May 31
John 19:23-42
Three times in our reading today, John points to an event around Jesus' crucifixion which fulfills earlier Scriptures. Often these fulfillments are of a specific prophecy in a specific verse. For example, John 19:24 fulfills Psalm 22:18, and John 19:33 fulfills Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12, Psalm 34:20, and Zechariah 12:10. Other times the fulfillment seems to be broader than simply a single verse. For example, fulfillment language is used in John 19:28, but no specific Old Testament texts are quoted. It is possible that it is an explicit fulfillment of Psalm 69:21, which is quoted by other Gospel writers but not by John. Or, it may be a fulfillment "not of a particular trait in the scripture picture, but the perfect completion of the whole prophetic image (Westcott)." Regardless, all of these fulfillments point to the truthfulness of Scripture and the perfect work of Jesus.
A skeptic might think that Jesus simply knew the prophecies and sought to fulfill them, but could he really do that while he is on the cross? How could he fulfill prophecies centered around his birth? Jesus has already fulfilled around 300 prophecies, and at his return will fulfill the rest. These fulfillments remind us that Jesus is worthy of our trust, our lives, and has fulfilled everything necessary to be the one who saves us from our sins. Since, Jesus is the truth and Scriptures are true, we can entrust ourselves to them.
Father God, thank you that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah who died for my sins. Help me to trust you and your Scriptures. Amen.
How should the trustworthy nature of Jesus and the Scripture impact your life?
Three times in our reading today, John points to an event around Jesus' crucifixion which fulfills earlier Scriptures. Often these fulfillments are of a specific prophecy in a specific verse. For example, John 19:24 fulfills Psalm 22:18, and John 19:33 fulfills Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12, Psalm 34:20, and Zechariah 12:10. Other times the fulfillment seems to be broader than simply a single verse. For example, fulfillment language is used in John 19:28, but no specific Old Testament texts are quoted. It is possible that it is an explicit fulfillment of Psalm 69:21, which is quoted by other Gospel writers but not by John. Or, it may be a fulfillment "not of a particular trait in the scripture picture, but the perfect completion of the whole prophetic image (Westcott)." Regardless, all of these fulfillments point to the truthfulness of Scripture and the perfect work of Jesus.
A skeptic might think that Jesus simply knew the prophecies and sought to fulfill them, but could he really do that while he is on the cross? How could he fulfill prophecies centered around his birth? Jesus has already fulfilled around 300 prophecies, and at his return will fulfill the rest. These fulfillments remind us that Jesus is worthy of our trust, our lives, and has fulfilled everything necessary to be the one who saves us from our sins. Since, Jesus is the truth and Scriptures are true, we can entrust ourselves to them.
Father God, thank you that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah who died for my sins. Help me to trust you and your Scriptures. Amen.
How should the trustworthy nature of Jesus and the Scripture impact your life?
Recent
Archive
2026
January
January 1January 2January 3January 4January 5January 6January 7January 8January 9January 10January 11January 12January 13January 14January 15January 16January 17January 18January 19January 20January 21January 22January 23January 24January 25January 26January 27January 28January 29January 30January 31
February
March
Categories
no categories
No Comments