Old Testament Stories

If you're anything like me, every word of the New Testament is just so beautiful.  You often find yourself turning to those words and reading them over and over again.  They simply drip with application!  But what about the Old Testament? I mean, Psalms is good, but what about those OT stories?  They're just a bunch of stories, how am I supposed to learn from them? we often ask ourselves.  Of course, if we actually think about it, we recognize the worth and value of the Old Testament stories, but do we, in practice, live as if these stories had great value and taught us significant lessons?

2 Timothy 3:16-17 is quick to redirect our hearts in this area:

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

When we read the stories of Abraham and Isaac, or Moses and the Israelites, do we view them as mere accounts of what happened in history, or do we approach them with the mindset that these accounts have many valuable lessons to teach us if only we will look beyond the surface.

As you read in the Old Testament this week, challenge yourself to 1) approach the Scriptures with this mindset, and 2) actively seek to know what lesson the particular chapter of Scripture you are reading is teaching you.

Here are some helpful tips for your Old Testament studies:

#1  Have the right attitude.  Approach the chapters you are reading with the attitude like the one we have talked about above.  Maybe you could write out 2 Timothy 3:16-17 on a Scripture card and read it out loud to yourself before you begin.  Tell yourself (out loud would be best) that this chapter of Scripture in specific has been written by God for your instruction and teaching, so that you might be equipped for every good work.  Now you are ready.

#2  Pray.  We absolutely cannot learn from the wisdom of the Scripture without the gracious and merciful assistance of the Author Himself.  He alone can open our eyes to what we are learning, so we must ask Him for help before we even open the Scriptures.

#3  Write it down.  Have a notebook ready to record your observations as you read.  Writing things down will help them stick better in your brain so that you can recall them later.  As you read, be on the alert for a verse that is particularly meaningful or an observation that you note.  I like to write these small observations down in the margin of my Bible, but if you're not comfortable doing that (or your Bible doesn't have big enough margins) your journal will work perfectly for these observations.

#4  Take your time.  Don't just read it to read it or to be entertained by what you read.  Read it to learn.  Take your time to actually think about what the words mean.  If you don't understand what something means, look up the Hebrew words, or maybe a few commentaries.  Don't hurry through your reading, but slowly meditate on each word and you will find that you glean so much more of the treasures God's Word holds.

#5  Pause at the end.  When you finish a chapter and before you move on to the next, mark down in your journal some ways you can apply the chapter of Scripture to your life.  This may take some meditating, but don't rush on to your next chapter.  Stop and think about what God was trying to teach you through the passage you read.  And mark your observations in a notebook so that you can better remember the application and so you can return to it later.

Using these tips and with the help of the Holy Spirit, you will be well on your way to learning from the Old Testament stories.  May the Lord give you grace in this journey!

Finally, remember that the veil of the Old Testament is taken away in CHRIST:

"But their [the Israelites'] minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away." ~2 Corinthians 2:14-16