Teaching Children the Riches of the Old Testament

I was recently talking with a mother who is daily reading to her children from More Than a Story—Old Testament. She commented on how much her children were enjoying the resource, but even more so how much it is feeding her own soul. For one thing, the Old Testament reminds us that there is “nothing new under the sun” in terms of experiencing life in a fallen world.

Man is still desperately trying to find meaning and happiness apart from the one true living God—all futility. Man is still making various kinds of golden calves to worship and praise instead of the one true living God—with the same disastrous results. Yet, through the pages of the Old Testament, we are reminded again and again of the incomparable majesty of God and His unending faithfulness, mercy, and goodness toward His chosen people. We see what it is like for God’s people to live as exiles in a hostile world. And we know that everything in those pages is leading to a “grand finale” in the coming of the Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord.

I found this short article, “10 Reasons the Old Testament Is Important for Christians” by Jason S. DeRouchie to be extremely helpful. Here are his reasons in a nut-shell,

1. The OT was Jesus’s only Scripture and makes up three-fourths (75.55 percent) of our Bible.
2. The OT substantially influences our understanding of key biblical teachings.
3. We meet the same God in both Testaments.
4. The OT announces the very ‘good news/gospel’ we enjoy.
5. Both the old and new covenants call for love, and we can learn much about love from the OT.
6. Jesus came not to destroy the Law and the Prophets but to fulfill them.
7. Jesus said that all the OT points to him.
8. Failing to declare ‘the whole counsel of God’ can put us in danger before the Lord.
9. The NT authors stressed that God gave the OT for Christians.
10. Paul commands church leaders to preach the OT.

So read and study the Old Testament with your children. Dig deep and marvel at what you find. It’s not always easy or pleasant (lots of sin and wickedness to encounter) but it is essential for understanding the depth and riches of the gospel. Truly the Old Testament is more than a story!