Old and New Testaments: One Great Story

Posted on by Michele Morin

Shrouded in mystery, the ways of God are stitched into stories, carried on the smoke of a burning sacrifice, and sung from the heart with both joy and tears. Through promises and prophecies, God hints at a plan that will reel in rebellion and undo death and loss — until the silence of four hundred years falls like a veil between heaven and earth.  Open to the page that falls between the Testaments and ponder long, for the Old prefigures the New, and the New reveals the Old in a way that could only be true if their message and their Object were one.

Nancy Guthrie traces the point and counterpoint between the Old and New Testaments with sixty devotional readings, each one demonstrating the Old Testament origin of a single concept and then following the dotted line of Truth directly to Christ.  In Seeing Jesus:  Seeking and Finding Him in the Scriptures, the reader lifts off in Genesis with its plural pronouns attached to a Creator God; touches down in John’s Gospel for the unmasking of the Living Word; and then arrives at the stunning conclusion (aided by the Apostle Paul) that Origin and Object are one, for everything that the Living Word spoke into being is shot through with the ultimate purpose of glorifying God. (1-4)

Filling All Things Everywhere

It should be no surprise, then, to find the psalmist’s certainty that God would fill the hungry is echoing anew in the Gospel writers’ assurance that God the Son would fill the wine casks and the fish nets, and then, again, in the Apostle’s confidence that He would “fill all things everywhere,”  and that, one day, Jesus will fill and complete His Body, the church, filling the entire universe with Himself. (153-156)

Each reading traces the actions of God  — at work to show Himself powerful through his protection of and provision for a tiny nation state — and then follows the narrative arc into a larger story that becomes massively redemptive and globally significant. Old Testament promises are fulfilled in Christ only to ricochet off the hard-packed streets of first-century Jerusalem and land in the Revelation with a majestic white horse ridden by a Messiah-King in an unshakable Kingdom where He is both Temple and Lamb.

Until we have seen Jesus in both the Old and the New Testaments . . . I wonder.

Have we really seen Him at all?

//

This book was provided by Tyndale Momentum, an imprint of Tyndale House Publishers, in exchange for my review.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a Bible teacher, writer, reader, and gardener committed to the truth that women can become confident Christ-followers and students of God's Word. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty-plus years, and together they have four sons, four daughters-in-love, and six adorable grandchildren. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks, and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

48 thoughts on “Old and New Testaments: One Great Story”

  1. Happy after Easter Morin😂😂😂😂
    If there be any thing as an after Easter greeting
    I hope your Easter went well?
    I had pleasant time with family.
    I like this statement “Until we have seen Jesus in both the Old and the New Testaments . . . I wonder.”
    Thanks for reviewing this book.
    Hugs and blessings to you

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Thanks for this thought provoking article, Michele! I just love getting your perspective on these reads! Blessings!

    Like

    1. Has she been quiet all week? Here in the Northeast many of the schools are on break — we’re just getting back from a week away, so maybe she’s away too. I’ll be on the lookout for her!
      And thanks for coming in to say hello!

      Like

  5. Dear Michele,
    Welcome Back! All through your review of this wonderful sounding book, I kept being reminded of our years with a Messianic Congregation. But then your final statement confirmed even more what we had felt then:
    “Until we have seen Jesus in both the Old and the New Testaments . . . I wonder.
    Have we really seen Him at all?”
    Having our eyes opened to see the Old Testament from a Jewish perspective suddenly caused the New Testament to make so much more sense! And the picture of who Jesus is was made more complete, when we could step back and see the roots of our Faith. Thank you for your beautiful words today! Blessings to you, and Happy Spring!

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  6. I love Nancy’s concept of tracing “the point and counterpoint between the Old and New Testaments with sixty devotional readings, each one demonstrating the Old Testament origin of a single concept and then following the dotted line of Truth directly to Christ.” Should be really interesting!

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  7. I can still remember the first time I really spent time in the OT and did a “basic” study through the OT scriptures. My faith came alive! Jesus indeed. Alpha and Omega. Nancy’s book is already on my Kindle. Thanks, Michele for another great recommendation!

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  8. I have been through Nancy’s first study in the book of Genesis -“The Promised One” and it is fantastic. I am looking forward to studying more and to reading this new addition. Thanks for your review.

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  9. Finding the common themes and fulfillment of Old Testament promises in the New Testament was always a favorite teaching technique of mine, especially Moses versus Jesus (God gave the Isrealites manna, but Jesus became bread, etc.)

    Thanks for sharing on #FridayFrivolity

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  10. Michele,
    Sounds like a wonderful book. I did a study on tracing Old Testament prophecy to it’s fulfillment in the New Testament. It certainly cemented my trust in God’s faithfulness to fulfill and make good on His promises.
    Blessings,
    Bev xx

    Like

  11. Hopping over from the #SITSBlogging Share Saturday and I’m so glad I did. I’ve been using a bible reading plan for the past few years that combines OT and NT reading daily and I love reading both, but this sounds like an even better way to familiarize yourself with the focus of the entirety of God’s word. Thank you for sharing!

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  14. Michele, This sounds like a very edifying book! I just wrote about the “seen and unseen God”, but I never thought about whether or not we have truly ‘seen Him” in the Word.

    Thanks so much for always sharing reviews on such solid books!

    Like

  15. This sounds like a book I’d like to read! And I echo your thoughts here – “Until we have seen Jesus in both the Old and the New Testaments . . . I wonder. Have we really seen Him at all?”

    Blessings to you, Michele! I’m happy to be your neighbor this week at #InspireMeMonday.

    Like

  17. This looks so enlightening! I’ve recently invested in reading through the Old Testament and it is amazing how much we see Christ throughout it. Thank you for sharing these thoughts!

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  18. Found you at Coffee and Conversation. In my Sunday School training I was taught how to weave the Gospel into every story, new and old. This is a great help in my preparations. Thanks

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  19. Michele, could you take down the previous comment of mine. I’d prefer not to have it linked as it is with our family site. My mistake. Have to get my avatar business in order…

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  20. Sounds like a devotional I’d love. It always gives me a thrill when something from the Old Testament pictures or connects with something in the New Testament. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your review at Literacy Musing Mondays!

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  21. This sounds like a great read, Michele. I often hear people refer to the Old Testament and New Testament like they are completely different works or I hear people talk about things being “pre-grace” or “post-grace” (which is a ridiculous notion…to think there was no grace in the Old Testament). This sounds like a great resource to help understand how the two are actually parts of the same story.

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  22. I have grown to love and appreciate and be stunned and encouraged by the connection between the Old and New Testaments throughout the past 12 years facilitating Bible study. All God’s promises are yes in Jesus! Thank you for sharing this, Michele! #Encouraging Hearts & Home Blog Hop

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  24. Michele – I was speaking at a retreat this past weekend and I am just now working on getting to my comments from last weeks #TuneInThursday Thank you so much for linking up each week. Another great book review – wow … you have some good insights 🙂

    Like

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