Everything points to
Jesus!

And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures.

Some people misinterpret this scripture to say ‘everything in scripture points to Jesus.’

This is one of those statements that teachers tell us to watch out for in tests. Almost never choose the answer that contains absolutes like all, everything, always, and never.

Of course all that is in Holy Scripture is not a direct reference to Jesus. The Old Testament is in fact the history of Israel as it journeyed in and out of its relationship with God. It contains the bravery and failings of men and women.

Scripture shows bravery when these men and women followed God’s commands, not just by doing those things God commanded but by truly living them out every day from their hearts. The prophet Jeremiah declared to Israel: Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart. Hosea declared: For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. God wanted more than circumcision and burnt offerings. He wanted and wants true faith and trust.

Scripture shows the failure of these men and women when they abandoned God’s way and did not trust in His protection. They followed other gods and sold themselves to other kings.

What points to Jesus is God’s call to faithfulness, to true love and belief, to the circumcision of hearts – hearts dedicated to God, and sacrifice that foreshadows the one true everlasting sacrifice of Jesus Christ that redeemed the world.

God’s entire action in the Old Testament, His entire action throughout history and into our lives, is a singular action that shows forth His saving power. God brought His saving action to completion in time with Jesus’ sacrificial suffering and death. That saving action is fully available to us.

Through Christ, God reestablished a right relationship with all things – the perfect harmony of relationship between God and man that existed at the foundation of the world. Jesus showed His followers that scripture is the path and pointer toward His redemption.

What is true is that the gift of faith quickens our hearts and minds to believe, to understand, to worship, and be thankful for the absolute truth of what Good Friday and Easter mean for us.