Validated by Prophecy

Acts 3:13–21

“The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus. You handed Him over to be killed, and you disowned Him before Pilate, though he had decided to let Him go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the author of life, but God raised Him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see. “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what He had foretold through all the prophets, saying that His Messiah would suffer. Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the LORD, and that He may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. Heaven must receive Him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as He promised long ago through His holy prophets.”

Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah, the Apostle Peter makes it very clear here to Israel (vv. 18, 20-21). Interestingly, St. Peter also refers to Jesus as the Author of Life (v. 15), that Jesus is God Himself. God offers us all mercy and repentance because, as the Living Life writer notes, “in sin and ignorance, the Israelites [and us, had we been there would’ve] condemned Jesus to death, but Christ’s role as Messiah has been validated by prophecy and His sacrificial death vindicated by the resurrection.” The prophets spoke of a suffering messiah, our LORD explained this to St. Cleopas and his companion, “How foolish you are, how slow you are to believe everything the prophets said!  Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and then to enter his glory?” And Jesus explained to them what was said about Himself in all the Scriptures, beginning with the books of Moses and the writings of all the prophets…. They said to each other, “Wasn’t it like a fire burning in us when he talked to us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us (Luke 24:25-27, 32)?” King David spoke of God’s Holy One not seeing decay following death (Psa 16:10), but He will walk out of the grave (Acts 2:24-27), and He did. The Prophet Daniel spoke of His timing, "Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. "Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens', and sixty-two 'sevens'. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two 'sevens', the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven'. In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him (Dan 9:24–27).” “So, If Daniel was right, then Messiah came and died prior to the year AD 70. If Daniel was right, then there are no other options for who the Messiah is, but Jesus of Nazareth” [Here’s a comprehensive resource for the messianic prophecies from an organisation called Jews for Jesus: http://bit.ly/2xRvVwJ]. Truly, as the St. Peter proclaimed, “Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God by miracles, wonders and signs (Acts 2:22)” and so we repent and honour Him as our God and saviour (Titus 2:13).