CHRIST:
Suffered But Was Glorified
First Peter 1:10-12
What account would two blind men give each other of the same elephant they had just felt? While describing the same animal, one might state it couldn’t have been very big, because its tail was so short. The other may have felt its leg and said that it must been a big animal. Both men were accurately describing the same animal. In a similar way, God showed the prophets of the Old Testament era, the time of Christ. They saw God’s Messiah. They saw His triumphant majesty. They longed to know when He would appear. There is only one recorded narrative of an Old Testament prophet that foretells the time of Christ’s arrival. Daniel was told that the Christ would publicly appear 483 years after the issuing of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem (Dan. 9:25). The decree to rebuild to Jerusalem came in 458 BC. Christ appeared at age 30, in 25 AD. This is exactly 483 years after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem. Thus the prophets saw and longed for the Day of Christ.
1. What did Jesus say of the privileged position of those He spoke to and lived with? (Mtt. 13:17)
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2. Observe the prophecy of the coming Messiah in Psalm 2, and Psalm 72. What impression do these predictions give us of the coming Messiah?
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Thus the expectation of the Messiah was that He would be a strong military figure who would overthrow the enemies of God with the aid of divine wrath. The prophets must have been impressed with the power of the coming Messiah. When God spoke of Him, He used terms like "King" to describe Him. He revealed to David that He would be of his lineage, and that He would establish a kingdom that would have no end (2 Sam. 7:13).
3. But when Christ did appear, how did He interpret His "kingdom"? (Luke 17:21)
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4. Was Christ’s kingdom to resemble an earthly kingdom? (Jn. 18:36)
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THE CHRIST WOULD SUFFER?
The prophets who prophesied of the coming Messiah were baffled about what the Holy Spirit was showing them. They had no trouble accepting that Christ would reign in glory, but they were curious about they were shown preceding Christ’s glory.
5. Read Isaiah 53. What did Isaiah foresee?
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God’s Word is an unfolding Word. That is, it unfolds to give us greater levels of detail and understanding about a topic. From almost the very beginning, God declared He would send the Christ who would suffer and then be glorified.
6. What expression in Genesis 3 supports this concept of a suffering yet triumphant Messiah?
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This unfolding of God’s Word is sometimes referred to as progressive revelation. The predictions of the coming Messiah were also progressive. They reach their highest level of revelation in the Gospels and then in the Epistles of the New Testament.
A REDEEMING SACRIFICE
It became apparent to the some of the prophets, especially Isaiah, that the Christ would be the lamb of God. John the Baptist plainly declared Him to be so (Jn. 1:29). Thus the Christ was not just to suffer as a mere martyr, His sufferings and death were to be redemptive. That is they would pay the price for our sin.
7. When Christ died, what ended? (Hebrews 9:26; Col. 2:14; refer to Rom. 10:4)
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Mankind was created as a race, not a company. A race originates from two parents. A company is made up of numerous persons unrelated to each other. Because Mankind is a race, it was possible for them to be redeemed by another Head of the Human race (Christ, the last Adam- 1Cor. 15:45). But angels were not created as a race. That is why if they fall, there is no possibility of redemption for them.
8. Therefore what do angels do? (1Peter 1:12)
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CHRIST GLORIFIED
The suffering of Christ was not all that the prophets of old foresaw. They saw that the Christ would be glorified after His sufferings.
9. What was an aspect of Christ’s triumphant glory after His suffering? (Col. 2:15)
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10. Where did Christ position Himself after His suffering? (Luke 22:69; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1)
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11. What did Christ anticipate happening soon after His sufferings? (Jn. 17:3)
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We serve a risen, triumphant, all-conquering Christ who is presently seated on His throne, at the right hand of God Almighty.
Amen.
© 2001 Andrew Corbett, Legana, Tasmania