Idea, to focus on 8 topics:
Uniqueness of each gospel
Key points of each gospel
Bio of the authors
The authors audience
Key figures
Intent of the authors focus
Prophecy
Places
We examined Matthew and Luke’s accounts, and discovered this:
Both gospels give a physical and angelic account of Christ’s birth.
Matthew gave an in-depth genealogy for his Jewish audience.
Matthew’s focal point of his gospel, was presenting a case for Christ the King.
Some events found only in Matthew:
Josephs dream
Visit of the wisemen
Escape to Egypt
Slaughter of the male children
We also looked at several passages in Matthew’s gospel that foretold the coming of the Messiah.
Today, we will look a bit more in-depth @ prophecy.
In Luke’s gospel we see that:
He is very concerned with giving an accurate and orderly account from eyewitness. Remember Luke was not an disciple of Jesus.
Only Matthew’s and John’s account were from a disciples viewpoint.
Luke’s gospel focused on Jesus as Savior.
He gave extension report of the important role the Holy Spirit held in Jesus’ birth.
Whereas Matthew traces Jesus’ ancestry back to David and Abraham, Luke traces Jesus’ ancestry back to Adam.
The unique accounts found only in Luke are as follows:
Only account of an angel appearing to Zacharias
Only account given of Jesus’ circumcision
Only gospel addresses an individual as his audience
Only account given of Jesus’ circumcision
Only gospel that gives account of Jesus’ ascension
Body
Today, we are going to take a look @ John’s account.
Whereas Matthew and Luke’s account gave details of the physical, Holy Spirit and angelic factors of Jesus’ birth, John’s gospel gives a powerful “argument” if you will, of the deity of Jesus.
Just a quick bio of John:
Everyone knows he was “the loved who Jesus loved”!
In all likelihood, his was the last gospel written.
Here are some distinct differences of John’s gospel:
Instead of the familiar parables, John has lengthy discourses.
The “I am” sayings are unique to John
John divides Jesus’ ministry into two parts:
His private ministry
His public ministry
We are going to be mostly in the 1st 5 verses of John chapter 1.
Today, we will look a bit more in-depth @ prophecy.
Stand with me as we honor God while reading His word.
John 1:1-5 read from my bible
Read John 1:1-5 then say:
Y’all heard me say this before, but I believe the bible is the unified story that leads to Jesus.
Today, I’d like to illustrate my point by doing three things:
Look @ OT prophecy that points to Jesus
Do a little bit of verse by verse breakdown of those 5 verses, along with one other verse,
With the desired result of seeing the birth story!
Let me re-read that passage:
John 1:1–5 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
Let me begin with this:
Through this passage alone, I acknowledge the finiteness of my mind.
So, I’m not going to stand up here and pretend I have a 100% understanding of the infinity of Jesus.
I will say this, as Christians, this is a mighty powerful passage to stand on!
I read a few phrases this past week, that really caused me to ponder the concept:
The dateless past
Eternity past
My parents: You better straighten up, immediately, if not sooner!
Matthew 24:35 Jesus said “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away”
Even heaven and earth pass away, but NOTHING outlasts the Word of God.
Remember last week we examined Luke 1:37 “For with God nothing will be impossible.””
Jesus is saying in Matthew 24:35 that it is impossible for God’s word to pass away.
So if Jesus is the Word, guess what “It is impossible for Him to pass away.
Jesus is both- “in the beginning”, which is “the dateless past”, and the “the continuous future”.
The alpha and the omega.
Moving to verse 5:
John 1:5 “And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”
-ask others what does their bible say-
This is another of my power verses.
Let’s consider a little about light and darkness:
Early on, we are introduced to darkness:
Genesis 1:2 “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
This is the SECOND verse in the bible, y’all!
Genesis 1:3 “Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.”
-can I get an Amen?-
Now check this out church:
My bible heading says:
The ninth plague: Darkness
Exodus 10:21 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, and the land of Egypt will be covered with a darkness so thick you can feel it”
Ever been in a darkness so thick you can feel it? I have!!!
And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”
(there was a time in my life when darkness overtook me)
John 1:5 gives us the hope that darkness cannot contain the light!
In my 1st closing, just a few final thoughts on this passage to include verse 14:
John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
I’d like to begin with some OT prophecy as we dissect this passage.
As humans we view life from:
a history.
A timeline.
A connecting of the dots of events.
But that is not how God operates!
So we have to try to remove a thought process of a“beginning to end”.
When we think of the omniscience of God, we have to think not only of “everywhere”, but every “when”!
You’ve heard the old saying “I can’t be in two places at one time?”
God is “all” places at one time.
I’ve taken these OT scriptures from an oldest to most recent dates.
With most scripture, there are no absolutes for dates written, but an educated, scholarly, guesstimation.
Best I can tell, this first group of scripture are in the same ballpark of time. Somewhere between 1500 BC-1400 BC.
We’re going to look at the:
OT prophecy
OT scripture of that prophecy
NT fulfillment of the prophecy
The purpose is to allow scripture to show us who Jesus is, as John describes in these 5 verses.
If at any time, you feel I am leading you down a rabbit trail, there are some rotten eggs on the floor next to your chairs, to throw them at me today.
(some of you ACTUALLY looked!)
Here we go:
Group 1
OT prophecy: Messiah will be from the Seed of a woman
OT Scripture: Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.””
NT fulfillment: Galatians 4:4 “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,”
(comment: fullness of time had come)
OT prophecy: He will be from the tribe of Judah
OT scripture: Genesis 49:10 “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.”
NT fulfillment: Luke 3:33 “the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,”
This is Luke’s account of Jesus’ genealogy.
OT prophecy: Will be a descendant of Isaac
OT scripture: Genesis 17:19 “Then God said: “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him.”
Comment: everlasting covenant
NT fulfillment: Luke 3:34 “the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,”
Comment: everlasting covenant
Now, this next group is from range of the ballpark of 750 BC-500 BC
OT prophecy: Will come out of Egypt
OT scripture: Hosea 11:1 ““When Israel was a child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.”
NT fulfillment: Matthew 2:14–15 “When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.””
OT prophecy: Heir to the throne of David
OT scripture: Isaiah 9:7 “Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”
NT fulfillment: Luke 1:32–33 “He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.””
OT prophecy: Born in Bethlehem
OT scripture: Micah 5:2 ““But you, Bethlehem, 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.””
NT fulfillment: Luke 2:4–5 “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, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.”
OT prophecy: Born of a virgin
OT scripture: Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”
OT prophecy: a Son is given
Isaiah 9:6 “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.”
NT fulfillment: John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
OT His birth would trigger a slaughtering of children
OT scripture: Jeremiah 31:15 “Thus says the Lord: “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more.””
NT fulfillment: Matthew 2:16–18 “Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.””
OT prophecy: Eternal
OT scripture: Psalm 102:25–27 “Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end.”
NT fulfillment: Hebrews 1:8–12 “But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.” And: “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will fold them up, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail.””
So, for around 1500 years, we see this threading or sewing together of His story as this earthly birth is foretold.
One last prophecy foretold, and fulfilled.
In my digging I did not find any scholarly reference, so I’ll just claim it an observation from my viewpoint.
OT prophecy: He will dwell among us.
Exodus 29:45 “I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God.”
Leviticus 26:11 “I will set My tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you.”
The Word (the given Son, Jesus) became flesh (born as a Child)
Given, begotten, not made, but; being of the very substance, or essence of the Father.
NT: John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
That word dwelt or dwell, means: to tabernacle, or pitch a tent!
The word became flesh, and pitched a tent among us, and we beheld His glory!
Church, that is just so rich!
Now, check out this yet to be fulfilled prophecy:
Revelation 21:3 “And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”
Here’s the saddest part of the 1st 18 verses of John chapter 1:
John 1:10–11 “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.”
-ask someone what their bible says-
He came to His own people and even they rejected Him
For me, this not only means He was rejected during His ministry, but also @ the very beginning, His birth.
This prologue of John’s is so simply, yet profoundly presented, we can’t help but marvel of the 100% human that Jesus is, as well as the 100% God that He is.
As stated last week, I wanted take a look at Jesus’ birth from a slightly different angle, so maybe we can see it with fresh eyes, and not become glossed over as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior.
At the VERY least, I pray it causes you to go home and do some deep digging as a few of you did, during the 7 Feasts.
Now, for my SECOND closing:
Last year, I gave a brief testimony, during a birth of Jesus message.
Earlier this week, I felt compelled to share something with you. It is unusual for me to open up, because I am a very private person. Then yesterday, I realized that I opened up with y’all about celebrating Christmas with my family on my mother’s side.
That was a really tough thing for me to do!
So today, I’m going to open up with you again about something very personal. Maybe this is a new tradition?!
Lisa and I were re-arranging our bedroom last week, and she found a prayer journal of mine from 1999.
This is a rough draft of something I wrote to a friend in Dec 1999.
@ the top I wrote “Christmas Letter”
Keep in mind this is a rough draft and there are some fallacies. I had to resist the strong urge to edit for today's message. Whether I corrected these in the final letter, I don’t remember!
But please don’t miss the forest because of the trees.
Here goes: “Christmas Letter”:
Around 2,000 years ago on a rainy Friday, a man hung on a cross and wept. This man was flesh and bone, just as you and I. There was great commotion, after all He claimed to be King of the Jews, God’s Son.
In the weeks and months that led to this horrid day, He had performed many miracles. These miracles brought great joy to some, and dark fear to others.
The miracles actually began 33 years prior, with the virgin birth of this man who now hung on a cross. Even then, a King tried to have this child killed, but angels intervened and the child’s life was spared. The birth itself was very ordinary, but the more than 2000 years since, have been extraordinary. As I near the celebration of my Savior Jesus Christ’s birth, I become very humble.
I think about the miraculous birth. I ponder my own life and it’s meaning.
As I bask in the joy of a beautiful family, the meaning becomes clearer.
Just as I want the best for my children, God wants the best for His children.
Our “gift” is a child named Jesus.
I accepted this gift nearly 24 years ago (Keep in mind this is 1999).
Although there have been many times I have tried to give this gift back, God’s stubborn love has refused, and gently called me back.
I have been blessed beyond my understanding, and God has touched my heart to tell you.
In the 24 years since I accepted Christ as my Savior, I have never urged anyone to accept Jesus as his personal Savior.
If you have not, I am urging you to do so.
May you have a Joyful Christmas celebration.
There were a couple of other personal notes, as I closed out this letter to my friend.
That was my first altar call y’all!
Today, will be my most recent!
Let’s go the Lord!
