Christ's Fitness for His Prophetic Office

Introduction and Review of the Prophetic Office

0:04 The one true and living God who speaks in his word, the Bible, has clearly said that he has appointed but one Savior for sinners. If any man or woman, boy or girl in this building this morning, is ever to be rescued from sin and from the hell to which sin leads,

0:30 he or she will be rescued by the work of that one Savior, even the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul said concerning this Savior, there is one God and one mediator between God and man, himself man, Christ Jesus. The Savior himself said, I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man.

1:01 No man cometh unto the Father but by me. So in these Lord's Day morning meditations, we are concerned to examine the teaching of the Scriptures with respect to this great Savior, for there is no other Savior appointed for us as sinners. Having considered Him in the great mystery of His person, that is, who He is as God and man,

1:29 two natures in one person forever, we are now examining the teaching of the Word of God with respect to the majesty of his office as the mediator of sinners, an office in which we find him exercising the roles, the functions of a prophet, of a priest, and of a king. And I remind you that this is not an academic exercise. If Jesus Christ ever saves you from hell,

1:59 And from the sin that leads to hell, it will be because as the only mediator between God and man, he has become to you a prophet to instruct you in your ignorance, a priest to forgive you and cleanse you of your guilt, and a king to subdue you and defend you in all of your rebellion and weakness. Our present focus of concern is upon God.

2:28 The prophetic aspect of our Lord's office is a mediator. Thus far in opening up this subject, we have ascertained the biblical concept of a prophet, one who receives and then conveys the word of God to others with the authority of God. We've considered the biblical basis for asserting that Christ is just such a prophet. And then last Lord's Day we considered the biblical description of his prophetic function. That description very succinctly and yet comprehensively given in the answer of the larger catechism to the question, how does Christ execute the office of a prophet? Christ executes the office of a prophet in his revealing to the church in all ages.

3:23 by His Spirit and Word, in different ways of administration, the whole will of God in all things concerning salvation and edification. And so we contemplated last week this vast ministry of Christ our Prophet from the period of preparation in the Old Testament right through to the period of expansion and fulfillment and consummation of the Church Christ being the supreme prophet of his people. Now, this morning, I want to direct your attention to one of the two final aspects of the prophetic office of Christ to which we will address ourselves. This morning, the spotlight will be upon the Lord himself. We shall consider from the scriptures Christ's unique fitness to function as such a prophet. How is it that he is able to

4:23 in all the ages of the church to reveal the whole will of God to all of His people concerning everything necessary for their salvation and edification. And then, God willing, next week the spotlight will be upon us in the light of all that He is as a prophet. What are the implications of this truth to us individually, corporately as a church, and even to the world at large? But this morning, All of our concern is to focus upon this one central issue, Christ's unique fitness for his prophetic office. And there are three avenues of consideration, three avenues of thought by which I trust to open up in your hearing what the Scriptures tell us concerning Christ's unique fitness for his prophetic office. And the first is...

5:22 He is uniquely fit to fill this office because of the unequal dignity of his person. Having opened up that theme in the second place, we shall consider his fitness in the light of the unrivaled authority of his position, and if time permits, thirdly, because of the unmeasured degree of his power. First of all, and supremely,

Unequal Dignity of Person: John 1 — God Only Begotten

5:53 Christ is fit to be the final prophet of his church because of the unequal dignity of his person. How is it that Jesus Christ can function as the great prophet of God, declaring all the mind and will of God to the church in all ages? Well, the simple answer is, he can do what he does because he is the

6:22 what he is. And here we see again, as we've seen continually, the delicate and the inseparable relationship between the person and the work of Jesus Christ. He has constituted what he is in his person, that he might function as he ought in his office. And so when we ask the question, how is it, that Jesus Christ can be such a prophet, revealing to the church in all ages all that God would have known concerning the salvation and edification of his people, our answer is simply, it is because he is what he is. As one careful student of the word of God has said, the full comprehension of the mind and will of God is

7:12 of the whole divine counsel concerning His glory in the salvation and sanctification of the church, could not at once reside in the mind of any mere creature. There is no mere creature that could hold in His mind all of the counsel of God concerning the glory of God to be secured in the salvation and edification of of the church. And so this morning I want to direct your attention to several passages of the Word of God which set forth the intimate relationship between the unequal dignity of the person of Christ and the supreme authority and sufficiency of Christ in His prophetic office. The first passage is found in John's Gospel, chapter 1. The Gospel of John, chapter 1.

8:13 And our concern is not simply to establish the doctrine of the deity of Christ. That was done many months ago. And one of the key passages which we used was the opening verses, or were the opening verses of John's Gospel. But we want to consider his unique fitness to function as the final prophet of God to his people.

8:40 I shall read John chapter 1, verses 15 to 18. John, that is John the Baptist, beareth witness of him, that is of Christ, and crieth, say, and may I just pause to underscore, those that say there is no place in our day for preaching that seems to be at all emotional, in which the emotions are expressed in the raising of the voice or the agitation of the larynx, there is utterly no foundation for that in Scripture. It says that John bore witness and he cried, saying. He did not simply say, if anyone would like to come around, I've got a few thoughts I'd like to share about Jesus. He was in the wilderness and he cried, saying. And what did he cry? He, this was he of whom I said, He that cometh after me is become before me, for he was before me.

9:37 For of his fullness we all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time. God only begotten. For the best manuscript evidence points to that rendering.

10:04 God only begotten who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. Now catch the train of thought. John the Baptist is extolling the surpassing glory and worth of Jesus Christ with respect to himself. John bears witness, verse 15, of Christ and says...

10:30 This was he of whom I said, He that comes after me is become before me, for he was before me. He's saying, Whatever opinions you have of me, I am nothing compared to the one whose name I extol, the one to whom I point in my ministry. He is of surpassing worth, for he existed before me.

10:55 So John extols the surpassing worth of Christ with reference to himself. Then he does something very significant to the Jews. He shows the surpassing worth of Christ with respect to Moses. Moses, who in the mind of the Jews stood head and shoulders above every other personage in the Old Testament. As Abraham was the father of the nation, Moses was, as it were, the great founder of the theocracy.

11:23 Moses was the one, as we saw several weeks ago, to whom God did not reveal his mind by visions and dreams, but God spoke to him as a man speaks to a man face to face. So John, having said, the one who comes is of greater worth than I, he then goes on to say he is of greater dignity than Moses. Notice, for the law was given through Moses, grace and truth. came through Jesus Christ. Granted, Moses was a prophet through whom God communicated His law, by which we come to the discovery of who we are and what God is like and of our sin. But grace and ultimate truth have ever been funneled through Jesus Christ. And it's as though someone says, now wait a minute, John. We can understand how it is that Jesus might be greater than you, but greater than Moses...

12:20 What lies behind that statement? Yes, he is greater than you are because he was before you, but in what sense is he greater than Moses? Well, he's going to tell us in the next verse. No man hath seen God at any time, including Moses. Ah, yes, Moses saw his glory.

12:44 There is the record of this in Exodus 33. You remember he prayed, show me thy glory. And God says, you cannot see me face to face. I'll show you my hind parts. And God passes by Moses and declares his glory. But no man, including Moses, has ever beheld God in the unveiled, undimmed essence of his Godhood. No man has thus beheld God, including Moses, including John,

13:14 And since no man has ever fully beheld him and entered into his very essence and penetrated into the very fabric of his mind and his counsels, no man is fully qualified to declare him. Moses can know only so much as God reveals. John can know only so much as God reveals. But now of Christ it is said, No man hath seen God at any time,

13:45 God only begotten, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. Jesus Christ, as God's final and supreme prophet, speaks not out of a context in which he has beheld, as it were, just the hind parts of God, and had bits and pieces of revelation from God, but he speaks and the posture of being embosomed in the Father. Now, what did that mean to John? Well, cross-reference this with John chapter 13. John chapter 13 and verse 23. Our Lord has announced that He will be betrayed

14:45 This causes a flurry of questions among the disciples, who it is that's going to do this. And we read in verse 22 of John 13, The disciples looked on one another, doubting of whom he spake. There was at the table reclining in Jesus' bosom one of his disciples whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him and said to him, Tell us who it is of whom he speaketh.

15:11 He, leaning back as he was on Jesus' breast, said to him, Lord, who is it? Jesus therefore answered, Do you see what the context of being embosomed is? It is the context of the most intimate kind of relationship that gives birth to the unfolding of the secrets of the heart of one to the heart of another. And it's only the one in that privileged position that has the heart thus disclosed. And it's a beautiful picture. Oh, I trust the word does not sound sentimental and saccharine. It's a beautiful as well as a majestic picture that Christ as the prophet greater than John, greater than Moses, is uniquely fitted to be this final prophet who can declare the whole mind of God. Why? Because he does not speak

16:09 as one to whom God has sovereignly given a bit and a piece and a segment of his mind. But he exegetes God from his very bosom. He exegetes God as the one who was embosomed in the Father from all eternity. Direct access to all the mind and the counsels of the Godhead.

16:36 And therefore he can speak all that he knows and all that he understands. Because he alone, God only begotten, he alone has that posture of the embosomed one. John Owen commenting on this text so wonderfully opens up the heart of its meaning. When he says, Wherefore no man...

17:06 No other man or prophet whatever hath seen God at any time, that is, has had a perfect comprehension of His counsels, His mind and will, as they were to be declared unto the church. This is the privilege of the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, not only as being His eternal delight and love, but also as one acquainted with all his secret counsels, as his fellow and participant of all his bosom thoughts. Blessed be God for a prophet who speaks to us out of the posture of having been from eternity the embosomed one.

Unequal Dignity: John 3 — Descended Out of Heaven Yet in Heaven

17:57 Now turn to a second passage which underscores this same essential principle. Christ's unique fitness to be the prophet to the church, uniquely fitted because of who he is, because of what we've called the unequal dignity of his person. John chapter 3, verses 11 through 13. Our Lord is discoursing with Nicodemus.

18:26 He has spoken of the necessity of the new birth. He has spoken of the ugly reality of man's fleshiness, that which is born of the flesh's flesh. Therefore, none can see nor enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of the Spirit. Now, this is just completely buffaloed. Poor Nicodemus. He is all mixed up and confused and hopelessly tortured in mind. And so the Lord says to him,

18:56 Verse 10, Jesus answered and said to him, Art thou the teacher in Israel, teacher of great prominence, known for both your knowledge and your ability to convey that knowledge? Art thou the teacher in Israel, and knowest or understandest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto you, we speak that which we know. and we bear witness of that which we've seen. Now, that's just a fundamental axiom. If we're to speak with authority on any subject, it must be that which we know. A witness is someone who is affirming what he has observed, not what someone else has observed, but he says, this is what I saw, this is what I have observed. Here's a general axiom. We speak that which we know, we bear witness of that which we've seen, and ye receive not our witness.

19:48 If I told you earthly things and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has descended into heaven, but he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of Man who is in heaven. Now do you follow the train of thought? In the course of our Lord's discourse, he speaks of these things that baffle Nicodemus.

20:18 But in speaking of them, he says two things are true. Only what is revealed is spoken. We cannot speak what we do not know. We cannot bear witness of things we haven't seen. Then our Lord goes on to say in the second place, I have only given you the elementary things of that which I know. I know earthly things and I've been speaking of earthly things. Now, he says, what would you do if I speak of heavenly things?

20:46 Now if the rule is true that you can only speak as a witness of what you've seen, how can Christ speak of heavenly things? Things that have their origin in the very heart of God's mind, in the very counsels of God. Well, he tells us how it is that he can speak as a witness of heavenly things. And he tells us, verse 13 negatively, No one hath ascended into heaven.

21:13 It's not that as a creature I have been taken up into heaven and been given access to the inner counsels of God. No. Rather, the opposite is true. He that descended out of heaven. Who is he? Even the Son of Man. And then Nicodemus is really thrown for a loop. Who is in heaven? Well, is he out of heaven or is he in heaven? Well, both are true.

21:42 In descending out of heaven, the eternal Word taking to himself a true humanity, so that the God-man actually stands there before Nicodemus in human form, with a human voice, human hair, human eyes, human ears, and hands, and feet, and tongue, and larynx. Yet as to the essence of the Godhead, there is an indivisibility, and the eternal Word becomes flesh.

22:12 But in no sense does he cease to be God, who yet fills heaven and earth. And so he says to Nicodemus, lest there be any question in descending out of heaven, he is yet in heaven. And because he is in heaven, has he forever been with the Father? embosomed upon the Father's breast, as it were. He can speak of heavenly things, not that He has been taken up and introduced to them, but they have been His eternal acquaintance, and out of that context He declares them. You see, the Lord Jesus is uniquely qualified to be the prophet of God to His church. Why? Because

23:00 of this unequal dignity of his person. He is not as other prophets who are of the earth, and if they are to speak that which they know, and they are to bear witness to that which they see, they will know and see only as much as is given in bits and pieces, even the supreme of all those prophets, Moses, to whom God says, you cannot see my undimed essence and glory. I will only declare

23:29 of it to you. Not so, our blessed Lord and God's final prophet. Quoting again from John Owen, who has capsulized these thoughts so wonderfully, He, Christ, descended from heaven in His incarnation, whereby He became the Son of Man. And He is and was then in heaven in the essence and glory of His divine nature,

23:56 This is the full of what we assert in the knowledge and revelation of heavenly mysteries unto the calling, sanctification, and salvation of the church does the prophetical office of Christ consist. This he positively affirms could not be otherwise, but that he who came down from heaven was also at the same instant in heaven. This is that glorious person whereof we speak,

24:26 He who, being always in heaven in the glory and essence of His divine nature, came down from heaven, not locally by a mutation of His residence, but by taking our nature into personal union with Himself. He alone is able to meet. He alone is meet and able to be the prophet of the church in the revelation of the heavenly mysteries of the wisdom of

24:57 To these passages we might add such as we have in Matthew 11, in which the Lord Jesus said, No man knows the Father save the Son. Colossians 2, 3, In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Why? Colossians 2, 9, For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. My own mind was filled with almost a giddy joy.

Contrast with Prophets and Angels: 1 Peter 1

25:25 as I contemplated the contrast between our Lord and two of the instruments to whom the fullest revelations are given. Turn, please, to 1 Peter chapter 1. See the contrast. Christ ever embosomed in the Father, as the prophet who spoke in the old economy by his Spirit through the prophets, Peter tells us,

25:55 How much did those prophets know? 1 Peter 1, 10 and 11. Concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you, searching what time or manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point to, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that should follow them. You see what happened? A prophet speaks.

26:23 Under the impulse of the Spirit of Christ, he speaks of things that pertain to Christ's sufferings and glories. And after he speaks them and records them, then he sits down and says, what did I say? How does all this fit together? Look at the language. Searching what manner of time the Spirit which was in them did testify. Concerning which salvation the prophets sought, and they searched diligently, And where they were contemporaneous with one another, no doubt they consulted. And one says to another, What did you say in the Spirit concerning Messiah? Well, I was moved to say thus and thus. And what did you say thus and thus? How does it all fit together? Here their poor puny minds, which can only speak what is given, could not even fathom what they spoke. And then in this passage you've got angels nearest to the throne of God.

27:20 ministering spirits sent forth from the immediate presence of God. How much do they know? Well, look at the picture. Speaking of this great salvation that even baffled the prophets when they spoke of it, we read, that this gospel was preached unto you, verse 12, by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven, which things angels desire to look into. And that verb is interesting. It means they desire to have a little peek into it. And I thought back of the days when we used to have a minor league ball club back in Stamford, Connecticut, where I was reared. And the big frustration was they had this high fence. You couldn't climb up. There was no place to stick a foot in it. And we'd scour a place for little knot holes. And we'd find a little knot hole and we'd press our eye up there.

28:04 Which game we desired to peek into. We couldn't see the whole field. But if we could just peek in there and get a little glimpse of the picture of the batter. Now here's the picture. This great salvation. The prophets announced it.

28:20 And in the preparation for it, the angels are sent forth to minister to the heirs of salvation. Angels attend the very conception of Christ. They attend the birth of Christ. They sing songs. But all the time they're looking for a knothole. They're wondering, what's it all about? Now look at the contrast. Prophets speak of Christ coming under the impulse of Christ. And then they sit down and try to figure out what they said.

28:48 Angels try to find a mothole and get a little peek of it. But look at our great prophet. He who is in the bosom of the Father, all of the counsels of God concerning himself, he knows fully. And even while he's on earth, he says, I know a lot more than ultimately I'll tell you, but you can't take it yet. Notice he didn't say, I've told you all I have. Now I'll have to wait for more. He said, I have many things to say.

29:17 But you're not yet able to bear them. But in my own time, I'll make them known. When the Spirit has come, He'll guide you into all truth. He'll testify of me. He'll take the things of myself. Do you see the sense of complete control that Christ has? How much did Isaiah see? As much as the Spirit of Christ is now Isaiah. That's what the church needs for right now. So I'll give you that much. And Isaiah gives that out. He says, this is amazing. I don't understand it. How does it all fit together?

29:46 And the one who gave it knows fully how it all fits together. He is the prophet in all ages to make known the whole will of God concerning the salvation and edification of the church. So in summary, we may say our great prophet from the innermost circle of Trinitarian fellowship, a fellowship of love, of knowledge, and of purpose,

30:15 He comes forth to declare all the mind of God we are able to bear, all the mind of God we need to know for our salvation and edification. Oh, do you see, do you see how Christ is uniquely fitted to be a prophet? And the thing that struck me with force again, do you notice in these very passages that we've looked at in some detail,

What Our Prophet Declares: Grace, New Birth, the Uplifted Christ

30:45 John 1, John chapter 3, the point of emphasis when Christ is speaking as the final prophet, who is conscious that He has come from the bosom of the Father. He has not ascended into heaven to learn what He learns, but He has come out of heaven while yet being in heaven. Do you know what He declares of the counsels of God? Not perhaps what we'd like to know. Surely our Lord understands the orders of the decrees.

31:15 the delicate relationship between divine sovereignty and human responsibility, the precise way in which God can judge the world in Adam and yet be perfectly just. Oh, we would love for our prophet to untangle those mysteries, wouldn't we? But isn't it interesting, in these passages where he speaks of his coming from the bosom of the Father, do you know what the emphasis is in every one of them? Go back and look at them.

31:44 John chapter 1. John chapter 1. The passage we opened up in your hearing. Notice what the point of emphasis is. John speaking of the worth of Christ in the midst of it says, The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. What do sinners need? They need grace.

32:14 They are ill-deserving, they are undone, and they need an infallible revelation of how and in what manner that grace will come to needy sinners. In the John 3 passage, when He claims to be the one who sees and speaks what He sees, and that He speaks as one who has seen in inter-Trinitarian fellowship with the Father, It's in the context of speaking on the one hand, you must be born again. And on the other hand, verse 14, of the necessity of the Lord Jesus being lifted up to die for sinners. Oh, do you catch the beauty and the simplicity of it? As God's prophet who fully knows the mind of God, to what does He direct our attention in the very passages where He's understoring the dignity of His person? Not to the obtuse and esoteric

33:10 issues that cause the theologians to stroke their scraggly beards and to go to the optician for thicker glasses while they scour more weighty tongues. He speaks of grace. He speaks of truth. He speaks of the necessity of the new birth. He speaks of flesh. He speaks of the uplifted Christ who, as Moses lifted up the serpent, must

33:42 men are to be rescued. Oh, dear people, hear this prophet. He's come from the bosom of the Father to do what? Not to titillate your mind and my mind by answering all of the intricate questions that we propose. He's come to tell you, born of the flesh, you are flesh. He's come to tell you, unless you are born of the Spirit, you'll never enter the kingdom. He's come to tell you,

34:12 That he came to die. My friend. Have dealings with Christ. As your prophet. Speaking to your heart. Of the issues that really matter. Of the issues. That really matter. Well I must hurry on. And time will only permit me to touch on this second line of thought. Christ is uniquely fitted.

Unrivaled Authority of Position: The Submissive Mediator

34:43 to be the prophet of his people, not only because of his unequal dignity as to his person, but secondly because of the unrivaled authority of his position. In assuming the office of a mediator, our Lord voluntarily took the place of submission to the Father.

35:10 If you know your Bibles at all, you think immediately, do you not? Philippians chapter 2. Made himself of no reputation, though being in the very form of God, did not selfishly retain that posture. Made himself of no reputation, taking upon him the form of a servant. So he willingly takes the place of one who is sent to do not his own wills, but the will of the Father. Look at the language of John chapter 5, verses 19 and 30. John 5, 19. Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father doing. For what things whoever he doeth, these the Son doeth in like manner. Notice the emphasis. What he sees the Father doing. Not just what he hears.

36:05 What he sees the Father doing, he does. Verse 30, I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous, because I seek not mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. The language of John 17, in which our Lord says, Father, I have accomplished the work which thou gavest me to do. John 17, verse 4, but now follow closely. Though in assuming the position of mediator...

36:34 Our Lord voluntarily takes this posture of subordination to the Father's will. In that position, the Father gives to him supreme and unrivaled authority to speak in his name as the final prophet. So he humbles himself and becomes obedient. The Father confers upon him...

37:01 all of this unrivaled authority to be his final spokesman. So we come to texts such as John 3.35, and they now make sense to us, I trust. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. You see, that's not speaking of giving to him as God. As God, he had all things. But as the incarnate,

37:31 takes the place of submission, the Father says, I now entrust all things into your hand as mediator, as God, everything was in His hand from eternity. As mediator, all things are given into His hand by the Father. Matthew 28, verses 18 and following, All authority hath been delivered unto me in heaven and upon earth,

37:58 Therefore make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them, teaching them to observe whatsoever. I have commanded all authority given me to be the supreme lawgiver and prophet of the church through all ages. Or Matthew 11, 27. All things have been delivered unto me of my Father. Now do you see why the Father says...

38:24 On that mount of transfiguration, Matthew 17, 5. This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him. Listen to Him. Why? I have given Him unrivaled authority in His position as mediator. Within which position He is the final, the supreme prophet and lawgiver of His church. When the Apostle Paul would want to buttress his directions to the church at Corinth, He says these very significant words in 1 Corinthians 14, 37. If any among you seemeth to be a prophet or spiritual, any among you claims to be in touch with what the Spirit does and what the Spirit utters, let him acknowledge. Let them take knowledge of the things which I write unto you,

39:20 That they are the commandment of the Lord. Well why do you say that Paul? Because there is no higher authority. If the Lord is speaking by me. None dare cancel what he says. He has a posture of unrivaled authority. Therefore he is equipped. To be this final. And authoritative prophet. To his church. Now does Hebrews 1. 1 to 3 make a little more sense. God.

39:48 Having spoken times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us in a Son, what Son? Whom He hath appointed heir of all things. In His posture as the submissive One, the servant of Jehovah, He's been appointed heir of all things. Now this has tremendous implications for the church. Time will permit me only...

Implications: Christ's Interpretation is Final

40:18 the drawing out of one or two of them. If Jesus Christ has unrivaled authority in His position as mediator, He has given this no to final prophetic authority, then in our understanding of the Word of God we ought constantly to refer to this. We read in Luke 24, 27 that Jesus Christ expounded from the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. It is important Christ's interpretation of the Scripture were ever found that is utterly infallible and final. Why? He was the author. It was the Spirit of Christ speaking in the prophets. And so where we read Christ interpreting the Old Testament, for instance, when we read in Matthew 11 that Jesus Christ says, Elijah, who was promised to come from Malachi's prophecy, has come in John the Baptist,

41:15 When he says in Matthew 17 in answer to the question, I'll say the scribes that Elias must first come. And he says he has already come. Don't allow anyone to come along and say our system of interpretation says everything must be interpreted literally unless it is ridiculous. It was a crass literalism that drove the generation in which Christ lived to put him on a cross.

41:41 because King and Messiah and Conqueror, they could only see in terms of military might. If Jesus Christ has been given a place of unrivaled authority as the prophet of His church, then our understanding of the Scriptures must square with His own interpretation, given from His own lips, also given through the inspired apostles, those who tell us, That the great theme of the Old Testament prophets is not the church, is not Christ, but it is a future kingdom and it is an ethnic group. They contradict Peter who stands and says in Acts 3.24, having pointed to Moses' prophecy as fulfilled in Christ, says, Yea, and all the prophets who have spoken from Samuel onwards have spoken of these days. What is the great theme of the prophets? It is the church.

Implications: No Tyranny of Men Over Conscience

42:37 glory of Christ. It is the proclamation of the gospel. It has another very profound implication for all of our relationship to all human authority in spiritual things. Don't allow any man to lead your conscience. Don't allow any church to capture your conscience. There is one person who has the right to lead and to capture your conscience.

43:08 That's God's final prophet, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is why we say again and again in this place, believe nothing until you're convinced you've seen it with your own eyes in the Word of God. You see, carelessness and laziness and gullibility in spiritual things are the mother of spiritual tyranny. Do you hear me?

43:35 You will never come under the tyranny of having your conscience lorded over by men unless you first of all become lazy and gullible and careless in your hearing of the Word of God. Some of you perhaps will understand if you are visiting with us why the preaching and teaching of the Word is serious business in this place. Why we read the Scriptures morning and evening. I will tell you why.

44:03 We who are in a place of spiritual leadership have a holy dread that we should usurp the place of Christ. We are not lords over your conscience. There is one Lord over your conscience. This is my beloved Son. The Father says, hear Him. And where do you hear Him? You hear Him in the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testaments. That's why they're read to you Sunday by Sunday. Are you getting tired of the simplicity of our worship? You want something a little more jazzy, a little more juiced up?

44:33 If you were with my wife and family yesterday, you'd have had it at a three-ring circus in the name of Christ. Gospel drama with lights and everything under the sun. People's consciences being led hither and yon by other authorities than that of Jesus Christ. Oh, dear people, if you have any love to your soul, any love to your soul around no matter man, any man who stands in this pulpit, to lord it over your conscience. He's the great prophet. You say, but Pastor, will that lead to anarchy? No. But when men open up the Scriptures, they show you the setting, they're honest with the language and the words, and you see and are carried along with the obvious opening up of what is there, and you lovingly and faithfully submit to

45:33 You are not submitting to men. For Jesus said, He that heareth you, heareth me. And where there is true expository preaching, and you submit to the word of God that comes through Christ's gifts to His church, you are not submitting to the lordship of men. You are simply responding to your great prophet, who continues to teach you in the very homely method of

Application to Believers and Unbelievers

46:03 of His under-shepherds who speak to you the word of the living God. Well, I can't touch the third element. Time is gone from us, the unmeasured degree of His power. But I want to close with this exhortation. As we behold the great prophet of the church, God's final word, God's true word, I trust we've seen Him as never before,

46:32 as fully and uniquely qualified for the task. How? By virtue of the unequal dignity of his person, the unrivaled authority of his position. And Christian, this ought to draw from your heart worship, for Christ is your prophet. It ought to draw from your heart a new longing to hear him, that when God says, this is my Son, my Beloved, Standing in the presence of Moses and Elijah. Towering figures among the prophets. They pale into insignificance. This is my son. Hear him. Oh may we worship him. May our hearts cry out. For greater measures of love for his word. And obedience to his word. And dear sinner. I hope it will strike fear to your heart. I want to just read three verses.

47:28 Brief passages in closing to your ears, you who are yet unconverted. If you have a Bible, I want you to get them through the eye gate as well. Hebrews chapter 1. God, having of old times spoken unto the fathers and the prophets. Verse 2, half at the end of these days, spoken unto us in a son. God is spoken in Christ, His final word.

47:57 Chapter 2, verse 1. Therefore, therefore, we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things that were heard, lest happily we drift away from them. Why should we give earnest heed? Ah, the pastor's been preaching and getting excited about these. I've heard it all my life. My friend, listen. Listen to the Word of God this morning. You ought to give the more earnest heed. Why? Verse 2.

48:27 If the word spoken through angels, when God is revealing His mind by bits and pieces, speaking not immediately in His own tongue, but speaking immediately through angels, if every word He spoke in that lesser medium of revelation proved steadfast, every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward,

49:01 which having at the first been spoken through the Lord. The word spoken through angels giving directions for this, that, and the other little detail of the life of the nation of Israel when a man disregarded the word of God through an angel as it pertained to sticks and stones and washings. If God punished, what will he do having now spoken Not of whether or not sticks should be picked up on a Sabbath and how you should dress and wash to be acceptable in the tabernacle. But He has spoken of salvation. The new birth, the uplifted serpent, the Son of God dying upon the cross. He has spoken of salvation. And He has not spoken through an angel. He has spoken through God only because...

50:25 Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 25. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh, for if they escape not when they refused him that warned on earth, much more shall not we escape who turn away from him that warneth from heaven. No man hath ascended into heaven, Jesus said,

50:54 The only begotten who is in the bosom of the Father. Even the Son of Man who is in heaven. Do you really think you are just dealing with this preacher? Do you really think this is all an act? Come on now, don't answer verbally, but answer in the inner councils of your heart. What do you think we are doing when we plead

51:24 Gibberish.

52:00 the gospel telling you that which is born of flesh is flesh. You must be born again. The Son of Man must be lifted. Whosoever believeth, come all ye that labor. You look at the Matthew 11 passage. It's so similar to the others. He said, no man knows the Father save the Son. What is he going to reveal? Whosoever the Son will reveal him. And what does he reveal? Come unto me. He reveals the infinite measure the Father's pity for sinners, my friend, if that revelation will not break your heart and bring you submissive to the feet of Christ, the revelation of His anger in the day of His wrath will break you and crush you and damn you. Oh, may God grant that you'll not refuse Him that speaks, but embrace the blessed Lord Jesus Christ, God's only priest who died

52:59 sinners, who lives to welcome sinners, God's final prophet. Oh, may you embrace Him, love Him, and serve Him with all your heart, let's pray. Oh Lord, when you give us to feel, at least in some little measure,

Closing Prayer

53:30 the weight of the awesome issues of the soul's salvation. We cry out from our hearts, have mercy upon poor, blind, self-destroying men and women and boys and girls, who unless you arrest them, Lord, they're going to leave this place this morning. They're going to go out of here and fill their minds with the drivel of this earth, with the toys and trinkets of time.

54:00 Oh, God, have mercy, we pray. Bend their hearts to Yourself. We do bless You for Your beloved Son. We thank You that You have made Him Your final prophet, prophet of supreme and unrivaled authority, prophet of unequaled worth and dignity. We would worship Him today.

54:28 We would say from our hearts, Lord Jesus, teach us your ways. Lord Jesus, free our consciences from every other master. But, oh, bind our consciences to your law. Hear our cry.