Reading 1
Jer 31:31-34
The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel
and the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers:
the day I took them by the hand
to lead them forth from the land of Egypt;
for they broke my covenant,
and I had to show myself their master, says the LORD.
But this is the covenant that I will make
with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD.
I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives
how to know the LORD.
All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD,
for I will forgive their evildoing and remember their sin no more.
Gospel
Mt 16:13-23
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi
and he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Then he strictly ordered his disciples
to tell no one that he was the Christ.
From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples
that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly
from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.
Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him,
“God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”
He turned and said to Peter,
“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
Meditation: Jeremiah 31:31-34
“I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel.” (Jeremiah 31:31)
It’s pretty amazing that God would offer the Israelites a new covenant, considering how poorly they kept the first one. But that’s just the way he is. He loves us too much to leave us to our own devices. What’s more, this new covenant is still in effect today—and for all of us, not just the children of Israel. Looking back at history, we can see that this new covenant found its ultimate fulfillment in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
So what is this new covenant? And how is it better than the first one?
First of all, it is a promise of the forgiveness of our sins. Under the first covenant, blood from sacrificial animals was used to atone for the people’s sinful acts. In the new covenant, it is Jesus’ own blood that has cleansed us. And this cleansing is internal, both forgiving our sinful acts and cleansing our consciences as well (Hebrews 9:11-14).
Secondly, it is God’s promise to write his law on our hearts, not just on tablets of stone. This means that God’s ways and his will can be woven into the very fabric of who we are, affecting our every thought, word, and action. It means that we can be transformed more and more into the image of the Lord!
Finally, the new covenant promises that all of us, from the least to the greatest, can know the Lord—and know him deeply and personally. It means that we can have a relationship with God. We can know the way he thinks and how he feels and not just rely on ancient stories about him.
If we put all this together, we can see that because of this new covenant, we can live a new, Spirit-filled life! Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can find the grace to obey God’s commands. We can discover a new intimacy with the Lord in prayer. And we can find a new courage to reach out to others with the message of the gospel.
So what are you waiting for? Place your faith in God’s promises, and watch as the new covenant unfolds in your life today.
“Jesus, I rejoice in all that you have done for me. Let my joy be contagious today, so that everyone might come to know you as Savior, Lord, and Friend.”
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