Is the OT irrelevant?

Question

and how much of the bible is made up of old testament? what chapters?
what do you think of this verse?
"Do not think that I [Jesus] have come to abolish the Law (the Old Testament) or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke or a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law (the Old Testament) until everything is accomplished. (Matthew 5:17-18)"

i'm sorry i'm a little confused over this....thank you

Answer 1

First, remember that Jesus gave that sermon early in his ministry. Everything was not "accomplished" until Jesus died on the cross. Note that on the cross Jesus said, "It is finished" (John 19:30). Also consider his usage of the terms abolish and fulfill. He did not come to say, "You don't need that law" he came to fulfill it so that we would not be bound by it. In other words it wasn't like God changed his mind and decided to change his Law. There are two core things about Christianity: 1) Redemption 2) Righteousness. Redemption is found ONLY in Christ. Righteousness is not found by observing the Old Testament laws, but by being led by the Holy Spirit.

"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" Matt 26:28

"I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved." John 10:9

Galatians 3 is really descriptive on the subject of the Law, though.

"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law" Gal 3:13

"The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds" meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one perosn, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introcuded 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one.
Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner to sin, so that what was promises, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law." Gal 3:16-25

I'll try to sum it up in other words.... The very first law God gave us was to not eat from the fruit of a certain tree. We couldn't even do that. Just by that one sin, we needed atonement. Simply saying "I'm sorry" means very little because our word is far from trustworthy. Our sin needs to be put to death, and we need a righteous spirit to indwell us. Thus God prepared Christ to serve as a sacrifice for us that we might put our sin to death through him and find life in Him. You see the Jews required a blood sacrifice of the most prized animal to atone for sin, but by God giving us Christ, and preparing the sacrifice in our favor, he gives us a sacrifice in which the blood can cover all of our sins because his blood is worth far more than all of us so it can wash all of us. However, after the first sin, God couldn't just let us wait, unsupervised, until the Christ could come. We needed a Law to keep us in order until Christ could come. In other words there needed to be laws enacted against murder, stealing, etc etc etc. But if we could be "saved" or redeemed by following those laws, then Christ would have been useless for us and we would have never needed him. But the Law was only temporary until Christ had fulfilled his mission.

Even as Thomas Paine said, anyone can establish laws against thievery and murder. Simply following those laws do not save us. They were only put in effect to supervise us until Christ could come. That does not mean we have free reign to sin freely.

Gosh I could keep going on for hours but it is late and I am sure I am just starting to make things more confusing.

The Old Testament is not worthless though, it helps us to know what Christ is saving us from and gives us certain passages about Christ and other prophecies.

The New Testament book that quotes the Old Testament the most is actually Revelations, surprisingly. I thought a lot of it sounded like stuff in John's imaginiation but actually so much of it is quoted in the Old Testament, such as the New Heaven and New Earth written about in Isaiah. Isaiah is also the most quoted Old Testament book.

Answer 2

The OT has 39 books, compared to the NT's 27.
No, the OT isn't irrelevant. The whole Bible, OT and NT, points to Jesus Christ and is about Him. Neither part is complete without the other. There is much we can learn from the OT, such as the fact that God keeps His promises, and about His nature and dealings with people, and it all points towards God's great redemptive plan in Jesus Christ - many prophecies of a coming Saviour. On the other hand, to have the OT without Jesus is missing the point...the OT law & sacrifice system pointed forward to the perfect sacrifice for sins God planned and accomplished in Jesus Christ.
See Hebrews 10:1-4,11-12:
"For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshippers, once purged, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins...And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down at the right hand of God."
I hope this illustrates the point - the OT system was not complete until Jesus fulfilled its meaning and purpose in atonement, but it still served a purpose (reminding the people of the seriousness of their sins and the need for them to be dealt with). This is just one example I can think of.
I hope this helps rather than confuses you further!!

Answer 3

Jesus was and still is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. The new Testament is a summary of the Old. Everybody should have A Scoffield's Bible or books on Biblical Customs and Traditions. You will find the same quotes or meanings of things in all 66 books.

Answer 4

It's relevant to our times, and it will always be. If you are unsure about which parts to keep, then look to see if any more recent instructions have been given. The strange thing about religions is that they all believe in dead prophets, but not in living ones. Except for a few, who are persecuted by those whose worlds they rock. Case in point: Gentiles can eat anything sold in the shambles (slaughterhouse). If there's shrimp there, too, all the better. By the way, keeping slaves is not all right. Servitude under the Law was gainful employment with a retirement plan. The person who gave the Law can modify it as he pleases.

Answer 5

Jesus' words in Mat.5:17-18 consists of TWO parts: the PROPHETIC-part and the LAW-part.
For the PROPHETIC PART, Jesus had come to FULFILL (in the meaning of: to make it realized) the prophecies in the OT; yet not all of it. The prophecies concerning the second coming of Christ and the end of the world [e.g. Dan.12:1-3] are still to be realized. We all are still waiting for the realization. In this concern, part of the OT is no more relevant, but the other part (i.e. the prophecy about the second coming and the end of the world) are still relevant.
For the LAW PART, Jesus had come to FULFILL (in the meaning of: to make the LAW becoming FULL, i.e.: no more 'porosity' for men to 'duck' through). Jesus' word in the following verses [Matt.5:19-44] shows the 'porosity' of the LAW. Six times Jesus said: You have heard...., but I... throughout those verses, showing that Jesus is greater than Moses or the one who taught Moses about the LAW. Therefore Jesus demands more than Moses or Moses' sponsor.
In Paul's terms, the LAW had been perfected in the LOVE (Agape)! For examples, Jews can slap other's face without feeling guilty, because he does not violate the (Sixth) LAW that way. But LOVE would not let us slap other's face.
In the sense of the second parts (the LAW PART), the OT is no more relevant for Jesus' followers, or for those who embrace the TRUE GOSPEL. The LAW is relevant only for Moses' followers.

Answer 6

the quote you are using, is in refrence to Jesus aying that he ame to fullfill the law, meaning, it had been predicted that he would come to the earth to deliver god's people. when he died everything he was sent to do was accomplished, so then the old law was abolished. We are now living under nt law. for those who responded that the bible endorses slavery, then show me in the nt where it is out. By the way if you have a loan or credit card, or owe someone money, then you are a slave to the lender.

Answer 7

Some christians argue that the New Testament actually replaces the Old, therefore the meek-and-mild Jesus of the NT takes the place of the wrathful God of the OT.

But I think this passage really means that the NT actually depends on the OT, so you can't separate the two.

Answer 8

Is the OT irrelevant?

No, it is very relevant. The Old Testament contains the new though it was concealed. The New Testament shows the Old Testament reveled (Fulfilled in Christ). That is all the promises of God were not fulfilled in our righteous acts because all our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. They were fulfilled In Christ’s righteous act.

Rom 5:18 Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

Again

For the Law being powerless, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and concerning sin, condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous demand of the Law might be fulfilled in us, those not walking according to flesh, but according to Spirit.
(Rom 8:3-4)

They are not irrelevant because they all testify of Him (Jesus).

You search the Scriptures, for you think in them you have everlasting life. And they are the ones witnessing concerning Me. And you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
(Joh 5:39-40)

Then is the Law against the promises of God? Let it not be! For if a law had been given which had been able to make alive, indeed righteousness would have been out of Law. But the Scripture locked up all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to the ones believing. But before the coming of faith, we were guarded under Law, having been locked up to the faith being about to be revealed. So that the Law has become a trainer of us until Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But faith coming, we are no longer under a trainer; for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many as were baptized into Christ, you put on Christ. There cannot be Jew nor Greek, there is no slave nor freeman, there is no male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are of Christ, then you are a seed of Abraham, even heirs according to promise.
(Gal 3:21-29)

Answer 9

The law is as pertinent today as it it ever was. the fact that a man by faith in the atonement and resurrection of God can be saved is true but does not cause the law to pass away but as Christ taught it was fufilled. The law was the judge of a man and this judgement was on all men and the wages of sin is death...The same is true today. Christ did come to fufill the law, which is to say he paid the penalty of death for those who accept the atonement. The law condemens sinful flesh still does but the power of the resurrection saves a man from the penalty of death..Jesus paid the penalty and overcame death. It is by faith that Chrisitqans say they are new creatures no longer under the law but made new by the power of the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We who are saved by faith consider the old man of sin to be nailed to the cross with Christ and raised again new in the glory of his resurection to be new creation and worship God in spirit in truth. It is in this faith in this atonement and resurrection that give the pwower to be made new...and a new creature is not under the law but follows the law in newness of life. If man is born again he is not under the law in that the penalty of law has been paid. Now don't hear what I am not saying...This does not mean Chrisitans do not follow the law as a new creature does not need a law but is made new...If this person claims to be a new creature but continues to live in sin he is not a new creature but a sinner and is judged according to the law. Let me give you an example i once heard...When your child continues putting its hand in the candy dish...you knowing this can cause a tummy ache might swat his hand...Now when the same child is grown and he continues to reach for the candy you do not swat his hand because you know he is old enough to know better and if he gets a tummy ache it is his own fault...We are not under the law but we are now by faith new creatures who do not live in sin because we are made new...Understand it si by faith we say we are made new as we are sitll int he sinful world in our sinful flesh but by faith we claim this promise knowing that the work God has started he will complete. God's plan for man form the begining was the aotnement God is righteous and he knew his creation had a sin nature and could not live up to the law..God is righteous his crreation is not and God can not be unrighteous thus the penalty fo sin is death it was his plan not to join in man's unrighteousness by saying sin is okay but to pay the penalty of death for man that man might be righteous with God.

Answer 10

2 Timothy 3:16 (New King James Version)


16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,