The Spirit vs. the Law

March 5, 2024

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between the old and new covenants?  There are many similarities between the two.  They both came from God, they are both glorious, they both show us how God wants us to live, they both require obedience.  But what are the differences between them? 

Something radically changed when God instituted the new covenant, and in the third chapter of 2 Corinthians, Paul highlights the sharp contrast between the two.  He writes, “…our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Corinthians 3:5b-6 NASB95)   The first difference we see is that the old covenant was “of the letter,” but the new is “of the Spirit.”  This is a major distinction, for the letter of the Law brought death, but the Spirit of God is able to make us alive.

Paul continues, “But if the ministry of death, in letters engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face, fading as it was, how will the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory?  For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of righteousness abound in glory.” (2 Corinthians 3:7-9 NASB95) The old covenant was “the ministry of death.”  It was very glorious, but it killed those who were under it.  The old covenant was “the ministry of condemnation.” The people under it were condemned because, under a system of law, only those who keep the letter of the law flawlessly will be deemed righteous by God.  In sharp contrast, the new covenant—the ministry of the Spirit—is much more glorious than the old and is actually able to impart righteousness to those who are under it.

Finally, while the old covenant was written on stone tablets, in the new covenant, God writes His laws in our minds and hearts by His Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:3, Hebrews 8:10) Because of this, under the new covenant there can be a real, inward transformation of our hearts and lives.  It is not simply external obedience to a written code (as was the view of many Israelites under the Law), but obedience from a heart that has been cleansed and renewed by God.  As we see at the end of chapter three, “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18 NASB95) What a wonderful thought!  What hope this verse gives us!  In the new covenant, you and I are being transformed by the Spirit who dwells within us.  God is working on our hearts to transform us into the image of His Son, as we behold His glory.

Thanks be to God for His new covenant in which we can find true life, righteousness, and inner transformation.

—Scott Colvin

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The Dangers of Dismissing the Holy Spirit

December 1, 2023

There is a lot of confusion in the church about the Holy Spirit.  Many questions arise, such as:  Is the Spirit a personal being or just some impersonal force?  Is the Spirit divine?  Does the Spirit help us in some way today?  What is His function, exactly?  What about miraculous gifts?  Does the Spirit actually dwell within us?  These are all important questions that should be asked, and answers should be sought. 

The scriptures make it clear that a reliance on the Spirit is critical to the spiritual health of both the church as a whole and of each individual Christian.  Despite this fact, there are some in the church today who downplay the role of the Spirit.  Some have claimed that the Spirit is not really doing anything today.  Some have claimed that the Spirit of God does not actually dwell in us today in any real sense.  We must carefully search the word of God to form our understanding of the Spirit.  Some are not forming their views of the Spirit on a careful study of the word, but on a counterreaction to certain misguided views held by the Pentecostal/charismatic movements.  Forming our views of scripture on a reaction to what others are teaching is no way to go about finding truth!   We must let the word of God speak for itself and let it shape our thinking.  Some who downplay the role of the Spirit do so because of their desire for simple, black and white teachings that can be easily understood.  But the fact is, there are some things in scripture that are difficult to understand (2 Peter 3:15-16), and there are many, many things in the scriptures that will far exceed our ability to fully comprehend.  Afterall, we are dealing with God.  His ways are far above our ways.  Why should we think that we could ever fully understand nature of God and His Spirit?  And yet, we sometimes try to put God in a box of our own making.

The effects of downplaying the role of the Holy Spirit are devastating.  Some minimize the work of the Spirit and then wonder why there is so much spiritual weakness in the church.  But it is the Spirit who brings power into our lives (Ephesians 3:16).  It is the Spirit who brings transformation (2 Corinthians 3:18).  Some minimize the work of the Spirit and then wonder why we’re not reaching the lost like we should.  But it is the Spirit who will convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgement (John 16:8).  Some have done their best to remove the Spirit’s presence from the church and then wonder why so many congregations are dying out and closing their doors.  But when the Spirit is pushed out of the temple of God (the church), what should we expect to happen?

May we always strive to hold fast to a biblical view of the Holy Spirit.  May the Lord continue to bless us, transform us, and impart life to us through the Spirit whom He has given.

—Scott Colvin

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