The Old Testament is full of strange things: stories of a man-swallowing fish, a flood that rebooted the earth, a brass section that brought down the walls of a city--just to name a few. And there are plenty more where that crazy came from. Some stories are so outside the norm, they're difficult to imagine. And sometimes it's even more difficult to discern God's purpose behind them, at least at first glance, which is why reading about Jesus is such a gift. So much of what God did in the Old Testament makes sense when we learn about the tings Jesus did and said in the New.

Take the fish. God wanted to save the sinful, broken people of Nineveh, but His spokesman didn't want the job, Instead of letting Jonah sail in the opposite direction, God had him thrown off the boat and swallowed by a sea monster that promptly swam back to Nineveh. For three ays and nights, Jonah was in the belly of the beast--the same amount of time Jesus was in the tomb. Once "resurrected" (i.e., barfed onto shore), Jonah delivered God's message of repentance and redemption--and the Ninevites believed. Nineveh's salvation story was a picture, a foreshadowing of what would take place on the cross: (1) humanity rebelled against God, (2) God made a miraculous way for righteousness to be restored, and (3) God gave grace to the people who believed.

Then there' s Noah. God told him to build the biggest boat anyone had ever seen, one so ginormous that it couldn't have been towed from the building site to the dock; water would have to come to it. And Noah endured relentless mocking from all the God rejectors who were watching--that is, until the rain came, flooding the earth and wiping out every living thing not on that boat. Noah's salvation story was a picture, a foreshadowing of what would take place on the cross: (1) humanity rebelled against God, (2) God made a miraculous way for righteousness to be restored, and (3) God gave grace to the (eight) people who believed.

And let's not forget Jericho, a fortified city that stood between the Israelites and the land God had promised them. God told the Israelites to conquer seven days while blowing trumpets--perhaps the least intimidating of all the horns, but I digress. On the seventh day, God brought the walls of the city crumbling down, killing everyone inside except a small remnant of believers. Once again, Israel's salvation story was a picture, a foreshadowing of what would take place on the cross: (1) humanity rebelled against God, (2) God made a miraculous way for righteousness to be restored, and (3) God gave grace to those who believed.

That 1-2-3 pattern can be seen in the majority of Old Testament stores, but the supernatural bells and whistles sometimes keep us from seeing the heart of the matter--that from earth's first moment until now, and from now until the end of the world as we know it, God is writing a story of rescue and redemption. And Jesus--the Creator of the world, the one who whispers to clouds to make them pour out snow, the one who sculpted Mount Everest and dug out the Grand Canyon, the one who mapped out the galaxy and hung every star--wrote Himself into that story, He allowed himself, in human form, to (1) be  rebelled against, (2) provide a miraculous way for humanity to be restored, and (3) give grace to all who believe.

And because Jesus restored us, showing us who God was and what He was doing, we can learn from the Old Testament, but we no longer have to repeat it. "No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, [Jesus] has made him know" (John 1:18).

PRAYER FOCUS

Thank God for His story of redemption, then ask Him to reveal Himself even more in all the ways you're pursuing Him.



MOVING FORWARD

• What was the point of God's 1-2-3 pattern in the Old Testament?
• What does His sacrifice on the cross reveal to you about God the Father?
• How can you live out gratitude for the grace you've already been given for your rebellion?