7 Ways to Look for Christ in the Old Testament

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me…
John 5:39

All of the Bible speaks of the Saviour – Jesus Christ. Don’t forget Luke 24:44-45:

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures…

So if Christ is in all of the Old Testament, how can we look for Him? If it is our passion to really see Him – then we all want to see Him clearer in all of Scripture!

A few months ago I developed this little tool in Spanish, and since then I’ve found it very useful. In fact, we’re using it in our Sunday school class right now. So I’ve translated it into English for you – along with a bookmark that you can print out and put in your Bible.

So here is a brief explanation of all 7. (By the way, this is basically an expansion of #4 in How to Study the Old Testament.)

1) Presence Does this text speak of the presence of Christ? (Example: Joshua 5:13-15 – There are good reasons to believe, as you’ll see in this passage, that “the Angel of the LORD” in the Old Testament could be Christ Himself.)
2) Nature Is Christ similar or different from someone or something?(Example: Genesis 45:4-8 – Jesus was forgiving of those who hurt Him.)
3) Path ¿Is this a step closer to the coming of Christ? (Example: Esther 9:1-2 – Without the chosen people, the Messiah of Israel never would have come!)
4) Better Is Christ better or more perfect than someone or something? (Example: Deuteronomy 18:15 and Hebrews 3:1-6 – This is, of course, a major theme of Hebrews!)
5) Need Does this text show us why we need a Saviour? (Example: Genesis 5 – What a shocking difference from the paradise of Genesis 1 & 2! Death, death, death – we need a Saviour!)
6) Promise Is there a promise here about Christ? (Example: Psalm 22:16-18; John 19:23-24)
7) Praise How does this lead me to praise the Father, Son and Holy Spirit? (Example: Genesis 1:1-3 and Colossians 1:15-17; John 1:1-5)

If you would like a copy of the bookmark for your Bible, just download and print out the pdf below.