Book Review: "Preaching Christ from the Old Testament"

"[W]e can define 'preaching Christ' as preaching sermons which authentically integrate the message of the text with the climax of God's revelation in the person, work, and/or teaching of Jesus Christ as revealed in the New Testament." ~ Sidney Greidanus, Preaching Christ from the Old Testament

 In 2 Ti. 4:2, Paul tells Timothy to preach the Word, in season and out. Of course, right before this verse in 3:16-17, almost in the same breath, Paul has told Timothy, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” So, we know that the Word Timothy is to preach is Scripture. Many years earlier, recorded in Lk. 24:27, we see Christ Himself showing His disciples how “all the Scriptures” witness to Him. What conclusion are we to draw? That we must preach the Word and to preach the Word, whether Old or New Testament, means to preach Christ. The question is, then, how do we preach Christ from Scripture? This question is much more acute when it comes to preaching Christ from the Old Testament (OT), where Christ is not mentioned by name. Some have simply rejected the idea of preaching Christ from the OT, but that cannot be valid since Jesus Himself showed that the OT is about Him. How do we properly, faithfully preach Christ from the OT? That is the question that Sidney Greidanus has set out to answer in his book, Preaching Christ from the Old Testament. In it, Greidanus examines the necessity of preaching Christ, the history of preaching Christ, and the method for preaching Christ from the OT.

I have written a review of this work. I highly recommend this book for pastors or seminary students, so hopefully the review will inspire you to read the book.

By His Grace,
Taylor