Are the promises in the Old Testament valid for us today?

We are discussing the relationship between the Old Testament and the New Testament. In this post, we are talking about the promises in the Old Testament and how they might apply to us today. It is clear that the OT promises are for the Jewish people, but what about the Christian church? In what way might these promises be applied to us.

First, we must look at what the New Testament, which was written to the church, says about the Old, which was written to the Jewish people. 


For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

There is a wonderful statement! All the promises of God, in both the Old and New Testaments, are ours! That is good news.

Of course, now we have to look at some promises and see how they might fit us. After all, many promises were made to the NATION of Israel and not individuals within it. There are good examples of this in the writings of the prophets. They prophesied about the future restoration of the nation of Israel, which will culminate when the messiah comes to establish His kingdom in its fullness. (We know that this occurs at the Second Coming of Christ.) How can we apply something like that to ourselves? Let's look at one passage from Isaiah. 

O you afflicted one,
Tossed with tempest, and not comforted,
Behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems,
And lay your foundations with sapphires.
¹² I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
Your gates of crystal,
And all your walls of precious stones.
¹³ All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
And great shall be the peace of your children.
¹⁴ In righteousness you shall be established;
You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
Isaiah 54:11-14 

I have quoted here just a portion of a prophecy and promise that Isaiah gave to the Jewish people regarding the coming restoration of the nation of Israel. In fact, this passage is really about the Millennial Reign of Christ when there will be perfect peace - no terror, etc. We can see that quite clearly. But equally clear are some promises that could as easily apply to Christian believers. For instance, there is a verse in the middle of it that says, "All your children will be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children." That is a promise that is as much for us today as it will be for Israel during the Millennium. I personally have prayed this verse over my own children many times. 

[I think it is a good practice to pray the promises of God. The promises of God are the will and plan of God. Therefore, they are the proper basis for the prayer of faith.]

So, a promise that applies to Israel in one way can apply to the church in another. Sometimes we have to "spiritualize" a promise to make it apply to Christian believers today. For examply, there are many passages in the OT where God promises Israel victory over its enemies. 

The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.   
Deuteronomy 28:7 

This is a good example of such a promise (though the promise was conditional upon Israel's obedience). And Israel did defeat its enemies when they were in obedience to God. But for the church, we are told that people are not our enemies. (Some Christians need a revelation of this.)

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:12

This NT passage shows us two things. One - people are not our enemy. Two - the devil and his demons are. So, do we go fight the devil in the same way that the Israelites fought their enemies? No. Jesus has already defeated the devil; we just have to enforce his defeat. 

Jesus, in giving the Great Commission to His apostles, said, "In My name they will cast out demons." (Mark 16:17) It is our responsibility to cast the devil out of every part of our lives. That is how we deal with our enemies. 

So, we can apply every promise in the Bible to ourselves, but we do have to remember that the NT church is in a different situation, physically and spiritually, than were the ancient Israelites to whom the promises were made. Those promises are truly for us, but may be applied rather differently than they are for the Jews. On the other hand, we should not hesitate to ask God to fulfill those promises in our lives because in Christ, they are "Yes" and "Amen" to the glory of God.