Have you ever wondered what is the connection between the Old Testament and New Testament? In this post, we are going to see one such connection. We are going to see GOD’s greater Plan which I think many people would have overseen.
I have noticed this pattern in The Holy Bible, in the Old Testament God made a covenant with Abraham and said he would be called the “Father of many nations”, and then there is “God the Father” often referred to as “Most High”.
After Abraham came Isaac the chosen son, I am saying chosen here because Abraham had another son too, Ishmael, but the line of Isaac was chosen for the covenant. God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, the only son through Sarah, on a mountain and offered a sacrificial lamb instead of Isaac. Jesus, born to Mother Mary conceived by the Holy Spirit is referred to as the “only begotten son”. Jesus in the mortal/fleshly body too was crucified as a sacrifice on the mountain.
From Isaac came Jacob whom God renamed Israel, Israel was to go forward to become a great nation. It is interesting to note that in the Old Testament God said “For Jacob I loved and Esau I hated”, and that Jacob carried the covenant, I think this is symbolic of Life and death parting ways at the cross like Jacob and Esau had parted ways. After the Crucifixion of Jesus in mortal form, Jesus came in resurrected form, and coincidentally Jesus refers to himself as Life. Now here Jesus being fully human and fully God cannot die so he became the next covenant bearer in the resurrected form.
After Jacob/Israel came the 12 Sons of Jacob who later expanded into the children of Israel. Similarly, after the resurrection, Jesus told his 12 disciples to spread the Gospel from which came a congregation of people, Christians, although now Messianic Jews are also a group of people who believe Jesus is the Messiah.
Now the children of Israel journeyed from Egypt to the Promised land and coincidentally Jesus promises a journey from the old creation to the new creation. Now the interesting thing to note here is this the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land was not easy and some fell away and never saw the Promised Land. Coincidentally there are verses in the New Testament that warn that some people will follow false prophets and depart from the faith.
It is important to note that the journey from Egypt to the promised land was not easy and God guided and helped them through their journey. This is an interesting thing because according to me it points towards the helper which we call “The Holy Spirit”.
If we look at the above flow chart, I think we can understand why Jesus made exclusive statements like “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”. Which basically means all the promises will be fulfilled only through him since he is the covenant bearer.
I think this is one of the reasons that in Romans it is said ‘that if we confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and he rose from the dead then we can be saved. This is very interesting because it indicates your trust not only in the Son but also in the Father and the Holy Spirit. Without Crucifixion and resurrection, the plan of God would be incomplete.
One more thing to note is that in the Old Testament God separated Israel from the rest of the world and kept them as a portion of his own people and in the New Testament it is said that when Jesus comes back he will separate the sheep from the goat.
I think this was always the plan of God from the beginning for the redemption of humans. It is important to note here that according to this the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ is a major event in the redemption plan and without them the plan is incomplete. This is like God telling us through The Holy Bible “If I did it for Israel I will do it for you too”.
I would love your input on this topic. Don’t forget to comment if you have any thoughts on this. See you all in the next post. Till then Keep reading.