An Atheist’s View of the OT 2 “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control- freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.” Richard Dawkins The God Delusion 1.What negative images of the God of the Old Testament do you or the people around you have? 2.How might negative views of God affect a person’s desire to read and study the Old Testament?

Historical Views on the OT 3 Throughout church history, there have been those who registered their distaste for the Old Testament and the God portrayed there. The most famous was Marcion, son of the bishop of Sinope in Pontus around 144 A.D.

Modern-Day Marcionites 1.Do we value the Old Testament? 2.Do we read and mediate on it? 3.Do we seek to apply it to our lives? 4.Do we gravitate primarily (or even solely) to the NT in our Bible study? 5.Do we reduce the OT to little more than illustrative material for the NT? Because, as the Dawkins quote so well illustrates, one’s view of the Bible and one’s view of God go hand in hand. Even though we would never think of ourselves as modern-day Marcionites, might it be possible that our approach to the Old Testament sometimes resembles Marcion’s in practice?

In today’s session, we will see that Jesus teaching did not contradict the Old Testament. Instead, Jesus was and is the fulfillment of all that the Old Testament pointed to. As the faithful teacher who explains God’s Word, Jesus upheld the Old Testament in its entirety: 5

The Law Points to Jesus 17 "Don't assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. It’s not difficult to see why someone might assume that Jesus came to destroy the Old Testament. After all, Jesus taught that His coming signified a new era, one that marked the end of certain OT commands and institutions. But Jesus taught that we cannot understand the OT apart from Him. 6 Matthew 5:17 Jesus is the interpretive lens through which we must understand the OT.

Jesus Interprets the Law 21 "You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. 22 But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Fool!' will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says, 'You moron!' will be subject to hellfire. 7 Matthew 5:21-22 Its easy to become so focused on the rules and regulations that we miss the point of them. Jesus reminds us of the law’s intentions to push us back to the heart of the matter. Unlike the scribes and the Pharisees, Jesus was not concerned merely with the physical act of murder; He was concerned with sins of the heart. Why is it important that we understand God’s intentions when we seek to apply Scriptures?

Jesus Interprets the Law 27 "You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. 28 But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 8 Matthew 5:27-28 The religious leaders of Jesus’ day thought they were fulfilling the Seventh Commandment simply by avoiding sexual relations outside of marriage. But Jesus was more interested in the heart attitudes that lead to the sinful physical act. What sins of the heart do you struggle with? How can we fight against these sins and temptation?

43 "You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don't even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary? Don't even the Gentiles do the same? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. 9 Jesus Fulfills the Law Matthew 5:43-48

Two Demands of the Law Not only did Jesus correctly interpret the law, He also intensified it. How good is good enough according to verse 48? Jesus made it clear that the standard of righteousness that God requires is perfection. Of course, none of us meet God’s standard. But, the good news of the gospel is that Jesus does and He came to fulfill the requirements of the law on our behalf Those who gain entrance into the kingdom of heaven, then, are not those who try to work at it but those who trust in Jesus’ fulfilling of the law in their place.

The Great Exchange! When we recognize that Jesus fulfilled the demands of the law perfectly on our behalf, we are transformed. By faith in Jesus, the righteousness of Christ is accounted to us, and the penalty for breaking the law is accounted to Christ. This is the great exchange! Even better, by faith in Christ we receive new hearts that allow us to obey all that Jesus taught -- to love our God with every fiber of our being and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Things to Ponder 1.As the faithful teacher who explains God’s Word, Jesus upheld the Old Testament in its entirety: By correctly interpreting it in light of Himself, By explaining God’s original intention in giving the law, And by fulfilling the righteousness that God’s law requires. 2.Christ’s fulfilling the law in our place actually enables us to begin pleasing God by our faith and obedience. 3.Through faith, we are enabled to begin living in accordance with Jesus’ teaching! 12