We are going to be wrapping up our series on the names and titles of of Jesus found in the Bible in about three or four weeks. I thank you for taking the time to read the sermon, and I thank the Lord for the opportunity to post the messages.
Today, I want us to focus on a title for Jesus given in the Scriptures that we don't focus on too much. Luke 24:19 tells us that Jesus was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and the people. When Peter gave a sermon recorded in Acts 3, he told his listeners that Jesus was the fulfillment of the words of Moses when Moses said that God would raise up a prophet from among the people that all of the people were to listen to.
I think that the main reason that we don't think of Jesus as a prophet is that we want to emphasize the fact that Jesus is divine. Many claim Jesus is just a prophet or good teacher, and they fail to recognize the divinity of Jesus. However, we must not forget the prophetic ministry of Jesus and that He was referred to as a prophet in the Bible.
Now, how was Jesus a prophet? There are two things that we need to focus on when we think about this. First of all, a prophet was one who spoke for God and spoke authoritatively. Jesus certainly did that. We see this very specifically in the Sermon on the Mount as recorded in Matthew 5, 6 and 7. Jesus spoke the words given to Him by the Father throughout His ministry. In fact, according to the book of Mark, Jesus began His preaching ministry by calling the people to repentance because the Kingdom of God was at hand.
Prophets in the Bible gave a message from God to the people. They called on people to repent and change their ways. They called the people to a new way of living focused on following God and doing what He had called them to do. Jesus certainly fulfilled this aspect of being a prophet.
Another aspect of being a prophet in the Bible was to tell what would happen in the future. Jesus did this several times with His great prophecy on the destruction of the Temple being fulfilled before all of those who had heard Him make the declaration died. Jesus said that the Temple would be destroyed. That happened in 70 AD when Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple.
Jesus also told of what would happen at the end of the age. He said that when the time was right, He would come with His angels to rule on this earth and bring judgment on evildoers. We can trust in what Jesus said because we know that what He said has happened. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. We can trust in what He said because His prophetic word has been proven.
We can believe in and trust in all that Jesus has said and done. He rose from the dead just as He said to bring new life to everyone who would come to Him and believe in Him. I hope that you will trust in Jesus today. Amen.
Prayer Requests
Please keep praying that my health will improve. I am doing better. Keep praying about my job decision. Thank you.
Continue to pray that those in Morocco and Libya will get the aid that they need to recover from the natural disasters that hit those two countries.
Pray for peace in Ukraine and Sudan. Pray for all the places that you can think of that need an end to violence and conflict.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Turkmenistan and Jordan. Pray that many will come to know Jesus.
Next week, we will continue with our current series. I will post the verses on Monday. I hope to have a book review midweek. May God bless you all.
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