out with the old, out with the new

Using the term "Old Testament" for the Hebrew Scriptures seems like a big mistake. The word "old" makes that 2/3 of the Bible sound obsolete, replaced by the NEW Testament. It also makes it much easier for Christians to misuse the 2nd half of I Corinthians 5:17: "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come" (NASB).

They forget what Yeshua says in Mathew 5:18 - "For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished" (NASB).

Doesn't that verse make the point clear that God's Word does not change? And remember the Law that Jesus speaks of is the Torah, as that was the only body of Scriptures that was available at the time.

Could it be that even the naming of the Hebrew Scriptures "old" was part of the plan to divide Jews & Christians, anti-Judaic, could we even say anti-semitic in nature? Could it also be that when Christians believe and live as if the Torah is passed away, that they are missing a crucial piece of what God has for them in terms of revelation of His Word, instructions for their lives, and blessings for themselves and their children?

Think about it: when you read Genesis and Exodus do you read them as history, stories that are there for examples for us, but that hold little bearing on our lives? Or do you read them carefully, personally, because those books contain truths (small and large) by which we should live?

Do you sense the same God-breathed Word in the "Old" Testament books as you do in the Gospels and Paul's letters? Does Hebrews 4:12 hold true for the "Old" Testament: "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (NASB). The Gospel of John and Leviticus should be equally alive, active in our lives, sharp, piercing us, judging our thoughts and intentions.

B'rit Chadashah is the Hebrew term for the New Testament, which literally means New Covenant. Maybe a better way to refer to these two parts of the Bible is to leave the old and new out of it and simply use the terms Hebrew Scriptures and the Apostolic Writings. And read both parts as ONE testament to ONE God who is unchanging and desires that EVERY person on earth spend eternity with Him.