Many prophets in the Old Testament prophesised about the end time events. Prophet Isaiah was one of the prophets who prophesised about the birth of Jesus and the end time events. Some of the prophecies in our Old Testament reading were fulfilled during Jesus’s time. We know that some of the prophecies in the Bible are already fulfilled, some will be fulfilled soon, some will be fulfilled during and after the second coming of our Lord and Saviour and some will be fulfilled for the second or the third time. Today, I would like to meditate on how and when some of the prophecies in our Old Testament reading were fulfilled.
Isaiah 42:5 describes the characteristics of the Almighty Father and reminds us about Genesis and creation. Before the Lord God renovated the earth, it was void and shapeless. The earth was dark and frozen. The Lord God gave light to the world. He divided the waters and made firmament. He separated the firmament from the waters. The Lord God gave light to the world when it was dark. In other words, He became the word and light when He renovated the earth. When humans went away from the Lord God, the Almighty Father sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ as the word and light again to this earth. Jesus came to this world as true word, light and showed us the way to Eternity. When Jesus started His ministry in this world, He was baptised by John the Baptist according to the scriptures. When Jesus came out of the water, “the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”. Isaiah’s prophecy in chapter 42:1 was fulfilled during Jesus’ baptism. The voice from heaven confirmed the fulfilment of the prophecy.
Jesus was taken to the wilderness. He fasted and prayed for forty days and forty nights. Jesus overcame the temptation in the wilderness as the second Adam. He broke the chain of bondage of sin. When He preached about repentance and the kingdom of heaven, the people who were in darkness saw a great light through Jesus. The Father Almighty gave light to the world by His words during creation but He came as the word and light in a human form to redeem the whole world. Jesus performed many miracles. He healed the sick, raised people from the dead and made the blind to see. Luke 7:14 says Jesus raised the only son of the widow from Nain from the dead. Luke 8:54 says Jesus raised a twelve-year-old young girl. In John 11:43 we read that He raised Lazarus after four days. In Luke 18:42, He healed a blind man. In John 9 we read He gave vision to a man who was blind from birth. He did all of these with just His words. The prophecies in the first part of verse 6 and verse 7 were fulfilled during Jesus’s ministries in this world.
As we all know, the Jews did not accept Jesus as Messiah and crucified him on the cross. The soul of the Old Testament people used to go to the please called ‘Sheol’. Sheol was split into two parts. The saints went to the upper part of Sheol which was called paradise or Abraham’s bosom. Others went to the bottom part of Sheol. Theologians say that both the places were in darkness because Sheol is the bottommost part of the earth. The Old Testament people had the laws and commandments given through Moses but did not experience salvation through Jesus Christ. They lived in darkness of innocence. When Jesus died on the cross, His spirit went to the upper part of Sheol which was the paradise and preached the Gospel to the spirits or saints in paradise. Jesus took the upper part of Sheol with him (1 Peter 3). The Old Testament saints were freed from the darkness of innocence. They received salvation through Jesus Christ. The second part of the prophecy in verse 6 was fulfilled between Jesus’ death and resurrection.
The prophecy in the verse 3 is more important to us. Verse 3 says, “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth”. Jesus came to redeem the whole world but His own people did not accept Jesus as Christ and Messiah. They did not listen to the Lord Jesus. The Old Testament Hebrews did not listen to the Lord God although the Lord God spoke to them through prophets and judges. Moving away from the Lord God when they led comfortable lives and coming back when they were in trouble was a routine cycle. They did not keep the commandments of the Lord God and gave more importance to worldly pleasures that the Lord God. When they lived as slaves under their enemies, they cried to the Lord God and He delivered them. The people did not turn back to their Lord on their own but it was the grace of the Lord God that worked in them and led them to repentance and turn back to Him. The prophecy in verse 3 was fulfilled many times during Old Testament time.
Today, we can compare ourselves with the Israelites in the Old Testament. When the Jews rejected Jesus, the grace of our Lord Jesus and the salvation was extended to the gentiles. Throughout history, even during Biblical times, many people tried to destroy the Lord’s people but we are surviving today by the grace of our Lord Jesus. After Jesus’s time, Christianity spread around the world in a few centuries. When the grace of our Lord Jesus was poured upon the people, they repented and turn to the Lord God. There was revival again in the 16th century and the Gospel was taken to the whole world. Many missionaries even from England sacrificed their lives to carry the love of our Lord. But today, Christianity is in decline. There are many reasons for the decline and analysing the reasons is not beneficial for our spiritual growth. But all through the Lord has kept a small remnant for Himself. This remnant has been faithful in keeping the Lord’s commandment and being His witness. Today, we are among the remnant and have a very important role to play.
Our country is in need of revival. The bruised reed and smoking flax in verse 3 are metaphors that refer to faith and obedience. They are needed for a lamp to work and give light. When the fuel is full and the thread or reed is long enough, it gives light. The light goes dim when the thread becomes short or the oil supply is low. When our faith is strong and we obey our Lord’s commandments, we reflect the true light Jesus to those around us. We are given the responsibility of carrying the true light Jesus to everyone in this country. When we are firm in our faith and obey to His voice, our Lord can change shine light in the lives of those around us. Just as the lamp is fuelled by oil, our faith and obedience must be fuelled by prayer and the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Let us pray for the grace of our Lord to be poured on us and those around us. We need our Lord’s grace to carry His light to the people around us. Those around us need our Lord’s grace to repent and turn to Him. Let us ask ourselves if we are reflecting Jesus in our lives and showing the true light to the community? The prophecy in verse 3 will be fulfilled again if we do our part in carrying the true light Jesus this transitory life.
I pray we are fuelled by prayer. I pray that we listen to the Holy Spirit to guide us. I pray that we are firm in our faith and obedient to our Lord’s commandments. I pray that we reflect Jesus in all that we do in our lives and be His witnesses. I pray we lead those around us to the Lord. Amen!