Yesterday I began a several-week study in Sunday School on the Old Testament sacrificial system. I wanted to impress on the class a few things that, if they got nothing else, guide us as we study the Old Testament. Old Testament Scripture should be interpreted literally. Sometimes this is called a "normative" interpretation. This does not preclude figures of speech, but the text should be interpreted in light of authorial intent.
Old Testament Scripture should be interpreted contextually, with regard to the original audience and occasion and with regard to God’s progressive revelation. We should seek to understand the text as its original recipients understood it. We must remember that they did not know everything we know now. God has revealed things to us as his Church which were hidden from Old Testament believers.
Old Testament Scripture reveals the unchanging nature of God; however, the way God administers his sovereign rule changes from age to age. God's nature and attributes do not change; however, he does change the way in which he administers his sovereignty. In the Old Testament, God is dealing primarily through the nation of Israel. In the New Testament church, God is gathering together a people for his own from every nation and tongue.
Old Testament Scripture is God-breathed and profitable (2 Tim 3:16). We should never discount the Old Testament as something less than God's Word. Even if Old Testament truth is not as readily applicable to our lives, it is still God's inspired Word.
Old Testament Scripture gives us examples to help us learn how we should or should not act (1 Cor 10:11; Rom 15:4).
New Testament believers (members of the Church, the Body and Bride of Christ) are no longer under the Mosaic Law’s jurisdiction. We have been freed from the Mosaic Law to obey God (Gal 2:19–21; Jas 2:10; Rom 10:4). The Mosaic Law is a unity and cannot be arbitrarily dissected, as I have argued before. Jesus Christ's perfect obedience to God, fulfilling the Law, has freed us from that bondage.
Old Testament believers were saved by faith in God, just as we are saved (Rom 4:1–3; 3:20). The Law never offered eternal life. The only way to be saved is by believing God.
Old Testament believers demonstrated their faith by obeying God, just as we do today (Jas 2:20–26). In the Old Testament, obedience was the proper response of genuine faith, not a condition for it. Faith without works is dead, then as now.
We must be careful not to import Church truth or later revelation back into the Old Testament. It is easy, from our vantage point in history and in God's progressive revelation, to assume Old Testament believers knew what we know today. However, many things revealed to the Church were hidden from Old Testament believers.
Comments
I read some of the ramblings on the website you suggested. I appreciated the points brought up by Jeremy on your website. I would echo his comments. Clearly, you have made up your mind, so I won't try to change it.
I didn't mention the idea of "Christo-centrically interpreting the Old Testament," because I think that often falls under the category of "importing New Testament truth back into the Old Testament." This seems to deny God's progressive revelation and the fact that the New Testament Body of Christ was a "mystery" to Old Testament believers (Eph 3).
Your question: "Do you think that a proper interpretaion [sic] of the Old Testament is insufficient [=apart from the N.T.] in leading one to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ?"
My short answer would be: yes.
In light of God's progressive revelation, we don't have the option of going back and pretending we haven't received additional revelation. For example, we can't go back to the time of Abel and just have faith in God and demonstrate that faith by bringing a proper sacrifice. At this time, following the coming of Jesus Christ, "there is no other name under heaven."
The purpose of the Old Testament was to lead us to Jesus Christ. As far as the specific revelation about Jesus Christ, that would be found in the New Testament.
I suppose that you would allow that 2 Timothy 3:15 could refer to the whole of Scripture (both Old and New Testaments), just as I assume you would hold that both Testaments are inspired (2 Tim 3:16).
I realize that, considering your presuppositions (and the one-sided stating of your questions), this may not be satisfactory to you. That's okay with me. Thanks for your comment.
Thank God for the incarnation by which we have been redeemed from the Mosaic Law (Gal 4). Merry Christmas!