Scripture

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
– Matthew 5:17-18

Jesus had a Bible. We call it the Old Testament. He didn’t carry it around in his pocket, have ten copies of it in various translations on his book shelf, or listen to an audio version while traveling. Nevertheless, it was a text that was central to him. During his life, scrolls of these holy texts were kept in synagogues and read aloud for public teaching. He believed the text. He taught the text. Ultimately, he fulfilled the text.

This statement by Jesus gives us great clarity regarding who he is and the purpose of his ministry. Doing justice to his claim requires more time than we will take here. There are two distinct paths we could pursue, each one proper in its own right. One path would be to highlight the many examples of how Jesus fulfilled specific prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures. While this is an important matter to cover, I would like to take a moment to reflect on the second path, which in my opinion (and to our detriment) may be frequently overlooked. To state it in simple fashion, Jesus had a very high view of scripture.

What do I mean by a “high view of scripture?” I mean that Jesus, by what we see in the gospel accounts, held the Bible (our Old Testament) in high regard. It was a text that carried the authority of God. Jesus quoted from the Bible constantly. I can’t think of one example of when Jesus even hinted that the Bible should be disregarded or considered irrelevant. Further, as Jesus affirmed the text of scripture, he also affirmed the God of the scripture. The One whom we sometimes (in uncomplimentary fashion) call the “God of the Old Testament” is the One Jesus called “Abba” (Mark 14:36) and “perfect” or “complete” (Matthew 5:48).

These are not trivial things to note. During his ministry, Jesus’ deeds and teaching would often strike observers as being in conflict with scripture. The problem Jesus brings to the surface is a problem we still face today: we have the scriptures, but we often don’t understand the scriptures. Examples of this reality are woven through the four gospel accounts. Read Jesus’ assessment of the people after sharing the parable of the sower in Matthew 13. Jesus responds to a group of Sadducees who decide to question him about marriage in the resurrection by saying, “You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29). Read Jesus’ criticism of the people in John 5:39-47, in which he says, “Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me” (v. 45-46).

Observing the ministry of Jesus, we do not find a rebel who leads us away from the Bible. Instead we find a man full of grace and truth who gives us a lens through which we can understand the Bible. Of course, we have to look through the whole lens for this to work, not just the part we like. Yes, we see the Jesus who tenderly took children on his knee and told us to love our neighbor. But we must also see the Jesus who resembled his cousin John, a prophet with piercing words who was not afraid to run a crowd out of the Temple when he saw unrighteousness at work. Regardless, he is the same Living Word who gives us a true and complete picture of God. Whether Old or New, the Testaments are all about him.

See you along the Winding Path.