Carpenter Diem (Because Jesus Was a Carpenter and Is Now Preparing a Home for His People)
The resurrection of God the Son, Jesus Christ, is crucial to the Christian faith. In Luke 24:13-35, we read of the resurrected Savior walking the road to Emmaus. This specific geographical reference reminds us of the absolute accuracy of God’s Word in all areas. In verse 27, Jesus begins to teach from the Old Testament; He not only walked the talk but also talked the walk! This passage does not reveal the exact Scriptures Jesus employed to teach these journeying believers, but we do know that He fulfilled the entire Old Testament (Matthew 5:17,18). Fulfilled prophecy is one of the major reasons that we can be certain that our faith in Jesus is not misplaced. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
Isaiah has frequently been called the”evangelical prophet” because the book that he wrote contains more information about the Messiah than any other Old Testament book. Familiar passages include Isaiah 9:6 (made famous in Handel’s Messiah) and Isaiah 53, which speaks clearly of Christ’s crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. A number of passages are directly quoted in the New Testament, including the first half of Isaiah 61:1-3. Jesus began reading these verses aloud in the Nazareth synagogue (Luke 4:16-19). Then, in Luke 4:21, Jesus said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” Jesus fulfilled the first part of the Isaiah passage at His first coming; he stopped reading before He came to “and the day of vengeance of our God.” Because Jesus fulfilled the first part, we can expect Him to do the same for the second part. At His return, He will judge fully and righteously. For our purposes today, we can appreciate the explicit Trinitarian teaching, the “good tidings” (or “gospel”), the gentle touch of the Savior on our broken hearts, and the freedom from sin and Satan. Our Savior is compassionately comprehensive (or, if you prefer, comprehensively compassionate).