People sometimes wonder, “If we are New Testament Christians, what is the purpose of studying the Old Testament?” Many of you are currently reading the Old Testament as part of your regular Bible reading, and you may be wondering the same thing. The truth is, there are many wonderful reasons to study the Old Testament today. We will be blessed by it because it is the word of God and contains timeless truth that we need to know and remember. As Paul wrote to the church in Rome, “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” (Romans 15:4 NASB95) Paul also wrote to Timothy about the value of all Scripture. “… from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness…” (2 Timothy 3:15-16 NASB95) The sacred writings that Paul refers to, that Timothy would have known since he was a boy, are the Old Testament Scriptures.
And so, we see that the Old Testament was written for our instruction. It was written to give us perseverance and encouragement. It was written to give us wisdom, to teach us, reprove us, correct us, and train us in righteousness. As we read the Old Testament, we learn valuable lessons to help us in our daily lives—lessons about obedience to God, trust in God, and how to treat our fellow man.
When we read the Old Testament, we get a clear picture of the holiness of God. We see His hatred of sin. We can come away with a reverent fear of our God who is “a consuming fire.” We need to know these things about God!
When we read the Old Testament, we also get a clear picture of God’s patience, His grace, and His love for mankind. We see God’s desire to bless His people and do good to them. We see His patience as His people turn away from Him again and again with stiff necks and hard hearts. And yet, God is patient. God is kind. He gives people opportunities to come back to Him, and even when He punishes His people, He gives them hope of a restored relationship with Him in the future.
The Old Testament leads us to Jesus. It shows us the depth of our sinfulness and our need for God to rescue us. It clearly shows us our inability to live up to God’s standard of holiness and righteousness. Throughout the pages of the Old Testament, we see God working in the affairs of this world to bring about a Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Old Testament contains ancient words, ever true, that came from the mouth of God. We will be blessed if we study it!
—Scott Colvin
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