is evident. Why is it evident? Why is it evident? Because no one can keep the entire law of God and continue in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. He says it's evident that no one is justified for the just shall live by faith. Now I want you to look at verse 22 of the same chapter, Galatians 3 and verse 22. The Old Testament was limited because all it can do is condemn you, it cannot save you. Galatians 3, 22, but the Scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. Now look, you need to understand this because we're talking about salvation right now. Because here's what people like to do, they're like, oh well, the law can't save us, so let's just get rid of the law and not live the law at all. Well, Paul said, you know, that the law is not sin. Obviously, in a practical sense, God doesn't want you to commit adultery, God doesn't want you to kill, God wants you to do those things. What we're talking about is, can keeping the law save you? And the answer to that question is no, the law is limited. The Old Testament, all it can do, the law of God, all it can do is condemn you. It cannot save you. Look at verse 23, Galatians 3, verse 23. But before faith came, we were kept under the law. Now what does it mean to be kept under the law? It's to be under the curse of the law. I have offended God's law, broken God's law, and there's a punishment as a result. Shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law, notice, therefore the law was our schoolmaster. You say, oh, well the law's bad then. No, no, the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ. You say, but the law can't save you. Yeah, but you know, the law does something wonderful. You say, what does it do? It shows you that you need a savior. The law shows you that you're not as good as you think you are. That you're not good enough to go to heaven. So see, the law is needed, but it won't save you. Here's what I think is funny. People, they want to go on these extremes. You know, I'm good enough to go to heaven, so I don't need the law. I'm good enough. I don't need Jesus. Or, and then I'm just going to try to earn it by keeping the law. But the Bible says, no, you're misunderstanding the law. When it comes to salvation, the law was your schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ that we might be justified by faith. Notice verse 25, but after that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. What does that mean? That we're no longer under the wrath, the curse of the law. The law showed us that we needed a savior. Go back to 2nd Corinthians chapter 3. So we see that the Old Testament covenant was glorious. We see that the Old Testament covenant was limited. And then just thirdly on this subject, the Old Testament covenant was done away. Notice 2nd Corinthians 3 verse 7. But if the ministration of death, written in graven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, notice, which glory was to be done away. Now, the glory of Moses pictures what? The first covenant. The fact that he went up on the mountain and brought down the laws, it all pictures that first covenant or old covenant. And here, Paul tells us that that covenant was to be done away. He says, which glory was to be done away. You say, well, that's just one phrase. I don't know that that justifies us believing that God got rid of the old covenant. Okay, look at verse 11. For if that which was done away was glorious, now he's going to compare it, much more that which remaineth is glorious. But again, I just want to highlight for you that that old covenant was done away. For if that which was done away, he said it was glorious, but it was done away. You say, I don't know. He's kind of using this analogy. I don't know if I buy that. Okay, go to Hebrews chapter 8. Hebrews chapter 8. Towards the end of the New Testament, if you start at the book of Revelation and go backwards, you have Revelation, Jude, 3rd, 2nd, 1st John, 2nd, 1st Peter, James, Hebrews. Hebrews chapter 8, Revelation, Jude, 3rd, 2nd, 1st John, 2nd, 1st Peter, James, Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 8. We're going to spend a lot of time on this, and I'm not going to do that. We have sermons and all sorts of things you can listen to in regards to this, but I'll just give you some proof from the Word of God that the old covenant has been done away. Hebrews 8 verse 7. For if that first covenant, that first testament, had been faultless, he said, if there was no problem with the first covenant, then should no place have been sought for the second. The second what? The second covenant. The second covenant. He says, look, there was a problem with the first covenant, and if there had been no problem, no fault with the first covenant, then should no place have been sought for the second. You say, well, I thought the old covenant was glorious. What was wrong with the old covenant? There's nothing wrong with the old covenant. What was wrong was with the people that were meant to keep the old covenant. Look at verse 8. For finding fault, not with it, with them. Finding fault with them. You say, what was the problem with the first covenant? Nothing was wrong with the first covenant, but there was something majorly wrong with the people that were trying to keep that covenant. For finding fault with them, he saith, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant, a new testament, and we're living in it, which the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers, and the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. What is that referring to? Moses bringing the children of Israel out of Egypt, going on Mount Sinai. Notice, because they, because they continued not in my covenant. What was the problem with the old covenant? Nothing wrong with the covenant. It was a glorious covenant. He found fault in them because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. So look, and again, I'm just going to show you one passage. We could go all day. Go back to 2nd Corinthians chapter 3. The old covenant, the Bible's clear, has been done away. Why? Because there's something wrong with it? No, there was something wrong with the children of Israel. And by the way, there would have been something wrong with you and I if we would have been given that old covenant too. So we say that the old covenant was glorious. We say that the old, it's a glorious covenant. No greater set of laws have ever been found upon this earth. But it was a limited covenant. Why? Because all it could do is condemn. It could not save. And it was done away. Not because there was something wrong with the old covenant, but because there was something wrong with them for finding fault with them because they continued not in my covenant. So let's talk about, real quickly, about the new covenant. Go back to 2nd Corinthians chapter 3. Look at verse 8. Because Paul explains to us the old covenant, then he also explains the new covenant. What did he tell us about the new covenant? Two things. The new covenant's better. 2nd Corinthians 3, look at verse 8. And I meant to tell you to keep your place in Hebrews. I'm not sure if you did that or not, but we're going to go back to Hebrews here in a minute. 2nd Corinthians 3, verse 8. How shall not, there's what Paul says, the ministration of the Spirit. Because remember, the old covenant, he referred to it as the ministration of death. Now he's referring to this new covenant or New Testament as the ministration of the Spirit. How shall not the ministration of the Spirit, and I want to just emphasize this to you again. The big emphasis in the Bible, and it's not necessarily the emphasis we give as non-disposationalists, but as you read the Old Testament, especially as I've preached through the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel, we've done Joel and I've done Hosea, as you read the Old Testament prophets, what you'll find is that when they speak about the new covenant, the New Testament, and of course for them, it was something that was coming. What they emphasize is the Spirit, the Spirit of the covenant. And here Paul does the same. He says, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? Now there's debate whether he's referring here to the Holy Spirit or our spirit, but the idea is this. The only reason that it's wonderful to have the Holy Spirit is because the Holy Spirit commutes with our spirit. We have a spiritual man, and the Holy Spirit communes with that spiritual man. So I want you to notice, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? I said that old covenant, the ministration of death, it was glorious, but it was done away with. He says, but the ministration of Spirit, he says, verse 8 again, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather? You see the word rather there? The word rather means to recommend an alternative. He says it's rather glorious. Notice verse 9, for of the ministration of condemnation, that's the old covenant. He called it earlier the ministration of death. Now he calls it the ministration of condemnation. He said the latter killeth. Why? Because all that the old covenant could do, it was limited. It was glorious, but it was limited. It could not save. All it could do was condemn. For of the ministration of condemnation be glory, notice, much more that the ministration of righteousness, that's the new covenant, exceed in glory. What's he saying? Here's what he's saying. The new covenant is better than the old covenant. Look at verse 10, for even thou which was made glorious had no glory in the respect by reason of the glory that exceleth. Here's what he's saying. He's saying, because sometimes you read these words and you're like, I don't understand, it's all wordy. In verse 10, here's what he's saying. The old covenant was glorious, but in comparison to the new covenant, it's not glorious anymore. That's what he means by verse 10. For even that which was made glorious, because it was a glorious covenant, that's what he told us earlier, he says, even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect by reason of the glory that exceleth. He's saying, the new covenant is so glorious, it makes the old covenant look like it had no glory, though it was glorious. Go back to Hebrews chapter 8, look at verse 6. So here's what Paul tells us. The new covenant is better. Hebrews 8 chapter 6. For now hath he obtained, and you might be wondering, you may be saying like, I don't understand, what's the big deal? Here's the big deal. The Jews are not God's chosen people. I don't know if I made that clear. That's what we've been talking about. Evangelicals today, pre-tribbers, they're like, the Jews are God's chosen people, God's not done with the Jews, God's gonna do a great work with the Jews, we're just kind of his hobby off to the side during this dispensation of grace, but the Jews are making a comeback. No, the Bible says that the old covenant is done away with. He's done with that. And he's brought a new covenant, a better covenant, in which there is neither Jew nor Greek. There's neither bond nor free. There's neither male nor female. For you're all one in Christ Jesus. So it's been done away with. Why? Because the new covenant's better. Hebrews 8 verse 6. But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry by how much also he, he's referring to Jesus there, is the mediator of a, don't miss it, better covenant. Oh no, he's just, God's just, this is just a dispensation of he's bored and he's, you know, you're his little hobby, but the Jews are making a comeback. No, no, no. Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. So we see that the new covenant is better. And lastly, and this should be obvious, but let's look at it. Go back to 2 Corinthians 3 verse 11. And when I say lastly, I don't mean we're done. I'm saying lastly in this section, just to be clear. 2 Corinthians, some of you are putting your Bible away. 2 Corinthians 3 verse 11, you're like, oh, that went by fast. 2 Corinthians 3 verse 11, for if that which was done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. See, the old covenant was done away, but the new covenant remains, or remaineth. The old covenant was removed and replaced with the new, a better and more exceeding glorious covenant. The Old Testament nation of Israel, as God's chosen people, was removed and replaced with a new people, with a new covenant, with a new testament. So Paul begins by explaining why the new covenant is better than the old covenant. Why is it? Because the old covenant was glorious. Though it was glorious, it was limited. It could not save. It could only condemn. And as a result, it was done away. Not because there was fault with the covenant, but because there was fault with the people. The new covenant is better. It's built upon better promises, and it remains. So then, Paul explains not only why the new covenant is better than the old covenant, but here's the second heading. Remember I told you we were going to look at two sections? Here's the second section. Let's talk about how the new covenant, how the new covenant is better than the old covenant. We talk about why it's better than the old covenant, but let's talk about how. How is it better than the old covenant? Look at 2nd Corinthians chapter 3, look at verse 12. Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech. By the way, let me just say this. If you are an aspiring preacher, you ought to underline those words. When we stand up to preach, we're not here to try to make ourselves look smart and use these great, swelling words. The Bible says when we preach the Word of God, we should use great plainness of speech. You say, what is the sign of a good teacher? The sign of a good teacher is that they take a passage of Scripture that is complicated, and they make it easy to understand. Bad preachers take an easy passage of Scripture and make it complicated. Our goal is to use great plainness of speech. That's just for free. Look at verse 13. Remember Moses, our allegory? He went up to God, his face shone, he put a veil. And not is Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. You say, how is the new covenant better than the old covenant? In the Old Testament, or in the Old Covenant, access to God was through a system of priests and temples, or the temple, of course we had the sanctuary. Access to God was through a man, and Moses pictures that. He comes down from the mount, he has access to God. He comes down with the shine of God upon him, but the people can't look upon that. He has to put a veil over his face so that he can communicate with them. Why? Because the people there, in that specific story, and throughout the Old Covenant, their access to God was through a system of priests, was through a temple, was through a sanctuary. Look at verse 13 again. And not is Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. Notice verse 14, but their minds were blinded. See, they did not have access to God, but they only had access to God through a man, through a veil. By the way, the Bible talks about the fact that when Jesus died, the curtain that separated the Holy of Holies with the rest of the temple, he rented, it was cut. So here we're told in verse 14, but their minds were blinded, for until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament, which veil is done away with Christ. Notice verse 15, but even unto this day when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. Here's what he's saying. The Old Testament people could not understand the covenant aside from priests, prophets, people that God brought to be a mediator between God and them. And here Paul, writing in the New Testament in the first century, says even unto this day, and I would add to that, that still applies today, 2021, even unto this day when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. So what are you talking about? The Jews cannot understand the Old Testament. I think you're being anti-Semitic. Are you saying that the Jews cannot understand the Old Testament? Well, the Jews cannot understand the Old Testament for the same reason that no unsaved person can understand the Old Testament, because unsaved people cannot discern the spiritual word of God. But the thing is this, that the Jews are really in a bad situation because the Old Covenant, the Old Covenant that God established with them was dependent upon the fact that God would teach and explain and help them understand the law through the priests and through the temple. Well, guess what? Whether you want to admit that the Old Covenant has been done away with, you have to admit that there is no temple. There are no priests. They've been done away. People are in denial. The dispensationalists are in denial. No, the Old Covenant remains. Well, here's the thing. The temple's gone. The priests are gone. The only access they had to understand those things are gone, even unto this day when Moses was read, the veil is upon their heart. That's why you need to understand this. People sometimes get nervous here talking too much about the Jews. The Jews' religion is an anti-Christ religion. They are unbelievers just like any other false religion, like Buddhists and Muslims and whatever. They cannot understand. By the way, people will say, Oh, well, you guys just serve the God of the Old Testament. No, they don't. Look, they don't even try to follow the Old Testament. They follow a book called the Torah, which has a bunch of made-up laws that they've added to the Word of God. This is what the Bible teaches. And look, the Bible clearly says that even unto this day when Moses was read, the veil is upon their hearts. They cannot understand the Bible. You say why? Because they're not saved. And today, dispensationalists, they are a bunch of respecters of persons. They'll say, Oh, an unsaved person cannot understand the Bible? The natural man received but not the things of the Spirit of God? For they are foolish to listen to them, and neither can you know them because he is spiritually deserted. They'll say that about some heathen in Africa, but then God made some exception for Jews? If they're unsaved, they cannot understand the Word of God, period. The Old Testament access to God was through a system of priests and temples. The veil pictures the people who could not look upon the glory of God. They couldn't even look at the glory of God on Moses' face. It pictures a veil. And then Paul says that their minds were blinded, and the same veil remained, as he says, until this day remained at the same veil, untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament. But I want you to notice something. In the New Testament, access to God is given individually. You say, how do we have access to God? Through Jesus Christ. Do we need a priest? No, you are a priest. Do we need a temple? No, you are a temple. Do you understand the difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant? The Old Covenant had a system of priests, had a temple worship system, had sacrifice and all those things. In the New Covenant, I don't need a mediator. I've got a mediator. His name is the Lord Jesus Christ. But there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. I don't need a priest. I am a priest. I've been given the priesthood of the believer. I don't need a temple. I am a temple. The Bible says, know ye not that ye are the temple of the Holy Ghost? You see, in the New Testament, access to God. You say, why is the New Testament better than the Old Testament? Here's why. Because access to God is given on an individual level. You don't need a priest. You are a priest. You don't need a temple. You are a temple. Notice our text again, 2 Corinthians 3 and 14. But their minds were blinded, for until this day remaineth the same veil away in the reading of the Old Testament. Well, how do you take the veil away? Here's how. Which veil is done away in Christ? Get saved. It doesn't matter who you are. You could be an unbelieving Jew. You get saved and you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and that veil will be done away. It's done away in Christ. But even unto this day when Moses was read, the veil is upon their hearts. Verse 16, Nevertheless, when it shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away. Look, the veil can be taken away from anybody. All they need to do is turn to the Lord. Get saved. Get the sealing of the Holy Spirit. Allow the Holy Spirit to minister to their spirit. The veil will be taken away. They'll understand the Word of God. The New Testament access to God is given individually. Because you are a priest. Because you are a temple. In Christ, the New Testament believers, we understand the Bible. Because our bodies are the New Testament temples. See, the Old Testament, they had a temple. And in that Holy of Holies, they had the Ark of the Covenant, which represented the presence of God. We don't have that in the New Testament. I am a temple and the Holy Spirit of God indwells me. And God Himself resides in the temple, in the body of every believer through the Holy Spirit. Notice the emphasis on the Holy Spirit. Look at verse 17. Now the Lord is that Spirit. And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. Now Fox News Baptists like to take this verse and turn it all about America. The Spirit of the Lord, you know, is liberty. But in the context, in the context is this, we've been freed from the Old Covenant. Why? Because I have the Holy Spirit of God. Now the Lord is that Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. Why? Because, you say, why is the New Covenant better than the Old Covenant? Here's why. Because the Old Covenant, now remember, the problem was not with the Covenant, it was with the people. We said, what was wrong with the people? Is that it was a nation. A nation was given the commandments of God, was given spiritual leadership, was given a priest and a temple. They had access to God through that system. And that nation, by the way, was supposed to be an example to other nations that others would convert to their religion and be saved that way. There has always been a soul winning in evangelism. But that didn't work. Why? Because the nation, the people, got corrupt. In fact, they got filled with pride. They began to think, well, we're God's chosen people. We're better than everyone else. And it got all messed up. So then God says, you know what, I'm going to do away with the Old Covenant and I'm going to bring a New Covenant. It's similar, but it's different. It's got promises, but it's got better promises. You say, well, what makes it better? Here's what makes it better. Instead of having one nation to represent me upon this earth, I'll have local churches made up of my people to represent me all over the earth. Do you understand that in the New Covenant, a local church pictures the nation of Israel in the Old Testament? That's why the nation of Israel in the Old Testament, the book of Acts, was called the church in the wilderness. But it's better because there's not just one church that can mess it all up. There's all sorts of local churches. There's not just one temple that could be destroyed. No, there's all sorts of local churches made up of believers who are all the temple of God. We all have access to God. We all, see, in the Old Covenant, Moses went up to the mount and spoke to God. And only Moses did. In the New Covenant, you have access to God. I have access to God. Like Moses. Let me wrap it up. We'll finish up right here. Look at verse 18. 2 Corinthians 3, 18. But we all, he's talking about the New Covenant, but we all, notice, with open face, just like Moses, beholding as in a glass. Now I don't have time to run the references, but this is a reference to the word of God. The word of God in the book of James is referred to as a glass, a mirror of the word of God. The law of liberty. Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. The law of liberty is the word of God. It's not about America, okay? I'm sorry to break it to you. But we all with open face, like Moses, beholding as in a glass, the glory of the Lord. You know when you open up the word of God, you behold the glory of the Lord? We have access to God. We have access to God's glory through the word of God by the Holy Spirit. Now notice verse 18. But we all with open face, beholding as in a glass, the glory of the Lord. Notice these words. Are changed in the same image from the glory to glory even as by the spirit of the Lord. Please don't miss that. The Bible says that when we, like Moses, not with a veil, but with open face, behold the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image from glory to glory. You say, what do you mean? Well, go to Acts chapter 4. Acts chapter 4. Remember, Moses went up and spoke to God, right? On the mount. And it changed him. Did it not? He went up on the mount. God had glory. Moses had no glory. But after spending time with God, Moses had some of the glory of God on him. His face shone. Let me tell you something. You cannot spend time with God and not have it change you. Give me a new example of that. Acts 4 verse 13. Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men. Don't feel bad. They dropped out too. They marveled and they took knowledge of them. Notice these words. That they had been with Jesus. Let me tell you something. You can't spend time with Jesus and not have it change you. You can't spend time with God upon the mount and not have it change you. If you spend time, if you actually spend time in, you say, I'm a New Testament believer. Well, here's what that means. You get to understand this book. You get to read this book. You go to a priest and say, what does this mean? You get to open it and you have the Holy Spirit of God that will help you understand it. And here's one of the great benefits of the Word of God. That you, like Moses, get to go and be alone with God whenever you want. And when you do it, it will change you. The glow of God will come upon you. People will look at your life and say, Man, he's an ignorant man, but I marveled because he's been with Jesus. Let me tell you something. If you come to church like this, and we do our best here to preach the Word of God, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, and apply it to your life. You come here Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night, for weeks or months or years. And you supposedly go home and open your Bible and read it every day. If you do that and your life's not changing, you're not doing it right. If you're just as moody as you used to be, if you're just as angry as you used to be, if you're just as bitter as you used to be. Are you listening to me? People come to church like this, they say, Well, I started going to church like that and my marriage is still falling apart. Well, let me tell you something. There's nothing wrong with the covenant. His fault is with you. Because if you actually read the Bible, love the Bible, apply the Bible, try to do what the Bible says, you can't help but become more like Jesus. And if you don't, that's not his fault. That's your fault. Because the new covenant gives you access to the Holy Spirit. And I'm not saying that you're going to read a verse and you're going to be transformed into the image of God, but here's what I'm telling you. If you're not growing, you're not doing it right. You should be learning. You should be applying. You should be growing. Go back to 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18, we'll finish. But we all, not just Moses, all of us, with open face, beholding as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. When Moses spent time with God, people could tell. They said, there's something really different with you. And people should be able to tell when you and I spend time with God. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word. I think of this great passage of scripture that the Apostle Paul gives us where he explains to us the difference between the Old and the New Testament and how the New Testament is better. Lord, help us not to be excited that the New Testament is better and not take advantage of the benefits. I'm a priest. I don't need a priest. I don't need to go to a temple. I am a temple. I don't have to sit back and watch Moses go up to the mountain. I have access to God myself. And in the same way that it changed Moses, it can change me. Help us to take advantage of that. Help us to open up the Bible, read it, spend time with God, apply it to our lives, let it transform us and change us, and that others will look at us and say they have been with Jesus. In the matchless name of Christ, we pray. Amen. Brother RJ, come up and lead us in the final song. I just want to give you some just some reminders. Don't forget, of course, this this Friday we have a wedding. Make sure you don't forget about that. And then also we have the Harvest Party this Sunday night. So we've got a sign up sheet in the foyer for desserts and cornbread. So make sure you sign up for that if you've not yet done that. And then, of course, we have soul winning on Thursdays at two. And we have our main sewing time on Saturday morning. Make sure you are present and there. And if there's anything we can do for you, please let us know. Invite someone to church with you on Sunday. We're going to talk about not dropping out on prayer and not quitting on prayer. And we're going to learn about that from the Lord Jesus Christ. We encourage you to be with us for that. Why would the RJ come up and lead us in a final song? Grab our songbooks and turn to page number 281. Song number 281. We'll be singing, Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior. Song number 281. Let's sing that out on the first. Pass me not, O gentle Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others Thou art calling, do not pass me by. Savior, Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others Thou art calling, do not pass me by. Let me at Thy throne of mercy find a sweet relief. Kneeling there in deep contrition, help my unbelief. Savior, Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others Thou art calling, do not pass me by. Trust Thee only in Thy merit, would I seek Thy face. Heal my wounded broken spirit, save me by Thy grace. Savior, Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others Thou art calling, do not pass me by. Sing it out on the last. Thou the spring of all my comfort, more the life to me. Whom have I ordered beside Thee? Whom in heaven but Thee? Savior, Savior, hear my humble cry. While on others Thou art calling, do not pass me by. Great seeing and good night brother Johnny. We just missed him in a word of prayer. Thank you Father God. Thank you today Lord. Thank you for the church. Thank you for our salvation Father. And thank you for this great service. God, please help us. The service applies to our lifestyle. Thank you for the old service. And thank you for the new service. And bless the rest of the week. Help us to come to safety on Saturday and Sunday. Thank you. Amen. Amen.