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THE PROCLAMATION AND EVIDENCE OF CHRIST'S MESSIAHSHIP
by Dr. Nguzo Uche Introduction The New Testament of the Scripture opens with the book of the Gospel of Matthew. This is the book that clearly detailed genealogy of our Lord Christ, the son of King David and the son of Abraham. It was established in this book that He was the child of the promise; and in perfect harmony with the prophecies. The Gospel of Matthew went back to link the Old Testament books to the New Testament in order to substantiate that the son of God born of a virgin at Bethlehem was the one spoken of by the Prophets. It is imperative that the authority of Jesus Messiahship was attacked by many then even today. Though it might be difficult for one who had made up his/her mind that Jesus is not the Messiah to change no matter the amount of evidence one may provide. It is not the issue of ones positions but the reality on ground is the point of consideration. Therefore, this article looked at the facts that will help to establish the claims in the book of Matthew that Jesus Christ is the legitimate descendant of King David prophesied to be the Messiah to the Jews and the world in general. It defined who is Messiah, the prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah, and how Jesus Christ fits into the picture of the prophecy. Finally, it examined the fulfillment of those prophecies. The article also examined why the Gospel of Matthew was able to give a vivid explanation of Christ Messiahship. WHAT DOES MESSIAH MEAN? The word Messiah simply means a savior or liberator of person or group of people, as indicated in the Abrahamic religion. The Hebrew Bible indicated that a Messiah (Mashiach) is a king or high priest traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil. (Exodus 30: 20-25). On the other hand, Messiah were not exclusively Jewish, as the Hebrew Bible refers Cyrus the great, king of Persia, as a messiah for his decree to rebuild the Jerusalem Temple. The Jewish believe that their messiah is a leader anointed by God, physically descended from the Davidic line who will rule the whole tribes of Israel. The translation of the Hebrew word Masia as Khristo in the Greek Septuagint therefore became widely accepted Christian name and title for Jesus of Nezareth. Imperatively Christians believe that the prophecy in the Hebrew Bible of Isaiah refers to a spiritual savior and Jesus is that messiah. As Messiah is a Hebrew word; it means anointed one with its equivalent meaning in the New Testament as Christ. Jesus, as the Messiah was anointed by God as Matthew 3: 16 states as follows, "And when Jesus was baptized, He went up at once out of the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he [John] saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him." Quran and Sunnah assert that "the Islamic tradition holds that Jesus, the son of Mary, was the promised prophet and Masih (Messiah) sent to the Israelites, and that he will again return to the earth at the end of times, along with the Mahdi and they will defeat Masih ad-Dajjal, the false Messiah or antichrist. Therefore, Messiah means deliverer that was promised in the Old Testament in the seed of the woman. "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise {and} tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait {and} bruise His heel." (Genesis 3: 15). It therefore means that; that offspring of a woman is Jesus Christ as prophesied. WHO IS JESUS CHRIST Understanding who Jesus Christ is; is an important subject matter in Christianity. The name Jesus means Yeshua in Hebrew. He is the promised Messiah of Israel which the word Christ means as stated in the Old Testament. He is God, the divine living in human flesh as stated in John 1:14. He is a heavenly king, "But hereafter (from this time on), the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God." (Luke 22:69). Also the word of Pilate confirmed that He is a king as the scripture says, "Jesus answered, My kingdom (kingship, royal power) belongs not to this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My followers would have been fighting to keep Me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, My kingdom is not from here (this world); [it has no such origin or source]. Pilate said to Him, Then You are a King? Jesus answered, You say it! [You speak correctly!] For I am a King. [Certainly I am a King!] This is why I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth [who is a friend of the Truth, who belongs to the Truth] hears {and} listens to My voice." (John 18:36-37). In line with the Christian believe Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, and He died by crucifixion and rose from dead on the third day and finally ascended into heaven from which He will come again. Jesus Christ is God as He claimed, "I and my father are one" (John 10:30). In determining that He is God the Bible says, "Jesus replied, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, before Abraham was born, I AM." (John 8:58). Though this statement was a controversial one among the Jews of which they intended to stone Him. The Bible declared that He was at present when the heaven and the earth were created and all things were made by Him. "IN THE beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was present originally with God. All things were made {and} came into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one thing made that has come into being." (John 1:1-3). Generally, Christianity holds Jesus to be the son of God, He is been worshipped as the incarnation of God the son, and the second persons of the Trinity. This is the man who died for the sins of the world. THE PROPHECIES AND FULFILLMENT In the introduction of this paper it was stated that the Gospel of Matthew is the link, connection or bridge between the Old Testament and New Testament. The book of Matthew went back to trace the genealogy of our Lord Christ in order to remind us about the prophecies concerning the coming of the promised messiah. Therefore, it becomes very important to examine those Old Testament prophecies and their corresponding fulfillment as stated in the Gospel of Matthew and some other books of the Bible. Significantly, prophecy is God's preferred method to show his incredible infallibility when it comes to revealing the future to mankind. The revelation of the coming of the Messiah came through the prophets in the Old Testament. They are as follows: 1. The Messiah will be born of a woman: - this was stated when God cursed serpent (devil) for what he did in deceiving Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise {and} tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait {and} bruise His heel." (Genesis 3:15). This was fulfilled when He said I have made public show of the enemy all power and authority has been given to Him. Also, Galatians 4: 4 says "But when the proper time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born subject to [the regulations of] the Law." This passage illustrates that the seed came through the power of the Holy Spirit and not a man. 2. A virgin will bear a son: - Prophet Isaiah announced about the coming of the Messiah that will be born by a virgin. "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, the young woman who is unmarried {and} a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [God with us]." (Isaiah 7: 14). This was fulfilled when the angel of God appeared to Mary and announce to her about bearing a son. "Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place under these circumstances: When His mother Mary had been promised in marriage to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be pregnant [through the power] of the Holy Spirit," (Matthew 1:18). Also, the book of Luke 1: 26-27 recorded the same fulfillment of Mary having a son by the power of the Holy Spirit. 3. The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem: - the Messiah was foretold to be born in Bethlehem as Micah said. "But you, Bethlehem Ephratah, you are little to be among the clans of Judah; [yet] out of you shall One come forth for Me Who is to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth have been from of old, from ancient days (eternity)." (Micah 5:2). But the fulfillment of this prophecy came through in the New Testament when the wise men came to visit Jesus born in Bethlehem of Judea. (Matthew 2: 1). 4. He Enter Jerusalem as a king: - this was made known in the Old Testament by Prophet Zechariah that the Messiah will enter into Jerusalem as a king on a donkey and the entire city will worship Him. "Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O Daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you; He is [uncompromisingly] just and having salvation [triumphant and victorious], patient, meek, lowly, and riding on a donkey, upon a colt, the foal of a donkey." (Zechariah 9:9). This came to pass in Matthew 21:4-9 as His disciples did as He commanded them to do and the inhabitants of the city went about shouting Hosanna to the king. 5. The Messiah shall be anointed by the Holy Spirit: - it was prophesied by prophet Isaiah that He will be anointed by the Holy Spirit. "And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him--the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the reverential {and} obedient fear of the Lord." (Isaiah 11: 2).This came to pass as stated in Matthew 3: 16-17 "And when Jesus was baptized, He went up at once out of the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he [John] saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him. And behold, a voice from heaven said, This is My Son, My Beloved, in Whom I delight!" 6. He will be preceded by a messenger: - "A voice of one who cries: Prepare in the wilderness the way of the Lord [clear away the obstacles]; make straight {and} smooth in the desert a highway for our God!" (Isaiah 40: 3). John the Baptist pronounced the coming of the Messiah. "IN THOSE days there appeared John the Baptist, preaching in the Wilderness (Desert) of Judea And saying, Repent (think differently; change your mind, regretting your sins and changing your conduct), for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This is he who was mentioned by the prophet Isaiah when he said, The voice of one crying in the wilderness (shouting in the desert), Prepare the road for the Lord, make His highways straight (level, direct)." (Matthew 3: 1-3) 7. The Messiah will be betrayed by a friend: - "Even my own familiar friend, in whom I trusted (relied on and was confident), who ate of my bread, has lifted up his heel against me." (Psalms 41:9). The prophecy came to pass when Judas Iscariot handed Him over to the Jews. "Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him" (Matthew 10: 4); and John 13:18-19, 21 says "I am not speaking of {and} I do not mean all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, He who eats My bread {with Me} has raised up his heel against Me. I tell you this now before it occurs, so that when it does take place you may be persuaded {and} believe that I am He [Who I say I am--the Christ, the Anointed One, and the Messiah]. After Jesus had said these things, He was troubled (disturbed, agitated) in spirit and said, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, one of you will deliver Me up [one of you will be false to Me and betray Me]." 8. The messiah would be executed with thieves: - the book of Isaiah says "Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great [kings and rulers], and He shall divide the spoil with the mighty, because He poured out His life unto death, and [He let Himself] be regarded as a criminal {and} be numbered with the transgressors; yet He bore [and took away] the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors (the rebellious)." It all came to pass when the thieves were crucified with Him. (Matthew 27: 38) 9. The Messiah would be buried in a rich man's tomb: - "And they assigned Him a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth." (Isaiah 53: 9) The fulfillment came to pass as stated in Matthew 27: 57-60 "When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. And Joseph took the body and rolled it up in a clean linen cloth used for swathing dead bodies And laid it in his own fresh (undefiled) tomb, which he had hewn in the rock; and he rolled a big boulder over the door of the tomb and went away." 10. The Messiah would be silent before His accusers: - when He was arrested and questioned before the rulers He was silent as stated in Isaiah 53: 7 "He was oppressed, [yet when] He was afflicted, He was submissive {and} opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth." But Matthew 27: 12-14 confirmed the prophecy. Undoubtedly, there are many characteristics and prophecies concerning the Messiah but few are mentioned above. The striking issue is whether Jesus fit into this picture of the Messiah as indicated in the Gospel of Matthew. Interestingly, Jesus made public proclamation as to be the long awaited Messiah of the world when He asked His disciples who do you and people say I am? Surprisingly to many Peter spoke out saying He is the Christ the son of the living God and right at the spot Jesus affirmed it, Matthew 16: 13-23. Therefore, when we look at every characteristics of where, when, how, place and why in the Old Testament prophecies one may not have any doubt that He is the Messiah. Also, when Peter proclaimed that He is the Christ of which Christ means the anointed one or Messiah as first mentioned which He is. The Savior is referred to as the "son [offspring] of David" more than a dozen times in the New Testament. Both Matthew and Luke traced the genealogy of Christ through David, Matthew was legally and paternal, through Joseph; and Luke biologically and maternal, via Mary. This is clear evidence that the lineage of our Lord was employed as a powerful argument for the identification of Jesus of Nazareth as the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. Furthermore, the lineage, birthplace, time, and lifestyle of Jesus matched the Messianic expectations of the Hebrew Scriptures. Also, Jesus life is in sharp contrast to that of the untrue Messiahs, and it is a positive demonstration of what we would expect the Messiah to do. Thus, Jesus worked many miracles of healing, bringing wholeness into people's lives, forgiving sin and restoring relationships. According to Matthew McGee "Some skeptics have tried to contend that there must have been some collaboration between the many writers of the Bible. However, there were many Old Testament prophets scattered over a 1000-year period who have given detailed descriptions regarding the same events which have proven to be accurate. So the skeptics' charges of collaboration are not at all credible." GOSPEL OF MATTHEW AND MESSIAHSHIP It was the primary purpose of Matthew to convince the Jews that Jesus was the Christ (Messiah), the great Davidic King prophesied by the prophets. Matthew the author of the book was one of the disciples of our Lord Jesus and an eye witness of Jesus life on earth. Therefore, his vivid account sound extraordinary compared to other writers of the synoptic gospels. Jesus asked His disciples the challenging question of who people think the son of man was of which I presumed that Matthew was one of them in that gathering. Matthew 16; 13-18 say, "Now when Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, Who do people say that the Son of Man is? And they answered, Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. He said to them, But who do you [yourselves] say that I am? Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Then Jesus answered him, Blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. For flesh and blood [men] have not revealed this to you, but My Father Who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter [Greek, {Petros}--a large piece of rock], and on this rock [Greek, {petra}--a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it [or be strong to its detriment or hold out against it]." On this note, as an eye witness of Peter's response and the strict charge of Jesus not to disclose it to anyone for now that He is the Messiah; coupled with his full understanding of the Hebrew Bible and Jews expectation of the Messiah is an advantage. The permanent spiritual value of this Gospel is that it sets forth in clear context Christ as the One promised of the old; and in harmony with the prophecies as the great divine King. Conclusion From the forgoing analysis there is ample evidence that Jesus transformed people's lives. He provided atonement for sin and reconciliation with God, Jesus brought peace, joy, and purpose into people's lives. So, between the prophecies of the Hebrew Bible and the fulfillment in the New Testament, plus its confirmation in our own lives today there is overwhelming evidence that Jesus was the Messiah who he claimed to be. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Old Testament's prophecies as laid out by the New Testament writers most importantly the writer of Gospel of Matthew. Work Cited Amplified Bible, 1987 edition. The Lockman Foundation La Habra CA 90631. Focus on Jerusalem Library "The Messiahship of Jesus, 100% Prophetically Accurate" Prophecy Ministries. Web. 5 January 2014. Matthew, McGee. "Evidence that Jesus Christ is the Messiah" Web. 6 January 2014 Messiah-Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry. Web. 8 January 2014. Messiah-Wikipedia, the Free encyclopedia. Web. 8 January 2014. Quran and Sunnah. "Muttaqun Online-Dajjal (The Antichrist)" Retrieved 9 November 2012. Web. 7 January 2014. Wayne, Jackson, "The Importance of Messianic Genealogy." Christian Courier. Web. 7 January 2014. What Proof do you have that Jesus was the Messiah? Jews for Jesus 18 September 2013.Web. 5 January 2014. Dr Nguzo Uche is the founder of Knowledge of Christ Consulting Ministry. an Author, Church Consultant and Scrum practitioner, his goal is to create value in individual lives and that of organizations.Author of God's Legal Tender, Dynamic Church Visitors Follow-up Strategy and The Roaring Success. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |