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Study 11

The Two Covenants

The covenants are not two eras but two ways of relating to God — human promise versus divine promise.

Hands-free narration of this study — good for the car.

Synopsis

Sequeira treats the two covenants as two experiences rather than two dispensations. The old covenant is the arrangement in which the people promise: 'All that the Lord has said we will do.' It is sincere, but it rests on human capacity, and it therefore always produces failure, bondage, and finally either despair or self-deception. The new covenant is the arrangement in which God promises: 'I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts.' The believer's part is to believe and receive. Sequeira shows that both covenants existed side by side throughout Scripture — Abraham lived in the new covenant, Sinai's generation chose the old — and that both exist in the church today. Sinai was not God's failed plan but God's demonstration of the futility of self-generated obedience. The chapter is intensely practical: many believers are converted in doctrine but living in the old covenant, which explains their chronic defeat and joylessness.

Key points

  • Old covenant = human promising; new covenant = divine promising.
  • Both covenants operate in every age, including today.
  • Sinai demonstrated the bankruptcy of self-dependence.
  • Old-covenant living is the root of much Christian discouragement.

Key passages

  • Exodus 19:8
  • Jeremiah 31:31-34
  • Galatians 4:21-31
  • Hebrews 8:6-13
  • 2 Corinthians 3:6-18

Study questions12 total

  1. 1.

    Define the old and new covenants as Sequeira presents them. What is the decisive difference?

    Comprehension
  2. 2.

    Read Exodus 19:8 and Jeremiah 31:33. Compare who does the promising in each.

    Scripture
  3. 3.

    How does Galatians 4:21-31 use Hagar and Sarah to illustrate the two covenants?

    Scripture
  4. 4.

    Contrast a believer living in the old covenant with one living in the new. Describe their prayer life, response to failure, and motive for obedience.

    Contrast
  5. 5.

    Why does Sequeira say both covenants are present in every era rather than in sequence?

    Doctrinal Clarity
  6. 6.

    What was God's purpose in giving the covenant at Sinai if He knew Israel could not keep it?

    Doctrinal Clarity
  7. 7.

    Explain 2 Corinthians 3:6 — 'the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.' How does the same law do both?

    Scripture
  8. 8.

    According to Hebrews 8:6-13, on what 'better promises' is the new covenant established?

    Scripture
  9. 9.

    Is New Year's resolution-style commitment to God old-covenant or new-covenant behaviour? Defend your answer.

    Doctrinal Clarity
  10. 10.

    Identify a specific vow or resolution you have made to God that was old-covenant in spirit. How would you reframe it?

    Application
  11. 11.

    How should baptismal vows be presented so that they do not become old-covenant promises?

    Application
  12. 12.

    Write a new-covenant version of a prayer you commonly pray.

    Application