To understand the New Covenant we begin with the Old Covenant. Summary: the Old Covenant was an agreement [a deal] between the God of Creation and Israel [the descendants of Abraham]. God promised to protect, to provide for, and to give honored status to Israel. Israel promised to obey God’s commandments, laws and judgments. If Israel failed to obey… blessings from God would stop and instead they would receive curses [punishments].Deuteronomy 5:29 God knew Israel would not be able to keep up their end of the deal. They did not have the heart and mind to obey. Through animal sacrifice He provided a temporary way for them to pay a penalty for sins and reconcile themselves to Him.That temporary setup of the Old Covenant was always intended to be upgraded to the everlasting system of the New Covenant. The perfect and complete sacrifice of Jesus Christ would proved the true saving power the temporary system of animal sacrifice could only hint at. Only through the receipt of the Holy Spirit the heart be transformed to love and obey God always.Ephesians 1:3-14 SPS: to give a comparison and contrast between the Old Covenant and the New itemizing key elements such as: promise, commandment, sacrifice, tabernacle, and priesthood.God’s word presents the New Covenant as BETTER… everlasting promises, heartfelt understanding of His commandments, a real and effective sacrifice instead of a placeholder, a perfect and all knowing priest with 24/7/365 access to both the presence of God and the believer.The goals are better and the means to accomplish them is also made better. The PromisesThe old covenant was framed around promises from God. If Israel would love and obey Him… He would be their God and bless them with land and crops, physical well-being and health, protection from their enemies.Numbers 26:53 the promise of the land in the old covenant was referred to as Israel’s inheritance. The land was to be their possession all the days of their lives and then passed on to their children. The covenant also included various laws and statutes to ensure the ownership of the land stayed in the family… the 50 year jubilee, laws of property boundaries etc. The idea was a permanent and lasting possession of material property.Exodus 23:25-26 the promise of physical well-being, long life, and plenty of children to carry on the family name was great… but you still end up dead. What ever joy and abundance God provided came to an end the day you died. The new covenant contains a better promise of resurrection to everlasting life and a place of honor within the family of God Himself. Currently, we are His begotten children but after our resurrection we will be brought into the family and given full rights and responsibilities… including our share in the possession of all things, because the God family owns all the universe. Ephesians 1:11 – eternal lifeRevelation 21:7 – all creationThe CommandmentsThe commandments and laws of God hold a key position in the framework of the covenant agreement. Israel promised to obey and do what God commanded in response to His offer of blessings and land.Exodus 24:7-8 signed the deal in blood. Exodus 31:19 God gave Moses 2 stone tablets personally inscribed with the commandments. These were to be placed within the ark as a witness to the terms of the covenant.The commandments represent the mind and will of God. They were inscribed on stone to create as permanent a record as we can achieve on our earth. But even that wasn’t enough. A law written on stones could only serve to inform about, or remind of, what constitutes sin. Such a presentation of God’s commandments was a condemnation of sin and the proscribed the penalty of death. Note: this is why the old covenant is referred to as a law of death… or as a guardian meant to keep the people fenced in until the appointed time when the new covenant would be introduced. Jeremiah 31:31-34 the commandments also hold a central place in the new covenant as much as the old. The