The Bible is one of the most profound and impactful book in the history of the world. The book that we hold in our hands has the power to transform our lives completely. The Bible still holds 3 unbeatable records. The most printed book in History is the Bible. The most sold book in History is the Bible. The most read book in the world till today is the Bible. The Bible is the best-selling book in history, with total sales exceeding 5 billion copies. Most biblical scholars agree that it took about 1,500 years to write the Bible
The Bible was written in Asia, Europe and Africa and in three different languages: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. The Bible is also a prophetic book. It not only gives great detail what would happen at the end of time but it also is filled with prophecies about the coming Messiah. Sometimes when we read the Bible we can quickly read through it without thinking about how miraculous and amazing the things written in the Bible are. Most scholars agree that there are more than 300 prophecies found in the Old Testament that predict the coming of a Messiah. The amazing thing about this is the fact that Jesus fulfilled all 300 prophecies foretold about him. Many researchers, scholars and mathematicians have calculated the staggering odds of anyone fulfilling the number of prophecies regarding the Messiah.
Let me begin with four key prophecies that were fulfilled precisely by Christ.
- He is the Seed from Genesis 3:15 who would one day crush the head of Satan when He died on the Cross. And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”
- He is the sacrificial Lamb who was pictured in the Passover in Exodus 12.
- The Place He was to be born was prophesied 700 years beforehand in Micah 5:2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting. was fulfilled when Mary gave birth to her little lamb in Bethlehem.
- And, His Birth was miraculous in that it perfectly fulfilled Isaiah’s prediction that He would be born of a virgin in Isaiah 7:14. Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
You cannot read the Old Testament without being aware of this constant promise running through every page: Someone is coming! Someone is coming! Someone is coming!
Christmas According to Matthew
Matthew uses the phrase, “to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet” eleven times in his book. I want to start at the end of his gospel and work backwards to show how precisely the person of Jesus, and the events of His life, fulfilled everything that was written about Him hundreds of years before He was even born.
Let us see 10 verses out of the 73 verses that Matthew quotes to confirm Jesus as the Messiah.
The betrayal by Judas (27:9) Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced. was predicted by Jeremiah 32:6-9 & Zechariah 11:12-13.
Entering Jerusalem on a colt (21:1-7) was first pictured by Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey..
- Speaking in parables (13:35) was laid out in Psalm 78:2 for I will speak to you in a parable. I will teach you hidden lessons from our past
- Affirmation of His ministry (12:14-21) was predicted inIsaiah 42:1-4 “Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. 2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth. 4 He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands shall wait for His law.
- Healing of people (8:14-17) was pictured in Isaiah 53:4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.
- Origination of His ministry (4:13-16) was first mentioned in Isaiah 9:1-2 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined..
- Slaughter of young boys (2:16-18) was sadly predicted in Jeremiah 31:15 Thus says the Lord: “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more.
- Flight from Egypt (2:12-15) was spelled out in Hosea 11:1 “When Israel was a [a]child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.
- Born in Bethlehem (2:1-10) was prophesied in Micah 5:2“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting..
- His virgin birth (1:22-23) was clearly foretold in Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.
Matthew ties the Old to the New in order to tell us that we are without excuse. He also very clearly sets forth Jesus as the King. Thus, the Babe born in Bethlehem is not only our merciful and loving Saviour, He is also the King who warns of judgment to come and expects right living to be manifested by those who claim to know Him.
In Matthew 2:2, the wise men ask King Herod, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” He didn’t become king later on when He was old enough. No. He was born a king. He is the supreme sovereign. Revelation 19:16says, “On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”
The book of Matthew opens with the genealogy of the King. Every king has to have a royal lineage because his ancestry is the most important thing about him. Kings have to be in the regal line in order to qualify to be on the throne. Matthew begins with an exhaustive, and somewhat exhausting, family tree that traces the right of Jesus to reign. These opening verses are very important because Jewish people, who made up Matthew’s audience, were tenacious about the matter of pedigrees.
The most important two names in the genealogy are given first. Abraham establishes the racial lineage, and David gives Jesus the royal pedigree. Take a look at Matthew 1:1: “A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham.” In order to possess royal lineage, one would need to be a son of Abraham and a son of David.
The racial line was promised through Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3: “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you…and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” The royal line was promised through David in 2 Samuel 7:16: “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.”
Christmas According to Matthew
There are at least three powerful lessons that we can learn about Christmas from the gospel of Matthew.
- God always keeps His Word. God gives promises and He keeps them. He may be long, but He is never, ever, late.
- God works in spite of people like us. If God can accomplish His purposes through people like Herod and Caesar, and even through some shady people who appear in the family tree of Jesus, He can work through you and me. God specialises in accomplishing historical improbabilities and biological impossibilities.
- Jesus is the King of Christmas and has the right to rule your life. The great question of Matthew is this: “Is Jesus Christ King of your life?” Has the Christ of Christmas penetrated your spirit? Has He mastered your heart? Is He the single most important person in the entire universe to you? That is when He becomes King.
Friends, when it comes to the real meaning of Christmas, we can’t say we forgot. That excuse won’t work because God has surrounded each of us with evidence for the incarnation. He’s trying to get our attention through Christmas carols, concerts, the Jesus video, and through His Word.
We can’t say that no one told us ahead of time. God let us know about Christmas B.C. in the Old Testament. He told us what was going to happen and then it did, exactly as He predicted it would. After hearing this message tonight, it is now impossible for you to say that you weren’t told ahead of time.
We certainly cannot say that Christmas is unimportant. All of human history hinges on the birth of Jesus. He’s more than a baby in a manger. He came to die for your sins, and for mine. This is God’s plan. It’s how He set it up from the very beginning. There is no arrangement other than Christmas. He is the King.
Pastor Terry Prakasam,
Bethel City Cathedral Church
