Progressive Revelation - Part 3: From Sinai to the Spirit: The Progression and Privilege of Prophecy in Scripture

Introduction

Read part 2 here.

As God continually reveals Himself, His expectations for His people evolved. We have previously explored how God progressively revealed Himself, moving from initial general revelation (as seen in the days of Job) to the foundational written teaching (Torah) given through Moses. However, the history of Israel quickly showed that they could not meet God's expectations, necessitating a new level of communication. This is when God began sending prophets.

The function of a prophet in Scripture is not merely to predict the future, though they did this partly. The primary role and duty of a prophet was to speak on behalf of God. Figures like Elijah and Elisha, for instance, spoke and acted only what God told them to do. Moses himself was a prophet whom God approved of, as stated in the promise of a prophet to come: "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers" (Deuteronomy 18:18).

The question for us today is: What were the original needs and qualifications for prophecy, and how does this role continue in the New Covenant church?

The Origin and Essential Role of Prophets

The need for prophets arose from the people's fear of hearing God directly. At Mount Sinai, God came down in fire and thunder, and the Israelites were terrified, fearing death if they even touched the mountain. They trembled and told Moses they did not want to hear God's voice directly, asking Moses to speak to them instead.

In response to this fear and the need for a continuous mediator between God and humanity, God promised a sequence of prophetic voices:

• Deuteronomy 18:15: "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."
• Deuteronomy 18:18 (ESV): "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."

The main role of these representatives (whose base Hebrew word is Nabi, meaning "one who is called") was to deliver God’s message when people went away from Him, be it to individuals, groups, or some times even to heathen people.

Identifying False Prophecy

The people needed to know how to distinguish a true prophet from a false one. The criteria were clear:

• Deuteronomy 18:20 (ESV): "For the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die."
• Deuteronomy 18:22 (ESV): "When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you need not be afraid of him."

The Universal Call to Prophecy

Throughout history, God has used people from all walks of life—kings, servants, slaves, and free men—as prophets. God’s readiness to use people was not restricted by gender; women were also prophetesses, such as Hulda (1 Kings 22) and Isaiah’s wife.

Moses himself expressed the desire for this calling to be universal:

• Numbers 11:29 (ESV): "But Moses said to him, 'Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his spirit on them!'"

Moses desired that all God’s people might receive the Spirit and prophesy. This reveals God's ultimate plan to raise prophets from among those who were ready and willing to work with His Spirit.

Essential Qualifications of an Old Testament Prophet

God has specific conditions and qualifications for those He uses. If these qualities were missing, God would not speak, just as demonstrated by the 400 years of silence between the Testaments.

1. Careful Listening and Attention

The primary eligibility for a prophet was the willingness to stand in the counsel of the Lord, see, hear, and pay attention to His word.

• Jeremiah 23:21,22 (ESV): "I did not send the prophets, yet they ran; I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my counsel, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people, and they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their deeds."

Without this careful listening, God stopped speaking to His people. The old prophet Eli, though a judge, was not ready to listen to God’s word. Instead, God raised the young boy, Samuel, who was ready to hear.

• 1 Samuel 3:20-21 (ESV): "And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord."

Samuel’s willingness to listen re-established God’s channel of communication.

2. Readiness to Respond to the Call

A prophet must be willing to respond to God's need when He calls. Isaiah, after receiving a great vision of heaven and having his lips cleansed, did not go out immediately. God issued a call:

• Isaiah 6:8 (ESV): "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'."

The prophet must respond to the call of God, not to the call of money or personal gain, as did the prophet Balaam, who serves as a warning (referenced in 2 Peter and Jude).

3. Living a Separated Life

The prophet must live a life distinctly different from the rebellious people to whom he is ministering.

• Isaiah 8:11 (ESV): "For the Lord spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people,"

Unless a prophet lives a separated and distinguished life, they cannot be God’s representative. God needs people who can walk and live a separated life.

The Fulfillment of Prophecy and the New Covenant Privilege

The entire work of prophecy culminated in the Lord Jesus Christ, who fulfilled the promise of the Prophet like Moses (referenced in Acts 3 and Acts 7). The transition between the covenants was marked by John the Baptist.

Jesus identified John the Baptist as the continuation of the Old Testament prophets (Luke 3 references the phrase "the word of the Lord came to John").

• Luke 7:26 (ESV): "Then what then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet."
• Luke 7:28 (ESV): "I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."

How can the least believer in the kingdom of God be greater than John the Baptist, the greatest of the Old Testament prophets? Our superiority lies in our privileges under the New Covenant:

1. The Indwelling Spirit

In the Old Testament, the Spirit rested upon people, allowing them to prophesy, as seen when the Spirit rested on the 70 elders (Numbers 11). In the New Testament, the Spirit dwells inside us.

• John 14:17 (ESV): "Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you."

We now possess the Holy Spirit God within us, granting a far greater privilege than the Old Testament prophets.

2. The Inscribed Word

In the Old Testament, prophets heard God’s word externally. Under the New Covenant, God’s word is within us, inscribed on our hearts.

• Romans 10:8 (ESV): "But what does it say? 'The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart' (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim)."
• Colossians 3:16 (ESV): "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God."

This is the fulfillment of the new covenant promises (referenced in Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Hebrews), where God writes His laws on the heart.

The Privilege and Practice of Prophecy Today

With the indwelling Spirit and the inscribed Word, all believers possess the privilege to be prophets of God. Furthermore, we are specifically encouraged to seek this role:

• 1 Corinthians 14:1 (ESV): "Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy."

Prophecy is a spiritual gift that God wants us to truly desire. The benefits of prophecy in the church are three-fold:

1. Upbuilding/Welfare: To grow and be built up.
2. Encouragement: Bringing encouragement amidst discouragements.
3. Consolation: Providing comfort in disappointment.

While all believers should desire this gift individually, the universal church is also gifted with specific individuals for the benefit of the whole body (1 Corinthians 12:10 references prophecy as one of the listed gifts).

Crucially, this prophetic word must come from the right source:

• 2 Peter 1:20-21 (ESV): "Knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

Prophecy should not be based on human imagination, but on the inspiration of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Conclusion: Starting with the First Prophetic Act

We are called to be Christ's representatives, fulfilling the prophetic role in our own circles, regardless of status or gender. If we find ourselves lacking in the ability to share God's word, we can look to the very first occurrence of the word "prophet" in the Bible: Abraham.

Abraham was called a prophet by God Himself, and his role was defined by his readiness to pray for others (referenced in Genesis 18).

If we are ready to pray for others, we are already doing the job of a prophet. Before examining our ability to proclaim God's word, we must examine our willingness to meet the core conditions: Are we ready to listen to His word? Are we willing to live a separated life? And are we able to at least spend time in prayer for others?

(To be continued...)