The Relevance of the Old Testament
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Have you ever noticed that some Bibles only contain the writings of the New Testament and the Psalms? Why do you think that is? Well, I can’t speak for the publishers, but I do know that a number of Christians believe that the Old Testament is no longer relevant to God’s people, as it supposedly paled away in the shadow of the New Testament. That is what they think anyway…
But what does the Bible say about this?
The Apostle Paul had said, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NKJV)
Now, when Paul had said this, the Bible as we know it today was not. In other words, there wasn’t a Bible which contained 66 books; rather, there were only ‘the Holy Scriptures’ (Rom. 1:2; 2Tim. 3:15); and the Holy Scriptures were what we identify today as the writings of the Old Testament. So when Paul spoke of ‘Scripture’ he was referring to the Old Testament, which means he believed that the same writings which some Christians no longer deem to be relevant to God’s people today, are useful to Christians.
Moreover, the Bible also says, “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” (Romans 15:4 NKJV) Obviously, “whatever things were written before”, is referring to what we know as the Old Testament. And while some may say these writings are no longer useful to the Christian, the inspired writer who made this declaration identified them as a source of comfort and hope!
So it is evident that since these inspired writers taught that the Old Testament writings are useful to God’s people, we should regard them in the same way. For, to say that they are no longer useful is to treat them with contempt, and thus shun the instruction that these writers gave us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to uphold and honor the Holy Scriptures - both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
About the author: Chris Esty is a Christian writer who has a passion to share Jesus Christ. He also has a website called, The Bible Post.com, where he encourages spiritual growth in Jesus through Bible devotions, Bible Memorization, Bible study, and information on Communicating with God.
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photo credit: knowhimonline
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Bible, Bible, God, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Memorization, New Testament, NKJV, Old Testament, Scripture, Timothy
