RESTORING EDEN: PROPHECIES OF THE PASSOVER LAMB

Charles Billingsley 

Luke 4 – Jesus arrives on the scene 

Luke 4:16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, 

Because He has anointed Me

To preach the gospel to the poor;

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set at liberty those who are oppressed;

19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”

23 He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.’ ” 24 Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. 25 But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

28 So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,

Because the Lord has anointed Me

To preach good tidings to the poor;

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives,

And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,

And the day of vengeance of our God;

To comfort all who mourn,

3 To console those who mourn in Zion,

To give them beauty for ashes,

The oil of joy for mourning,

The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

That they may be called trees of righteousness,

The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

1. Fulfilled prophecies Reveal God’s plan – There Is only who could be the Messiah       – Jesus 

Genesis 3:15 – This verse, often called the “proto-gospel,” prophesies a future descendant of the woman who will bruise the head of the serpent, symbolizing the defeat of evil and the salvation of humanity. 

What would the Probability be that one man could fulfill 8 of the 300 Old testament prophesies about the coming Messiah?  

  1 in 1,000,000,000,000,000,000

Suppose we filled the entire State of Texas with 100 quadrillion silver dollars. That would make the entire state about two feet deep in coins. Then we mark only one of them with an X.

Stoner went on to calculate the probability of one person fulfilling 48 prophecies: 

1 in 10157. 

That’s a 1 with 157 zeros behind it!!! 

Electrons

2. Fulfilled prophecies Remind us of God’s Promise  – There is only one who could come from heaven to dwell with us – Jesus 

Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

This passage predicts that a virgin will conceive and bear a son, whose name will be Immanuel (God with us)

Isaiah 9:6-7

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, Counselor, 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 forever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

This passage describes a child who will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace, who will rule with justice and righteousness.

LUKE 19:41 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, 42 saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side,44 and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

3. Fulfilled prophecies Restore our faith in God’s provision – 

There is only one who can save us – Jesus 

Isaiah 53 

This chapter details the suffering servant of the Lord, who will be wounded for our transgressions, bearing our sins and bringing salvation through his death and resurrection.

Passion week timeline – The Prophecies of the passover lamb

Pay particular attention to how much these prophecies have to do with sacrifice!

Palm Sunday – Jesus fulfilled the prophecy from Zechariah 9:9, which foretold the arrival of the King of Israel on a donkey colt into Jerusalem.

Holy Monday –   JESUS CURSES THE FIG TREE – Jeremiah 8 

                    CLEANSES THE TEMPLE – Jeremiah 7:3-4 , Isaiah 56:7-8

Holy Tuesday – Jesus antagonizes the the religious leaders  – Isaiah 49:1-7

Jesus also prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple – which happened in 70 a.d. 

On Holy Tuesday, Jesus got right in the face of the religious leaders and called them hypocrites.  He didn’t hold back any words and began to antagonize them, while at the same to agonize over the fact that the people couldn’t see Him for the He really was.  The Messiah!  

He was broken over the people who were supposed to be witnessing to the glory and love of God but were, instead, basking in their own status and glory to the detriment of God’s people.

All of this a profound fulfillment of what was written in Isaiah 49:1-7. Jesus’ words were, indeed, “words of judgment as sharp as a sword.” 

Spy Wednesday  

The betrayal of Jesus by Judas was foretold by David. (psalm 41:9)            Mark 14:10-11

Maundy Thursday (maundy means – new commandment – often refers to the washing of feet – the new commandment Jesus gives them at the Lord’s supper – to “love one another.”

The messiah would be cut off – Daniel                                                   John 11:50-52

Jesus would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zach 11:12 )                         Matt 26:15 

Jesus Would be forsaken by his followers (Zech 13:7)                                   Mark 14:50

David prophesied the shame and dishonor that Jesus would suffer,                  Matt. 26:66

         being condemned as a criminal.  (Psalm 69:9; 19-20)

Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny Him – it happened 

Good Friday 

It is the 15th of Nisan 

• Public and Private Offerings:
  On the 15th of Nisan, both public and private sacrifices were offered at the Temple.The public offerings were for the entire nation, while individuals could also bring their own burnt offerings and peace offerings.
• Passover Lambs:
  The most prominent sacrifice on the 15th of Nisan was the Passover lamb, which was eaten as part of the Passover meal.The lamb represented the “Passover sacrifice” and commemorated the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt.

Now let me try to bring it all together for you as we close.  

(Picture of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem) 

Abraham and Isaac  – Genesis 22 – Mount Moriah – God spared Isaac – a ram was sacrificed in his place – God confirms Abraham’s faith. 

More prophecies fulfilled on Good Friday for your notes:  

1. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus Christ would be sacrificed as the Passover Lamb of God.  “He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter…”   (I Cor. 5:7, I Pet. 1:18-20, Isa. 53:7).

1. Isaiah also prophesied the scourging and mocking that He would suffer.   (Matt. 27: 26-30, Isa 50:6)

1. Both Isaiah and David prophesied that Jesus’ body would be mutilated.  (John 19:1,Psalm 22:17)

1. David also foretold that false witnesses would testify against Christ.  (Mark 14:55-57,Psalm 35:11)

1. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would not make an effort to defend Himself at the trial.    (Matt. 27:13-14, Isa.53:7)

1. Isaiah also foretold Jesus Christ’s crucifixion as the sin offering for the world.    (John 19:16-19, Isa. 53:4-6; 10-11)

1. As Isaiah had prophesied, He was numbered among lawbreakers.    (Luke 23:32-33, Isa 53:12)

1. David prophesied that His hands and His feet would be pierced.    (John 20:25-27,Psalm 22:16)

1. The parting of His garments was also prophesied by David.                            (John 19:24, Psalm 22:18)

1. David prophesied that they would give Him vinegar to drink                          (Matt. 27:34,Psalm 69:21)

1. David also prophesied that many would be watching Jesus during the crucifixion.   (Luke 23:48, Psalm 22:17)

1. Among those watching would be Jesus’ family and friends who would stand at a distance.   (Luke 23:49, Psalm 38:11)

1. Some of His observers would shake their heads at Him.                                  (Matt. 27:39-40, Psalm 109:25)

1. Even the words of His reproachers were prophesied by David                       (Matt. 27:43-44, Psalm 22:8)

1. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would make intercession for sinners.  This intercession began even during His crucifixion.              (Luke 23:34,  Isa. 53:12)

1. David prophesied the thoughts of Jesus at the height of His suffering.   (Matt. 27:46, Psalm 22:1)

1. Zechariah prophesied that His body would be pierced with a spear.    (John 19:34, 37, Zech 12:10)

1. David prophesied that Jesus would commit His spirit to God.                       (Luke 23:46, Psalm 31:5)

1. David also prophesied Jesus’ last words.    (Psalm 22:31, Luke 19:30)

  20 As no bone of the Passover lamb was to be broken.  “not a bone of His would be broken.”   (Ex. 12:46, John 19:32-33, 36, Psalm 34:20)

1. His burial in the tomb of a rich man was foretold by Isaiah.                            (Matt. 27:57-60, Isaiah 53:8-9)

1. Zechariah also foretold what would be done with the betrayal money.    (Matt. 27:3-7)

         And after taking counsel, they bought a potter’s field with the pieces of silver, for a burial ground for strangers” 

Saturday  – Jesus Lay in the tomb

Sunday – He is Risen!!! 

4. Fulfilled prophecies Return us to God’s paradise – there is only one way to be in right relationship with God – through His son Jesus. 

Luke 22:19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it,and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. 

Jesus gave new meaning to this ancient feast, but in the process reminds the disciples, as He reminds us here this morning,  that HIs sacrifice was the greatest sacrifice anyone could ever make,  Today, we remember that sacrifice and we will continue to observe that sacrifice for as long as the church is in existence.   “This do in remembrance of me.”

We are going to do just that.  Let’s use this time now to consecrate ourselves before King Jesus and get clean before Him so we can rightly observe this powerful and ancient tradition with clean hearts, clear minds, and pure motives.