re than one prophet, and it would have been well known among the people of Israel.

In two chapters of Matthew's gospel, we have already seen six prophecies fulfilled. As a review, here they are again:

1. The Messiah would be an heir of David.
2. The Messiah would be born of a virgin.
3. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem.
4. The Messiah would be called out of Egypt.
5. The Messiah's birthplace would experience pain.
6. The Messiah would be called a Nazarene.

The lesson here is simple: what God says will happen will happen. He is completely trustworthy. When God makes a promise, you can take it to the bank. Our faith is not in a flimsy God who may or may not keep His Word. Instead, our faith is in the rock-solid guarantee that our God will prove Himself faithful to us, and that He our souls are secure in His care.

Jesus: A Model of Humility

One lesson we can learn from our Master as we consider these past two chapters is that Jesus was truly a model of humility. We see this in at least two ways:

First, we see the humility of Jesus in that He was willing to come to earth as a child. In doing so, he went from absolute power to absolute helplessness. The Jesus that ruled the world became a fetus, then a baby, then a toddler - completely dependent on the care of a twelve year old girl and her teenage husband.

Of course, the Father was still sovereign and would never have allowed His plan to be thwarted. Jesus was to live blamelessly for thirty-three years and die on a cross for the sins of the world. God's providence would not permit any accidents that might prevent that from happening.

Yet while the Father was still in absolute control, Jesus "made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." Second, we see an incredible example of humility in that Jesus was to be called "a Nazarene." He could have been brought up among the philosophical elite of Athens, the powerful leaders of Rome, or the religious heritage of Jerusalem. Yet God ordained for His Son to grow up in a town of about 500 people with no honor or prestige.

Indeed, Nazareth was just the opposite. It was a military post town on the outskirts of a larger city (Sepphoris), and like many military towns was known for its debauchery. Wine and women were the token of the city. It is no surprise, then, that when Philip from Bethsaida found Nathaniel and declared that he had found the Messiah, and that He was Jesus of Nazareth, Nathaniel replied: "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Jesus modeled humility in many ways as He grew into manhood in the town of Nazareth:

1. Jesus was a peasant. The richest being in all the universe made Himself one of the poorest!

2. Jesus was a worker. Rather than being a wealthy man with servants and enjoying a luxurious life on earth, He became a simple carpenter. Jesus was a blue-collar worker who was not afraid to sweat and knew what it meant to put in a hard days work.

3. Jesus spent His young life surrounded by uniquely sinful people. Though Joseph and Mary certainly sought to create a Home of devout faith for Jesus, they could not shelter Him from the environment of drunkenness and fornication that permeated their town. Jesus knew temptation, even before the 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness! Jesus was a teenager. He felt the desire to lust, to be angry, and to disrespect his parents. Indeed, He endured these temptations to a greater degree than most Christians, because He did not give in as we do. Many Christians are spiritual wimps, and cannot endure more than a few minutes of powerful temptation before giving in. Jesus never gave in, and therefore experienced an intensity of battling temptation that many believers have never encountered.

4. Jesus modeled humility by living a life that included real pain. He almost certainly experienced the physical pain of having His finger smashed by hammer, but He also experienced the emotional pain of losing His step-father. Sometime between age 12 and 30, Jesus became the man of the house. How Joseph died is unknown, but throughout the remainder of Matthew's gospel Mary will be treated as a widow, indicating that he was somehow tragically taken from his family.

Why did Jesus, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, humble Himself to this kind of life? He did it for us, to obtain the righteousness we could not obtain. His perfect

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