Messianic Prophecies: Evidence of Christ Part 2
Photography by Lonnie Paulson lonniepaulsonphoto.com
Introduction to Messianic Prophecy Part 2
Jesus on Trial
When Jesus was arrested, they led Him first to Annas the former high priest along with Caiaphas who was now the high priest. Annas asked Jesus about His disciples and His teaching. Jesus told the priest that He had spoke openly in synagogues and the temple where all Jews gather. Jesus said that He did not speak in secret. “Why do you ask Me? Ask those who have heard Me what I said to them. Indeed they know what I said” (John 18:21 NKJV). The high priest struck Jesus for His response. We can find a prophecy among Isaiah. “I have not spoken in secret, In a dark place of the earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in Vain’; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right” (Isaiah 45:19 NKJV). Jesus is condemned by Caiaphas and finally by the Sanhedrin. His crime was blasphemy of the Jewish religion. The crowd said that Jesus was deserving of death. “Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands, saying, ‘Prophecy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”’ (Matthew 26:67–68 NKJV). Isaiah tells us about this prophetic future event. “I gave My back to those who struck Me, And My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting” (Isaiah 50:6 NKJV).
Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny Him three times. Peter said to the Lord that he would never deny Him. This prophecy from Jesus came true. Peter was observing the trial from the courtyard at night. It was cool so a fire was kindled. Peter sat with other people in the courtyard around the fire. The first denial: A servant girl noticed Peter and pointed out to the gathering that this man Peter was also with Jesus. Peter denied that he knew Jesus. “But he denied Him, saying ‘Woman, I do not know Him’” (Luke 22:57 NKJV). The second denial: “And after a little while another saw him and said, ‘You are also of them.’ But Peter said, ‘Man, I am not!’” (Luke 22:58). Third and last denial: About an hour later another confidently affirmed that Peter was with Jesus, for he is a Galilean. Matthew adds in his gospel, “your speech betrays you.” “But Peter said, ‘Man, I do not know what you are saying!’ And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, ‘Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times’” (Luke 23:60–61 NKJV).
Crucifixion and Death
Much prophecy was about the crucifixion of Jesus. The whole Psalm 22 is about the crucifixion of Jesus. Turn to Isaiah 53 which also is about the crucifixion of Jesus. As a tradition, I read these two passages on Good Friday; the day Jesus was crucified. I do not want to forget, so I remember this event every year along with the Sunday Resurrection. Picture Jesus on the cross. This is what Isaiah has said: “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him. and by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5 NKJV). At the crucifixion site which the Apostle John refers to as Golgotha were two other men on each side of Jesus who were being crucified. Jesus was crucified alongside two criminals. This was prophesied to happen by Isaiah. “Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:12 NKJV). The gospel of Mark notes the fulfillment of this prophecy. “With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left. So the scripture was fulfilled which says, “And He was numbered with the transgressors.’” (Mark 15:27–28 NKJV). As Isaiah had said in 53:12, Jesus prayed for His enemy. One of the two criminals that were crucified on the side of Him found salvation through Christ. One of the criminals told Jesus if He was the Christ He should save Himself and us. The other criminal reprimanded him for saying such a thing. Here is how it happened.
“Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, ‘If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.’ But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong. Then he said to Jesus, ‘Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise’” (Luke 23:39–43 NKJV).
The unbelievers laughed and mocked Jesus. Psalm 22 is one of my favorite Psalms. The entire Psalm is a future prophecy about the crucifixion of the Messiah who is Jesus. “All those who see Me laugh Me to scorn; they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, ‘He trusted in the LORD, let Him rescue Him; let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!’” (Psalm 22:7–8 NKJV). Notice how this prophecy was fulfilled in Luke’s Gospel. “And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, ‘He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God’” (Luke 23:35 NKJV).
During the crucifixion the soldiers divided His garments and gambled for who would get pieces of his clothing. They gambled by casting lots. This was all prophesied in the past by the author of Psalm 22. “I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots” (Psalm 22:17–18 NKJV). Here is the prophetic fulfillment in Matthew’s Gospel. “Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: ‘They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.’ Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there” (Matthew 27:35–36). Towards the end of Jesus’ crucifixion Jesus cries out the prophetic words from Psalm 22:1. Here it is in the King James Bible, we read the first verse: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” (Psalm 22:1 KJV). For better understanding my NKJV version replaces “roaring” with “groaning” which I prefer. I chose the KJV, because I wanted to add a comment from Dr. Henry M. Morris in his KJV New Defender’s Study Bible. Here is what he says about Psalm 22:1. “Psalm 22 is an amazing prophetic description of the future crucifixion of God’s Son. This psalm was written a thousand years before its fulfillment and described in graphic detail the sufferings of Christ on the cross, long before the method of crucifixion was known and practiced among the Jews and Romans.”1 I want to emphasize that Dr. Morris said this prophecy was fulfilled one thousand years later through Jesus Christ. “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” (Matthew 27:46 NKJV). The words, “Eli Eli sabachthani” was from the Aramaic language which was the common everyday language spoken at that time in Judea.
The crucifixion was on a Friday. The afternoon sun was going down and when the sun would set it would then be the sabbath day. To avoid profaning the sabbath the Jews asked Pilate to have the soldiers break the legs of those hanging on the cross so they would soon die from suffocation because they could no longer use their legs to push themselves up on the cross to breath. These men needed to be taken off the cross so their dead bodies would not profane the land. The Jewish law states that anyone hung on a tree is cursed of God. See Deuteronomy 21:23. The soldiers broke the legs of the criminals beside Jesus, but when they got to Jesus, they saw that He was already dead. So, they did not break the legs of Jesus. In the Gospel of John, we read: “For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, ‘Not one of His bones shall be broken’” (John 19:36 NKJV). This prophetic promise comes from the Psalms. “He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken” (Psalm 34:20 NKJV). The prophet Zechariah prophesied that Christ would be pierced. “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10 NKJV). Here is the fulfillment in the Gospel of John. “But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out” (John 19:34 NKJV). During Jesus’ ministry here on Earth Jesus was poor. He had no place to lay His head. Jesus told this to a certain scribe who wanted to follow Him. “…Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (Matthew 8:20 NKJV). However, Jesus was buried in a rich man’s grave. This was prophesied by the prophet Isaiah. “And they made His grave with the wicked–But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth” (Isaiah 53:9). Let’s look at the detailed description of Matthew’s Gospel concerning this fulfilled prophecy by a rich man from Arimathea who goes by the name of Joseph. “Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed” (Matthew 27:57–60 NKJV).
Resurrection
On what historically would be known as Resurrection Day or what some call Easter Sunday three women went to the tomb the day after the sabbath to anoint the body of Jesus with spices. These women were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Salome who was mother of the Apostles James and John. While walking to the tomb they were concerned about how they would get the heavy stone moved away so they could enter the tomb. When they came to the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the side of the tomb and they were alarmed. It was an angel. “But he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. But go and tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you’” (Mark 16:6–7 NKJV). Another prophecy about the resurrection of Jesus I want to share with you is of the prophet Hosea. “After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight” (Hosea 6:2 NKJV). In the book of Psalms there are two prophecies that deal with the resurrection of Jesus. “For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption” (Psalm 16:10 NKJV). “But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave, For He shall receive me” (Psalm 49:15 NKJV).
Witness of the Resurrection
Before I conclude the last Messianic prophecy, which will be on the Ascension of Jesus Christ, I want to cover two important witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ that are important to me which are very apologetic. Many people saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. These verses from 1 Corinthians I want to share with you are one of my favorite apologetic verses in the entire Bible; it is taken from 1 Corinthians 15. “and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me [Apostle Paul] also, as by one born out of due time” (1Corinthians 15:5–8 NKJV). After the resurrection, Christ visited many of His followers for 40 days and then He would ascend to heaven, and then the church would start. [T]o whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3 NKJV).
This second great apologetic witness many believers refer to as “Doubting Thomas.” One evening on a Sunday the disciples were all assembled in a locked room for fear of the Jews. Jesus passed through the room to address them. He said: “Peace be with you.” Jesus showed His disciples His hands and His side that was pierced. He breathed on them and told them: “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Thomas, one of the disciples was not there. The disciples made it a point to tell Thomas that they had seen the Lord. “The other disciples therefore said to him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he [Thomas] said to them, ‘Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe’” (John 20:25 NKJV). Eight days later the disciples were together in the same room but this time Thomas was there too. Jesus came again through the walls of this locked room. After greeting the disciples Jesus comes up to Thomas. “Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ And Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’” (John 20:27–29 NKJV).
The Ascension
For prophecy concerning the ascension we can look towards the Psalms. “You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive; You have received gifts among men; even among the rebellious, that the LORD God might dwell there” (Psalm 68:18 NKJV). Luke wrote about the ascension in both Luke and Acts. This is the last time that Jesus would be with His disciples on Earth. “And He [Jesus] led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven” (Luke 24:50–51 NKJV). Also, in the book of Acts, “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, ‘Men of Galilee why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven’” (Acts 1:9–11 NKJV).
The LORD said to Moses: “I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him” (Deuteronomy 18:18 NKJV). [Prophecy of the Messiah to come—JESUS CHRIST]
Written by Lonnie Paulson
Messianic Prophecies: Evidence of Christ Part 2: End Notes
1) Dr. Henry M. Morris. The New Defender’s Study Bible; World Publishing, Inc. Nashville, TN 37214 (1995) p 843.