old testment, is it for us today?

Question

the bible is a book that shows how god has related with man and how man has constantly disobeyed god throughout the ages. the old testament is primarily written for the nation israel as they were the chosen people of god and that there were times when god used the nation israel as a tool to judge the sins of a nation. a holy and pure god cannot stand sin in his presence and will always judge sin. that is why he sent jesus christ to pay the price for mens sins so that all who believe will be redeemed to god. when jesus came the first believers were the jews and they had the opportunity to accept christ in which many did which made the first church but many didnt - judaist. The new testament is for today and some of the old because jesus fulfilled the requirements of the law and the prophecies of the old testament. in the book of joshua the nation was told to cross the jordan river, now does that mean i am supposed to go cross the jordan, no it is context of time , place, and people

Answer 1

We can learn alot from the Old Testament about both God's character, and the nature of man. The Old Testament points right to the New Testament, and both fit together like 2 pieces of an enormous puzzle; this is obvious to anyone who actually reads them with a truly open heart.

Answer 2

The New Testament is a continuation and fulfilment of the Old Testament. Both the Old and New Testaments write about Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for sin. Christians are also called a holy nation that are to be sanctified for God, just like Israel. The entire Bible has relevance for today. You can not accept one part of the Bible without accepting all of it. The foundation of the entire Bible is the book of Genesis, especially creation and the world wide flood. Without Genesis as a foundation the rest of the Bible would make no sense and the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ would be meaningless.
Eldad9: There's nothing vicious about God's Laws, they are all for our own good and benefit.. Nothing has changed from the Old Testament to the New Testament except that now we have hope for eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Now the sacrifices of animals is no longer necessary, nor are they acceptable to God. The wages of sin remain the same as they were in Genesis -death. You have falsely accused the Lord of being without love, mercy or compassion. If this was so then He would not have sent His Son to die a horrible death on our behalf and we would forever remain without hope. Without the death and resurrection of God's Son we would all be eternally condemned to the Lake of Fire. Now we can spend eternity with God in Heaven because of Jesus Christ. I look forward to the alleged contradictions you have from the Bible because I know there aren't any.

Answer 3

it does still apply to us in some ways
obviously we need to still follow the 10 commandments
but i don't think u could still walk around a city and have it fall down like Jericho
you're right though, Jesus did come to rescind the laws of moses and die so we don't have to kill rams and such, but not all of the laws were bad
Israel were chosen by god as the people of holiness, thus proving why they crossed the red sea and destroyed Jericho.
don't try it nowadays. you're right though, the miracles and evens were for the time and place, but the symbolism and the underlying message of how to live a righteous life is what so many people miss

Answer 4

I do believe that the Old Testament is our present times that were foretold by prophets. Now that the veil was torn our New Testament is our Law. Israel is still in the works. God doesn't lie. One day Israel will be all nations. And all the tribes will be one tribe. Now the question is will I see it. Probably not.

Answer 5

At 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 states: "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work."

Answer 6

Who said we obeyed every rule in the bible?:-) I don't sacrifice a lamb everytime I sin. Nor do I not eat pork. And I most certianly do not bow down to idols. The point I am trying to make is that things changed with the context of time, plus the fact that Jesus said pork was clean, and that he was the ONCE and for all sacrifical lamb. And finally, that he was GOD, and that they're were no other's before him. But the old testment is for us.:-) Haven't your parents ever told you something they did wrong, that they wanted you to learn from? Or a friend told you a mistake in selling a item on ebay that you are sure now not to do....why? Because you listened and learned from other's mistakes... I, myself view the old testment like that. It's like a history book, intended for us to learn from, and enjoy. And to know the entire history of Jesus, and man alike. To know where we came from, how we go here, and finally, the promises of WHY we are here. Just because columbus thought that this was India doesn't mean we call this North India...right? Not to say the bible is wrong, no I believe the bible is one hundred percetn accurate. What I am trying to say is that the old testment is in a way....God's love letter to us, and the isrealites. The old testment is full of God's grace, his promises for a better place, and his unfailing forgiveness for a sinful, and disobented people. No we aren't supposed to strip naked like Isiah did, or be fed by the bird alone. Unless God calls you for that of course ;-). Yes, the old testment is meant for us, but meant as a love story. As proof of who God was, and is, and is to come. IT was meant to be a promise, for the isrealites, and a new hope for us of not jewish decent. :-)

So in closing, yes, the old testment is meant for us today, but only as an amazing gift of love, promises, trust, forgiveness, and God being the amazing GOD he is. I take it literal, and believe in it totally. So, I hope I answered your question. If not, I tried.

God bless you my friend, and look for God everywhere, not just in the testments, but also in the world itself. :-)
~From a friend~
Kat

Answer 7

We still have to obey the laws God gave us but a lot of the penalty's aren't as severe because God so sacrificed His Son so that we could be saved and would not have to suffer those penalty's.

Answer 8

since you're a disciple you should know better. I say yes the OT is for us just as much as the NT relates to us. if it wasn't for the OT we wouldn't know much about God and all about the creation. so yes, absolutely it is a very good piece of evidence that shows just how GREAT God is.

Answer 9

I hear so many Christians now a days claim that the Old Testament is defunct for Jesus was the “lamb” to clear away its rules and regulations. This is just another bullshit scapegoat that Christians use to ignore the atrocities and bizarre laws commanded by their god. Their preachers spoon feed them that the Old Testament is no longer binding so that they can excuse the majority of evil that the bible promotes. I am so tired of Christians manipulating the scriptures so that they can assign a kinder nature to their God, that I have assembled a BRIEF list of verses which clearly show that the Old Testament is not to be ignored. Its laws should indeed be adhered to, for the New Testament demands it! After this section I shall list where the Bible contradicts itself concerning other laws.

1) “For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass the law until all is accomplished. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:18-19 RSV) Clearly the Old Testament is to be abided by until the end of human existence itself. None other then Jesus said so.

2) All of the vicious Old Testament laws will be binding forever. "It is easier for Heaven and Earth to pass away than for the smallest part of the letter of the law to become invalid." (Luke 16:17 NAB)

3) Jesus strongly approves of the law and the prophets. He hasn’t the slightest objection to the cruelties of the Old Testament. "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest part or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place." (Matthew 5:17 NAB)

3b) "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness..." (2 Timothy 3:16 NAB)

3c) "Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather human beings moved by the holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God." (2 Peter 20-21 NAB)

4) Jesus criticizes the Jews for not killing their disobedient children according to Old Testament law. Mark.7:9-13 "Whoever curses father or mother shall die" (Mark 7:10 NAB)

5) Jesus is criticized by the Pharisees for not washing his hands before eating. He defends himself by attacking them for not killing disobedient children according to the commandment: “He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.” (Matthew 15:4-7)

6) Jesus has a punishment even worse than his father concerning adultery: God said the act of adultery was punishable by death. Jesus says looking with lust is the same thing and you should gouge your eye out, better a part, than the whole. The punishment under Jesus is an eternity in Hell. (Matthew 5:27)

7) Peter says that all slaves should “be subject to [their] masters with all fear,” to the bad and cruel as well as the “good and gentle.” This is merely an echo of the same slavery commands in the Old Testament. 1 Peter 2:18

8) “Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law" (John7:19) and “For the law was given by Moses,..." (John 1:17).

9) “...the scripture cannot be broken.” --Jesus Christ, John 10:35

---

For me, of course, this means that the god of the NT is the same cruel sadistic twisted bastard of the OT, and just as deserving of love and worship.

Answer 10

Yes, I agree with what you are saying...BUT...

Keep in mind, that EVERY WORD of the Bible is for us today, yesterday, and forever. God did not secure his "Word" to withstand time, so that we could decide whats most important to be read, and what is not. Every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God is meant to teach, encourage, chastise, heal, lead, guide, and anything else u can think of.

We need to pray that we rightly discern and understand Gods Word, and then believe that he will reveal its meaning and that it(the Word)accomplishes what it is meant to accomplish. Amen...