Messiah: The Prophet Sent From God

Posted on 05/16/2021 by goodnewsfromadistantland — Leave a comment

In Luke 9:18-20, we see Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ] asking this question of His Disciples: “Whom do you say that I am?”

Yahushua Messiah [the Hebrew name for Jesus Christ] continues throughout the ages to ask: “Whom do you say that I am?”

Some may answer this question with, “He is an honourable man;” “He’s one of the prophets;” or “He’s a good teacher, and nothing more.”

But these answers contradict the written Scriptures. Yahushua [Jesus] is much more than a prophet, or an honourable and good teacher, as we shall see below.

As we saw in Part 1 of this series, Messiah: Not an Ordinary Man, there are many details revealed in the Bible about Yahushua Messiah and His message. There are references to Yahushua Messiah in nearly every book of the Bible. The Bible’s recorded prophecies and messages clearly reveal that this man, Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ], is very different from all other men! He is not an ordinary man! In fact, He is a very mysterious person.

When we look into the Scriptures with child-like faith (Mark 10:15), then God’s mysteries no longer concern us, because we can accept the sovereignty and supreme greatness of His power, and of His wisdom and character.

In the previous articles (Part 1 and Part 2), we discussed Yahushua’s extraordinary birth — the virgin birth, which is indeed a great mystery (1Timothy 3:16). We also looked at Yahushua’s claim to be ONE with the Creator of the universe, the Mighty One of Israel, Yahuwah Elohim [the Hebrew name for the LORD God]. (John 10:30)

Also in the previous articles, we looked at His qualifications as the “Lamb of God” (John 1:29), and we discussed in detail the particular mystery of the identity of Yahushua Messiah as the “Word of God.”

Now let’s begin to consider what it means to be the ‘Prophet Sent From God’.

Prophets: True vs False

What is a Prophet of God?

First of all, a true prophet is someone who speaks by divine inspiration, proclaiming the message given to him by Almighty God. The great responsibility of a true prophet of God is to proclaim the foundational truths of God’s character and government.

The Holy Bible (the ‘Word of God’ as it is also known), confirms the messages of its prophets simply by virtue of the fact that their message is included in the sacred text. The prophet’s messages are divinely-inspired, authoritative, holy, timeless, and true. God has given us His superior guidance in the Scriptures [the Bible] through His messengers, His prophets, to guide us according to His sovereign plans and purposes. (2Timothy 3:16-17)

Across the span of history, Yahuwah has sent His messengers, His prophets, to reveal His truth and His character. Yahuwah Elohim [the LORD God] has promised that His Word, and therefore His truth and the words of His messengers, shall be preserved, and will endure throughout all generations. (Psalms 12:6-7; Psalms 33:11; Psalms 100:5)

Anyone who speaks (or writes) a message that claims to be ‘from God‘ must be very sure of what he is doing. God does not like it one bit for anyone to speak falsely regarding His character or His fundamental truths, or to speak any malicious designs against His people (Deuteronomy 13:1-5; Deuteronomy 18:20; Jeremiah 23:32).

It is a solemn and serious matter for someone to say that he is ‘a prophet sent from God‘, because a prophet is supposed to be a spokesman for the Almighty God, Yahuwah Elohim. And because of the huge responsibility that a prophet has, only a few of God’s true prophets have actually stated specifically: ‘God sent me‘.

However, many times we read in the Scriptures that God Himself confirmed His prophets’ messages by stating, ‘God sent him,’ or ‘Yahuwah [the LORD] sent him,’ or ‘I (Yahuwah) send you.’

Being ‘sent from God’ is an essential criteria for true prophets of God. True prophets will not lie, and they will speak only what God gives them. Sadly however, there are many false prophets who have not been sent from God, and they have deceived multitudes (Matthew 24:11).

How can we discern a false prophet?

False prophets commonly have a message that is a mixture — mixing truth with error (like a glass of water with a few drops of poison). False prophets, whether they are aware of it or not, are either overly presumptuous, or, perhaps unknowingly, harbor in their heart covetousness and ambition. This is why the apostle John urges us to “… try (test, discern, examine) the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1John 4:1)

It takes time to discern a prophet’s message, therefore we should never be too hasty to accept a prophet’s message. The important thing about a prophet’s message is that it should always be in harmony and agreement with the written Scriptures, the Holy Bible.

Now we will look at the special mystery regarding the identity of Yahushua Messiah as ‘The Prophet Sent From God’.

The Prophet Sent From God

Being a prophet of God is a huge and solemn responsibility. No one can lightly say the words, “God sent me.” There is one man however, who said those words repeatedly! Over and over again, Yahushua Messiah said that God sent Him! In fact, centuries before His birth, one of Yahuwah’s prophets (Isaiah), who was a type (a prophetic picture) of Messiah, speaking as Messiah, said the words ‘God has sent Me’:

The Spirit of Adonai Yahuwah [the Lord GOD] is upon Me; because Yahuwah [the LORD] has anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of Yahuwah [the LORD]…. (Isaiah 61:1-2a)

These are the same words spoken by Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ] in the synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4:16-21). Isaiah’s prophecy that God would send His Son was fulfilled by Yahushua Messiah.

Yahushua Messiah is the One Person who repeatedly, over and over again, said that God had sent Him!

In the Gospels, the first four books of the New Testament, Yahushua said God ‘sent Me‘ 38 times! (I have listed these 38 verses below.) I believe the two most significant of these 38 verses is John 7:28-29 and John 8:42:

Then cried Yahushua [Jesus] in the temple as He taught, saying, You both know Me, and you know from where I am: and I am not come of Myself, but He that sent Me is true, whom you know not. But I know Him: for I am from Him, and He has sent Me. (John 7:28-29)

Yahushua [Jesus] said unto them, If God were your Father, you would love Me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of Myself, but He sent Me. (John 8:42)

Here Yahushua is saying specifically that He proceeded forth from God, that He came from God, and that God sent Him! For any other man to say such a thing would seem preposterous, absurd, and laughable! But for Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ] to repeatedly say this, we are content to accept His claim, because upon careful study of His life we know that He never lied to anyone.

Of the 38 verses in the Gospels, Yahushua used one specific phrase — ‘Him that sent Me‘ (the ‘Him’ referring to God) — Yahushua said this phrase 14 times! Among the 38 verses, He also used the phrases, ‘the Father who has sent Me’, ‘the Father Himself, who has sent Me’, ‘the living Father has sent Me’, or ‘My Father has sent Me’.

There are other verses scattered throughout the New Testament, that confirm Yahushua’s claim of being sent by the Father. Notice the following:

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17)

In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation (the atoning sacrifice) for our sins. And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.(1John 4:9-10,14)

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Messiah Yahushua [Christ Jesus] came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. (1Timothy 1:15)

That Prophet

In the days when Yahushua walked on the earth, everyone understood what the phrase “that Prophet” or “the Prophet” was referring to. It refers to a promise found in Deuteronomy:

Yahuwah Elohim [the LORD your God] will raise up unto you a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, like unto me (Moses); unto Him you shall hearken,… 17) And Yahuwah [the LORD] said unto me, … 18) I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto you (Moses), and will put My words in His mouth; and He shall speak unto them all that I shall command Him. 19) And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto My words which He shall speak in My name, I will require it of him. (Deuteronomy 18:15,17,18-19; see also Isaiah 19:20)

This is the promise that the children of Israel clung to for centuries, because they believed this was the promise of the coming of the Messiah. The apostle Peter, when preaching to the crowd, confirmed the fulfillment of this expected promise right after the healing of the lame man at the temple gate:

For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A Prophet shall Yahuwah Elohim [the LORD your God] raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me (Moses); Him shall you hear in all things whatsoever He shall say unto you. 23) And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear That Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. 24) Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. 25) You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, “And in your seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.” 26) Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Yahushua [Jesus], sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities. (Acts 3:22-26)

Yahushua Messiah was indeed ‘That Prophet‘ whom God raised up from among His brethren. Many of the people believed Yahushua was The Promised Messiah, ‘That Prophet‘, for when He was teaching during the Feast of Tabenacles, “many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is The Prophet.” (John 7:40)

Over the centuries, multitudes have read the Bible and have concluded that Yahushua was, and is, the Promised Messiah — ‘That Prophet’ whom God raised up to be the Saviour of the world (Revelation 7:9-10; 1John 4:14).

The Tender-Hearted

There are many written Scriptures that clearly reveal that Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ], was sent to this earth by the Creator of all things, Yahuwah Elohim [the LORD God]. And the Scriptures confirm that Yahuwah’s Son, Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ], is God in the flesh (Isaiah 43:3a; Isaiah 45:21b; Titus 3:4-6 ; see also Isaiah 60:16; Titus 2:13-14; Jude 1:25).

The Words of the Bible are the true and eternal Word of God. A tender-hearted person will receive the wisdom and testimony of the inspired-by-God Scriptures, regardless of the mysteries! And, the tender-hearted will also gladly embrace the full testimony of the One Person who was not, and is not, an ordinary man — the One Person who said over and over that God, the Creator of the universe, had sent Him to this earth!

Yahushua Messiah was not an ordinary man! For Him to say repeatedly ‘God sent Me’ means that each one of us must choose what we will do regarding Him:

“Either this man Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ] was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse.” — C.S. Lewis

Therefore if we:

honestly humble ourselves;
are truly objective;
yield ourselves to believing the Words written in the Bible;

Only then will we:

avoid deception, and gain a true understanding of God’s Word;
be able to acknowledge our urgent and eternal need to give ourselves to this amazing man who said:

Yahushua [Jesus] said to him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father [God] but by Me. (John 14:6)

Let’s be honest with ourselves, and accept the fact that we are little — little in power, little in knowledge. We are simply little creatures — dust, ashes, worms — in comparison to God Almighty, the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Genesis 3:19; Genesis 18:27).

We are incapable of fully understanding the Creator of the universe, no matter how high our IQ, no matter how much ‘brain-power’ we might possess.

But by honest and objective humility, we can begin to understand the Bible’s marvelous, merciful message, and this unique, extraordinary man, Yahushua Messiah — The Prophet Sent From God!

Father in heaven, I thank You for sending Your Son to this earth. Thank You for Your Word that enlightens my path and reveals the Truth of Your Son to be the Saviour of the world. Help me to seek You diligently and learn Your plans and purposes through Your Son. Help me to make Your Truth first place in my life. In the precious name of Your Son, Yahushua Messiah [Jesus Christ], I pray. Amen.

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See the Companion Articles:
Messiah: Not an Ordinary Man
Messiah: The Word Made Flesh
Messiah: The Brightness of God’s Glory

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Receive Yahushua Messiah as your Saviour:
Good News! – 3 Truths to Finding Peace With God

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