KINGDOM - OLOGY 6

The Fulfillment of Prophecy in Process of Coming True at His First Coming

            The announcement of the angel to Mary is significant: “Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (Luke 1:31-33).

The details related to Christ's birth and specifically called to the attention of Joseph are direct fulfillment's of prophecy. Christ was to be born of a virgin whose womb was to be activated by the Holy Spirit (Matt. 1:18-25). This convinced Joseph and cleared Mary of any guilt. Moreover, a celestial phenomenon in the sky brought wise men in search of a king. And to Herod, the ruling monarch of Israel at the time, the religious leaders in Israel were able to pinpoint the place where this king was to be born (Matt. 2:1-6). To an aged saint in Jerusalem, Simeon, the Holy Spirit revealed that he would not see death until he had seen the Lord's Christ. When he looked upon the babe in the arms of his parents he recognized the fulfillment of this promise and he exclaimed, "For mine eyes have seen thy salvation" (Luke 2:25-32). When Christ set forth on His preaching ministry, He declared, "Repent; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 4:17). In making formal announcement of his identity and ministry in the synagogue of Nazareth, he found the place in the book of Isaiah 61 where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19). Then having closed the book and returned it to the minister of the synagogue, he sat down and said, "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears" (Luke 4:21). These were gracious words and all in the synagogue that day bore witness to that fact.

            But that assembly in his hometown of Nazareth did not associate this with Messiah, the King. To them he was only the son of Joseph. They represented fairly the response of all Israel to his claims. They expected one who would come in power and glory with all the outward splendor of a conquering hero. One of his first acts would be to deliver Israel from under the heel of the Roman oppressor. Even those who were closest to Him trusted that it would be he would redeem Israel by some display of material and physical power (Luke 24:21). They interpreted some of his words to mean that the Kingdom of God would appear right on the spot (Luke 19:11). But His death shattered all their hopes.

            His claims to deity and performances on the Sabbath infuriated the religious leadership in Israel. So they branded him a blasphemer, and following the letter of the Old Testament law they sought to put him to death (John 5:18). The developing hostility to Christ at last reached a climax and the chief priests moved the people, and they cried out for the crucifixion, and when they cried out the more exceedingly for crucifixion, Pilate was unable to resist the pressure and he sentenced Christ to death (Mark 15:11-15). The kingdom of God had drawn near in the person of the King, but the people were determined not to have this man reign over them (Luke 19:14).