Brad Alles

As we saw previously, historical documents support the fact that the Old Testament was already in existence and canonized as the Word of God. However, some people still won’t accept those books as inspired Scripture.  Maybe they don’t like the content of some of the chapters. Or maybe they don’t like the concept of a God out there being the ultimate Authority. But it is vital to remember this fact when talking to them: Jesus accepted the Old Testament and used it. His books were the same as ours, except for the order and arrangement of some of the books. Most important to recall are these quotes: in John 10:35, Jesus said, “The Scripture cannot be broken, “ and in John 17:17, He said, “Your word is truth.” Since the Old Testament is viewed to be true and unbreakable, Jesus testified to it as God’s Word. After His resurrection, Jesus said this to His disciples in Luke 24:44-48:

“He said to them, ‘This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.’ Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.’”

Was the Old Testament accepted by Jesus? Absolutely! He mentioned “the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms”—an expression for the three sections of the Hebrew Scriptures, what we call the Old Testament. These Scriptures were from God, and prophesied about the Messiah, Jesus. Jesus Himself had no problem with these writings as authoritative, whether composed by Moses or any other prophet, since God had spoken through them.