“and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15)
Remember Sunday school as a kid? All those old Bible stories that seemed to be, at best, slightly interesting. Now that I have grown and had time to actually read and understand those stories again (without the felt board), they have come to give me a fresh understanding of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Paul reminds Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:15 that the “sacred writings” are able to give Him understanding about salvation. The “sacred writings” used in this text is the Old Testament. We’ve read the stories, sang the songs and recited the verses. We all know the stories about Abraham, Noah and the ark, Moses, David and Goliath, Daniel and the lion’s den and many more. When we look back on these stories we see something deeper than our old Sunday school teachers taught us…we see Jesus.
My students asked me how the people from the Old Testament got saved. Some thought that it was just a matter of behaving and loving God. That can’t be true! Look at the lives of some of our OT Bible heroes. David was an adulterer, Noah got drunk, Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines (put’s Wilt Chamberlain to shame), and Abraham slept with his wife's servant because he didn’t think God would follow through on giving him a true heir through Sarah. I answered my students with the truth…they were saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. God made a promise that He would provide an heir that would do away with all sin once and for all. We look back to the cross and believe in Jesus, in the same way they looked forward and believed in Christ. We see this in Genesis 15 when God grants righteousness (salvation) to Abraham for believing in the coming heir (Christ).
Also, in all these wonderful Bible stories (not made up stories, but actual historical accounts of God’s work and plan for salvation) we see more than just men who God used, we see Jesus. Every word from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21 is ALL ABOUT JESUS CHRIST. To give you one example, Moses and his leading the people out of Egyptian slavery into the desert and Joshua’s leading into the Promised Land is a PICTURE. Yes, it really happened and the Bible’s account of the events are accurate. But this is a “physical picture” of a “spiritual truth” that was later accomplished by Christ. Just as God redeemed His people (national Israel) from physical slavery, Jesus redeems His people (true Israel) from slavery to sin (Romans 6). Just as God led His people (national Israel) into a physical Promised Land, Jesus leads us (true Israel) into a spiritual Promised Land (eternal life).
So when Paul tells Timothy that the Old Testament is able to make him wise unto salvation through Jesus Christ, we see that God has Jesus Christ laced all throughout scripture. Let us not neglect the Old Testament. Let’s dive into it and “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8). When you study and read God’s Word through the lens of Jesus Christ you will begin to see that God has salvation mapped out for His chosen people from before the beginning of time (Ephesians 1:3-14). Philippians 2:9-11 tells us that all of God’s redemptive plan from before the beginning of time was to glorify Jesus Christ. As Greg Laurie says, “the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” If Jesus is the whole centrality of the Bible and the Bible is our guide and source of Truth, then we must see that Jesus NEEDS to be the centrality of our lives. So I end by posing these questions; is Jesus at the center of your life? Is Jesus the main thing in your life? Do you live life looking through the lens of Jesus Christ?
Are you all about Jesus Christ?
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I once had a discussion about what salvation meant to the Hebrew people with my wife Amy. It gets really interesting. Some other things I think about...
God established a mechanism for atonement in the OT. True, this is still a foreshadowing of the coming Christ, but God did allow the atonement to be effective through faithful attendance to His ordinances. It appears to be the "faithful" more than the "attendance" that mattered, however.
Like it says in Hosea 6:6 "I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices. I want you to know God; that's more important than burnt offerings."
I'd say it has always been about leaning on the eternal God - of whom Jesus is eternally a part - as the only source of our righteousness and salvation.
Then you have 1 Peter 3:19-20, we get this strange picture of a second chance, of sorts, for the OT folks. It's as though Jesus went to Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:23) and announced to the saints of the OT that He is the One they honored during their lives. It's not clear in the Scripture, but it looks like the dead got to see in person the One they followed by faith or rejected in life. I don't dogmatize on that part, though, as Scripture doesn't make it terribly clear.
I love the way Hebrews 10 explains the ultimate fulfillment of the atoning sacrifice - especially in Hebrews 10:10:
"And what God wants is for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time."
The atonement sacrifices ended (from the Christian worldview) because there was no longer a need. The work of salvation that started even before Eden was complete for all time in Jesus Christ.
Just my 2 cents.
Good stuff, Mark!
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