From Creation to Christ
I am looking forward to starting a new series this Sunday, entitled, From Creation to Christ. Growing up in the church meant that by the time I hit junior high I had been taught all the popular Old Testament Bible stories and had them illustrated to me on flannel graph, if you were not raised in Sunday school in the 80’s then look it up…it was quite possibly the greatest teaching tool ever created. 😊
I knew about Adam & Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, Joseph, Sampson, Saul, Jonah, Danial, David, Solomon, Isaiah and about a dozen others. I could tell you what each character taught us about morality and faith, sin and failure, redemption, and struggle. However, it was not until much later in life, like my early twenties, that I began to learn of the incredibly intricate details that are woven throughout the Old Testament and God’s chosen people. How from the very beginning (Genesis), God was developing a theme on His character and man’s purpose that would be told time and time again through His people.
Even later I learned that every person whose life is illustrated in the Old Testament is pointing humanity, Jew, and Gentile alike, towards God’s ultimate plan of redemption and reconciliation. From the account of creation to the flood, to the exile(s) to the exodus, from Judges and Kings and prophets…all of it was showing us that when the Messiah finally came to earth, that for those who would seek to know the truth, ie. The Bereans, there would be no shortage of evidence or symbolism that God was in control of the story the whole time.
Like I said, I cannot wait for this weekend, and I hope you will be in prayer and maybe touch up on some of your Old Testament studies as we prepare to dive into those ancient pages in a way that many never have.
Peace,
Nathan Bentley