A Word of Exhortation

Q: What does the Bible say about the prophecy of Christ?

The Bible reveals that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, particularly as the seed of woman, Abraham, and David. The fulfillment of Christ as prophesied in the Old Testament is crucial in understanding His identity and mission. From the very beginning, Scripture points towards Him as the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15), indicating His unique birth and role as the Redeemer. Additionally, He is identified as the seed of Abraham (Genesis 17) and the lineage of David (Psalm 132:11), establishing His rightful claim to the promise of salvation for His people. These connections underscore that the gospel is not a New Testament invention but rather the culmination of God's plan revealed throughout history, showcasing His sovereign grace in fulfilling His promises to His people.

Q: How do we know Jesus is the promised Messiah?

Jesus fulfills numerous Old Testament prophecies, confirming His identity as the promised Messiah. The assurance that Jesus is the promised Messiah rests on the multitude of prophecies He fulfills from the Old Testament. For instance, His miraculous conception is foretold in Isaiah 7:14, where a virgin will conceive and bear a son. Throughout His life, events such as His entry into Jerusalem on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9) and being betrayed for thirty pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12) were preordained and clearly outlined in Scripture. These prophecies were not mere coincidences but orchestrated divine affirmations of who He is, reinforcing our confidence in His redemptive work and sovereignty in salvation history.

Q: Why is it important for Christians to recognize Jesus as our Savior?

Recognizing Jesus as our Savior is vital for understanding our justification and relationship with God. Understanding Jesus as our Savior is fundamental to the Christian faith. He is the one through whom we receive forgiveness for our sins and are justified before God. Acts 13:38-39 emphasizes that it is through Him that all who believe are justified from all things from which we could not be justified by the law of Moses. This truth is essential because it positions Christ as the sole mediator between God and humanity, affirming the central tenets of grace and redemption. As Christians, acknowledging His sacrificial role not only transforms our relationship with God but also calls us to live in a manner worthy of our calling, trusting in His grace for our salvation.

Q: How does the concept of grace impact the Christian life?

Grace transforms our lives by providing salvation and empowering us to live in obedience to God's will. The concept of grace is foundational to the Christian life, emphasizing that salvation is not earned but is a gift from God. This sovereign grace, as reflected in passages from Acts 13, is what allows believers to be justified before God, illustrating that we cannot rely on our righteousness but must trust in Christ's finished work. Grace not only saves but also shapes the believer's life, enabling us to pursue holiness and obedience out of gratitude rather than obligation. It gives us the strength to endure trials and the assurance of God's unending love, motivating us to share the gospel and live for His glory.

Q: Why did the Jewish leaders fail to recognize Jesus?

The Jewish leaders failed to recognize Jesus due to their willful blindness to the Scriptures and their own expectations. The failure of the Jewish leaders to recognize Jesus as the Messiah can be attributed to several factors, particularly their willful blindness and rigid adherence to tradition over the prophetic Scriptures. Despite reading the fulfillment of prophecies concerning the Messiah every Sabbath, they lacked the spiritual discernment to see Christ in their midst, fulfilling what was foretold. This is a chilling reminder that mere knowledge of Scripture does not equate to understanding; rather, an openness to God's revelation is necessary. Their rejection highlights the danger of allowing preconceptions to cloud one's recognition of divine truth, a lesson relevant to all who encounter the gospel.

and sat down. It's a day of worship. The people are there as they
always were there. The religious leaders were there. And they
went through their regular form and ceremony and worship. It says in verse 15, after the
reading of the law, always had the reading of Scripture. That's
the reading of the law and the prophets. It wasn't just the
reading of the Ten Commandments, it was the reading of Scripture.
You know, when our Lord went to the synagogue, as it was His
custom, they called on Him to read, and He read Isaiah 61.
So there was the reading of the Scripture, like we had tonight,
John read, and the prophets. The rulers of the synagogue sent
unto them, or beckoned to Paul and those men who were with him,
saying to them, Ye men and brethren, Now remember, Paul was no stranger
to the synagogue. Paul was probably over 40 years
of age when the Lord revealed the gospel to him. Paul was raised
in the synagogue. Paul was a Pharisee. Some suggest
he was a member of the highest court, the Sanhedrin. He was
well known. Even one ruler said to him, much
learning hath made you mad. when he was there and observed
to be there in that synagogue, he was recognized and called
on. That's what this fellow said
here, this ruler of the synagogue said, you men and brethren, if
you have any word of exhortation, a word of exhortation for the
people, say on. He gave Paul the privilege of
addressing that Sabbath day crap. Now what's he going to do? You
remember recently I brought a message on teaching and preaching and
learning the gospel. I tried to show you how that
even our Lord with his disciples, when he taught them the gospel,
opened their understanding to understand the gospel, he went
back to the Old Testament. and how wise it is, if we can
do it wisely, to go back to the Old Testament if we're going
to teach the gospel. Because the gospel is no new
thing. Some people seem to think that
the gospel of grace and the gospel of Christ just started at Bethlehem. It began being fulfilled at Bethlehem. Christ died for our sins according
to the Scripture. So Paul started way back yonder. He stood up. Paul stood up, and
he beckoned with his hand, I guess for silence. Probably a lot of
mumbling and rumbling went on. You know, I've heard of this
fellow, you know. I've heard how he's following Jesus of Nazareth. So Paul beckoned with his hand,
and here's what he said, And ye that fear God, give audience. Listen to me. The God of this
people of Israel chose our fathers, chose Abraham, called him out
of Ur of the Chaldees, chose Jacob and Isaac, and exalted
the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt,
gave them Moses, and with a high arm and with mighty power Referred
to by John a moment ago in his reading, he brought them out
of Egypt with a high hand. All these things he's saying,
not only are fact and true, but these people knew they were true.
He's starting where they are. Wouldn't that be wonderful if
we had enough wisdom to start where a man is? He's standing
up here in front of these Jews, Israelites. They were there reading
Moses and the prophets. And verse 18, it says, And about
the time of forty years, God suffered, or put up with their
manners in the wilderness. And when he had destroyed seven
nations in the land of Canaan, he divided their land to them
by law. He gave them the land of Canaan,
led them in. Joshua led them in. You fellas
know that, he said. And after that, he gave unto
them judges. About the space of 450 years,
judges. Me and he raised up men like
Gideon and others to judge the people. Until Samuel the prophet. And Samuel, born of Hannah, gift
of God. Samuel came along as the prophet.
And afterward, they desired a king. They said, give us a king like
the other nations. So God gave them to them the
king. He gave them a king. He gave them one of their choice.
You know, he came to Samuel. He said, give them a king. And
Samuel objected. And God said, now they're not
rebelling against you. They're rebelling against me.
It's not you they're resisting and rejecting. It's me. So give
them a king. Let them have what they want.
They want to be like the other nations. I'm their king. They all recognize
me as their king. earthly king, like the other
nations, so give them a king. So God gave them Saul, son of
Seth, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. They suffered
under Saul for forty years. And when he had removed Saul,
took him down from the throne of Israel. When he removed Saul,
he raised up, he raised up unto them David to be their king. This is God's man. David, to
whom also he gave testimony and said, I have found David, the
son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, who shall fulfill
all my will. Now, he hasn't crossed them anywhere,
has he? Not anywhere. Every one of these
Jews, every single one of them without exception, would say,
that's right, amen, that's fact, that's truth, that's history.
But now, here comes the word of exhortation. Here Paul starts
where they stop, and where they resist, and where they reject,
and where all the world resists and rejects. And he said, verse
23, now, Of this man's seed, of David's seed, hath God, according
to his promise, this is what the Old Testament is all about.
God promised that someone would come, the seed of David. He first, turn with me to Genesis
chapter 3. The first thing he said about
this God-man, this Redeemer, this promised Messiah, was he
would be the seed of woman. The seed of woman, not the seed
of man, but the seed of woman. When Adam and Eve fell in the
Garden of Eden, when they disobeyed God, The Lord said to the serpent
in verse 14 of Genesis 3, now the Lord God said to the serpent,
because you've done this thing, you're cursed above all cattle,
above every beast of the field, upon your belly shall you go
and dust shall you eat all the days of your life. Now I'll put
enmity, he's talking to Satan here, I'll put enmity between
thee and the woman. and between thy seed and her
seed, and it will bruise thy head,
thou shalt bruise his heel." The seed of woman. That's the
very first prophecy and promise in the Bible of the coming of
Jesus Christ, our Savior, our Lord, the God-man. He's the bee
of the seed of woman. Now, he can't be the seed of
man. If he was the seed of man, if he was born with a human father,
he'd have sin, just like all of us. He'd be just like us.
But he's born of a woman, made of a woman, made under the law
of man, flesh and bone and blood, identified with us, numbered
with the transgressors, made like unto his brethren in all
things, tempted as we are. Yet one thing, he did not have
that Adamic nature, that fallen nature. He did not have it. Christ
is pure and perfect and without sin. He knew no sin. He did no
sin. He had no sin. He was the seed
of woman. He did not have an earthly father,
the heavenly father. He was conceived in her by the
Holy Spirit. Seed of woman. And the next mention
of a seed is in Genesis. Let's turn to 17. He mentions
it in Genesis 12 and 15 and now 17. First of all, this Redeemer,
this Savior, this God-man who's come to redeem a people will
be the seed of woman. Then it says he'll be the seed
of Abraham. He's not going to be a Philistine,
a Malachite, a Hittite, a Babylonian, an Egyptian. He's going to be
an Israelite. He's going to be a Jew. Salvation
is of the Jews. He's going to be of that nation
to which God gave the ark and the mercy seat, and the priesthood,
and the tabernacle, and the prophets, he's going to be a Jew. In Genesis
17, verse 1, when Abraham was 90 years old and nine, the Lord
appeared to Abram, said to him, I'm the Almighty God, walk before
me and be thou perfect, upright, or sincere. I'll make a covenant
between me and thee, and I'll multiply thee exceedingly. And
Abram fell on his face. And God talked with him, saying,
As for me, behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be
a father of many nations. Now, he didn't even have a son.
He didn't have an heir. He was ninety years old and nine. Ninety-nine, he did not have
a son, an heir. Verse fifty-five, Neither shall
your name any more be called Abram, but your name shall be
Abraham. For a father of many nations
have I made thee. And I'll make thee exceedingly,
exceeding fruitful, and I'll make nations of thee, and kings
shall come out of thee. I'll establish my covenant between
me and thee, and thy seed after thee, in their generation, for
an everlasting covenant to be a garden to thee, and to thy
seed after thee." Now then, this seed, there's a sense in which
it's plural. Because it includes every nation
and every people and it's true Israel. But the seed is Christ. That's the seed. It said the
promise is to Abraham and his seed, which is Christ. But every
promise to Christ is a promise to his people. You see what he
has, we have. Where he is, we are. It's a promise
That's what he's talking about here, singular seed. But it's
Christ and it's plural time in that it includes everyone who's
in the loins of Christ. See, when the judgment of God
fell on Adam, it fell on Adam and all who were in his loins.
The whole human race was in his loins. It's like when Abraham
met Melchizedek and paid tithes, the whole Jewish people paid
tithes in Abraham because they were in his loins. They came
from him. And the Bible talks about representation now, federal
headship. And when our Lord makes a promise
to Abraham's seed, that promise is to everybody who's in that
seed and of that seed of Christ. So he's the seed of woman, he's
the seed of Abraham. Now, in Psalm 132, and this is
repeated several times, you see, our Lord Jesus Christ is the
seed of woman, Psalm 132. He's the seed of Abraham, he's
a Jew, Israelite. But he's not from just any tribe,
he's from the tribe of Judah. Now, there's no such thing as
a priest from the tribe of Judah. The priest of the tribe was Levi.
See, God changes this thing. If he'd been on earth at that
time, he wouldn't even have been a priest. But scripture says,
out of Judah shall Shiloh come. But here's the thing, Tom, he's
a king priest. He's a king priest. And he's
got to be of the seed of David. Now watch Psalm 132, verse 11. The Lord has sworn in truth unto
David. He'll not turn from it. You can
bank on this. Now this is written, this wasn't
written in Paul's day, this was written way back in the days
of David before Solomon, before Isaiah. Of the fruit of thy body
will I sit upon thy throne. Of the fruit of thy body I'll
sit upon thy throne. And it says that over and over
again. Now, let's come back to Paul, and he's standing up here
in front of these Jews on the Sabbath day. And these fellas
are still back there in the Old Testament. They're still keeping
the Sabbath, they're still paying their tithes, they've still got
the priesthood, they've still got all these things. They've
denied Christ Jesus, they've died on the cross, been buried
and rose again, sent it to the Father. Paul's preaching the
gospel to them. He says all these things. He
brings them up there and he said now, verse 23 of Acts 13, of
this man's seed hath God, according to his promise, raised unto Israel
a Savior. And that Savior is Jesus of Nazareth. And he says in verse 24, John
the Baptist had first preached before his coming the baptism
of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John fulfilled
his course, he said, who do you think I am? I'm not he. I'm not the Christ. I'm not that
prophet. I'm a forerunner, behold, there
cometh one after me whose shoes of his feet I'm not worthy to
loose." Now Paul quoted John there, and he went on, he said,
verse 26, Now men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham,
and whoso among you feareth God, to you is this word of salvation
preached. This word of salvation is a person,
the Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, whom you crucified.
For they that dwell in Jerusalem, now watch this, and their rulers,
because they didn't know him, they didn't recognize him, even
though the scriptures are saturated with promises and prophecies
and pictures and types of this Messiah, seed of woman, seed
of Abraham, born in Bethlehem, seed of David, Nor yet the voice,
they didn't know him, nor the voices of the prophets which
are read every Sabbath day. They fulfilled these very scriptures
in condemning him. Isn't that a horrible thing to
think about? But the same thing is repeated
every Sunday in churches all over this nation. These scriptures
are read, it's right here, Christ on every page. Christ and Him
crucified. The promise of His coming, the
prophecies of His coming, the pictures of His coming, His coming,
His death, His ascension, His exaltation, it's all right here.
And he said, there in Jerusalem, when he stood in the midst of
them, the fulfillment of all these promises, they read these
scriptures every Sabbath day, like you're reading here today,
and they fulfilled these scriptures in condemning Him. Fulfill them. And verse 28, though they found
no cause of death in him, yet they desired Pilate that he should
be slain. What was the problem? These people
didn't want to see. I tell you, there's no darkness
like willful darkness. I want to show you something.
Tom, come up here and take your place right there in a minute.
And I want, working with Tom here, I want to show you something
here. I'm going to read about 20 scriptures
and he's going to read the fulfillment of them. These are scriptures
that these people read every Sabbath day in the synagogue.
These scriptures I'm going to read to you are scriptures they
read every Sabbath day in the synagogue, clear back in this
Old Testament day, and right up here to the time they crucified
Jesus Christ. I'm going to read the Old Testament
and ask him to read the fulfillment in the New Testament. Now you
won't want to turn to all these because we'll do it, we've got
them written down, we'll do it quickly. But here's the first
one. In Psalm 2, verse 1 and 2. Now listen to this. David writing
about the Messiah. Why do the heathen rage and the
people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves
and their rulers take counsel together against the Lord and
against his anointing, the Messiah. against the Lord, against His
anointed, say, let's break their bands asunder and cast away their
cords from us. Now listen to the full film.
The Kings, Acts 4, 26-28. The kings of the earth stood
up and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and
against His Christ. For betrothed 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
for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before
to be done." They read that, and then they did it. When they
condemned him, they did exactly what they read. Let me show you
another. Psalms 8, verse 4 through 6. Listen to this. David said, When
I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon, the
stars which thou hast ordained, what is man? that thou art mindful
of him, and the Son of Man." Who is this Son of Man? They
asked that one time, remember? The Son of Man that thou visitest
him. For thou hast made him a little
lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor. And thou hast made him to have
dominion over the works of thy hands, and thou hast put all
things under his feet. Now listen to the full film. But we see Jesus, who was made
a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death, crowned
with glory and honor, that he by the grace of God should taste
death for every man or every son. For it became him for whom
are all things, and by whom are all things, and bringing many
sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect
through suffering. For both he that sanctifyeth
And they who are sanctified are all of one, for which cause he
is not ashamed to call them brethren." Now listen to this one, Psalm
16, verse 8-11. This is what they read. I have set the Lord always before
me, because he is at my right hand. I shall not be moved. That's what they read in the
synagogue there. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth. My flesh also shall rest in hope,
for thou wilt not leave my soul in hell. Neither wilt thou suffer
thy Holy One to seek corruption. Thou wilt show me the path of
life. In thy presence is fullness of joy. At thy right hand pleasures
forevermore. Listen to the full film. Acts
2, 25-31, For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the
Lord always before my face. For he is on my right hand, that
I should not be moved. Therefore did my heart rejoice,
and my tongue was glad. Moreover, also my flesh shall
rest in hope, because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, either
wilt thou suffer thy Holy One to see corruption. Thou hast
made known to me the ways of life. Thou shalt make me full
of joy with thy countenance." Men and brethren, let me freely
speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and
buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto this day. Therefore,
being a prophet and knowing that God has sworn with an oath to
him that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh,
he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne. He seeing this,
therefore, spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was
not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption." See,
they read that in the synagogue, but they didn't see this. Let
me show you, watch Psalm 22. My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping
me and from the words of my roaring? Dogs have compassed me, the assembly
of the wicked have enclosed me, they pierce my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones, they
look and stare upon me. They parted my garments among
them and cast lots for my vesture." Listen to the full film. And
they crucified him, Matthew 27, 35. And they crucified him and
parted his garments, casting lots that it might be fulfilled,
which was spoken by the prophets, they parted my garments among
them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots." In verse 46
of that chapter, "...and about the ninth hour Jesus cried with
a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lamas, facten I, this is to say,
My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?" Psalm 22. Many say that Psalm 22, he quoted,
in its entirety on the cross. I don't know that for sure, but
that's what they say, that the words of Psalm 22 were spoken
on the cross. Now, Psalm 69, listen to it.
This is other scripture they read. This is what Paul said.
You read these scriptures every Sabbath day, and when you rejected
and crucified Jesus Christ, you fulfilled every one of them.
Listen to Psalm 69, verse 20. Reproach hath broken my heart,
and I am full of heaviness, and I look for some to take pity. There was none. Comforters I
found none. They gave me gall for my meat,
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. Listen to this. Matthew 27 verse 47, And some
of them that stood there, when they heard, said, This man calleth
for Elias, and straightway one of them ran, and took a sponge,
and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him
to drink." Listen to Psalm 110. You're familiar
with this. Psalm 110. The Lord said to my
Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy
footstool. This scripture is quoted over and over again. The
Lord shall send the rod of his strength out of Zion. Rule thou in the midst of thine
enemies. The Lord has sworn and will not
repent. Thou art a priest forever, after
the order of Melchizedek." They knew about Melchizedek. Now listen
to this. Hebrews 5, 5 through 6. also Christ glorified
not himself to be made a high priest, but he that said unto
him, Thou art my son, today have I begotten thee. As he saith
also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order
of Melchizedek. And verse 10, called of God a
high priest after the order of Melchizedek. Listen to this Psalm
118. This is what they read in the
synagogue. Have you not read this scripture?
The stone which the builders rejected has become the head
of the corner. This was the Lord's doing, and
it is marvelous in our eyes. And they sought to lay hold on
him, but feared the people, for they knew that he had spoken
the parable against them, and they left him and went their
way." The greater part of the blame, of course, was upon the
rulers of the synagogue, the teachers of the people. And the
greater part of the blame today, although it doesn't do us any
good if we're in the wrong and if we don't know the scripture
and if we don't know the gospel, it's futile to blame anybody.
But the blame lies on preachers. The problem is not in the pulpit,
the problem is in the people. People are a product of what
they've heard preached. And these fellows, isn't that
right? These fellows read these scriptures. And they refused
to see them. They refused to inquire. They
refused to seek the mind of God in these things. What I'm reading
from the Old Testament, they read every Sabbath day, and in
condemning Him, they became instamess to fulfill the Scriptures. Listen
to this. Let's skip over to Isaiah 7.14.
Isaiah 7.14. I read that in Psalm 132. Go to Isaiah 7.14. Listen. Now listen, they read this. This
is Isaiah. This is one of their favorite
prophets, Isaiah. Isn't that right, John? One of
their Jews' favorite prophets back then. Therefore, the Lord
himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive
and bear a son, and thou shalt call his name Immanuel. Read the full film of that, Matthew.
Matthew 1, 21-23. and she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his
people from their sins. Now all this was done that it
might be fulfilled what was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth
a son, and thou, they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being
interpreted is God with us. All right, Isaiah 9, 6. I'll
move along. Listen to this. Isaiah 9, verse
6, they read this, "'Unto us a child is born, unto us a son
is given. The government shall be on his
shoulders. His name shall be called Wonderful
Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince
of Peace.'" Listen to the full film of that, Luke 1. And the
angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor
with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive
in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his
name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall
be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give unto
him the throne of his father David, and he shall reign over
the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there shall
be no end." That's what he said in Isaiah. And here in Isaiah
25, listen to this. Isaiah 25, and he shall swallow
up death in victory, and the Lord God will wipe away tears
from off their faces, and the rebuke of his people shall he
take away from off the earth. For the Lord has spoken it, and
it shall be said in that day, Lo, here is our God. Here is
our God. We have waited for Him. He'll
save us. This is the Lord. We've waited
for Him. We'll be glad and rejoice in
his salvation." Think of it, they read that on the Sabbath
day, but they didn't see him when he came. Came on his own,
his own received him. Here's the fulfillment of that.
1 Corinthians 15, 54 through 57, So when this corruptible
shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put
on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that
is written, Death is swaddled up in victory. O death, where
is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and
the strength of sin is law. But thanks be to God, who has
given us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Listen to
this one, Isaiah 42, verse 1 through 4. Behold my servant, whom I
uphold, mine elect. Behold him in whom my soul delighteth. I put my spirit upon him. He'll
bring judgment forth to the Gentiles. He'll not cry, nor lift up his
voice, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised
reed shall he not break. The smoking flax shall he not
quench. But he shall bring forth judgment
unto truth. He shall not fail, he shall not
be discouraged, till he set judgment on this earth. And the isles
wait for his law. Listen to the full films here. Then the Pharisees went out and
held a council against him, how they might destroy him. When
Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence, and great multitudes
followed him, and he healed them all, and charged them that they
should not make him known, that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, Behold my servant, whom
I have chosen, my beloved, and whom my soul is well pleased,
I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall show judgment to
the Gentiles. He shall not strive nor cry,
neither shall any man hear his voice in the street. A bruised
reed shall he not break, a smoking flax shall he not quench, till
he send forth judgment unto victory, and in his name shall the Gentiles
trust. I'm going to skip a few. I have
so many, but time's getting away. And I've just got a portion of
the scriptures that I looked up and found in the Old Testament. Skip over to Micah 5. Yours is
Matthew 2. Listen, this is in Micah. This
is one of the minor prophets, one of the later prophets. And
wonder what they thought when they read this. They read this
on the Sabbath day. Though thou be little among the
thousands of Judah, Bethlehem was the capital of the tribe
of Judah, and is such a little place, yet out of thee shall
he come forth unto me, God said, that is to be the ruler in Israel,
whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."
They read that. And then when he came out of
Bethlehem, listen to this fulfillment, listen to this right here, read
that, Tom. Matthew 2, and when he had gathered all the chief
priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them
where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem
of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou, Bethlehem,
in the land of Judah, art not the least among the princes of
Judah, for out of thee shall come a governor that shall rule
my people. With all this rumblings of this
child being born and these wise men coming and all this, Herod
inquired, he said, where is this Christ to be born? They told
him in Jephthah. They knew that. The problem with humanity, human
nature, when you have struggle with people, you try to teach
them the gospel and tell them who God is, they don't want to
see. They don't want to. These people
didn't want to. Our Lord said, if any man will
to do my will, he'll know the doctrine. He'll see that. It's
just... Depravity offends man's dignity. Revelation offends his wisdom.
Redemption offends his pride. And the Lordship of Christ offends
his love of self. And he's not going to have it.
He's going to make it mean and say something else. Listen to
this over in Zechariah. Zechariah 9-9. Listen to this. Zechariah 9-9. He says, Rejoice
greatly, O daughter of Zion. O daughter of Jerusalem, shout,
behold, thy King cometh." They were looking for a king. Thy
King cometh. He's just, having salvation. He's lowly. He's riding upon
an ass, a donkey, and upon a coat, the fold of an ass. Here comes
your King, riding on an ass. Listen to this. And when they drew nigh unto
Jerusalem, and were come to Bethsaida, unto the Mount of Olives, then
sent Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village
over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and
a colt with her. Loose them, and bring them unto
me. And if any man say ought unto thee, ye shall say, The
Lord hath need of them, and straightway he will send them. All this was
done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet,
saying, Tell ye, daughter of Zion, Behold, thy king cometh
unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a coat the fold
of an ass. And the disciples went and did
as Jesus commanded, and brought the ass and the coat, and put
on them their clothes, and he set him thereon." He rode into
Jerusalem. They still didn't see it. They
might have read that the Sabbath before, but they didn't see.
Listen to this. You know when Judas sold the
Lord for 30 pieces of silver? This is in Zechariah chapter
11, before Judas was ever heard of. This is before the Lord Jesus
came into the world in the flesh. Zechariah 11 verse 12, And I
said to them, If you think good, give me my price, and if not,
forbear. So they weighed him for his price,
30 pieces of silver. And the Lord said unto me, cast
it unto the potter, a goodly price that I was prized at of
them. And I took the 30 pieces of silver
and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord. Judas, when he found out he betrayed
innocent blood, went to the high priest, tried to give him the
money back. They said, we can't take it, it's the price of blood.
He cast it on the floor. They took it and bought a potter's
field. Listen to Tom Reed, to bury poor
people. That's what he said right there.
Matthew 27, Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw
that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the
thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying,
I have sinned, in that I have betrayed innocent blood. And
they said, What is that to us? See thou to it. And he cast down the pieces of
silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
And the chief priest took the silver pieces and said, it is
not lawful for to put them in the treasury, because it is the
price of blood. And they took counsel and bought
with them the potter's field to bury strangers in. Wherefore,
the field was called the field of blood unto this day." Isn't
that amazing what convictions and principles these old rulers
of the synagogue had, he brought that 30 pieces of silver and
they said, we can't put that in the treasure, that's the price
of blood, but they could take Christ out and nail him to a
cross and laugh while he died. Religion without grace is the
most hateful, evil, terrible plague ever to come on the human
race. Religion without grace, without
Christ, is a burden and a bondage. That's right, and preachers are
keeping people under that bondage and burden, those very fellows. Here's one more, Malachi 3. I
want to skip down that last one, Thomas. Malachi 3, verse 1. Now, they read this. This is
back, this is the Old Testament, prophecies of the Messiah. Behold,
and this is talking about John the Baptist. Behold, I'll send
my messenger. and he shall prepare the way
before me, and the Lord whom you seek shall suddenly come
to his temple. Even the messenger of the covenant,
whom ye delight in, behold, he'll come, saith the Lord. But who may abide the day of
his coming? Who shall stand when he For he
is like a refiner's fire and like fuller's soap. Read that, Matthew 11, 9 and
10. But what went you out to see? A prophet, yea, I say unto you,
and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is
written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall
prepare the way before thee. All right, Tom, thank you. Let's
go back to Acts 13 briefly now. But what we've done, what I've
shown you here and what I've done, is done the very thing
that they did on the Sabbath day. They read these Old Testament
prophecies. And I've just given you a few.
Sometime I'll give you on a mimeograph form or something a hundred of
them or more that are fulfilled in the New Testament. But they
read these things. This is what Paul is saying back
in Acts 13. He's saying, verse 27, let's just glance at this
and close it down. Verse 27, they that dwell at
Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor
yet the voices of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath
day, they fulfilled these prophecies in condemning him. And though
they found no cause of death in him, desired they Pilate that
he should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all
that was written of him in the Old Testament, It took him down
from that tree. But let me tell you something.
In doing that, he fulfilled all that was written of him in redeeming
his people in the book of God. He fulfilled it. He said, I come
to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, fulfilled
all the Old Testament promises, prophecies, Sabbath days, holy
days, sacrifices, priesthood. He fulfilled all those things,
put them away, and Christ is our object of worship and faith.
And not only that, but he fulfilled all that was written against
us. Everything that was written against us, he said, tell my
people that they have received double for all their sins. Double. Double for all their sins. But
Acts 13 verse 29, you fulfilled all that was written of him.
They took him down from the tree and laid him in a sepulcher,
but God raised him from the dead. And he was seen many days of
them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are
witnesses unto the people. And I declare unto you glad tidings,
this is my word of exhortation, how that the promise which was
made unto the fathers, every one of those promises we read,
God hath fulfilled the same unto us, their children, in that he
raised up, he'd sent Christ, He bruised Christ, he raised
up Christ again, as it is also written in the second Psalm,
Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And it's concerning
that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to
corruption. He said on this wise, I'll give
you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore, he saith also in another
psalm, Thou shalt not supper thy holy one to seek corruption. For David, after he had served
his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, was laid
under his fathers, and saw corruption. But he whom God raised again
saw no corruption." Now, here's his final word. Oh, I'd like
to have been there on that Sabbath more. No, I wouldn't either.
I'd have been one of those Jews. Cancel that. Wipe that out. That's
what the judge said. Jury's already heard it, but
wipe it out. Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren,
that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sin.
And by him all that believe are justified from all things from
which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Now, beware.
Therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the
prophets. Here's another prophecy. He said,
Behold, ye despisers that wander and perish, I work a work in
your days, a work which you will no wise believe, though a man
declare it to you. I hope I'm not one of those.
We've just been reading about men who sat and listened to these
prophecies, and then when the Christ came, they fulfilled them
and crucified them. God help us not to sit and listen
to the fulfillment. and then put him to open shame
by refusing his blood. If they didn't escape under Moses'
law, but died under two or three witnesses, how are we going to
escape if we neglect so great salvation that so clearly

A Word of Exhortation

What does the Bible say about the prophecy of Christ?

How do we know Jesus is the promised Messiah?

Why is it important for Christians to recognize Jesus as our Savior?

How does the concept of grace impact the Christian life?

Why did the Jewish leaders fail to recognize Jesus?

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A Word of Exhortation

What does the Bible say about the prophecy of Christ?

How do we know Jesus is the promised Messiah?

Why is it important for Christians to recognize Jesus as our Savior?

How does the concept of grace impact the Christian life?

Why did the Jewish leaders fail to recognize Jesus?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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