His Life Foretold - Part B

Jesus will not toss you away. He will take you in. He will take you near. Do you remember his words? Do you remember his promise? Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden. I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. People can be fickle, but Jesus isn't like everyone else. And today on Connect with Skip Heitzig, Pastor Skip encourages you with powerful truth about what Jesus will and will not do when you trust in him. Hi, this is Pastor Skip Heitzig and here we are ending 2023.

Hard to believe, right? But it's a time when many people review their giving in the past year and consider an end of the year donation. Well, in 2023, we have seen excellent growth in our media ministry, both in digital outlets and in reaching new cities with these Bible teachings. I'd like to invite you to be part of further expansion in this coming year. We've assembled a special resource package and a thank you gift for those who partner with us.

I hope that will include you. Here's the details. As we approach the end of the year, here's a special resource package we have developed to say thanks for your support. Over four decades of ministry, Pastor Skip has been able to invite some excellent speakers to fill his pulpit. We want you to hear some of these memorable messages from teachers such as Josh McDowell. God said, I want you to be able in the 21st century and open your scriptures and have a confidence, thus saith the Lord.

It has not been lost. Also a part of this pulpit package, Dr. David Jeremiah. Jesus Christ shines in the world today by his reflection in the lives of his followers.

Nobody's going to see Jesus if they don't see Jesus in us. If you can make an end of your donation of $100 or more to support this program, you will receive this pulpit package of 10 excellent messages on CD or by download. You will want to hear what Joel Rosenberg said about remarkable conversions in the Middle East. That's the kind of door that when you pray, Lord, I'd love to go build a friendship in the name of Jesus with a king and with a Muslim president.

Apparently God says yes to some of these prayers. The pulpit package containing 10 different speakers giving full length messages. To request your copy, go to connectwithskip.com or by calling 1-800-922-1888.

That is connectwithskip.com or call 1-800-922-1888. Now let's head over to Matthew 12 in our Bibles as we listen to what Skip has for us today. You remember last week in our study I said that of all of the books in the world, the 26 some odd books that people say are Holy Scripture for their different religions, that they're all missing an important element, and that is fulfilled prophecy. Detailed, fulfilled, predictive prophecy. The Bible's full of it.

Those books are absent of it. As an example, the Bible says when the Messiah comes, God's chosen one, that he will be preceded by a messenger, Isaiah chapter 40. That speaks of John the Baptist. That he will perform miracles, Isaiah 35. That he will enter Jerusalem riding a donkey, Zechariah chapter 9 verse 9. That he will be rejected by the Jewish nation, Isaiah 53 one through three.

That he'll come at the very precise timetable of God his Father to the very day, Daniel 9 25 and 26. He will be rejected and killed, Daniel 9 24 and 25. He'll be sent to the broken-hearted, Isaiah 61. He'll be praised by children, Psalm 8. He'll be betrayed by a close friend, Psalm 41 9 and Zechariah 11.

The money of the betrayal will be returned and used to buy a potter's field, Zechariah 11. He will come as a sacrifice for sin, Isaiah 53, and he will be silent when accused during his trial, also Isaiah chapter 53 verse 7. Now I just gave you a sampling. I gave you 12 predictions, 12 predictions made in advance hundreds of years before he was ever born, before he ever came, but in his life he fulfilled them. Some years ago a great book was put out called Science Speaks by Dr. Peter Stoner, a mathematician who decided to give the statistical mathematic probability of one man in history fulfilling the predictions that Jesus fulfilled.

Now I quoted you 12. It is thought that Jesus fulfilled over 300 of them. According to Dr. Stoner, the odds of one man in history fulfilling just eight predictions that Jesus fulfilled is one in 10 to the 17th power. That's just a number to most people, but if you look at it visually, this is what it would mean. You could take that many silver dollars, 10 to the 17th power, you could fill the state of Texas, two feet deep with silver dollars. According to Dr. Stoner, according to Dr. Stoner, if you were to paint one, pre-select a silver dollar in advance, place it somewhere in that stack in Texas, blindfold someone and send them in to find the one silver dollar you have pre-picked would be one in 10 to the 17th power.

That's fulfilling eight predictions. Then Stoner says, for one man in history to fulfill 16 of the predictions that Jesus fulfilled, well you need more real estate than Texas. You need a planet made out of silver dollars, the planet being so big that the measurement of that planet from the center to the edge would be the distance of the earth to the sun times 30. So imagine this huge, gigantor silver ball so big that from the center to the edge it is 93 million miles times 30. Paint a silver dollar, send someone in to find it, the odds that he could do it would be one in 10 to the 45th power or the odds of one man in history fulfilling 16 of the predictions Jesus made. Now I gave you 12, not eight, not 16, 12.

So we're somewhere between Texas and that silver ball. The point being that when Jesus came and he lived on this earth and he did what he did, he fulfilled the will and the plan of his father and the predictions of the prophets. So he came to serve. Second, Isaiah noted, he came to speak. Look at verse 18 once again. Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased.

Jesus said that or the father said that when Jesus was baptized at the Jordan. I will put my spirit upon him and he notices will declare justice to the Gentiles. He came to speak.

The word declare, apangello in Greek means to proclaim, to announce, to tell, or to preach. He will come and preach a message of truth. He will declare.

He will declare. Of the many activities that Jesus did while he was on the earth, whether it's healing or praying or ministering to disciples or crowds, of all the activities he did, one of the one of the most important things he did and probably that took the bulk of his time is he spoke words, messages, parables. He spoke to people. In Luke chapter 20, summing it all up in verse 1, it says he taught the people and he preached the gospel.

And we read this over and over again. He goes to the synagogue and the Bible says he taught them. He went down to the Sea of Galilee, got on a boat, and the crowds gathered and he taught them, the scripture says. He goes to the temple in Jerusalem and Solomon's porch and crowds gather around him and he taught them. The multitudes go out to him and he taught them.

But one of the most striking places that shows us that this was such a priority to Jesus is in Mark's gospel, chapter 2, Christ is in Capernaum where his headquarters is. It says he goes into the house. I can only surmise that as Peter's house because he was staying with Peter.

And we're told this. When he went into the house, many gathered together so that there was no longer room to receive them. It's a packed house.

Not even near the door, so it's spilling out now into the courtyard. Listen. And he preached the word to them. And he preached the word to them. Wait, wait, wait, wait.

You got this big crowd of people streaming out the door, peeking in the windows, people with a variety of needs, most of them poor, some in deep poverty, many with incurable diseases, and the first thing you do is preach the word to them? Uh-huh. Now you're getting his priority system. In the gospels, the four gospels, Jesus is said to teach 36 different times. He is called a teacher 47 times.

Why? Why is this so important to him? Well, he said it himself.

Listen to what he said. And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free. Jesus came to speak God's truth, to free people who are in bondage to their own ideas. For a long time, I have told you my concern, and it's a growing concern for the church, that especially in the modern church, there seems to be this tendency, this emphasis toward pure emotion, pure passion.

Be passionate about it. And so you have people who are high on zeal but short on facts. And Hosea the prophet said, my people perish for lack of knowledge.

Paul said to Timothy, until I come give attention to doctrine, to teaching, to exhortation, because you see, truth, biblical truth, has a way of cutting through the haze and letting people see Jesus as he is clearly. He came to serve, he came to speak, and notice to whom he came to speak, he will declare, preach, pronounce justice to the Gentiles. You know what a Gentile is? It's somebody who's not a Jew. You know why this is exciting to me? Because I am a Gentile.

And so are most y'all. There's a few of you who are probably converted Jewish people who serve Jesus as your Messiah, but most of us fit into this category of Gentiles. Now here's why this is exciting, because the Jewish mind 2,000 years ago saw the Messiah as purely Jewish for the Jewish people.

They got it partly right. He was the Jewish Messiah for the Jewish people, but also for the Gentiles. That's where the church comes in. He would take Jew and Gentile and bring us together into his called out one, his group. He will speak to the Gentiles. For God so loved the Jews that he gave, oh did I just misquote that?

Yeah, sorry. For God so loved the Gentiles. No, for God so loved the world. Jew, Gentile, everyone, every color that he gave his only begotten son.

God said to Abraham in the Old Testament, in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. That's the reason the gospel didn't just go to Jerusalem. It went to a Samaritan woman.

It went to a Roman soldier, and it went to you. He came to serve. He came to speak. There's a third thing he came to do, according to Isaiah the prophet, noted by Matthew. He came to strengthen.

That's what verse 19 and 20 are about. He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax he will not quench, until he sends forth justice to victory. Now let me unravel this for you, because most of us reading this it just sounds like, huh? I don't quite get it.

So there are some word pictures I want you to get. First of all, it says he will not quarrel. It means he won't harass or annoy. Jesus never annoyed people. He never harassed them. He will not quarrel.

Notice the next words. He will not cry out means to shout or scream excitedly. It's a Greek word used of dogs that keep barking over and over again. Do you have a neighbor like that?

Maybe they think they have a neighbor like that. Maybe that's your dog. But you know that dog just keeps yelping and barking.

That's the idea. He won't quarrel. He won't cry out. In other words, he will not be a political rabble-rouser. He won't push himself on people. He won't be there to stir up trouble. You know, Jesus never berated people or cajoled people. He never stood on a rock and said, you're going to hell. He spoke with such dignity, such control. Ecclesiastes 9 tells us the quiet words of a wise person are better than the shouts of a foolish king.

But then look at verse 20. A bruised reed he will not break. Reeds were used in ancient times. Papyrus reeds were used for making pens so you could write, making flutes so people could make music on. Sometimes reeds were sewn together to make mats for people to sleep on or walk on. But whenever a reed got either softened or too brittle, it was broken off and thrown out.

It was discarded. And then notice a smoldering flax or a smoking flax. Now, that's a wick, you know, when you light a candle and there's a little wick sticking out of it. In ancient times, they didn't have wax. They just had oil lamps with a little piece of flax or a wick into the oil. And it would burn down. And when it got just down to the stub and it was about to smolder, you just pick it up and throw it away. So here it says, he will not, or a bruised reed he will not break.

Smoking flax he will not quench. This is a reference to people that Jesus would deal with. Lives that are broken, that are worn out. The world would discard them.

The Pharisees thought that weak people were not even worth their time. The Romans could care less about them, discard them, throw them away. But not Jesus. He'll seek to restore the broken reed. He'll seek to rekindle the smoldering flame. Jesus will not put your fire out.

He will only stoke your fire up. Jesus will not toss you away. He will take you in. He will take you near. Do you remember his words?

Do you remember his promise? Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden. I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. This is the Christ who strengthens people who are beat up by life.

The kind of people that would be discarded by the world. Jesus said, you're just my kind. Don't forget, Paul said that that's God's choice. That God has chosen the weak things, the insignificant things, the despised things.

That's God's choice. He takes the smoldering person, he fans them into flame till their faith is strong. He came to strengthen. By the way, I've made an observation over the years about people who come to Christ. My observation is that more people come to Jesus in a time of crisis than almost any other way. Oh sure, some will come because they're intellectually persuaded, but very few. Some will come because they're in love with the promises of God, they're in love with the promises of God. Others will come because they realize there's a hole in their own soul. They're not fulfilled in living the way they have been living and so they want that satisfaction. But by and large, most people come when they're broken, bruised by life.

Whether it's through a divorce or a disease or a breakup or finances. They come in their weakness and they discover Jesus dispenses strength. They come in their brokenness and they discover, here's somebody who likes to restore old junk.

He didn't want the new car, he restores the 57 Chevy because that's a classic. He likes to restore that which is broken. By the way, do a study sometime on broken things in the Bible, see how valuable they really are. Broken pots in Judges 7 won a battle for the children of Israel. Broken bread in Matthew 14 fed a multitude.

A broken flask of alabaster by a woman filled the room with fragrance and blessed even Jesus. The broken body of Christ brought salvation. Imagine what he can do with your broken heart. When you give it to him, he'll strengthen it. He'll infuse life into it. He'll take that little smoldering flame, that little spark, fan it into a fire. He came to serve, he came to speak, he came to strengthen and finally number four, he came to save.

Look at the end of verse 20, end of verse 21. Until he sends forth justice to victory and in his name, the Gentiles will trust. Yes, eventually Jesus will win.

Eventually he'll be the victor. But this will be a victory won by simple faith. By grace you have been saved, Paul said, through faith.

1st John chapter 5 verse 5, and this is the victory that has overcome the world, even your faith. Simple trust in him. Trusting Jesus, coming to him, is not like the religious world. In the religions of this world, you have to earn your way to God or pray your way to God or sweat your way to God or make a pilgrimage somewhere to find God. But with Jesus, you just got to trust your way to God.

You just trust him. I trust you. You did the work for me. You died on the cross. You paid for my sins.

You did it all. And I trust you for that. And when you trust, you are saved.

You belong to him. And that means he'll keep you. And that means he'll be with you when life hurts. And that means that all things will work together for you. And that means that all things will work together for your good. And that means he'll get you from earth to heaven just because you trust him. The classic verse is Romans 10 verse 9.

If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. In his name, Gentiles will trust. Question, do you trust him? Do you really trust him? Somebody will say, well, if I ever really need him, I'm sure he'll be there to bail me out. Newsflash, you do need him. Not if I need him. You do need him.

24-7. This idea of he'll bail me out if I need him, it's like, you know, I have a really good parachute, man. It's cool. Look at my parachute on my back.

How cool that is. It's one thing to acknowledge the greatness of a parachute. It's another thing to jump out of the plane.

That's when you know it works. My challenge is jump out of the plane and trust his everlasting arms. Rest in him.

Rest in him. I got a Christmas card from a gal. I'm going to read it to you. It's a woman who really believes. She said, Dear Pastor Skip, we listen to your radio broadcast here in California. We have lived through much joy in our marriage. Sixty-two years, she says, of marriage and some sad times and some losses. Two daughters. One who died at 43 years old of cervical cancer, leaving three children, and one daughter, age 52, who died of liver cancer, plus a granddaughter that hung herself because her mom died. But she writes, But we have never despaired, despaired knowing that God is in everything and true in his love, even when I laid in a hospital in a coma from a lung infection.

Our life is in Jesus, and our witness is in his love always. And then she ended with this, I never wrote a pastor a card before. I hope I didn't say too much.

I closed that card and said, Are you kidding? You said exactly what needed to be said. And what she said is that trusting in God really works. Take it from a woman who has lived into old age through 62 years of marriage, through losing two children and a granddaughter, through going through maladies in the hospital, herself. She's saying trusting in God really works.

It really works. He came to serve. He came to speak. He came to strengthen.

He came to sing. In his name, Gentiles will trust. That's Skip Hyten with a message from the series Jesus Hope Foretold.

Find the full message as well as books, booklets and full teaching series at connectwithskip.com. Now here's Skip to tell you about a trip to the Holy Land coming up in 2024. We will be touring Israel from May 1st through May 12th. I hope that you'll join us firsthand to see some incredible sights like the Sea of Galilee.

I'm sure you've always wanted to see that. The Temple Mount in Jerusalem and the Garden Tomb, the place many people believe is where Jesus rose from the dead. The final deadline for registration is December 31st, so there's still time to take action and join Lenya and I for the trip of a lifetime.

Find full Israel information at connectwithskip.com. God desires for us to know him intimately through study of his word. That's why we share these messages to help you and many others connect to God through his word and grow in your walk through an intentional relationship with him.

And when you support this ministry, you keep these teachings you love available to you and to so many others around the world so they can grow and connect with God as you have. Just call 800-922-1888 to give a gift today. That's 800-922-1888 or visit connectwithskip.com slash donate. That's connectwithskip.com slash donate. Thank you. Join us again tomorrow as Skip shares how Jesus' death accomplished precisely what God said it would when he spoke through the prophet Isaiah centuries before. Connect with Skip Hyten is a presentation of Connection Communications, connecting you to God's never-changing truth in ever-changing times.