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| Mr. Hocking has been preaching and teaching for 40 years. David has pastored churches in Ohio and Southern California, and has been teaching on the radio since 1970. |
When it comes down to understanding God, the Bible, and how to be saved or have eternal life, or be in heaven forever – the issue is the MESSIAH! The Bible warns us that there will be many who say they are the Messiah, and they will deceive many people. There are many beliefs among the religions of the world as to the true identity of the Messiah. It can be very confusing. We have chosen to focus on what the Bible teaches on this matter.
The Gospel of John (in the Bible) records several miracles that Jesus did. In John 20:30-31, we read these important words about the Messiah:
“And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name.”
Peter (one of the disciples of Jesus) said in Acts 4:12:
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
Salvation is not the result of attending a church, synagogue, or mosque - or trying to be a good person. According to the Bible, salvation is found by believing that Jesus is the Messiah and the only One Who can save us from sin, death, and hell. The Hebrew prophet Isaiah quotes the Messiah in Isaiah 45:22-23:
“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by Myself, the word is gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongues shall swear.”
These verses are quoted in the New Testament in Philippians 2:9-11:
“Wherefore God (the heavenly Father) also hath highly exalted Him (Jesus), and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus the Messiah is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
As you can clearly see, it is God’s purpose and plan to exalt His Son, our Savior, and that all should acknowledge that Jesus the Messiah is Lord!
The Bible presents in great detail the genealogy of the Messiah. After the global flood, Noah and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, begin to repopulate the earth. His son, Shem (which means “name”), becomes the one through whom the Messiah will come. This line of Shem leads us to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob’s name was changed to “ISRAEL” and his fourth son by his wife, Leah, is named “JUDAH” and is the Jewish tribe through whom the Messiah will come (Genesis 49:10). The line of Judah brings us to a man named “Jesse” (Isaiah 11:1) and to his son “DAVID.” To this young shepherd, God promised a descendant who would bless the entire world. It was his son, Solomon, who built the Jewish Temple (destroyed by Babylon in 586 BC). His line was the royal line of Jewish kings that would bring us the Messiah. One of his future descendants was Joseph, the one who would marry a young Jewish virgin named “Miryam” (Mary) who became pregnant before he could marry her. The Bible teaches that the Messiah would be born from a virgin’s womb (Psalm 132:11; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23), and it even names the place where the Messiah would be born – Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1-6).
There is a fascinating prophecy in Malachi 3:1:
“Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me; and the Lord, Whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, Whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.”
Malachi writes AFTER the destruction of the Temple of Solomon by Babylon in 586 BC, so this prophecy cannot refer to that temple. Also, there has been no temple since 70 AD when the Romans destroyed the Second Temple (built and restored by Herod the Great). The only time that the above passage could have been fulfilled was the time the Second Temple was still standing! The first “messenger” of Malachi 3:1 who will prepare the way of the Lord was John the Baptist. The second “Messenger of the covenant” is the Messiah Himself!
The Messiah would come into this world (the first time) to suffer and die for the sins of all humanity (Isaiah 53). The Bible teaches very clearly that Jesus not only died on that Roman cross for our sins, but that He arose from the dead on the third day after He died. Talk about incredible news! The Messiah is NOT dead – HE IS ALIVE!
After ascending back to heaven (Acts 1:9-11), He promised that He would come again (John 14:1-6). He is the hope of the entire world!
Here’s the problem: It is not enough to know these Biblical facts; according to the Bible, we must put our faith and trust in the Messiah Himself as our only hope of salvation and eternal life. Romans 10:13 says:
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Romans 10:17 adds:
“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”
Our faith is in the words of the Bible about the true identity of the Messiah. We encourage you to take out a moment of your time right now, and call upon the only One Who can save you! As we confess and repent of our sins, and believe that Jesus died and paid for our sins, and rose again from the dead, putting our trust and faith in Him alone, the Bible assures us that we will be saved!
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