A Long Awaited Prophet

Isaiah 11:1–10 “1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. 2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. 6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. 9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.”

Introduction

Christians have long understood that our Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled three different offices during his ministry on earth and now in heaven. The term “Christ” means anointed one and in the Old Testament there were three offices that received anointing with oil during their ordination: the office of prophet, the office of priest, and the office of king.

For the next three sermons, we will examine each of these offices in turn and see how they relate to the advent of Jesus Christ.

As we examine what it means for Jesus to bear the office of prophet, we need to first start with what a prophet is.

A Prophet is someone who declares God’s law, promise, wisdom, judgement and salvation.

Or to put it more succinctly, a prophet is the mouthpiece of God.

Adam was a prophet of sorts, called to teach his wife and his descendents.

Noah was a prophet, warning of God’s coming judgement.

Moses was a prophet, delivering the law and promises to the people of Israel.

Samuel was a prophet, as was Jeremiah, Elijah, Isaiah, and Daniel.

Each of them in one way or another declared God’s law, his promises, his wisdom, his judgement and his salvation.

The Twofold Insufficiency of Old Testament Prophets

Though these prophets of old were mighty men and should be admired by all Christians, their ministry was insufficient. It was insufficient in two ways: (1) Incomplete Revelation (2) Incompetent Hearers

Incomplete Revelation

It would have been an immense privilege to sit under the teaching of prophets like Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, and Elijah. They truly spoke the Words of God and they are just as true now and they were then. And yet while we did get a true picture of God and his will through their teaching, we did not get a complete picture.

1 Peter 1:10–12 “10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.”

In other words, they saw the shadow, but we see the substance. And that substance is Christ.

Christ is himself the full revelation of God and his will. Listen to what the author of Hebrews tells us:

Hebrews 1:1–3 “1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power…”

So Jesus is contrasted with the prophets of Old and is clearly being set up as far superior than them. Not only does it mention that he created the world, but that he is the radiance of God’s Glory and the exact imprint of his nature. In other words, Jesus is the full revelation of God.

Incompetent Hearers

The other insufficiency is the fact that the listeners of the Prophets had dull ears, blind eyes, and hard hearts. Listen to the conversation God had with Isaiah:

Isaiah 6:8–10“8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” 9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ 10 Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”

So hard heartedness toward’s God’s word marked the people of Israel as a whole in the days of the prophets.

In one sense, this was still a problem when the Son was incarnate and became man. As John tells us:

John 1:11 “11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.”

But in another sense, this problem was and is now being resolved. Prior to Christ’s incarnation and ministry, the powers of darkness had a tight grip on the world. But as the Scriptures declare, what Jesus did on the cross and in his resurrection put Satan in chains. Specifically, he is bound in such a way that he cannot deceive the nations as he once did. The strong man has been bound so that Jesus can plunder his possessions.

When his Spirit was outpoured at Pentecost, something radically changed. God’s people went from playing defense to offense. We were given our marching orders: now that Satan was bound, we can go into the nations and disciple them, teaching them the way of Christ.

Moreover, the message about Christ—the Gospel— isn’t just more light. Light doesn’t do someone much good if they are blind. No, the gospel can actually cure blindness. Remember what the Scriptures say: The gospel is the power of God unto Salvation to everyone who believes.

“Well”, you might reply, “Isn’t that the very problem: that people don’t believe because their hearts are hard.” Indeed, this is true. Nobody would believe the gospel if God didn’t chose to soften their heart by His Spirit first. This is exactly what we see in Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians:

2 Corinthians 4:3–6 “3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

Yes, people are blind due to Satan and to their love of sin, but in God’s glorious mercy, through our preaching about his Son, he choses very often to turn the lights on.

Prophecies of Jesus the Prophet

So it is clear then that Jesus is superior to the prophets of old. Now lets consider our text in Isaiah 11 and a few others to see how Christ the Prophet was foretold.

Isaiah 11:1–2 “1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. 2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

Here Isaiah foretells of a man from the lineage of Jesse and king David on whom the Spirit of God shall rest upon. The fulfillment of this is seen most clearly at the baptism of Jesus.

Matthew 3:16 “16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him;”

The Spirit of God resting on Christ is unique to any other outpouring of the Spirit in any time prior. Other prophets of old had the Spirit of God with them, but not in this way.

But more than just Isaiah’s foretelling of this great prophet to come, Moses also foretold of him.

Deuteronomy 18:15–19 “15 “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen— 16 just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ 17 And the Lord said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.”

This is the passage that the religious leaders had in mind when they asked John the Baptist if he was “the prophet”.

What Christ’s Prophetic Work Looks Like

We mentioned earlier that a prophet is someone who declares God’s law, promise, wisdom, judgement and salvation. Jesus did all of these things, but he did much more than merely declare—he enacted; he fulfilled.

Jesus declared the law of God most completely and fulfilled it.

Matthew 5:17–18 “17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.”

Jesus declared the promises of God and is himself the yes and amen to God’s promises

2 Corinthians 1:20 “20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

Jesus declared the wisdom of God and is himself the Father’s wisdom incarnate (Logos)

John 1:14 “14 And the Word [logos] became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Colossians 2:2–3 “2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

1 Corinthians 1:30 “30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God…

Jesus declared God’s judgement and is the one who will deal judgement on the last day.

John 5:22–23 “22 For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.”

Jesus declared God’s salvation and is himself the means of salvation.

1 John 4:14 “14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.”

Christ Prophetic Work through the Church

So we understand now the significance of Christ’s ministry as prophet when he was here among us, but what about right now? Does Jesus still occupy the office of prophet? Yes, most certainly. He does so by His Holy Scriptures through his Holy Church.

Now the church is the mouthpiece of Christ on earth.

Christ the prophet made us prophets of Christ.

This can been seen in at least two ways in the life of the church: (1) Through her Pastors (2) Through her People

(1) Through Pastors

For all of her history, when the Christian church has gathered in her various local assemblies, the Word of God—the Bible—has always been read, taught, and proclaimed. This is done by pastors whose job it is to teach the Scriptures. Listen to what the Apostle Paul says to Pastor Timothy in his letter:

1 Timothy 4:13 “13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.”

This is at the heart of what it means to be a pastor: to publically read the Bible, teach the Bible, and exhort others with the Bible. Why is this reserved for pastors? Because when the pastor stands behind the pulpit or when the pastor is correcting a church member, or when the pastor is giving counsel to the church member, he is the mouthpiece of God and his teaching is the word of God, so long as it is actually in line with the written Word of God.

In other words, the authority comes from the message, not the messenger. The church should only have qualified men in this position whom they trust to handle the Word of God appropriately.

This is also why only qualified men can be pastors: because when we stand before the church to read, teach and proclaim, we are standing in the place of Christ, who is himself a man. Exhorting and correcting others with the Scriptures requires strength, authority, courage, and an unflinching and unapologetic declaration of the truth. In other words, true preaching caries with it the offense of the gospel. It causes tension. It causes conflict. And men are made for conflict. Women are not.

Now, this doesn’t mean of course that pastors should seek to be unnecessarily contentious. But it does mean if a pastor’s preaching caries with it no opportunity for offence in the listener, then he isn’t properly representing Christ, because we know that many people were offended by the words of Christ when he preached during his earthly ministry.

So we should honor the Word when it is read in church and taught in Church and when you are corrected or exhorted by the Word through your pastors. I don’t say this to be self-serving. I say this for the sake of your souls.

Hebrews 13:17 “17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”

Why would the Scriptures tell church members to submit to their leaders? Because they are mediating the authority of Christ’s prophetic office, so long as the counsel and correction they are providing is consistent with the written Word of God. To say it another way, a pastor has no right to tell you what you should name your child or where you should live, but he does have the authority to point out sin in your life and give you biblically consistent counsel on how to change and how to obey Christ more fully.

(2) Through Christian Parents, Especially Fathers

Parents are called by God to be prophets to their children: to teach and reveal the things of God to them. Fathers especially are charged with this since the office of father is one of prophet, priest, and king as well.

Fathers, you must not be passive about your role as prophet. Don’t use lack of time or intelligence as an excuse. Most men find time to learn about the sports they follow, the politics they watch, the books they like, the movies or games they enjoy. And if you started a conversation with them about any of those things, they would gladly teach you what they know. How much more important then is the very word of God; to learn from the word and be able to teach it?

(3) Through Individual Christians

All Christians are called to teach and encourage one another with the truth of God. To your friends, neighbors, coworkers. We are all prophets in this sense.

And it is in all three of these ways that the prophecy at the end of our text in Isaiah 11 will begin to take shape:

Isaiah 11:9–10 “9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.”

This will fully occur when Christ returns to consummate his kingdom, but his reign doesn’t begin then. It began when he died, rose again and ascended to the right hand of God. So even now the earth is being filled with the knowledge of the Lord. It seems we still have a long way to go, but it will happen. And it will happen progressively through church history until Christ returns.

Conclusion: The Danger of Rejecting Christ the Prophet

But as we close, I want to remind you all of a very important warning regarding Christ the Prophet.

Hebrews 10:26–31 “26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”