“(Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:” (Romans 1:2–4, KJV 1900)
My wife and I like to watch the British mysteries on television. Each episode is a who-dun-it story, normally involving a murder or series of murders. I like to try and pay close attention and see if I can pick out the clues and determine who did the crime. I rarely figure out the mystery, even though the clues have been clearly identified. I think this might have been what the prophets went through. The coming of the Messiah was not a secret. The Prophets had all the clues.
Paul in this introduction to the Book of Romans, states that the Lord had given His prophets the promises of the coming Messiah and these were recorded in the Scriptures. We today have been blessed to have a great mystery revealed to us in the person of Jesus the Messiah. The prophets wrote that the Messiah would come from the lineage of David according to the flesh. This was vital to fulfill the Davidic covenant. God promised David that from his lineage one would sit on his throne forever. Jesus, of the lineage of David, as eternal God, is the only one who could fulfill this promise. The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is our proof that He is the one who is the promised Messiah. Jesus is truly King and he reigns now in the hearts of true believers and over His church, and will someday reign over the Messianic Kingdom. We who believe must surrender to Him as our King. He is Lord. He rules in our hearts.
Renewing the Heart 