“The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does” (Psalm 145:13).

David’s words in Psalm 145 are a lovely prelude to the story that will develop and be realized in Mary’s life (Luke 1:38). Five specific prophecies that Matthew recorded in chapters one and two of his account of Jesus’ birth were fulfilled by God the Father in sending His Son. These five prophecies are just a few of the more than 300 that were completed in Jesus’ first coming to earth.

Five fulfilled Prophecies mentioned specifically in Matthew’s account are:

Prophecy #1- A Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:22-23)

Prophecy #2- Born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:5-6)

Prophecy #3- The Escape to Egypt (Hosea 11:1; Matthew 2:15)

Prophecy #4- Herod’s Slaughter of the Innocent (Jeremiah 31:15; Matthew 2:17-18)

Prophecy #5- Jesus lived in Nazareth (Isaiah 53:3; Matthew 2:23)

Promises are tough to keep. Most people either overpromise and underproduce, or they never make any promises to begin with. Broken promises break trust. A broken relationship. A broken marriage. A broken heart. A broken body. A broken past. The question that plagues our minds is, “If I can’t trust people I can see, how am I ever going to be able to trust God whom I can’t see?”

Jesus is the proof of God keeping his promises to us. We have four eyewitness accounts in the gospels of the life, ministry, and sacrifice of Jesus, all written with the express purpose of giving testimony of a God who is worthy of our trust. John writes that he wrote his gospel to convince people to believe (John 20:31).

Of the 289 times the word “believe” is used in the 66 books of the Bible, the Gospel of John uses “believe” 84 times.

John and Matthew paint a picture for us of the need for people to believe in the miracle of Christ – not just the idea of Christmas. Many TV specials, Christmas movies, seasonal songs, and sentimental Christmas cards focus on believing in the idea of Christmas. Our belief is deeper than that. Our belief is in the One who fulfilled the promises of old and lived a life of integrity, purpose, and peace. 

You may struggle to trust God because you have been let down by people. You may wrestle with trusting God with your heart because you cannot make sense of his promises in your head. Start with the fulfilled prophecies from the Christmas story. Draw a connection to God’s promises to you. Find peace in the promises of God.

He promises…

To provide for you (Matthew 6:30-32, Philippians 4:19)

To guide you (Psalm 37:23-24, Luke 1:79)

To redeem you (Luke 1:68)

To love you (Romans 8:35-39)

To never abandon you (Hebrews 13:5)

If God can come through on his promises found in the Christmas story, God can surely come through on these promises and provide peace for your life today.

Pray Today: Dear God, just as Mary asked for Your promise to be fulfilled in her life, please fulfill Your promises in my life. I praise You that You are trustworthy in all You promise and that You are faithful in all You do in my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.