Hebrews 8:8; 10 (ESV)
Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, … For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
New way – totally.
One way – Jesus.
Old way – the ancient path.
When we merge the three, what does that entail?
The rapid changes that are coming our way inevitably put us at the crossroad(s). Knowing that we need to seek the ancient path, the one way which is through Christ as we are confronted by the new, we need to understand fully what is the ancient path. There is wisdom in the saying, Old is Gold. I am not referring to mere traditions, man-made laws which are rigid and irrelevant to changing times and cultures.
To appreciate the word, “ancient” and “good way” – let’s see from the original language of the Old Testament, Hebrew. Olam (ancient) – means “old, concealed, hidden, timeless, eternal.” Ancient is a preserved element, carefully stored up for eternity or has eternal value. Tov (good way) – denotes “pleasant, agreeable, happy, well off, prosperous, great, excellent, cheerful, merry, distinguished.” So put together, the ancient path refers to the preserved route which is set for eternity, and bears the distinct goodness and excellency.
When we choose the ancient path, we enter the covenant with God. That good road we embark is established not on dirt, grass, or tar. The road is the place of abundance founded in the rock of our salvation. The psalmist reminds us, “…you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.” (Psalm 66:12)
Bearing the covenant with God sealed us with his laws in our mind and written in our heart. Our heart is a complex, yet interesting component which is not just a vital organ to sustain our physical life. The heart is the expression of the essence of the person. Thus, with his laws written in our heart, the content of which that flows out shall be of his righteousness and truth. We stay content in God. The Holy Spirit controls our mind and heart. Naturally we enter into the agreement with God. We align and cooperate with him in this ancient path, which grants us rest. We are warned sternly of the negative repercussions of not walking in this path. (Read Hosea 4:6 and Jeremiah 18:12-15)
The merging of the new way, one way and old way is a strong call and command for us to make a covenant with God, receive contentment in him, be controlled by the Holy Spirit and cooperate with God for his perpetual purposes stamped from and for eternity.
“Father, I am in the covenant with you. No matter what the world tells me, I believe in this ancient path which is good and great. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
© Pr Selina Khoo Lim, Gateway City Church, Penang. 24 April 2020