Identity Crisis - The Messiah or the LORD? (part 2)

I'm assuming you've read my previous post, where we began learning from Scriptures that the Messiah is one and the same as the LORD. (If you haven't read it, it would be good to start there.) Let's jump right back in and continue.

Who Taught the People?

In Isaiah 54:13, we read this prophecy: "All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children." What an amazing promise, that there would be a generation that was literally taught by Yahweh Himself!

Jesus quoted this passage in John 6:45, claiming that this promise was being fulfilled at that moment. "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me."

Here we see the one true LORD - Jesus Himself - personally teaching the people who came to Him to learn.

Whose Glory Did Isaiah See?

Of course, we know that even though they were taught by God, not everyone believed Him when they heard Him speak. John 12:39-40 tells us that even their unbelief was prophesied long in advance: "Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: 'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.' These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him."

 Let's take a look at this prophesy from Isaiah 6:10.
"Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed."

Now, if you look again at John 12:40, you'll see that Isaiah prophesied this when he was shown Jesus' glory. For years, I thought this meant that Isaiah was given a glimpse into the future where he could see the Messiah's glory and prophesy about Him. But this isn't the glory that Isaiah saw. 

Read with me the beginning of this prophecy, from Isaiah 6:1, 3, 5

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the LORD sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple...And one [seraphim] cried to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!"...So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts."

Do you see this? The Gospel of John states that Isaiah saw Jesus' glory and prophesied of Him. But if you look at what Isaiah wrote, he claims that he saw Yahweh's glory and began to prophesy!

Who Would Be Pierced?

John 19:37 And again another Scripture says, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced."

This scripture that John was quoting from is Zechariah 1:10. John makes the claim that there was an event during Jesus' crucifixion that was directly prophesied by Zechariah. The moment the Roman soldier used his spear to pierce Jesus' side, this scripture was fulfilled - He was pierced.

But wait a minute, let's look at the direct quote from Zechariah 1:10.
And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only Son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."

From Zechariah 1:1, we can be sure that this was Yahweh speaking. Yahweh is the One who prophesied of Jesus being pierced, but He specifically said, "Me whom they pierced." As Jesus' side was thrust through, Yahweh was literally being pierced!

Who Poured Out the Holy Spirit on Pentecost?

In Acts 2:16-17, Peter declares that the events that occurred on Pentecost were a direct result of God pouring out His Holy Spirit. "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh...'"

So who was it that poured out the Holy Spirit? God Himself.

But when Peter is closing out this same message in verses 32-33, he says this: "This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear."

So who was it that poured out the Holy Spirit? Jesus!

All throughout Scripture, we see it again and again. Jesus is God! He is one and the same as Yahweh in the Hebrew Scriptures!