"..Jesus has been given priestly work which is superior to theirs,..the covenant which he arranged between God and his people is a better one, because it is based on promises of better things. If there had been nothing wrong with the first covenant, there would have been no need for a second one..By speaking of a new covenant, God has made the first one old; and anything that becomes old and worn out will soon disappear." (Hebrews 8:6-13 GNB)

paradigm, paradigm shift - From the Greek word paradhma (paradigma),... a paradigm is simply the predominant worldview in the realm of human thought..A paradigm shift occurs when cultures transform their way of thinking from one thought system to another. For instance, prior to Copernicus and Galileo (ca. 1600), most people believed that astral bodies revolved around the earth (geocentrism); but after the Copernican Revolution (ca. 1600), it became obvious that the earth revolved around the sun (heliocentrism) -- thus, a major paradigm shift occurred from geocentrism to heliocentrism..Simply put, then, a paradigm shift is a pivotal change in humanity's way of thinking regarding a particular worldview.

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In this series, we have explored the old and new covenant and the need to start living in the new and not go back to the old(click here to read part 10). In practical terms, there is a large number of Christians who have woken up to the fact that we are no longer to follow the old covenant literally, and would consider they live under the new covenant. The reality is that they still live under the paradigm of the old, merely replacing the old covenant with a new variant of it. Here we explore this phenomenon.

I'm reminded of an incidence in my early childhood. I had my school bag on my shoulders, yet I went looking all over for it. I guess, it must have been rather light for me not to feel it. I was put out of my toil, when someone inquired if the bag I sought was like the one I was carrying. I dare say, I felt a bit foolish. Looking back at the incident, a few observations came to mind.

1. I already had what I was looking for right under my nose

2. Because I had it, I could not find it else where

3. I could not find it because I was looking for it in the wrong places

4. Because I had excluded my person from the list of possible locations, it never occurred to me to look there

5. It was an endless quest

6. It took an external observer to free me from my futile toil

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"..Jesus has been given priestly work which is superior to theirs,..the covenant which he arranged between God and his people is a better one, because it is based on promises of better things. If there had been nothing wrong with the first covenant, there would have been no need for a second one..By speaking of a new covenant, God has made the first one old; and anything that becomes old and worn out will soon disappear." (Hebrews 8:6-13 GNB)

paradigm, paradigm shift - From the Greek word paradhma (paradigma),... a paradigm is simply the predominant worldview in the realm of human thought..A paradigm shift occurs when cultures transform their way of thinking from one thought system to another. For instance, prior to Copernicus and Galileo (ca. 1600), most people believed that astral bodies revolved around the earth (geocentrism); but after the Copernican Revolution (ca. 1600), it became obvious that the earth revolved around the sun (heliocentrism) -- thus, a major paradigm shift occurred from geocentrism to heliocentrism..Simply put, then, a paradigm shift is a pivotal change in humanity's way of thinking regarding a particular worldview.

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In part 9 (click here to read it), we looked at the fact that trying to live under the old covenant was a backward step. Unfortunately, there is a tendency to want to do so.