Promise Fulfilled Series

PROMISE FULFILLED

Text: Acts 13:24-43

Introduction

1. Illustration: On God’s promises, C.H. Spurgeon said; “God never gives his children a promise which he does not intend them to use. There are some promises in the Bible which I have never yet used, but I am well assured that there will come times of trial and trouble when I shall find that poor despised promise, which I thought was never meant for me, will be the only one on which I can float”. (Charles Spurgeon, Spurgeon, Spurgeon’s Sermons, vol. 2, 404.)

2. The Old Testament contains over 300 references to the Messiah that were fulfilled in Jesus. What chance did Jesus or any other man have of fulfilling these prophecies? The mathematical laws of probability can give us a clue. In his book Evidence That Demands A Verdict, Josh McDowell mentions the work of the mathematician, Peter Stoner, on just eight of the 300 prophecies: "We find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is one in ten (to the seventeenth power). That would be one in 100,000,000, 000,000,000.

3. But Jesus didn’t fulfill 8 prophesies – he fulfilled all 300!

4. Read Acts 13:24-43

Transition: The first way that Scripture shows the promises of God fulfilled in Jesus Christ is they are…

I. Verified By a Witness (24-25).

A. John the Baptist

1. As Paul continues his sermon, he shifts his focus from the promise of Jesus in the OT to the fulfillment of Jesus in the NT. In v. 24 he says, “Before he came, John the Baptist preached that all the people of Israel needed to repent of their sins and turn to God and be baptized.”

a. John the Baptist was the prophet that connected the OT with the NT.

b. He was the one called to prepare the way for the Lord.

c. “Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the LORD! Make a straight highway through the waste land for our God!4 Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places. 5 Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The LORD has spoken!” (Is. 40:3-5).

d. Once again, a promise from the OT is fulfilled in the NT.

e. John came to get people to prepare their hearts before God for the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

2. But Paul makes it clear, as John himself did, that John was not the Messiah. In v. 25 he says, “As John was finishing his ministry he asked, ‘Do you think I am the Messiah? No, I am not! But he is coming soon—and I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the sandals on his feet.’”

a. Even though John was a great prophet, he did not even consider himself worthy to be Jesus’ slave.

b. His whole point was to turn Israel towards the Messiah, Jesus, by telling them to repent, turn from their sins, and be baptized.

c. Turning away from sin to God was an about-face from a sinful life to a life lived for God.

d. However, he made it clear that he was not the promised Messiah, but just a messenger to prepare the way.

e. “John told them, “I baptize with water, but right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize. 27 Though his ministry follows mine, I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandal.” (Jn 1:26-27).

f. He made it clear that he was not the One, but rather that there was one coming that he, John, was not even worthy to be his slave and untie his shoes.

B. Voice Shouting in the Wilderness

1. Illustration: What do John the Baptist and Winnie the Pooh have in common? Same middle name.

2. John came not to be the one, but to testify about the One!

a. “God sent a man, John the Baptist, 7 to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. 8 John himself was not the light; he was simply a witness to tell about the light. 9 The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.” (Jn. 1:6-9).

b. We live in a world filled with people who want all the attention and notoriety.

c. But what this world needs are more John the Baptist’s.

d. People who are willing to fill their roles with gusto.

e. People who are willing to play the second fiddle.

f. An old friend of mine used to sing a song that said, “no one wants to play rhythm guitar behind Jesus.”