As we approach the Christmas season once again, here is one of the most astonishing truths in all the Bible about Jesus Christ — the estimated odds of Jesus NOT being Israel’s long-prophesied Messiah has been calculated as one chance in 10157.
Imagine for a moment … You are an Old Testament Jewish scholar. All you have as source material for your research are the Old Testament scriptures. The New Testament hasn’t been written yet.
You have been assigned the task of precisely describing the key features of the long-awaited Messiah while strictly adhering to the hundreds of prophecies from their own Jewish scriptures. What would you discover?
Old Testament prophecies foretell a coming Messiah/Deliverer.
In his book, Is the Bible Really a Message from God?, author Ralph Muncaster “connected the dots” of the major Old Testament scriptures regarding Israel’s Messiah, its long-anticipated deliverer, savior and king:
“The Messiah will descend from Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Jesse and King David. He will be born in the city of Bethlehem in the county of Ephrathah when a bright star appears. It will be a miraculous virgin birth.
“The Messiah will be unique, having preexisted his birth. He will perform many miracles: calming the sea and causing the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the lame to walk and the mute to talk.
“He will be referred to in many ways including God with us, wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father and prince of peace. One day he will rule over everything — all nations will bow down to him.
“The Messiah, however, will come to save mankind. He will become man’s sin offering and present himself to Jerusalem as both the anointed king and the Passover lamb.
“This will occur exactly 173,880 days after the decree of Artaxerxes to rebuild both Jerusalem and the temple.
“So, four days before Passover, the Messiah will present himself to a rejoicing Jerusalem riding on a donkey. But then he will suffer greatly. He will be rejected by many, including his friends.
“He will be betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver. Later that money will be thrown on the floor of the temple and will eventually go to a potter. At his trial he will not defend himself. He will say nothing except as required by law. Israel will reject him.
“The Messiah will be taken to a mountaintop identified by Abraham as ‘the Lord will provide.’ There he will be crucified with his hands and feet pierced. His enemies will encircle him, mocking him, and will cast lots for his clothing.
“He will call to God asking why he was ‘forsaken.’ He will be given gall and wine. He will die with thieves. But unlike the thieves, none of his bones will be broken. His heart will fail … as indicated by blood and water spilling out when he is pieced with a spear.
“He will be buried in a rich man’s grave. In three days, he will rise from the dead.”
Sound at all familiar? Again, I remind you — the above description comes from ONLY THE OLD TESTAMENT, which was written many centuries BEFORE the birth of Jesus Christ.
What are the odds?
Muncaster concluded:
“The estimated odds of just the above 48 prophecies being fulfilled in the life of one man have been calculated as one in 10157. This would be equivalent to winning 22 lotteries in a row!”
Jesus did not just “pop” into existence in Bethlehem. As noted in John 8:42:
“Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I came forth from God and am here; for I have not even come on My own, but He sent Me.”
And in John 16:27-29:
“I came forth from the Father, and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”
Jesus is God. He always has been. He came from eternity for a brief visit to earth to save us from our sins, as written in John 10:9-11:
“I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture … I came so that they would have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
Jesus rules the Cosmos at the right hand of the Father in Heaven. He’s coming back with His saints to reign on earth one day soon.
How About You?
Have you been hankering for real soul-deep life amid the darkness in our world lately?
Evangelist Oswald Chambers wrote: “… Just as Our Lord came into human history from outside, so He must come into me from outside. Have I allowed my personal human life to become a ‘Bethlehem’ for the Son of God? I cannot enter into the realm of the Kingdom of God unless I am born from above by a birth totally unlike natural birth. ‘Ye must be born again.’”