Trap 1
Beginning Bible students often fall into
the trap of believing that the Old and New Testaments radically differ; that the
God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are different Gods. Allegedly, the God of the Old is all about wrath,
judgement, condemnation, and destruction.
Supposedly, the God of the New is only about mercy, love, warmth, and forgiveness. These are old wives fables, urban legends, false
rumors spread by gossip: not one idea among them is close to being true. Yet, even seasoned Bible teachers fall into this
trap as they try to simplify understanding for congregations and classes; as they
simplify, they oversimplify and fall into error.
If any of these things were true, Jesus
could not have said:
“I have not yet ascended to My Father: go to My
brothers and sisters, and say to them, I [am about to] ascend to My Father,
and your Father; and to My God, and your God.” — John 20:17
For Jesus would have had to be radically
different from His Father to make any of these wild tails true: yet, Jesus ascends
because “[He] and the Father are One (John 10:30).”
Nor could Jesus have taught:
“And beginning at Moses and all the prophets,
He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” — Luke
24:27
“These are the words which I spoke to you, while
I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which are written in the
Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms, concerning Me. Then He opened their understanding, that they
might understand the Scriptures, … Thus it is written, and thus it was the obligation
of Christ to suffer, as well as to rise from the dead the third day: so that repentance
and remission of sins should be preached in His Name among all nations, beginning
at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these
things.” — Luke 24:44-48
For as Jesus taught these things no New
Testament as yet existed. He is clearly teaching
from the Old Testament; He even takes pains to emphasize the Old Testament’s three
parts: Law, Prophets, and Psalms.
If any of these things were true, the
ancients could not have written:
“In a little wrath I hid My face from you for
a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the Lord
your Redeemer.” — Isaiah 54:8
“And the children of strangers shall build up
your walls, and their kings shall minister to you: for in My wrath I struck you,
but in My favor I have had mercy on you.” — Isaiah 60:10
“O Lord, I have heard Your speech, and I was afraid:
O Lord, revive Your work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make
known; in wrath remember mercy.” — Habakkuk 3:2
For these verses make no sense at all
if God’s wrath is not always found with mercy.
As soon as Adam and Eve sin they are
immediately met with the wrath of God; yet, shortly afterward the Father provides
clothing for His naked children. Adam and
Eve, having fallen into a state of death, are driven from Eden before their state
becomes an eternal curse. A wicked world
witnesses the wrath of God; yet, God shows mercy in Noah. Abraham lives in wandering and turmoil; yet, more
than any other, he receives the promises of God. With horror we watch as Abraham takes Isaac to
the mountain to die; when God in mercy intervenes. Yet, without this event, neither Abraham nor Isaac
would have begun to understand the death of the Son in Jesus, with its open display
of both wrath and mercy. Joseph is thrown
in prison; saves a nation and his family as the instrument of God. The Gibeonites, faced with certain defeat, lied
in order to be close to the Israelites, judging that it was better to be slaves
in the Presence of God at any cost. Jonah
suffers much; still he leads the Assyrians to repentance. Daniel and his friends overcome confrontation
with powers, fire, wild beasts, and rejection to prevail in God’s mercy.
Hebrew 11 provides an extensive list
of the faithful, who incessantly witnessed God’s wrath mixed with mercy. Yet, this does not end with the close of the Old
Testament: for Paul immediately writes:
“Wherefore seeing we also are surrounded with
so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which
so easily besets us; let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking
to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith; Who for the joy that was set before
Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God: for consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against
Himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds.
“You have not yet resisted to blood [death], striving
against sin. You have forgotten the exhortation
which speaks to you as children, My children, do not despise the punishing of the
Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked by Him: for whom the Lord loves, He
punishes, and scourges every child He receives.
If you endure punishment, God deals with you as children: for what child
does the Father not punish? Yet, if you are
without punishment, of which all are partakers, then you are illegitimate, and not
children.
“Furthermore, we have had earthly fathers who
corrected us, and we gave them respect: shall we not much rather be in subjection
to the Father of spirits, and live: for in reality they punished us for a few days
to gratify their own pleasure; but He for our profit, that we might be partakers
of His holiness. Now no punishment, for the
present, seems to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yields the
peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who are exercised by it. Therefore lift up the hands which hang down, and
the feeble knees; make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be
cast away; let it rather be healed.” — Hebrews 12:1-13
So we see that God’s wrath has purpose:
it is for the profit of His children, so that they might become truly holy, really
righteous, totally healed.
For those who see only wrath in the Old
Testament, and only mercy in the New, we have a few more things to consider:
“He that believes in the Son has everlasting life:
and he that believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides
on him.” — John 3:36
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.”
— Romans 1:18
“And to wait for His Son from heaven, Whom He
raised from the dead, even Jesus, Who delivered us from the wrath to come.” — 1
Thessalonians 1:10
“For our God is a consuming fire.” — Hebrews 12:29
We conclude, then, that there is no difference
in the nature of the message of the Testaments.
Neither is the God of both Testaments changed. Is there any difference between the Testaments. Yes, they are only divided by time. It was time for the Son and the Spirit to be presented
to the human race. It was time for us all
to become God’s ambassadors.
“When the fullness of the time was come, God sent
forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law….” — Galatians 4:4
“Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth. As you scurry about, make disciples among all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost: teaching them to obey all things whatever I have commanded you: and, lo,
I am with you always, even to the end of the ages. Amen.” — Matthew 28:18-20
“You shall receive power, when the Holy Ghost
comes upon you: and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judaea, in Samaria,
and in the remotest places of the earth.” — Acts 1:8
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