5.7 Jesus as revealed in the Gospel of Matthew

Today, we will talk about how Jesus is depicted by the four faces of the Lion, Ox, Man and Eagle. That is exciting in itself. But what really blows my mind (or rather puts it together) is the fact that these four facets of Jesus are revealed not just in the four Gospels, but even in the Old Testament as well as the Book of Revelations. If the Bible was the work of man, how could this be possible?

God’s wisdom is revealed throughout the Bible, and we have the privilege of uncovering truths like uncovering diamonds. The writers of the four Gospels were inspired by the Holy Spirit and their writings fell neatly into God’s bigger plan.

Jesus is typified by the face of the Lion in the book of Matthew. The Lion is the king of animal kingdom, just as Jesus is the King of the Jews. Jesus is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah.

Old Testament prophecies pointed to the coming of the Messiah, the King of the Jews. It is not surprising that the book of Matthew quotes more frequently from the Old Testament than does any other gospel, to show that Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies.

Most important, however, the book of Matthew begins by showing that Jesus was from the genealogy of Abraham and King David (Matt 1:1). God had promised that the Messiah would come from the line of Abraham (Gen 12:3) and David (2 Sam 7:12-13). The genealogy proved the royal pedigree of Jesus the King of the Jews.

Today, when we read the Gospel of Matthew, we can be amazed that every single prophecy about Jesus in the Old Testament was fulfilled. We know that Jesus is everything that the Bible says He is. Today, He is not only the King of the Jews, but also our King; the King of kings. His kingdom is not of this temporal world, but of the eternal kingdom.