I don’t know about you but the way Jesus viewed the Bible is the way I want to view the Bible. But since the New Testament wasn’t written while Jesus was alive the question before us is how did Jesus view the Old Testament portion of the Scriptures.
According to Don Stewart: “In examining the four gospels, we have a great amount of information to work with concerning Jesus’ view of the Old Testament. His view can be simply stated in two words: total trust. Jesus accepted the Old Testament Scriptures as being divinely authoritative; He never cast doubt on any of the accounts recorded in it. Jesus assumed the people were actual people and that the events literally occurred. We never find Him giving the slightest hint of anything but the complete acceptance of the Old Testament as the Word of God.”1
In today’s Part I of this devotion, we will examine three ways in which Jesus viewed the Old Testament. And in tomorrow’s Part II, we will examine three more ways.
Jesus believed the entire Old Testament to be true and authoritative (1)
Jesus often quoted from the Old Testament. In fact, he cites from fourteen different OT books. For example, Jesus refers to marriage in (Mark 6:8) referring back to the book of Genesis. He talks about the ten commandments by citing a reference from the book of Exodus in (Luke 18:20). And Jesus cites from the book of Psalms in (Mark 12:10): “Haven’t you read this Passage of Scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.’” This is a quote from (Psalm 118:22). I like this verse from Mark because Jesus refers to this passage as Scripture. And there are many other sections that Jesus quotes from the OT.
He also accepted the two main divisions of the OT, the Law and the Prophets, and even mentions the Psalms when he shares: “He said to them, ‘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.’” (Luke 24:44). This shows us that He accepted the OT as authoritative and as Scripture in its entirety.
Jesus believed that that the Old Testament people actually existed (2)
Jesus mentions several OT figures proving that they were real people and not mythological characters. The following are three examples: Jesus believed that Abraham was a real person when He said: “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” (John 8:56). He also believed that King Solomon existed when He said: “Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.” (Matthew 6:29). One other example concerns a prophet healing a leper. We read in (Luke 4:27) the existence of both of these men – Elisha and Naaman: “And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.” In this case Jesus refers to two historical figures.
Jesus believed that the Old Testament stories actually took place (3)
According to Don Stewart: “As we look at the way Jesus treated the Old Testament, we discover that He assumed the various accounts to be factual. They actually occurred as they were written.”2 Again we will share three examples to show that Jesus believed that these events actually took place. Jesus believed that the Israelites ate manna in the wilderness when He stated in (John 6:31): “Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” He also believed that the story of Lot’s wife actually turning into a pillar of salt was a historical event when He used it as an example of not looking back. For we read in (Luke 17:32): “Remember Lot’s wife!” Jesus also believed in the actual existence and destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. (Matthew 10:14-15) shares the words of Jesus: “If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.” Judgment and destruction are assumed by Jesus here.
1 What Was Jesus’ View of the Old Testament? by Don Stewart (blueletterbible.org)
2 What Was Jesus’ View of the Old Testament? by Don Stewart (blueletterbible.org)
The question is, “How did Jesus view the Bible?” In the first paragraph, this question narrows to “How did Jesus view the Old Testament?” Since the OT is quoted some 2300 times in the NT, these are relevant questions.
While we are at it, we might want to ask, “Does God have a favorite verse?” One way to determine the answer is to find out which OT verse is quoted most often. Any guesses?
If you said it must have something to do with “love,” you would be joined by a majority of people; however, you would have missed it be a factor of more than 3X.
“Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18) is quoted 7 times but Psalm 110:1 is mentioned 23 times, making it by far the most referred to OT verse in the NT and possibly God’s most favorite verse.
So, what is the message of this favored verse? The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool” This is quoted by 7 of the 9 NT authors.
The majority of churches today teach a doom and gloom future, where things are getting worse and worse but the NT authors want us to apprehend an optimism and goal-oriented Christian life many have not even yet considered.
Christ, in His present reign, will continue His conquest until He completely abolishes all opposition to His rule. At this point—after He has abolished all rule and all authority, and not one moment before—He will come and resurrect His people from the last enemy, death.
Read the entire Psalm and rejoice that the Lord (Adonai) shall sit at the right hand of the Almighty (Yaweh), and while the Lord holds that enthroned position, the Almighty shall vanquish all His enemies. He did not want us to miss this message so he repeated it more than any other teaching in the NT. The future is secure as He progressively defeats all His and our enemies. We are those who inherit the earth.