Welcome. Today we’re going to be talking about the most important person we can talk about, Jesus Christ Himself. We are going to be going over some of the scriptures that point to Jesus as Messiah. This is a most important point because it has to deal with the truth of our existence. This information is the most valuable information that can be had, since you can determine your eternal disposition with it. To call on the name of Jesus to be saved (Romans 10:13, Acts 4:12, Acts 2:21) you first have to know who Jesus was and is.

 

            So we’re going to look at who He was from the point of view of Scripture and prophecy. In this, we are going to see that Jesus is the only one in history that has fit the requirements for being the Savior that we were promised in the Old Testament.

 

            I know we’ve all heard things like this before, but I cannot help but feel like it is something we need to review every chance we get because not only does it confirm just the plain awesomeness of God, it helps to keep us grounded in the Word. This is very exciting stuff!

 

            The reason why I think we need to talk about these prophecies is because they have such a bearing on our eternal future. If Jesus is not the Messiah, we need to know. If He is, then this is a crucial piece of information since Jesus said that He was the only path to the Father (John 14:6). Think about it, if Jesus is the true risen Savior, we need to know! How else can we come to the proper conclusion on how to go about getting ourselves right with God?

 

            Death can come at any moment for any of us. We are not promised tomorrow, we’re not even promised our next breath. There is always the possibility that I will be in the grave by the time you read/hear this. We are fragile, and our time is short, so we need to make the best of it while we can.

 

            I don’t want to go to Hell. I don’t want to suffer eternal torment. I want to be with God, and be in a happy place. I also want to be pleasing to God, and be all that He wants me to be. Because of this, I feel that it is enormously important to find the truth so that I can do what I need to do. I imagine most of you feel the same way, no matter what your faith is. Many of us on this earth are seeking out God, trying to find the best way to serve Him, and do what is acceptable to Him.

 

            I believe that spirituality is something that is innate to human beings. Our very design seems to lead us to seek out spiritual things. The natural order of things is to try to find some link with the divine through some form of religion. This is why society is always accompanied by some system of belief, even in the face of horrible persecution.

 

            Look for example at the communist societies that have existed in our world. Religion has not, and cannot be driven from the land completely. Faith and belief have continued to exist even in the face of penalties as harsh as death.

 

             In this vein, we’re going to operate under the assumption that the Old Testament is the proper and true sacred text with the account of the true God. Now we have the New Testament which features the claims of a fellow named Jesus who is said to be the Messiah that has been promised. We’re going to look at the evidence that the Bible gives us on this topic.

 

            Let’s get right to it. First up is (Gen 3:15)  And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. This verse might be speaking more directly to the Messiah than we might first assume. I’m not saying this is absolute truth, but I want to offer a thought for consideration: think about this, it is called the woman’s seed. Why might this be significant? Because of the fact that ‘seed’ is usually referred to as being from a man.

 

            But there was no man’s seed when it came to Jesus. He was born of a virgin, or of a woman’s seed! This verse may well be telling us that the Savior is to be born of a virgin. As I said, this isn’t some hard and fast rule or anything, it’s just something I came across and thought was interesting. If you don’t want to consider it that way, that’s fine, the point remains that Jesus was the descendant of Eve as we all are (Genesis 3:20) and that Jesus had His ‘heel’ bruised by the crucifixion, but yet ‘bruised’ the Devil’s head by His death and resurrection.

 

            So we begin with the Messiah being a descendant of Eve. This is going to help map out the Savior’s genealogy, and limit the number of possible people that can fulfill the requirement of historical lineage.

 

            (Mat 1:1)  The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Here we are once again limiting the number of people that can possibly be the Messiah by requiring Him to be of the line of Abraham. This originates from the promise God made to Abraham about his family being blessed and bringing blessings to all families on earth. What more of a blessing can there be for the people of the earth than the gift of eternal life through Jesus?

 

            God gives an everlasting covenant with the descendants of Isaac, which tells us that the Messiah will emerge from the line of Isaac (Genesis 17:19). Again we’re limiting the amount of people that can possibly be the Savior through another ancestor. Once again Jesus also meets this requirement (Luke 3:34).

 

            (Num 24:17a)  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel. Now we are narrowing the family line down through Jacob as well. Jesus is of this bloodline as we see in Matthew 1:2.

 

            Next up is Judah. (Gen 49:10)  The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. This verse is putting Judah in as another required ancestor. See Luke 3:33 for the fulfillment.

 

            (Isa 11:10)  And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. Now we’re limiting the line through Jesse. This also tells us that the Gentiles, or the non-Jewish world, would seek this root, which is to say the person. (Mat 12:21)  And in his name shall the Gentiles trust. And so we do, just like Isaiah said we would. (Rom 15:12)  And again, Isaiah saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.

 

            (Jer 23:5)  Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. This verse not only tells us who the Messiah will come through, but also some of His characteristics. With this, we will stop listing ancestors of the bloodline, since this pretty well covers what needs to be covered.

 

            The point is that the family tree prunes down to a single branch, one that includes the line of Jesus. To further identify Jesus beyond the family lines we are going to look at the prophecies that discuss other elements of the Savior.

 

            (Deu 18:18)  I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. (Deu 18:19)  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. Here we are told that this one that will come will be like Moses and those things He says are to be heard, and if we won’t listen, we will have to answer for our failure.

 

            The way that Jesus is like Moses has to do with the importance of their respective activities. Moses brought forth the Law to the people. Jesus brought forth grace to the world. (Joh 1:17)  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

 

            (Act 3:22)  For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. (Act 3:23)  And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Here we are seeing the New Testament confirmation of the prophecy in regards to Jesus.

 

            (Mic 5:2)  But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. This is telling us where the Messiah would be brought forth from. This was fulfilled by Jesus in Luke 2:4-7.

 

            I think there are some other points we can gleam from this verse as well. It says that a ruler of Israel shall be raised up. We know Jesus Christ is that ruler for He Himself said as much in (Mat 27:11)  And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest. Also see Mark 15:2 and Luke 23:3.

 

            Another thing that stands out to me in this verse is the mention of ‘from of old’ and ‘from everlasting’. I have heard some say that this is referring to the clan of Bethlehem, pointing out the fact that the clan was quite old. The problem here is that the sentence is clearly referring to the goings of the ruler that is to come, not the clan itself.

 

            This seems to be telling us that the ruler himself is from an old line, one that is from the very beginning. We have already established that Jesus is in fact of the bloodline of Eve, and that’s pretty old, dating back to the original pair of humans on the earth.

 

            We can also step back further than that with Jesus. With the mention of everlasting, I am reminded of the eternal nature of God. When I think of this, I also think of the Book of John. (Joh 1:1)  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (Joh 1:2)  The same was in the beginning with God. (Joh 1:3)  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. With these verses comes another, (Joh 1:14)  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. So in this vein, Jesus is from the very, very beginning in such a way that supercedes Adam and Eve and roots Him directly with the Father. This would provide for His beginning being of old, and also demonstrates how He would go forward to everlasting, to eternity.

 

            I am no Bible scholar, but this verse in Micah seems to fit Jesus in a way beyond just naming His hometown.

 

            (Isa 7:14)  Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. This is an interesting prophecy since so many claim that Jesus did not fulfill it because He was not literally named Immanuel. He was called the Son of God by many, including demons, and He did tell us that He is one with the Father (John 10:30) so He was called “God with us” because He was God with us.

 

            There is also more to this verse as well. John 1:14 also fits here, showing us that Jesus does indeed mean God with us.

 

            Some claim that the word ‘virgin’ here is mistranslated in some manner and instead should read along the lines of ‘young woman’ or ‘maid’ instead. Because of this, it supposedly is addressing a prophecy regarding King Ahaz and his fears over a pair of invading monarchs.

 

            (Isa 7:16)  For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings. This verse is what is offered as proof that the prophecy does not concern Christ, but instead some other child. This was happening some 600 years before the Lord’s birth, which strangely enough means that it was fulfilled. The kings that opposed Ahaz indeed did fall before Jesus rose to be of age. The New Testament reference can be found in Matthew 1:22-23.

 

            (Isa 40:3)  The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isa 40:4)  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: (Isa 40:5)  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. Jesus was preceded by another that cried out in the wilderness. The New Testament claims this is fulfilled through the person of John the Baptist. We can see in Luke 3:4-6 the announcement of the fulfillment of this prophecy.

 

            There were those that wondered if John was indeed the Christ, and we can see his assessment of the situation in (Luk 3:16)  John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. So here we have John admitting that he is not the one to come, that he is just preparing the way for Him who is follow. Mark 1, Matthew 3, and John 1 also contain the prophecy of the voice in the wilderness.

 

            Next up we have the Book of Psalms chapter 2. (Psa 2:2)  The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, (Psa 2:3)  Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. In this instance, we clearly have a reference to Jesus, because it states ‘the Lord’s anointed’. The word used for anointed is the very word we also translate as messiah.

 

            The kings were against Jesus as we see in (Act 4:26)  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. (Act 4:27)  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, (Act 4:28)  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

 

            (Psa 2:7)  I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Who is announced to be the Son of God? (Mat 3:16)  And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: (Mat 3:17)  And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. As we see here, and in Matthew 17:5, Mark 1:11, and Luke 3:22, God announces that Jesus is indeed His Son who He is quite pleased with.

 

            (Psa 2:12)  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. This verse is also clearly speaking of the Savior who is the Son of God. The blessing is the gift of eternal life that we have through Jesus Christ. (Joh 3:15)  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

 

            We are also told that the Son would have a Galilean ministry. (Isa 9:1)  Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. (Isa 9:2)  The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. This is declared fulfilled in Matthew 4:13-16 where Jesus goes to this land and ministers, allowing the people to see the greatest of lights, Christ Himself.

 

            This brings us to the famous ‘suffering servant’ chapter of Isaiah. There are those that believe chapter 53 of the Book of Isaiah is describing the people of Israel and does not apply to the Messiah. Let’s take a moment to look into this and see if it is the case.

 

            The servant spoken of in this chapter is said to have no deceit in his mouth. Would this apply to the nation of Israel? Well, let’s see what Isaiah himself has to say about the group as a whole just a bit earlier in his book.

 

            (Isa 1:4)  Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward. It would seem to me that Israel here is not being referred to in such a kindly manner. Why would Isaiah refer to Israel in such a manner one minute and then turn to saying Israel was found without deceit and blameless the next? This would not seem to make any sense.

 

            Isaiah continues to say (Isa 1:10)  Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah. (Isa 1:15)  And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. And finally (Isa 1:21)  How is the faithful city become a harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers. Now we have Isaiah speaking that Israel is so messed up that they are comparable to Sodom and Gomorrah, and even comparing the faithful city which is to say Jerusalem to a harlot! So how do we go from this to the blameless suffering servant?

 

            (Isa 53:1)  Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? That is to say that few will believe in the preaching of Christ and the salvation thereof. Now I know some of you are probably out there calling foul right now, claiming that there are massive numbers of Christians, but I dispute that. In all honesty there is a massive number of people in ‘Churchianity’ and nowhere near as many in true Christianity.

 

            (Mat 7:14)  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Jesus Himself is telling us that there are few that find the way to life. (Mat 7:22)  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? (Mat 7:23)  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. This is a sad fact, but it is a fact nonetheless. There is not some massive army of Christians in the world. There are a massive number of people who claim the name but not the truth.

 

            (Isa 53:3)  He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Jesus was, and still is, rejected by many of the people of Israel. Jesus was met with some rough treatment from His own people. Last time we mentioned the fact that Jesus had people pretending to be His friends who were just out to destroy Him. (Joh 4:44)  For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet hath no honor in his own country.

 

            Another point that comes up starting in this verse is the fact that we are dealing with two separate subjects. Clearly it says ‘he’ and ‘we’. Why would Isaiah refer to Israel as ‘he’ and then in the same sentence turn around and call Israel ‘we’? Switching like that would do nothing more than confuse anyone trying to understand what is being said. If we are dealing with two separate entities, one being the ‘he’ and the other being a separate ‘we’ then it makes sense.

 

            I know the operation of the original language isn’t exactly the same as the English we are speaking now, but that does not change the point. I’m looking at over a dozen different translations and versions and they all feature ‘he’ and ‘we’. If Israel is the ‘we’ and ‘us’ then the ‘he’ and ‘him’ is another party, namely Jesus.

 

            (Isa 53:4)  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. Jesus carried the grief and suffering of others, all while many of the people believed He was being punished for His own sins, and not theirs, which is the actual case as we see here and in (Mat 8:17)  That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.

 

            (Isa 53:5)  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. This is just Jesus from top to bottom. Jesus was the blameless sacrifice for sin, His suffering is our healing and our salvation.

 

            There are those that say that this verse is referring to the suffering of the Jewish people, for example the Holocaust. Now the Holocaust was a most horrible event in history and one of the darkest stains mankind will probably ever carry, but who exactly was healed by the suffering of the Jews in the Holocaust?

 

            It echoes quite hollow to me to say that the Israelis gaining back their nation is the ‘healing’ mentioned in this verse.

 

            (Isa 53:6)  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. Here again we have a separation between the one subject and the other. The ‘we’ is referring to Israel, and also applies to the entire world in regards to Jesus. Again the Lord is giving this burden to bear to another, a person listed as ‘he’. We know this of course to be Jesus Christ since He died for the sins of the world, exactly as is being described here in the Book of Isaiah.

 

            (Isa 53:7)  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. This is another verse that would seem to dispel the idea of Israel being the ‘he’ mentioned. Israel has not gone quietly into any situation where they have been oppressed. Just as one might expect, any time there was any oppression on the people, there were resistances and freedom fighters and the like. But Jesus went without any resistance to His death.

 

            (Isa 53:10)  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. This I think is an anchor point for the chapter. I do not believe this verse is referring to the Holocaust as some might claim because I do not believe that God had any pleasure in the suffering that befell the Jews in World War Two.

 

            But, think about Jesus and His sacrifice. It would please God to ‘bruise’ Him so to speak because it is through this that the salvation of the world is obtained. The victory is had through the death and resurrection, so in this instance, the bad thing happening led to a wonderful result. Jesus suffered so we don’t have to. He went through something bad (the crucifixion) so that we might go through something good (Heaven).

 

            (Isa 53:12)  Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. We’ll start with (Mar 15:27)  And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. (Mar 15:28)  And the Scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors. Now let’s consider the part about Him making intercession. (Luk 23:34)  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots. Jesus was praying for and making intercession for the very people that were executing Him! He now continues to make intercession for man as we see in Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:25.

 

            (Jer 7:11)  Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD. We find the fulfillment in the New Testament at (Mat 21:12)  And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, (Mat 21:13)  And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

 

            (Isa 50:6)  I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. If you’ve ever had your facial hair pulled out, you know it hurts, and hurts badly! Jesus did not even attempt to shelter Himself from this treatment as we see in (Mat 26:67)  Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands.

 

            (Psa 22:7)  All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, (Psa 22:8)  He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. This mocking can be found during the crucifixion of Jesus Christ as recorded in (Luk 23:35)  And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. They are basically yelling for Him to come down for Himself if He was who He said He was. Did Jesus yell at them or command a legion of angels to intervene? No, but He had the power to do so. He also could have leapt down from that cross had He so desired, but instead He died to give us eternal life.

 

            We are going to wrap up with some mentions about he who ascended to the right hand of the Father. (Psa 68:18)  Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them. We see this fulfilled in the following verses: (Luk 24:51)  And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. (Act 1:9)  And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. (Rom 8:34)  Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. (Col 3:1)  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

 

            There are many more verses we could throw out there, but in the interest of time we are going to go ahead and stop here for now. This is a subject that could occupy hours and hours of discussion, and I’m sure our discussions will end up on this subject again in the future, should the Lord be willing. Until next time, God bless.

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