Christ in the Old Testament by
Don Fortner Luke chapter 24 verse 27 beginning with Moses and all
the prophets he explained to them what was said in all the
scriptures concerning himself Luke chapter 24 verse 44 this
is what I told you while I was still with you everything must
be fulfilled that is written about me in the law of Moses
the prophets and the Psalms The Holy Spirit here reminds us that
the message of the Old Testament is the same as that of the new,
Christ crucified. The Bible, the Word of God, is
one, and its message is one, the gospel of Christ. Christ
is the sum and substance of the Old Testament. To him the earliest
promises pointed in the days of Adam, Enoch, and Noah, and
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. To him every sacrifice pointed
in the ceremonial worship appointed at Mount Sinai. Of him every
high priest was a type, every part of the tabernacle was a
shadow, and every judge and deliverer of Israel was a picture. If we
read only that which was written by Moses in the books of the
law, we would see Christ everywhere. Jesus is the seed of the woman
who would break the serpent's head. He is the seed of Abraham
in whom all nations would be blessed. He is the great prophet
like Moses, who would teach his redeemed people. Not only is
Christ crucified the message of Moses, he is the message of
all the prophets. When Philip described Christ
to Nathanael, he said, We have found the one who Moses wrote
about in the law, and about whom the prophets also wrote, Jesus
of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. John 1.45 All the law and all the prophets
spoke of Him. They wrote of His birth through
a virgin's womb and the place of His birth, Bethlehem. The
prophets spoke of the Savior's sufferings and the glory that
would follow, and they wrote about many things relating to
His person, offices, and work as Jehovah's righteous servant.
They described him plainly as the king of the house of David,
who came to be David's lord, as well as David's son. Jesus
is the Lamb foretold by Isaiah, the righteous branch mentioned
by Jeremiah, the true shepherd described by Ezekiel, the messenger
of the covenant promised by Malachi, and the Messiah who, according
to Daniel, was to be cut off, not for himself, but for his
people. Do we find it difficult to see
Christ in the Old Testament? It is our spiritual blindness
and ignorance that is to blame. The eyes of our understanding
need to be enlightened. The veil needs to be taken away. Let us pray as we open the scriptures,
O Spirit of God, open this book to my heart and open my heart
to this book. Take the things of Christ written
upon these pages and show them to me. The whole book of God
is about our Lord Jesus Christ and His glorious accomplishments
as our God-man mediator. 1 Peter 1 10-11 Concerning this
salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to
come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying
to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ
in them was pointing, when he predicted the sufferings of Christ
and the glories that would follow.