For the veteran pastor and preacher Edmund P. Clowney, it is not enough to preach about a text, whether from the Old or New Testament, but it must be primarily and definitively centered on the person and work of Jesus Christ. In his words, "to see the text in relation to Christ means to see it in its entirety, within the context of God's purpose in light of revelation."
Clowney's reason for highlighting Christ's presence already in the Old Testament is based on the Hebrew Scriptures. The Old Testament essentially contains God's grand purpose in the history and redemption of humanity. A purpose that not only originates from Christ, but is His true center and reason for being. The testimony of the Scriptures concerning Christ is the ultimate reason it was written, making it entirely appropriate to highlight and emphasize this reality in both the Old and New Testaments.
Clowney emphasizes the importance of including a concrete application in every sermon, so that Christ is presented both by what He says and by what revelation teaches about His person in light of the biblical text, with a very special emphasis on its application to the believer's life.
