Christ in the Old Testament: Christocentric or Christotelic Hermeneutic?

The following is an excerpt from a Gospel Coalition blog post by Matt Smethurst in which he interviews Dr. Daniel Block on using responsible hermeneutics (method of interpretation) regarding Christ in the Old Testament. Daniel Block contrasts a Christocentric hermeneutic from a Christotelic hermeneutic. The latter he argues is a more responsible and accurate way to handle the Old Testament, read scripture canonically, and treat all scripture as Christian-scripture.

Perhaps we need to distinguish between “Christological preaching” and a “Christological hermeneutic,” as if under the latter we expect to find Christ in every verse of the Bible. While it’s not difficult to identify overtly Messianic texts (Psalm 2; 110; Isaiah 53; Micah 5:1-5; etc.), technically the OT rarely speaks of ho Christos, the anointed Messiah. Unless we overload that expression beyond what it actually bears in the OT, I don’t find “the Messiah” on every page. Still, YHWH is everywhere, and when I preach YHWH, I’m preaching Jesus, Immanuel, the Redeemer of Israel incarnate in human flesh. When I read Exodus 34:6-7, I see a description of the One whom John characterizes as glorious, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

Continue reading

Lake Lundgren Bible Camp, Summer 2011 – Get a Clue: God’s Word Has the Answers

The following four power points (see links below) are pedagogical aids from four out of the five messages[1] I presented at Lake Lundgren Bible Camp last summer when I was the Bible speaker for a youth week (upper elementary to lower junior high grade levels). The theme last summer was “Get a Clue: God’s Word has the Answers” based on the text 2 Timothy 3:16-17. When I was asked to speak for a week on this theme I determined to start off with a message on God’s Word itself, how we can trust it (an apologetic), and some basic doctrines concerning the Bible and how it was written (inspiration, inerrancy, preservation). After having laid that foundation, I presented a “three step method” of studying/reading the Bible: 1) read it, 2) understand it, and 3) live it. These four messages are for what the power points below were made. They probably won’t make entire sense to you at various points apart from hearing the actual messages. But I hope you might find browsing through them to be beneficial.

Day 1 – The Bible – God’s Very Word (Power Point)

Day 2 – Step 1 – Read It (Power Point)

Day 3 – Step 2 – Understand It (Power Point)

Day 5 – Step 3 – Live It (Power Point)
__________________________________

[1]The fifth message I preached (chronologically the fourth message) was a presentation of the Gospel from Romans 5 primiarily. However, that message was presented at a campfire. So, sorry–no power point.