Wednesday                                                              December 29, 2021
GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY: A PROPHETIC FULFILLMENT
 
SCRIPTURE: And the angel said to them, “do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the City of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you; You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” Luke 2:10 -12.
 
 “I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the City of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10,11). Today, followers of Jesus and even many nonbelievers recognize this famous message of the angel announcing his birth. But why did the shepherds know this was the long-promised Messiah? Why did the Maji who later visited, know? And why can we be sure if even the learned Pharisees in Jesus’ time did not? On our personal spiritual journeys, the answer for us is found in the thread of prophecy throughout the Old Testament about a coming Messiah.
 
The shepherds heard the announcement by the angel, but they had an even deeper understanding that allowed them to recognize Jesus as the Messiah at first site. Why? These shepherds to whom the angel appeared were Levitical shepherds that were responsible for raising the sacrificial lambs that had to be perfect to qualify for sacrifice. To keep the sacrificial lambs perfect, the shepherds wrapped these lambs in swaddling clothes to protect them from injury. The angel went on to say, “‘…this will be the sign to you; You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger’...” (Luke 2:12). Finding Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes confirmed to these shepherds that Jesus was the sacrificial lamb for humanity.
 
 The Maji recognized the star as signaling the arrival of the Messiah. Why? Centuries earlier, Daniel’s ability to interpret dreams led to him becoming the leader of the wise men in Babylon. “Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon” (Daniel 2:48). The Maji were Persian wise men in the tradition of Daniel, so they also interpreted dreams for kings and rulers. They were also observers of the heavens and students of signs and seasons. As such, they knew Balaam’s ancient oracle that “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel" (Numbers: 24:17), so when they saw the star (Matthew 2:2), they recognized that it signified the Messiah had come and therefore travelled to see Jesus.
 
Today, we have several Old Testament prophecies that allow us to be sure that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah. 1500 years before Jesus was born, God promised Abraham that"…through your offspring all on earth will be blessed" (Genesis 22:18) and in the same century Balaam gave the oracle that “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel" (Numbers: 24:17). 750 years   later, Isaiah wrote,” For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom…“(Isaiah 9:6-7). Even before God established a covenant with Abraham that his descendants would prosper and rule, He had alluded to a Messiah in the Garden of Eden when, referring to Eve, he told the serpent, “…her seed… will crush your head...” (Genesis 3:15). “Seed” is typically attributed to the male, but the seed of Eve and the promise to Abraham is seen through the genealogy of Jesus, that is traced through David back to Adam and Eve in Luke (Luke 3:23-38), and back to Abraham and Jacob in Matthew (Matthew 1: 1 -17).
 
Jesus’ birth to a virgin mother, in Bethlehem, and the timing were all prophesized 600 -750 years   before he was born. “Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall  conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). “But thou, Bethlehem Ephrata, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (Micah 5:2). The time of his birth, which admittedly is a little complicated to follow, was nevertheless  predicted by Daniel six centuries before his birth. “Know therefore and understand, that from the   going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks…And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself…” (Daniel 9:25-26). In this passage, seven weeks with the sixty-two weeks combine to make 69 weeks of years, or 483 years. “In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes” (Nehemiah 2:1), Nehemiah was given permission to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem, which was in 445 BC.
 Sir Robert Anderson in his book, The Coming Prince
https://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Text.Only/pdfs/The_Coming_Prince_Text.pdf accounted for leap years and 360 days/year in the Jewish calendar to show that Jesus entered Jerusalem 483 years to the very day predicted in Daniel. Isn’t that amazing?
 
So, we have historical and biblical evidence that points to Jesus as our Messiah. Unlike many of us, the pharisees possessed encyclopedic knowledge of the Old Testament scriptures. However, they did not recognize the Messiah because they did not see the forest through the trees of their 600+ laws that kept them in control. Today, we don’t have those laws, but we have traditions including Santa Claus, Christmas trees, bright lights, etc. that can distract us from the real meaning of our celebration. As we approach the celebration of Jesus’ birth, we know and remember that he came to save us from the sinful barriers of selfishness, greed, lust, covetousness, etc. that distance us from him. By his grace, we are saved and admitted to the Kingdom of God.
 
PRAYER: Lord, as we approach the Christmas season, we thank you for all of our blessings including a prosperous country with freedom to worship you as directed by your Holy Spirit. We are sorry that we tend to focus on Christmas traditions that distract us from the reason you came in      human form and dwelled among us to deliver forgiveness and hope. We thank you for reaching down to us, leaving us the Holy Spirit and we love you for it. We re-dedicate our lives to you. Merry Christmas, Lord. We cannot thank you enough. Amen.
 
Rick and Denise Gray
 






St. John's Ivyland
820 Almshouse Road
Ivyland, PA 18974
215-357-6998
stjohnsivyland.com
Rev. Brad Leight, Pastor