In this message we shall begin to consider Christ’s person in the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies.
Psalm 102:25-27 prophesies that Christ as the Creator of the universe will remain unchanged and that His years will not fail. These verses from Psalm 102 are concerned with the eternity of Christ. He is the eternal One, the very God, from eternity to eternity, the everlasting One, who will never change. The fulfillment of this prophecy concerning Christ is in Hebrews 1:10-12. In this fulfillment we see that Christ is the Creator. As the Creator He existed before creation. Hebrews 1:11 indicates that the old creation will be terminated and that the new heaven and the new earth will be ushered in. But Christ will be the same, and His years will not fail (v. 12). This means that He will be the everlasting One in eternity. He will remain forever and ever in eternity future.
In Genesis 3:15 we have a prophecy regarding Christ as the seed of the woman: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” This prophecy was given immediately after the fall of man, when Adam and Eve were in fear and trembling concerning their destiny. God came in to promise that the seed of the woman will bruise the head of the serpent who had damaged them. In Galatians 4:4 we have the fulfillment of this prophecy: “When the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, come of a woman, come under law.” The woman here is, of course, the virgin Mary (Luke 1:27-35). The Son of God came of her to be the seed of woman, as promised in Genesis 3:15. The Lord Jesus, the seed of the woman, bruised the head of the serpent. As revealed in Hebrews 2:14 and 1 John 3:8, He destroyed the Devil, the one who has the power of death.
Christ is also the seed of Abraham. This is prophesied in Genesis 17:8 and fulfilled in Galatians 3:16: “But to Abraham were the promises spoken and to his seed. He does not say, And to the seeds, as concerning many, but as concerning one, And to your seed, who is Christ.” Christ is the seed, and the seed is the heir who inherits the promises. Here Christ is the unique seed inheriting the promises. In order to inherit the promised blessing we must be one with Christ. Outside of Him we cannot inherit the promises given by God to Abraham. In the sight of God Abraham has only one seed, that is, Christ. We must be in Him so that we may participate in the promises given to Abraham. Christ is not only the seed inheriting the promises but also the blessing of the promises for inheritance.
In the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies Christ is the Lion of Judah. Because a seed is a container of life, as the seed of woman and the seed of Abraham, Christ is for the dispensing of life and the propagating of life. But as the Lion of Judah, Christ has won the victory over all enemies. On the one hand, Christ is the seed of Abraham; on the other hand, He is the Lion of Judah, a royal tribe from which Christ came to be the King. As the Lion of Judah Christ has conquered the enemy.
The prophecy concerning Christ as the Lion of Judah is found in Genesis 49:9: “Judah is a young lion: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he couches, he lies down as a lion” (lit.). The prophecy in this verse likens Christ to a young lion and to a couching lion. The young lion is for fighting, for seizing the prey. The words “thou art gone up” imply that the young lion first had to come down from the mountain to the plain to capture his prey. After the young lion seized his prey, he went up to the mountaintop again to enjoy it. When Christ was crucified, He was a young lion seizing the prey. After seizing His prey, Christ went up to the “mountaintop,” that is, to the third heaven. Ephesians 4:8 says that when Christ ascended up on high, He led a train of vanquished foes. Christ has gained the victory. As a young lion He has overcome all His enemies.
The New Testament reveals that Christ came as a young lion, that He went to the cross to seize His prey, and that now He is on the mountaintop in the third heaven. The figure of the couching lion in Genesis 49:9 portrays Christ as the One enjoying His rest in the heavens. After gaining the victory and enjoying the prey, He was satisfied, and now He is resting in the heavens.
The fulfillment of the prophecy in Genesis 49:9 is in Revelation 5:5: “One of the elders said to me, Do not weep; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome to open the scroll and its seven seals.” This refers to Genesis 49:9, where Christ is portrayed as a lion, which is a symbol of Him as a strong fighter against the enemy. Christ is the fighting, victorious, and overcoming Lion. His overcoming qualifies Him to open the scroll (Rev. 5:1) and its seven seals. As the Lion of Judah, Christ has overcome Satan, the enemy of God. He has solved this problem for God and has removed the hindrances to the fulfillment of God’s purpose. Therefore, He is worthy to open the scroll concerning God’s economy.
In the universe there are two main problems—Satan and sin. As the Lion Christ has defeated and destroyed Satan, and as the Lamb He has taken away our sin (John 1:29). He has won the victory, and He has accomplished redemption. As the Lion He is the Fighter against the enemy; as the Lamb He is our Redeemer. He has fought to redeem us. He has won the battle over the enemy and has accomplished redemption for us. Revelation 5:5 does not say that Christ will overcome; on the contrary, this verse says that He has overcome already. As the fighting Lion He overcame the enemy, and now He is in the heavens.