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Commentary on "The Work of the Prophets"
Day 2: Sunday, February 8, 2009
The lesson for today begins with an emphasis on the importance of the preaching of the gospel, an emphasis reiterated many times in the New Testament. To begin the study, the first question asks where the gospel of salvation is found in the Old Testament, and then provides insight into these early gospel messages. It is stated that “The plan of salvation was explained to Adam and Eve as soon as they had sinned.” Checking this “protoevangelium” (first evangel) in Genesis 3:15 we find: “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.” (NASB)
The first question in todays lesson is, “Where do we find the gospel of salvation in the Old Testament?”
To state that the gospel was “explained” to Adam and Eve “as soon as they had sinned” is to read into the text something that is not there. This is a practice called “eisegesis.” It is the opposite of exegesis, which is the science of extracting information from what is present in a text. Eisegesis is “reading into” the text information that is not contained there. The good news is contained throughout the Old Testament. To claim that any Old Testament character, including Abraham or Daniel, fully understood what they were being told is putting information into the text that is not contained there. Even John the Baptist, the greatest of the OT prophets, did not fully understand what he was doing.
Eve did understand that through her a seed would come, one who would redeem fallen mankind, but her understanding was very limited. She named her first-born Cain, because she said, “I have gotten a man-child with the help of the Lord.” Apparently Eve had no understanding of the unfolding of human history. Her's was not a specific knowledge.
As has been said by many men and women of God in Christian history, the gospel is, in the Old Testament, concealed; in the New Testament, revealed. Men and women are saved in only one way throughout human history: by grace, through faith. The faith of Abraham is the kind of faith that all people are called to have at all times. It is only in the New Testament that the details of who Jesus is and his work for us on the cross is fully revealed.
The second question in todays lesson is, “Does the preaching of the gospel in the New Testament differ from the proclamation of salvation in the Old Testament?”
The Old Testament is a two-part book. The first eleven chapters of Genesis provide the first history of the nations of the world, from the creation of mankind to the dispersion from the Tower of Babel. The remainder of the OT provides a specific detailed history of Israel,with some references to these other nations as they are encountered in Israel's history.
The details of the gospel are not preached in the OT. The OT provides us a history of God's preparation of a people for the coming of the Messiah. When the gospel is preached in the NT, some of the people of Israel are ready to hear it. Also, the gentile nations that were in idolatry throughout OT times are ready for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and even surpass Israel for a time in being grafted into the true vine.
In the lesson, much is made of the focus of Ellen White on the person of Jesus Christ, with the “more than eight thousand references to the gospel and six thousand references specifically to Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross.” It is not correct to compare the veiled references in the Old Testament to the clear declarations of the Jesus in the New. Nor can we compare the number of references in the New Testament to the references in the writings of EGW, or the wrong conclusion may be reached. The name “Jesus” is mentioned 979 times in the New Testament, and “Jesus'” is mentioned seven times. The term “gospel” is mentioned ninety-nine times, and “gospel's” is found twice.
The Bible would be ranked significantly lower than the writings of many modern religious persons, perhaps even lower than the writings of many atheists. Demons are preoccupied with Jesus. This does not mean that they are in God's will. We must be careful when comparing statistical data about someone, rather than examining all things, and holding only to that which is good. (Remember the three kinds of lies: Lies, damed lies, and statistics!)
The summary on page 79 of the Teacher's Quarterly does provide a statement of some functions of a prophet. However, the people of God are not asked to “understand and accept His plan” of salvation. God's people are asked to accept his Son. Understanding is often a way of excusing oneself from the responsibility to believe. Abram and Sarai were definitely not able to understand God's promises. They believed, nonetheless. As we turn to Monday, the third study in this week's lesson, we should begin by asking the following questions: “Do I believe in Jesus?” “Am I watering down my faith in Jesus by adding something to that belief that is of my own understanding?” “Am I being influenced by people who seem to have spiritual statistics on their side, or am I relying on the Holy Spirit, and his revelation of Jesus through scripture?”
Summary
- The Old Testament promises of God regarding a redeemer for mankind were veiled. On this side of the cross we do a disservice to the OT patriarchs by assuming they had all the information that is available to us. This is not to say that they are saved any differently than we are saved.
- We are practicing eisegesis when we read into the text information and meanings that are available to us but was not available to the patriarchs
- Statistics are not an indicator of the spirituality of an individual nor do they indicate the truth of a message. The number of references in the Bible to Jesus and the gospel are far outweighed by the number of references in the writings of Ellen White.
Copyright 2009 BibleStudiesForAdventists.com. All rights reserved. Revised February 5, 2009. This website is published by Life Assurance Ministries, Glendale, Arizona, USA, the publisher of Proclamation! Magazine. Contact email: BibleStudiesForAdventists@gmail.com.
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