Hello good classmate friends! I'll hop right in here:
Which of the 4 "Do nots" listed at the beginning do you find most people struggle with?
While I have found instances of all 4 of these "do nots" in various conversations over the years I think the MOST FREQUENT one I have run into is NT makes the OT obsolete: I see this most often around conversation on tithing. When it comes to this uncomfortable conversation I have had multiple people say "when Jesus appeared and a new covenant was given by God through His son it rendered the old testament law of tithing obsolete." Perhaps this is their rationale to resist the call to be generous with the church...
Recently I was tasked with preaching on this. I had the ability to say that Jesus actually reinforces the tithe in Marks gospel account of Jesus observing the poor widow giving her 2 coins at the temple.
How does putting Christ as the center of the 2 Testaments change the way you interpret the Bible?
For me, when I place Christ at the center of the 2 testaments Christ then becomes a bridge that connects the two periods together for me. The OT points forward and the NT points backwards, both to Jesus. I no longer look at the Bible as just a "before and after" story but rather as an entire piece of text that consistently gravitates towards Christ. It helps me to avoid dismissing parts of the Bible as "no longer relevant" just because Jesus shows up on the scene. I have a personal renewed joy in the OT looking for this hints of the Jesus to come!