When? Where? Why?

The most specific early prophesy concerning when God’s promised Messiah would come is found in Daniel 9:21-27 and was also delivered by the Angel Gabriel to Daniel.  It is like many prophesies concerning the timing of events and leaves us wishing for more information; but we have enough to recognize some of the events that would be occurring.  It would happen sometime after the exiles in Babylon returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt the walls and the temple.  It would also be during troublesome times. (Rome’s specialty) 

             Ephesians 4:4 sums up the timing by saying, “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”  This verse also gives us the why of our story.  Just as Isaiah prophesied, He came to suffer and die in our place and for our sins; (Isaiah 52 & 53) and to redeem us back to God and shed the full light – the hope of eternal life – predicted by that ray of hope in the garden.  As Gabriel told Joseph, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

               The where of our story was much easier to pinpoint as Micah the prophet said, “But, you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2)  Luke describes the fulfillment of this place of His birth in his most quoted account in Luke, chapter 2.

                Yes, the Scriptures are filled with prophesies and their fulfillments as well as many that are yet to be fulfilled.  Sometimes much study still leaves us His ascension to heaven, “Will you at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?” and He answered, “it is not for you to know the times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.” (Acts 1:6-7) We, too, must be content to leave our questions with Him and rejoice in the answers we do have and believe Him for the future as we see so much of His love and faithfulness in the past.