What do you see when you read the old testament stories? Do you just read over them and draw some moral application? Often people seek to imitate the good characters and stay away from the behavior of the bad ones? Do you treat is as a ton of historical background, just...history...perhaps useful for testing its accuracy. A good thing to do is to put yourself in the shoes of various people and think of the various pressures upon them and how they could trust in God to overcome them?
All these things are good, all of them are excellent. In fact, all scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. However, think about all of these for a minute. All of them are about how to be a better person, how to believe in him better. This is very necessary. In fact, it is the method by which we draw closer to God. But that's the point - a relationship with God. And guess what? Relationships go two ways. The old testament stories are good for following and bringing delight to God, but God also wants to delight you!
Beloved church, the bible is not just a rule book, it is a love letter. Constantly ask yourself what God is saying about how much he loves you in the bible. In this case, the old testament stories are a promise. Time and time again it says, "If you follow me, I will keep you safe in my arms."
In the story of Joseph when his brothers sold him as a salve in Egypt it means that if you follow God even when things don't go right, he will keep you. God gave grace to Joseph so that he became the administrator of the household and then later the jail, and finally all of Egypt, holding a position second only to Pharaoh.
In the story of Gideon, where God asked him to fight the Midianites while outnumbered more than ten to one, it means that if you follow God even when it seems ridiculous, God will still come through. Gideons force of 300 routed 135,000 Midianites.
In the story of Jesus, God showed that he valued us more than the infinite suffering of his own son.
Deuteronomy 7:9 "Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments."
P.S. About copying the good characters in the bible:
The bible is full of righteous men and women who made the right choices in critical and pressured situations. By imitating them we can learn righteousness. Think of the situations they were in and see how their behavior reflected a trust in an almighty God. And don't just see "Oh, yeah, they were supposed to do that, duh." Take several minutes to put yourself in their shoes, or in the place of any character, good, bad, or in between. How would you honestly feel in their place? What reasoning or what feelings could you use to make the correct decisions, even when they oppose your instinctive actions?
WARNING - not all 'good' people act correctly all the time. Most people consider Jonah a 'good guy' but the bible records virtually none of his correct actions. In a more vague way, think of Joseph who kept his integrity through much strife while enslaved to Potiphar and eventually forgave his brothers for selling him off. But consider, did Joseph do right by telling his brothers of his obviously self-exalting dreams? Or was it just to hide his identity for several months at least, keep Simeon prisoner as security, and frame the rest for stealing before finally revealing himself?
