who also made us sufficient as ministers of
the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills,
but the Spirit gives life.
- 2 Corinthians 3.6
God made us 'ministers of the new covenant.' This is, of
course, as opposed to the old covenant. It is only of the Lord that we have the
sufficiency to serve in this new covenant.
The old covenant, under the Law, was a covenant that stuck to
the letter of that law. Its purpose was to point out that under it we are under
the penalty of death. The letter of the Law could only ever lead to death.
But the new covenant is the covenant of the spirit. The
covenant of the spirit is the spirit of the gospel. It is the spirit of the gospel
that gives life. The old covenant and its ministers had a purpose. The purpose
was to show us our own powerlessness to please God. It showed us we are
sinners, and its end is only death.
Only God could empower us to minister the gospel that brings
eternal life. His Holy Spirit gives the hope of eternal life and gives us strength
to share it.
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