I Know What Happens At The End!

You know when you're watching a film and things click...you know what's going to happen, or how it will end. I'm talking in the film itself - not a chick-flick where you know the plot even before they start filming the thing (like Marley & Me...it's obvious the dog dies at the end, and I've never seen the film, I just looked on imdb.com to confirm my hunch!).

So in different films, it happens at different times. Everyone pretends they knew from the start of Sixth Sense...I won't spoil it.

For me, Psalms would be the point in the film 'The Bible' where I would think 'yeah, I can see where this is going, God has a plan, and it's on an epic scale, not some piddly little country on the Med'.
You see it in Psalm 22, where Christ's crucifixion is portrayed, in Psalm 89 where Christ's heritage is confirmed and in Psalm 16 where Christ's resurrection is foretold.

There's plenty of other bits, all the way through the bible, where we see God's plan revealed, and I'm sure you can think of many, from Abraham through to Jesus and beyond, and especially in the prophets like Isaiah. My bible has a table of these, calling them 'Messianic Prophecies and Fulfillments'. Big words, but that essentially means where Jesus is predicted, and where he fulfils these predictions - important stuff for the Jews at the time. Of the 18 it lists, 7 are in Isaiah, 7 in Psalms, 2 in the minor prophets, 2 in the law.
A prize next week for the person who can tell me where it is prophesied that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem - and remember there's two ways to find this in your bible.

So keep and eye out for glimpses of Jesus, and God's Big Plan all the way through your readings, no matter what sort of book you might be in.

PS. If all this earlier talk of films has whet your appetite, be sure to come to lifegroup on Wednesday for a film night! From 7pm.