End of Day 7

Prophesies Fulfilled by Christ

Written by Brad Huddleston

Z Ministries

Did Jesus Christ fulfill the prophesies in the Old Testament regarding the Messiah?

Well lets put it this way, he fulfilled over 300.

Did you read that correctly? 300. The chance of Jesus somehow faking these prophesies are mathematically impossible.

Sit back, grab some coffee, tea, or a coke, and get ready to flex that brain of yours!

To get started, lets look at key scriptures that speak of the Birth, Death, and Resurrection of Christ.

The formula goes as this: OT Prophesies first, Christ's fulfillment's second. Some OT Scriptures come one after another, just scroll down until you see the NT passage. I will add help texts soon.

He Shall be born of a Virgin:

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel" Isaiah 7:14 (NASB)

"The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.  "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.  "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;  and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."  Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"  The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God." Luke 1:30-35 (NASB)

This prophesy was written by Isaiah about 400 years before Christ's birth. How weird would it have been back then to say that the Savior of the world was going to be born from a virgin? And how much more accurate and appropriate that this could only be done by God! People always bring up how impossible this is, that a woman could conceive a child when she is a virgin! Well Duh! Who would want to worship a God who couldn't make a woman conceive a child as a virgin!

Galilean Ministry:

"But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish; in earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He shall make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the other side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them." Isaiah 9:1-2 (NASB)

"Now when Jesus heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee;  and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:  " THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI ,
BY THE WAY OF THE SEA , BEYOND THE JORDAN , GALILEE OF THE GENTILES —  " THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT ,
AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH ,
UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED ." Matt 4:12-16 (NASB)

The Jews had a knack for memorizing scripture from the Old Testament, yet they didn't seem to learn anything from them. How true of this also of our age and time? People read the Bible from front to back as if it is some sort of novel or essay, yet they still do not understand that it is the "daily bread" and the "bread of life" that Jesus spoke about so often! When Jesus said that he is our daily bread, he meant exactly that! By studying his Word, we get our spiritual nourishment from the sacred texts, but we must meditate on them, not merely read them! Here we read in this prophesy that the Messiah will be called a Galilean, because he grew up in the area of Galilee, and the people will see a great light in the Messiah, because he is the light!

Have God's own name applied to him:

"For every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult,
And cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire.  For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.  There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this." Isaiah 9:5-7 (NASB)

"that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" Romans 10:9 (NASB)

"For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,  so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW , of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,  and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Phil 2:9-11 (NASB)

What a truly wonderful prophesy concerning who the Messiah is. This also goes back to the Blessed Trinity. Look at the names or titles that are given to the Messiah. Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and the Prince of Peace. Here you have 4 of the names of God. Did you catch that? Names of God. Jehovah. The Creator. The Messiah was not just going to be some random person that God was going to use as his Messenger. He was going to be God himself! Did the Pharisees know this about the Messiah? Yes they surely did. You must remember, these people where THE "religious" people of their time. They knew "everything". Or so they thought. They where blinded by their own satanic desires, their power, and prestige. Remember, unless the Holy Spirit chooses to soften your heart, you will never be able to see God for who he is, ever. Now that, is a brain teaser for you.

Triumphal Entry:

"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
He is just and endowed with salvation,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey." Zech 9:9 (NASB)

"They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it.  And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields.  Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting:
"Hosanna!
BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD ;  Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David;
Hosanna in the highest!" Mark 11:7-10 (NASB)

What a glorious event to behold! I only wish I could have been there to see his triumphal entry! Here we have THE moment where Jesus announced to all of Jerusalem of who he is, their King, Messiah, and their GOD! I don't know if the people knew what they where doing at this moment when they where shouting Hosanna! But I imagine they did. They knew of the prophesy of their shouting when he entered the city. You have to remember again, the Jews knew their scripture, especially the scriptures regarding the Messiah. They had been looking forward to their redeemer for the past 500+ years! They knew there Messiah had come, yet what did they do after this? The same people who where cheering and shouting, where shouting to crucify him! My how our hearts change when we allow satan to take control and influence us.

Betrayed by a close friend:

"Even my close friend in whom I trusted,
Who ate my bread,
Has lifted up his heel against me." Psalms 41:9 (NASB)

"As they were eating, He said, "Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me."  Being deeply grieved, they each one began to say to Him, "Surely not I, Lord?"  And He answered, "He who dipped his hand with Me in the bowl is the one who will betray Me. "The Son of Man is to go, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born."  And Judas, who was betraying Him, said, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" Jesus said to him, "You have said it yourself." Matt 26:21-25 (NASB)

Psalms 41:9 is what they consider a Messianic Psalm. It was written by King David, but inspired by the Holy Spirit. Which is the same for all of scripture. One thing I like to remind people who say that scripture isn't inspired is that Jesus quoted from them as if they where true and accurate. Case in point is when he mentioned Jonah and the whale. Since in an earlier article we have proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is in fact God, then if God says the scriptures are his Word, who are we to argue with him? In my mind, any "Christian" who doesn't believe that the scriptures are God's Word is a fool, and they need to look deep within themselves and ask themselves if they believe in God at all. But anyhow, this particular prophesy is something. Pay close attention to not just the first and second lines of the passage of Psalms 41:9, but look at the last line also. "Has lifted up his heel against me." Here we have God saying that his close friend will betray him who ate his bread (Judas), and lifted his heel to strike him (Satan). Judas was indwelt by Satan. How awesome is it that every Messianic prophesy was fulfilled by Christ? There are 300+ prophesy's in the Old Testament, and Jesus fulfilled every single one of them. Could he have fulfilled them and not have been the Christ? The chances of this would be you winning the lottery every single day for about 15 years. Could it happen? No, it could not. It would be mathematically impossible for you to do this.

Spat on and struck:

"I gave My back to those who strike Me,
And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard;
I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting." Isaiah 50:6 (NASB)

"Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him,  and said, "Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?" Matt 26:67-68 (NASB)

"Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified." Matt 27:26 (NASB)

There is a movie coming out that was made by Mel Gibson called, "The Passion" of Jesus Christ that you all should go and see. The way it was filmed will allow you to basically be a witness to the last 12 hours of Jesus' life, as if you where standing their watching. Now be warned, it is graphic! You will see your God beaten beyond recognition, Flogged, and Crucified. This will not be one of those Hollywood cute tales that we usually see, you will see it as it actually occurred. But I believe that this will humble, encourage, and shock you in knowing what Christ sacrificed to save you from your sin.

This prophesy was again written by Isaiah about 400 years before Christ appeared. God says he will give his back to those who strike him, which is referring to the flogging. The Roman Flogging was gruesome. "They would take a whip that had a handle about a foot and a half long. At the end of the handle, it had four leather thongs with heavy, jagged bones or balls of lead with jagged edges, wound into the end of the straps. There were a minimum of five straps of different lengths. The Romans would bring the whip down over the back of the individual and all the balls of lead or bone would hit the body at the same time. The Jews would only permit 40 lashes, so they never did more than 39 so they wouldn't break the law if they miscounted. The Romans, however, were unhindered. They could lash as many times as they wanted. So, when the Romans whipped a Jew, they struck 41 or more lashes out of spite to the Jews. So Jesus had suffered at least 41 lashes." (Copied from http://free-history-dictionary-books-hotels-health-maps.mithec.com/eng/crucifixion.html)

And this was written by Dr. C. Truman Davis about the trauma caused by the Flogging that Jesus suffered, " The heavy whip is brought down with full force again and again across (a person's) shoulders, back and legs. At first, the heavy thongs cut through the skin only. Then, as the blows continue, they cut deeper into the subcutaneous tissues, producing first an oozing of blood from the capillaries and veins of the skin, and finally spurting arterial bleeding from vessels in the underlying muscles. The small balls of lead first produce large, deep bruises, which the others cut wide open. Finally, the skin of the back is hanging in long ribbons, and the entire area is an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding tissue."

So he gave his back to be ripped into ribbons, and then he was spat upon and mocked. And it was all prophesied. Amazing!

Crucified with Criminals:

"Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death,
And was numbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors." Isaiah 53:12 (NASB)

"They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left.  [And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with transgressors."] Mark 15:27-28 (NASB)

This prophesy in Isaiah is saying several things. In the first line, I believe he is speaking about when Jesus sits on the right hand of God, and in the second line, it is being shared with the Christians in the NT. Remember, when a person becomes "saved", they share the same titles as Jesus Christ. We are therefore known as Kings and Queens, Prince and Princesses, and Heir to the throne of God. The 3rd line is speaking about his bleeding out on the cross, that Holy blood being spilt to save the world of their sins. The 4th line mentions that he will be numbered and called a criminal. The 5th line mentions that he will bear the sins of many, or paraphrased, turned into sin. And the last or the 6th line calls attention to the criminal that Jesus says will meet in paradise on that day.

Pierced through the hands and feet:

"For dogs have surrounded me;
A band of evildoers has encompassed me;
They pierced my hands and my feet.  I can count all my bones.
They look, they stare at me;  They divide my garments among them,
And for my clothing they cast lots." Psalms 22:16-18 (NASB)

"And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots" Matt 27:35 (NASB)

I think the fulfillment to this prophesy pretty much speaks for itself. Here God is calling the people surrounding Jesus on the cross who are cursing and yelling at him dogs, and evildoers. Evil was in the minds of the Jews on that day, and satan can be blamed for the cause of it, but it was used by God to encompass the overall goodness of the sacrifice. I find it amazing that King David mentions the piercing of the hands and feet, and that he can count all his bones when back then in the Jewish life, they had no thought or knowledge of crucifixions. This was brought on by the Romans almost 450+ years later in history, yet another example of how the Holy Spirit breathes through the writers of the scriptures.

Here we have again Dr. C. Truman Davis describing the crucifixion, and Jesus dying of a broken heart, literally. "Many people would die just from the whipping alone. After Jesus was whipped, they took Him out to the execution area and drove spikes into His wrists and His feet. It says that late that Friday afternoon they broke the legs of the two thieves hanging with Jesus, but they did not break His legs. He was on the cross and they'd already acknowledged Him being dead. Now the Roman executioners speared Jesus. This was the method by which an executioner checked to see if a still victim was in fact dead. If blood and pericardial fluid came out as in Jesus' case, it was an indication of death and there was no need for the legs to be broken to hasten death so that the cross could re-used for the next victim. Eyewitness accounts said blood and water came out separated - indicating Jesus was already dead.

Ahmed Deedat, in his booklet "Crucifixion or Cruci-Fiction," appealed to this phenomenon (the excretion of blood and pericardial fluid coming out) as evidence that Christ was still alive. He supports this in his writing, by an appeal to an article in the Thinkers Digest 1949, by an anesthesiologist. Today, there is more medical research by various people in this area.

To comment on Deedat's error: first, from a scholastic viewpoint: many medical and university or varsity libraries that once carried this journal, no longer do so. It is considered by many in the medical field to be not only out of date, but behind the medical times.

Second, from a medical viewpoint: a wound of the type inflicted on Jesus, if the person were still alive, would not bleed out the wound opening but bleed into the chest cavity, causing an internal hemorrhage. At the aperture of the wound, the blood would be barely oozing from the opening. For a spear to form a perfect channel that would allow the blood and serum to flow out the spear wound is next to impossible. The massive internal damage done to a person under crucifixion, and then being speared in the area near the heart, would cause death almost immediately. The State of Massachusetts General Hospital, performed over a period of years, research on people who died of a ruptured heart. Normally, a heart has 20 cc's of pericardial fluid. When a person dies of a ruptured heart, there is more than 500 cc's of pericardial fluid, and it would come out in the form of a fluid and clotted blood. Perhaps this is what was viewed when Christ was stabbed by the spear thrust."

So we have here a medical doctor who testifies to the crucifixion, and Jesus dying of a broken heart. Heart breaking isn't it? That our Lord died not just from the torture and agony, but also from a broken heart. My tears flow freely, and my heart becomes heavy when I think about what our Lord went through because of his act of Love for us.

To be resurrected:

"For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay." Psalms 16:10 (NASB)

"And he said to them, "Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. 7  "But go, tell His disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.' " Mark 16:6-7 (NASB)

This last Messianic prophesy that we are going to look at has to do with both the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, and God of Israel. Here we can conclude that he went to "paradise" which was in a part of Sheol (or Hell), and the Father will not allow his body to undergo decay which means he would not allow it to start to rot. Which he did not, he has Risen! Our God, Our Lord, and Our King is not dead, but alive! We do not worship a dead being, we worship the risen Lord! Our God is alive, and so is our lives! If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you too shall inherent eternal life, and the Kingdom of God!

 

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