Hello, and welcome back to Nations 4 Jesus. What sets Christianity apart from every other religion…prophecy, and it has deepened my appreciation for the birth of Christ in a profound way. It's about prophecy—the amazing reality that God told us about Jesus hundreds of years before He was born.
Jesus is absolutely unique among all religious figures in history because of the prophecies that foretold His coming. This is the first in what I hope will be a series of podcasts exploring biblical prophecy, because I believe it's one of the most powerful evidences that the Bible is God's Word and that Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be.
[History written in advance - Matthew's theme]
The Gospel of Matthew gives us a beautiful window into this. Matthew repeatedly uses a phrase that should grab our attention: "All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet." He uses this phrasing in at least a dozen passages because he wanted his readers to understand something crucial—the events of Jesus's life weren't random. They were predicted centuries in advance.
Think about what that means! God told us what would happen before it happened. As Dr. Tim Chaffey of Answers in Genesis puts it, these prophecies are "history written in advance." Let's look at some of these ancient proclamations surrounding Jesus's birth and see why they give us cause to celebrate.
[The virgin birth - Isaiah 7:14]
The first prophecy Matthew highlights is one of the best-known in the Bible. In Matthew 1:23, he writes: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means "God with us").
Matthew is citing Isaiah 7:14, a prophecy made more than 700 years before Jesus 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."
Just as foretold, the virgin Mary did conceive and bore a Son who is called Immanuel—God with us. This amazing event demonstrates God's infinite knowledge and power. He's capable of foretelling the future with perfect precision, and He has the power to bring His prophecies to pass, even if that means a virgin would need to conceive and bear a Son.
[Bethlehem - Micah 5:2]
After Christ's birth, the magi arrived in Jerusalem asking where the King of the Jews had been born. Herod gathered the chief priests and scribes and asked them where the Messiah was supposed to be born. They responded by citing Micah 5:2, an Old Testament prophecy pinpointing Bethlehem as the birthplace of the Christ:
"And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel."
That prophecy was written about 700 years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem! The religious leaders knew exactly where to look because Scripture had already told them.
[Out of Egypt - Hosea 11:1]
After Jesus was born, Joseph took Mary and Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod's murderous plot. When they returned after Herod's death, God's words through Hosea were fulfilled: "Out of Egypt I called my son."
Originally, this referred to God bringing Israel out of Egypt in the Exodus. But guided by the Holy Spirit, Matthew understood that these words also pointed to the Messiah. Jesus, like Israel before Him, would come out of Egypt.
[Rachel weeping - Jeremiah 31:15]
Herod's slaughter of the young boys in Bethlehem fulfilled another prophecy from Jeremiah 31:15: "A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more."
Even this tragedy—the murder of innocent children—had been foreseen by God. It doesn't mean God caused Herod's evil, but He knew it would happen and incorporated it into His plan to bring the Messiah into the world.
[Called a Nazarene - multiple prophets]
Finally, Matthew tells us that Jesus being raised in Nazareth fulfilled what was "spoken by the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene." This one is interesting because no Old Testament verse says this exactly. But Matthew says "prophets" plural, suggesting multiple prophecies are being fulfilled.
Most likely, this refers to prophecies about the Messiah being the "Branch" (the Hebrew word is similar to Nazareth), and prophecies about Him being despised and rejected—Nazareth was looked down upon as a nothing town. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Nathanael asked. The answer is yes—the Savior of the world!
[Why prophecy matters - the unique Savior]
So why does all this matter? Why am I taking time to walk through these prophecies? Because they demonstrate something absolutely crucial: Jesus is unique.
Despite what many believe today, the religions and religious leaders of the world are not the same. Many people promote the ridiculous claim that Jesus was just another religious leader—a good person who tried to make life better for others. But Jesus is unique in so many respects.
He alone was truly a "good person" since He lived a sinless life. Every other religious leader was sinful and needed a Savior. But Jesus didn't need a savior—He is the Savior.
And here's the key point for today: There are no prophecies foretelling details about the birth of other religious leaders. No prophecies alerted the world to the coming of Muhammad, the founder of Islam. No prophecies predicted Joseph Smith, founder of Mormonism. No prophecies foretold Siddhartha Gautama, founder of Buddhism. Or Charles Taze Russell, founder of Jehovah's Witnesses. Or any other founder of the world's religions.
Yet the Old Testament pinpointed numerous details about the life of the Son of God and Savior of the world—written centuries before He was born!
[Beyond the birth - prophecies fulfilled throughout His life]
And it doesn't stop with His birth! A search through Scripture reveals dozens of other details prophesied about the Messiah that were perfectly fulfilled in Jesus:
His genealogy was predicted—He would be from the line of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Jesse, and David.
He would enter Jerusalem on a donkey's colt—Zechariah 9:9, fulfilled in Matthew 21.
He would be betrayed by a friend—Psalm 41:9, fulfilled by Judas.
The betrayal would be for 30 pieces of silver—Zechariah 11:12, fulfilled exactly.
That money would be used to purchase the potter's field—Zechariah 11:13, fulfilled in Matthew 27.
He would die a sacrificial death for us—Isaiah 53:8, Daniel 9:26.
He would die with criminals but be buried with the wealthy—Isaiah 53:9, fulfilled when Jesus was crucified between thieves but buried in Joseph of Arimathea's tomb.
He would rise from the dead—Psalm 16:8-11, Isaiah 53:10.
Specific words He would say on the cross, that He would be mocked, that people would gamble for His clothes—all predicted in Psalm 22.
[The implications - we can trust God's Word]
These weren't lucky guesses made by fraudulent prognosticators. They were precise predictions made by the all-knowing God of the Bible who repeatedly demonstrated that He has perfect knowledge of all past, present, and future events.
And here's why this matters for us: Consequently, we can be completely confident that God will always make good on His promises, and that those future events He has foretold will certainly come to pass.
If God accurately predicted Jesus's birth in Bethlehem, His virgin conception, His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver, His death and resurrection—all written centuries before they happened—then we can trust everything else He has promised!
He promised to be with us always—we can trust that!
He promised to never leave us or forsake us—we can trust that!
He promised that nothing can separate us from His love—we can trust that!
He promised to return and make all things new—we can trust that!
Prophecy isn't just interesting history. It's the foundation for our confidence in God and His Word.
[The Gospel - why He came]
About 2,000 years ago, Jesus came to earth in a humble manner. The Savior of the world and God of all creation put on humanity to die for our sins and conquer death, giving the hope of salvation to all who turn from their sin and believe on Him.
One day, He will return—and He will not appear as a seemingly helpless baby but as the risen, glorified, sovereign Lord and Judge.
What will it be like for you when He returns? Will you be safe and secure because you have been saved by His amazing grace? Or will you tremble in fear before the holy and righteous God?
If you've never placed your faith in Jesus, I urge you to turn from your sin and cry out to Him to save you. I pray that you find the same joy shared by the shepherds who visited Jesus on the night He was born.
[Looking ahead - future podcasts on prophecy]
This is just the beginning! In future podcasts, I want to explore biblical prophecy more deeply—looking at prophecies about Jesus's death and resurrection, prophecies about Israel, prophecies about the end times. Because the more we understand how precisely God has fulfilled His promises in the past, the more confidence we'll have in His promises for the future.
Merry Christmas! May you celebrate the One whose birth was announced centuries in advance by the prophets.
Until next time, remember—keep your eyes on the nations, and trust the God who writes history in advance!
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