I was on my way to Vero Beach from Orlando last Wednesday. I stopped off at Cracker Barrel to talk to Peter Lord , a man who helped change my life 17 years ago. He's a lion in winter - his wife is sick and he is slowing down. But his mind is still sharp. He said some provocative things about the Old and New Testaments and followed up with the email below.

Seth here are my feelings about the new testament. First of all the closest equivalent word to testament is CONTRACT.

HERE are some of the differences between a love and work contract.
Work contract demands equality.
Love contracts do not - when a millionaire marries a pauper the pauper is a millionaire.

THERE are two kinds of contracts - A LOVE AND A WORK. THE NEW IS A LOVE.
A work contract demands EXACTNESS. A love contract FAITHFULNESS.
A WORK CONTRACT IS BUILT ON distrust while a love is built on TRUST.
A WORK CONTRACT has boundaries, covers only a certain thing. A love contract includes all.

All contracts have the following in common.
Someone offers them.
They offer benefts to be had.
They have certain requirements to be kept.
There are penalties when the requirement are not kept There is a signing up ceremony. In the old it was circumcision and the new BAPTISM.

ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT POINTS IS WHAT DID ONE HAVE TO DO TO STAY IN GOOD WITH GOD IN EACH COVENANT.

IN THE OLD -KEEP THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.
IN THE NEW - OBEY THE LEADERSHIP OF Holy Spirit / DO WHAT Lord Jesus Christ ASKS.

THIS HAS IN SOME WAYS AIDED ME IN THE READING AND MEDITATION OF SCRIPTURE.
IN THE NEW I AM READING God'S LOVE LETTER TO ME, NOT ANOTHER SET OF LAWS.

God BLESS YOU,

Peter Lord.