What’s in a shadow?
On a sunny day we look down on the ground and see the shadows cast by the objects around us. Often you can tell what the original item is by the pattern of their shadow—for shadows reveal patterns.
But shadows aren’t complete and they’re not the real thing.
The Old Testament is described as a shadow. The Old Testament creates patterns and structures which find their reality and completion in Jesus. The Apostle Paul in Colossians 2 speaking about Old Testament festivals says,
These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
This is how we understand The Old Testament—
it was a shadow of a greater, more profound spiritual reality found in Jesus.
Bible reference(s):
Colossians 2:17
