Not a Stranger – May 8, 2020

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, [Jesus] explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
Luke 24:27

Not a Stranger

Here’s a vivid picture. It goes like this. The Old Testament Scriptures—the books of the Bible written centuries before Jesus’ birth—give hundreds of prophecies regarding the promised Savior from sin. Jesus fulfilled all of them. Someone who did the math says that the chance of one person fulfilling just 8 of those prophecies by sheer coincidence is the equivalent to the following scene. Imagine the state of Texas covered in two feet of silver dollars, with one silver dollar marked. Blindfold one person. Tell that person to wade through all those silver dollars and to pick up the marked silver dollar on the very first try.

You get the point. When we let the Scriptures speak for themselves, the Scriptures shout, loudly, that Jesus is the promised Messiah; that Jesus is the One; that Jesus is the One who came to live a holy life as our substitute and paid for our sins in full at the cross.

Which brings us to an episode that Luke records in Chapter 24. When you have the chance, read the entire chapter. Luke describes what is happening. It is Easter Sunday. Two of Jesus’ disciples are walking from Jerusalem to a neighboring village. They are sad, confused, and their minds are a blur. They both thought that Jesus was the promised Christ, but now they don’t know what to think. All they know for sure is that Jesus was dead—dead and buried. But now there are claims swirling around about Jesus’ tomb being empty, about angels announcing that he’s alive.

As they walk along, discussing all this, a man begins walking with them. He asks what they’re talking about, and they immediately pour their hearts out about Jesus. In reply, the man cites passages from the Old Testament Scriptures. He does this to show them that Jesus has fulfilled all the Old Testament prophecies. He does this to convince them that Jesus is the One. Shortly thereafter, they realize that their new traveling companion is Jesus himself!

It’s all there in the Scriptures. Let them speak. Let them shout!

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, open the Scriptures to me. Let them speak. Let them shout. Amen.