The Mosaic Covenant In Christ

As God ushers in a covenant with Israel in Exodus 19, He wants to establish right off the bat Who had done the real work of grace, mercy and kindness. God’s covenants always flow in a downward direction. We bring nothing to the table that God needs.

Conditional covenants always have rules required to follow. That is what makes them conditional. We must remember that the covenant of law through Moses was a conditional or religious covenant. Every covenant in Scripture is structured the same way with one difference, depending on whether the covenant was a conditional covenant or un-conditional covenant.

All Biblical Covenants involved 4 parts:

1. The parties in treaty

2. The specified terms

3. The blessing or keeping of the covenant

4. The penalty for breaking the covenant

The Mosaic covenant was a conditional covenant:

1. The Parties in Treaty: God and Jacob’s (or Israel’s) descendants

2. The Specified Terms: The Book of the Law

3. The Blessing: God’s presence and favor

4. The Penalty for breaking: the Legal Payment of Blood

This Mosaic covenant allows us to see the path of disobedience that made necessary a new covenant in Christ. When we see Israel’s failures, we should also look to see our own failures. When we see Israel’s failures, we should look to see Christ’s victories.

The Blood Of The Covenant

The New Covenant:

1. The Parties in Treaty: God and his church

2. The Specified Terms: perfection according to God’s law

3. The Blessing of the Covenant: God’s presence and favor through the Holy Spririt

4. The Penalty for breaking the covenant was covered through Christ’s blood shed on the cross as payment.

   
   

The blood of the covenant covered Israel, but the blood of the New Covenant covers believers today in Christ’s church. God’s new covenant kindness toward us should call us to a higher standard of living in response.

Imagine a child who has spent their early years in a broken, abusive home—neglected, mistreated, unloved. One day, a kind and wealthy family adopts them. They don’t just give the child a roof over their head; they give them their own name, a new room, new clothes, a seat at the dinner table, and—most importantly—a deep, abiding love. They treat the child not as a guest, but as their own. Now imagine that after all this, the child begins to live exactly as they did before—stealing, lying, lashing out, running away. The parents don’t stop loving them, but they are heartbroken. They say, “You don’t have to earn our love—it’s already yours. But now that you bear our name, we want you to live in a way that reflects who you are now.”

God didn’t wait until we had our act together to save us. Romans 2:4 says it’s His kindness that leads us to repentance. He adopted us while we were still sinners and gave us His name—sons and daughters of the King. But that kindness isn’t a license to continue in sin; it’s a call to a new life. Grace doesn’t lower the standard—it raises it. We don’t pursue holiness to earn God’s love; we pursue holiness because we've already received it. Our lives become a reflection of His mercy.