Deuteronomy 18:15-22
15 "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him. 
16 This is according to all that you asked of the Lord your God in Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, 'Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, let me not see this great fire anymore, or I will die.' 
17 The Lord said to me, 'They have spoken well.
18 I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 
19 It shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him. 
20 But the prophet who speaks a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.' 
21 You may say in your heart, 'How will we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?' 
22 When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him. 

The Old Testament had over 300 prophecies of the first coming of Christ.  Compound Probability is a mathematical term relating to the likeliness of two independent events occurring.  Compound probabilities are used by insurance underwriters to assess risks and assign premiums to various insurance products.  The most basic example of compound probability is flipping a coin twice. If the probability of getting heads is 50% (.50), then the chances of getting heads twice in a row would be (.50 X .50), or .25 (25%). 

Micah 5:2 states that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem.  It has been concluded that the chance of one man being born in Bethlehem was one in 300,000.  If you add seven additional prophecies, the odds increase dramatically. Eight different prophecies being fulfilled by one man is estimated to be one in (10 plus sixteen zeros or) 100,000,000,000,000,000.  I do not have room to provide the odds of three hundred prophecies being fulfilled by Jesus as the Messiah, but trust me; Jesus is the answer.

Moses was a Prophet who was standing between God and the children of Israel.  Next week we will take a hard look at Moses as we look into Exodus.  At this point, just know that the Nation of Israel was looking for the Prophet.  The Nation was not in slavery like in Exodus, but they were under the command of Rome and they wanted relief.  They wanted a political Messiah who would get rid of these Romans and free the Nation.  The Lamb of God was not what they wanted.  They wanted the Lion of Judah.  The Lion of Judah will arrive, but that will be the second coming of Christ. I hope you have welcomed the Lamb of God before you meet the Lion of Judah. 

John 1:19-23
19 This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?" 
20 And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ." 
21 They asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" And he said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No." 
22 Then they said to him, "Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?" 
23 He said, "I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as Isaiah the prophet said." 

John quotes Isaiah 40:3.  I love John the Baptist.  In Luke 7:28 Jesus says that among those born of women, there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.  John came in the spirit of Elijah the Prophet, but was not aware of what role he was playing in the events of divine history.  He knew he was one crying in the wilderness, but he was not aware that he was in the spirit of Elijah.  He was the son of a Levitical priest and he gave up his right to be counted among the prienthood to answer an higher calling from God.

Luke 3:21-22
21 Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, 
22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, 
"You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased." 

This is a really cool point in scripture.  You see all aspects of God represented at the same point in time.  This is not recorded very often.  You have Jesus being baptized, the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus, and you have the Father speaking.  This was a sign for John the Baptist to know that Jesus was the Messiah.  This was a public display in front of multiple people.

Luke 9:34-36
34 While he was saying this, a cloud formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 
35 Then a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!" 
36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.  And they kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen. 

By contrast, this was a private display for the three main disciples; Peter, James and John.  Remember what was said back in Deuteronomy about I will put My words in His mouth.  Jesus said over and over that what He taught was from the Father.

John 5:39-47
39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; 
40 and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 
41 I do not receive glory from men; 
42 but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. 
43I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 
44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 
45 Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. 
46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 
47But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

Jesus was rocking the religious establishment.  So much so, that we saw in Luke 7:18-30 John the Baptist sent his guys to ask Jesus if He was the one or should they expect another.  Jesus discounts all methods of man seeking his own righteousness in religion.  God provided the only religious system in the Tabernacle and He allowed that to be removed.  The same will be true for the Temple after Jesus is raised.  Jesus came challenging the religious leaders and verifying His claims with miracles beyond explanation.  How could the religious leaders of that day reject Jesus and the miracles?  How can they do it today?  How could Judas, when he had walked with Jesus and witnessed all these miracles? 

Matthew 7:13-23
13 "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 
14 For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
15 "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 
16 You will know them by their fruits.  Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 
17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 
18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 
20 So then, you will know them by their fruits.
21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 
22 Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' 
23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'

Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of heaven.  Wow. That is the scariest statement in the world.  These guys prophesied in Jesus' name and cast out demons in Jesus' name and performed miracles in Jesus' name.  These were religious people and they are going to hell.  This illustration is not about the unbeliever.  It is about the guy in church.  God does not care about your religion.  God only cares about you having a personal relationship with Him through Jesus.  These religious people were performing religious acts trying to build their own righteousness before God. Your self righteousness is worthless in the presence of God.  Jesus is your only righteousness.  Jesus is the way and the truth and the life.  When God sees you, He must see the blood of Christ covering you or you are an eternal dead man.

Exodus 9:27-30
27 Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, "I have sinned this time; the Lord is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones. 
28 Make supplication to the Lord, for there has been enough of God's thunder and hail; and I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer." 
29 Moses said to him, "As soon as I go out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the Lord; the thunder will cease and there will be hail no longer, that you may know that the earth is the Lord's. 
30 But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God."

Moses did as Pharaoh asked and Moses asked God to stop the hail.  God responded.  God provides for your life today.  Do you fear the Lord God?  Are you any different than Pharaoh?  Do you have a healthy respect for the power of our Creator?  Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Think about this; a hurricane is one of the most deadly forces of nature.  My God can tell the hurricane to be quite.  That is power.  Death gets 100% of all mankind from the beginning to time till now except for Jesus so let's make that 99.999%.  Jesus did away with death.  The flesh still terminates, but the eternal spirit you have inside you lives on.  That is why suicide is a big fat lie.  If you are clinging to Jesus, your spirit will live on in paradise. We all need a healthy respect for the power of our Lord God Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth.

Genesis 32:28-30
28 He said, "Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed." 
29 Then Jacob asked him and said, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And he blessed him there. 
30 So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, "I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved."

Judges 13:17-18
17 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, "What is your name, so that when your words come to pass, we may honor you?" 
18 But the angel of the Lord said to him, "Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?" 

This is interesting. The Angel of the Lord asked Jacob his name.  Jacob's name means deceiver.  God wanted Jacob to call himself what he was and that was a deceiver.  The story in Judges is Samson's parents talking to Jesus before He came in the flesh.  His name is Wonderful.  In Genesis 32 God changes Jacob's name to Israel, but notice that God does not call Jacob Israel until Jacob cleans house in Genesis 35.

Genesis 35:1-2
1 Then God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and live there, and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau." 
2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods which are among you, and purify yourselves and change your garments;

1 Kings 12:28-29
28 So the king consulted, and made two golden calves, and he said to them, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; behold your gods, O Israel, that brought you up from the land of Egypt." 
29 He set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 

Jacob's family had idols?  Remember Rachel stole Laban's idols when they went back to meet Esau.  God wants to use you, but you must first put away your foreign gods or should I say your self righteousness.  Jacob saw visions of angels going up and down between heaven and earth and still tolerated idol worship in his family.  Husbands; God will hold us accountable for your marriage.  Dads; God will hold us responsible for our families.  Wives & moms; God will hold you responsible.  Make no mistake, idol worship is nothing more than self righteousness.

We discussed last week the great sin of King Jeroboam.  We discussed how this sin might explain why Dan is not included in the list of tribes in Revelation.  Not really sure, but God mentions this sin of Jeroboam multiple times and it is very serious.  Jeroboam denied the existence of the Living God.  Is that any different than a school saying that man evolved from slime or a monkey?  This is a very great sin.  Why did they place the second calf in the city of Bethel?  This was a special place where God met Jacob and Jeroboam turns around and defiles it with one of his two idols.  The people in Dan were idol worshipers so I am sure that they just accepted the idol without any problem, but we are not told anything about Bethel.  I have always wondered it this was a problem or were these people into idol worship as well.

Genesis 35:9-10
9 Then God appeared to Jacob again when he came from Paddan-aram, and He blessed him. 
10 God said to him, "Your name is Jacob; You shall no longer be called Jacob, But Israel shall be your name."  Thus He called him Israel. 

John 1:13 is the focus of next week's study, but I want to reference it here.  It saysGod's children are born not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.  The same is true for Old Testament guys.  Think about this; Jacob had twelve sons and one daughter, but he did not have children after his name was changed to Israel.  The twelve boys were adopted by God to create the Nation of Israel.  Just like John 1:13. 

2 Corinthians 10:3-6
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 
6 and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.

Corinth was known for the temple of Aphrodite, goddess of love, which was served by cult prostitutes for centuries.  It was a prominent commercial center where Paul engaged in tent making to support himself.  Paul lived in Corinth for eighteen months while God established His church. Notice that Paul realized that this walk with Jesus was more than the simple religion he was raised to know.  Paul now sees the spiritual battle with the man in the mirror.  This was a war against thoughts, knowledge, and presumptions.  God knows the intent of your thoughts. 

2 Corinthians 11:2-4
2 For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. 
3 But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. 
4 For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.

Jesus makes a reference to Noah in Matthew 24.  Paul makes a reference to Adam and Eve in the Garden.  It blows my mind to hear a 'christian' who denies the first eleven chapters of Genesis just because he does not understand it.  Simple and pure devotion to Jesus as your Christ is the bare truth of Christianity.  Do you know the simple gospel?  Jesus was virgin born, lived a perfect life, was crucified for our sins, and raised from the dead on the third day.  All this was prophesied years ago by God's prophets so that the Nation of Israel would know the Messiah when He came in the flesh.  Most of those religious leaders missed Him. 

Job 28:23-28
23 "God understands its way, And He knows its place.
24 "For He looks to the ends of the earth And sees everything under the heavens.
25 "When He imparted weight to the wind And meted out the waters by measure,
26 When He set a limit for the rain And a course for the thunderbolt,
27 Then He saw it and declared it; He established it and also searched it out.
28 "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; 
And to depart from evil is understanding.'"

Ephesians 4:30 
Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 

The Holy Spirit goes by a few different titles just like Jesus.  Jesus is the Word, the Angel of the Lord, the Commander of the Lord Host, the Prince of Peace, etc.  The Holy Spirit is called Truth, Wisdom, the Helper, etc.  Ephesians 4 tells us that the Holy Spirit seals us in the Lord.  Remember John 4:24 says that God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and Truth.  Amen.

1 Peter 1:10-11
10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, 
11 seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. 

Ephesians 4:17-30
17 So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 
18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 
19 and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 
20 But you did not learn Christ in this way, 
21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 
22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 
23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 
24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. 
25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 
26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 
27 and do not give the devil an opportunity. 
28 He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need. 
29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 
30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 
31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 
32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. 

Jesus is the Prophet promised to Moses.  Over the past few weeks we have discussed the form and function of God.  The Messiah is the Lamb of God as a sacrifice.  That is not the form and function of the Holy Spirit.  That is the form and function of Jesus.  The Holy Spirit is inside us, but notice that Christians can grieve the Holy Spirit by our actions.  We as Christians are in the Kingdom, but this physical world is not the Kingdom.  The church body makes up the Kingdom, but we are living among people with darkened understanding.  People who are ignorant of the reality of this life.  These people are the reason why we are around.  God wants to use us to reach these people and turn their hardened hearts over to the Holy Spirit so they can be softened with the truth of Jesus.  That is what Paul was talking about in 2 Corinthians 10.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 
6 and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.

Now let us look at the prophets.  You should be finishing up reading the prophet Isaiah.  We need to a clear understanding of what God says about prophecy. Men moved by the Holy Spirit recorded God's plan.  We will discuss more about prophecy next week, but this is a good starting point.  Prophecy is an arrow, pointing at a future event.  Peter makes it known that he and the other disciples were witnesses that the prophecies about the Messiah have been fulfilled in the life of Jesus.  Above in 1 Peter, he says that the Spirit of Christ guided the prophets.

2 Peter 1:16-21
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 
17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, "This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased"- 
18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. 
19 So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.
20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, 
21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. 

Peter is referencing the transfiguration in verse 17 when Elijah and Moses discussed with Jesus the things He was about the accomplish.  Think about that scene. Peter is in the presence of God the Father and God the Son plus Moses and Elijah.  WOW.  Talk about a top ten list. 

Some people will discount the first eleven books of Genesis because they can not understand them.  Moses wrote what he was instructed to write. Moses was not physically alive when those event happened, but God either showed the events to Moses or told Moses what to record for our benefit.  Look at it like this, Paul talks about Adam in Romans 5.  If you do not believe Adam existed, then you might want to remove all writings of Paul from your bible because he believed what Moses wrote about this guy named Adam in the Garden of Eden.  Below is a list of references to people or events from Genesis chapters 1-11.

Ezra the scribe who wrote 1 & 2 Chronicles references Adam in the garden of Eden and Noah in 1 Chronicles 1
Isaiah the prophet references Noah in chapter 54:9.
Ezekiel the prophet references Noah in chapter 14 verses 14 and 20.
Paul wrote and referenced Adam and Eve in 1 Timothy 2:13-13.
Paul wrote and referenced Adam in 1 Corinthians 15:22 and 45.
Paul wrote and referenced Adam in Romans 5:14.
Luke references Adam, Seth, Noah, etc. in the list of family members in Luke 3:36-38.
Jesus references Abel as recorded in the gospels of Matthew chapter 23:35 and Luke 11:51.
Jesus references Noah as recorded in the gospels of Matthew 24:37-38 and Luke 17:26-27.
Peter references Noah in 1 Peter 3:20 and 2 Peter 2:5.
Hebrews references Cain and Abel in chapters 11:4 and Abel in 12:24.
Hebrews references Noah in chapter 11:7.
John references Cain and Abel in his letter in 1 John 3:12.
Jude, the physical half brother of Jesus, references Cain in Jude 1:11.

If you say the first eleven chapters of Genesis are not important and I must choose.  I have to choose to go with Jesus, Peter, Paul, John, Luke, Jude, the writer of Hebrews, Ezekiel, Isaiah and Ezra the scribe.  These men believe what Moses wrote in Genesis chapters 1-11 under inspiration of God to record for our benefit.  Think about this; the Angel of the Lord (Jesus prior to the virgin birth) told/showed Moses what to write in Genesis and later Jesus references what He had told Moses to write down in the first place. Just because you can not understand the stories from Genesis chapter 1-11 does not mean it did not happen.  It just means that you are not God.  You are a man of the flesh darkened in your understanding with ignorant speculations from a hardened heart waging war against the knowledge the Living God.
Open your bibles to . . .

Acts 8:29-40
29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go up and join this chariot." 
30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" 
31 And he said, "Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 
32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: "He was led as a sheep to slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He does not open His mouth. 
33 "In humiliation His judgment was taken away; Who will relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth."
34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, "Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?" 
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.
36 As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?" 
37 [And Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."] 
38 And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him. 
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing.
40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea. 

Faith is believing God.  This story in Acts 8 is a cool scene where God goes out of His way to reach a man who is seeking the face of the Living God.  Some might call this blind faith.  No, I have science and history to support my faith.  Jesus was a real man as seen in historical accounts in the bible and outside the bible.  The fact that Jesus is God in the flesh born of the virgin is faith believing what God says.  Can you prove Him wrong?  Archeologists might dig up a letter from this eunuch proving his interaction with Philip.  Faith is believing that God can snatch Philip away and drop him at a town called Azotus.  Archeologists might dig up records of Philip preaching in Azotus during the time mentioned.  God records His accounts in scripture which can be supported by science and history.  Faith is believing God in the areas beyond the explanation of this world. 

Just because a professor in his sixties with multiple degrees says that God does not exist, that does not mean that God stopped existing.  That just means that this professor does not understand God.  His denial of God's existence is just his way of dealing with his hardened heart.  This professor is proud.  This professor is wrong.  This professor is made in the image of the Living God just like me and you, but he will burn in the lake of fire forever because he pretends God does not exist.  This is extremely sad.  God does not want any man to perish.  God wants to provide life to all mankind, but you must come to God in the way He prescribes.  Jesus is the way, the truth, the life and the only path to God.