THE TRUTH ABOUT CHRISTIAN TRADITION

 

Chapter 5

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The Old Testament Points to Jesus: Our Lamp

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Text

2 Tim. 3:14-17 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

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All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

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Memory Verse

​2 Cor. 3:15 (NIV) Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.

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Introduction

God gave Israel the Old Covenant first. But it was always meant to point forward to something better - Jesus and the New Covenant (Heb. 8:7-8).

 

You cannot mix them. Jesus said you do not put new wine in old wineskins (Mark 2:22). The Old Covenant focused on physical blessings, sacrifices, and rules. The New Covenant focuses on spiritual blessings, mercy, and life in the Spirit (Eph. 1:3-4; Heb. 9:15).

 

That said, whilst the Old Covenant has been superseded, this does not mean that we can ignore the Old Testament, the books from Genesis to Malachi. The Old Testament contains many treasures, to enable us to know and love God and understand His plan of redemption.

 

Objective

To understand that whilst we do not keep the Old Covenant for salvation (Gal. 2:16), we do study the whole book for Jesus, because the whole book is Jesus, the Word of God.

 

Presentation

 

1. The ‘Old Testament’ vs The ‘Old Covenant’

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The Old Testament

In referencing the ‘Old Testament’, we mean the books from Genesis to Malachi (the ‘law and the prophets’), including books such as the Psalms.

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The Old Testament points to Jesus Christ, who is our foundation (Isa. 28:16).

He is the Word of God (John 1:1), by whom we live (the ‘bread of life’). And the Word of God - by whom we live - includes the Old Testament.            Therefore we cannot ignore it!

 

The Old Testament contains much hidden treasure. For example,

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• it reveals the character and ways of God - the things in which He delights (righteousness, justice and lovingkindness / mercy (Jer. 9:24)), and the things in which he does not delight and even hates (examples being the shedding of innocent blood; and the blood of bulls, lambs and goats (Prov. 6:16-19, Isa. 1:11, Isa. 66:3-4));

• it exhorts us to choose the things in which He delights and not to choose those in which He does not delight (Isa. 65:11-12, Isa. 66:3-4);

• it reveals His power (Ex. 9:16, Ps. 68:28);

• it sets out His Standard of holiness and acceptable worship;

• it defines “strange fire” (Lev. 10:1) and unacceptable worship (1 Ki. 12:32-33);

• it sets out everything that the children of Israel did that displeased God, as a warning to us upon whom “the ends of the ages have come” (1 Cor. 10:11);

• it sets out the law, “our schoolmaster” (Gal. 3:24) without which we would not know what sin is (Rom. 7:7);

• it shows us that we need a Redeemer which He would provide (Gen. 22:8, Job 19:25-27);

• it sets up a prophetic timeline for the revelation of the Redeemer, Jesus Christ;

• it shows us via the calendar of Feasts (Lev. 23) His plan of redemption and reconciliation to Him, and teaches us about the harvest ‘of souls’ – the barley harvest, the wheat harvest and the vintage;

• it shows us by prophecy the things to come, and warns us that judgment will surely come upon us if we continue to transgress;

• it shows us that He does not willingly afflict the children of men (Lam. 3:33);

• it reveals His mercy and invites us to turn to Him (Isa. 55:7);

• it tells us that man lives by every word that comes out of the mouth of God (Deut. 8:3), which is the bread for our souls (Jesus being that ‘true’ bread, from heaven) and teaches us to know His voice;

• it tells us about the structure of the heavens and the earth, and about the firmament which shows God’s handiwork (Ps. 19:1);

• it tells us that the moon is for appointed times - “moedim” (Ps. 104.19), and that in the days of Noah, months had 30 days (Gen. 7:11, 8:3-4);

• it tells us that in scripture, days are numbered, not named after pagan gods whose names should not be heard on our lips (Ex. 23:13);

• it gives us comfort via the Psalms and other writings;

• it teaches us to fear the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10).

 

The character of God does not change (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8). He is the unchanging Rock on which we can stand in a changing world. What God called a moral abomination in the Old Testament is still a moral abomination in the New Testament. What God called good in the Old Testament, is still good in the New Testament.

 

To love God with all of our heart, soul and mind, we must love His Word, rightly divide it, and obey it.

 

Isa. 8:20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light [understanding] in them.

 

The Old Covenant

In referencing the ‘Old Covenant’, we mean the agreement God made with Israel at Sinai (Ex. 24:8), and the 613 laws added to that covenant and the priesthood of Levi (see Heb. 7:11).

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The Children of Israel broke this covenant (Jer. 31:32) and the Lord said that He would make a new covenant, writing His law on their hearts.

 

Jer. 31:31-34 “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

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Heb. 8:13 In that He says, “A new covenant”, He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

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2. Studying The Old Covenant Deepens Our Understanding

By studying the Old Covenant, we can gain a deeper understanding:

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(1) Jesus is pictured within the Old Covenant; He came to fulfil it. And he is now our high priest under the New Covenant (Heb. 8).

 

Luke 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.

 

Heb. 10:1 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.

 

Matt. 5:17 Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfil.

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The sacrifices, feasts, and laws were a sketch of what Jesus would fulfil (Col. 2:17). When we read them, we see God’s plan before the world began (Eph. 1:4, 2 Tim. 3:16).

 

(2) The Old Covenant set out the ‘road-map’ of salvation.

The prophets did not fully understand it, but they wrote about Jesus’s suffering and glory (1. Pet. 1:10-12). The Old Testament tells the story that leads to Christ.

 

(3) The ‘story’ of the Old Covenant gives us moral lessons.

 

What happened to Israel when they obeyed or disobeyed the covenant is a warning and example for us (1 Cor. 10:6,11). We learn from their wins and from their failures, and we do well to take heed lest we fall into the same pit.

 

(4) By studying the Old Covenant, we can see what changed under Jesus.

 

Under Moses, “an eye for an eye” was allowed (Lev. 24:19-20). Under Jesus, it is “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:38-43). Both came from God, but for different seasons.

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The first - “an eye for an eye” - shows us what we truly deserve for all the unrighteousness that we have spoken and done, God’s righteousness being that what we have done to others should be done back to us: “kill by the sword, die by the sword” (Matt. 26:52, Rev. 13:10).

 

The second teaches us forgiveness and mercy. “To the merciful, He will show Himself merciful” (Ps. 18:28), and “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matt. 5:7).

 

3. The ‘New Covenant’ vs The ‘Old Covenant’
The New Covenant under Christ may be contrasted to the Old Covenant as follows:

 

(1) Rule-keeping vs. problem-solving.
The rich young ruler kept the law but missed Jesus (Matt. 19:16-22). Jesus cares about fixing your heart, not just your behaviour.

 

(2) Punishment vs. correction.
The woman caught in adultery deserved death under the law. Jesus corrected her and set her free (John 8:1-11).

 

(3) Sacrifice vs. mercy.
God said, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Hos. 6:6; Matt. 12:7). The Old system needed animal sacrifices. God takes no delight in the shedding of innocent blood (Prov. 6:16-17, Isa. 1:11, Isa. 66:2-4). The New system has Jesus, and now we offer ourselves as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1).

 

(4) Physical blessings vs. spiritual blessings.
Israel got land, crops, and victory. We get forgiveness, the Spirit, and eternal life (Eph. 1:3;  2 Cor. 4:17-18).

 

(5) Outward giving vs. inward motive.
God cares more about why you give than how much you give.

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(6) Temporary fixes vs. eternal endurance.
The old system passed away. What we have now lasts forever (2 Pet. 3:10-13).

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(7) Talk vs. power.
The Pharisees talked a lot. Jesus had authority and power (1 Cor. 4:19; Matt. 7:29).

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(8) Shadow vs. reality.
The law was the shadow. Jesus is the real thing (Col. 2:17).

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(9) Pleasing people vs. pleasing God.
Vows and promises under the law were about men. Now it is about truth and integrity before God (Matt. 5:33-37).

 

Conclusion
God planned it this way.

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The Old Covenant did its job: it showed us the terrible cost of sin, it showed us that we could not save ourselves, and it pointed us to Jesus (Rom. 11:32). When Jesus died, the old system ended its role as law (Heb. 7:11-14).

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If we are living sacrifices now, our “offering” looks different. It is not dead animals. It is our lives, yielded to Christ.

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Whilst the Old Covenant is ready to vanish, the Old Testament is as relevant today as it ever was, containing much treasure. “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isa. 40:8)

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If anyone lacks wisdom, ask God and He will liberally provide (Jam. 1:5). Let us ask Him for the wisdom to separate what is for our learning from the past, and what is for our living today (2 Tim. 2:15).
 

Evaluation Questions & Answers​

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1. Mention any three benefits under Jesus’s Covenant that are not achievable under Moses’s regime.

   • Forgiveness of sin through Jesus’s sacrifice instead of repeated animal sacrifices.

   • The Holy Spirit living in believers to empower holy living, not just external rules.

   • Spiritual blessings in heavenly places - like sonship, peace with God, and eternal life (Eph. 1:3).

2. Mention two benefits under the First Covenant that help us to understand salvation in Christ.

   • The sacrificial system shows us the terrible cost of sin and the need for blood atonement, which Jesus fulfilled.

   • The prophecies and history show God’s plan of salvation unfolding over time, so that we see Jesus was not a backup plan. 

3. Which passage(s) of the Bible speak clearly that the First Covenant has been replaced by a superior and better one?

   • Heb. 8:7-8, 13 says, “If there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another… By calling this covenant ‘new’, He has made the first one obsolete.” Also Heb. 7:18-19 and Heb. 9:15-22.

4. The New Covenant is about need-meeting as the Old Covenant was about fault-finding. Why?

   • The Old Covenant exposed sin and guilt but could not fix it - it kept pointing out faults (Rom. 3:20). The New Covenant meets our deepest need: a new heart, forgiveness, and power to live for God through Jesus (Jer. 31:33-34; Eze. 36:26-27).

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Prayer

Father, thank You for the lesson. Give Christians, especially leaders, the grace rightly to divide Your Word - knowing what was for Israel then, and what is for us now in Christ. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

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