The Whole of the Bible Points to Christ (I Peter 1:10-12) |
By Spencer Gear [1]
In fact, one of the
strongest pieces of evidence that the Bible is inspired by God is its prophecy
about the future. The Bible is like no other book. It "offers
a multitude of specific predictions – some hundreds of years in advance
– that have been literally fulfilled or else point to a definite future
time when they will come true" (Geisler 1999, p. 609).
Bible teacher, the late
J. Barton Payne listed "1817 predictions in the Bible, 1239 in the Old
Testament and 578 in the New" (Geisler 1999, p. 609).
A young converted Jewess, daughter of a
My father taught me to read the Bible in Hebrew when a young child. We
began at Genesis. When we came to Isaiah he skipped the fifty-third chapter. I
asked him why. He said it was not necessary for Jews to read that chapter. I
became more curious. I asked him who it was for, and he said Christians. I
asked him what the Christian Bible was doing in our Bible. He became very angry
and told me to keep quiet. He said again it was not necessary to read it.
I wondered why God would
put unnecessary things in the Bible. I copied the fifty-third chapter on paper
and carried it in my stocking for two years until I came to
Through reading this
wonderful chapter I was led to accept Christ as my Saviour. I was walking in
What's so special
about Isaiah 53? Here are verses 4-6 from that chapter:
Surely he took up our
infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our
transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought
us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like
sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has
laid on him the iniquity of us all.
What is "this salvation"? We have read about it, using many
different terms in the first 9 verses of 1 Peter. Peter speaks of:
What does this passage say about the OT prophets and their predictions about "this salvation"?
I. First, the prophets of the OT spoke of the grace to come (v. 10). |
II. Second, these prophets of the OT searched intently. |
The KJV: " have enquired and searched
diligently."
The ESV translates: "searched and inquired carefully"
Literally:
These OT prophets not only spoke to the people of their day, but they apoke of the time when the Messiah would come. In
predicting the future, they did nto clearly
understand exactly what they were predicting.
Daniel 8:27 explains: "I, Daniel,
was exhausted and lay ill for several days. Then I got up and went about the
king's business. I was appalled by the vision; it was beyond
understanding."
Daniel 12:8: "I heard, but I did not
understand. So I asked, 'My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?'"
Remember what Jesus said to his disciples in Luke 10:23-24: "'Blessed are
the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and
kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear
but did not hear it.'"
The prophets of the OT longed to see what
we have experienced. The disciples saw it and upon us this mighty
prophesied salvation has been outpoured.
III. Third, the prophets of the OT tried to find the time of Christ's sufferings and glories (v. 11). |
month. Peter was NOT saying that the prophets were
wanting to find the exact date of Christ's first coming 2,000 years
ago.
Here Peter refers to kairos
time: "What kind of period the Spirit in them was indicating" (Lenski
1966, p. 11). The prophets were pointing to an era, a dispensation.
"With the life and especially the suffering and death of Jesus, the old
age has passed away and with the . . . present time of true divine
righteousness (Rom. 3:26) a new epoch, the fulfillment of the times, has
dawned" (Hahn 1978, p. 837). It was this "period of time
characterized by some feature . . . a 'time charged with opportunity' . . . the
salvation of the Messianic age" (Selwyn 1947/1981, p. 135).
There are "29 prophecies from the
Old Testament, which speak of the betrayal, trial, death, and burial of our
Lord Jesus Christ, [which] were spoken at various times by many different
voices during the five centuries from 1000-500 B.C., and yet all of them were
literally fulfilled in Jesus in one twenty-four-hour period of time"
(McDowell 1972, p. 58).
While the OT prophets
are not mentioned by name here in I Peter, we are told that hese
prophets "predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that
would follow" (v. 11). To what prophecies could Peter be referring?
1. Psalm 41:9, "Even my close friend, whom I trusted,he who shared my bread,
has lifted up his heel against me" (Ps. 41:9). This was fulfilled in
Jesus' betrayal by Judas (Matt. 26:49-50);
2. Isa. 53:7, " He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he
did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep
before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. He did not open
his mouth before his acusers" (fulfilled in
Matt. 27:12-19);
3. Isa 53:5, " But he was
pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the
punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are
healed." Zech. 13:6, "If someone asks him, 'What are these
wounds on your body?' he will answer, 'The wounds I was given at the house of
my friends.'" Fulfilled in Matt. 27:26.
4. Isa. 50:6, " I offered my
back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did
not hide my face from mocking and spitting." (also
in Micah 5:1; fulfilled in Matt. 26:67)
5. Ps. 22:7, " All who see
me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads" (filfilled
in Matt. 27:39-43).
What about the
prophecies that indicated the glories of Christ?
What could that be referring to? Please note that this
is not the singular, "glory," but the plural "glories" of
Christ. On the Road to Emmaus, after Christ's resurrection, Luke 24:26 records this: "Did not the Christ have to suffer these
things and then enter his glory?”
What are these glories that were prophesied?
These are referring to the glory of Christ's resurrection, the glory of the
ascension, the glory of Christ's second coming (Kistemaker 1987, p. 42).
Where do we have OT examples of
Ps. 16:10,
"because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy
One see decay" (Paul discusses the fulfillment
of this verse in Christ's resurrection in Acts 2:27).
Another prediction about Christ's
resurrected glory is in Ps. 30:3: " O LORD , you
brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the
pit."
Where do we have OT
predictions of
Ps. 110:1 states,
" The LORD says to my Lord: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your
enemies a footstool for your feet.'" This is acknowledged as a fulfillment of Christ's ascension in Acts 2:34.
What about the glory of
Christ's Second Coming? Was that predicted by
the OT prophets?
Yes it was. Take a look at verses such as these:
Daniel 7:13-14: "In my vision at night I looked, and there before
me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached
the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority,
glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language
worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away,
and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."
Zechariah 14:4-5, 9: "On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of
Olives, east of
This is referring to Christ's Second Coming. Peter goes on to tell us that
IV. Fourth, the prophets of the OT discovered this: They were not serving themselves but us (v. 12) |
One of the things that has really struck me this week is the profound unity of the
Bible. Both OT and NT are tied together by a wonderful prophetic
bond. It has also provoked me to do more preaching on the OT. In my
preaching ministry I have concentrated on preaching the NT. But OT and NT
are a unity. If I don't preach adequately from the OT, two-thirds of the
Bible is neglected.
The Jesus
who came to die on the cross, rise again, and ascend into heaven, is coming
again to reign in righteousness over the whole earth. It is an
everlasting kingdom and King Jesus will be King of Kings and Lord of
Lords.
I also want us to note that . . .
V. Fifth, these things have now been preached in the gospel. |
The OT prophets
spoke
There's one other fascinating point in these 3 verses:
VI. Sixth, of these things, even the angels are ignorant (v. 12) |
Let's state something very clearly.
The Bible is clear about the existence of good angels. What's an angel
look like? As a general rule, you won't be able to see them. Bible
teacher, Wayne Grudem, gives this basic definition that I think is consistent
with what the Bible says: an angel is "a created spiritual being with
moral judgment and high intelligence but without a physical body" (Grudem
1999, p. 479).
Briefly, what's the place of angels in
the purposes of God? [2] The ministry of angels
falls into some well defined areas.
1. Predicted Christ's birth (Luke 1:26-33);
2. They announced His birth (Luke 2:13);
3. They protected him as a baby. When the Magi had
left, Matt. 1:13 tells us that "an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in
a dream" telling Joseph, Mary & Jesus to flee to
4. Angels strengthened Jesus after his temptation (Matt.
4:11);
5. When Jesus was arrested just prior to the crucifixion,
he stated that his heavenly father could "at once put at my disposal more
than twelve legions of angels" (Matt. 26:53), but he did not use them;
6. They strengthened him in
7. They rolled away the stone from the tomb and announced
His resurrection (Matt. 28:2, 6).
Who knows how many times you have been protected from dangers and even death by God's angels who surround you!
2.
Angels
are involved in answering prayer (Acts 12:7). This was Peter's miraculous
escape from prison: "Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light
shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. 'Quick, get
up!' he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists."
3.
Angels
give encouragement in times of danger. When Paul was threatened from a
severe storm at sea on his way to Rome, Acts 27:23-24 records: "Last night
an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said,
‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has
graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’"
4.
Angels
care for believers at death. Remember the rich man and Lazarus in Luke
16:22, "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to
Abraham's side." See also Jude 9.
In Revelation, chs 8-10, angels are involved
in judging the nations.
1.
In
Acts 12:23 angels are involved in judgment. It states: "Immediately,
because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down,
and he was eaten by worms and died."
2.
In
Matt. 13:39-41, in the parable of the weeds (wheat & tares), it states:
"and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the
age, and the harvesters are angels. As the weeds are pulled up and burned in
the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his
angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and
all who do evil."
So, what does it
mean here in 1 Peter 1:12, "even angels long to look into these
things"? The verb, "long to look" means "to stoop
over to look. It implies willingness to exert or
inconvenience oneself to obtain a better perspective" (Blum 1981, p. 222).
Angels are continuously
giving this salvation a close examination.
Let's apply this
to ourselves today.
VII. Applications |
All right, God predicted the life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension of
Jesus, hundreds of years before they happened. So what?
1. First, J.
Barton Payne, in his Encylclopedia of
Biblical Prophecy
stated that "it has been calculated that 27 percent of
the entire Bible contains predictive prophecy. This is true of no other
book in the world. And it is a sure sign of its divine origin"
(cited in Geisler 1999, p. 617). God's prophecies about Jesus and
everything else demonstrates his omniscience (his knowledge).
"The Old Testament written over a
1,500 year period contains several hundred references to the coming
Messiah. All of these were fulfilled in Christ and they establish a solid
confirmation of His credentials as Messiah" (McDowell 1972, p. 147).
Peter Stoner considered
the fulfillment of "48 prophecies"
concerning Christ and looked at the probability of those being fulfilled in ONE person. He concluded:
"We find the chance that any one man fulfilled all 48 prophecies to be 1
in 10157". That's a chance of 1 in 1 followed by 157
zeros.
This shows that God is a God of truth
– absolutely. You can depend on his accuracy. Use this
fact when you are witnessing to others.
2. Second, if God
knows what will happen hundreds, even thousands, of years before it
happens, what does that mean about what God knows about you – to the minutest detail?
After 27 years of youth
and family counselling, this I know: I am staggered at the length children and
their parents will go to keep facts from others – to lie about the
details in their lives.
But there is absolutely
nothing you can hide from God. When you face him one day as Saviour or
Judge, you will get a 100% accurate assessment of who you are and what you have
done with Jesus and with your life.
I urge you to be open
and honest with your children, parents and spouses. God hates lies.
Live in the light of eternity.
You can hide nothing from God. What are
you trying to hide from him today? Where are you in your
relationship with him?
3. Third, Peter says that the prophets, gospel preachers, and the angels, are all concerned about "this salvation." Are you?
Michael Green, British evangelist, states that
whenever Christianity has been at its most healthy, evangelism has stemmed from the local church, and has had a noticeable impact on the surrounding area. I do not believe that the re-Christianisation of the West can take place without the renewal of local churches in this whole area of evangelism. We need a thoughtful, sustained, relevant presentation of the Christian faith, in word and in action, embodied in a warm, prayerful, lively local church which has a real concern for its community at all levels (Green 1990, p. ix).
For evangelism to be real, it needs to come from this
local church. Evangelism is proclaiming Christ AND your presence in this
community as a born-again community.
That great Baptist preacher and
evangelist of the 19th-century, C. H. Spurgeon, maintained that evangelism
"is one beggar telling another beggar where to get bread" (in Green
1990, p. 8). I like that definition because it places the emphases on the
needs of the people living in this region (they are deprived spiritual beggars)
and it places an emphasis on the generosity of you and me, the givers. We
have spiritual bread to give and this community desperately needs it.
What will this church do, from this local
church, to change the spiritual and moral climate of the Kolan Shire? You
know that this church will die if you don't evangelise. But even worse is
that this community will be in spiritual darkness, the moral climate will
decline, crime and violence will only worsen – if you don't evangelise.
Have you experienced the good
news? How dare you keep it to yourselves?
VIII. Conclusion |
I was reading my local
newspaper, Bundaberg NewsMail,
on Feb. 5, 2005, in which there was an article about a "psychics true
words" that swayed a "major sceptic"
of a journalist (that's how he described his views) into being a psychic
believer of sorts.
What did the psychic
do? She told him things about his family life, his height, his wife's
height, and the colour of his wife's hair. She
even told him the number of children (male and female), and even told him which
child was the "really stubborn one."
But why did this
journalist go to interview the psychic? She "has helped search for
missing
Have a guess what?
This psychic might have been able to tell the journalist cute things about his
family, BUT she was an utter failure when she came to finding the whereabouts
of Daniel Morcombe. When push came to shove,
her psychic abilities did not locate Daniel. Daniel is still missing.
That's not how it is with
God Almighty. He predicted the life, death, burial, resurrection and
ascension of Christ, hundreds of years before they happened. Have a guess
what? They all came true, right down to the
minutest detail.
God has also predicted
Christ's second coming and it will happen just as he has stated – right
down to the details he has prophesied. God keeps his promises –
accurately. He is not like a hit and miss psychic. He is the living
God who tells the truth, all the time, and in prophecy.
That's why leading Bible teacher and
theologian, Norman Geisler, has stated that "one of the strongest
evidences that the Bible is inspired by God . . . is its predictive
prophecy" (Geisler 1999, p. 609). God predicts with 100% accuracy.
House,
Geisler, N. L. 1999, 'Prophecy, as Proof of the Bible', in N. L. Geisler, Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, Baker Books,
Green, M. 1990, Evangelism through the
Grudem, W. 1994, Systematic Theology, Inter-Varsity Press,
Hahn, H. C. 1978, 'Time', in C. Brown (ed.), The New International Dictionary
of New Testament Theology
(vol. 3), Zondervan Publishing House,
Rapids
Kistemaker, S. J. 1987, New Testament Commentary: Exposition of the Epistles
of Peter and of the Epistle of Jude, Evangelical
Press, Welwyn,
Hertfordshire.
Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody,
MASS. McDowell, J. 1972, Evidence That Demands a
Verdict, Campus Crusade for Christ Inc., Arrowhead Springs, San Bernardino,
CA.
Selwyn, E. G. 1947, 1981, The
First Epistle of St. Peter (Thornapple Commentaries), Baker Book House,
Sunday School Times (date unknown), available from "Illustrations,"
at: http://elbourne.org/sermons/index.mv?illustration+4252
[10
March 2005].
1. I
am an Australian family relationships' counselling manager, doctoral student in
biblical studies, an active Christian apologist, and may be contacted at:
2. The following is based on Ryrie 1972, p. 90f.
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