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Lesson 9 - Our Redeemer, the Theme of ProphecyIntroduction: Multitudes today are losing faith in Jesus. How can we KNOW that He was the Savior of the world? We can know because of the Old Testament prophecies. 1. What did Jesus show was the theme of the Old Testament prophecies? Luke 24:25-27 [The Further-study verses are Luke 24:44; John 5:39] (Luke 24:25-27 NKJV) "Then He said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! {26} "Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?" {27} And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself." 2. In what city did the Old Testament say Jesus was to be born? Micah 5:2 [Luke 2:1-7; Isa. 9:6] (Micah 5:2 NKJV) ""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."" 3. Was there also a specific time when Jesus was to appear? Gal. 4:4 (Galatians 4:4 NKJV) "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law," 4. When was that time to be? Dan. 9:24, 25 (Daniel 9:24-25 NKJV) ""Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy. {25} "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times." [Ans: Sixty-nine weeks after the command to restore and build Jerusalem. Ezra 6:14; 7:7-11] 5. Sixty-nine weeks is 483 days. In symbolic prophecy, what does a day represent? Eze. 4:6 [ Num. 14:34] (Ezekiel 4:6 NKJV) ""And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year." According to Ezra 6:14, the threefold decree to restore and build Jerusalem was completed by the Persian king Artaxerxes. This decree went forth shortly after Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth Jewish month in the seventh year of Artaxerxes' reign (Ezra 7:8, 9). Artaxerxes' first year, counted as year "zero" by the Jews, was from the autumn of 465 B.C. to the autumn of 464 B.C. The fifth Jewish month of his seventh year was in 457 B.C. Therefore the Messiah should appear 483 years after 457 B.C., which was 27 A.D. (There is no year "0" between B.C. and A.D., so you must add a year when going from B.C. to A.D.) Twenty-seven A.D. was the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar. 6. Thus the 69 weeks ended in Tiberius Caesar's 15th year. What happened that year? Luke 3:1, 21, 22. (Luke 3:1 NKJV) "Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,
Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother
Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of
Abilene," 7. The Hebrew word "Messiah" ("Christ" in Greek) means "anointed." If Jesus was the Messiah, (1) HOW was He anointed, thereby becoming the Messiah; and (2) WHEN did that happen? Acts 10:37, 38 (Acts 10:37-38 NKJV) ""that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: {38} "how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him." [Ans: He was anointed by the Holy Spirit at His baptism in 27 A.D., exactly according to prophecy! Luke 3:21, 22; 4:18; John 1:41] 8. Did Jesus recognize the fulfillment of this prophetic time? Mark 1:15 (Mark 1:15 NKJV) "and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."" [Note: The Greek word here is "pleroo," meaning "fulfilled," or "completed," as translated in the KJV, NKJV, and NASB. The time that had just been fulfilled was the 69 weeks. Matt. 4:17] 9. Although the Jewish people wanted a conqueror, what would happen to the Messiah sometime after 27 A.D.? Dan. 9:26a (Daniel 9:26 NKJV) ""And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary..." [Ans: He would be "cut off." Isa. 53:8, 9] 10. Jesus' baptism marked the end of the 69 weeks and the beginning of the 70th week of probationary time allotted to the Jewish nation. What would happen in the middle of this prophetic week? Dan. 9:27a (Daniel 9:27 NKJV) "Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering..." [Ans: Jesus, who made the covenant, would put an end to animal sacrifices by Himself being "cut off ' and becoming our sacrifice on the cross. Isa. 53:8; Heb. 10:6, 9-14, 18; Matt. 23:38; 27:51] 11. Did Jesus understand the prophetic time period pointing forward to His being "cut off" and doing away with sacrifices? Luke 9:51 [Matt. 26:18; John 7:6-8] (Luke 9:51 NKJV) "Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem," 12. Since after Jesus' death there were still 3 1/2 years of the final (70th) week for special ministry to the Jewish people, where did Jesus tell His disciples to begin their witness? Acts 1:8 (Acts 1:8 NKJV) ""But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."" [Note: Jesus confirmed the covenant of 490 years with the Jewish people (Rom. 15:8), first through His own ministry (Matt. 21:37-39, Matt. 16:21, Matt. 21:10-13), and then through His disciples. Luke 24:47] 13. When did the gospel begin to go to the Gentiles? Acts 7:59; 8:1, 4 (Acts 7:59 NKJV) "And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."" (Acts 8:1 NKJV) "Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles." (Acts 8:4 NKJV) "Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word." [Note: In the stoning of Stephen, the Jewish nation once more rejected the covenant of mercy. Acts 10:9-17, 28, 29] 14. Was the Jewish nation still God's chosen people after 34 A.D.? Rom. 2:28, 29 (Romans 2:28-29 NKJV) "For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; {29} but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God." [ Jer. 18:9, 10; Deut. 28:45, 46, 63; Matt. 21:43; 1 Peter 2:9, 10] 15. Under the New Covenant, who are the true Israel? Gal. 3:26-29 (Galatians 3:26-29 NKJV) "For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. {27} For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. {28} There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. {29} And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." [ Gen. 17:4-7; 1 Cor. 7:19; Gal. 3:7; 6:15, 16; Eph. 2:11-22] Commitment: Jesus alone fulfills the prophecies of the Messiah. Through Him we can each become a part of God's true people-spiritual Israel. Is it your desire to be a part of God's true Israel today?
Further Study VersesQuestion 1 - Further Study (Luke 24:44 NKJV) "Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me."" (John 5:39 NKJV) ""You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me." -->Back to Study Question 2 - Further Study (Isaiah 9:6 NKJV) "For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Luke 2:1-7 NKJV) "And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. {2} This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. {3} So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. {4} Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, {5} to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. {6} So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. {7} And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." -->Back to Study Question 3 - Further Study Question 4 - Further Study (Ezra 6:14 NKJV) "So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia." (Ezra 7:7-11 NKJV) "Some of the children of Israel, the priests, the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the Nethinim came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. {8} And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. {9} On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him. {10} For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel. {11} This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest, the scribe, expert in the words of the commandments of the LORD, and of His statutes to Israel:" -->Back to Study Question 5 - Further Study (Numbers 14:34 NKJV) "'According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection." -->Back to Study Question 6 - Further Study Question 7 - Further Study (Luke 3:21-22 NKJV) "When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. {22} And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased."" (Luke 4:18 NKJV) ""The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;" (John 1:41 NKJV) "He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ)." -->Back to Study Question 8 - Further Study (Matthew 4:17 NKJV) "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."" -->Back to Study Question 9 - Further Study (Isaiah 53:8-9 NKJV) "He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken. {9} 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." -->Back to Study Question 10 - Further Study (Isaiah 53:8 NKJV) "He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken." (Matthew 23:38 NKJV) ""See! Your house is left to you desolate;" (Matthew 27:51 NKJV) "Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split," (Hebrews 10:6 NKJV) "In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure." (Hebrews 10:9-14 NKJV) "then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may establish the second. {10} By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. {11} And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. {12} But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, {13} from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. {14} For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified." (Hebrews 10:18 NKJV) "Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin." -->Back to Study Question 11 - Further Study (Matthew 26:18 NKJV) "And He said, "Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, 'The Teacher says, "My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples."' "" (John 7:6-8 NKJV) "Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready. {7} "The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil. {8} "You go up to this feast. I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come." -->Back to Study Question 12 - Further Study (Romans 15:8 NKJV) "Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers," (Matthew 23:37-39 NKJV) "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets
and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together,
as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! (38) See! Your
house is left to you desolate; (39) for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you
say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'" (Matthew 21:10-13 NKJV) "And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was
moved, saying, "Who is this?"" (11) So the multitudes said, "This is
Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee. (12) Then Jesus went into the temple of
God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables
of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves." Question 13 - Further Study (Acts 10:9-17 NKJV) "The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour. {10} Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance {11} and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth. {12} In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. {13} And a voice came to him, "Rise, Peter; kill and eat." {14} But Peter said, "Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean." {15} And a voice spoke to him again the second time, "What God has cleansed you must not call common." {16} This was done three times. And the object was taken up into heaven again. {17} Now while Peter wondered within himself what this vision which he had seen meant, behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius had made inquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate." (Acts 10:28-29 NKJV) "Then he said to them, "You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. {29} "Therefore I came without objection as soon as I was sent for. I ask, then, for what reason have you sent for me?"" -->Back to Study Question 14 - Further Study (Jeremiah 18:9-10 NKJV) ""And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, {10} "if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it." (Deuteronomy 28:45-46 NKJV) ""Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which He commanded you. {46} "And they shall be upon you for a sign and a wonder, and on your descendants forever." (Deuteronomy 28:63 NKJV) ""And it shall be, that just as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess." (Matthew 21:43 NKJV) ""Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it." (1 Peter 2:9-10 NKJV) "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; {10} who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." -->Back to Study Question 15 - Further Study (Genesis 17:4-7 NKJV) ""As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. {5} "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. {6} "I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. {7} "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you." (1 Corinthians 7:19 NKJV) "Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but keeping the commandments of God is what matters." (Galatians 3:7 NKJV) "Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham." (Galatians 6:15-16 NKJV) "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. {16} And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God." (Ephesians 2:11-22 NKJV) "Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh; who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands; {12} that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. {13} But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. {14} For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, {15} having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, {16} and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. {17} And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. {18} For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. {19} Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, {20} having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone, {21} in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, {22} in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit." -->Back to Study
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