20230120 THE NEW COVENANT IN CHRIST
20 January 2023 Friday, Week 2 in Ordinary Time
First reading | Hebrews 8:6-13 © |
The first covenant is already old
We have seen that Christ has been given a ministry of a far higher order, and to the same degree it is a better covenant of which he is the mediator, founded on better promises. If that first covenant had been without a fault, there would have been no need for a second one to replace it. And in fact God does find fault with them; he says:
See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks –
when I will establish a new covenant
with the House of Israel and the House of Judah,
but not a covenant like the one I made with their ancestors
on the day I took them by the hand
to bring them out of the land of Egypt.
They abandoned that covenant of mine,
and so I on my side deserted them. It is the Lord who speaks.
No, this is the covenant I will make
with the House of Israel
when those days arrive – it is the Lord who speaks.
I will put my laws into their minds
and write them on their hearts.
Then I will be their God
and they shall be my people.
There will be no further need for neighbour to try to teach neighbour,
or brother to say to brother,
‘Learn to know the Lord.’
No, they will all know me,
the least no less than the greatest,
since I will forgive their iniquities
and never call their sins to mind.
By speaking of a new covenant, he implies that the first one is already old. Now anything old only gets more antiquated until in the end it disappears.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 84(85):8,10-14 © |
Mercy and faithfulness have met.
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy
and give us your saving help.
His help is near for those who fear him
and his glory will dwell in our land.
Mercy and faithfulness have met.
Mercy and faithfulness have met;
justice and peace have embraced.
Faithfulness shall spring from the earth
and justice look down from heaven.
Mercy and faithfulness have met.
The Lord will make us prosper
and our earth shall yield its fruit.
Justice shall march before him
and peace shall follow his steps.
Mercy and faithfulness have met.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.2Th2:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Through the Good News God called us
to share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Alleluia!
Or: | 2Co5:19 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself,
and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Mark 3:13-19 © |
He appointed twelve to be his companions
Jesus went up into the hills and summoned those he wanted. So they came to him and he appointed twelve; they were to be his companions and to be sent out to preach, with power to cast out devils. And so he appointed the Twelve: Simon to whom he gave the name Peter, James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom he gave the name Boanerges or ‘Sons of Thunder’; then Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, the man who was to betray him.
THE NEW COVENANT IN CHRIST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [HEB 8:6-13; PS 85:8,10-14; MK 3:13-19]
What is a covenant? It is an agreement between two persons. If one breaks the conditions of the agreement, the obligations of the covenant ceases. However, the covenant between God and man are different from the agreement that we sign with each other. It is more like someone writing a will. This is because God and men do not meet on equal terms. It is God who graciously makes the covenant with us. There is no question of disagreeing with the terms set by God or a compromise. Either we accept the offer or refuse to ratify the contract. God entered into a covenant with His people. He offered to make the people His own. But it was on condition that they kept the Laws. (Ex 24) This covenant was renewed when Joshua led the people into the Promised Land. (Jos 24:1-28) However, the people of Israel were disobedient to the Lord and they repeatedly broke the covenant. Since the days in the desert and the period of the Kings, Israel was unfaithful to the Law and to Yahweh.
In view of the collapse of the covenant, Jeremiah prophesied that a New Covenant would replace the Old Covenant. (cf Jer 3:31-34) The letter of Hebrews, citing Jeremiah, speaks of a new covenant that God made, not just with the remaining House of Judah but with the House of Israel, the Northern King belonging to the ten tribes that were destroyed by Assyria in 721 B.C. Jesus is the One who would realize the prophecy of Jeremiah. Both scripture readings of today point to Jesus as the New Covenant. How is Jesus the initiator of the New Covenant?
Firstly, we are told that He appointed the Twelve. “Jesus went up into the hills and summoned those he wanted. So they came to him and he appointed twelve.” It is significant that when calling the apostles as a group, the evangelist would refer to them as the Twelve. The different gospels also give different names for the twelve apostles. But it is immaterial. What is important was that Jesus appointed twelve of them. The apostolic college consists of the Twelve and continued to be so after the death of Judas when Matthias was appointed to fill the vacancy. (Acts 1:12-26) In appointing the Twelve and calling them the Twelve, it shows the intention of Jesus to enact a new covenant. The apostles represent the Twelve tribes of Israel of which only Judah was left by the time of Jesus. In choosing the Twelve, Jesus was deliberately signifying that He was breaking away from the leaders of the Old Covenant after leaving the synagogue to preach in the open fields. The twelve founding fathers of Israel were now replaced by the apostles. The Christians are now called the new people of God, the “Israel of God.” (cf Gal 6:16)
Secondly, we also note that Jesus chose twelve men of diverse character, temperament, education, passion and social standing. We have Peter, to whom our Lord gave a new name, the Rock, on which the future of the Church would be built upon his faith in Christ. But until then, Peter could hardly be called a rock of faith because he was impetuous and often spoke without thinking of the consequences. James and John, sons of Zebedee were called, “Sons of Thunder” because they were hot-tempered, impatient and ambitious. They were the ones who suggested to Jesus that they command fire from heaven to consume the Samaritans for not welcoming Him. (Lk 9:51-55) Simon was called the Zealot, a revolutionary, staunchly patriotic and refused any cooperation with those who worked for the enemies of Israel. He had to learn how to work with Matthew, the former tax-collector who was considered a traitor as he worked for the Romans, or at least for Herod. By appointing these diverse personalities, Jesus wanted to prove and show that unlike the Twelve tribes of Israel who could not stay united together, Jesus would be able to bring such diverse characters to work and live together for a greater cause and mission. In fact, their diversity would be their strength because they complemented each other as they worked as a college of apostles.
Thirdly, this New Covenant was unlike the Old Covenant, where Israel was required to obey the laws of Moses, something which they could never fulfil. And this was because the laws were written on tablets. The laws were extraneous to them. So long as we see the laws as rules imposed on us without our conviction, we will find ways to circumvent the laws, and if not possible, break them. This was why the people constantly broke the laws. We, too, especially when we find some laws impractical, or not helpful to our convenience and happiness. Of course, laws are also broken primarily because we are selfish and self-centred. We want things our way, for our convenience and for our benefit. But in the New Covenant, as Jeremiah said, God will put His laws into our minds and write them on our hearts. This would be possible only with the bestowing of the Holy Spirit at His death and resurrection. St Paul said, “you show that you are a letter of Christ, prepared by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of letter but of spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Cor 3:3-5)
With the Holy Spirit of God dwelling in us, we will know God intimately in our hearts and minds. “I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts. Then I will be their God and they shall be my people. There will be no further need for neighbour to try to teach neighbour, or brother to say to brother, ‘Learn to know the Lord.’ No, they will all know me, the least no less than the greatest.” This explains why the laws of God are no longer extraneous to us. Like Christ, we can now say with Him, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Mt 5:17) This fulfilment comes when we obey the laws not out of fear or even obligation but out of love for our Lord and His people.
Fourthly, this New Covenant brings about the forgiveness of sins. Jeremiah wrote, “I will forgive their iniquities and never call their sins to mind.” Sins are forgiven through the sacrificial death of our Lord. Through His death on the cross, Christ paid for us the price of our sins. His death was the way in which He made reparation for our sins against God and restored the equilibrium of justice. He carried all our sins on Himself, like the holocaust used for sacrifice in the Old Testament for the atonement of their sins. “God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. We have been justified by his blood, we be saved through him from the wrath of God.” (Rom 5:8f) With our sins forgiven, we are given a new life purely by the grace of God. We are reconciled with Him. Unlike in the Old Covenant, the priests had to offer sacrifices again and again for their sins and the sins of the people. Jesus died once and for all for us and “he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (Heb 7:25)
As apostles and disciples who inherit this New Covenant, we are called to announce this Good News to all, like the apostles who were sent out. Indeed, “they were to be his companions and to be sent out to preach, with power to cast out devils.” They were sent out with a message to preach. Announcing the Good News requires that we are imbued with the teaching of our Lord, otherwise, we have no message to proclaim. This is why, the apostles were asked to be His companions. They need to keep company with Jesus, listening and following His example so that the heart and mind of Jesus would be imprinted in their hearts. Spending time with Jesus in intimacy and prayer, listening to Him, is the prerequisite for anyone who wants to share in the mission of our Lord in proclaiming the Good News.
Only when we are imbued with His love, and increase our faith in Him, can we proclaim the gospel with power. It is not enough to proclaim the message without signs and wonders. This was why Jesus did not simply send the apostles to proclaim but gave them the power to heal and to cast out devils. This is what we are called to do. This was what St Paul wrote, “My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.” (1 Cor 2:4f)
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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