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SOUTHEAST ASIA

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Sabbath, September 2, 2017

“Moses, near the close of his work as a leader and teacher of Israel, plainly prophe-sied of the Messiah to come. ‘The Lord thy God,’ he declared to the assembled hosts of Israel, ‘will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto Him ye shall hearken.’ And Moses assured the Israelites that God Himself had revealed this to him while in Mount Horeb, saying, ‘I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put My words in His mouth; and He shall speak unto them all that I shall command Him.’ Deuteronomy 18:15, 18.” –The Acts of the Apostles, p. 222.

I will raise up a Prophet

1. What wonderful news had the Lord given to His people through Moses many centuries before? 

Deuteronomy 18:15, 18, 19 The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken…. 18I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19And 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.

“The heaven-appointed Teacher appears, and He is no less a personage than the Son of the Infinite God. Unroll the scroll, and read of Him. Moses declared to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put My words in His mouth; and He shall speak unto them all that I shall command Him. 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.’ Here is the prediction announcing the distinguished arrival. His words were not to be disregarded; for His authority was supreme, and His power invincible.” –Lift Him Up, p. 35.

Are you the Prophet?

2. What can we see in some of the questions that a commission posed to John the Baptist? What connection did this have to the above prophecy?

John 1:21, 25 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No…. 25They asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? 

“Among the Jews there were yet steadfast souls, descendants of that holy line through whom a knowledge of God had been preserved. These still looked for the hope of the promise made unto the fathers. They strengthened their faith by dwelling upon the assurance given through Moses, ‘A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever He shall say unto you.’ Acts 3:22. Again, they read how the Lord would anoint One ‘to preach good tidings unto the meek,’ ‘to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,’ and to declare the ‘acceptable year of the Lord.’ Isaiah 61:1, 2. They read how He would ‘set judgment in the earth,’ how the isles should ‘wait for His law,’ how the Gentiles should come to His light, and kings to the brightness of His rising. Isaiah 42:4; 60:3.” –The Desire of Ages, p. 34.

The Samaritan woman’s understanding 

3. What did the Samaritan woman realize when she spoke with Jesus? Expressing her surprise, what question did she put to the people of the city? What wonderful testimony was expressed by the man whom Jesus healed of blindness?

John 4:19, 28, 29; 9:17 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet…. 28The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, 29Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?… 9:17They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet. 

“Jesus had a double object in view; He wished to arouse her conscience as to the sin of her manner of life, as well as to prove to her that a sight wiser than human eyes had read the secrets of her life. But the woman, although not fully realizing the guilt of her manner of living, was greatly astonished that this stranger should possess such knowledge. With profound reverence she said, ‘Sir, I perceive that Thou art a prophet;…’ ” –Daughters of God, p. 62.

“This lesson is for our encouragement as well, and while there are many who will not yield to the convicting power of God’s Spirit, there are also many who are hungering for the words of light and salvation. Many will receive the truth, and testify as did the Samaritans that Christ is the Saviour of the world. In their turn they will become sowers of the seed of truth. We are to lift up our eyes and look upon the fields that are white already for the harvest.” –The Southern Work, p. 59.

Many considered Jesus a prophet

4. How many recognized Jesus as a prophet or as the Prophet who was to come into the world?

Luke 7:15, 16 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 

John 6:14; 7:40 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world…. 7:40Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet.

Mark 6:15 Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets. 

Matthew 21:10, 11, 46 And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? 11And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee…. 46But when they [the chief priests and Pharisees] sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.

“For more than a thousand years the Jewish people had awaited the coming of the promised Saviour. Their brightest hopes had rested upon this event. For a thousand years, in song and prophecy, in temple rite and household prayer, His name had been enshrined….” –Prophets and Kings, p. 710.

“Reports have reached the rulers in Jerusalem that Jesus is approaching the city with a great concourse of people. But they have no welcome for the Son of God. In fear they go out to meet Him, hoping to disperse the throng. As the procession is about to descend the Mount of Olives, it is intercepted by the rulers. They inquire the cause of the tumultuous rejoicing. As they question, ‘Who is this?’ the disciples, filled with the spirit of inspiration, answer this question. In eloquent strains they repeat the prophecies concerning Christ….” –The Desire of Ages, p. 578. 

Some disciples recognized Jesus as the Prophet

5. Who referred to this wonderful prophecy and pointed to its fulfillment in the holy Person of Jesus?

Acts 7:37 This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. 

John 1:45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.

Luke 24:18, 19, 27 And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? 19And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people…. 27And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. 

“Had not the disciples heard this very exposition of these scriptures from their Master’s lips while He was with them? But how little had they comprehended them! How forcible is their meaning now! How startling their fulfillment! The truths they had but dimly discerned now stand revealed in a blaze of light. The very things He had told them have been accomplished. Faith begins to revive. Their hearts beat with a strong and renewed hope as they listen eagerly to the plain, simple words of their unknown fellow traveler. They are surprised to find their burdened hearts becoming light; and as they think of Jesus, of all He was to them, of all He suffered, their tears flow freely. Their confidence had not been misplaced. He was all and even more than they had believed.” –Signs of the Times, January 20, 1888.

Jesus speaks of Himself

6. Did Jesus acknowledge that He was a Prophet?

Matthew 13:57, 58 And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

Luke 13:33 Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. 

Nazareth was the place where Jesus was raised, and His family was well known to the people. The inhabitants heard about what He had done in other places; and after listening to His teachings in the synagogue, instead of opening their hearts to His words, they began to raise doubts and objections. Being one of humble origins, they queried, from where had His knowledge come? While they did not think that He could be a messenger of God, in applying to Himself the expression, “A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country” (Matthew 13:57), Jesus proved that He considered Himself a prophet. How different would have been the experience of the inhabitants of Nazareth if they had accepted Him at least as a prophet!

Let us hear the Prophet

7. How did the apostle Peter apply the prophecy of Deuteronomy 18? If we truly recognize that Jesus is the Prophet, how will we consider His teachings?

Acts 3:22-24 For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. 23And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. 24Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. 

“Christ brought to our world a certain knowledge of God, and to all who received and obeyed His word, gave He power to become the sons of God. He who came forth from God to our world gave instruction on every subject about which it is essential that man should know in order to find the pathway to heaven. To Him, truth was an ever-present, self-evident reality; He uttered no suggestions, advanced no sentiments, notions, or opinions, but presented only solid, saving truth.” –Fundamentals of Christian Education, pp. 405, 406.

For additional study 

“Truth, saving truth, never languished on His tongue, never suffered in His hands, but was made to stand out plainly and clearly defined amid the moral darkness prevailing in our world. For this work He left the heavenly courts. He said of Himself, ‘For this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.’ The truth came from His lips with freshness and power, as a new revelation. He was the way, the truth, and the life. His life, given for this sinful world, was full of earnestness and momentous results; for His work was to save perishing souls. He came forth to be the True Light, shining amid the moral darkness of superstition and error, and was announced by a voice from heaven, proclaiming, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’…

“Moses truly said unto the fathers, A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever He shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” –Fundamentals of Christian Education, p. 405.