How are you doing in your walk with God?

During the exile (6^th century B.C.), the Israelites realized that they had done quite badly. They had strayed from God, broken God’s commandments, and as a consequence had fallen prey to the Babylonian Empire, which had destroyed the temple and the entire “holy city” of Jerusalem.

What a mess.

But in the midst of the exile, the prophet Jeremiah had an extraordinary vision. He saw that although the people had been unfaithful to God and had broken the covenant, God remained faithful on God’s side of the covenant, and God was acting to bring the covenant to a new level.

The “new covenant” would involve three key elements:

While the old covenant centered on written laws, in the new covenant God would write God’s law in people’s hearts.
Although the people of Israel were feeling distant from God, in the new covenant people would profoundly know that God was with them.
Although the people had sinned against God, in the new covenant God would forgive them.

Jeremiah’s vision of the new covenant would come to its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. In Jesus, God is with us, God will forgive us, and God will give us the Holy Spirit to “write God’s law in our hearts.”

These promises unfold in us as we affirm our side of the covenant and commit ourselves as disciples of Jesus Christ. May we enter the new year by taking hold of the new covenant! – by committing ourselves afresh to walk in faith with Christ.

Sunday’s Scripture Readings:
Jeremiah 31:31–34
Hebrews 8:6–12

A photo posted by UMC of Kent, Ohio (@umcofkent) on Dec 26, 2015 at 9:07am PST

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.