Why read the Old Testament?

 

                                                           

         Walking with Jesus

Zung Gang nach Emmaus, Robert Zund 1877.

If you could meet Jesus on your journey home from the city, would you recognize him?

     Why is he historically significant?

     What difference does it make if you recognize him?

     Is he the promised Messiah, God’s Son?

     And why was he crucified?

     Did he actually rise again?

   If he is who he claimed to be, why didn’t he overcome his enemies, prevent his death and deliver Israel from the Romans?

 Three days after Jesus’ crucifixion, two disciples, Cleopas and his companion, left Jerusalem for Emmaus. Jesus’ gruesome death had shocked and bewildered them. The risen Jesus met them, and they travelled together, but they didn’t recognize him. When he asked what they were discussing, they described Jesus as a powerful prophet in word and deed. They had hoped he would redeem Israel from Roman rule.

Jesus rebuked them. “How foolish you are, and slow to believe what the prophets have spoken! Did not Christ have to suffer these things before entering his glory?”

Frequently beforehand, Jesus had explained he would suffer and rise from the dead. He had even raised Lazarus from the tomb, but his explanation made little sense to his followers. How could the Messiah redeem Israel if he died?

 As they travelled on the Emmaus Road, Jesus began with Moses and the Prophets. The Old Testament prophecies foretold his life, death, and resurrection. If they were to recognize him, they needed to understand how he had fulfilled God's promises. When they arrived in Emmaus, they urged Jesus to stay with them. He broke bread, gave thanks, and he passed it to them. 

Jesus was the Messiah and he was alive again! 

But then, he vanished. They hurried back to Jerusalem to the assembled disciples and the Eleven, bursting with the news. Their hearts had burned with excitement as he walked with them on the road. 

 What did Jesus explain to Cleopas and his companion, and which of Moses’ and the Prophets’ writings foretold Jesus’ ministry and suffering?

 Although his exact words are not recorded, God has preserved the Old Testament writings in which God had promised he would live as a man among humanity. He is Emmanuel, the Messiah.

Through Moses, God wrote the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. The Ten Commandments reveal God’s character and Jesus kept each of them. No-one else has matched his perfection. God also provided instructions about atonement through sacrifice and instructions about the Tabernacle, where God would dwell, a visible reminder of his presence.

 Jesus referred to the Ten Commandments, capturing them in profound simplicity. His followers were to love the Lord their God with total devotion, and to love their neighbours as themselves.

Did Jesus live up to his preaching, prioritizing God and others before his personal welfare? As he prayed to his Heavenly Father in his disciples’ company, the unimaginable agony of his crucifixion almost overwhelmed him. Yet, he went ahead with it for the sake of his followers, praying they would be united with him and his Heavenly Father. He did not fail in fulfilling this commandment.

 When tragedy looms, where is our attention? How easy it is to become wrapped up in our troubles, to let them dominate us! Yes, we must deal with the crisis and endure the pain. How different it would be if we asked Jesus for his strength to look beyond ourselves to family or friends, even in our suffering? We can mourn together while we live by faith, embodying the gospel. We can find joy in his comfort and strength.

 In Gethsemane, while blood-like sweat dripped from his brow, Jesus pleaded with his Father. But he came to accept this was his responsibility. He suffered so that the entire world population did not descend into hell. He endured the pain and God raised him from the dead. 

He is our hope and our deliverer.  

When Christ came, he fulfilled the Law and his death paid the penalty for our breaking it. Galatians 3:24. By faith in him, God gifts the believer with the very righteousness of Christ. He has conquered death and the despair of suffering forever. 

 Moses recorded God’s promise to Abraham. If God inspired Moses, then the Abrahamic covenant would be fulfilled.

“I will make you into a great nation and bless you. Nations worldwide will find blessings through your lineage.” (Genesis 12.) Matthew and Luke recorded Jesus’ genealogy, and he descends from the kingly line of Judah. Jesus is the Messiah. 

Moses, under God, introduced the Passover. As the Israelites left Egypt, they killed a spotless lamb and spread the blood on the doorposts. When God saw the blood, he passed over them. At Passover, Jesus was crucified, becoming the spotless Lamb of God, sacrificed for all sins. God timed the crucifixion. It wasn’t just the coincidental choice of Jesus’ enemies. At Jesus' baptism, John declared Jesus was the Lamb of God, another prophecy fulfilled at Calvary. 

 Inside the tabernacle, Moses installed a curtain concealing God’s holy presence. If the high entered without the blood, God’s righteousness would be defiled by the priest’s sin. The priest would die. The blood atoned for his sins and the people’s sins. When the sword pierced Jesus, blood and water flowed from his side. He died, and the temple curtain ripped from top down. God’s wrath was satisfied, and God removed the barrier into his holy presence. All who give themselves to Jesus may enter his holiness because he has made them holy by his blood. Let’s commit to holy living.

  Moses, the prophet, spoke and wrote God’s word that Jesus fulfilled to the letter.

 Next blog, we’ll consider another Old Testament prophecy about Jesus. Let's keep studying the Old Testament to discover what Jesus revealed on the Emmaus road. He is central to the Bible.