Lineage Manger to Messiah
The Birth of Jesus Christ Manger to Messiah | Episode 1
There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament
that pointed forward to the coming of the Redeemer,
and Jesus fulfilled all of them.
It was prophesied that he would be born of a virgin,
that he would come through the bloodline of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David,
and also specifically the town he would be born in.
In Micah 5:2 it says that out of Bethlehem Ephratah
the One who was to be the ruler would come.
There was more than one Bethlehem,
and here in Bethlehem, 2000 years ago, Jesus was born.
[music]
The likelihood of one man fulfilling 300 prophecies
by coincidence or accident is almost impossible.
The likelihood of one man fulfilling eight prophecies
is one in 10 to the power of 17.
That's a 1 with 17 zeros after it.
A man by the name of Professor Stoner
illustrates it this way.
If you took one in 10 to the power of 17 silver dollar coins
and put them in the State of Texas,
they would cover the state two feet deep.
Then, if you mark one of the coins and put it in the pile,
and blindfold a man and ask him to find the marked coin,
his chances [of finding it] are one in 10 to the power of 17—
almost impossible.
Yet Jesus did not fulfill eight prophecies,
He fulfilled three hundred.
[music]
Jesus’ birth was foretold, and also the town of His birth was foretold,
however, Mary and Joseph lived about a two- to three-day journey from this town,
or a seventy mile journey.
The Bible records in Luke that due to a decree of Caesar,
everyone needed to be registered, and Mary and Joseph headed to Bethlehem.
Heavily pregnant and riding on a donkey,
they made their way there slowly,
and as they reached there,
they could not find any room in the inn.
They were only offered a stable,
and feeling desperate and out of options, they took this.
[music]
Today, there are a few locations
that claim to be the exact location of Jesus’ birth.
Whether any of them are true is open to debate,
but the fact remains: He was born in a stable.
His parents were not rich,
and He was not born in a nice, warm room.
The first things that He saw, apart from His parents,
would have been wild animals.
The first smells that He would have smelled
would have been that of a barn and all that that entails.
If Jesus could be born in such a dirty, filthy place,
then have no doubt that Jesus can be born in your heart today,
no matter how bad you have been.
[music]
Even though there are many prophecies in the Old Testament
that pointed to the coming of Jesus,
nearly everyone missed it.
They had a certain idea as to how they thought the Messiah would come,
and when He didn't come the way they expected, they missed it.
Let us not miss the second coming of Jesus
because we have a false interpretation of prophecy.
The only people ready to receive Jesus when He came
were the shepherds who were tending their sheep in these fields.
When the angel appeared to them to share the good news,
they rejoiced and hurried to the stable and worship the Redeemer.
[music]
Jesus’ birth and the prophecies that foretold it
prove with a certainty that Jesus was Messiah.
Starting here, He would go on to live for 33 years;
a life that would change the history of the universe.
The location of Jesus’ birth shows how humble our Saviour is.
He came from heaven to earth and lived a life
where he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief,
and His birth here in a barn in Bethlehem
shows how low He was willing to go to save humanity.
Jesus, who was born in a stable,
can be born in your heart today if you will ask Him to come in.