Pastor John, as you know, Jeremiah 29 11 is a favorite passage for a lot of Christians. It's one of the most popular verses in the Bible, and it reads like this, quote, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope," end quote.

Pastor John, can a Christian legitimately lay claim of an Old Testament promise like this one? Why or why not? Yes, Christians can lay claim to this, and they do it because of Christ. And here's the way I see it fitting together. That promise was spoken by God through Jeremiah in Jeremiah 29.

Explicitly it says, "To the exiles in Babylon." If you start reading at the beginning of the chapter, they're in Babylon. Seventy years is going to pass, but a hope and a future are coming for them. And so we Christians, we Gentiles especially, go to it, and we love it because it holds out the prospect of not destruction for us, but life and hope and joy in the future.

Now, the reason we can do it is because at the Last Supper, Jesus lifted up the cup, which represented his blood, and he said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood." And when he said that, he meant, "When I die tomorrow morning and shed my blood on behalf of my people, I am securing for them all the new covenant promises that God has made." Everything that God meant to be fulfilled for his people Israel, now is going to be fulfilled in his people of the new covenant, so that not only Jews, but also Gentiles, through faith in the Messiah, become part of the covenant people of God, so that every promise can be laid hold on by Gentiles who are in the Messiah, in Christ Jesus.

And we know that because in 2 Corinthians 1, verse 20, Paul says, "All the promises of God are yes in Christ Jesus." And I think that's what's behind Romans 8, 32, "He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us, will he not with him, because of that sacrifice, give us all things freely?" And that would include all the promises that God made to his covenant people.

So there is an understanding of the flow of redemptive history that comes to a climax in Jesus, purchasing for all those who are in him as the head of this new covenant people, the promises of the Old Testament. So I love the verse, and I lay hold on it as a "Johnny-come-lately" Gentile, and I believe Christ has warranted that for me.

Thank you, Pastor John, and thank you for listening to this podcast. Please email your questions to us at AskPastorJohn@DesiringGod.org. At DesiringGod.org you'll find thousands of other free resources from John Piper. I'm your host Tony Reinke. Thanks for listening. (end) (music) (music)