Fulfilled Prophecy Is 48:3 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
Two of the distinguishing characteristics of the Bible are prophecy and fulfilled prophecy. Is 48:3 is a profound passage wherein God declares the former things and then brings them to pass. See also Is 46:9-10, Is 42:8-9. Only the God of the Bible could do a thing like that. Fulfilled prophecy is the result of God’s:
Eternity – Is 43:10 – God is not bound by time. God is present in the present, he is present in the past and he is present in the future all at the same time. That’s why he said to Moses, “I AM THAT I AM.” That’s why Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am,” [Jn 8:58]. He is not bound by location either. That’s why John said, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him,” [Jn 1:18]. That’s why Jesus said, “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven,” [Jn 3:13]. So, God can prophecy how a thing is going to happen because he is in the time of the declaration and the fulfillment, simultaneously.
Foreknowledge – Acts 2:23 – God knew that the Jews in Jesus’ day would reject him. Even Stephen knew that [Acts 7:51-51]. He knew that Pilate would cave in to the pressure applied by the chief priests [Acts 3:13-15; Matt 27:24]. The Lord didn’t have to wait around to find out how things were going to go with Saul [1 Sam 8:9-18]. Even though Saul was a good man [1 Sam 9:1-2], God knew that things would turn out badly with him, and so he could prophesy ahead of time how things were going to go. Jesus could read men, “because he knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man,” [Jn 2:24-25]. That’s one of the ways he could prophesy how things were going to turn out for him.
Sovereignty – Prov 21:1 – God has a certain way that he wants certain things to work out and so he arranges the circumstances, the people and the events so that things work out just the way that he said they would. God elevated Pharaoh to king of Egypt so that he could show the world his mighty power through the plagues and declare his name throughout all the earth [Ex 9:16]. He raised up Cyrus and gave him a commission to rebuild Jerusalem [Is 44:28-45:1]. This prophecy was made even before Cyrus was born, nearly 200 years before he came to the throne. You never have to worry about prophecy with God because he intervenes in the affairs of men to make things turn out his way.
Authority – 2 Pet 1:21 – holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. These words are not the words of men. These are God’s words. Matt 24:35. The Koran, for instance, is the work of man. Therefore, the Koran is void of prophecy. When you’re dealing with God’s words, though, then you are dealing with prophecy [Rev 19:10].
Faithfulness – Is 25:1 – God will never veer from his word. If he said it then he is going to make it turn out just like he said. Ps 119:160; Num 23:19. God keeps his words. If you see it in the Bible, then you will see it in life. God said that perilous times would come and perilous times will come. God said that Jesus will return and Jesus will return. God said that the lost will spend an eternity in the lake of fire and the lost will spend an eternity in the lake of fire. God said if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ you will be saved and if you call on the name of the Lord Jesus you will be saved and you will be forever with the Lord.
Conclusion: for these reasons, it is nothing for God to proclaim in writing how things will go in the future. The challenge is for you to believe what he said. If you believe his words then they will work effectually in you [1 Thes 2:13].