Why study the Old Testament

We saw his majestic splendor with our own eyes when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God. (2 Peter 1:16-21 NLT)

If you have ever thought, "Gosh, those Old Testament prophets were so hard to understand. Maybe we don't need to study those books quite as much," then hear me out. As we read in our passage today, we must pay close attention to what they wrote. Why? They didn't write those words out of their own thoughts. They aren't 'creative writing'. They are a foretelling of what occurs when one walks away from God's teaching. They show us what happens when one repents and returns to their faith. They also remind us that all we 'do' in our own power doesn't really make us 'right with God' - we still need a Savior. His sacrificial death was still necessary to wipe away our sin once and for all. Never underestimate the importance of these books. They weren't just written for 'olden days'. They are applicable in so many ways today!

The prophets pointed to Christ. The coming of Christ didn't eliminate the import of their message, though. If we see God's heart and his plan for a fully restored and blessed people from the first page of our Bible to the very last page, we are certainly going to be richly blessed in our study of his Word! We might be 'New Testament Christians', but we can be 'Old Testament Students', as well. If nothing else, we can glean many lessons about what 'not to do' from those pages we frequently overlook as 'too hard' or 'too out of date'. There are a multitude of lessons on judging others, following one's own lusts, pursuing things God clearly says are going to lead us down a wrong path, and the influence others bring into our lives - influences that might just not be good for us to actually follow.

We can also learn many a lesson about God's intense love and his protection. We can see entire families kept safe from calamity or mayhem, the importance of trusting God to provide when nothing seems to be available to meet our needs, and his overwhelming power to bring down walls erected against us. There are words of encouragement to trust when dark days seem to be upon us. We find reminders to put him first in all we do, promises to bless and protect. We should never 'exclude' those pages from our study, for their words are 'like a lamp shining in a dark place'. Indeed, in our 'darkest days', we might just find the encouragement or wisdom we need to see more than just a little light dawning. Just sayin!