FROM THE DAWGHOUSE…
Does the Old Testament Even Matter?
If we’re honest, the Old Testament can sometimes feel like the part of the Bible we don’t really need. It’s long. Some of it is difficult to understand. There are genealogies, laws, battles, kings, prophets, sacrifices, and stories that seem a long way removed from our lives today.
And then we get to the New Testament, and there is Jesus.
So why bother with everything that came before? Because the Bible is about Jesus. All of it.
Jesus made that very clear. After His resurrection, He walked with two disciples on the road to Emmaus and explained “what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” He wasn’t simply showing them a few isolated prophecies. He was showing them how the Scriptures – the Old Testament- had been telling His story all along.
That’s why the Old Testament matters. From the beginning, we see God’s plan unfolding.
- Creation tells us who made us.
- The fall tells us why the world is broken.
- The promise in Genesis begins the story of redemption.
- God’s covenant with Abraham points toward a people through whom blessing would come to the nations.
- The Passover helps us understand the sacrifice that would ultimately come through Christ.
- The sacrificial system teaches us that sin requires atonement.
- The priesthood points us toward the One who would become our perfect High Priest.
- David’s throne points toward an eternal King, and
- The prophets repeatedly speak of the coming Messiah.
Then Jesus arrives.
Suddenly, all those pieces begin to make sense. Jesus didn’t appear in Matthew as a completely new idea. He was the fulfillment of a story God had been telling for generations.
That’s why the Old Testament isn’t simply the “old stuff” we have to get through before we reach Jesus.
It is the foundation for understanding Jesus.
- Without Genesis, we don’t fully understand the Fall.
- Without Exodus, we miss the significance of Passover.
- Without Leviticus, we miss the depth of sacrifice and atonement.
- Without David, we miss the significance of the King.
- Without Isaiah and the other prophets, we miss the incredible promises surrounding the Messiah.
The Old Testament doesn’t compete with Jesus. It points us to Him. And that’s why we shouldn’t read the Bible as two disconnected books – an Old Testament about God and a New Testament about Jesus.
We should read it as one unfolding story.
One God.
One plan.
One redemption.
One Savior.
From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is ultimately telling us about Jesus.
So, does the Old Testament matter? Absolutely. Because if you skip the Old Testament, you don’t simply skip the part that came before Jesus. You skip the story that helps you understand who Jesus is, why He came, and what He came to accomplish.
Jesus isn’t merely found in the New Testament.
He is the fulfillment of the story the entire Bible has been telling.
Joe Bouch
