Dear Rev. You said, and I quote, “Jesus Christ truly fulfilled what the Old Testament said about what He (the Messiah) would be like and what he would do.” But I have another question. Yes, it is true he fulfilled some of the criteria told about him, but not all. I found a website on the internet that stated the criteria he did not fulfill.
I will deal with each one of the requirements of the Messiah separately for the sake of clarity. I will write my response under each statement you gave me from the internet site.
1. He must be a member of the tribe of Judah – “The staff shall not depart from Judah, nor the scepter from between his feet…” (Genesis 49:10). To be a member of the tribe of Judah, the person must have a biological father who is a member of the tribe of Judah.
This is true and so Jesus Christ was of the lineage of Judah as it is clearly stated in both genealogies given in Matthew and Luke – “Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah… Matthew 1:2. Then follow the lineage to verse 16 where it ends with Jesus Christ. Luke 3:34 begins with Jesus Christ – “the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac”.
2. He must be a direct male descendant of King David and King Solomon, his son – “And when your days (David) are fulfilled, and you shall sleep with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who shall issue from your bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will make firm the throne of his kingdom forever…” (2 Samuel 7:12 – 13). The genealogy of the New Testament is inconsistent. While it gives two accounts of the genealogy of Joseph, it states clearly that he is not the biological father of Jesus. Also, one genealogy is traced to Nathan and the other to Solomon!
The passage from Samuel is correct. Indeed His kingdom will be forever. However, the New Testament genealogy is not inconsistent. It merely traces the two genealogies of the parents – Mary and Joseph, back to the house of David and to the tribe of Judah. Matthew records Joseph’s genealogy to satisfy the legal requirements of the Messiah while Luke records Mary’s genealogy to satisfy the blood requirements of the Messiah.
As to Joseph not being the biological father, technically speaking it is true. Jesus was born to a virgin just as Isaiah prophesied, “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” – Isaiah 7:14. What was birthed in Mary was of the Holy Spirit. It was miraculous! This is what Luke was pointing out when he wrote – “Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph“ – Luke 3:23. The angel confirmed the virgin birth by saying to Joseph – “fear not to take to you Mary your wife; for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit” – Matthew 1:20.
Concerning the two genealogies being traced to Nathan and Solomon, it is precisely two different genealogies – one belonging to Mary and the other to Joseph. However, both were of the lineage of David.
3. He must gather the Jewish people from exile and return them to Israel –“And he shall set up a banner for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth” (Isaiah 11:12). Are all Jews living in Israel? Have all Jews EVER lived in Israel since the time of Jesus?
The prophecy from Isaiah is true. However, the fulfillment is futuristic. I said – “Jesus Christ truly fulfilled what the Old Testament said about what He (the Messiah) would be like and what he would do”. By this I was referring to His redemptive work on the cross. What He (the Messiah) fulfilled took place when He died on the cross and became the sacrificial Lamb of God, taking away the sins of the world. What He was like was seen by the people of His day and recorded in the New Testament. Nevertheless, the day is coming when Christ will return to this earth and set up His kingdom as described by Isaiah.
4. He must rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem – “…and I will set my sanctuary in their midst forever and my tabernacle shall be with them” (Ezekiel 37:26 – 27). At last check, there is NO Temple in Jerusalem. And worse, it was shortly after Jesus died that the Temple was DESTROYED! Just the opposite of this prophecy!
Actually, Jesus foretold the destruction of the temple, but when He returns to the earth the second time He will return to a new temple in Jerusalem. (I have even heard that the materials for the temple are being collected now in Israel!)
5. He will rule at a time of world-wide peace – “…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” (Micah 4:3). Have you seen a newspaper lately? Are we living in a state of complete world peace? Has there ever been peace since the time of Jesus?
Once again the fulfillment of Micah is futuristic. There will be a time of world wide peace, but only when the Prince of Peace returns (Isaiah 9:6).
6. He will rule at a time when the Jewish people will observe G-d’s commandments – “My servant David shall be king over them; and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall follow My ordinances and be careful to observe My statutes” (Ezekiel 37:24). The Torah is the Jewish guide to life, and its commandments are the ones referred to here. Do all Jews observe all the commandments? Christianity, in fact, often discourages observance of the commandments in Torah, in complete opposition to this prophecy.
It is true that all Jews do not observe all the commandments, but they will one day! This will happen when Jesus Christ returns to this earth to rule and reign. While not all Christians are perfect, the observance of the Law – especially the 10 commandments are very important to Christians. It must be pointed out that some are Christians in name only, they are not true Christians.
7. He will rule at a time when all people will come to acknowledge and serve one G-d – “And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, says the L-rd” (Isaiah 66:23). There are still millions if not billions of people in the world today who adhere to paganistic and polytheistic religions. It is clear that we have not yet seen this period of human history unfold. All of these criteria are best stated in the book of Ezekiel Chapter 37 verses 24-28:
“And David my servant shall be king over them; and they shall all have one shepherd. they shall also follow My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Yaakov my servant, in which your fathers have dwelt and they shall dwell there, they and their children, and their children’s children forever; and my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them, it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, which I will give them; and I will multiply them and I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore. And my tabernacle shall be with them: and I will be their G-d and they will be my people. Then the nations shall know that I am the L-rd who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary will be in the midst of them forevermore”.
All people will come to acknowledge and serve God during the millennial reign of Christ. This will take place when He returns to the earth for the second time. This is clearly taught in the book of Daniel. The time we are living in now is known as the “times of the Gentiles” where both Jews and Gentiles can come to Christ. When Jesus returns to the earth He will establish the kingdom described in Ezekiel.
8. If an individual fails to fulfill even one of these conditions, then he cannot be “The Messiah.” A careful analysis of these criteria shows us that to date no one has fulfilled every condition.
I’m surprised that whoever wrote this did not include a careful study of prophetic teaching from the Holy Scriptures. I hope this answers your question concerning what was written.
