“Don’t bother reading the Old Testament, you don’t need that. Stop worrying about making sense of Lamentations or Leviticus and go read something important, like Galatians or Ephesians.”

These words, spoken by a pastor I once knew, horrify me each time I think back to them.
This pastor certainly had good intentions – he was trying to get a group of college kids to read the Word of God, and he was trying to convey how important the New Testament is to our spiritual journey and our relationship with God.

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At a certain level I can understand why he said what he did: The Old Testament can be daunting and overwhelming, its books long, confusing, and seemingly nonsensical.
The New Testament, however, is certainly “easier” to understand when compared to the Old Testament;  it is a clear record of who Jesus Christ was (and is) and what that means for us as believers in the family of God.

But what this pastor failed to communicate is that without the Old Testament, the New Testament has no basis – no foundation. Without the Old Testament, the New Testament is meaningless.

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It is said that the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed.

As such, we see in the New Testament not something that is relevant and important while the Old Testament is purposeless and meaningless; rather, we see the New Testament as a record of the continuing faithfulness and revelation of our mighty and sovereign God, a fulfilling of the work He began at creation, continued through Israel, and continues still to this day through us, His church.

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As the 105 wears on, don’t forget the truths of the Old Testament, for they form the very foundation upon which the New Testament  rests. Don’t be relieved that the 105 has finally moved on from the Old Testament – rather, remember that the New Testament is a fulfilling of the Old Testament, a revelation of God, and rejoice.

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