Grace Fellowship Church Pastor/Teacher Jim Rickard Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011

Doxology Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.— Amen.

John 17 The Great High Priestly Prayer of our Lord!

John 17:6-19 John 17:12c: Scripture Fulfilled!

John 17:12, “…. so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.”

“Fulfilled” is PLEROO = “To make full, to complete” It has several nuances that have application here.

1) “To fill up a deficiency”, e.g., prophecy is fulfilled in the sense of being historically completed, as specified in the prophecy.

2) “To fully possess”, e.g., the Bible will stand forever and it possesses within its own writing the fulfilment of every prophecy.

3) “To fully influence”, e.g., doctrine in the Bible is the greatest and most complete influence for those who are spiritual.

4) “To fill with a certain quality”, e.g., Bible Doctrine builds your ECS by which you apply prophecy in living the unique spiritual life having confident expectation of its fulfilment.

Comparing John 17:12 with Acts 1:20 this may be in fulfillment of Psa 41:9; 69:25- 28; 109:6-8 and Zech 11:12-13.

There were many prophecies of Christ that were beyond human control: 1) Place of birth, Mic 5:2. 2) Time of birth, Dan 9:25; Gen 49:10.

3) Manner of birth (by a virgin), Isa 7:14. 4) Betrayal. 5) Manner of death, Psa 22:16. 6) People’s reactions, mocking, spitting, Isa 50:6; Psa 22:7-8. 7) Piercing, Zech 12:10. 8) Burial, Isa 53:9.

The probability that one person could fulfill just these 8 prophecies is 1 in That is: 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000

The fulfillment of these 8 prophecies alone proves that God inspired the writing of those prophecies to a definitive absolute.

Bible Prophecy: 1. Tells us God has a Plan!

God has a plan that is clearly outlined in the Bible from Gen. to Rev. Man can know God’s plan clearly if he will come to the Bible and submit his mind and heart to the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

One of the strongest fears which drive many to despair is the fear of the future.

While the heart of the hopeless and fearful person is failing him, the Christian with an understanding of Bible prophecy can face the future with confidence and comfort.

Before the Bible was written, God had a plan, and it is to that foreordained plan that He is working. Isa 46:9-13

2. The Key of Bible Prophecy: Christ is the grand theme of the Bible, John 5:46-47.

John 5:46-47, “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

“His name is called The Word of God”, Rev 19:13. The spirit of the Word is not of confusion, but of harmony and unity, pointing to the Person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

3. The Value of Bible Prophecy: a. To Know the Mind of God. Amos 3:7

Amos 3:7, “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets.” Cf. Heb 1:1

b. For Light in a Dark World, 2 Peter 1:19.

b. For Light in a Dark World, 2 Peter 1:19. c. For Comfort and Hope, Rom 15:4.

Rom 15:4, “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

Grace Fellowship Church Thursday, December 22, 2011 Tape # Jesus Prays for His Disciples The Importance of Biblical Prophecy Great High Priestly Prayer, Part 51 John 17:12c; Isa 46:9-13; John 5:46-47; 2 Peter 1:19-21 James H. Rickard Bible Ministries 2011