Who is the Christ of Revelation?
Is He
just a good man, a wise teacher, a philosopher? Revelation 1:1
says,
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” Who is this that is being revealed? What does
the Bible say about Him?
If He
was just a man and John, the author of Revelation made up the whole thing, then
while it may be an interesting literary work, there is nothing supernatural
about any of it. It all depends on who Christ is. Jesus claimed and indeed was
more than human. In John 6:38, He says – “For I have come down from heaven, not
to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Jesus said He came down
from heaven.
The Bible
points forward to a Christ who is divine; a Christ that we can trust and have
complete confidence in – an eternal Christ. John 5:39 says, “You search the
Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they
which testify of Me.” The “Scriptures” Christ referred to is what we know as
the Old Testament. The Old Testament prophets predicted the coming of the
Messiah and specific events in His life. Christ fulfilled those prophecies
precisely. In fact, Christ’s life is a life written beforehand. The biography
of Jesus was written before He was born.
Prophecies Surrounding Jesus’
Birth
Jesus’
birth place was predicted nearly seven hundred years in advance in the book of
Micah 5:2,
“Bethlehem….out
of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel.” Anyone who knows
the Christmas story will remember that Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth. It
was a decree of Caesar Agustus that brought them to Bethlehem just in time for
Jesus’ birth. Centuries in advance the Bible predicted that Christ would be
born in Bethlehem and indeed He was.
Prophecy pointed forward to exact details
of His birth. Isaiah 7:14: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son,
and shall call His name Emmanuel.” The virgin birth was part of God’s divine
plan.
The Holy Spirit conceived the Christ Child in the womb of Mary. In Luke
1:30, 31, an angel announces His birth – “The angel said to her,….You will be
with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.”
Back in
the days of the Exodus, Moses wrote in the book of Numbers, 1500 years before
Christ – Numbers 24:17: “A Star shall come out of Jacob.” He described this
star that would rise in the east and lead the wise men to the very home of the
Messiah.Prophecies Surrounding Christ’s Life Prophecies were fulfilled one
right after the other in His life. Christ walked among men. He took children and
cradled them in His arms.
He spoke to the poor and gave them words of hope and
encouragement. He brought joy and a smile to hearts and lives everywhere.
Listen to how Isaiah 6l:1 and 2 prophesies of this 62 Christ – “The LORD has
anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the
broken hearted.
To
proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn.” Christ’s life fulfilled this prophecy in minute
detail.
The
reason Jesus worked so many miracles is to demonstrate the reality of His
divinity. His miracles
are
straight forward evidence that He is divine. They are evidence of the highest
magnitude. He touched the eyes of the blind and they were opened. He touched
the ears of the deaf and they were unstopped. He healed. He forgave.
He raised
the dead. Jesus, the life giver, is the only one that can resurrect the dead.
Prophecies Surrounding Jesus’
Death
Most of
the prophecies of His life were fulfilled in His last moments on earth. Jesus
gathered His disciples around Him at the last supper. A prediction made a
thousand years in advance by David was fulfilled that very night. Psalm 41:9
says, “Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted
up his heal against me.” The psalmist David predicted it would be a close
friend who would betray Christ. Notice very carefully the accuracy and
precision of these prophecies revealing Christ’s trial and betrayal. Zechariah 11:12:
“So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver.”
Neither 25 nor 35
pieces of silver but the prophecy named the price at 30 pieces of silver 500
years before Christ. Judas betrayed our Lord for exactly 30 pieces of silver.
Christ is no common man and the Bible is no common book. Zechariah 11:13… “So I
took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD for
the potter.” Not only the price but the result were predicted and fulfilled
exactly. Judas’
conscience so badly condemned him he refused to keep the blood
money.
He returned to the temple and threw the silver coins on the floor.
Everybody that sells out Christ cheap finds the thing they betrayed Him for is
too heavy to hold. And the Bible says in the book of Acts that Judas hung
himself, the rope broke, he fell down, and smashed his body among the rocks.
What a price to pay for betraying Jesus. The priests recovered the money but
they couldn't allow it to be returned to the temple treasury. They used it to
buy a field that belonged to a potter. The potter’s field became a cemetery for
the non-Jews. Prophecy was fulfilled minutely, specifically, exactly. Why?
Christ is more than a good man. He is more than an ethical teacher.
He is
divine.Prophecies of the last twenty-four hours of His life came to a focal
point. They focused on His death.
The
magnifying glass of prophecy zeroed in on a place called Calvary – a hill
called Golgotha. Isaiah 50:6: “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.”
The Bible predicted 600 years in advance exactly what took place
in Pilate’s courtyard. Christ was whipped on the back, beaten on the head and face,
spit upon, mocked and shamed.Psalm 22:16, one thousand years before Christ,
predicted:
“They pierced My feet.” Stoning was the method of capital punishment
in Israel for centuries. Crucifixion was introduced about a hundred and fifty years
before Christ. It was practiced until the years of Constantine around three
hundred twenty years after Christ. Crucifixion was practiced for about a five
hundred year window. God in the Bible revealed one thousand years ahead of time
exactly how Christ would die.
The Bible gives us confidence that the Christ who
died on Calvary’s cross was more than just a good man or philosopher. We cam
come with those thousands who have gathered at the foot of the cross. We can
confess our sins – our sins too can be forgiven there. There at that cross we
can be free from condemnation. We can become a new man, a new woman at that
cross.John 11:25 records Jesus words: “I am the resurrection and the life.
He
who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” The empty tomb reveals
the divinity of Christ. He has risen. He is alive.
No
other figure in history has fulfilled all these predictions, but they are
fulfilled in the life of one
individual.
If Christ is who the Bible says He is, then indeed, He is the Child born in the
Middle East. The Bible predicts one more event in the life of Christ – He is
coming again. Since He precisely fulfilled the rest of the prophecies in the
Bible, we can be sure of this also
No comments:
Post a Comment