Greatest Story Ever Told...part 2

In the Jewish Torah, ancient prophets for told of His birth.  Many prophecies exist in their scriptures telling of different aspects of his birth, his life, and even details of his death.

He was to be their messiah, their king.  He was going ensure that all Jews would fulfill every commandment from God, defeating the evil one once and for all.  Bringing about complete repentance for the sins that tarnished the relationship Israel had with God for so many years.  Evidence of his coming date back to the earliest of Jewish books, the book of Genesis. 

Here God is speaking to satan after he tempted Eve in the garden of Eden, telling him that he will be crushed once and for all.  Then the savior would reign over Israel in a new world of peace and order.  Traditional Jews believed He would be a political/military king to bring about peace and the sovern rule of Israel for eternity.  Looking into prophecies of the Torah , one finds many specific details of his birth that must be fulfilled in order for this messiah to be authentic.  He had to be born of a virgin,

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be
with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14

be a descendent from the family line of king David,

“The days are coming,” declares the LORD,
   “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
   and do what is just and right in the land.
⁶ In his days Judah will be saved
   and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
   The LORD Our Righteous Savior. Jeremiah 23:5

and be born in the town of Bethelhem.

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans
of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over
Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.  Micah 5:2

Many more scriptures exist regarding the coming of the Messiah, his life and his death, roughly 130 of them.  Here's a link to a great video from Mark Driscoll about the many prophecies of the coming of Christ,   How did people know Jesus was coming?

Despite all the historical evidence of these fulfilled prophecies, the Jewish people and many others today still reject the truths about Christ.  This rejection, too, was prophecied in the old testament.  Christmas is the celebration of this birth. Not just the birth of Christ, but the birth of a new world order where God and man can live intimately once again as was intended from the the first Adam.  Christ is sometimes considered the second Adam in this light.  Trust in Him, and you will find your way back to God, right where you are created to be.  He loves you more than you can ever imagine.  I hope God blesses you this holiday season and in many more to come.  Until next time.