Old Testament passage for Monday, April 1, 2013: Deuteronomy 18:1-20:20
18 I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. 19 And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him. Deuteronomy 18:18-19 (NKJV)
There were three major leadership offices in Old Testament Israel. Those three were PROPHET, PRIEST, and KING. Jesus Christ is the center of the Bible. In Him, all biblical truth finds its full expression (Col. 1:16-20). In Him, these three offices are fully revealed.
As is always the case, we should look at the Old Testament as it prefigures the Person and Work of Jesus. Every aspect of Old Testament life points to Him. He is our Passover Lamb (I Co. 5:7, John 1:29, Rev. 5:6). He is our Sabbath (Matt. 11:28-30, Heb. 4:9-10). He is our Law-giver and our Law-keeper (Matt. 5:17-48, Matt. 3:15). He is our life (Col. 3:4).
He is the perfect PROPHET, PRIEST, and KING. The Bible spells it out clearly, giving word-pictures so that we can understand the glories of Jesus.
1. Jesus is a prophet like MOSES. (Duetueronomy 18:18)
2. Jesus is a priest according to the order of MELCHIZEDEK. (Psalm 110:4, Heb. 7:12-17)
3. Jesus is a king sitting on the throne of DAVID. (Isaiah 9:6-7, Luke 1:32)
It would be worth our time to look more closely at all three of these offices. As a King, Jesus rules over His kingdom and defeats all His foes. As a Priest, Jesus reconciles us to God by the once for all sacrifice of His own life and He ever lives to make intercession for us now. What does it mean that Jesus is our PROPHET?
The Kingly ministry of Jesus and His Priestly ministry are relatively easy to understand. It is His Prophetic ministry that remains vague to many. A prophet is one who brings the word of God. A prophet brings revelation and light. A prophet shows the way.
Jesus is our prophet in that He speaks to us. It is surprising to many folks to know that they can actually HEAR FROM GOD. This is not a deeper-life mystical "voice in the night." This is the ministry of the Jesus as He speaks to your heart by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Andrew Murray in his short book Jesus Christ - Prophet Priest gives four expressions of the prophetic ministry of Jesus.
1. He convinces us of the will of God
2. He reveals spiritual truth
3. He conveys promises in regard to your future
4. He awakens a holy expectancy
Jesus is a Prophet like Moses. There are so many ways that Jesus' and Moses' lives were parallel. One author listed 30 different ways they were alike. Just as Moses brought Israel out of Egyptian bondage, so Jesus sets us free today from captivity to sin and Satan.
He is speaking to you today. Hear the Prophet as He speaks to you. He is the Word of God. May He be alive in you today as He guides you to fullness of life in Him.
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