Why do you use the Old Testament so much?

Shayla: Why do you use the Old Testament so much?

Meforshim:

What benefit is the Old Testament (OT) to the Christian today? Is the Christian under the OT as a system of justification? Should the Christian look to the OT for guidance regarding the work, worship and organization of the Lord’s church? If not, why even bother with reading and studying the OT?

The New Testament is the pattern we follow for the establishment of Christianity wherever we are and is what most Christians emphasize today. But I don’t think we should simply disregard the OT. There are many ways in which the OT is helpful to us.

The OT is inspired by God.

First, I hold the thirty-nine books of the OT to be inspired of God. The OT documents claim to be the products of revelation.

Exodus 4:12 HCSB Now go! I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say."
2 Samuel 23:2-3 HCSB The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me, His word was on my tongue. (3) The God of Israel spoke; the Rock of Israel said to me, "The one who rules the people with justice, who rules in the fear of God,
Jeremiah 1:7-9 HCSB Then the LORD said to me: Do not say: I am only a youth, for you will go to everyone I send you to and speak whatever I tell you. (8) Do not be afraid of anyone, for I will be with you to deliver you. This is the LORD's declaration. (9) Then the LORD reached out His hand, touched my mouth, and told me: Look, I have filled your mouth with My words.

Note: The OT writers claim heavenly guidance more than 2,800 times. A claim alone, of course, is not sufficient for proof. Nonetheless, the assertion of inspiration must be acknowledged.

Jesus Christ agreed with the claims that the OT writings were from God.

Matthew 5:17-18 HCSB "Don't assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. (18) For I assure you: Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass from the law until all things are accomplished.
Matthew 22:31-32 HCSB Now concerning the resurrection of the dead, haven't you read what was spoken to you by God: (32) I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living."
Luke 24:44-45 HCSB Then He told them, "These are My words that I spoke to you while I was still with you--that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled." (45) Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

Note: Obviously the “Scriptures” had to mean the OT since the NT had not yet been written.

John 5:46-47 HCSB For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, because he wrote about Me. (47) But if you don't believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

The writers of the NT viewed the OT scriptures as inspired.

Luke 2:22-24 HCSB And when the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were finished, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord (23) (just as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male will be dedicated to the Lord) (24) and to offer a sacrifice (according to what is stated in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons).
2 Timothy 3:15 HCSB and that from childhood you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
2 Peter 3:2 HCSB so that you can remember the words previously spoken by the holy prophets, and the commandment of our Lord and Savior given through your apostles.

The astounding prophecies, the incredible unity, the uncanny accuracy – these circumstances (and much more) make an indisputable case for the divine nature of the OT.

The OT provides a history of Adonai’s progressive revelation.

While it is true that Christians are not under the OT law of sacrifices, neither were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Deuteronomy 5:2-3 HCSB The LORD our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. (3) He did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with all of us who are alive here today.

Hashem has been progressively revealing his will to humanity over the millennia. He began telling Adam and Eve that a Messiah would come as the “seed of a woman” (note that the Messiah was virgin born without the aid of a human father). Then He extended the Noahic covenant to Noah. He then revealed Himself as a caretaker to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Subsequently He extended an offer to save and rule the people of Israel. Finally, He extended the offer to all mankind to be ruled and saved by His Son. Each covenant was built upon the last. In each covenant some elements of the last were no longer required. However, many elements remained. Isn’t it interesting that when the Apostles were asked whether or not the Goyim were required to circumcise according to the Sinaiatic Law, they responded by limiting themselves to the Noahic covenant?

Acts 15:28-29 HCSB For it was the Holy Spirit's decision--and ours--to put no greater burden on you than these necessary things: (29) that you abstain from food offered to idols, from blood, from eating anything that has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these things, you will do well. Farewell.

And the deciding factor on a decision that would involve the day to day lives of NT believers? OT principles!

Acts 15:15-18 HCSB And the words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written: (16) After these things I will return and will rebuild David's tent, which has fallen down. I will rebuild its ruins and will set it up again, (17) so that those who are left of mankind may seek the Lord--even all the Gentiles who are called by My name, says the Lord who does these things, (18) which have been known from long ago.
Amos 9:11-12 HCSB In that day I will restore the fallen booth of David: I will repair its gaps, restore its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old, (12) so that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that are called by My name--this is the LORD's declaration--He will do this.
Isaiah 45:22-23 HCSB Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. For I am God, and there is no other. (23) By Myself I have sworn; Truth has gone from My mouth, a word that will not be revoked: Every knee will bow to Me, every tongue will swear allegiance.

Four principles of OT interpretation and application

Allow me to share four broad, general principles of interpretation and application that Adonaic Christians follow.

Anything directly fulfilled in the New Covenant needn’t concern us. For example the directive to circumcise all believing males (Genesis 17:9-14; Leviticus 12:1-3) has been specifically cancelled (Acts 15:6-21).

Anything directly involving sacrifice for salvation (Exodus 30:10) has been fulfilled in the one-time perfect sacrifice of the Messiah made for all (Hebrews 10:10-12). Therefore the laws on sacrifices for sins, though still instructive, do not apply to us.

Anything directly involved with the ritualistic worship that was part and parcel with the Tabernacle or the Temple are not required – there IS no Temple at this time. They will become relevant at some point in the future when the Temple is rebuilt, but not at this time. This is consistent with the laws that have always been on the books that a believer who was traveling out of country was not obliged to routinely go to the Temple for worship.

Anything designed to identify the differences between genetic Jews and genetic Goyim is no longer relevant because the Lord is presently attempting to make of the two one people (Ephesians 2:11-19).

The OT is a source of understanding of where we came from.

There remain, therefore, many advantages to the study of the OT. The OT teaches us where we came from. The early portion of the OT (e.g. the initial chapters of Genesis) provide a history of the origin of the universe and the commencement of mankind.

Genesis 1-2
Exodus 20:11 HCSB For the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy.
Mark 10:6 HCSB But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female.
Romans 1:20 HCSB From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse.

The OT teaches us what our purpose in life is. The sacred account also reveals that man’s purpose upon this globe is to serve the Creator, and therein is ultimate human happiness to be found.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 HCSB (13) When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. (14) For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
Isaiah 43:7 HCSB everyone called by My name and created for My glory. I have formed him; indeed, I have made him."

The OT gives us insight into the enemy.

The OT gives us insight into how our enemy the devil works.

Genesis 3:1-5 HCSB Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You can't eat from any tree in the garden'?" (2) The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. (3) But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, 'You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.'" (4) "No! You will not die," the serpent said to the woman. (5) "In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Job 1:6-12 HCSB One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them. (7) The LORD asked Satan, "Where have you come from?" "From roaming through the earth," Satan answered Him, "and walking around on it." (8) Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil." (9) Satan answered the LORD, "Does Job fear God for nothing? (10) Haven't You placed a hedge around him, his household, and everything he owns? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions are spread out in the land. (11) But stretch out Your hand and strike everything he owns, and he will surely curse You to Your face." (12) "Very well," the LORD told Satan, "everything he owns is in your power. However, you must not lay a hand on Job himself." So Satan went out from the LORD's presence.

The OT reveals our need for a Savior and King.

The OT also delineates man’s fall into sin, setting the stage for a proper understanding of our need for salvation and clarifying why the Messiah had to die.

Genesis 3:1-5 HCSB Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You can't eat from any tree in the garden'?" (2) The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. (3) But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, 'You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.'" (4) "No! You will not die," the serpent said to the woman. (5) "In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Romans 3:23 HCSB For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 5:12 HCSB Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all men, because all sinned.
Romans 6:23 HCSB For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It teaches us that sin is a transgression of the law of God.

1 John 3:4 HCSB Everyone who commits sin also breaks the law; sin is the breaking of law.

Even though the human conscience provides man and woman with a sense that there is a “right” and “wrong”, the conscience is not sufficient to define the nature of transgression. Hence a written law was provided to the Israelite people to codify sin, to sharpen human awareness of the character of rebellion against god. Paul declared that he would not have known sin except through the law. The law threw a floodlight on sin, revealing it as exceedingly evil.

Romans 7:7 HCSB What should we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin if it were not for the law. For example, I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, You shall not covet.
Romans 7:13 HCSB Therefore, did what is good cause my death? Absolutely not! On the contrary, sin, in order to be recognized as sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment sin might become sinful beyond measure.
Galatians 3:19-21 HCSB Why the law then? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise was made would come. The law was ordered through angels by means of a mediator. (20) Now a mediator is not for just one person, but God is one. (21) Is the law therefore contrary to God's promises? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly be by the law.

In fact, it has been my personal experience that those who are most avid at setting aside the OT and, according to their understanding of the term, “living by grace” have usually winked at or excused sin.

The OT is an apologetic resource in regards to prophecy.

But knowledge of sin, with no remedy in sight, provides only misery. Consequently humanity needed to know that the merciful Creator had a provision for dealing with the human sin problem. Therefore, the key word that describes the design of the OT writings is “preparation.” Everything recorded in these narratives is ultimately preparation; preparation for the coming of a sacrifice to atone for man’s sin. This fact compels me to focus on the evidentiary nature of the OT, as it foreshadows the coming Christ.

In his Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy (New York: Harper and Row, 1973, pp. 645-650), Professor J. Barton Payne catalogued a total of 3, 348 Bible verses that prophetically pertain to the life of Christ. This represents almost 10% of the 31,124 biblical verses. The astounding prophetic details relative to Jesus of Nazareth, identifying Him as the promised Messiah, as the Son of God, can be resisted only by the most willfully stubborn.

2 Corinthians 3:14-16 HCSB (14) But their minds were closed. For to this day, at the reading of the old covenant, the same veil remains; it is not lifted, because it is set aside only in Christ. (15) However, to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts, (16) but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.

The OT can guide our worship.

The OT is a valuable source of devotional material. The OT documents are rich in wonderfully thrilling details about the nature of the great God of the universe. Those who immerse their souls in the lyrics of the 150 songs that collectively constitute the book of Psalms will be refreshed with a level of devotion that challenges us to rise above the common plateau of superficiality that is characteristic of so many professed disciples.

Psalms 119:15-16 HCSB I will meditate on Your precepts and think about Your ways. (16) I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.

The OT is a source of moral and spiritual lessons.

The literature of the OT abounds with examples of obedience and disobedience, and the rewards and penalties associated with each. The NT specifically points to these as containing lessons from which we can learn.

Romans 15:4 HCSB For whatever was written before was written for our instruction, so that through our endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we may have hope.

Paul had just appealed to a messianic prophecy in the OT.

Romans 15:3 HCSB For even the Messiah did not please Himself. On the contrary, as it is written, The insults of those who insult You have fallen on Me.

With that in mind, note carefully what Paul said in Romans 15:4. Things “written before” (i.e. the OT) were “written for our instruction”. The OT was written and preserved especially for NT believers’ benefit! The OT provides “patience and comfort” that we “might have hope”! It provides a record of Hashem’s faithfulness; it shows how He kept His promises to Abraham and the people of Israel, to judge the wicked and avenge the righteous, to forgive the penitent and to protect the humble. As we read this history of God’s dealings with Israel, it gives us hope that God will keep His promises to us!

Again, the OT was written for our admonition.

1 Corinthians 10:6 HCSB (6) Now these things became examples for us, so that we will not desire evil as they did.
1 Corinthians 10:11 HCSB (11) Now these things happened to them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us, on whom the ends of the ages have come.

Note carefully what Paul said. The events described may have happened to Israel, but they were written for OUR admonition on whom the ends of the ages have come. Again, what we call the OT was written and preserved especially for the benefit of Christians!

The OT contains countless examples of divine principles that are timeless in their application (consider for example the book of Proverbs). These are helpful to God-seeking people in any age or in any culture.

Proverbs 1:1-7 HCSB The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: (2) For gaining wisdom and being instructed; for understanding insightful sayings; (3) for receiving wise instruction in righteousness, justice, and integrity; (4) for teaching shrewdness to the inexperienced, knowledge and discretion to a young man-- (5) a wise man will listen and increase his learning, and a discerning man will obtain guidance-- (6) for understanding a proverb or a parable, the words of the wise, and their riddles. (7) The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

So we shouldn’t be surprised to see how often the NT writers appealed to the OT in instructing believers as in:

Paul: Romans 12:19-21; 1 Corinthians 10:1-11; 2 Corinthians 6:16-7:1; 9:7-10

Author of Hebrews: Hebrews 3:12-19

James: James 2:20-26; 5:7-11

Peter: 1 Peter 3:8-12; 2 Peter 2-3

The OT can lead one to salvation in Christ!

2 Timothy 3:14-15 HCSB But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing those from whom you learned, (15) and that from childhood you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Paul noted that Timothy had known the “sacred Scriptures” since childhood. When Timothy was a child, the only scripture available was the OT so Paul clearly had the OT in view when he made this statement. He said the OT is “able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” How is that possible? The OT provides instruction on:

The fall of man and the rise of sin.
The background and development of God’s redemptive plans.
Hundreds of Messianic prophecies which describe what to expect when He came.

One cannot hope to fully understand certain books of the NT like Hebrews without an understanding of the Levitical priesthood, or like Revelation without an understanding of OT prophecy and apocalyptic literature. If we want to be wise concerning our salvation in the Messiah, it is imperative we study the OT!

Paul went on to state that ALL Scripture, including the OT is profitable.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 HCSB All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, (17) so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

From the OT we may learn…

Doctrine – such as the nature of God, man, sin and Satan
Reproof and correction – the need for repentance
Instruction in righteousness – what it means to live a godly life.

Therefore, to not read and study the OT is to deprive one’s self of much admonition, learning, wisdom and instruction that Hashem clearly intended for his children! Should one study only those Scriptures that pertain to the covenant or “dispensation” under which they live as so many claim? If so, the Jews should have discarded everything from Genesis through the first fourteen chapters of Exodus! And we should discard the Gospels, since Jesus lived, taught and died under the Old Covenant!

No, obviously we must not ignore the OT for it provides the background and setting for the NT along with much in the way of admonition, learning, case history, comfort, hope, devotional life and even saving faith in the Messiah. I find it interesting that when the disciples were despairing the Master used the OT as a source of hope and instruction concerning His atoning work and Messianic character.

Luke 24:25-27 HCSB He said to them, "How unwise and slow you are to believe in your hearts all that the prophets have spoken! (26) Didn't the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory?" (27) Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted for them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

I believe it to be a telling characteristic, a sad statement on the heart, that many would cast aside a potential resource that the Master and the Apostles used so widely and often! We must be careful not to neglect what was written and preserved for OUR benefit.

Romans 15:4 HCSB For whatever was written before was written for our instruction, so that through our endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we may have hope.
1 Corinthians 10:11 HCSB (11) Now these things happened to them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us, on whom the ends of the ages have come.