The Messiah will rise from the dead (Isaiah 53:9-11; Psalm 16:8-11). Fulfillment: Acts 2:29-32; 13:34-37….. The resurrection was prophesied. Peter quoted the prophecy on Pentecost and explained it to his audience. He testified that Jesus fulfilled this prophecy and gave three reasons for them to believe it. 1) the prophecy. 2) the empty tomb they could go look at. 3) they were eyewitnesses. The disciples and others had seen Jesus after His resurrection. 

The Messiah will return on the clouds (Daniel 7:13-14). Prophecy repeated: Mark 14:61-62; Revelation 1:7…. Daniel had a vision of the Messiah returning on the clouds. When Pilate questioned Jesus, He only answered one question. Pilate asked if Jesus was the Messiah and He replied by saying that He would sit at the right hand of God and return on a cloud. In Revelation, John sees another vision of Jesus returning on a cloud. It hasn't happened yet, but we have reason to believe it will because so many others have been fulfilled. When it does happen, some people will rejoice and others will mourn as they realize it was true and they aren't saved. 

The Messiah will reign as king forever (Isaiah 9:6-7; 11:1-9) Prophecy repeated: Revelation 19:11-16…. This is prophesied multiple times, but the verses we look at today are Christmas prophecies that tie His birth and reign together. They have two prophecies in one sentence. They jump from His birth to His reign. They describe a powerful ruler who reigns in peace and harmony. Skeptics say there isn't much to celebrate on Christmas because there's still evil in the world. There's still tragedy. That's true, but we aren't celebrating the end. We're celebrating the beginning of the end, the hero's entrance. Christmas is when Jesus entered the world and His music started playing. There's still a battle coming, but we know the outcome and await His reign with joyful anticipation. 

This is the last sermon in this series and hopefully we all learned something about the prophecies of the Messiah that we can use to strengthen our faith and defend it. 

10 prophecies about the suffering and death of Jesus: 

1. The Messiah will be silent before his accusers (Isaiah 53:7;Matthew 27:12-14).

2. The Messiah will be beaten and spit upon (Isaiah 50:6; Matthew 27:27-30).

3. The Messiah’s hands and feet will be pierced (Psalm 22:16; Matthew 27:31).

4. The Messiah will be considered a criminal (Isaiah 53:12; Luke 22:37; 23:32-33).

5. The Messiah’s captors will divide his clothes (Psalm 22:18; Matthew 27:35).

6. The Messiah will be mocked and insulted (Psalm 22:7-8; Matthew 27:39-43).

7. The Messiah will feel abandoned by God (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46).

8. The Messiah will be thirsty and will be offered vinegar to drink (Psalm 22:15; 69:21; John 19:28-30).

9. None of the Messiah’s bones will be broken (Psalm 34:20; John 19:31-37).

10. The Messiah will be buried with the rich (Isaiah 53:9; Matthew 27:57-60).

Isaiah 53:4-6…. This is what it all leads to. This is the reason Jesus fulfilled the prophecies and suffered like He did. He went through all of this to take our place, to die for our sins so that we can have the opportunity to go to Heaven. We're all in the same boat with regard to this. None of us are better than another. We all need salvation and it is offered to all of us equally through the death and resurrection of the Messiah.

The Messiah will be rejected (Psalm 118:22-23). Fulfillment: Matthew 21:42; Acts 4:10-11…. This Psalm describes David, who was the youngest of his brothers and rejected or thought lowly of several times before becoming the cornerstone of the kingdom of Israel. It also describes his descendant many generations later. Jesus was rejected by His people, but He is the cornerstone of our salvation. 

The Messiah will be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12-13). Fulfillment: Matthew 26:14-15; 27:3-10…. Zechariah tried to teach and correct Israel as they were turning from the Lord, but they didn't listen and they paid him what he considered an insulting amount. So he threw it down. Judas was paid the same amount to betray Jesus then had second thoughts afterward and threw the money down. 

The Messiah will be betrayed by a close friend who eats bread with him (Psalm 41:9). Fulfillment: John 13:18-19, 25-27…. David was betrayed a few times. Jesus was betrayed by one of His disciples, one of His closest friends. 

The Messiah’s followers will leave him (Zechariah 13:7). Fulfillment: Matthew 26:31…. It was said that the Messiah’s followers would scatter. When Jesus told this to His disciples, Peter said he wouldn't leave Jesus, but he would end up scattering too and even deny knowing Jesus three times. 

The Messiah will come 483 years after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem. Then he will be killed.

(Daniel 9:24-26).... Daniel was an old man in Babylon when he wrote this prophecy. The 70 years of exile were almost over. He prays to God about letting His people return home. The exile lasted that long because the Israelites neglected to give the land its sabbath for 490 years. The sabbath is supposed to be every seventh year, a year of rest for the land. 490 years has 70 of those sabbath years. That’s why the exile lasted that long. That’s 70 weeks of years. Daniel had a vision from God that in the 490 years from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem, God would accomplish His plan for salvation. Then He specifies that 483 years from that decree, the Messiah would come. When did that decree come? There’s two candidates. Ezra received the decree in 458 BC. The other was Nehemiah in 445 BC. If you take Ezra’s date and add 483 years you get 26 AD, which most Bible scholars would agree is the year Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Taking Nehemiah’s date, it comes to 38 AD (or 33 AD if they used a lunar calendar). That’s a bit long, but either way, the range of 26-38 AD is pretty specific and accurate. The prophecy goes on to say that the Messiah will die and the city and temple be destroyed. That’s exactly what happened. 

The Messiah will be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14-16). Fulfillment: Isaiah 8:3-4; 9:6-7; Matthew 1:18-23… This is a dual fulfillment prophecy. Yes, Jesus would fulfill it, but so would Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. Maher only partly fulfilled the prophecy though, and Jesus would later fulfill the prophecy to its fullest. Maher was conceived by a virgin in a more conventional way, being conceived by a virgin on her first night of intimacy. Jesus was born of a virgin before she ever experienced that intimacy. 

The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2-4). Fulfillment: Luke 2:1-7; Matthew 2:1-6… But, isn't Mary from Galilee? Yes, Joseph and Mary were living in Nazareth of Galilee but a census sent them Bethlehem and Jesus was born there. 

The Messiah will come out of Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15, quoting Hosea 11:1).... But, he was born in Bethlehem, right? And his parents lived in Galilee, right? Yes, but when Jesus was young, his parents took him and fled to Egypt to avoid Herod who was killing babies that might be Jesus. 

The Messiah’s light will shine from Galilee (Isaiah 9:1). Fulfillment: Matthew 2:19-23; John 7:41-43… But they fled to Egypt, right? Mmhmm. When Herod finally died, they returned to Galilee. So, now Jesus could come of age in Galilee and eventually start His ministry there.

This week we look at some of the titles of Jesus that were prophesied in the Old Testament and how they were fulfilled. 

But first, let's look at this word: Messiah. It means "the anointed one" and to be anointed is to have oil poured over you. This wasn't motor oil, but oil with a good scent, oil that smelled good. This anointing would signify a transition of power in some circumstances, such as when David was anointed by Samuel. 

1. The Messiah will be a king descended from David (2 Samuel 7:11-16). This family tree will be cut down, but a branch will grow from the stump (Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5-6). Fulfillment: Matthew 1:1, 17… David wanted to build a house for God, but God said no, I'm going to build you a house, one that would last forever. There would be a time period where that house isn't sitting on a throne, but that eventually a Son of David would rise up to be king forever. Jesus is that king as shown by His genealogy and His life. 

2. The Messiah will be David’s lord (Psalm 110:1-2). Fulfillment: Matthew 22:41-46; Acts 2:33-36… David recognizes that God will send a Messiah in the future and that the Messiah would be his better. The Messiah would be more than David could even dream of being. Jesus is a descendant of David, but he was also before David. How? He was in Heaven with the Father before David was even a thought in his parente' minds. 

3. The Messiah will be a priest forever (Psalm 110:4) Fulfillment: Hebrews 7:14-17…. Wait. Don't priests come from the tribe of Levi? Well, yes, but before that, there was Melchizedek. Jesus is a priest in the order of Melchizedek. 

4. The Messiah will be the divine son of God (Psalm 2:1-9). Fulfillment: Matthew 3:17; 17:5… Some prophecies have dual meanings. Psalm 2 is one of those. It was used for kings of their time. It's a royal psalm. But it also prophecies about the future Messiah, which we now know is Jesus. When Jesus was baptized and when he was transfigured on the mountain, the voice of God came down and said "this is my son." 

John 1:41 gives us one more title for Jesus. He is the Christ. Christ is the Greek translation of Messiah. We often say His name is Jesus Christ, but Christ is a title, not a name. It’s also where the word Christian comes from. A Christian is someone who submits to the Christ. Christ is Lord of the Christian life.

This is the first in a seven week series where we will look at forty prophecies from the Old Testament about Jesus and how they were fulfilled. There's more than forty, but we only have so much time in each sermon. 

Jesus told his disciples: “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luke 24:44).... It's clear that Jesus considered this important, important enough to remind the disciples about it and to teach them about it (Luke 24:45). Why are we going over these prophecies? 1) it's a good introduction to Christianity and as we approach Christmas we'll see more visitors in church. 2) knowing the prophecies and how they are fulfilled is one way to defend your faith. 3) it's a great way to worship, seeing how amazing it is that these prophecies were fulfilled. 

Four prophecies about Jesus in the Law of Moses:

1. Genesis 3:15: The Messiah will be a human, a man, who will be wounded by the devil but will crush the devil’s head. See Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 2:14; Romans 16:20…. So, that's why we don't like snakes! But there's more to it than just that. This prophecy of bruising his heel while crushing the serpent's skull was fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross and was raised three days later. 

2. Genesis 22:18: The Messiah will be a descendant of Abraham. See Matthew 1:1; John 8:56…. Ever wonder why the New Testament starts with a genealogy? This is why, to show the fulfillment of this prophecy. 

3. Genesis 49:8-12: The Messiah will be a ruler from the tribe of Judah. See Matthew 1:2; Revelation 5:5…. The genealogy from the second prophecy confirms Jesus is of the tribe of Judah. We haven't seen the fulfillment on Earth yet, but Revelation tells us it is coming. 

4. Deuteronomy 18:14-19: The Messiah will be a prophet like Moses. See John 6:14; Acts 3:22-23… Moses wrote that the Messiah would be a great prophet like himself, and Jesus certainly fits that description. 

These and the rest of the prophecies we'll look at are clues in the Old Testament to point us towards Jesus. Seeing just one of them doesn't show us much, but when we put them all together, like a stained glass window, we get a full picture showing us that Jesus is the Messiah.