We are looking at finding Jesus in the Bible.

This is not just to fill our minds with a knowledge, but so we can know Jesus better. Everything about this is that we could know Jesus.

Paul  I want to know Christ and the power of the resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering. (Philippians 3: 10) Paul’s  life was to know Jesus.

  1. Don’t toss out the old testament.
    1. If it is to know Jesus why not just study the New Testament?
    2. We need to know the framework of why Jesus came.
    3. EXAMPLE;  Saved, what does that mean?  God’s wrath is against us and he deserves to kill us.  But his grace has brought us into a relationship with Him where we can meet and know him.
      1. Context of knowing God is against us makes being saved even more valuable to us.
  2. Why is the story of Lot in the bible?
    1. Genesis 19: 36, 37 oldest daughter became the daughter of Moab.
    2. Ruth 1: 4 the two sons married Moabite women one was named Ruth
    3. Matthew 1: 5 Boaz was the father of Obed whose mother was Ruth
    4. The only reason Lot is in the Bible is that he is in the line of Jesus
  3. All of this is about Jesus and centered on Jesus.
  4. If we can’t find Jesus in the Bible, then we are just learning facts and systems that have no life in them.
  5. Just as the people in the Old Testament were looking for the Messiah, we are looking toward the the time when Messiah will reign in all the earth.
  1. Abram Father of all
  1. A pagan man in a pagan world somehow recognizes God
    1. Oral history
      1. Crying out to sun and moon
      2. Taking care of his fathers idol store.
      3. Abram was the first Iconoclast which means one who challenges or overturns traditional beliefs, customs, and values.
      4. He served other gods (Joshua 24: 2)
    2. God called him 2000 years before the birth of Jesus to be the father of Jesus (Matthew 1: 1)
    3. God picks a fatherless old man married to a barren woman to be the Father of many nations
      1. Jewish people roots in Abraham
      2. Arab people have their roots in Abraham
      3. Because of being grafted in, we have our roots in Abraham.
  2. Abram born of Terah (Genesis 11: 27)
    1. Tradition of people coming to celebrate the birth of Abram.  When they left, they went outside and saw a bright star in the sky.  this told them that Abram would grow to be fruitful and possess the land and overthrow kings.  They went and told the king of Ur and advised him to pay Terah money to kill the baby.  Tears moved from Ur to Haran.
    2. Imagine what Jewish people would have thought when they read about the birth of Jesus?

2 .Lord said Get Yourself Out of Here  Genesis 12: 1

  1. Abram promised seven promises
    1. Looking at him as the father of three religions these have been fulfilled
    2. They will also be fulfilled in Jesus.
    3. These promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed.  that is Abraham and the Messiah because seed is singular.  (Galatians 3: 16)
    4. The promises are fulfilled in Jesus. (2 Corinthians 1: 20)  He is the fulfillment of every promise God made to Abram.
      1. Messiah has become a servant to the circumcision (Jews) on behalf of the truth of God to confirm the promises given to the fathers (Romans 15: 8)
      2. Jesus came to the Jewish people to fulfill the promises made to Abram
  2. A great Nation
    1. If we just count the Jewish people this has been fulfilled
    2. One day the Messiah will rule over one nation and they will all call on the name of the Lord with purified lips (Zephaniah 3: 9)
  3. I will bless you
    1. We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Messiah (Ephesians 1: 3)
  4. Make your name great.
    1. All know Abraham
    2. One day every knee will bow to the Messiah (Philippians 2: 10, 11)
  5. You will be a blessing to others. Vs 2
    1. We all know one god through Abraham and his seed.
    2. The fullness of the blessing of the Messiah (Romans 15: 29)
    3. The Messiah the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith (Galatians 3: 14)
  6. I will bless those who bless you Genesis 12: 3)
    1. Any kindness we do to the least of these we do to Jesus Matthew 25: 40)
    2. Do a kindness to the least of these and you will not lose your reward.  (Matthew 10: 41, 42)
  7. Those who curse you will be cursed.
    1. Those who treated others bad treated Jesus bad (Matthew 25: 40)
    2. Depart from me Accursed one into the eternal fire which has been prepared  for the devil and his angels Matthew 25: 41)
  8. All the families of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 12: 3)
    1. This is the grafting in of the Gentile believers (Galatians 3: 29)
  9. And to your seed I will give this land Vs 7
    1. This is why the land is called the promised land.
    2. The Messiah will rule the world from Jerusalem.
    3. We will all go to Jerusalem to pay homage to Jesus.
  10. One more promise when Abraham got to the promised land. Genesis 13: 16
    1. Descendants as the dust of the earth.
    2. Dust scattered by the wind
    3. When Messiah comes, he will gather it together and water it making it the source of all life.