John 4:19
The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet."
Message: Christ Our Prophet
Time: This gospel does not identify the author, unlike Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but their is evidence of his authorship from early Christians. The book was written between 85 and 95 AD. John wrote so that his readers might "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God," so that they may have life in His name.
What the Lord is Saying:
I like to start each message with a summary of what has occurred up to this point. I am reading from Tabletalk devotional and studying currently the key biblical doctrine of Christ Alone, solus Christus and Jesus is the one that saves. I am looking at the different attributes of Jesus. Jesus was divine which means that Jesus is God; He is the God-man or the God that became man. And just as He is God, He is also the God-man, in that He has a human nature. We read about Jesus having the qualities of man (hunger, needing rest, not knowing future events, being tempted). Jesus is called the Last Adam. Adam was our federal head - his sin ushered in all sin to every man. Jesus makes all alive now for those who are in Christ. Israel was called by God to be His messenger, but Israel did not fulfill this, but Jesus did so Jesus is the true Israel; and Jesus is Messiah as messiah is spoken of in the Bible as one who delivers and rescues people.
So this is who Christ is, now what has Christ done? He has done the work for us. The reason He is different and the reason He has rescued and delivered us is because he has been obedient like no other. His obedience is described as active and passive. Active means Jesus lived a perfect life - which means He was always obedient to the Law of God- the commandments, which is unlike any other person. And his obedience is also described as passive. Passive is a strange term. He actively suffered and died on the cross for our sins and this means he paid the penalty for sin, he took care of our debt to God. The debt was paid and His good works are transferred to us. In Christ is payment for the debt and eternal life in God via Christ's obedience.
And Jesus shows us this from childhood on. From an early age, the gospels describe His obedience. he was obedient in being baptized; he was tempted in the same way we are but he always went through the temptation on top, sinless. And Jesus was obedient to the Law, fulfilling every commandment.
Thus, we have seen who He is and what He has done and now we look at how He is described. One of the ways Jesus is understood or conceptualized is as Prophet, Priest and King. In this lesson, we look at Christ our Prophet.
The woman at the well addressed Jesus as a prophet and He did not correct her. A prophet is one that speaks for God, by divine inspiration. Jesus has always spoken with authority and to me spoke with compassion and told people exactly what they needed to hear. But Jesus is not simply God on this earth, that he walked but all of God's word puts forth the words of Jesus. He speaks to us in every word of the Bible. His teaching is perfect. He has a wisdom unlike any other. His words never fail.
On a side note, the prophet distinction in history is filled with false prophets. In Islam it is seen in Muhammed and Mormonism has Joseph Smith, but so many others. I think at times the Pope is a False Prophet and other cults begin with someone who comes in and says he has a special access to God, but I don't think anyone has declared himself the way Jesus has.
Promise: A true Prophet's words are absolutely trustworthy and His words never fail to accomplish His purposes.
Prayer: Lord, thank you always for the words you have spoken throughout history, words that bring healing to our lives, direction, guidance, and always peace. You have shown us the meaning of life always and I praise you for guiding me all these years and keeping the Word of God fresh in my life. It is never dull. Thank you for speaking through other people in my life as well. Keep me close to Your Word O God. I pray that people would see You as You are and accept Your words and teachings. Keep bringing me understanding of You God. Thank you for being the only true Prophet.
Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines celebrating the 500th year of the Reformation. The month of May is about solus Christus - Christ Alone; April was about salvation by grace alone; March about the sovereign providence of God; February was about the doctrine of revelation and the various aspects of the doctrine of Scripture that sola Scriptura seeks to preserve; January was about the doctrine of God.
No comments:
Post a Comment