From A Distance

My Personal View of the Bible

• Old Testament foreshadowing the New Testament
• The Gospel is the centerpiece
• The remainder of the New Testament magnifies the Gospel
• "The whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27 NKJV)
• “All scripture is inspired by God…” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
• "Correctly explaining the word of God" (2 Timothy 2:16)

Like we did at Easter, let's examine a few of prophecies found in the Old Testament concerning the coming of the Messiah, a glimpse of the Savior as seen from the distance of time:

Prophecy:  Seed of a woman

• OT Reference:  Genesis 3:14-15 "Then the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."
• NT Fulfillment:  Galatians 4:4 "But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law."

Prophecy:  Heir to the Throne of David

• OT Reference:  Isaiah 9:6-7 "For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!"
• NT Fulfillment:  Luke 1:31-32 "You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David."

Prophecy:  Jesus to be born in Bethlehem

• OT Reference:  Micah 5:2 "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past."
• NT Fulfillment:  Luke 2:4-7 "And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them."

Prophecy:  Christ to be born of a virgin

• OT Reference:  Isaiah 7:14 "(T)he Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’)."
• NT Fulfillment:  Luke 1:26-31 "In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”"

As we celebrate the Christmas season, 2000 years later, we see His birth, life, ministry, death, and resurrection from a distance, and likewise, we see His future coming again from a distance.

1 Corinthians 13:12 "Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely."

Remember the song "From a Distance?" -- Is God watching us from a distance? Or up close and personal?

God sees with perfect clarity of vision.

• "The Lord looks down from heaven and sees the whole human race. From his throne he observes all who live on the earth. He made their hearts, so he understands everything they do." (Psalm 33:13-15)
• "The Lord looks down from heaven on the entire human race; he looks to see if anyone is truly wise, if anyone seeks God." (Psalm 14:2)
• "For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him." (1 Chronicles 28:9)
• "The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." (2 Chronicles 16:9)
• "For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes." (Proverbs 5:21)

Psalm 139

Consider the true gift of Christmas -- this same God, who has had an intimate view of sinful man from the beginning, stepped into the human experience to save us from the consequences of our sin and disobedience, and to make a way for us to be reconciled to Him for all time.

1 Peter 1:8-12 "You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward.  They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen."

Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it." (Matthew 13:17)