Connecting the Dots

Connecting the dots in Scripture and gaining confidence in God thereby is sometimes difficult. The dots to which I refer involve quotations of the Old Testament in the New. We sometimes have the idea Jesus and the apostles quote the Old Testament willy-nilly. They seem to pull texts out of context and use them for their own benefit in getting a point across. Is this the case? I think not.

Both Christ and the apostles were well schooled in the Scriptures of what we call the Old Testament. Jesus attended Synagogue and heard the reading of a portion of the Law. He also heard the reading of a portion from one of the Prophets relating to Scripture reading from Moses. Christ then heard explanations of the Law of Moses as they were given through the eyes of the various Prophets. Tutored in this methodology, our Lord Himself later followed it. We have a fine example of this in Luke 4:16-21. Acts 13:14-16 shows the same procedure giving occasion for Paul to preach. This indicates Christ and the apostles were schooled in connecting pieces of Scripture for the purpose of interpretation. They learned to connect certain dots.

The New Testament also indicates the Old Testament prophets knew more than we commonly understand they did. The apostle Peter spoke at the household of Cornelius saying, "All the prophets testify about him [Christ] that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name" (Acts 10:43). Peter also declares, "The prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you [Christians], 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" (1 Peter 1:10-11). The prophets knew of whom they spoke; they spoke of Christ. They did not know the time of His coming.

At times, we speak of Moses and the Prophets as though they operated in deep darkness and in impenetrable fog. No, they connected dots. We teach our children this is the case. Question: "How were sinners saved before Christ came?" Answer: "By believing in a Messiah to come" (First Catechism, Q&A 62). In other words, the people of old knew who was to come. They connected certain Scriptural dots. They did not know the time.

If this is the case, and surely it is, and if Christ and the apostles were schooled in the Law of Moses and the Prophets, and surely they were, they connected the Scriptures in ways instructive for us. They did not pull verses out of context. They applied Old Testament texts purposely taking their respective contexts into consideration.

This has profound import for us. First, the purposeful and careful use of the Old Testament in the New signals the unity of Scripture. The Bible is not two books bound together under one cover. It is one book with one message. Second, this indicates God has one plan. We who follow Jesus Christ are part of the ancient purposes of God reaching back into the early chapters of Genesis. We who follow Jesus Christ are connected to the ancient church of God of which Moses and the Prophets speak. We who follow Jesus Christ are part of a heritage reaching back millennia and looking forward to the fulfillment of millennia old promises and predictions. We are caught up by God in what He is doing, what He speaks of in all of Scripture. Connecting these dots builds our faith and yields uncommon assurance.