The Christian Story Is Supreme . . . And True
One of the most talked about films that will be released in 2017 is Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson.
When we think about stories like Beauty and the Beast, we are reminded that the best fairy tales will continue to attract new generations. Why is that? Perhaps these stories are timeless in the sense that they involve elements of imagination, romance, redemption, transformation and in the end, good triumphing over evil.
Fairy tales sometime include a prophecy or an oracle that unlocks a bigger redemptive story in the universe. In Beauty and the Beast, there is an enchanted rose that blooms on the Beast's 21st birthday to act as a ticking time clock which limits his opportunity to find a girl and prove that he can love.
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Psalm 110, which Martin Luther called "chief of the psalms," is a prophecy written about Christ, written almost a thousand years before his birth. Written by King David, hero, warrior, poet and a descendent of a Messiah to come, this psalm is quoted a total of 23 times in the New Testament.
The most quoted Psalm in the New Testament says:
The Lord says to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool."
The Lord sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your enemies!
Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day of your power,
in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours.
The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
"You are a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek."
The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth.
He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head. (Psalm 110)
Unlike the story of Beauty and the Beast, we know that the life of King David is historically real and his prophecy that unfolds will change the history of mankind.
Skeptics who questioned the historicity of King David were surprised in 1994, when archeologists in Israel discovered the Tel Dan Stele stone, dating in the ninth century B.C. that mentioned the "House of David." David was a real king writing about a real Messiah to come.
David was the most powerful man in the Kingdom. He begins this Psalm by writing, "The Lord said to my Lord." Yet David is writing about the Lord (who is not David) speaking to another Lord (who is also not David). Who is this second "Lord?"
In the first verse of this psalm, we see the Trinity: The Lord (YAHWEH, the Eternal One) says to my Lord (ADONAI, the Ruler): Sit at my right hand ... Here the Father is speaking to Jesus. The declaration is being made through the Holy Spirit. "David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared The Lord said to my Lord ..." (Mark 12:36)
About a thousand years after the life of David, Peter preached on Psalm 110 at Pentecost, when he made the case that the resurrected Jesus is both Lord and Christ, and is now sitting at the Father's right hand (Acts 2). James Boice explained, "To sit at the King's right hand was more than mere honor; it was to share in his rule, to participate in royal dignity and power."
So, consider this incredible thought: You and I are participants in the fulfillment of this great prophecy about a future reigning Lord! The New Testament says, "God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:6) Those who have repented and trusted in Jesus are co-heirs with Christ and share in his authority! As the "bride of Christ," we will soon reign with him for all eternity!
The story about Jesus is like the greatest fairy tale ever told ... except IT IS TRUE! Not only that, but those who follow Him will be a part of this incredible, never-ending story!
"For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself." (Acts 2:39)
