Is the Bible really a thoroughly integrated reflection of the heart and mind of the Creator of the universe from cover to cover – Genesis through Revelation?
Or, have the original Hebrew Scriptures of the Old Testament been overshadowed by the Greek New Testament, maybe even diminished in relevance compared to the lives and faith of followers of Jesus?
My book "The Gospel in Every Book of the Old Testament" has helped bolster the case for the first option and inspired believers to recognize that it's all God's Word – inextricably connected, thoroughly consistent and taken together, offering exponentially more insight into the Creator's purposes and the fate of the world.
While the 39 books of the Old Testament represent about 75% of the content of the Bible's 66 books, from my personal experience, most believers just don't crack open those first 39 books as frequently as they do the last 27. If we don't acknowledge, as the gospel of Luke does, that the world-shaking faith and passion of the first-century church was ignited before the Greek Scriptures were written, then today's church is missing the full story.
It is my sincerest and earnest hope that this book will help stimulate renewed interest and perhaps an attractive pathway to discovering – or rediscovering – the beauty, majesty and pertinence of the very foundation of God's Word from Genesis to Malachi. If we aspire to be like the Bereans of Acts 17:11, then we should acknowledge which Scriptures they were searching daily, "with all readiness of mind," to measure the words and teachings of Paul and Silas.
In addition, as mentioned frequently throughout my most recent book, it is important that believers understand the full dynamic of the Gospel, or "good news," which is more than a prescription for personal salvation. It's about the complete restoration of earth, "the restitution of all things," as Peter called it in Acts 3, the redemption and perfection of the world that was created by sin and death in the fall of humankind in the Garden of Eden.
Jesus and gospel writers Matthew and Mark repeatedly referred to "the gospel of the kingdom." Jesus said He had to be about the business of preaching the "kingdom of God" in Luke 4:43. All told, more than 100 times the kingdom of God, this kingdom of heaven and earth – Jesus' kingdom – is mentioned in the New Testament. I contend that this kingdom is an essential element of the Gospel, twice mentioned in Jesus' model prayer in Matthew and Luke.
Yet, there are more vivid descriptions of and allusions to this kingdom found in the Old Testament than in the New. For the first-century believers, the restoration of this kingdom was their passion – on their minds right up to the moment before the resurrected Jesus ascended after spending 40 days with His disciples (Acts 1-6).
How often do today's believers give more than a thought to this critical component of the Gospel? And do we have a complete picture of the Gospel without it?
Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 13:19: "When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth that which was sown in his heart."
Lastly, while I have studied the Scriptures for more than 40 years, the research for this book and my previous effort focusing on the restoration of the kingdom has intensified my zeal for the Word and quickened my faith.
I hope and pray it will do so for you.
"The Gospel in Every Book of the Old Testament" by Joseph Farah is available in both hardcover and e-book versions.
ALSO: Get Joseph Farah's book "The Restitution of All Things: Israel, Christians, and the End of the Age," and learn about the Hebrew roots of the Christian faith and your future in God's Kingdom. Also available as an e-book.
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