The Irrefutable Proof of Prophecy - Pastor Steve Rowitt, Th,M. PhD. There is a unique characteristic of the Hebrew Scriptures that is unlike any other religious manuscripts, ancient or modern. It is the “proof of prophecy fulfilled” that makes the Bible stand head and shoulders above every other document ever produced. Literally hundreds of prophecies concerning God’s chosen people, the children of Israel, their history, their Messiah, and the future fulfillments of the covenant promises God made to them are all powerful evidence of the divine inspiration of the Word of God, 2 Peter 1:20-21. The word of God uses this word “fullness” (Pleroma- to finish, to complete, to make full as in a container, a performance or a period, etc.) in terms of God’s plan to redeem the nation of Israel at the end of the Great Tribulation, Rom. 11:25-27 (a.k.a. the Time of Jacob’s Trouble, Jer. 30:7); the full measure of the blessings we have in Messiah, Rom. 15:29; That the fullness of God being in Yeshua, Col. 1:19, 2:9; and specifically concerning the plan of God to unite Jew and Gentile as one body of believers, Eph. 1:9-10. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons, Galatians 4:3-5. We are here today (12/25/2011) celebrating the incarnation of the Messiah as well as the 6th day of Hanukkah. Both holidays have important significance for believers because Yeshua is the Light of the World, John 8:12 as well as the Reason for the Season. The prophets of Israel had already painted a very detailed portrait of the promised Messiah by the time Miriam (Mary) was chosen to fulfill, Is. 7:14, Luke 1:26-38. Miriam’s lineage (through her father who is also named Joseph, Luke 3:23-37) is traced back to King David’s son, Nathan a.k.a. the Royal lineage. Matthew traces the genealogy of Yeshua’s stepfather, Joseph, and that line also goes through King David through Solomon. This genealogy is called the Regal lineage. No man could have had any part in the birth of the Messiah, as the male is the one who originally sinned against God, Gen. 2:16, 3:6-7, and it is the males who pass the sin nature down to their children (both male and female children). Miriam was certainly a sinner and she admitted as much, Luke 1:46-47, but she was also God chosen vessel and a woman of great faith. Because there are two different portraits of the Messiah given in the writings of the Older Testament, one of the suffering Servant, Is. 53, and one of the conquering King, Dan. 7:13-14; Is. 9:6, there is confusion among the observant Jews (who do not understand the duel nature of the Messiah’s ministry) as well as some Christian denominations that have flirted with replacement theology. It is not until you understand that Messiah comes twice that the mystery solved and the confusion concerning these two portraits is cleared up. He comes the first time to make atonement for the sins (take away the sins) of man, Lev. 17:11, despised and rejected by His own, Is. 49:7; 52:15, 53:3, but is also a Light to the Gentiles, Is. 42:6-7, 49:6. He comes a second time to achieve a final fulfillment of the New Covenant, Jer. 31:31-37, concerning Israel, Ez. 37:25; Is. 59:20-21; Zech 12:9-13:9. God had already given many prophecies concerning the Messiah. All were given between 1,000 and 500 BC. Here is a sample of just some of them: • Where the Messiah would be born, Micah 5:2 • How He would be born, Is. 7:14; Jer. 31:22 • Would come from Galilee, Is. 9:1-2 • What tribe He would be from, Gen. 49:10 • The family of Jesse, Is. 11:1 • The house of David, Jer. 23:5 • The Seed of woman, Gen. 3:15 • Seed of Abraham, Gen. 22:18 • Seed of Isaac, Gen. 21:12 • Seed of Jacob, Num. 24:17 • Presented with gifts, Psalm 72:10 • Called Adonai, Psalm 110:1 • Adonai will suddenly appear in His temple, Mal. 3:1 • Why He would come, Is. 53 • How He would die, Psalm 22 • Be betrayed by a friend, Ps. 41:9; Zech. 13:6 • For thirty pieces of silver, Zech. 11:12 • Blood money returned and used to by a potter’s field, Zech. 11:12-13 • Rejected by the rulers, Ps. 118:22 • Rejected by his own brothers, Ps. 69:8 • Disciples would scatter, Zech. 13:7. • Be raised from the dead, Ps. 16:10; Is. 53:8, 11. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him, Eph. 1:7-10. Many Bible scholars call our present time, the time following the death, burial and resurrection of the Messiah, as “the dispensation of grace.” God has always been full of grace and truth. He has always saved people by grace through faith, Eph. 2:8-9. OT saints were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, the One promised in the Torah, Deut. 18:18, and His glorious kingdom that was confirmed by the prophets, Jer. 50:20; Ez. 35:23-31, 36:24-38, 37:11-28; Is. 61:1-3, 65:17-25; Hosea 2:14-23, 14:4-9; Joel 3:17-21; Amos 9:11-15; Zep. 3:9-20; Zech. 14:16-21. Grace is a word in the Older Testament that is the same as favor. When it is God who is the source of grace, it becomes divine grace, saving grace, unmerited favor, Eph. 2:8-10. Noah found grace, Gen. 6:8; Moses found grace, Ex. 33:13-14; God is the source of grace, Ps. 84:11; God’s future grace to Israel, Jer. 31:1-14; and all who trust in His Son, Who is full of grace and truth, John 1:14. In Him, we receive grace for grace: So the word of God became a human being and lived among us. We saw His splendor (the splendor as of a Father’s only Son), full of grace and truth. And it was about Him that John stood up and testified, exclaiming: “Here is the One I was speaking about when I said that although He would come after me He would always be in front of me; for He existed before I was born!” Indeed, every one of us has shared in His riches—there is a grace in our lives because of His grace. For while the Law was given by Moses, love and truth came through Jesus Christ, John 1:14-15. So as we continue to wait for the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Messiah Yeshua, Titus 2:13, let’s remember the Jewish handmaid of the Lord, and the great miracle and blessing she received by being God’s chosen vessel to fulfill so many Messianic prophecies. Because she was chosen for that purpose, the angel who visited her called out, “And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” Luke 1:28. We too be working to reach the following goal: ...till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; Eph. 4:13. The Bible is a compilation of 66 books combined the Old and New Testaments. The veracity of these documents has stood the test of time. The usual complaints concerning the sanctity of these documents often belies an ignorance the Bibles own claims concerning itself and the power of the Holy Spirit to communicate God’s Word faithfully to every generation from the original manuscripts to the Bibles we read today. Additionally, these critics are willfully ignorant of the strict rules that had to be followed by the Scribes of Israel where the holy writings were concerned. Often the prophecies of the Old Testament were so powerfully accurate that critics would attempt to place their date as being written after the events they allege to foretell. The constant criticisms concerning the accuracy of the Bible were laid to rest with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered between 1947 and 1956 in and around the caves in Qumran on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea. The Great Isaiah Scroll has been carbon dated to a range of 335 BC to 107 BC and when they compared the text to our current translations they found no substantive differences at all! Although many great theologians have argued about how to intepret the biblical revelations, e.g. Orthodox Jews consider the Tenach to be the Word of God while other liberal Jews and Gentiles consider the Bible a storybook, those who are born of the Spirit of God consider both the Old and the New Testaments to be the inspired holy Word of the living God. We believe that the following statement is completely true and essential for a proper understanding of the complete revelation of God. “In the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed.” For those who believe that Jesus of Nazareth, Yeshua, is the King-Messiah prophesied by the Law and the Prophets. For this reason we expect to see Him throughout the entire Bible, from Genesis to the book of Revelation. Messiah Yeshua is both the Living Word of God, John 1:1, and the inspired Author of the written Word of God, the Bible, II Peter 1:15-21. •To Him (Yeshua) give all the prophets witness, Acts 10:34-44. •“In the volume of the book (the Scripture) it is written of Me, Psalm 40:7-8. “The Bible is the only book in which a Person is so completely described in every detail, prior to His being born, centuries before.” •This One is the central theme of the entire Scripture, both the Old and the New Testaments, and conclusively proves the divine inspiration and authority of the Bible, 2 Peter 1:20-21. • Prophecy is God’s method of proving His truth, His authorship, Is. 41:21-23, 40:28, 45:9-10; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:19-21. “There are 333 details concerning the person of Messiah in the Old Testament. The odds according to the law of probability for 17 details coming to pass are less than 1 chance in 480 billion x 1 billion x 1 trillion or the number 480 with 30 zeros after it or 1 in 480,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 or 1in 48 to the 31 power in scientific notation. The coming of the Messiah is the central theme of the Bible. The ancient Jewish sages referred to this Person as the King-Messiah. The One who would fulfill God’s promises to King David that his throne would endure forever, Psalm 89:35-37. Biblical Alternatives Fellowship has been serving the South Florida community with God’s Righteousness At Christ’s Expense (GRACE) since 1986. biblicalalternatives.org/
Posted on: Sun, 23 Mar 2014 21:53:05 +0000