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August 1, 2002, Vol.1, No.13. Christ In Prophecy Part 1 Randy Harshbarger via The Preceptor Magazine October, 1985
"And the multitude said. This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee." As Jesus comes to the end of His earthly ministry and makes His triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem, the people were stirred to ask, "Who is this?" Hence, the answer of Matthew 21:22, "This is Jesus the prophet." In a general sense a prophet was not only a foreteller but also a forthteller. Jesus Christ was both. Moses refers to Him as a prophet in Deuteronomy 18:18-20. Upon this great fact, Peter urges all men to listen to this Prophet (cf. Acts 3:22-26). As a forthteller, certainly Jesus taught many things. Who can forget His Sermon on the Mount, or His words to Nicodemus, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." But Jesus also foretold many things. He spoke of His own sufferings to come (Matt. 17:22), and He told Peter that the fisherman from Galilee would deny his Lord three times (Matt. 26:34). When we consider these teachings of Jesus and when we see the fulfillment of these prophecies, clearly Jesus Christ is the greatest prophet the world has ever known. Humanity has hardly been the same, since His advent into a world of lost sinners. As we consider the subject of Christ and prophecy, we must of course consider Jesus Christ and fulfilled prophecy. "Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you." (1 Pet. 1:10) Jesus Christ is in reality the fulfillment of the Old Testament. We find in the person of Jesus Christ the culmination of that grand theme of salvation that the prophets of old spoke of and wrote about. The ministry of Jesus Christ validates itself upon the basis of fulfilled prophecy. If the prophets spoke, but Jesus did not fulfill their words, then He could not be who He said He was, the Son of God. But, if we find in the person of Jesus Christ the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, types, figures, etc., then truly He is the fulfillment of the "law and prophets." Consider again the words of the Apostle Peter in I Peter 1:10-12: Concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: searching what time or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should follow them. To whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you, did they minister these things, which now have been announced unto you through them that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven; which things angels desire to look into. The prophets of old longed to know more about the meaning of their messages; they understood enough that their desire was aroused to know more. They wanted to know in whom and when all these things would be fulfilled. But specifically, the truths revealed by the Holy Spirit to the prophets concerning the sufferings and glories of Christ, were the truths that caused them to desire more information. The future suffering and glory of the Messiah produced within the prophets a seeking and searching attitude in regard to the grace that was to come. Of course to the Jewish mind, a Messiah who would suffer was a repugnant concept. Yet, when we look at Old Testament prophecies concerning the suffering and subsequent glorification of Jesus Christ, both lines of prophecy blend together beautifully. Jesus did suffer, but His resurrection, ascension, coronation, and reign at God’s right hand clearly spell victory and triumph! "The Suffering of Jesus" There are many Old Testament prophecies that speak of the cross of Jesus and the suffering Jesus would endure for mankind. Here are a few for your study. Zechariah 11:12,13 declares: And I said unto them. If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my hire thirty pieces of silver. And Jehovah said unto me. Cast it unto the potter, the goodly price that I was prized at by them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them unto the potter, in the house of Jehovah. What an insult to value the work of the shepherd at only thirty pieces of silver. What an insult for Judas to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (cf. Matt. 26:14,15; 27:9,10)! Again the prophet Zechariah says: Awake, 0 sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. (Zechariah 13:7-8) When the shepherd is smitten, the sheep will scatter. Jesus applies this prophecy to Himself and His disciples in Matthew 26:31,32. How sad that we read in Matthew 26:56: "...Then all the disciples left him, and fled." The Psalms are full of prophecies that point the way to the Christ, to His suffering upon the cross. Read carefully Psalm 22:1-8, 11-18. It is clearly a song of anguish as David cries out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?... a reproach of men, and despised of the people... He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him..•they pierced my hands and my feet...They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. (vv. 1,6,8,16,18). It would be good if you would read through Matthew chapter twenty-seven as time after time these words of David are applied to Christ and His crucifixion and suffering. Other Psalms as well speak of the events surrounding the suffering of Jesus on the cross (cf. Psa. 41 and Psa. 69).
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