The Scriptures Jesus Loved
Young tree growing from a massive ancient petrified stump beneath a bright blue sky with drifting white clouds, symbolizing enduring faith and new life.
There is a simple question that changed the way I read the Bible.
It wasn't a question about history, archaeology, or theology. It wasn't even a question about the Old Testament itself.
It was a question about Jesus.
What Scriptures did Jesus love to teach?
The answer may seem obvious at first, but the more I thought about it, the more remarkable it became.
When Jesus walked the roads of Galilee, there was no New Testament.
The Gospels had not yet been written.
Paul's letters did not exist.
The book of Revelation was still many years away.
The Scriptures Jesus read, memorized, quoted, and explained are the writings we now call the Old Testament.
That simple realization changed everything for me.
Sometimes we think of the Old Testament as a collection of ancient stories, unfamiliar customs, difficult laws, and names that are hard to pronounce. We know it is important because it is part of our Bible, yet many of us quietly admit that we understand the Gospels much better.
Jesus saw something different.
Again and again, He returned to those same Scriptures.
When He faced temptation in the wilderness, He answered with them.
When He taught in the synagogues, He opened them.
When He answered questions about marriage, mercy, the resurrection, and the Kingdom of God, He pointed people back to them.
Even as He hung upon the cross, His words directed those listening to one of the Psalms.
And after He rose from the dead, before His disciples carried the good news into the world, He opened those same Scriptures once again.
That made me wonder.
Why these passages?
Why did Jesus return to Genesis so often?
Why did He quote Deuteronomy in the wilderness?
Why Isaiah?
Why the Psalms?
Why Jonah?
What did He see that His listeners—and perhaps we ourselves—had overlooked?
Those questions became the beginning of this book.
As I searched for the answers, I discovered something beautiful.
Jesus never quoted the Scriptures simply to prove that He was right or to win an argument. He opened them because they revealed His Father's heart. Every conversation, every quotation, and every lesson pointed people toward the God who had been patiently calling humanity back to Himself from the very beginning.
The more I noticed that pattern, the more the Bible began to feel like one continuous story instead of sixty-six separate books.
Everything began pointing toward the same Person.
Jesus.
One of the things I appreciate most about Jesus as a teacher is that He rarely overwhelmed people with information. Instead, He invited them to think.
He asked questions and told stories.
He opened the Scriptures they already knew and gently helped people see what had been there all along.
That is the approach this book hopes to follow.
Rather than examining every place Jesus quoted the Old Testament, we will spend our time with the passages He seemed to return to again and again—the ones that reveal the Father's character, explain His own mission, and help us understand God's plan of redemption.
Along the way, you may notice something else.
This book does not try to answer every question.
There are passages where sincere believers have reached different conclusions, and there are mysteries that Scripture does not fully explain. Whenever possible, we will resist the temptation to go beyond what Jesus Himself taught. Our goal is not to settle every debate but to learn from the greatest Teacher who ever lived.
Perhaps that is one of the reasons I have come to love the Gospels even more over the years.
Jesus never treated the Scriptures as isolated verses to be used whenever they seemed convenient. He read them as one beautiful story—a story of creation, promise, redemption, and hope. Every page revealed something about His Father, and every promise found its fulfillment in God's perfect timing.
As I have reflected on that, I have realized that this book is not really about the Old Testament.
It is about learning to read the Bible with Jesus.
Imagine walking beside Him along the dusty roads of Galilee.
Someone asks a question, Jesus smiles as He opens the Scriptures.
And suddenly a familiar passage shines with new light.
That is the journey I hope we will share together.
So before we begin, I would like to invite you to do one simple thing.
Bring your Bible.
Not because this book has all the answers, but because the greatest discoveries are still waiting for you there.
Read the passages Jesus quotes. Keep reading beyond the verses that appear on these pages. Notice how often one part of Scripture explains another.
Above all, keep your eyes on Jesus.
He is not only the subject of this book.
He is its Teacher.
Let us begin our walk.
