Messiah, 235

~ Messiah Would Establish a New Covenant, 3 ~

“Search the Scriptures—they testify of Me.”

— Jesus Christ (John 5:39)

The Scripture

“David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them.  Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever.  Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore” (Ezekiel 37:24-26)

The Messiah 

“But now He [Jesus Christ] has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.  For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second.  Because finding fault with them, He says: ‘Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord.  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people’” (Hebrews 8:6-10).

The Future Complete Fulfillment

“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: ‘The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins’” (Romans 11:25-27).

~~~ EXPLANATORY “MESSIAH” NOTES ~~~   

(1)  Each Saturday ALN posts an example of a Hebrew Scriptures prophecy (or foreshadowing) related to the coming Messiah which was fulfilled in the birth, life, death, or resurrection of Jesus Christ.

(2)  While extensive it will not be a complete list—there are hundreds of prophecies of the coming Messiah which have been fulfilled by one man—Jesus Christ at His First Coming.

(3)  It is important that there are many more prophecies of the Messiah, yet unfulfilled, which Christians believe will be fulfilled at the time of His Second Coming.  A particularly relevant Scripture verse in this regard is: “Do not despise prophesies” (1 Thessalonians 5:20).

(4)  These posts will typically consist only of Scripture—which speaks for itself.  Sometimes italicized or bold font will be used by ALN for emphasis.

(5)  The numbering of these fulfilled prophecies of the Messiah is used to differentiate individual posts. It is not chronological (either by time of the prophecy or by sequence in the life of the Messiah).  The posting sequence will, for the most part, be in the order that the prophecies appear in Scripture.

(6)  Because of the chosen methodology (#5 above) we will find many specific prophecies repeated multiple times throughout the Scriptures.

(7)  These serial posts are in addition to our regular Tuesday ALN postings on random topics.

(8)  Subscription to ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog is simple—just use the link on the left sidebar.  Once subscribed you will not miss future posts.

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

Fear Not, 51

~ Shepherds Knew God’s Peace ~

God does not want His children living in fear.  “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” (2 Peter 1:2-3).

“Fear not,” or its equivalent, is recorded many times in Scripture—ALN will post one “fear not” each week during this calendar year.

This Week’s Verse  ~  “Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.  Then 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 cloths, lying in a manger’” (Luke 2:8-12).

The Foundation Of Peace  ~  “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid” (Psalm 27:1).

The Solution If You Lack Peace  ~  “Great peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them to stumble” (Psalm 119:165).  “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You” (Isaiah 26:3).  “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

Summary  ~  “No Christ = No Peace” versus “Know Christ = Know Peace”

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .

3 Men, 3of3

~ 3 Men Representing 3 Levels of Progress ~

Your Choice!  ~  The Bible describes three kinds of human beings.  In three successive posts we are looking at the three from different perspectives.  The most important two questions for each individual to answer are:

1.  Am I a disciple of Jesus Christ?
2. If so, am I living like it? 

The Natural Man  ~  The key issue is that this person has no personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  We all begin life as natural men and women.  We all have the choice to accept or reject Jesus Christ as Savior.  The Bible speaking of those who have accepted Christ as follows:  “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.  These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.  But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:12-14).  Notice that the natural man rejects truth and sees truth as foolishness.  The key factor is they lack the ability to discern truth.  If you are a believer how long has it been since you thanked God for the specific grace He gave you to understand spiritual things? 

The Carnal Man  ~  The key distinguishing characteristic is acceptance of Jesus Christ as their Savior—unfortunately they do not grow in their relationship with Christ.  The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church, “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.  I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal.  For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?  For when one says, ‘I am of Paul,’ and another, ‘I am of Apollos,’ are you not carnal?  Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? ((1 Corinthians 3:1-5).  The carnal person is a Christian who has not matured normally—picture a 35 year old man still eating baby food out of a jar!  Perhaps they allowed their past, or their present circumstances, to cripple their future.  They are believers who are still controlled by the flesh rather than by the Spirit of God.  Consequently they are driven by envy and living a life of strife and stress.  They are aligned with people instead of with their Savior.  They seem unable to handle spiritual wisdom. 

The Spiritual Man  ~  This individual has not only accepted The Messiah as their Savior but also seek to make Him Lord of their daily lives.  “But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.  For ‘who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?’  But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:15-16).  The spiritual person is the believer who continues to grow in both grace and truth because they are allowing the Spirit of God to control their lives.  As a result they have spiritual discernment allowing them to judge rightly.  They have the “mind of Christ”—they think like Jesus thinks!

concluding thoughts  ~  “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works’” (Matthew 16:24-27). 

While repentance is a requirement for becoming a child of God transformation is our calling!  Consider the words of martyred missionary Jim Elliot, “One does not surrender a life in an instant—that which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime.”  But how do we do that?  If Romans 12:1-2 is true for your heart and you make Proverbs 3:5-6 real in your life and use Colossians 3:17 for every decision, you can be guaranteed a happy, successful, and fruitful Christian life.

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

NOTES:

(1)     The current TOP 10 ALN posts are listed at the very bottom of this home page.

(2)     There is an INDEX of all ALN posts accessed by scrolling down the left column.

(3)     You may LINK to any ALN posts on your own blog or website. 

(4)     You may COPY any ALN post, but please credit ALN as the source by prominently displaying the following statement:  Reprinted from “Abundant Life Now,” a free blog which offers inspiring moments, thought-provoking comments, and solid Biblical insight at http://RobertLloydRussell.blogspot.com/ .