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Jesus and the Old Testament

Here’s one of my Bible studies from the “vaults” (in October 2007).

Jesus and the Old Testament

Purpose: to explore Jesus’ attitude to the Old Testament (also known as the Jewish Scriptures). As followers of Jesus, we should imitate His attitudes to the Scriptures.

From Matthew 5:17-19 (NKJV)
These are the words of Jesus:
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Questions:
1 - Have you ever heard people say that the Old Testament (Jewish Scriptures) is irrelevant to the Christian believer?

2 - What did Jesus think about the Old Testament? Did He come to get rid of it or to confirm it?

3 - “The Law and the Prophets” are names for the Old Testament Scriptures. What did Jesus say are the consequences of encouraging others to disobey these Scriptures?

John 7:14-19 (NKJV)
Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught. And the Jews marveled, saying, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied?” Jesus answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone wants to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him. Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?”

Questions:
4 - Why were the Jews amazed at Jesus’ teaching?

5 - Who taught Jesus?

6 - When Jesus talked about Moses, do you know which books of the Bible He meant?

Luke 11:50-51 (NLT)
 ”And you of this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will surely be charged against you.”

7 - Here, Jesus talks about ‘all God’s prophets’ from Abel to Zechariah. Abel appears in Genesis, Chapter 4, the second son of Adam and Eve, whom the Bible records as the first ever humans. According to the NIV Study Bible (p.1507), Jesus was summarising the history of the martyrs of the Old Testament, much like if we said “from Genesis to Revelation.”

Did Jesus take this history as true or as an allegory? Were these people to be held responsible for the deaths of actual prophets or mythical prophets?

8 - Did Jesus, then, think that Abel was a literal person who once lived at the ‘creation of the world,’ or was he a story?

Matthew 19:1-9 (The Message)
 When Jesus had completed these teachings, he left Galilee and crossed the region of Judea on the other side of the Jordan. Great crowds followed him there, and he healed them.

One day the Pharisees were badgering him: “Is it legal for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” He answered, “Haven’t you read in your Bible that the Creator originally made man and woman for each other, male and female? And because of this, a man leaves father and mother and is firmly bonded to his wife, becoming one flesh - no longer two bodies but one. Because God created this organic union of the two sexes, no one should desecrate his art by cutting them apart.” They shot back in rebuttal, “If that’s so, why did Moses give instructions for divorce papers and divorce procedures?” Jesus said, “Moses provided for divorce as a concession to your hardheartedness, but it is not part of God’s original plan. I’m holding you to the original plan, and holding you liable for adultery if you divorce your faithful wife and then marry someone else. I make an exception in cases where the spouse has committed adultery.”

9 - Here, Jesus quotes from Genesis, Chapters 1 and 2 as the reasons why divorce is unacceptable. Does He treat this as actual history?

10 - Does He believe that Moses wrote these books of Law?

11 - Why would it be important for a Christian to learn Jesus’ attitude towards the Old Testament Scriptures?

12 - If Jesus treats the Old Testament as truthful and historical, should a Christian do the same, or are we free to pick-and-choose which parts of Jesus’ words we believe?A final thought, from Jesus’ words when He was questioned by doubters:

Matthew 22:29 (NKJV)
Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God…”

(See also Mark 12:24.)

Reflections:
How does knowing Jesus’ attitude to the Old Testament affect your perspective of the Old Testament Scriptures?

Hints for some of the study questions!

Qu. 6 - Moses wrote the “Pentateuch,” Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. (http://www.christiananswers.net/dictionary/pentateuch.html)

References:

•    Barker, K. L. (editor) (2002), Zondervan NIV Study Bible (Fully Revised), Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
•    Batten, D. and Sarfati, J. (2006), 15 Reasons to Take Genesis as History, Accia Ridge: Creation Ministries International, pp.3-5.
•    Livingston, D. (2004), ‘Jesus Christ on the infallibility of Scripture,’ Creation on the Web, http://www.creationontheweb.org/content/view/3112 (accessed 11 October 2007), Eight Mile Plains: Creation Ministries International.
•    Tyler, D. (2003), Creation - Chance or Design?, Darlington: Evangelical Press, pp. 18-30.

Book - Creation and the Second Coming

Morris, H. M. (1991), Creation and the Second Coming, Green Forest: Master Books. Word, Koorong.

I often find myself lamenting that, when it comes to books on eschatology (that is, the Biblical study of the future, the end of the world, and the anticipated return of Jesus), it is hard to find clear, reasoned books for the lay person. Sometimes books are far too enshrouded in academic language. Others are fearful “hellfire and brimstone” religious types that don’t really help anyone.

The late Dr Henry Morris’ (1918-2006) Creation and the Second Coming takes a straightforward approach to the Bible. He writes a no-nonsense text that really opens up a clear view of the Bible’s account of the End Times. There is no scaremongering nor esoteric fluff. It encourages and inspires the reader (who is presumably a maturing follower of the Lord, and who has read the Bible), and directs us to the Lord Jesus Christ as our source of hope and life.

I really enjoyed reading this book, and I couldn’t put it down. It remains remarkably fresh, despite being written in 1991, and I found it almost unnervingly accurate in some of its predictions of coming events.

Topics addressed in the text include the following:

• Biblical signs of the approaching end. What did Jesus say, and the Prophets write?
• Issues in the Bible lands (that is, the lands where the Bible events historically occurred).
• The nation of Israel and the amazing promises to this nation in the Bible. (And powerful arguments against anti-Semitism and racism!)
• An approach to those often confusing issues of the Bibl’s revelation of the future. Who are the 144,000? The end time martyrs and witnesses? The ‘Woman in the Wilderness?’ The Millenium?
• What is the Holy City?

I appreciate Dr Morris’ sensible approach. He is open about the fact that no one can claim to predict the exact time of the end. And I did not get any sense of cultish heresy, as often seems to tack itself onto the revelation of the Bible. Being a renowned apologist and Bible-believing scientist (he held Bachelor, Master and Doctorate qualifications in science and was a Professor of Hydrogeology), Dr Morris also considers the necessity of trusting the Bible in order to fully appreciate the significance of the eagerly anticipated return of Christ.

After Eden

I’m enjoying the comic series “After Eden,” by Dan Lietha. These comics are Bible-inspired and (I think) good fun. You can see them at http://www.answersingenesis.org/aftereden/.

Intolerance

This is an excerpt from a poem, “Intolerance,”* by Indigenous poet Oodgeroo (1920-1993).

Dark children coming home in tears, 

Hurt and bewildered by their jeers -

I think Christ weeps with you my dears.

 

People who say, by bias driven,

That colour must not be forgiven,

Would snub the Carpenter in heaven.

 

This poem just about left me in tears…

I first read My People back in my second last year of high school. It is an anthology of poetry by an Indigenous Australian (Aborigine).  I recently picked it up again and felt profoundly impacted by the powerful words of tis woman who stood strong and proud for her people.

It  was a challenge to me to discover the cruelties done to Indigenous Australians in the name of my Lord and Saviour. It appalled me that “Christians” came, armed with evolutionary anthropology, and murdered my homeland’s native peoples. It is truly sad.

 This year I will be privileged to study under Indigenous Australians as part of my university Sociology degree. The subject is “Politics and Indigenous Australia,” and I hope it will create in me a greater understanding of my nation’s first people.

More Information:

Close the Gap - Indigenous Health Equality

Australians for Native Title and Reconcilition

Reference:

*Noonuccal, O. (1990), My People, Milton: The Jacaranda Press, p. 28.

(See http://www.amazon.com/My-People-J-V-Noonucal/dp/0701626496/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200392144&sr=1-1)

The New Heavens And New Earth - Isaiah 65

Isaiah 65:17-25

“See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. “Never again will there be in it infants who live but a few days, or older people who do not live out their years; those who die at a hundred will be thought mere youths; those who fail to reach a hundred will be considered accursed. They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit. No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the work of their hands. They will not labor in vain, nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the Lord, they and their descendants with them. Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the Lord. (TNIV)

•    God promises to recreate the heavens and the Earth. Why is this a matter for rejoicing? (List them out. You should be able to find about 6 or 7. I’ve given you two here.)
⁃    Jerusalem will be a delight.
⁃    The people of Jerusalem will be a joy.

•    How will the recreation of the Earth affect the animals?
⁃    wolf and lamb
⁃    lion and ox
⁃    serpent
⁃    animals in general

Whale Conservation In Australia

As some of you may be aware, a hot topic in Australian news at the moment is the slaughter of our whales. If you are interested in more information, or want to know what you can do to help, the following webpages may be of assistance.

Articles From the Australian Government:
Save Our Whales Index
http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/intro.html

Educational Resources
http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/teachers.html

Whale and Dolphin Conservation
http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/index.html

Articles From Other Sources:
Ask Japan To Stop Hunting Whales - Australian Petition
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22836857-5014728,00.html

Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society Australia
http://www.wdcs.org.au/

Greenpeace - Australia Pacific
http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/resources/fun-and-games/games/whales

Marine Environmental Activism In Australia (Wilderness Society)
http://www.wilderness.org.au/campaigns/marine/

Commercial Whaling In Australia (Article 22 December 2007)
http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/news-and-events/news/whales/japan-commits-to-commercial-wh

Flight of the Humpback
http://www.flightofthehumpback.org/