So what though. Maybe Jesus did raise from the dead (maybe), but other people “rose” from the dead during that time too. How does that show he’s God, like you claim? Bam, we’re going to have an answer by the end of today’s blog: It’s all about fulfilled prophecy.
Let’s set up a panel of elite futurists. Our futurists are going to be two fellow Lion’s Den bloggers–The Harris’: Jonathan and David.
Let’s ask them two sets of questions.
1). What will the weather be like tomorrow?
Who will be the next president?
Will things get better or worse in the next 20 years?
2). Who will be elected president in 2080?
When will he be born?
What city and State?
What unusual things will accompany his life?
What unique gifts will he have?
What unique titles will he possess?
Will he die in an usual manner?
If so, how will he die?
What year will he die?
If you’re a pretty regular reader of the blog, you might think that with the Harris’ combined brain power, they should predict at least TWO questions from the first set correctly. How many from the second set do you think they could predict?
The first set of questions were either very general, or close enough in time for them to answer with an educated guess. The second set were a whole ‘nother category. How in the world could someone predict things so specific several decades in advance? The Bible prophecies belong to this second category. These prophets predicted specific unmistakable events hundreds of years in advance, and these predictions literally came to pass.
Jesus had to fulfill about five dozen prophecies. Here are 13 of them. These were considered Massianic by the Jewish Rabbis who lived before Jesus.
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Tribe of Judah Genesis 49:10
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Luke 3:23,33
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House of David Jeremiah 23:5
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Luke 3:23,31
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Enter Jerusalem on a donkey Zechariah 9:9
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Matthew 21:1-8
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Born at Bethlehem Micah 5:2
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Matthew 2:1
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Introduced by a messenger Isaiah 40:3
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Matthew 3:11-3
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Body pierced in crucifixion Zechariah 12:10
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John 19:34
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Laid to rest with the rich Isaiah 53:9
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Matthew 27:57-60
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Endure wounds and bruises Isaiah 53:5
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Matthew 27:26
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Teaching and healing ministry Isaiah 61:1,2; 32:3-4; 35:5
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Matthew 9:35; Luke 4:17-21
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Arrive before the Temple and Jerusalem destroyed Daniel 9:26
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Temple, Jerusalem Destroyed AD 70
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Labeled Lord and God Jeremiah 23:6 Isaiah 9:6
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Luke 2:11 John 20:28
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Killed 483 years after degree to rebuild Jerusalem Daniel 9:25-26
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Gospels, History (Christ Died about AD 30)
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Silent before accusers Isaiah 53:7
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Matthew 27:12
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Do you know anyone who belonged to the tribe of Judah, and to the house of David, entered Jerusalem on a donkey, was born at Bethlehem, was introduced by a messenger, whose body was pierced in crucifixion, was laid to rest with the rich, endured wounds and bruises?…I think you get my point.
These prophecies couldn’t have been fulfilled by chance. Most of them couldn’t have even been deliberately fulfilled. The predictions must have come from someone who could see into the future. Since only God knows the future, these predictions must have come from God. And whoever fulfills them must be the one that God preordained to fulfill them.
The fact that at least a dozen detailed prophecies concerning the Messiah were fulfilled hundreds of years after the predictions demonstrates that the prophecies came from an all-knowing divine being who orchestrated the coming of Jesus and intended for Him to be considered the Jewish Messiah!
Think about that and try to share the information with an unbeliever. If the bible is a reliable historical document, we have sufficient evidence to believe that Christ rose from the dead and fulfilled dozens of messianic prophecies. —> Next up, we’ll show the divinity of Christ! =]