Yet there is more!
There is one further piece to the story: an intriguing and altogether fitting burst of promise and light. It has been part of the Christian faith from the start. Jesus Christ is coming back to earth to reign as King. This too is to be found in the Old Testament:
We have already read the prediction that Jesus would be his Father’s right hand man in heaven: “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool’”, but notice what comes next:
“The Lord shall send the rod of your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of your enemies!” (Psalm 110:2)
No wonder that Psalm 110:1 is the most quoted verse of the whole Old Testament to appear in the New! Read how this verse was applied by the apostle Peter when speaking about Jesus:
“… Whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” (Acts 3:21)
The Jesus who ascended to heaven is the Christ who is coming to reign on earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. He who wore the crown of thorns will wear the crown of glory. He will reign as King over all the earth. This is beyond doubt. Those promises will be fulfilled as surely as the prophecies about his first coming were fulfilled to the letter.
What difference does it make?
In the light of these things, where do we stand? We are at the crossroads, the point of decision. We can either accept the testimony we have read as convincing, and find it to be a solid and sound foundation for our faith. Or we may choose to turn away from the facts, without being able to refute them, to lead our own lives away from Christ. The second course of action is exactly what most of the Jews who were contemporary with Jesus decided to do. And they were disastrously wrong. Jesus warned them that their rejection of him would bring an end to their existing nationhood in the land of Palestine, and foretold that the city of Jerusalem would be sacked and their temple destroyed.
To them this was incredible and quite unthinkable. Yet, it happened. The Romans besieged the city and finally over-ran it in AD 70. The havoc and carnage were terrible. Despite the Roman general’s command that the Jewish Temple should not be violated, his soldiers set it ablaze and left it in ruins.
God’s words are always fulfilled. The gospel has now reached all parts of the earth. Christ has become a light to the Gentiles, as the Old Testament declared would be the case. It is for us in Gentile lands to answer the question of Pilate, the Roman governor, and to meet its challenge: “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” He is the promised Saviour of mankind, and the coming King. There is no hope for any of us or for the world without him. Wise men from a Gentile country came to Jesus when he was born. Wise men and women have come to him ever since. Will you be one of them?
Prophecy fulfilled in our day
The Old Testament is still being fulfilled. One of the greatest wonders of the twentieth century was the return of the Jews to the land from which they were scattered, over nineteen hundred years before. And the Bible said that they would return, just as they did!
“Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd does his flock’.” (Jeremiah 31:10)
“’For behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will bring back from captivity my people Israel and Judah,’ says the Lord. ‘And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it’.” (30:3)
Those prophecies are as clear and unambiguous as those about Christ. We all are witnesses to their truth. Everyone knows about the Jews as a nation in their own land. The Bible foretold it and God has fulfilled it. Therefore, it is absolutely certain that Christ will come back to be King on earth. Look at what the Old Testament has promised:
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder. And his name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6,7)
Finally …
Will you be ready for the King when he comes? Wise men and women will. The Master comes to reign on earth. He will give eternal life to all who have believed these good things and have been baptized, and are waiting faithfully for him:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And he will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 25:31-34)
Surely, this is worth believing. And it is true!
