The Prophet Jesus

The twelve disciples saw Him as a prophet. One wrote: “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people....” (Luke 24:19). ^{26See also Jaroslav Pelikan, Jesus Through the Centuries (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1985), pp. 14-17.}MOL 20.4

Jesus referred to Himself as a prophet: “So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.’ And He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief” (Matthew 13:57, 58).MOL 20.5

Jesus felt it all—He experienced the hot knife of ingratitude and rejection that most all prophets and prophetesses have endured. No one had better personal credentials, or a more impeccable and consistent life, but prophets are not generally welcome because they speak for God and not to gratify the desires of the human heart. ^{27“The whole public ministry of our Lord was that of a prophet. He was much more than this. But it was as a prophet that He acted and spoke. It was this which gave Him His hold on the mind of the nation. He entered, as it were naturally, on an office vacant but already existing. His discourses were all, in the highest sense of the word, ‘prophecies.’” Dean Arthur P. Stanley, History of the Jewish Church, volume III, (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1880) p. 379.}MOL 20.6

For the first time in the history of the world, a prophet came who would not point to another. The Prophet Jesus said of Himself: “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.... Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.... I am the bread of life” (John 6:29-35).MOL 20.7

As all genuine prophets and prophetesses, Christ’s chief focus was to tell the truth about God and how men and women can rejoin the celestial family: “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do” (John 17:3, 4).MOL 20.8

Before Jesus returned to heaven, He made provision for the prophetic office to continue until His return. The same good news about God would be needed until His return. The same good news about how rebels could be transformed into happy, obedient believers would be needed. This prophetic provision would be one of the primary responsibilities of the Holy Spirit who would give “gifts to men” (Ephesians 4:8).MOL 20.9

The beginning of the Christian church coincides with the renewal of these spiritual gifts: “He Himself [Jesus] gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers” (Ephesians 4:11, 12).MOL 20.10

These gifts were not only to launch the Christian church, they were to remain in the church until the end: “Till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine...” (Ephesians 4:13, 14). How long? As long as the church exists; as long as imperfect and immature men and women need time to “grow up” to the “measure of... Christ,” apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers will be needed.MOL 20.11

Paul reminded his Corinthian friends that they were “enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you” (1 Corinthians 1:5, 6). That is, they have grown spiritually and will continue to mature to the extent they continue to listen closely to the messages of the prophets which are signified as “the testimony of Christ.” As we noted on page 3, “the testimony of Jesus [or Christ]” (Revelation 12:17) is the “spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10).MOL 21.1

Further, Paul declared that the church would “come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:7). It may be significant that Paul singled out the “gift of prophecy” when he emphasized that the church would not be lacking any of the gifts until Jesus returned. Probably no gift would be more needed in the end-time than the gift of prophecy.MOL 21.2

Later, in the same letter, Paul elaborated on how the gifts would function in the work of the church (1 Corinthians 12). Although each gift would have its own special work, all the gifts would serve the common purpose of helping men and women “grow up.”MOL 21.3

Clearly, the gifts of the Spirit are “given” by the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7). They are not abilities earned by training or an honor conferred by human beings. The “fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22) is to be sought by everyone, but the “gifts of the Spirit” are distributed “to each one individually as He wills” (1 Corinthians 12:11). Whether one possesses a particular gift is not to be made a test of Christian fellowship, because no one has all the gifts.MOL 21.4

The permanence of these spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy, is assumed in the apostolic instruction. Remembering Christ’s counsel that “false prophets” would arise in the end-time (Matthew 24:24), Paul cautioned: “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21). The well-being of church members awaiting the Advent will depend on how they accept the counsel of true prophets—especially in being able to discern the false from the true.MOL 21.5