How to read the Old Testament - only through the lens of God's superabounding Grace.

Believer, the Old Testament is Christ hidden. The New Testament is Christ revealed. Both speak of Christ and our salvation in Him through God's Grace. Christ taught from the Old Testament on the same day of His resurrection. Remember the two despondent disciples on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24? Their land (Judea) was under Roman occupation. They were living under oppression. They were depressed because they thought that “the One about to deliver Israel” was dead and gone forever. They did not know that the risen Christ was the One they were complaining to! Here's what Christ did as He walked with them:

“And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself."

The Old Testament is so important for us that Christ "expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" on the day of His resurrection. Notice "the things concerning Himself" from the OT and beginning at Moses and all the Prophets? Jesus (literally "Salvation") is hidden in ALL of the OT. The entire Old Testament is filled with "faith pictures" that have as their substance our Saviour Jesus Christ and our salvation in Him.

That same evening, Jesus appeared to the disciples in Jerusalem (the same Luke 24;) check out what He did in verse 45- 

"And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures"

See the MSG- “He went on to open their understanding of the Word of God, showing them how to read their Bibles this way.”

The New Testament hadn't been written at this time. Paul who wrote most of the NT was not saved yet. By God’s grace, when we study the Old Testament, we get to see these faith pictures; we get to see Christ — our love story with Him and how our salvation is entirely by Grace through faith. Here's one such way to read the Old Testament that Christ Himself teaches us. He says in John 3:14-16:

"14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

Remember the bronze serpent that God told Moses to make when snakes were biting the Israelites to death in the wilderness? Christ draws a parallel between the way that the Israelites got to escape death and the way that we who look to Jesus get to “not perish but have eternal life.”

The Israelites that had been bitten by snakes only had to look at the bronze serpent on the pole - for us, Christ lifted up to free us from the power, pleasure and penalty of sin, grant us everlasting righteousness apart from the Law and give us eternal life. Believing this way is seeing Christ lifted up.

Imagine the Israelites trying to suck the snake sting/venom out of their wounds, rushing off to do burnt offerings/give gifts to God or doing their best to keep the Law in order to be healed and escape death instead of looking at the bronze snake on the pole. They would have been distracted from looking at the bronze snake on the pole with all of their futile efforts at doing what the law commands in order to be made whole. The effects of the snake sting/venom within isn't stalled by these futile activities. Rather, it gets worse. Death is the result.

But this is exactly what many in the church today are doing with that false doctrine that says-  “Yes we are saved by grace but we still have to obey the Ten Commandments as a guiding principle for morality and do good things in order to be godly, made whole, escape God's wrath and make it to heaven.”

1 Corinthians 15:56 says: “The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.”

Many are still experiencing the effects of the sting of death (like the snake venom that killed some of the Israelites) in the form of proliferation of acts of sin, depression, sickness, lack, oppression, stress, everything that is as a result of the sin nature (sting of death) inherited from Adam because they are not looking to Christ alone for salvation, even salvation from sins and addictions. Just as rushing off to do things in order to be healed would have made the snake venom wreak more havoc, the Law that many churchgoers are trying to keep in order to be godly/saved gives sin power over them. Romans 6:14 says:

"For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace."

The more one tries to do things by human effort (keep the Law) in order to be godly and saved, the more sins will multiply — same way the Israelites would have died if they had opted to run around looking for how to be free from the snake venom (sin nature) and its symptoms (acts of sin and their consequences) that lead to death, giving the venom time to spread and wreak havoc. Paul makes reference to this scenario in Romans 7:5—

“When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death.”

The old nature is the sin nature inherited from Adam by all of his descendants — Romans 5:19 says “By one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous.”

The one with the old nature is not a new creation in Christ. He might profess Christ but he struggles to keep the Law and do good things in order to be godly aka “be like God.” He does not believe what Isaiah prophesied of Christ's suffering for us in Isaiah 53. See the result of His decease which He accomplished at Jerusalem in Isaiah 53:11-

"After He has suffered, He will see the light of life. And He will be satisfied. My godly servant will make many people godly because of what He will accomplish. He will be punished for their sins."

The one with the old nature does not believe Romans 5:9— "And there is still much more to say of His unfailing love for us! For through the blood of Jesus we have heard the powerful declaration, “You are now righteous in My sight.” And because of the sacrifice of Jesus, you will never experience the wrath of God."

The one with the old nature thinks his righteousness before God is a function of how well he can keep the Law. He expects God's wrath to fall on Him for his sins that Christ died to take away. The Law that he tries so hard to keep has this effect: Romans 7:5—

“When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death.”

The pole is a picture of the Cross. The bronze serpent that Moses lifted up is a picture of Christ lifted up for us. He came to the world as Man, taking the form of sinful man yet having NO SIN in Him - just like the bronze image that had the form of a snake but had no venom (sin) in it. Bronze is a product of passing metals through fire so intense that the metals melt; it speaks of God's fiery judgment. Because God loved us so, He poured the totality of His fiery judgment that was coming to us for our sins on His own Son, so that we can be righteous in His sight/free from sin and death. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says of Him:

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

But many churchgoers are not looking to Jesus alone. Many are trying to rid themselves of the sting of death (snake venom) that is sin by their arm of flesh (human effort) that will fail. Many are trying to get rid of the effects of the snake venom (acts of sin, lack, stress, sickness, generational curses, depression, etc) by trying to keep the Law and are running from pillar to post looking for salvation everywhere except to Christ lifted up. Believer, let's not be found here. Doing this will only make the snake venom (sting of death that is sin sin) work faster! Keep 1 Corinthians 15:56–57 in mind- 

“The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin [by which it brings death] is the law; 57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory [as conquerors] through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The Law that many are trying to keep in order to be godly aka "be like God" gives sin its power. Our victory comes through forsaking our silly attempts to save ourselves and looking to Christ alone for salvation. 

Just as the Israelites looked at the bronze snake on the pole and got to live, believing Jesus (Grace) through whose obedience we have everlasting righteousness is the only way to escape the grip of sin. This is the only way to live in triumph over sin and death (the snake sting and its effects that kill.) See Romans 5:17-

“"And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. 17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one Man, Jesus Christ.”

Only believe.

Also see the analogy of Hagar and Sarah as the two covenants of Law and Grace in Galatians 4. Sarah (Grace) did not need Hagar (Law) to raise Isaac (the church- you and I in Christ.) Grace is enough. Beware of any preacher that tries to introduce the Law as your nanny, helper or whatever. Cast out the bond woman and her son.