(Hebrews 8:13)…..In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. The Old Covenant was an agreement between God and the children of Israel. We have the record of it in the Old Testament. The New Covenant is an agreement between God and Jesus Christ. Therefore it includes all who are united with Jesus Christ, or as the Bible says, all those who are “in Christ.” The name we give to the 27 books of the Bible from Matthew through Revelation is the New Testament. However, these books are not as a whole called the New Covenant, but rather reveals it and explains it. So when did the New Covenant start if it didn’t start with (Matthew 1:1)? The New Covenant did not start until after the death of Jesus Christ. For it was sealed by the precious blood of Jesus paying the price for the complete remission of sins for all who believe in Him.
Jesus himself said the New Covenant involved His blood being shed.(Matthew 26:28)…..”For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. The book of Hebrews also sheds light on the fact that the New Covenant could not begin until after the death of Jesus Christ. (Hebrews 9:14-17)…..How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, in order that since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. For where a covenant is, there must of necessity be the death of the one who made it. For a covenant is valid only when men are dead, for it is never in force while the one who made it lives.
The entire earthly ministry of Jesus happened under the Old Covenant and was directed only to Israel (Matthew 15:24) (Romans 15:8). When Jesus first sent out His disciples He told them to only go to the people of Israel (Matthew 10:5-6). After Jesus’ resurrection, His disciples were sent out to proclaim His gospel to all nations (Matthew 28:19) (Mark 16:15). So every word spoken by Jesus before His resurrection was spoken before the New Covenant existed. We have to remember when we are reading the four gospels that Jesus was talking to people under the Old Covenant, not the New Covenant. For example, in (Matthew 19:16) the rich young ruler asked Jesus what to do so he could have eternal life. Jesus’ answer in (Matthew 19:17) to “keep the commandments” is much different than the answer in (Acts 16:31) which says simply to “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved,” or (1 John 5:13) which says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order the you may know that you have eternal life.
Under the Old Covenant, keeping the commandments was required as the way to have good standing with God. Under the New Covenant, good standing with God is a gift which comes with placing ones faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 5:17-18) (2 Corinthians 5:21) (1 John 5:11). Eternal life is not gained under the New Covenant by “keeping commandments” but as a gift. This is why Jesus came, to bring in a New Covenant established on better promises (Hebrews 8:6). This New Covenant includes right standing with God as a free gift through our union with Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord! Praise Him for what the New Covenant has done for those who have faith in Jesus Christ, (Hebrews 10:16-17)…..”This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.