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Luke 2:39-40
It is very important that Jesus “performed all things according to the law of the Lord” (Luke 2:39, NKJV) for Him to be the fulfillment of the law of the Lord. Jesus states in Luke 24:44-47, “Then He said to them, ‘These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.’ And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.
“Then He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.’”
It is also very important in fulfilling the Scriptures that they returned to Nazareth, which is where the Christ Child “grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him” (Luke 2:40). Matthew 2:23 speaks of Joseph moving his wife and Child to Nazareth and states, “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, ‘He shall be called a Nazarene.’” John 1:45-46 states, “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’
“And Nathanael said to him, ‘can anything good come out of Nazareth?’” It is believed because of the lowly impression of the city of Nazareth, that this fulfills the prophecy spoken of in Isaiah 53:3 which states,
“He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with
Grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from
Him;
He was despised, and we did not
esteem Him.”
This is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Jesus in relation to the city of Nazareth.
It may not seem important that we are told of where Jesus spent His childhood. But it is a piece of the fulfillment of the prophecy spoken of Him in the Old Testament. These bits of information help connect Jesus to the Law given to Moses in the Old Testament that Jesus came to fulfill and ultimately must fulfill in being the Messiah given by God to save the world from sin. The Old Testament Law points to the need for a savior; to be that Savior, Jesus must fulfill all of the Law. God uses these fulfilling points to reflect to us that Jesus is undoubtedly the fulfillment of the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets.
Dear Lord,
You have given us the absolute proof positive that Jesus is the gift given to man through whom we must believe in and accept to be forgiven of our sins; that He paid our debt to sin on the cross, and that He defeated sin, death, and Satan when He was raised from the dead. Jesus is Your plan of salvation for all of man. Please help us to study Your Word and find these pieces of wisdom that will allow us to humble ourselves to You in seeking Your will and salvation for our lives. In Jesus name I pray, amen.