"Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt;

because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord; For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind and hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his brother, saying, know the Lord: For all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." Hebrews 8:9-12

"And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and will give them an heart of flesh:  that they may walk in my statutes and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

But as for them whose heart walketh  after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord God." Ezekiel 11: 19-21

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one, much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ.

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." Romans 5: 17-19

The new covenant of God with mankind is the covenant of grace. That is, the unmerited favor or kindness of God towards mankind, in order to bring them to the inheritance of his kingdom.

God having known and proven that the ordinary man could not and cannot keep his commandments, as entrenched in the old covenant, eventually cancelled the old covenant. And gave us a gracious new one, through the death of his only begotten son Jesus Christ by his divine Love (agape) for mankind (John 3: 16).

In this new covenant, God himself promises anyone who believes on his only begotten son (whom he sent into the world to die for the sins of mankind) that he himself will put his commandment in his/her heart, and cause or help the person to keep his commandments by his Holy Spirit.

And also, as they walk with the help of his Holy Spirit to keep his commandments, if they err, he will be merciful to them.

Hence, in this new covenant, immediately you honestly from your heart, accept Jesus as your Lord and personal savior, you will receive forgiveness of all your sins through the shared blood of Jesus. And instantly, God will give you his righteousness and eternal life as free gift.

And as you submit to this righteousness, you will gain supernatural power or dominion over every form of sin. This submission to the spirit of righteousness given to the person that is born again, is what is called: walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16), Walking in the newness of life (Romans 6:4), Being led by the Spirit (Galatians 5:18), Sanctification (1Thessalonians 4: 3) and Holiness.

And as you submit yourself to the direction of the Holy Spirit, if you eventually stumble and sin, God says he will be merciful unto your unrighteousness, that is, he will forgive all your sins. So as you walk with the Spirit of God and eventually err; as you acknowledge your sin and ask for forgiveness, God will definitely forgive you, no matter the magnitude of the sin.

If you're walking with God in terms of this his new covenant, you're said to be under grace and not under law (Galatians 5:18).

And the Lord also says, if you're under grace, which is also called the law of Faith (Romans 3: 27) you will never come under any condemnation, either now or after death or at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 8:1).
With all these said, does grace now give anyone license to sin? The answer is NO! On the contrary, this grace empowers you to keep all the commandments of God. Including the Ten Commandments and much more -- that God will give to you, through his Holy Spirit that is in you (Romans 3:31).

How Then Can I Know Who Is Under Grace?

Anybody can claim to be under grace, but according to our Lord Jesus Christ, we shall know them by their fruits. The Bible says in 1John 3:7 "Little children let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he (Jesus) is Righteous".

So, if someone is truly under the grace of this new covenant, and is actually submitted to the Spirit or walking in the Spirit, the fruits of the Spirit must be seen in him or her (Galatians 5: 22-23). The person will naturally hate unrighteousness.

While on the other hand, we can know who is not under grace, by the works of the flesh as enumerated in Galatians 5: 19-21. So if you see someone who is manifesting the works of the flesh, and as you try to correct him, he tells you that what he or she is doing doesn't matter because he /she is under grace, rebuke him and tell him that he is a liar.

Because grace does not celebrate or embrace sin. And according to the scriptures, anyone who indulges in the works of the flesh, in the name of grace or because he is not born again, will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:21). And certainly, if he does not inherit the kingdom of God, he will definitely have his part in hell and in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone.

There is no two ways about that (Revelations 21: . By the works of the law shall no flesh be justified (Romans 3:20); and at the same time, by the works of the flesh shall no man live or inherit the Kingdom of God (Romans 8: 13; Galatians 5:19-21)).

Remain Blessed!

Emeke Odili