via TJC
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” Psalm 56:3-4 (NIV)
The Bible unpacks the above graph with Jesus as the thread and focus of God’s words to us. The Old Testament of the Bible contains the Word of God prior to the new covenant with Jesus Christ. They start with creation and man with God, then man sins and we are banished from Paradise. Man falls even farther and the world is judged, and yet God’s Kingdom and His love for His chosen people is ignored.
Here are the books in the Old Testament:
THE TORAH
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
Sometimes referred to as the “Books of the Law”, these first five (5) books tell the story of creation, how sin came into the world, the destruction of the world by flood, the history of Abraham through Moses, and the covenant of God with his chosen people.
THE HISTORIES
Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther),
The histories tell the account of the Jewish people from the time they entered Canaan. These books tell the stories of those people who followed the Lord…and those who did not. We can learn from their choices
THE POETRY AND WISDOM BOOKS
Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Lamentations
The Poetry and Wisdom books contain the Lord’s treasure trove of discernment and praise. Job was a man whose faith was tested; his strategies were preserved for us to learn. In the remaining books, we have the word of God through his greatest kings, David and Solomon.
THE PROPHECY BOOKS
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel; Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi
The Lord did not leave his people without voices in times of trouble. These men, imperfect yet chosen by God, were shown many things that would happen in the future. These men saw Jesus Christ such that at his birth, Israel was looking for the “messiah” foretold by them.
In Matthew 5:17-20, the Lord said: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished
Daily Battle Order:
What does the Old Testament mean to you? For many new Christian’s they find the Old Testament heavy and full of lists- missing that it’s one of the most intriguing, drama filled, adventures you will ever read. Today take a quick scan of the book of Joshua - as that is where TJC draws our inspiration.
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