On Sunday, we kick off a new preaching series called SHADOWS.
INTRODUCTION
Picture a little girl at a supermarket separated momentarily from mom. Panic and fear sets in as she looks for her in every direction. And just as she’s about to burst into tears running to the end of the aisle, a shadow looms on the floor. The shadow looks like mom. Consider in that moment how her heart once filled with despair is now flooded with hope. Yet as great as the shadow is, imagine her joy once mom turns the corner and she sees that it’s really her![1] The shadow is great. The substance is better.
That’s kind of how the Old Testament works too.
Every story on every page is casting a shadow that’s getting you ready for Jesus. As you read the stories of the Old Testament heroes, it’s preparing you for the arrival of the true and better Hero. Adam. Moses. David. Esther. They’re all shadows of the Christ. His Story is foreshadowed in theirs. And when you come to the end of the Old Testament, your heart is flooded with hope that just around the corner is the One to whom the shadows were pointing.
The shadows are great. Jesus is better.
[1] Illustration by John Piper
by Ajay Thomas
Ajay lives in Philadelphia with his wife Shainu and their kids Hannah and Micah. He is responsible for preaching and vision as a pastor at Seven Mile Road.