Dr Paul Allen

Some time ago my wife and I visited a church we’d never been to before and heard a message about Old Testament promises, specifically from one paragraph in Joshua 1. Take particular note of the promises because the preacher did: This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. (v. 8) A stirring passage. And the preacher, who was a gifted speaker, skillfully weaved its themes into a unified sermon. We profited from it. We love to hear God’s word preached with care and feeling. But there was one implicit rhetorical move underlying the entire message that I felt uncomfortable with, and it was explicitly stated at the end when the preacher sa

How do we interpret the Old Testament as a Christian ? How are we to understand which promises apply to us and which ones don’t? We often struggle to interpret and apply portions of the Old Testament (specifically the prophetic books) where the word of God was being spoken to God’s people as the nation of Israel . How can we discern if warnings or promises directed towards Israel are applicable to other nations, the body of Christ in the global church, or even to ourselves as individuals? What benefit or dangers may there be in carrying over meaning from Israel to these other modern day audiences? 2 Chronicles 7:14 is one such example.” Let me see if I can simplify some very complex issues and provide a two-step process that enables Joe and the rest of us Christians to appropriate the Old Testament, especially the promises for our use as Christians in the 21st century. Here is the first step: 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, “All the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]. T