*Jesus fulfilled the Old T. Prophecies

There are over 100 prophecies in the Old Testament that gave the characteristics of the Messiah, written hundreds of years before the arrival of Jesus. These prophecies describe the circumstances of His birth, ministry, and death. A sample list of these prophecies are included in the table below:

OT Prophetic Scripture	Subject	NT Fulfilled
Genesis 12:3	descendant of Abraham	Matthew 1:1
Genesis 17:19	descendant of Isaac	Luke 3:34
Numbers 24:17	descendant of Jacob	Matthew 1:2
Genesis 49:10	from the tribe of Judah	Luke 3:33
Isaiah 11:10	descendent of Jesse	Romans 15:12
Jeremiah 23:5-6	descendant of David	Matthew 1:1
Ezekiel 37:24	will shepherd His people	Matthew 2:6
Psalm 45:6-7, Psalm 102:25-27	anointed and eternal	Hebrews 1:8-12
Micah 5:2	born in Bethlehem	Luke 2:4-5, 7
Daniel 9:25	time for His birth	Luke 2:1-2
Isaiah 7:14	to be born of a virgin	Luke 1:26-27, 30-31
Psalm 72:9	worshipped by shepherds	Luke 2:8-15
Isaiah 29:18, Isaiah 35:5-6	blind, deaf, and lame are healed by the Messiah	Luke 7:22, Matthew 11:3-5
Isaiah 42:1, Isaiah 49:1	will minister to Gentiles	Matthew 12:18-21, Luke 2:32
Isaiah 53:3, 8:14, 28:16, Psalm 118:22	rejected by His own people, the Jews	John 1:11, Luke 23:18, Acts 4:111, Peter 2:6-8
Psalm 41:9, Psalm 55:12-13, Zechariah 13:6	betrayed by a close friend	Luke 22:47-48, Matthew 26:49-50
Zechariah 11:12	betrayed for thirty pieces of silver	Matthew 26:14-15
Isaiah 53:12	crucified with malefactors	Mark 15:27-28
Zechariah 12:10, Psalm 22:16	pierced through hands and feet	John 20:25-27
Psalm 22:17-18	soldiers gambled for His clothing	Matthew 27:35-36
Isaiah 53:9	buried with the rich	Matthew 27:57-60
Psalm 16:10, Psalm 30:3, Psalm 49:15, Psalm 118:17	to be resurrected	Mark 16:6-7

 
A complete list of prophecies fulfilled by Jesus of Nazareth can be found at Prophecies of Jesus Christ as Messiah. Although some of the prophecies are general, many, especially those surrounding his birth and death (over which he had no control), are quite striking. The Old Testament describes his death by being pierced through his hands and feet - at a time before crucifixion was even invented! Jesus of Nazareth is the only person in history who fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies for the Messiah in amazing detail. Since the Old Testament described the Messiah as having the characteristics of God, this would make Jesus to be God in human form.

Rabbinical writings

The Bible is not the only source of Messianic prophecies. Rabbis have been writing about the Messiah thousands of years. Although these sources are not considered inspired by most Christians, they do provide valuable corroboration of the Bible's claims. One from the Sibylline Oracles is particularly striking:

"And being beaten He shall be silent lest any one should know what the word is, or whence it came, that it may speak with mortals; and He shall wear the crown of thorns." Sibylline Oracles (B.C. 184-117)

Of course, being silent and wearing the crown of thorns was part of Jesus' trial leading to His crucifixion. More examples of rabbinical writings can be found at Jesus Christ - Messiah of the Rabbinical Writers.

Jesus Himself made many claims of deity during His earthly ministry.

The Old Testament prophecies and their fulfillment in the person of Jesus of Nazareth make it clear that Jesus was the promised Messiah of the scriptures. These same scriptures, along with those of the New Testament state quite emphatically that the Messiah, Jesus, was God, who took on human form to both teach us and provide the ultimate sacrifice to erase our sins, so that we could have a personal relationship with Him.

The teachings and miracles Jesus performed and His resurrection from the dead testify that Jesus is God. Since Jesus is God, it is imperative that we do what He told us. Jesus told us we were to follow Him⁸⁰ that whoever believed in Him would have eternal life (John 3:16).⁸¹ Those who reject Jesus after knowing who He is, have rejected the only provision to cleanse us from our sins in order to live with God in heaven. Do not put off a decision to follow Jesus, your God. Tomorrow is not guaranteed. Now is the day of salvation!

For He says, "In the time of My favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you." I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation. (2 Corinthians 6:2) 

Rich Deem