Question

1. In the Old Testament, what are the main themes that you found worthy of notation and why? 2. What characters of the Old Testament do you identify with the most and why? 3. How have you grown spiritually as a result of this class, the lectures, the readings, and the interaction with your classmates?

Answer 1

The two important themes worthy of notation in Old Testament are:

• God's love for man and his forgiveness- Right from the beginning that is from the book of Genesis, to the last book of Malachi, God's love for mankind is depicted. He wants human beings to stop rebelling and wants to live a life adhering to his love. He could have destroyed the mankind at the very first disobedience of Adam, but he chose to forgive Adam, though Adam lost his position in the Eden Garden. If Adam would have confessed his disobedience then the situation would have been different. Throughout the Old Testament God has been faithful to those who loved him and kept his words. He didn't punishment his people as they deserved to be, and often forgave them of their disobediences.
• Virtue of faith- Faith of Abraham, Enoch, Noah, Elijah and David is most inspiring and motivating. Though these people were of the same material as others were in their time, they choose God to be the center of their life and gave utmost importance to his words and kept them to their best.

The prayer of Hannah in her most adverse condition of life, the faith that she had on Yahweh that he is the only one who understands her problem and has solution for it has inspired me a lot in my spiritual and material life. Even, when she was praying she was misinterpreted as been drunk by the priest Eli, still this could not keep her back from pouring out herself to God. When she was answered she kept her promise and dedicated her first born Samuel to serve Yahweh. This inspires me to be faithful to my redeemer and helps me keep my words to him.

The confession of David in Psalms 51, helps me pour out myself when I am convicted by the Holy Spirit. The way David recognizes his faults, disobediences, weaknesses, and sins is always inspiring to me. This has made David stay closer to his maker and build up a strong relationship with him. Similarly, each of us should acknowledge our weaknesses, so that we are pardoned, and that we can build a strong relationship with our redeemer.