After this chapter, I will be moving on to the prophecies that foretold of a kingly Messiah and His coming to earth. Here though, I want to discuss two Messianic prophetic issues that are at the heart of the Christian faith and Jesus' claim to be the Messiah. The first is the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
As we read previously, the Old Testament prophesied that the Messiah would die. However, it also makes clear that God would not leave Him in that state.
We have already seen that God gave the gift of prophetic utterance to King David. It was one such prophecy in which he states that God would not allow death to permanently affect His Messiah:
"For You will not leave My soul in hell; neither will You
allow your Holy One to see corruption."
- Psalm 16:10
This passage speaks to the resurrection of the Holy One of God, the Messiah. The word "hell" in this verse is translated from the Hebrew word "sheol" which means "the grave". Therefore, this prophecy is stating that God would not allow His Messiah to remain in His grave after He was "cut off out of the land of the living". God would not allow His body to become corrupted or decayed.
The New Testament references this particular verse as pertaining to Jesus Christ. Fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus, on the Day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter delivered a sermon in which he spoke of this prophecy of David's:
"You men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a
Man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders
and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you, as
you yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the
determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have
taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:
Whom God has raised up, having loosed the pains of
death: because it was not possible that He should be held
by it. For David speaks 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 You will not leave My soul in hell, neither
will You suffer your Holy One to see corruption...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 had 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 before spoke
of the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in
hell, neither His flesh did see corruption. This Jesus has
God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses."1
One interesting thing about this sermon is that the night before Jesus' crucifixion, the apostle Peter had denied Jesus Christ three times. He was afraid of being arrested and crucified along with Jesus. After his denial he ran away and wept bitterly.2 Here, Peter is publicly speaking by the Temple about Jesus Christ without fear for his life. What happened to turn a cowering, fearful man into a confident, unwavering public speaker? The answer lies in two events. The first is that Peter had seen the resurrected Jesus as he says in this sermon, "This Jesus has God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses." The second is that the Holy Spirit had come upon him earlier that day which then prompted him to go out and boldly proclaim this message.3
All the Gospels in the New Testament clearly state that Jesus' grave was empty because He had risen from the dead. The Gospel of Mark says that when some of the women disciples of Jesus went to the tomb on the Sunday after the crucifixion an angel said to them:
"Be not afraid: You seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was
crucified: He is risen; He is not here: behold the place
where they laid Him."4
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is crucial to those of the Christian faith who believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of God's Messianic prophecies. The apostle Paul said as much when he declared:
"And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and
your faith is also vain."5
The day that Jesus was buried on and the day of His resurrection also have significance because of two other feast days that God ordained the Jews to keep immediately following the Passover.
In the Book of Leviticus, God gave to the Jews the dates of the seven feasts that He would require them to keep. As I mentioned, the Passover was to occur on the 14th of Nisan. On the 15th of Nisan, the Jews were to observe the week-long feast of Unleavened Bread.6 They were to eat bread that contained no leaven in it. The Bible records that leaven represents sin in a spiritual sense: "Your glorying is not good. Know you not that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."7 Jesus had taken the world's sins upon Himself and died. He was buried, and our sins with Him, on the 15th of Nisan, 33 A.D. In doing so Jesus fulfilled the second of the seven Jewish feasts.
The third feast ordained by God was the feast of Firstfruits by which the Jews were to honor God with the first or spring harvest of the year.8 They were to observe it on the Sunday after the first Sabbath day after Passover. In 33 A.D. the feast of Firstfruits occurred on Sunday the 16th of Nisan. Jesus Christ rose from the dead on that Sunday of Firstfruits. The apostle Paul recognized Jesus' fulfillment of this feast day by declaring: "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."9
There are four more feasts ordained by God for the Jewish people. I will note one later in this chapter and the other three in Part Two of this book.
As I mentioned in Chapter 3, the disciples willingly died for their belief that Jesus Christ was God's Messiah. They based this belief on the fact that they had seen Jesus alive after His death and burial. They knew that God had raised Him from the dead.
The second and final Messianic issue that I want to cover in Part One of this book has been a source of controversy among some persons and groups in history. It is the historically orthodox doctrine concerning the deity of Jesus Christ. That the infinite God became a man is a difficult concept for a finite human being to grasp. However, just because we humans are unable to understand the vastness of who God is does not make such a doctrine erroneous.
The Old Testament does have a Messianic prophecy that speaks to this issue:
"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the
government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name
shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God,
The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the
increase of His government and peace there shall be no
end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to
order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice
from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of
hosts will perform this."
- Isaiah 9:6-7
Thirty-nine verses earlier Isaiah speaks of this child, "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel."10 I explained in Chapter 2 that this was a prophecy concerning the virgin birth of Jesus Christ and His name Immanuel, which means: "God with us" or "God is with us".
The appellations that were given to this Child in chapter 9 of Isaiah refer to the nature of the Messiah. Though two of these names could be attributed to any human being (i.e., Wonderful and Counselor) the others could not. In history, there have been some individuals who have claimed to be divine such as the Roman emperors yet they were usually anything but a "prince of peace".
The two most conclusive names listed here which reveal that the Messiah would be divine are "The mighty God" and "The everlasting Father". The New Testament is clear in assigning these divine attributes to Jesus Christ. The early church recognized that Jesus was "Immanuel" and that He, as God, was with them.
The clearest example in the New Testament that illustrates that Jesus was God, come in the form of a man, is found in the Gospel of John:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and
without Him was not any thing made that was made...And
the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we
beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father,) full of grace and truth."11
The writer of this passage was a disciple of Jesus named John. For three and one-half years he walked with Jesus and saw Him work miracles and speak the words of God. In these verses John states that the "Word" was God and that the "Word" became flesh or a human being. Since his Gospel focuses explicitly on Jesus it is clear that he is speaking of Jesus Christ as God incarnate.
John points out that Jesus created the universe and everything in it. The first book of the Bible is definitive about the fact that God is the creator of everything:
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."12
There was no doubt in John's mind that Jesus was God in the flesh. The fact that he starts out his Gospel with the same phrase as the one used in Genesis is illustrative of this belief.
The apostle Paul was even more elaborate in equating Jesus with God the Creator when he wrote to the Christians in the Colossian Church:
"[God] has delivered us from the power of darkness, and
has translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son: In
Whom we have redemption through His blood, even the
forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of every creature: For by Him were all things
created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible
and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him,
and for Him: And He is before all things, and by Him all
things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church:
Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in
all things He might have the preeminence. For it pleased
the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell...For in
Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."13
Paul was unambiguous in his belief that Jesus was God in the flesh. Like John, he recognized that Jesus created all things whether in heaven or on earth. He also made mention of this in his letter to the Church of Ephesus:
"And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the
mystery, which from the beginning of the world has been
hid in God, Who created all things by Jesus Christ."14
The writer of the Book of Hebrews is equally emphatic in his belief that Jesus is God:
"God, Who at sundry times and in various manners spoke in
time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Has in these last
days spoken unto us by His Son, Whom He has appointed
heir of all things, by Whom also He made the worlds; Who
being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of
His person, and upholding all things by the word of His
power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down
on the right hand of the Majesty on high."15
The author refers to Jesus as the "express image" of God and "His glory". In Chapter 4 of this book I quoted a Messianic prophecy found in the first seven verses of chapter 42 of Isaiah. God, continuing this prophecy in verse eight of that passage, states:
"I am the LORD: that is My name: and My glory will I not
give to another, neither My praise to graven images."16
God says that He will not give His glory to another being yet the writer of Hebrews states that Jesus was the glory of God. Jesus was therefore God because God the Father gave His glory to His Son, the Messiah.
What claims did Jesus make concerning Himself? There was no doubt in His enemies' minds (as I illustrate below) that Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh:
"Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Truly, truly, I
say unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what
He sees the Father do: for whatsoever things He does,
these also do the Son likewise. For the Father loves the
Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does: and
He will show Him greater works than these, that you may
marvel. For as the Father raises up the dead, and makes
them alive; even so the Son makes alive whom He will. For
the Father judges no man, but has committed all judgment
unto the Son: That all men should honor the Son, even as
they honor the Father. He that honors not the Son honors
not the Father which has sent Him."17
Jesus states that He should receive the same honor as that of the Father God. As we read in the verse above this passage God will not give His glory to anyone else. Yet here we see that Jesus is equal to the Father in the power to resurrect men, to judge men, and to receive God's honor for Himself.
While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, the Jewish religious leaders were questioning Him:
"Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?
and the prophets are dead: whom do You make Yourself to
be? Jesus answered, If I honor Myself, My honor is
nothing: it is My Father that honors Me; of Whom you say,
that He is your God: Yet you have not known Him; but I
know Him: and if I should say, I know Him not, I shall be a
liar like you: but I know Him, and keep His saying. Your
father Abraham rejoiced to see My day: and he saw it, and
was glad. Then said the Jews unto Him, You are not yet fifty
years old, and have You seen Abraham? Jesus said unto
them, Truly, truly, I say unto you, Before Abraham was,
I AM. Then took they up stones to cast at Him: but Jesus
hid Himself, and went out of the Temple, going through the
midst of them, and so passed by."18
What did Jesus say here that made the Jewish leaders want to stone Him to death? Jesus stated that Abraham rejoiced to see Jesus come to earth. Since Abraham had lived two thousand years before Jesus was born, the Jews wanted to know how that was possible. The answer Jesus gave was the reason they wanted to stone Him. He said before Abraham lived "I AM".
To a Gentile this phrase would have meant nothing. However, the Jews understood perfectly what Jesus was saying.
When God called Moses to be the deliverer of the children of Israel from their bondage in Egypt, he asked God a question:
"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the
children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of
your fathers has sent me unto you; and they shall say to
me, What is His name? What shall I say unto them?"
God's reply was enigmatic but straightforward:
"And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and He said,
Thus shall you say unto the children of Israel, I AM has
sent me unto you."19
Therefore, these Jewish religious leaders knew that Jesus was claiming to be God. Thus, they were going to stone Him to death for blasphemy.
However, it seems that during Jesus' ministry, His disciples were not so clear in their understanding of His claim to be divine:
"Thomas said unto Him, Lord, we know not where You are
going; and how can we know the way? Jesus said unto him,
I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the
Father, but by Me. If you had known Me, you should have
known My Father also: and from henceforth you know
Him, and have seen Him. Philip said to Him, Lord, show us
the Father, and it is sufficient for us. Jesus said to him,
Have I been so long time with you, and yet have you not
known Me, Philip? He that has seen Me has seen the
Father; and how say you then, Show us the Father? Do you
not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?
The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but
the Father that dwells in Me, He does the works."20
Again though, the enemies of Jesus had no illusions that He was claiming to be God:
"And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to
slay Him, because He had done these things [i.e., healed a
man] on the Sabbath day. But Jesus answered them, My
Father works until now, and I work. Therefore the Jews
sought the more to kill Him, because He not only had
broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was His Father,
making Himself equal with God."21
"I and My Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones
again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, Many good
works have I shown you from My Father; for which of
those works do you stone Me? The Jews answered Him,
saying, For a good work we stone you not; but for
blasphemy; and because that you, being a man, make
yourself God."22
The Jewish religious leaders may not have understood the spirit of the laws that God had given to them but they clearly understood blasphemy (according to their standards) when they heard it. They knew that Jesus was claiming to be God by the words that He spoke. In this second passage Jesus stated that He and His Father were one.
The New Testament mentions a few times when persons had witnessed the power of God working through Jesus' disciples at which they fell at their feet and worshiped them. However, the disciples quickly told them that they were not to be worshiped:
"And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell
down at his feet, and worshipped him. But Peter took him
up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man."23
Sometimes men fell before angels to worship them because of their glory yet they too, being creatures of God, refused to allow such worship take place:
"And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I
had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet
of the angel which showed me these things. Then said he
unto me, See you do it not: for I am thy fellow servant, and
of your brethren the prophets and of them which keep the
sayings of this book: worship God."24
During His temptation by Satan, Jesus told the devil that God alone was to be worshiped:
"Then said Jesus unto him, Get you behind Me, Satan: for it
is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him
only shall you serve."25
Jesus knew that the Law of God only allowed the worship of God. Yet many times during Jesus' ministry, people who had witnessed His miraculous powers fell down at His feet and worshiped Him. Not one of these times did Jesus ever tell them not to worship Him:
"And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped Him,
saying, Lord, if You will, You can make me clean. And
Jesus put forth His hand, and touched Him, saying, I will;
be you clean. And immediately his leprosy was
cleansed."26
"And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met
them, saying, All hail. And they came and held Him by the
feet, and worshipped Him. Then said Jesus unto them, Be
not afraid: go tell My brethren that they go into Galilee,
and there shall they see Me."27
"Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had
found him, He said unto him, Do you believe on the Son of
God? He answered and said, Who is He, Lord, that I might
believe on Him? And Jesus said unto him, You have both
seen Him, and it is He that talks with you. And he said,
Lord, I believe. And he worshipped Him."28
The New Testament is explicit in its claims that Jesus Christ fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which stated that the Messiah would be a divine being.
It is revealing that this prophecy which spoke to the deity of Messiah is linked with the prophecy that foretold that the Messiah would also be a human being. This prophecy of Isaiah's, which I mentioned earlier, stated that the Messiah would be born of human virgin female. This is an important and crucial aspect in that it assigns to the Messiah the ability to save humans from their sins since He would also be a human being.
The Bible states that animals were not a permanent solution that was accepted by God as atonement for the sins of mankind. Though God accepted the sacrifice of animals as a covering for human sin,29 they did not completely remove sin from humans' spirits:
"For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and
not the very image of the things, can never with those
sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make
the ones who drew near perfect. For then would they not
have ceased to be offered? Because that the worshippers
once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made
of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of
bulls and of goats should take away sins."30
The Book of Hebrews says that if the sacrifices of animals were enough to purge sin completely from humans then it should not have been necessary for the high priests to offer those sacrifices every year on behalf of the people. Yet because they were not efficacious in removing the sins of the Jews they had to be offered yearly.
The writer of Hebrews goes on to declare that Jesus Christ's death on the cross was an acceptable sacrificial offering and that no more offerings would be required or accepted by God:
"By which we are sanctified through the offering of the body
of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily
ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices,
which can never take away sins: But this Man, after He
had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the
right hand of God...For by one offering He has
perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the
Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that God had
said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them
after those days, saith the Lord, I will put My laws into
their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their
sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where
remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin."31
Therefore, the only way God would accept the permanent absolution of mankind's sins was to have a sinless man die as an atoning sacrifice for them. The New Testament states that Jesus was a sinless human:
"Seeing then that we have a great High Priest, that is
passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold
fast our profession. For we have not an High Priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but
was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."32
According to the New Testament scriptures that I listed here, Jesus Christ was God come in human flesh.
The New Testament also equates the Holy Spirit as equal with God.33 This belief by Christians that God is one and yet consists of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is known as the Trinitarian doctrine. They refer to God as a "Trinity" which means that there are not three "Gods" but one God who has three personages who are co-equal and co-eternal. Man, whom God created in His image, is a kind of trinity by the fact that he is body, soul, and spirit.34
Orthodox historical Christianity declares that Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah and by His fulfillment of Messianic prophecy is completely God and completely human. Some religious people deny the deity of Jesus Christ yet in doing so they are denying the plain teachings of the Bible and the beliefs of historical Christianity.
Early in Church history, there were several ecumenical councils of Christian leaders in order to bring Christianity to a common understanding of the biblical truths of God. These councils determined such issues as the nature of God and the nature of Jesus Christ. They also decided which of the numerous beliefs that had become part of Christendom since the First Century were orthodox and which were heretical.
The Nicene Creed, which the leaders agreed upon at the councils of Nicaea (325 A.D.) and Constantinople (381 A.D.), is a clear and absolute statement of the orthodox Christian faith. This creed speaks to the belief that God is a triune yet unified being and that He became a human being in order to save us:
I believe
in one God,
the
Father Almighty,
maker of
heaven and earth,
and of
all things visible and invisible;
And in
one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only
begotten Son of God,
begotten
of his Father before all worlds,
God of
God, Light of Light,
very God
of very God,
begotten,
not made,
being of
one substance with the Father;
by whom
all things were made;
who for
us men and for our salvation
came down
from heaven,
and was
incarnate by the Holy Ghost
of the
Virgin Mary,
and was
made man;
and was
crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;
he
suffered and was buried;
and the
third day he rose again
according
to the Scriptures,
and
ascended into heaven,
and
sitteth on the right hand of the Father;
and he
shall come again, with glory,
to judge
both the quick and the dead;
whose
kingdom shall have no end.
And I
believe in the Holy Ghost the Lord, and Giver of Life,
who
proceedeth from the Father;
who with
the Father and the Son together
is
worshipped and glorified;
who spake
by the Prophets.
And I
believe one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church;
I
acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins;
and I
look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the
life of the world to come. Amen.
There is one final and very important question concerning the first coming of the Messiah that must be addressed: Why didn't Jesus set up His Messianic kingdom on earth immediately after His resurrection?
A Psalm of David contains a prophetic clue as to why this did not occur:
"You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive:
You have received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious
also, that the LORD God might dwell among them."
- Psalm 68:18
According to this verse, the Messiah would ascend on high [i.e., heaven] to where He would lead those who had been held captive by sin and death. The Messiah would receive gifts to give to His followers left on the earth. Then the Lord will set up His Kingdom on earth and dwell among men.
Jesus Christ did ascend to heaven forty days after His resurrection:
"And [Jesus] led them out as far as to Bethany, and He lifted
up His hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while
He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up
into heaven. And they worshipped Him, and returned to
Jerusalem with great joy."35
During those forty days, He would appear and disappear from the midst of His disciples and then reappear to them.36 I believe there were two main reasons why Jesus did this.
The first and most important is that He had to show the disciples that He had indeed been resurrected from death, "Until the day in which He was taken up, after that He through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom He had chosen: To whom also He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God."37
The other reason is that the disciples had physically seen Jesus walking and talking with them for three and one-half years. He knew that He would be leaving them shortly. I believe Jesus wanted them to know that even though they could not see Him anymore, He was still present with them: "And Jesus came and spoke unto them, saying, All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go you therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen."38
Even though the disciples didn't understand at the time, Jesus did tell them He would be leaving them one day:
"But these things have I told you, that when the time shall
come, you may remember that I told you of them. And these
things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was
with you. But now I go My way to Him that sent Me; and
none of you asks Me, Where are you going? But because I
have said these things unto you, sorrow has filled your
heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for
you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter
[i.e., the Holy Spirit] will not come unto you; but if I
depart, I will send Him unto you...Howbeit when He, the
Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for
He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall
hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to
come."39
Jesus told the disciples the reason He was ascending back to heaven was so that He could send the Holy Spirit to come upon them. As we read earlier in this chapter, the Holy Spirit did come upon them ten days after Jesus' ascension and the apostle Peter went out and boldly preached his sermon to the multitudes.
The Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost, which occurred fifty days after Firstfruits Sunday. This fulfilled, to the exact day, the fourth feast of the year that God had ordained the Jews to keep.40
The apostle Paul quoted this passage written in the Psalm 68 in a letter he wrote to the Christians in Ephesus:
"But unto every one of us is given grace according to the
measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore He said, When He
ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave
gifts unto men...And He gave some, apostles; and some,
prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and
teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of
the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we
all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of
the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the
stature of the fullness of Christ."41
Paul is stating that when Jesus ascended into heaven He was going to give gifts to His followers so that they would be able to fulfill the mission that He gave to them. The gifts that Jesus gave to them were the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus had given the reason for the delay between His first coming and second coming was so that the gospel could be preached to the whole world:
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end
come."42
God wanted not only the Jews to be reconciled to Him but also the Gentiles. The New Testament states: "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."43 It is God's desire that every person accept the sacrificial death of His Son so that their sins will be removed forever. The following verse shows how much God desires this:
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not
perish, but have everlasting life."
- John 3:16
Jesus will set up His Messianic Kingdom after the gospel has been preached to the entire world.
This concludes Part One of my book. I believe it is clear beyond a doubt that Jesus did fulfill all of the prophecies that were given by God concerning the coming of the suffering Messiah.
In Part Two, I hope that it will be just as evident that Jesus will soon fulfill the prophecies of the coming of the kingly Messiah.
Though nearly two millennia have passed since Jesus ascended into heaven, He did make a promise to His followers:
"I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto Myself; that where I am there you may be also." - John 14:3
1 Acts 2:21-32
2 Matthew 26:69-75
3 Acts 2:1-41
4 Mark 16:1-6
5 I Corinthians 15:14
6 Leviticus 23:6-8
7 I Corinthians 5:6-8
8 Leviticus 23:9-14
9 I Corinthians 15:20
10 Isaiah 7:14
11 John 1:1-3, 14
12 Genesis 1:1
13 Colossians 1:13-19; 2:9
14 Ephesians 3:9
15 Hebrews 1:1-3
16 Isaiah 42:8
17 John 5:19-23
18 John 8:53-59
19 Exodus 3:13-14
20 John 14:5-10
21 John 5:16-18
22 John 10:30-33
23 Acts 10:25-26
24 Revelation 22:8-9
25 Matthew 4:10
26 Matthew 8:2-3
27 Matthew 28:9-10
28 John 9:35-38
29 Leviticus 16:1-30
30 Hebrews 10:1-4
31 Hebrews 10:10-12, 14-18
32 Hebrews 4:14-15
33 John 4:24; Acts 5:1-4 Peter says in verse 3 they lied to the Holy Spirit
and in verse 4 they lied to God; Matthew1:18,20; 10:20
34 Hebrews 4:12
35 Luke 24:50-52
36 John 20:19-29
37 Acts 1:2-3
38 Matthew 28:18-20
39 John 16:4-7, 13
40 Leviticus 23:15-22
41 Ephesians 4:7-8, 11-13
42 Matthew 24:14
43 II Peter 3:9
