Is the Old Testament Relevant Today?

On Wednesdays, in 2024, on this blog I will be posting a series of surveys of O.T. books and answers to questions about the O.T. If you would like me to consider answering one of your O.T. questions, please submit them in the “reply section.”

Today’s question: Is the Old Testament relevant?

Andy Stanley, who is the Senior Pastor of North Point Community Church and son of well-known preacher Charles Stanley, said a few years ago to his congregation of over 32,000 in a series titled “Aftermath” that they needed to unhitch themselves from the O.T. if they want to have any hope of reaching the lost. He said that most people can’t handle the brutal violence and wartime of the O.T. and we need to simply not refer to it …ever … when we are speaking to non-Christians.

He says in the book published in September 2018 called Irresistible: Reclaiming the New That Jesus Unleashed from the World that the O.T. is a stumbling block to faith and a culprit to disbelief. He goes as far to say that every major problem for the church in history – the Crusades to legalism – can be traced back to our use of the O.T. He says the Ten Commandments have no authority over the Christian – none!

Does this mean the O.T. is irrelevant? When we refer to something as being relevant, what we mean by that is that the person or subject it relates to our current time period or circumstances. Does it work for us right now?  

Some criticize the O.T. for being too long, too tedious, too obscure, too much history, too uncivilized, too harsh or too cryptic. The O.T. matters greatly; it mattered greatly when it was first revealed, and it will matter for eternity because the psalmist wrote, “Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens” (Ps 119:89). Peter echoes this word to the attribute of the O.T. being eternal when he wrote, “The word of the Lord remains forever” (I Pet 1:25).

Here are 5 reasons the O.T. is relevant. First, the O.T. was inspired by God. The most central passage in the Bible on this claim is II Timothy 3:16-17 when Paul is about to encourage his young disciple Timothy to preach the Word, and he reminds him why he can boldly proclaim God’s Word – “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. The word “Scripture” refers to any word revealed from God – no matter if it has come or not. And Timothy would have no problem concluding the O.T. was a part of that revealed will of God inspired by Him.

Second, Jesus confirmed the O.T. In the Gospels, when Jesus asked the question to the religious leaders, “Have you not read”, He was referring to the O.T. In Luke 24:25, Jesus condemned these same men for not believing what the prophets spoke to them about.  In John 10:35, Jesus said that the “Scripture cannot be broken”, which means the Scripture is infallible. It is not wrong and doesn’t make mistakes, even though human authors recorded it for us. Those authors were under divine inspiration. In Matthew 5:17, Jesus confirmed the relevance of the O.T. when He said He came to fulfill the law and not destroy it. Jesus came to give the O.T. a richer and fuller meaning to us – not to say, “You know what? Just pay attention to Matthew through Revelation. That’s where the good stuff is.” When you read the 39 books of the O.T., you are reading Jesus’ Bible. It’s what Jesus commented on and taught from in the synagogues. Jesus nourished His soul with Genesis through Malachi. Jesus’ vocabulary was taken from the O.T. Jesus spoke the O.T. and taught the O.T.

Third, there are hundreds of fulfilled O.T. prophecies. The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born of a woman (Gen 3:15; Gal 4:4). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born from Abraham’s line (Gen 12:3; Matt 1:1). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born from the tribe of Judah (Gen 49:10; Matt 1:2). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being called a Prophet (Deut 18:15; Acts 3:20-5). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being called the Son of God (Ps 2:7; Matt 3:17). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus’ resurrection (Ps 16:10; Mark 16:6-7). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being mocked (Ps 22:7-8; Luke 23:35). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus having no broken bones at the crucifixion (Ps 34:20; John 19:32-36). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being betrayed (Ps 41:9; Luke 22:47-48). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus’ ascension (Ps 69:18; Mark 16:19). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born in the line of Melchizedek (Ps 110:4; Heb 5:5-6). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born of a virgin (Isa 7:14; Luke 1:28-31). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born as an heir of David (Isa 9:7; Luke 1:32-33). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being rejected by His own people (Isa 53:3; John 1:11). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus as a vicarious sacrifice (Isa 53:5; Rom 5:6-8). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being buried with the rich (Isa 53:9; Matt 27:57-60). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being crucified with criminals (Isa 53:12; Mark 15:27-28). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being taken to Egypt as a child (Hos 11:1; Matt 2:14-15). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being born in Bethlehem (Mic 5:2; Luke 2:4-6). The O.T. prophesied about Jesus being betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zech 11:12; Matt 26:15). The O.T. prophesied about John the Baptist as a forerunner to Jesus (Mal 3:1; Luke 7:24, 27).

Fourth, the O.T. paves the way for the N.T. You may not detect this very clearly unless you have read through the entire Bible, and especially read through the O.T. before you read through the N.T. Without the message of the O.T., you cannot understand the significance of many subjects in the N.T. (e.g., the need for a sacrificial system, the insufficiency of anyone or anything’s blood, the system of covenant, etc.).  Gleason Archer asks a needed question – “How can Christian pastors feed their flock on a well-balanced spiritual diet if they completely neglect the 39 books of Holy Scripture on which Christ and all the New Testament authors received their own spiritual nourishment?” Over 1600 references to the O.T. can be found in the N.T.!

Fifth, the O.T. has transformed people’s lives. The Bible is the only book that can change your nature. The O.T. sets the stage for a person’s salvation. When Paul told Timothy that the Holy Scripture was able to make him wise for salvation, he was referring to the O.T. (II Tim 3:15). Here is what the psalmist said about this ability of transformation in Psalm 119:97-104 – “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts. I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word. I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.” The O.T. gives wisdom to the fool; the O.T. gives understanding to the ignorant; the O.T. leads the aimless; the O.T. nourishes the hungry; the O.T. gives life to the dead man.

Is the O.T. still relevant? Inside and out! Why else would God give us the O.T. as 60% of our Bible?

Irresistible, pg. 480

Ibid., pg. 278

Ibid., pg. 136

Source unknown