Derek Prince - Was Jesus' Death and Resurrection Predicted?
Now, the resurrection of Jesus is an absolutely key element... of Christian doctrine. We cannot set it aside and call ourselves Christians. In 1 Corinthians 15:14 Paul says: If Christ is not risen... from the dead then our preaching is vain and your faith is also vain. And in verse 17: If Christ is not risen your faith is futile. You are still in your sins. In other words, the forgiveness of our sins... is absolutely linked to the resurrection of Jesus. If Jesus has not been raised, the gospel is false, our faith is futile... and we are still in our sins. And you see, there are many eminent theologians... and other people like that who have denied the reality of the resurrection... of the body of Jesus. They are still in their sins, they are not saved. You cannot be saved unless you believe in the physical resurrection of Jesus.
Now let’s go on to the attestation... of the resurrection of Jesus. What evidence is given us in the Bible... to the resurrection of Jesus? And it’s an interesting fact, the primary evidence... is not the evidence of eyewitnesses. The primary evidence... is the evidence of Scripture, that takes priority over human witnesses. Let’s look at some of the passages in the Old Testament that predict the resurrection of Jesus. This is a very, very interesting subject. I wish I had more time to deal with it. But let’s look at one statement in 1 Peter 1:10-12. Of this salvation (which Peter is talking about), the prophets have inquired... and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you... searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ... who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand... the sufferings of Christ and the glory that would follow. To them it was revealed that not to themselves but to us... they were ministering the things which have now been reported to you... through those who have preached the gospel to you. So, the Old Testament prophets had a real dilemma. I wonder if you can... understand it because it’s an amazing dilemma. Peter says the Spirit of Christ was in them, the Spirit of the Messiah.
So, under that inspiration they spoke in the first person of things... that would happen to Jesus that never happened to them. I don’t know whether you’ve ever put yourself... in the place of those Old Testament prophets. They said extraordinary things about themselves... which never happened. Let me give you just two examples. In Psalm 22... verse 16. This is a Messianic psalm, an unfolding of the revelation of the Messiah. Psalm 22:16. David is speaking in the first person and he says: Dogs have surrounded me, the assembly of the wicked... has enclosed me. They pierce my hands and my feet. It never happened to David. How do you think he felt when he said those words? I have no idea, but he was inspired by the Spirit of Christ that was in him. So he spoke in the first person of things that would happen to the Messiah... that never happened to him. And then we can look in Isaiah 50. There are countless other examples. I’m giving you two very clear examples.
Isaiah 50:6: I gave my back... to those who struck me and my cheeks to those who plucked out the beard. I did not hide my face from shame and spitting. It never happened in the life is Isaiah, it happened in the ministry of Jesus. But, it was written in the first person. Can you understand what I’m saying? It was the Spirit of Messiah in them through the Holy Spirit... that predicted what would happen to the Messiah, to Jesus... but never happened to them. And so no wonder they searched what manner... of time they were speaking about. I marvel at the faith of those men... that they had the faith to receive it. I thank God for them... because this is the first confirmation of the resurrection of Christ... that are predicted in the Scriptures.
In Psalm 16... which is quoted by the apostle Peter on the Day of Pentecost... we have a very amazing outline of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Psalm 16, beginning at verse 8: I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand I shall not be moved. That could have been true of David but it was also true of the Messiah. So they say certain things which are true in their experience. Then they move into something that never... actually happened to them. He goes on: Therefore my heart is glad... and my glory rejoices. And if you want to turn to Acts 2:26 you’ll find out what your glory is. Peter says my tongue rejoices. Understand? I’ve told you that before. Your tongue is your glory because it’s the one member that was put... in your mouth to enable you to glorify God.
Therefore my heart... is glad and my glory rejoices, my flesh also will rest in hope. In other words, though I will be buried I will have the hope of resurrection. For you will not leave my soul in Sheol. (That indicates that his soul... went down to Sheol.) Nor will you allow your Holy One to see corruption. His body never suffered corruption although it was a considerable... period of time in the grave. Because He had never committed sin... and sin is the sting that admits corruption to the body. Then the final verse: You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures... forevermore. That was fulfilled when Jesus was resurrected. He returned to the Father’s presence and there was fullness of joy.
So that’s one example. Another is in Psalm 71... Psalm 71:20-21. This is an amazing psalm. It doesn’t tell us who the psalmist was. You can look into the background... if you want to but he’s addressing God and he says: You have shown me great and severe troubles... shall revive me again (bring me back to life)... and bring me up again from the depths of the earth. That never happened to any psalmist. You shall increase my greatness... and comfort me on every side. So that only applies to Jesus. He was buried... He was brought back to life, He was raised up... and His greatness was increased. He became the owner of the name... that’s exalted above every name.
See? It never happened to the psalmist. It happened to Jesus. That’s the Spirit of Messiah in them testifying... beforehand the things that would follow. When you begin to absorb this truth... it is the most powerful attestation of the reality of the resurrection of Jesus. And then there’s one more interesting passage. Paul said in 1 Corinthians, he said the gospel consists of three facts. We looked at that the other day. Jesus died according to the Scriptures, He was buried... and He was raised again the third day according to the Scriptures. Have you asked yourself what Scripture says He would be raised... on the third day? I’ve only been able to find one and it’s extremely interesting... because it goes far beyond the context. In Hosea 6:1-2: Come and let us return to the Lord, for He is torn but He will heal us. He is stricken but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us... (bring us back to life). On the third day He will raise us up that we may live... in His sight. A very clear prediction of resurrection on the third day.
The interesting thing is that it doesn’t speak about Him in the singular. It speaks about us in the plural. This is a revelation. If you turn to Ephesians 2 you’ll find how Paul applies this revelation. You see, prophecy does not merely predict future events but it predicts... them in such a way as to show their real significance. It interprets them... as well as predicts them. This is a perfect example. Ephesians 2... beginning at verse 4, and this is written about all true believers.
Ephesians 2, beginning at verse 4: But God who is rich in mercy... because of His great love with which He loved us... even when we were dead in trespasses. Wonderful. He loved us... even when we were dead. How many people can love a corpse? Now what did He do? Three things: He made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved... raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ. All that is in the past tense. So, because of our identification with Jesus... we’re made alive, we’re resurrected... and, don’t stop there, we are enthroned. That’s our destiny. And Paul doesn’t put it in the future. He says if you can receive it, you’re sharing the throne... with Jesus right now. But this is the outworking of Hosea 6:1-2. See how marvelously the Scripture interprets itself.