Ken Said:

what is the study of appearances of Christ called in the old testament?

We Answered:

It's called Christophany.

Sometimes rendered in the Old Testament as "the Angel of the Lord", at other times "the Lord" . There are even theologians who believe Melchizedek was a Christophany.

Monica Said:

should we as christians also study the old testament?

We Answered:

Instead of thinking of it as the "Old Testament," think of those writings as Jewish scripture.

The Jewish scripture are the history and ancient writings of the Hebrew people -- God's chosen people.

The different types of writings, written over the span of nearly 2,000 years, help us to understand where the Hebrew people came from, and help us to understand why God would send a simple traveling rabi to teach and preach the message of the Creator.

(And the idea that the prophets somehow predicted Jesus is simply ignorant, and diminishes the power and beauty of the Jewish writings by ignoring the context in which they were written.)

You can get a good understanding of who the Israelites thought God was through history, by reading the Jewish scripture.

Wade Said:

If we have a New Testament why do we still study the Old Testament?

We Answered:

I have yet to even hear about a christian that has studied the OT. All they do is regurgitate it.

Joy Said:

i need to study the old testament and new testament really quick?!!?

We Answered:

Here's something on the Hebrew Scriptures that may be helpful.

Glenn Said:

Old Testament Bible Study?

We Answered:

This may not be what you've asked for, but I found it very helpful in my study of the Old Testament. Bruce Fieler's book and dvd "Walking the Bible. He seeks to find the places of the Bible in modern day lands. His writing opens my mind to what it may have been like to wander in the desert 40 years, live as slaves in Egypt, and so on. It's well worth reading. The dvd shows you the places. It's like making a new connection to the scriptures to see the physical property on which Abraham walked. Consider watching it. Your local library should be able to get both of these for you. If not Amazon has them.

Myrtle Said:

Why do a lot of people still study the Old Testament?

We Answered:

Our grandchildren should be the ones writing the truth for our time and their grandchildren will be writing the truth for their time. It is the natural progress of a people who are gradually getting closer to God. How can we rely on something written thousands of years ago to be not just an accurate tale of God but the absolute tale of God? Even a small look into such things reveals that our morality has far advanced from those of history. Where in all of current civilization is it acceptable for a man of God to murder, rape, or pillage like the men of the Bible? Even from the accounts of Jesus compared to today, where is it acceptable to whip people, like Jesus did, for any reason? But it’s defended as being okay for the time period or because of the offence. Even though in this day and age it’s not okay we still have people who claim that it was an act of love. If we are realistic in our beliefs then we can see how people get a warped sense of morality when it comes to things of religion.
So see each religion and the books that come with them for what they really are, man’s limited understanding of God, and enjoy them as such. Read them, join them, and see what you can learn from their limited human perspective and then add what fits to your belief systems and discard the rest. Try sitting down and writing what you personally believe about God and it will surprise you what you will learn. It doesn’t have to be perfect and written in stone. In fact it should be as pliable as butter because you will progress in you life and your ideas and understandings of God should progress with you.