Don’t Miss This Important Rule on How To Study the Bible!

A few years ago I had lunch with a pastor who had launched one of the largest, most influential churches in America. He told me that when he disciples a new Christian, he ONLY gives them a New Testament, because “the Old Testament will only confuse them.” I couldn’t believe that an influential pastor like him taught new Christians this is how to study the Bible. This is absurd! It’s a TERRIBLE mistake that goes against everything Jesus taught, and I’ll prove it to you in less than 10 minutes.  

That Time When Jesus Taught How to Study the Bible

After Jesus’ resurrection, two of his disciples left Jerusalem and headed back to their home in Emmaus. They spoke of the death of the One they believed was the promised Messiah. As they traveled, Jesus came alongside them and began to ask them what they were discussing. These disciples’ didn’t recognize who was with them, so they recounted the events of the previous week.

Jesus became noticeably frustrated with them. He scolded them for not seeing that the Scriptures prophesied of the death of the Messiah:

“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27)

Jesus showed who He was and what He would do using the Hebrew Scriptures. In fact, reading the New Testament without seeing Christ in the Old Testament is a setup for disaster.

The Passover Lamb

To understand this, we need to look at a common symbol from the Hebrew Scriptures. Every Christian knows that Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,” as John the Baptist declared in John chapter 1. The Gospel writers, Paul, and the writer of Hebrews really drill down on this idea. So, for Christians, it isn’t revolutionary. John’s disciples didn’t understand what he meant. It wasn’t commonly taught that the Passover lamb is a symbol of the Messiah’s redemption of humanity. I can only imagine that Jesus laid out this symbol from the Hebrew Scriptures as He traveled the road to Emmaus. 

The Temple

The New Testament explores other symbols from the Hebrew Scriptures. According to the Apostle Paul, the “Body of Christ” (the Church) is a Temple. Peter says that Christians are “living stones being built up together into a spiritual house, with Jesus Christ as the Cornerstone.” And Jesus was convicted because of this claim.

The Sanhedrin had been parading accuser after accuser before Him, but none of them could agree on anything – until two witnesses told of an event that happened at the start of Jesus’ ministry. After cleansing the Temple of the money-changers, the religious leaders asked Jesus why He believed He had the right to do what he’d just done. Jesus’ response was confusing: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” WE know that Jesus was talking about His body. The disciples made the connection after His resurrection. But at the time, this was bizarre. 

The Son of Man

But this last one might be the most important. Jesus used this phrase to describe Himself 81 times in the Gospels. In fact, He used it immediately after the accusation we just talked about. The Sanhedrin kept trying to goad Jesus into responding to the charges, and He remained silent. Finally, the High Priest invoked the Name of God and asked Jesus to declare whether He was the Messiah or not. Jesus’ answer triggered everyone in the room: “You have said it yourself. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Immediately, the High Priest tore his robes and the Sanhedrin began shouting, “Blasphemy!”

Most of us have been told that Son of Man is just a term for humanity. And it is. But when Jesus uses it, He’s saying something much more serious. He’s quoting from Daniel chapter 7, where Daniel had a vision of the defeat of the enemies of YHWH. He sees beasts representing the evil empires of earth rising up in rebellion against YHWH. A Divine Council is convened and thrones are set up. Then, the Ancient of Days takes His place. But then, Daniel sees one “like a Son of Man” come and defeat the beasts. He receives a throne beside the Ancient of Days. And all authority in Heaven and Earth is given to Him.

Over the time between Daniel and Jesus, the Jewish Sages determined this figure must be supernatural – even Divine – in nature. And Jesus described Himself using this title more than any other.

The First Principle of Good Bible Study: It’s All About Jesus

These are just three out of thousands of symbols and phrases within the Hebrew Scriptures that find their fullness in Jesus. The Holy Spirit directed the Biblical writers to include these as examples for us today. So, both the Old Testament and the New Testament are about the same thing: Jesus.

That’s why the FIRST principle to remember is that studying the Bible  begins with understanding that everything in Scripture is pointing to the Hero of the Story – Jesus of Nazareth.

But BAD Bible Study happens when we filter everything in Scripture through a few New Testament letters and 2,000 years of what has been at times antisemitic Christian theology. That’s where we headed in the next episode. You won’t want to miss it.