THINK TOGETHER
Do you know what the word “obsolete” means? Is there anything in your house that is obsolete?
READ TOGETHER
Sometimes things become useless because they have been replaced with something new. I recently had to buy my mother a new phone because her old phone wouldn’t work anymore because the technology was too old. Do you have any VHS tapes anymore? A Gameboy? Music CDs? These are things that have become obsolete.
The book of Hebrews says that God has replaced the Old Covenant that he made with Israel at Mount Sinai (the Ten Commandments) with a New Covenant. Why? Because the Old Covenant became obsolete. Here’s how Hebrews says it:
Hebrews 8:13. In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
The book of Hebrews was written to Jewish Christians that had followed that Old Covenant their whole lives. Their ancestors followed it for thousands of years. They offered animals as sacrifices to God to cover up their sins. They obeyed all of God’s rules so that they could go to Heaven. But all the sacrifices and all the laws of the Old Covenant are not needed anymore. Do you know why? Because of Jesus! Jesus is the final sacrifice for sins. Jesus kept all of God’s rules. Because of Jesus we don’t need the Old Covenant anymore. It is obsolete like VHS tapes or CDs. There’s something better. Much better. The New Covenant!
Jesus has made new and better promises to us. The promise that all of our sins are forgiven. The promise that we can go to Heaven because of how Jesus obeyed perfectly, not because we have obeyed perfectly. That means that we never have to add anything to trusting in Jesus. Just trust him. Trust what he has done for you on the cross. Trust that he lives in your heart. Don’t trust Jesus and your own good deeds. That’s the old way. And the old way is over and done. The new way is here. And his name is Jesus.
Because of Jesus we don’t have to be good to go to Heaven, because Jesus is good.
With Jesus we can be good because Jesus is teaching us how.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Search your house for things that are obsolete and worthless. Talk about how we replace old things with new and better things. Jesus is better!
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, you are the new way. You did everything for us so that all we have to do is trust in you. Help me to always trust in you. Amen.
TLICfamily 