Sometimes, people think of the Old Testament as being about God in general and the New Testament as being specifically about Jesus. In fact, some take this separation even further and don't read the Old Testament at all! They only read the New Testament for several reasons. First, they like the loving Jesus in the New Testament more than the judging God in the Old Testament. Second, they think that since the Apostle Paul says that we are no longer under the Law of Moses, only the New Testament applies to them. However, the whole Bible speaks of God’s redemptive story and His relationship with us. Let's listen to an Old Testament passage that clearly foreshadows the New Testament:

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. (Zechariah 9:9-12)

The writer of this passage is Zechariah, a Hebrew prophet who lived roughly 500 years before the birth of Christ. Zechariah is considered a Minor Prophet, not because he is unimportant, but because we have very few writings from him. Zechariah begins today's passage by telling the people of Jerusalem to rejoice. Why should they rejoice? Because their King is coming! He then describes the coming of this king by saying: "Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." Does that sound familiar? This is, of course, a direct reference to the coming of Jesus as He rides into Jerusalem on a donkey before His crucifixion. This event takes place in the New Testament and is described by all four Gospel writers. The prophet then talks about the ultimate rulership of Jesus, saying, "He shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth." He concludes by saying, "Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double." I like that phrase, "prisoners of hope," don't you? You and I, if we are entrusting our lives to Jesus Christ, are prisoners of hope, too—having placed all of our hope in Him.

Have you done that yet? Have you trusted Jesus Christ for your eternity? He wants you to rejoice and to be with Him today and forever. That's the Good News of Jesus!