Various religions and sects take different views regarding Jesus of Nazareth. Some say He was an outstanding miracle worker and indeed He was. Some say He was a prophet, maybe not quite equal to Moses but a very important prophet. We would say with them that’s true.
Christians of every nation, however, believe Jesus to be the promised Messiah and the Saviour of all who accept Him, all who believe in Him. We call them believers. I have met them in many different places and from many different lands. For example, I have met believers from India. I have met Japanese believers. I have met a believer from Swaziland, from Ethiopia, from Egypt, from Greece, from Germany, from Lebanon, from Israel, from the United States and many other countries. Yes, believers in every nation believe Jesus to be the Messiah, the One whom God had promised and the Saviour of all who accept Him, all who believe in Him.
In every generation the question about Jesus must be answered, for to many people Jesus is a puzzle. They ask the question, IS THIS THE VERY CHRIST? We can find the answer in John 7:25-31.
25 Then said some of them of Jerusalem, is not this he, whom they seek to kill?
26 But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?
27 Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is.
28 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.
29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.
30 Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come.
31 And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done?
Is this the very Christ? I propose to answer this question. Yes, yes, this is the very Christ. In this text are set forth several definite EVIDENCES which support my answer that this is the very Christ.
The first Evidence:
The Mystery of His Coming.
IIn identity He was the one they wanted to kill. There was something mysterious about Him because they said, “We know where he comes from.” Yet they were very unsure about Him. They said, “Who is this man? Do the rulers really believe that he is the very Christ.” But they said they knew Him. You could go over there right now to the country where He lived. You could find the town in which He was born. You could find the place where He grew up. You could find the area where He ministered around the Sea of Galilee. They knew Him and yet there was something mysterious about Him because they were so unsure about Him.
The Bible predicted about the Messiah’s coming. Genesis 3:15, that early, God said that the seed of the woman was going to crush the seed of the serpent. When Jacob bid his sons goodbye in Genesis 49, he said of Judah that the scepter should not depart from Judah until Shiloh come; unto him should the gathering of the people be. The prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 7:14 predicted the virgin birth. He said, “A virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel, God with us.”
Now I have only quoted three passages in the Old Testament predictions about the coming of Jesus. There’s something of a mystery about His coming but that mystery clears up when you see the predictions in the Bible about Him.
There is a second Evidence:
The Manner of His Coming.
When Jesus replied to these people He said, “You know both me and you know where I come from and I have not come of myself, but He who sent me is true.” He said He had been sent by the Tr...
