Saturday, February 11th, 2017.
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the gospels of prophetic fulfillment.
Hundreds of prophecies are fulfilled in what are called the four gospels. The phrase “that it might be fulfilled” litters their pages.
It was good news to Israel that the prophetic time was fulfilled for the appearance of their Messiah and the soon coming of the kingdom.
In contrast, the apostle Paul does not use the phrase “that it might be fulfilled” even once.
The gospel in Paul’s epistles is called a mystery (Eph 6:19), and was not spoken by the prophets since the world began (Rom 16:25).
His references to prophetic scriptures are to contrast and explain the mystery of Christ.
What was good news in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John about the end of the world, became no news in Paul’s epistles.
For the Jew and Gentile sinners of Paul’s ministry, it was good news that the prophecy of judgment and wrath before the kingdom was not yet being fulfilled. It had been delayed by God’s grace.
Christ has come and gone, and the prophetic kingdom has not been fulfilled… but neither has God’s prophesied judgment and wrath.
The latter is why it is called the dispensation of God’s grace.
For His glory,
Justin “prophecy unfulfilled” Johnson