THE FULFILLMENT OF GOD’S PROMISES
- Key Verse
- “Rather than tearing it apart, let’s throw dice for it. This fulfilled the Scripture that says, “They divided my garments among themselves and threw dice for my clothing.”
Jesus knew his mission was finished, and to fulfill Scripture he said, “I am thirsty.”
...fulfillment of the Scriptures that say, “Not one of his bones will be broken,” 37 “They will look on the one they pierced.” (John 19:24, 28, and 36-37, NLT-SE).
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Central Truth
Jesus’ life and death were the fulfillment of Old Testament scriptures.
Reflections
People who doubt Jesus was Messiah often point out Old Testament predictions as being staged or setup by Jesus and his disciples to con his would-be followers.By my count Jesus fulfills four Old Testament prophecies in John’s 19th chapter about his crucifixion, death and burial: first, gambling for his clothes (Ps 22:18). Second, he proclaimed, “I am thirsty,” (Ps 69:21). Third, his legs were not broken (Ex 12:46, Nu 9:12, Ps 34:20). And fourth, onlookers gazed at the piercing of his side (Zechariah 12:10, see also Isaiah 53).
Skeptics discount the myriad prophecies about Christ’s coming. And, why not? Proclaiming, “I’m thirsty” or “it is finished” could be easily staged by anyone versed in the Torah. And as Lee Strobel points out in his classic, The Case for Christ, “couldn’t Jesus have just read in Zechariah that the Messiah would ride a donkey into Jerusalem, and then arrange to do exactly that?” Sure he could.
Strobel’s interviewee, Pastor Louis S. Lapides, to whom he asks the above question explains, that’s conceivable “for a few of the prophecies…but there are many others for which this just wouldn’t be possible.”
Regarding John 19, how could Jesus have arranged for the gambling of his clothes? Or know that His legs would remain unbroken? Perhaps he could have predicted the legs of the other men would be broken, hastening their deaths—thus sparing the unsightliness of dying men on crosses on the Passover Sabbath—(as if it weren’t unsightly any other day)—but how could Jesus possibly know that after all the beating he would receive, they would spare his own legs from fracture? Lastly, how could Jesus know ahead of time that after his death they would pierce his side with a spear?
These four prophesies alone, first made hundreds of years prior to even the birth of Christ are overwhelming evidence that Jesus was the Christ in my opinion. Add to that the hundreds of other prophesies about his birth, life, death and resurrection and my opinion no longer matters.
Jesus was The Christ. All praises and glory to God.
Discussion Questions
1. If when reading the New Testament, you come across a passage that states “as the scriptures say…”, “this fulfills the prophesy…”, or “…to fulfill the scriptures”, do you investigate the Old Testament writings where it was first stated?2. Why is it necessary to understand the Old Testament in light of the New Testament?
3. How does understanding the similarity (or contrast) between the Old and the New Testaments make a difference in your ability to share the gospel with others?
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