| JESUS
FULFILLED PROPHECY:
Hundreds
of years before Jesus was born Jewish prophets made over 300 forecasts
about the Messiah that was to come concerning His birth, death, and resurrection!
Jesus Christ fulfilled every one of them!
Birth
Jesus’
virgin birth was foretold by Isaiah in 742 BC
 Isaiah
7:14
"Therefore
the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and
will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."
His
virgin birth is recorded in:
Matthew
1:21-23
"She
will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because
he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child
and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-- which
means, "God with us."
Jesus'
birthplace was foretold by Micah in 710 BC.
Micah
5:2
"But
you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins
are from of old, from ancient times."
Jesus'
Birthplace in Bethlehem is recorded in:
Matthew
2:1-6
"After
Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi
from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been
born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship
him." When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with
him. When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers
of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. "In Bethlehem
in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: "'But
you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers
of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of
my people Israel.'"
Jesus'
call out of Egypt was prophecied by Hosea in 740 BC.
Hosea
11:1
"When
Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son."
Jesus'
Coming Out of Egypt is recorded in:
Matthew
2:7-15
"Then
Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the
star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful
search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I
too may go and worship him." After they had heard the king, they went on
their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until
it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star,
they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his
mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their
treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned
to their country by another route. When they had gone, an angel of the
Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child
and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod
is going to search for the child to kill him." So he got up, took the child
and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until
the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through
the prophet: "Out of Egypt I called my son."
Jesus'
attempted murder was prophecied by Jeremiah in 606 BC.
Jeremiah
31:15
"This
is what the LORD says: "A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her
children are no more."
Jesus'
attempted murder by Herod
Matthew
2:16-18
"When
Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious,
and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who
were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned
from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
"A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping
for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."
Death
The
price set for Jesus' betrayal was also fortold by Zecharaiah in 487 BC.
Zechariah
11:12-13
"I
told them, "If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it."
So they paid me thirty pieces of silver. And the LORD said to me, "Throw
it to the potter"-- the handsome price at which they priced me! So I took
the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD to
the potter."
 The
price for Jesus' betrayal fulfilled:
Matthew
27:1-4
"Early
in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people came
to the decision to put Jesus to death. They bound him, led him away and
handed him over to Pilate, the governor. When Judas, who had betrayed him,
saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the
thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. "I have sinned,"
he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood." "What is that to us?" they
replied. "That's your responsibility." So Judas threw the money into the
temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself. The chief priests
picked up the coins and said, "It is against the law to put this into the
treasury, since it is blood money." So they decided to use the money to
buy the potter's field as a burial place for foreigners. That is why it
has been called the Field of Blood to this day. Then what was spoken by
Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: "They took the thirty silver coins,
the price set on him by the people of Israel, and they used them to buy
the potter's field, as the Lord commanded me."
Jesus'
crucifixion was foretold by Isaiah in 712 BC.
Isaiah
52:12-53:12
"But
you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the LORD will go before
you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard. See, my servant will act
wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted. Just as there
were many who were appalled at him-- his appearance was so disfigured beyond
that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness--so will he sprinkle
many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what
they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will
understand. Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the
LORD been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like
a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to
him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised
and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like
one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him
not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we
considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was
pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the
punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are
healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to
his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was
oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like
a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land
of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was
assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though
he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the
LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes
his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. After the suffering
of his soul, he will see the light and be satisfied; by his knowledge my
righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide
the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and
made intercession for the transgressors."
Jesus' Crucifixion
Matthew
27:27-44
"Then
the governor's soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the
whole company of soldiers around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet
robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on
his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him
and mocked him. "Hail, king of the Jews!" they said. They spit on him,
and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. After they
had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him.
Then they led him away to crucify him. As they were going out, they met
a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross.
They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull).
There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting
it, he refused to drink it. When they had crucified him, they divided up
his clothes by casting lots. And sitting down, they kept watch over him
there. Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS
IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS. Two robbers were crucified with him, one
on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by hurled insults at
him, shaking their heads and saying, "You who are going to destroy the
temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross,
if you are the Son of God!" In the same way the chief priests, the teachers
of the law and the elders mocked him. "He saved others," they said, "but
he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from
the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue
him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.'" In the same
way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him."
Resurrection
David,
the Psalmist, prophecied about Jesus' resurrection about 1000 BC:
Psalm
16:8-10
"I
have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will
not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body
also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor
will you let your Holy One see decay."
Jesus'
resurrection:
Acts
2:22-28
"Men
of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God
to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through
him, as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God's set
purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him
to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised  him
from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible
for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him: "'I saw the Lord
always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live
in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let
your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you
will fill me with joy in your presence.'"
WHO WAS JESUS
CHRIST?
It
is essential to understand that Jesus Christ was NOT just
a "good man" or a "great teacher" nor even a "great prophet." Jesus Christ
was both fully God and fully Man, at the same time, while He was here on
earth.
Philippians
2:5-11
"Your
attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very
nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made
in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself
and became obedient to death--even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted
him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth
and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father."
-
Jesus
was by nature God
-
Jesus
took on Himself the nature of a Human being
JESUS
WAS FULLY GOD!
John
1:1-17
"In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made;
without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that
life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness
has not understood it...He was in the world, and though the world was made
through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was
his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him,
to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children
of God--children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or
a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling
among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came
from the Father, full of grace and truth...From the fullness of his grace
we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given
through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."
These
verses teach us four truths about who Jesus Christ was:
-
The Word
of God
-
God
-
Light
of the World
-
The Son
of God
Colossians
1:13-23
"For
he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the
kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness
of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible
and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all
things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in
him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church;
he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything
he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness
dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether
things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood,
shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in
your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you
by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight,
without blemish and free from accusation--if you continue in your faith,
established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel."
Once
again we learn several significant truths about who Jesus is from these
verses:
-
He is
the image of the invisible God.
-
He was
the creator of all things.
-
He is
the unifying force of the universe.
-
He is
the head of the body, the church.
-
He is
the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form.
-
He is
the savior of the world.
Hebrews
1:1-14
"In
the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times
and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his
Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the
universe.The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation
of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had
provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty
in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has
inherited is superior to theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever
say, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father"? Or again, "I will
be his Father, and he will be my Son"? And again, when God brings his firstborn
into the world, he says, "Let all God's angels worship him." In speaking
of the angels he says, "He makes his angels winds, his servants flames
of fire." But about the Son he says, "Your throne, O God, will last for
ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom. You
have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God,
has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy."
He also says, "In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the
earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but
you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will roll them up
like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same,
and your years will never end." To which of the angels did God ever say,
"Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet"?
Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit
salvation?"
The
truth described in this passage of Scripture is that Jesus Christ is divine,
HE IS GOD! He is the exact representation of God’s being.
JESUS
WAS FULLY HUMAN!
Hebrews
2:14-18
"Since
the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that
by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death--that is,
the devil--and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their
fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants.
For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order
that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to
God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because
he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are
being tempted."
The
truth described in this passage is that Jesus was fully Human: He shared
our humanity.
JESUS
IS OUR GREAT HIGH PRIEST!
Hebrews
4:14-16
"Therefore,
since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus
the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not
have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but
we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-- yet was
without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace
with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us
in our time of need."
Jesus
is able to sympathize with us in every way because He was tempted just
like we are. Because we have a sympathetic high priest in Jesus we can
come to the throne of God to receive help when we need it!
Hebrews
10:19-25
"Therefore,
brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the
blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain,
that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith,
having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and
having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the
hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how
we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give
up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage
one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
 Again,
because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross:
-
We have
access to the presence of God through the blood Jesus shed for us.
-
We are
to draw near to God with a sincere heart.
-
We have
been cleansed from a guilty conscience.
-
We are
to hold unswervingly to our hope.
-
We should
spur one another on to love and good deeds.
-
We are
to be careful NOT to quit meeting together.
-
We are
to encourage each other.
Hebrews
11:1 & 6
"Now
faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that
the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not
made out of what was visible...And without faith it is impossible to please
God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that
he rewards those who earnestly seek him."
JESUS’ PURPOSE:
Jesus'
purpose, as described in the following verses, was to save people from
their sins!
Matthew
1:21
"...an
angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived
in her is from the
Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the
name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
Jesus
came to bring the salvation of God to the nation of Israel. To save them
from their sins.
John
1:29
"The
next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of
God, who takes away the sin of the world!"
John
also recognized that Jesus came to take away the sins of all people in
the world.
John
14:6
"Jesus
answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me."
Jesus
would open the only avenue to God. Clearly, there would be no other way
to approach God than through Jesus Christ.
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