Jordan Scheetz is Chair of Biblical and Exegetical Studies, and Associate Professor of Old Testament Language and Literature, at Tyndale Theological Seminary in Amsterdam, NL. Jordan has been a good friend for many years and I’ve always appreciated his passion for God’s Word and making disciples. He wrote The Concept of Canonical Intertextuality and the Book of Daniel (2012). In this series, marking the release of Pleased to Dwell, Jordan looks at the rich Old Testament themes weaving together to point us to the Incarnation of the Messiah:
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The arrival of the Messiah is the culmination of a series of expectations scattered throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. To separate these expectations from the writings of early Christianity is a difficult task because the earliest Christians were Jews steeped in the expectations of their Jewish Scriptures.
The focus on a direct descendant from David and Abraham springs from the promises made to David and Abraham, something seen throughout the Old Testament. David was promised a future descendant who would have an Eternal Kingdom and Abraham was promised to bring blessing to all nations through his offspring. The Torah closes with the expectation that still another prophet like Moses who speaks with God face to face needs to come. Isaiah looks to a time of immanu-el “God with us,” encapsulated in an actual person, not to mention the suffering of avdi “My Servant” who brings forgiveness, healing, and eternal life to God’s people. Jeremiah in the midst of intense judgment shines the rays of hope for a new covenant, one that not only can be read and seen but will be written on the hearts of God’s people. Ezekiel contributes to the expectations of Isaiah and Jeremiah by looking to a time when there will not only be forgiveness and inner transformation of God’s people, but that God would even put His Spirit within them. The Twelve, in the midst of intense judgment, consistently point to the reality that those who (re)turn to God will find Him to be gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, all in the context of the (future) Day of the Lord. The return to the land under Ezra and Nehemiah, as good as they are, point to a future time when all of God’s promises will be fulfilled.
The arrival of the Messiah is the culmination of a series of expectations scattered throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. To separate these expectations from the writings of early Christianity is a difficult task because the earliest Christians were Jews steeped in the expectations of their Jewish Scriptures. The arrival of the Messiah brings together these seemingly disparate expectations in a person, the Messiah Jesus. In Him the fullness of these expectations from the Hebrew Scriptures culminate into the beginning of the Eternal Messianic Kingdom, where blessing, forgiveness, transformation, and eternal life collide in a person.
Biblical Preaching 