have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me. . . . The one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” When these verses are read in light of the whole of the Gospel of John it becomes clear that Jesus is not simply referring to isolated prophecies within the Torah/Pentateuch,35 but to the entirety of it.
First, that Jesus was referring to the whole of the Torah/Pentateuch and not just select messianic verses, it is important to note that Jesus claims that they do not believe “My words” (John 5:47). That is, it is the teachings of Jesus that the Jewish leaders at the time missed. They failed to see that what Jesus was saying was fully in accord with the words of Moses. But, that Jesus was referring to the whole tenor of the Torah of Moses, and not to any particular teaching, is evident in that Jesus does not appeal to a particular chapter and verse to support his argument. That is, if Jesus had in mind a particular verse, or set of verses, in the writings of Moses that he was fulfilling, then why did he not reference them? It would certainly have been compelling for Jesus to point out a specific reference in the writing of Moses and show them that he was indeed fulfilling it. We can imagine that John’s readers would certainly like to have known to which verses Jesus might have been referring. That Jesus does not appeal to any passage suggests that it is the whole of his teachings that fulfills the whole of the Torah.
Secondly, one of the major thrusts of John’s portrait of Jesus is in regards to Jesus as the fulfillment of the OT—not just as the Messiah but also in terms of the institutions, symbols, and festivals of Judaism.36 Jesus in the Gospel of John conforms to Paul’s affirmation that “the old has gone, the new has come” (2 Cor 5:17). Thus, in the Gospel of John, the waters of purification are fulfilled with the new wine,37 the temple finds its fulfillment in Jesus,38 the old birth looks to the new birth of the Spirit,39 the water from Jacob’s well looks forward to the Spirit who is the living water,40 and worship in Jerusalem and Gerizim looks forward to the true worship, which is “in spirit and truth.”41
Also, in John 5–10, the events of Jesus’ ministry are consistently dated in relation to a feast. John then uses both the narratives of the events related to the feast and the speeches of Jesus associated with these feasts to demonstrate that the feasts of Israel find their fulfillment in Jesus. In doing so, John affirms that Jesus has fulfilled the Jewish festivals. For example, in chapter 5, the true meaning of Sabbath and work points to Christ.42
Furthermore, in chapter 6, Jesus is the true “bread of God” that “comes down out of heaven” (6:33) in fulfillment of the Feast of Passover.43 Jesus’ declarations that he is the “light of the world” (8:12; 9:5) and the source of “living water” (7:39) take place during the Feast of Tabernacles.44 The significance of these proclamations is that during the seven (or eight?) days of the Feast of Tabernacles elaborate water ceremonies and the lighting of four huge lamps in the temple’s Court of Women took place.45 Jesus’ declaration of himself as the source of “living water” and as the “light of the world” during this feast strongly suggests that he was declaring himself to be the fulfillment of light and water for which this feast looked towards. This is all the more likely in light of the fact that John consistently portrays Jesus as performing acts and making speeches that link Jesus with the fulfillment of the feast.
Finally, Jesus declares himself to be the “good shepherd” (John 10:11, 14) during the Feast of Dedication.46 The significance of this is that Jesus was alluding to Ezekiel 34, which affirms that the leaders of Israel were called to shepherd the people of God. The failure of the leadership at the time of Ezekiel led to his rebuke and the declaration that God himself will
search for My sheep and seek them out. . . . I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken, and strengthen the sick. . . . I will deliver My flock. . . . Then I will set over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them; he will feed them himself and be their shepherd. (Ezek 34:11, 16, 22, 23)
It is evident that John understands Jesus’ declaration to be the “good shepherd” in light of Ezekiel 34. Jesus is the shepherd of Israel and the fulfillment of God’s promise that he himself will be the shepherd of Israel. That Jesus makes this declaration during the Feast of Dedication is highlighted by the fact that Ezekiel 34 formed part of the liturgy for the Feast of Dedication!47 Thus, Jesus is again declaring that he is the fulfillment of all that this feast points towards and not simply isolated verses within the texts.
Conclusion: What Does It Mean to Say That the OT Finds Its Fulfillment in Jesus?
It is reasonably clear then, even from this fairly quick glance into the NT, that “as many as may be the promises of God, in Him they are yes” (2 Cor 1:20). That the promises of the OT find their fulfillment in Jesus is one of the most significant factors to understanding the end times in the NT. Scot McKnight concludes, “Each of the four witnesses [Matthew–John] tells us the same thing about the gospel. It is the Story of Israel that comes to completion in the saving Story of Jesus, who is the Messiah of Israel, Lord over all, and the Davidic Savior. There is one and only one gospel, and it was preached by Jesus, by Paul, and by Peter. To gospel is to tell that story about Jesus.”48
Now it is important to understand that this does not mean that everything in the OT has already reached its consummation. For, we see that the kingdom of God has come in Christ in fulfillment of the OT promises, and yet the kingdom of this world remains.49 The point is that when one is looking at the issues related to the end times and pondering the prophesies of the last days, one must first ask, “How, and in what manner, might the fulfillment of these prophesies have been inaugurated by Christ?”
At this point I am fully aware that some readers may still find it difficult to accept that all of the Scriptures are about Jesus. This may stem from an understanding of Scripture that asserts that a given verse must be interpreted in light of its immediate context. This understanding is of course quite true. Yet, here it seems that I am arguing that Jesus took a passage out of its immediate context and applied it to himself. This creates a crisis of belief. Either we suggest that Jesus was wrong in doing so, which very few of us would concede, or we must consider the possibility that our assertion is incomplete.
Ultimately, I am suggesting that there is nothing wrong here. Our high view of Scripture can still be maintained, though we are in need of a slight addition to our paradigm. If we conclude, as I am suggesting, that the entirety of the Scriptures—that is, the overarching narrative of God’s plan to make himself known and to redeem and restore his creation—is about Jesus, then we may also conclude that Jesus is certainly correct to claim that a passage, which on the surface appears to be about the restoration of Israel, is about him. That is, the restoration of Israel finds its fulfillment in Jesus. Consequently, we must both determine the meaning of a passage in light of its original context and determine how this points us to Jesus!
Thus, the entirety of the story is about Jesus. This is what
