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  • The Beginning of the End – A Burden of the Prophets – 4

    The Beginning of the End – A Burden of the Prophets – 4

    Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”

    Remember the predictions of the holy prophets

    Previously: Part 1; Part 2; Part 3

    The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

    Think back beyond your years and perhaps you may recall an event  just two generations past in the days of your grandfather. But who can understand the times a hundred generations before us, even the lives of those living when Christ was born.

    Even before Christ the impatience of man questioned the patience of the Lord. Early Prophets like Amos had been long forgotten by the time some promises had been fulfilled by the birth of a Messiah.

    Just as now the unexplored landscape of our new world would have been completely unimaginable to Columbus, men in the days of the first century did not remember Moses or David or the Prophets with any contemporary context of understanding. Yet in each generation before Christ men and women of those days could hardly imagine the promise of the Messiah to come.

    Each century between the Prophets and Christ would have seemed unmeasurable with the century’s beginning unfamiliar to the generations of its completion. Think about each hundred years of history as if today you looked back upon the just ending World War I [November 11, 1918], then multiply our forgetfulness of the promise by 21 centuries since the manger of Bethlehem.

    Promise of a Messiah a long time away

    How far away could you imagine the promise of hope spoken by a Prophet of the LORD in each of these centuries, so many generations ‘Before Christ?’

    A thousand years, ten centuries, uncountable generations from the success of Solomon to the hope of a Savior.

    Challenge: Scroll slowly through the centuries between David and the Son of David, the promised Messiah.
             
           
    * Date estimates by Roger Harned http://talkofJesus.co
    		       Source: TOW
           
       Period / Century

    		 Northern Kings – Israel (Samaria)

    		 Northern Prophets Israel Sararia

    		 Southern Kings – Judah (Judea)

    		 Southern Prophets Judah 
    United kingdom under Saul, David, Solomon, c. 1030 – 931
    10th c. B.C.
    Divided kingdom Jeroboam (931-910) Rehoboam (931-913)
    Nadab (910-909) Abijah (913)
    Baasha (909-886) Asa (911-870)
    9th c. B.C.
    Elah (886)
    Zimri (885)
    Omri (885-874)
    Ahab (874-853) Elijah
    Jehoshaphat (873-848)
    Jehoram (852-841) Jehoram (853-841)
    Jehu (841-814) Elisha Queen Athaliah (841-835) Obadiah
    Jehoahaz (814-798) Joash (835-796)
    8th c. B.C.
    Jehoash (798-782) Amaziah (796-767)
    Jeroboam II (793-753) Amos
    Zechariah (753-752) Jonah Isaiah (760-700)
    Shallum (752)
    Menahem 752-742)
    Pekahiah (742-740) Hosea (c. 792-740 B.C.) Uzziah (790-740)  Joel
    Pekah (752-732) Jotham (750-731)
     Israel ruled by other nations Hoshea (732-722) Ahaz (735-715) Nahum
      Hezekiah (715-686) Micah
    7th c. B.C.
    Manasseh (695-642)
    Amon (642-640)
    Josiah (640-609) Jeremiah
    Zephaniah
    Jehoahaz (609) Huldah
    Jehoiakim (609-597) Nahum
    6th c. B.C.
    		 Habakkuk
    Judah ruled by other nations – Babylonian exile (597 – 538 BC) Jehoiachin (597)
    Zedekiah (597-586) Ezekiel
    Persian Period (539-322 BC) Zerubbabel, governor {538-520 BC) Daniel
    Post-exilic prophets Haggai
    5th c. B.C. Darius I (521-486), king of Persia Zechariah (520-???)
    Nehemiah, governor (445-425) Malachi
    4th c B.C. Artaxerxes II, king of Persia (404-358 BC)
    Hellenistic Period (332-141 BC)
    Alexander the Great Macedonian Greek empire 356 – 323 BC
    Ptolemaic (Egyptian) Seleucid rule in Jerusalem
    Seleucos I (Persian) 321-215
    3rd c. B.C.
    Antiochos III inherited in 223 BCE
    2nd c. B.C.
    1st c. B.C. Herod the Great, Roman appointed king of Judea 37–4 BC

    John the Baptist

    c. 5 BC – AD30
    * Period summary source

    Prophets Predicted Christ

    How long did you consider the generations between the time of David, 3000 years ago and the thousand years until the birth of the Messiah?

    The LORD saved and redeemed a people who in every generation believed that God had forgotten them.

    “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old..

    Luke 1:68-70 ESV

    A short list of Prophecies: Promises of many generations

    Joel 1:

    15 Alas for the day!
    For the day of the Lord is near,
    and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.

    19 To you, O Lord, I call.
    For fire has devoured
    the pastures of the wilderness,
    and flame has burned
    all the trees of the field.

    Joel 2:28  “And it shall come to pass afterward,
    that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
    your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
    your old men shall dream dreams,
    and your young men shall see visions.
    29 Even on the male and female servants
    in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

    Joel lived about eight centuries before fulfillment of his prophecies.

    Micah 1:

    2 Hear, you peoples, all of you;
    pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it,
    and let the Lord God be a witness against you,
    the Lord from his holy temple.

    Speaking of ‘Peace’

    Micah 3:
    5 Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets
    who lead my people astray,
    who cry “Peace”
    when they have something to eat,
    but declare war against him
    who puts nothing into their mouths.

    Micah 4:

    (Some may recognize this scripture forgotten from the charter of the United Nations at a time Israel was reborn as a nation in 1947.)

    “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of the God of Jacob,
    that he may teach us his ways
    and that we may walk in his paths.”
    For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
    and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

    3 He shall judge between many peoples,
    and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away;
    and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
    and their spears into pruning hooks;
    nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
    neither shall they learn war anymore;

    4 but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree,
    and no one shall make them afraid,
    for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

    The Place of Birth of the Messiah

    Micah 5:

    But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
    from you shall come forth for me
    one who is to be ruler in Israel,
    whose coming forth is from of old,
    from ancient days.
    3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time
    when she who is in labor has given birth;
    then the rest of his brothers shall return
    to the people of Israel.
    4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
    And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
    to the ends of the earth.
    5 And he shall be their peace.

    Micah’s promise of the birth of Christ would not be fulfilled for about 700 years.

    Zephaniah 3:

    16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
    “Fear not, O Zion;
    let not your hands grow weak.
    17 The Lord your God is in your midst,
    a mighty one who will save;
    he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
    he will exult over you with loud singing.

    Zephaniah is the great-great grandson of Judah’s King Hezekiah from the time Micah prophesied. He prophesied during the time of a successful and good King Josiah ( 640 to 609 BC). Zephaniah saw in the day of the Lord the destruction of his country, his neighbors, and eventually the whole earth. Source.

    Malachi 1:

    2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord…

    Should this not be sufficient for worship of the Lord our God?

    Over the centuries and generations Israel repeatedly has turned from the Lord, rejecting God’s love. Yet the Lord is merciful and promises a Messiah, the Savior of the faithful.

    The Messenger of the Lord

    Malachi 2:

    17 You have wearied the Lord with your words.

    But you say, “How have we wearied him?”

    By saying, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and he delights in them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God of justice?”

    Are we so different, even in these last days? Has Christ not promised an eternal redemption for our sin? Yet we remain impatient with mortal life.

    Malachi was a late messenger among the Prophets, one after whom a great silence from the Lord would follow until another messenger of the Messiah would appear to announce the onslaught of these last days.

    Malachi 3:

    “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

    The Book of Remembrance

    16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name.

    17 “They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. 18 Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

    Malachi likely delivered his message many years after the Israelites rebuilt the temple in 515 BC. The prophet’s concerns mirror those of Nehemiah’s, suggesting that Malachi prophesied to the people while Nehemiah left the city for several years, beginning in 432 BC. Source.

    Generations of silence without prophecy, then the LORD sends a messenger to the wilderness and a Messiah to a manger in Bethlehem.

    Judgment and mercy will be in His right hand. He will be a Savior of the Remnant and Hope to the Nations.

    A messenger will announce the Son of David, the Promised One…

    In the LORD’s time… the Messiah of Israel and Savior of the Nations; predicted by the Prophets, proclaimed by angels, born in a manger, worshiped by shepherds and kings: Jesus, Son of God, Son of man!

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  • Voices of Angels for Shepherds near Bethlehem

    Voices of Angels for Shepherds near Bethlehem

    He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. – Isaiah 40:11

    In case you missed part 1 of our story, you can read about the shepherds of Bethlehem here.

    The Shepherds and the Angels

    Luke 2:

    8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”

    13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

    14 “Glory to God in the highest,
        and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

    15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

    16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.

    20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

    An angel of the Lord approaches from the night sky with a message of good news. How will you respond?

    Fear first? Certainly! But this messenger of the Lord says, “Fear not.”

    Shepherds have never seen the king, even those those who serve the king. Heavenly beings now appear to shepherds on a hillside near Bethlehem. Why have angels come to lowly shepherds to proclaim the birth of the Messiah?

    Then the Angels tell these shepherds to see the Lord Incarnate with their own eyes!

    By their first witness, these most humble among men announce the arrival of the Most Humble Lord of Lords and King of Kings, born of a humble virgin and laid in a manger used to feed animals in this same lowly place.

    It would have been the pinnacle event of their lives to have witnessed angels, singing to the glory of God. Yet even more, the lowest proclaim first the birth of the Highest One to men not privileged to behold our newborn Savior, Jesus the Messiah, born a son of man to a virgin in lowly Bethlehem of Judea.

    “‘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.’” – Matthew 2:6

    A lowly shepherd tells us, “I have seen the Lord.” The Messiah is born to us in a manger. How unlikely, that God should send a Son to be born and sacrificed for our sins. Yet Shepherds and Magi have witnessed the glory of angels proclaiming this moment…

    And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

    John 1:14

    For God So Loved the World

    [ctt title=”“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” tweet=”John 3:16-17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. ” coverup=”8N4eb”]

    18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

    Where is your witness this Christmas? Is your love for the Lord this same worship of the angels of heaven and redeemed lowly shepherds of this earth?

    Glory to God in the Highest and one earth peace, good will towards men, though Christ Jesus, our Lord.

    Amen.

  • The Voice of a Shepherd in the Wilderness

    A Flawed Shepherd

    We’re flawed – very flawed; you know what I mean?

    A Shepherd is sorta an outsider, you know. The people in town wear fine clothes, woven from the well-washed wool of our flocks, yet they turn away from us repulsed by the scent of our lowly work as shepherds.

    Hills near Bethlehem in 2016 palestinian region of Israel

    Mostly we live in the wilderness just beyond Bethlehem, grazing our sheep, sleeping in solitude under the dark dome of silent star-lit nights. At night I look up to the Lord in the heavens, remembering the words of my youth.

    Traditions from our fathers recall a shepherd-king, David, of generations long gone. The old City of David just up the mountain from Bethlehem became home to a couple of thousand people. Our little town of Bethlehem now swells to nearly a thousand due to Rome’s order for our families to return for a census. Jerusalem has grown to maybe 40,000, plus Roman centurions.

    Time of the First Temple – 957-586 BC

    Solomon, son of David, built the first Temple in Jerusalem with riches from other lands. Enemies destroyed the Temple and plundered our lands, because our kings refused to listen to the Lord. Isaiah and the Prophets repeatedly warned our kings not to turn against God. They promised us hope in a Messiah, a King who would lead Israel in righteousness: but first Babylon would parade our captive leaders into foreign cities to live.

    Bethlehem road, 2016 palestinian Israel

    Second Temple rebuilt – 538-170 BC

    They allowed some of our fathers to return and rebuild Jerusalem, just a short journey north beyond these hills.

    Alexander ruled over us and the entire world nearby while our fathers adopted the language and some of the culture of our Greek captors. Egypt ruled us once more after Alexander’s death, until an Alexandrian general of Syria conquered us again.

    Herod rebuilds the Temple and Jerusalem under Rome – 38 BC

    Our grandfathers told us stories of the revolt of the priests and Herod the Great recapturing Galilee with considerable help from Rome. Rome’s powerful peace rules over us now, enforced by legions encamped across our countryside; but shepherds have little to say in these matters of power.

    Life of a Shepherd

    Our days of drudgery drag on into senseless seasons of defeat and despair. Dreams discouraged — hopes of all the years abandoned in desperate darkness for distractions of days lost in silent surrender. When we were young, times of promise never escaped our self-confidence. Now scores of years reveal a flawed flesh and failing desires.

    What hope have we beyond darkness in times of sorrow? For our remorse reminds of a past built on foundationless self-made dreams and hopes of self-earned glory.

    I did not need God!

    Who can keep the Lord’s Law or live up to men’s visions? We blame our flawed upbringing on generations of our fathers who failed in advantage over other men. I was a self-made, flawed man, with a little of a flawed plan.

    Who needs the help of another? Yet what stiff-necked soul does not cry out to God in our failure?

    I cannot face a God who knows my sin nor can I face a punishment of a God who stands in holiness against our transgressions. What savior for me — what savior for me?

    A Shepherd Recalls Scripture from Isaiah

    In solemn silence my distraught heart, heavy with hopeless, strains for gentle words of comfort whispering deeply into my soul. Lord, help me – forgive me – I can’t quite remember…

    [ctt title=”Isaiah 7:14 לָכֵן יִתֵּן אֲדֹנָי הוּא לָכֶם אֹות הִנֵּה הָעַלְמָה הָרָה וְיֹלֶדֶת בֵּן וְקָרָאת שְׁמֹו עִמָּנוּ אֵֽל׃” tweet=”A Messiah, born to a virgin” coverup=”eEdCg”]

    [ctt title=”Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. – Isaiah 7:14″ tweet=”” coverup=”jLQN1″]

    Immanuel, God with us; how I could never bear the thought of standing near Almighty God. Who can stand before, “God with us?” I once believed I was better than most, but now I fall before Him.

    The Messiah will be born to a virgin, pure in heart and flesh and He will not disappoint.

    I could never be like Him. Yet a voice soft as the caress of a gentle breeze describes a Savior I could hear, the only compassionate one who perfectly understands a lowly shepherd like me.

    He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,

    Or make it heard in the street;

    A bruised reed he will not break,

    And a faintly burning wick he will not quench;

    He will faithfully bring forth justice.

    Isaiah 42:2-3

    Conviction and the Cry of a Repentant Heart

    Now that my days of self-deceit have passed, indeed I am a bruised reed. My heart burns faintly with what life remains in these flawed bones and failing flesh. I cry out to the Lord.

    O God, are you gentle as a baby born humbly to a poor virgin? Lord, would you have mercy on a lowly man who lives near the beasts of your barns? What would you say to a flawed one like me?

    But this is the one to whom I will look:
    he who is humble and contrite in spirit
    and trembles at my word.- Isaiah 66:2b

    To be continued Christmas day…