The Prophets Told Us About the Grace That Would Come, and It Did
1 Peter 1:8-12
(Children's Sheet for Sermon Interaction is at bottom. Notes are throughout sermon)
Please turn to 1 Peter 1:8-12. 1 Peter 1:8-12 is the passage we are gleaning from this morning. As you are turning there, I want us to consider the history of God's creation. Let's go forward from the first days of creation and think about Noah; then through history to Abraham, and to Moses, on up to the arrival of Christ. I am wanting us to consider the pinnacle events of our faith. Think about the whole arena of the coming of Christ to earth. Think about God manifesting Himself in bodily form. Then there is all the teaching that Christ gave for revelation, for understanding, and for record. There is the amazing fact that He gave His body to die for us. Then He did what mere humans think is impossible--He raised that body from the dead (as Himself) to reign as King of kings and Lord of lords forever as Himself. What is impossible with men, is more than possible with God. It is in the realm of miracle. The whole arena of the coming, and work, of Christ is in the realm of the supernatural. When we look at it all, we wonder how its importance can be expressed in words. When we reflect on the fact that Christ came to His creation to take away the sins of people by giving Himself up to be rejected, tortured, and executed, we are considering one of the most (if not the most) significant aspects of our history. Very little that has happened, is happening, or will happen, can remotely hold a candle to these things. When I think about this, it is amazing to me that in God's sovereignty, He has the world exist in such a manner that multitudes have no idea that any of this ever happened. It would be just as amazing to me to recognize that God has determined to spread the good news message to the lost through what Paul calls the foolishness of preaching. Paul calls it foolishness (1 Corinthians 1) because people who remain in spiritual darkness respond to the beauty and wonder of God's plan in sending Christ, and all that followed, by refusing to believe it. But, we are not amazed when we recognize that their minds are darkened in spiritual death. In darkness, some set out to ridicule these things. They try to refute it. Some people think that Jesus was just another man. They think that Jesus was surprised by His rejection and crucifixion. They think He was arrested for being merely another zealous religio-political rebel in the sea of zealous rebels; tried, executed; and that is that. I want us to think about these things as we read our text this morning. Peter's words serve many purposes. They have to do with God's predetermined plan in implementing the arrival of Christ. They have to do with Who He is. They have to do with what He has done. They have to do with what He is doing now. They have to do with His salvation that He secures for sinners by grace through faith. Peter's words have to do with the amazing fact that the prophets told us about the grace that would come, and it did. Please read verses 8 through 12 with me,
"8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls. 10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, 11 seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things into which angels long to look." 1 Peter 1:8-12
Please prepare your heart to learn, along with me, from the preaching of God's word, in this sermon titled,
The Prophets Told Us About the Grace That Would Come, and It Did
[prayer]
This morning I want us to glean some important principles from this section of Peter's opening comments concerning the grace that the prophets foretold would come to the dispersed Christians of Peter's day, and also to us specifically. They are encouragements that God has given to build us up in the faith.
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The first principle is that your very own salvation has been prophesied,
"8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls. 10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you ..."
Peter tells us something through revelation that we understand intimately in experience. It applied to the first Christians in the inaugural blossoming of the church. It applies to all Christians in every generation. Here is what it is: Your belief in the Messiah brings you rejoicing, and joy, that can not be expressed. Your joy is more than a human generated response. The miracle part of it is that the Spirit puts that joy there in your heart. This is why you rejoice in the fact that the outcome of your faith in Him is the salvation of your soul as the great blessing. It is inexpressible, but you have it. We rejoice, in our inner man, knowing that without God's grace, we would be doomed. We know there is something better waiting for us after we die. We know the King of kings and Lord of lords as our Master-friend-savior. It is as we learned last week--our inexpressible joy and overcoming faith we have now is a prophetic revelation of our eternal spiritual salvation to come. It is hard to describe because we know Him in our joy with faith, but yet we have not seen Him, and we don't see Him now. The Christians, to whom Peter is writing, are experiencing the grace and joy without having seen Christ; yet they intimately know Christ as their Saving Hero. He is the one who came down to rescue them spiritually and they embrace Him. We who are saved, know Christ personally in this supernatural relationship too. It does not make sense to the natural mind; but the fact of the matter is this amazing statement:
We all trust in a Savior that we have not seen, nor do we see right now.
We know Him. We talk to Him. We serve Him. The world thinks this is religious insanity. I want to take a side step, and mention something else that ties into this. It is something I think is very important to cover. In the decades upon decades of my own Christian experience, I have befriended, fellowshipped with, and have been around, practically every kind of Christian who clings to a signature doctrine that overwhelmingly drives their actions. I have been among thousands of people who are charismatic mystic types. I have been around multitudes of Pentecostals who think they have a "second blessing." They think it is a "fullness" of a power, or the person of the Spirit, that other Christians do not have. I have been around Lone Ranger Christians who think that they are modern day prophets who hear special revelations from God. Some of these people claim they have seen the risen Christ. I have heard glowing reports of Jesus standing beside their beds. I have heard stories that claim that Jesus took them by the hand and walked with them through fields of flowers. I have heard hundreds of stories like these. But Peter knows an important detail as he writes this aspect of the Bible. Peter knows that men like Stephen, Paul, John, and his own self, were the last appointed people to see the risen Christ. This is why Peter writes with pure confidence that He is 100% correct,
"... and though you have not seen Him, ... and though you do not see Him now, ..." 1 Peter 1:8
Peter is not speculating. He is not making a guess. He is not using a figure of speech. The apostle Peter is not mistaken in his Spirit inspired Scripture that God preserved for us to have as the Bible for our instruction. He knows that what he just wrote is true whether someone else wants to claim differently. Peter is not concerned with any of these scattered Christians claiming that they are seeing Christ. Peter's Holy Spirit inspired words show that he does not consider it. His words show that he will not believe them if they claim differently. Now think about this. We all must be careful about this trend in our time where all kinds of obscure people claim they see Christ. At this point you may be asking:
Why would you give this encouragement for us to be careful about people who make these claims?
Because mystical language has a way of enamoring people. It can freeze you to fear questioning these kinds of claims because you can be led to believe that to question anyone's spiritualized assertions, or their mystical experiences, is to somehow be less spiritual than they are. After all, when was the last time that Jesus walked with you in a field of flowers?--other than being in you, and you in Him? Just to claim such a thing implies that the claimer is on a kind of experiential level that seems to demand respect. The sense is that a lot of these folks expect to be respected and believed to such an extent that they react to those who scrutinize them with:
"How dare you question me?"
To which we can play our side of the seesaw and say,
"How dare you question me for questioning you?"
It is a good answer, but nevertheless, playing seesaw doesn't typically get us very far in these kinds of conversations; but the point is that saying that you have seen Jesus sounds like an assertion that comes from deep spiritual insight, doesn't it? What can happen is that fear will scare Christians from being discerning about these things. It is implied that you are coming against God if you question these people. Instead of "How dare you question me?," some of these people are really thinking,
"How dare you question God?"
It is implied that you are spiritually undiscerning, or that you are not believing God, when the opposite is really the case. You are the one who is being very discerning. The ones you are examining carefully are the ones who lack true spiritual discernment concerning your caution. Then there is the innate desire that we have--we long to encounter Christ in a way that is like sitting down with a friend and having a meal together, laughing together, and talking about things while looking at each other face to face. We all yearn to reach out and touch the Son on the shoulder, don't we? We all want to see Him. God says that you will see Him someday. Everyone of us will see Him when we leave this world behind, or if He comes again for us. The problem is that we want this so much in the world right now, that there is this tug that can occur in our hearts to want to believe the people today who say that they have seen Him, and see Him now. We want to believe others who have taken their stand on what they call "visions" of what they claim they have seen. This is why God's apostle who really did see Christ, warns us,
"Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by ... taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind," Colossians 2:18
But Peter actually is concerned with those who have seen Christ, but in another miraculous way, in another time. It is a verifiable way, but it is different than walking with Him in a field of flowers. It is different than sitting with Him and laughing, and talking face to face over a meal. Peter is very concerned with people who have not seen Christ with their eyes, but they have seen Him in a certain, real, spiritual sense. It is in a real prophetic sense, and not merely a claimed one. Centuries before Christ came to earth in His incarnation, they saw Him as coming someday as a manifestation of God's grace. Peter is wanting to make it clear that all of these things of the New Covenant have been part of God's revealed plan in the past. Peter has already explained these things coming into our passage. But let's think about something else along this line. It is what I am wanting to bring out in this first point. I want you to think about yourself in a special way that you may not have considered before:
The Christians of the first century, in their election, their love for Christ, their belief in Him, and their joy that can not be expressed outwardly, are doing so, and existing as, living fulfillment's of prophecy.
Follow what I am saying, because this is the way it is with you, me, and all true Christians too. In other words, all who were elect in Christ, since before the foundation of the world, were specifically spoken of by various prophets over the multitudes of generations over thousands upon thousands of years. What this means is:
If you are saved spiritually, then you were specifically prophesied, just as Christ was specifically prophesied.
I really want us to get this. I am not saying that a Messianic redeemer was generally prophesied about (though there is an element to that statement which is true). I am not saying that a salvation of people in general would come, or love for the Messiah would come with belief, and inexpressible joy, in a general sense--and you just happen to be part of it. I'm saying what God is saying, which gets really specific. All these things had to happen the exact way that they have actually happened in God's predetermination. Just as the fact that the specific Christ was prophesied to come always meant that Jesus was that very person being spoken of, all of God's elect are specific prophecies too. This is beautiful, because just like our names were prewritten in the unique book of the Lamb's book of Life, each one of us has been written into the Holy Scriptures though your exact name, and my exact name, were unknown to the prophets. So, when we read this section of 1 Peter, we are reading a news report about Christ and His great work, and you are also reading about the Christians of the first generation, and you are also reading about yourself too. I am reading about you and me. We are there in the prophecy as those who have "this salvation" of which "the grace" was meant "to come." So we were in the ancient prophecies, and we also exist as the living fulfillment. Knowing this should move us to recognize that God's plan was not random and nebulous. It was specific, with specific people in mind that were ordained to exist in His predestination.
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This leads to the next principle that we can glean from Peter's encouraging teaching concerning the grace that the prophets foretold would come. The prophecies were by the Spirit, and they were precise in pointing toward Jesus the Messiah and His New Covenant:
"10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, 11 seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow." 1 Peter 1:10-11
@1 The prophets of Old foretold the _____________________ of God in saving all who believe in Christ as Lord. 1 Peter 1:10-11
Scholars have identified close to 200 specific prophesies concerning the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ (see footnote 1 below). As I begin talking about these, I want to give us another warning. There are people who are obsessed with the picture, shadow, type, antitype, theories of something called, "redemptive historicism." You say,
"Uh, what do you mean?"
Well, they think that practically every dot and tittle in the Old Testament pictures Christ in some way, and amazingly, they also think they have superior insight to see these things that nobody else has seen before. My urging to you is to avoid these people with their speculative conjectures. You say,
"But Kerry, don't you believe in a redemptive historical way of interpreting God's eternal plan from His word?"
Yes, I do. But, the point is that you don't need to gamble with God's word, like some of those theorists do. In fact, you should not want to. There are about 200 solidly clear prophesies concerning the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ. In retrospective confirming insights from the writers of the New Testament, we clearly see that Jesus is the One who fulfills those prophecies. Consequently, the New Testament is the only lens to seeing verifiable redemptive historicism in the Old Testament. Along this same line, I want us to think about something else that is miraculous about all of this. To make all this flow together in God's unbreakable link of His purpose, plan, and people, throughout the generations, He did something that connects all of His people together from one generation to another in a special way. What I mean is that the prophets of old searched out other prophets of older times, that came before them, in seeking to identify the Messiah who would come some day in the future. The reason is because God spoke to the prophets in many ways. One important way was through His Scriptures. Notice that the previous prophets foretold the gospel according to the Spirit of Christ within them. This demonstrates to us that Christ already existed, as the third person of the triune Godhead, before He was manifested in bodily form in coming to earth to establish the New Covenant. In the New Covenant, all who are saved in Christ are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise according to those prophecies. We become the New Covenant temples of the Holy Spirit in our miracle of rebirth. Notice that Peter says
"As to this salvation." 1 Peter 1:10
It is salvation that lasts forever. It is part of what God calls "the eternal covenant," and the glories to follow in "the eternal inheritance," Hebrews 13:20, Hebrews 9:13, in Christ who resurrected in triumphant, saving, glory. Peter is talking about the prophesied New Covenant in Christ, and the blessings that come with it, for example, by prophets like Jeremiah. Jeremiah prophesied about 600 years before the arrival of Jesus,
"31 Behold, days are coming," declares Yahweh, "when I will make a new covenant ... this is the covenant which I will make. ... I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more," Jeremiah: 31:31-34
@2 In the New Covenant in Christ, God forgives the iniquities and determines not to mindful of the _____________ of all who believe in Christ for salvation. Jeremiah" 31:31-34
This prophecy describes the New Covenant that God would establish in the future to replace the Old. This New Covenant was established in Jesus Christ. We read about the fulfillment in Hebrews:
"For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. 8 For finding fault with them, He says, 'Behold days are coming, says the Lord, when I will effect a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; ... This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. After those days, says the Lord:'" Hebrews 8:7-11
And the writer of Hebrews goes on quoting Jeremiah the prophet:
"12 For I will be merciful to their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.' 13 When He said, 'A new covenant,' He has made the first obsolete." Hebrews 8:12-13
Jesus Christ is the person, in fulfilling prophecy, Who established the New Covenant. In one sense, the prophets knew Who He was, but their knowledge was limited. They were looking for the person, but they were seeing with revelation that was dim in respect to the timing of the person's arrival, sufferings, and the glories to follow in God's grace. For the New Covenant to be ratified, the anointed One, Who must make the covenant, needed to come. He was known as the "anointed one" which is what "Messiah" means. "Christ" is the translation of "Messiah." The place of the Messiah's arrival was prophesied to be Bethlehem. Micah the prophet prophesied, about 700 years before the arrival of Jesus, that the Messiah must come to this small and unassuming little town. Micah said,
"But as for you, Bethlehem ... Too little to be among the clans of Judah. From you, One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity," Micah 5:2
We find that Matthew records the fulfilled prophecy,
"after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, 2 "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him ... Herod ... inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet: 6 'And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means lest among the leaders of Judah; For out of you shall come forth a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel,'" Matthew 2:1-6
@3 Micah prophesied that Christ would be born in the insignificant little town of __________________ which happened in the birth of Jesus. Micah 5:2
So, the Messiah, according to prophecy, had to be born in Bethlehem, and He was. Also, the Messiah must be born from a young virgin according to the prophecy from Isaiah. An amazing fact in this prophecy, is that the woman would be impregnated as a virgin and she would also remain a virgin until the birth of the Christ. Isaiah prophesied,
"... 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
There are three specific details about this prophecy that must be noticed. First, this prophecy, because of the uniqueness of it, would be for a sign. It would be a banner that would mark the arrival of Christ. Secondly, the sign would be that an actual virgin would be pregnant, and at the same time, still be a virgin. Thirdly, the Messiah's name would be called "Immanuel." What does Immanuel mean? The name literally means, "God with us." Jesus is the only one in all of history who fulfilled the three important aspects of this detailed requirement. Looking ahead from Isaiah, the fulfillment of this prophecy came as a banner. We read about it in Matthew:
"18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. ... when [Joseph] had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.' 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 'Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which translated means, 'God with us.'" Matthew 1:18-25
I want us to think about this. Jesus had to fulfill the aspect of being born of a virgin because it was to be a miraculous thing that nobody else could do. He also had to fulfill this to fulfill the banner of the prophecy. But there is another reason why Jesus had to fulfill this. The Messiah had to be conceived without inheriting the curse of original sin that came down from Adam and Eve. Jesus Christ was sinless-God manifested in flesh. He was to be the great spotless lamb sacrifice, to take away the sins of the elect. As such, the Messiah could not possibly have "original sin." The Messiah had to be Immanuel, "God with us." The Prophets told us about the grace that would come, and it did in Jesus. As Jesus grew up, He became known as a prophet. He proclaimed things, with authority, that amazed people. Moses prophesied 1400 years earlier, that,
"15 Yahweh your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him. ..." Deuteronomy 18:15-19
We read of the future fulfillment,
"... Jesus, the Christ appointed for you. ... about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time. 22 Moses said, 'The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers; To Him you shall give heed to everything He says to you," Acts 3:18-26
The Prophets told us about the grace that would come, and it did in Jesus. About 500 years before the arrival of Jesus, Zechariah prophesied that the Christ would enter into Jerusalem in festivity riding on a donkey. Zechariah said,
"9 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. ..." Zechariah 9:9
We find the fulfillment recorded in Matthew,
"1 When they had approached Jerusalem ... Jesus sent two students, 2 saying to them, 'Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me ... 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 'Say to the daughters of Zion, 'Behold you King is coming to you, gentle, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.' Matthew 21:1-5
The Prophets told us about the grace that would come, and He did come, riding on the colt. But there is more. Let's look at the next verse,
"The students went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, 7 and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their coats on them; and He sat on the coats. 8 Most of the crowd spread their coats in the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road. 9 The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, 'Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest!'" Matthew 21:6-9
This is the prophecy being fulfilled out of Psalm 118,
"26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of Yahweh; we have blessed you from the house of Yahweh. 27 Yahweh is God, and He has given us light;" Psalm 118
This fulfillment, of the prophetic portions of Psalm 118, is significant for another reason. The same Psalm that predicted Jerusalem's rejoicing over Christ's entry, also prophesied their immediate rejection of Him that would occur shortly afterward,
"22 The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone." Psalm 118:22
Peter later quoted this prophecy to the Jews in Acts 4, in a powerful sermon, when he said,
"[Jesus] is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone." Acts 4:11
Isaiah also prophesied Christ's rejection as part of the grace that would come. He said,
"1 Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed? 3 He was despised and forsaken of men. ... He was despised, and we did not esteem Him." Isaiah 53:1, 3
This prophesy was fulfilled by Jesus in John 12,
"... though [Jesus] had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: 'Lord, who has believed our report? and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?' 39 For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, 40 'He has blinded their eyes and He hardened their heart, os that they would not see with their eyes and perceive with their heart, and be converted and I heal them.' 41 These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him." John 12:37-41
The Christ was to be rejected, just as the grace that the prophets foretold would occur, and He was. Not only was Jesus to be rejected, but David prophesied over a thousand years beforehand that He would be betrayed by one of His close friends. David said,
"9 Even my close friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me," Psalm 41:9
The fulfillment is seen in Mark,
"18 As they were reclining at the table and eating, Jesus said, "Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me--one who is eating with Me." . . . He said to them, "It is one of the twelve--one who dips [the bread] with Me in the bowl. 21 "For 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," Mark 14:18-21
That man was Judas Iscariot. Isaiah prophesied that after being betrayed, Christ would be tried and condemned,
"8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?" Isaiah 53:8
The prophecy indicates that the generation that Christ would come to would not understand that they were really condemning Him as a sacrifice for their own transgressions. In spiritual blindness, they thought they were condemning Jesus for being a criminal. These prophecies were completely fulfilled in Jesus Christ as recorded in Matthew 27:1, and Luke 23:1 through 25. Isaiah foretold how during this time of betrayal, arrest, and accusation, that the Messiah would be silent before His accusers,
"7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth," Isaiah 53:7
Jesus Christ, the sacrificial lamb led to the slaughter, fulfilled this prophecy.
"12 And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer. 13 Then Pilate said to Him, 'Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?' 14 And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge," Matthew 27:12-14
Micah, and Isaiah, both prophesied that during this same occasion, that the Messiah would be hit, and spit upon by His enemies; Micah foresaw
"1 ... With a rod they will smite the judge of Israel on the cheek," Micah 5:1
Isaiah explained by the Spirit,
"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
This happened to Jesus as foretold. We read of what happened to our Lord,
"Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him," Matthew 26:67
David prophesied of the humiliating way the Christ would be treated, stating,
"7 All who see me sneer at me;. . . they wag the head, saying, 8 "Commit yourself to Yahweh; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him," Psalm 22:7-8
Matthew records the fulfillment for us in detail,
"38 ... those passing by were hurling abuse at [Jesus], wagging their heads and saying 'Save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.' In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, 'He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him," Matthew 27:38
Then in an astonishing display of blindness to the Scriptures they had memorized, they said what David pre-quoted they would say in Psalm 22. It was as if they were characters written into a script,
"He trusts in God; Let God rescue Him now, If He delights in Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'" Matthew 27:43
The prophets precisely foretold Christ's crucifixion. They explained, in detail, the physical effects of it in a torture-execution. It was a torture execution method that had not yet existed at the time they were prophesying (700 years before Jesus). David said,
"14 ... all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. ... 16 They pierced my hands and my feet." Psalm 22:14, 16
Isaiah also explained the piercing of the Messiah in death and the reason for it in Isaiah 53
"5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions." Isaiah 53:5
@4 The prophets foretold that Jesus Christ would be ____________________ through His hands and feet for the sins and transgressions of those whom He saves. Psalm 22:14, 16 · Isaiah 53:5
This was fulfilled, and is recorded in Mark 15:20 as well as numerous other New Testament passages, where Jesus was pierced in His hands and feet, and a soldier pierced his side with a spear. All aspects of the prophecy were fulfilled where God meant for Jesus' piercing to be specifically for the sins and transgressions of those to be saved. The suffering Christ was prophesied to be given vinegar when he was thirsty according to Psalm 69:21 and Psalm 22:18. It was also prophesied that His garments would be divided up, and lots would be cast for them. Both prophesies were fulfilled by the Roman soldiers while Jesus was hanging on the cross. The Messiah was to be raised from the dead without experiencing any decay according to Psalm 16:10. Jesus fulfilled this prophecy. Peter proclaimed it on Pentecost,
"And so, because [David] was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to Him with an oath to seat one of His descendants on His throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. 32 This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses," Acts 2:30-31
@5 David looked ahead and prophesied the resurrection of ________________ from the dead. Acts 2:30-31
Jesus rose from the dead as King of kings and Lord of lords over all whom He saves forever to fulfill the prophecy that Nathan the prophet made to David,
"16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever." 2 Samuel 7:16 (cf. 11-17)
In turn, David prophesied in His worship to God,
"6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom." Psalm 45:6
Hebrews 1:8 is but one of many New Testament Scriptures to attest to this fact. The main thing I am wanting to edify us with on this second point, is that the prophets told us about the grace that would come, though they did not completely understand what they were prophesying; and it did come in Jesus Christ. We see these things clearly today though we have not seen Christ, nor do we see Him now.
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This leads to the final point I want to bring out this morning for us;
"12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things into which angels long to look." 1 Peter 1:8-12
In God's plan, the Prophets of Old were ministering with a future result in mind. They were bringing hope to the future generations that followed them. They were also laying out the template of what to look for when the true Messiah had come. As these things were unfolding in the first generation of the church, the ministry of the evangelists continued, by the Holy Spirit. The evangelists often referred to the prophecies as part of the good news message. Why? Because the prophecies are part of the banner evidence for what was taking place. Plus, they open up the door of revelation for why it was taking place. This was an amazing thing to the people that Peter wrote his epistle to. This is just amazing today. The accuracy of the prophecies also fulfill something else that is actually in the prophecies. The prophecies serve to draw the elect by the Spirit. At the same time, they repel those who are perishing in their sins. Without God's divine enablement, people will continue to reject the prophesied good news. Consequently, the amazing nature of the unerring predictions is a blessing to some, but it is a curse to others. In fact many people who reject the gospel do not deny that events line up with the prophecies. They see that they do. But because of sin, some of them say that the prophecies are "too accurate." In other words, since the prophecies line up so well, then they say there must be a problem. They say that it is just too amazing to have multitudes of prophecies written at various times, in various places, in seeming random form, to actually be fulfilled so precisely in Jesus Christ. Let's think about this; What these people are really trying to do is stack the deck by setting up a lose-lose scenario concerning the facts. On the one hand they are saying that if the prophecies don't seem precise enough, then they can claim that the prophecies are not accurate enough. But they want to dictate their own parameters to justify their sin and rebellion against God. So, on the other hand, they will also assert that prophecies are too accurate. They say that the preciseness means that they are,
"Too good to be true."
They use their "faith" in their own parameters to think they have refuted God. The very criteria that proves a prophecy to be true is twisted to pretend that it is false. In reality, such people are the real losers. They lose as they perish in their sins outside of saving grace. In evangelism, we refer to the prophecies as part of the good news message because the good news message is prophecy fulfillment. You are prophecy fulfillment too concerning this salvation in respect to the grace that would come to you as part of the glories to follow Christ's suffering and resurrection. All who partake of it are part of the prophetic revelation of it in Christ. As such, we see the blessing now, and we look forward to the blessings to follow. It is a great privilege to have the illuminating revelation of these things. Angels long to have revealed to them what God reveals to His people. We should never, ever take it for granted.
FOOTNOTES:
(1) at least 191 according to the Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, Messianic Predictions, p. 610
@1 The prophets of Old foretold the _____________________ of God in saving all who believe in Christ as Lord. 1 Peter 1:10-11
@2 In the New Covenant in Christ, God forgives the iniquities and determines not to mindful of the _____________ of all who believe in Christ for salvation." Jeremiah: 31:31-34
@3 Mica prophesied that Christ would be born in the insignificant little town of __________________ which happened in the birth of Jesus. Micah 5:2
@4 The prophets foretold that Jesus Christ would be ____________________ through His hands and feet for the sins and transgressions of those whom He saves. Psalm 22:14, 16 · Isaiah 53:5
@5 David looked ahead and prophesied the resurrection of ________________ from the dead. Acts 2:30-31
