My preacher got me started on a study of the Old Testament some time ago. He mentioned that I would likely find Jesus throughout the Old Testament if I prayerfully studied, and he was right.
You know, I never really took the time to consider why Jesus was throughout the Old Testament. I just knew he was there. I had never really taken the time to think about why it was so vital. It was just so clear that Jesus was throughout the Old Testament that I never stopped to wonder why until this week.
Without Jesus in the Old Testament, what would he have used to confirm who he was? All the works and miracles he did, including his death on the cross, burial, and resurrection, were foretold in the Old Testament; Psalms had 20 prophecies within its pages. Isaiah 53 chronicles Jesus’ life as well, but these two are just a small sample of His far-reaching presence in the Old Testament.
Without the Old Testament, how would Paul, or any of the Apostles, have proved the Gospel’s truthfulness? Realistically we need the Old Testament as much as the first-century church did; after all, Paul warned us to test everything against the Word.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 (ESV)
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.
What was there to test against but the Old Testament. Sure there were the Apostles’ teachings, but even as they delivered the good news on their missions, they used the scriptures. The scriptures we call the Old Testament. One of the examples that made this clear to me was Berea.
Berea – Acts 17
I watched a video this week that partly prompted this post. It was about Paul’s visit to Berea after fleeing Thessalonica. The presenter talked about the right way to look at Berea. He claimed that Berea demonstrated thoughtful humility of the Jews there. They did what we all should do; they trusted but verified.
The brothers of Thessalonica sent Paul and Silas there to get them out of their community to save their lives, but when they got there, Paul did what Paul always does. He started preaching, and that meant starting at the Synagogue. The process is laid out in Acts 17:10-12.
Acts 17:10-12 (ESV)
10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish Synagogue. 11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. 12 Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.
These folks did not merely trust Paul and believe him; they sought confirmation in the only place of absolute truth… The Word of God.
There were no letters from Paul or Peter or gospels written that they might use to confirm the truth of what they were hearing. They sought proof to support what they heard from Paul and Silas in the only scriptures they had… what we call the Old Testament.
I love the way that Luke describes the people of Berea and how they received the Gospel.
Acts 17:11 (ESV)
11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
And because of God’s Word and the teaching of His servants, Paul, and Silas, many believed, even Greeks. What an affirmation of God’s Word.
That was a powerful example for me, but another came to me as I was studying, and it was in Luke.
Luke 4
Jesus often referred to the scriptures as he taught. When he returned to His hometown and spoke at the Synagogue, He went to Isaiah. It is found in chapter four of Luke, beginning at the sixteenth verse.
Luke 4:16-21 (ESV)
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the Synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the Synagogue were fixed on him.21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
This proclamation came from Isaiah 61:1-2. He read it to those in the Synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth. Most, if not all, did not believe him. After all, Jesus was Joseph, the carpenter’s son. They were so mad they wanted to throw him off a cliff. But Jesus was not here to MAKE them believe but to fulfill what had been foretold in God’s Word.
Reflections
As I reflect on the Word of God and how seamlessly it is woven together from Genesis to Revelation, I cannot help but be humbled. I cannot look at these things and not see the absolute sovereignty of God.
The two passages that I focused on today are but a few that reveal Jesus in the Old Testament. The Old Testament is filled with foreshadows of Jesus and direct prophesy regarding Jesus. Just considering it all is almost overwhelming.
One closing thought I want to close with is Matthew 5:17-20. It was one of those things I call a God wink where the idea shows up, and it fits. Some would call it a coincidence, but I do not believe in coincidence.
Matthew 5:17-20 (ESV)
Christ Came to Fulfill the Law
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
I know some folks talk about how we do not need the Old Testament anymore. We have a new testament. I am afraid I have to disagree with that. Like the passages above, there is so much foretold about Jesus in the Old Testament. One of the favorites that remind me of Jesus and the Holy Spirit this morning comes from Jeremiah. It is so powerful.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 (ESV)
31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
What a tremendous promise from God to His chosen people, but he also promised it to the Gentiles in the Church age: first Jesus to his Apostles, Luke 22:20, then Paul, 1 Corinthians 11:25 and then the writer of Hebrews, 8:7-13, 10:14-17, 12:24, and 13:20.
These paths that we follow through God’s Word are essential to growing closer to Him. There is no verse that we do not need. Jesus showed us the value of His Word throughout his ministry. I thank the Lord for the glimpse He gave me this week.
Prayer
Father God, thank you for the insight you provide daily. Father, I pray a prayer of thanks today as I remember the Power and Importance of every piece of Your Word.
In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
Amen! Thanks, Dan, for the great reminder that Christ is clearly the focus and ultimate purpose of the Law, the Temple, the priesthood and the Old Covenant! Make it a great day in and for The Lord (1 Peter 3:15)!