God Is Doing A New Thing - Jeremiah: Week 35

Devotional

Day 1: Broken Cords and New Starts

Daniel yanked the lawnmower cord again. Grease stained his hands as the engine coughed and died. For years, he’d patched leaks and replaced parts, refusing to admit the machine’s time had passed. But when he finally bought a new mower, it started on the first pull. God told exiled Israel the same truth: clinging to broken systems wastes energy. The old covenant—like Daniel’s mower—couldn’t be fixed by human effort. [01:26]

God designed the law to reveal our inability to save ourselves. Like Israel, we often double down on self-repair through rituals or resolutions. But the new covenant isn’t about better behavior—it’s about surrender. Jesus didn’t come to upgrade Moses’ rules; He came to fulfill them.

What “old lawnmower” are you straining to fix today? A habit, a relationship, or a mindset that God says to release? Write down one thing you’ve tried to control. Where is Jesus inviting you to trust His newness instead?

“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah—not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers.”
(Jeremiah 31:31-32a, NKJV)

Prayer: Ask Jesus to show you one area where He wants to replace striving with surrender.
Challenge: Text a trusted friend: “I’m letting go of ______. Pray I embrace God’s new work.”

Day 2: When Sour Grapes Stop Blaming

Exiled Israelites grumbled, “Our fathers ate sour grapes, but our teeth are set on edge!” They blamed ancestors for their suffering. God interrupted their complaints: “Every man who eats sour grapes… his teeth shall be set on edge” (Jeremiah 31:30). No more excuses—each person would answer for their own choices. [19:02]

God’s justice never punishes children for parents’ sins. But His mercy also refuses to let us hide behind others’ failures. The new covenant demands honesty: we’re guilty, but Christ took our penalty. Freedom begins when we stop shifting blame and start confessing, “I chose this.”

Who or what do you secretly blame for your struggles—family, circumstances, or past hurts? Write their name or the situation. Then cross it out and write: “Jesus bore this. I take responsibility for my response.”

“In those days they shall say no more: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ But every one shall die for his own iniquity.”
(Jeremiah 31:29-30a, NKJV)

Prayer: Confess one specific sin you’ve excused as “someone else’s fault.”
Challenge: Apologize today to one person affected by that choice.

Day 3: Ink on Hearts, Not Stone

God promised, “I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts” (Jeremiah 31:33). No more chiseling commands on tablets. The new covenant would transform rebels into lovers—not through threats, but through the Spirit’s inner rewrite. [27:46]

Jesus fulfilled this by sending the Holy Spirit. Imagine a teenager obeying not from fear, but because they trust their father’s heart. God’s commands become desires when we know His love. Duty becomes delight when grace fuels our steps.

What rule feels heavy or joyless to you? Maybe tithing, forgiveness, or purity. Instead of gritting your teeth, pray: “Jesus, make me want what You want.” How might His love reshape your motivation?

“This is the covenant I will make with them… I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them.”
(Hebrews 10:16, NKJV)

Prayer: Thank Jesus for replacing duty with desire in one area of your walk.
Challenge: Memorize Psalm 37:4 and say it aloud when duty feels dry.

Day 4: God’s Forgetful Mercy

God vowed, “I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more” (Jeremiah 31:34). Not just pardoning, but purposeful forgetting. Unlike the old covenant’s repeated sacrifices, Jesus’ blood erased our debt permanently. [41:50]

We often rehearse past failures, but God treats forgiven sins like deleted files. When Satan whispers, “Remember when you…”, Christ intercedes: “I see only My righteousness in them.” The cross doesn’t make us sinless—it makes us clean.

What sin still haunts you? Write it on paper, then shred or burn it. Hear Jesus say, “This is gone. Walk free.” Will you trust His promise over your feelings?

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
(Hebrews 8:12, NKJV)

Prayer: Name one shameful memory. Ask Jesus to replace it with His declaration: “Cleansed.”
Challenge: Text a believer: “Jesus forgave you completely. What’s one lie He’s erased?”

Day 5: Unshakable Promises in Wobbly Times

God swore by the sun and stars: Israel would endure as long as creation (Jeremiah 31:35-37). Exiles feared extinction, but God’s plans outlast empires. The new covenant isn’t a flimsy truce—it’s backed by the universe’s Architect. [45:21]

Christians today face chaos: wars, scandals, and personal crises. But our hope isn’t in governments or gadgets. It’s in the God who sustains galaxies and guards His children. His promises are sturdier than steel.

What uncertainty keeps you awake? Write it below this truth: “The Lord of hosts says: ‘If heaven above can be measured… then I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all they have done’” (Jeremiah 31:37). How does His faithfulness steady you?

“Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day… ‘If those ordinances depart from before Me, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.’”
(Jeremiah 31:35-36, NKJV)

Prayer: Thank Jesus that His promises outlast your problems.
Challenge: Write “GOD’S YES > MY DOUBT” on your mirror. Share this truth with one person.

Sermon Summary

Jeremiah 31 unfolds as a sweeping announcement: God will enact a new covenant that repairs what the old covenant could not. The text moves from exile’s judgment to a promise of restoration, reconciliation, and a radical internal renewal. The present exile provides the backdrop for a covenant that will reunite divided Israel and Judah, repopulate the land, and restore a people to relationship with God. The new covenant stands in deliberate contrast to the Mosaic covenant; the previous agreement failed because outward obedience never reached inward loyalty. Rather than another round of temporary reforms, God promises a covenant that changes the root—writing the law on minds and hearts and enabling true obedience from within.

This inward change involves regeneration by the Holy Spirit: faith receives a new birth that transforms desire, thought, and practice. As the law moves from stone into the inmost being, knowledge of God becomes personal and accessible to every person “from the least to the greatest.” The covenant secures permanent forgiveness; sins are separated from the people and remembered no more, a reality tied to Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice and the Lord’s Supper language that identifies Jesus’ blood as the new covenant. The promise reaches forward into multiple fulfillments—immediate returns from exile, gospel unity in Christ, and final consummation in the end times—so that the covenant addresses present need and eschatological hope.

God also guarantees Israel’s preservation as a people and promises a rebuilt, holy city whose ultimate fulfillment exceeds any single historical rebuilding. The covenant issues sure and certain futures for God’s people, binds forgiveness and intimacy with God, and calls for personal accountability: each person must respond in faith, not blame ancestral sin. The invitation is urgent and clear—this is the covenant by which people become God’s people, and it requires trusting the one who inaugurates it. The call is to believe, to receive the new birth, and to live out the inward law with confidence in God’s enduring promises.

Key Takeaways

1. New covenant restores God's people God promises to reunite and rebuild a scattered people—physically and spiritually—so that Israel’s story moves from dispersion to restoration. That restoration includes repopulation of the land, reunion of north and south, and a future ingathering that finds full meaning in Christ’s work and the final consummation. This is not merely political rehabilitation but covenantal reconstitution under God’s lordship. [07:35]
2. Personal accountability precedes covenant acceptance The text rejects ancestral blame and insists each person bears responsibility for sin and faith. This clears the path for a fresh covenant by removing collective excuses and placing choice squarely before every heart. Authentic covenant relationship requires owning one’s sin and deciding to trust God personally. [19:02]
3. New covenant changes the heart God promises to put his law into minds and write it on hearts, signaling internal transformation rather than external compliance. Regeneration—the new birth by the Spirit—reorients desires so obedience flows from love, not mere rule-keeping. This internal law enables true knowledge of God and enduring moral renewal. [27:46]
4. Forgiveness becomes permanent in Christ The covenant includes decisive soteriological language: iniquity forgiven and sin remembered no more, grounded in the one sacrifice that fulfills the old sacrificial system. Jesus identifies his blood as the new covenant, making forgiveness once-for-all and reconciling people to God. That divine forbearance enables intimate fellowship and clears the barrier sin erected. [41:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:23] - God doing a “new” thing
[01:26] - The lawn mower illustration
[05:09] - Exile: the historical setting
[07:04] - Announcing the new covenant
[07:35] - Reconciliation and restoration promised
[19:02] - Personal accountability explained
[23:06] - Not like the Mosaic covenant
[27:46] - Regeneration: law on minds and hearts
[37:09] - Intimate fellowship with God
[41:50] - Permanent forgiveness in Christ
[44:57] - A sure, certain future for Israel
[52:24] - A rebuilt, holy Jerusalem
[60:57] - Invitation to trust Christ

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NKJV)
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, 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 put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

John 1:12-13 (NKJV)
“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Luke 22:20 (NKJV)
“Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.’”

Observation Questions

In Jeremiah 31:32, how does God contrast the new covenant with the old covenant made with Israel’s ancestors?
What specific actions does God promise to take in Jeremiah 31:33-34 to create a transformed relationship with His people?
According to John 1:12-13, what is required to become a “child of God,” and who enables this transformation?
How does Jesus’ statement in Luke 22:20 connect to the promises in Jeremiah 31?

Interpretation Questions

Why does Jeremiah emphasize personal accountability for sin (Jeremiah 31:29-30) as a foundation for the new covenant? How does this shift from collective blame to individual responsibility?
What does it mean practically for God’s law to be “written on hearts” instead of stone (Jeremiah 31:33)? How does this internal transformation differ from external rule-following?
The sermon mentions that God’s forgiveness in the new covenant is “permanent” because of Christ’s sacrifice. How does Jeremiah 31:34 (“I will remember their sin no more”) align with the idea of Jesus’ blood inaugurating this covenant (Luke 22:20)?
In John 1:12-13, why is being “born of God” necessary to become His child? How does this relate to the new covenant’s promise of regeneration?

Application Questions

Where in your life do you still rely on external rules or habits to feel “right with God” instead of trusting the internal transformation He promises? What step could you take to surrender that area to the Holy Spirit’s work? [27:46]
The sermon stresses personal accountability: “Each person must respond in faith, not blame ancestral sin.” Is there a situation where you’ve blamed others or circumstances for your spiritual struggles? How can you take ownership today? [19:02]
God’s promise to “remember sin no more” means we don’t have to live in shame. How might your life look different if you fully embraced this truth? What practical habit could remind you of this forgiveness daily? [41:50]
The new covenant guarantees a “sure and certain future” for God’s people. When facing uncertainty, how can you actively lean into this promise instead of fear? Share a recent example where this truth could have changed your response. [52:24]
The sermon invites people to “trust Christ” as the only way into the new covenant. Who in your life needs to hear this invitation? How can you compassionately share the hope of internal transformation and forgiveness with them this week? [01:00:57]

Sermon Clips

Having the law written on our hearts, on our inmost being is not speaking about having intellectual knowledge or actual verses that God places in our hearts. What it's speaking of is a transformed heart, a transformed attitude, and transformed behavior. Not superficial outward, oh, behavioral modification, friends, but this is talking about transformation from within. It is speaking of an obedience to God that doesn't is not just on the outside, but that comes on the inside. [00:29:39] (34 seconds) #HeartTransformation

God has given us everything we need to know at this point in time to respond to him in faith and to walk by faith. And so my question for you today is this, friends, will you trust Christ? The new covenant that God promised is instituted in him, and this is the covenant that God says he's gonna make forever. There's not another one coming. This is it. [01:00:40] (36 seconds) #TrustInChrist

The law in the old covenant revealed their sinfulness. It revealed their inability to fully keep the law. It does that to us too. Amen? Listen, there are many out there today that think that they by they can follow God's laws and they can be in a right relationship with God with that. Friends, listen, there are many pious people out there today who fall short And the bible says, you only gotta fall one short to be all short. [00:34:03] (33 seconds) #LawRevealsSin

In other words, you cannot do that. As much as you want to, you can't will yourself to do that. It is God. Now, so God changes the heart. Now, let me back up just a minute here. Why did God make this change in the new covenant? Why did he make this change? They were already given the law. They could live they all they had to do was live according to the law, and then they would be in right relationship with God. But friends, here's the problem with that. They broke the law. [00:33:10] (31 seconds) #GodChangesHearts

Jeremiah rejects that erroneous idea that they had kind of were using and as an excuse that God punishes one person for the sins of of another and says that each person will and must take responsibility for their own actions. No more blaming the fathers. Amen? Now, brings up a question. Pastor, why is this here? Seems kinda out of place. Why, is this in the text? Well, I believe it's here because it I believe it sets the stage for the new covenant by wiping the slate clean. [00:20:54] (36 seconds) #PersonalResponsibility

But friends, there will also be a day described in Revelation chapter 21 when the new Jerusalem will come down out of heaven to be the home of all those who are of the new covenant in Christ forever. Amen? Amen. And we have that new city to look forward to, the heavenly city Jerusalem that is often called in scripture Zion. [00:56:48] (22 seconds) #NewJerusalemHope

in the person of Jesus Christ stepped out of heaven, came to earth, lived a sinless life, never did anything wrong, did not deserve what was given to him, but willingly gave of himself on the cross for you and for me. Okay? And so that's how we learn. We learn what love is by what he did for us, and so when we accept him as our Lord and savior and trust him and and he becomes our God, then we learn what real love is. [00:32:17] (27 seconds) #JesusDefinesLove

And there's a miracle that goes on in our hearts, friends. Okay? And I I don't wanna get ahead of myself here. At least I don't think I'm getting yeah. Well, so there's a miracle that goes in our heart. And what is that miracle? A miracle is called regeneration. It's called the new birth, friends, and it happens at the moment of salvation and is done by none other than the holy spirit of God. [00:32:44] (25 seconds) #NewBirthBySpirit

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