Is Christ the Promised Messiah of the Old Testament?
IIntroduction
AMessiah, anointed, consecrated one,maw-shee'-akh in the Hebrew.
1It refers to a king, priest, or those who have been chosen by God for sacred service.
2In the Greek, there are two wordsfor Messiah, “messias”interpreted“Christ” and “Christos” which means “anointed”.
IIThe concept of a coming Messiah harkens back to a number of Old Testament passages.
ATo Abraham it was told:
1Genesis 22:18 - And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
BTo Isaac it was spoken:
1Genesis 26:4- And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;
CTo Jacob it was proclaimed:
1Genesis 28:14- And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
DThe fathers of Israel were promised that one of their descendants was anointed to bless all nations.
1This was the messiah whom they would be looking to find.
IIIThe Prophets of Israel of Spoke of Great Changes that Would Be Connected to a Messiah
AGod Spoke to Moses Who Spoke to Israel Saying:
1Deuteronomy 18:18-19 - 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. 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.
2Moses as a prophet of God had some very unique characteristics:
aHe was a lawgiver initiating a covenant for the people to live under.
bHe demonstrated his authority from God through the miraculous.
cHe was a deliverer, a savior to the people.
3All of this was according to command given directly to him by God.
aThe prophet to come would be like him.
bThe Jews widely believe Deuteronomy 18:18-19 as prophecy of the Messiah.
BIn regard to a Lawgiver like Moses, the Prophet Jeremiah prophesied:
1Jeremiah 31:31-34 – Israel knew new covenant was coming.
a It would be a house of Israel where all knew the Lord and did not need to be taught so.
bSin would be forgiven at that time and remembered no more as it was in continual Sacrifice.
- Thus we have a deliverer, not from physical captivity, but the captivity of sin.
2The Prophet Hosea Spoke of a new Covenant coming as well.
aHosea 2:18-23 – new covenant
- Figurative language is used to signify peace will come with the new covenant.
(i)The peace comes with knowing that neither man nor beast can harm the salvation in God.
Under the New Covenant abundant blessings will come to God’s people.
- God’s people would no longer just the DNA of Abraham, but a new people, a new Israel.
- This would fulfill the promise to the Fathers of blessings to all people.
- Jezreel (God Sows)
CIn regard to the Miraculous which would Come with the Prophet Like unto Moses…
1The Prophet Joel spoke of a time frame in which the miraculous was prophesied to come to Israel.
aIt would follow a time in which Israel was punished by God for its sinfulness
- Assyria in 721 BC and Babylon 586 BC.
2Joel 2:28-32 – Spirit outpoured on all mankindand miraculous would be evident
asalvation to all who come to God
- This agrees with (Hosea 2:18-23) and the promise to Abraham of blessings to all.
bLet it be understood here that the escape and deliverance at that time would be from sin.
- Here we again see the deliverance trait of the Prophet to be like Moses.
3In regard to the time in which the spirit would be poured out, Isaiah had the following to say:
aIsaiah 32:9-18
- The hardened ignorant hearts of Israel were a wilderness
- With the outpouring of the Spirit, hearts zealous and fertile field for God will emerge
- As Hosea spoke, there will be an environment of peace.
4Consider the words which precede the pouring out of the Spirit.
aIsaiah 32:1-4 – Here is declared the coming of a righteous king and a spiritual revival.
5Isaiah 35:1-8 – (Follows chp 34 discussing God’s Judgment upon nations)
aDescription of time of blessings, peace, absence of evil, salvation, miraculous, coming of the way.
DHear the tidings of the coming king from Zechariah:
1Zechariah 9:9-12
aConsider here that the covenant which would set free was setting men free from sin
- This would be in accordance with the prophet Joel’s words regarding sin.
- Also the covenant would be of blood, thus requiring a sacrifice.
bAlso spoken of is peace, salvation, and that to nations all of these spoken of by other prophets.
cFinally, there are specifics about the exact mode of transportation by the Messiah.
EWhat is known about the promised Messiah thus far?
1He would be of the fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
2He would bring blessing to all nations.
3He would be a man similar to Moses.
4He would bring aNew Covenant in blood.
5He would come with the miraculous.
6In a day of salvation, there would be a new people of God – A new Israel.
7Captives would be freed.
8The Messiah would be a king who would bring peace.
9He would come on a donkey and a colt of a donkey
IVThe Old Testament Scriptures Tell Much More about the Messiah.
AJeremiah 23:5-6 - 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. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. – Jeremiah proclaims the Messiah to be a king from the line of David and Judah. -
1Consider also Ezekiel’s identification of the lineage of David inEzekiel 34:23-31similar to Hosea.
BThe Location of the Birth of the Messiah was Prophesied by the Prophet Micah.
1Micah 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.
CThe Messiah was to be Heralded Before His Coming
1Malachi 3:1 - Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye desire: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
2Isaiah also prophecied,“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.” (Isaiah 40:3)
DIsaiah Prophesies Further of the Coming and Birth of the Messiah
1Isaiah 9:1-7
aThe Messiah would come from Galilee
bThe kingdom would be eternal and peaceful
cThe Messiah would be of the line of David
EProphet Daniel Declared the Time of the Messiah and His Kingdom
1Daniel lived during the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.
aHe interpreted a dream of the king which involved many kingdoms.
- The first was Babylon. The next to follow would be Medo-Persia, followed by Greece, then a fourth Kingdom – Roman Empire. About that time Daniel said the following:
- “And in the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.” (Daniel 2:44)
2Even more specifically Daniel has words regarding the Messiah inDaniel 9:25-26a.
a The Messiah would come in 69 -7’s or 483 years after a decree to rebuild Jerusalem.
bI suggest this was in 457 BC by command of Artxerxes.
- Thus, the Messiah would appearin approx. 27 AD.
- In the middle of the next 7 years, the messiah would be cut off.
(i)Thus, the date of this would be approx. 30 AD.
cThe Romans would be ruling at the time in agreement with Daniels previous words.
FBefore Identifying the Messiah One Final Understanding Must be Established
1Isaiah 49:7-8 - The Messiah would be despised and hated by the nation
aHe would be given as a covenant to restore the heritage of the people.
- Note: If the messiah were to be given as a covenant, it would suggest he would be a sacrifice.
VA Look at the Time Frame of the First Century Mentioned by Daniel
AJohn the immerser was preaching the arrival of the Kingdom and Messiah at this time.
1Held by many jews to be a prophet, he declared himself to be the herald that Isaiah and therefore, Malachi had spoken about (John1:23)
aHe stated: John 1:29-34
- He claimed Jesus was the Messiah.
- He tied Jesus to the Holy Spirit as mentioned by Joel and Isaiah.
- He proclaimed the Messianic King as the Son of God as prophesied by David in Ps. 2:1-8
BJesus Fits the Prophecy of The Prophets
1He was a descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
2He was the seed of Judah and David
3He was born at the right time during the reign of the Romans.
4He was born in Bethlehem
5He came preaching out of Galilee
6He came upon a donkey and the colt of a donkey
7He performed many miracles as Moses
8He established a New Covenant as Moses
9His blood established him as the covenant for all people
10In him all nations were free to enter an eternal kingdom of peace and blessing
11He released those who were captive to sin and death
12The nation demonstrated their hate for him by hanging him upon a cross.
VIThe Crucifixion of Jesus in Prophecy
AWhy was he Crucified?
1Isaiah 53 – To deliver man from their sins.
BWhat Happened when He was Crucified?
1Amos 8:4-10
2Ps. 22:1-18
CFollowing Crucifixion what happened to Him?
1Psalm 16:7-10
2Psalm 22:21-22 – Delivered and proclaiming God to others.
3Psalm 30:1-3
4Daniel 7:13-14
DFollowing the Crucifixion of Jesus on the day of Pentecost The Holy Spirit was Poured Out
1The miraculous abounded as Prophesied by Joel and Isaiah.
2The Apostle Peter demonstrated from the Prophets that Jesus was the Messiah
3In Acts 2:36-37, this is what happened
aTherefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
- These men were grieving over having crucified their Messiah.
4Consider the prophecy of Zechariah 12:10
aAnd I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
VIIChristians see Jesus as the Christ. During the first century…
AJohn the Immerser proclaimed Jesus to be the Christ:
BDevils believed it: - Luke 4:41 - And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ.
CSamaritans new it:John 4:42 - And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
DEarly on the disciples knew it:John 1:41 - He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
EThe More than 3000 Jews on Pentecost believed it (Acts 2)
FThose Fleeing Jerusalem in Persecution and spread the Word throughout World Believed it. (Acts 8)
GJesus confirmed it:John 4:25-26 -The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
VIIISummary
AConsider the probability of Jesus Fulfilling the number of Prophecies which have been mentioned.
1Some of the prophecies mentioned are over 1500 years old.
aMost were many hundreds of years old.
bThey were made from different people in different eras who did not know each other.
2The Bible contains many other prophecies of the Messiah which were fulfilled as well.
3The facts are the probability of Jesus not being the Christ are essentially non-existent.
aAnd this from looking only at Prophecy in the Old Testament.