Christ: Prophet, Priest, King Part I - Prophet

Transcription

1 Christ: Prophet, Priest, King Part I - Prophet Q. 23. What offices are fulfilled by Christ as our redeemer? A. Christ, as our redeemer, fulfills the offices of a prophet, of a priest, and of a king, both in his estate of humiliation and exaltation. Q. 24. How does Christ fulfill the office of a prophet? A. Christ fulfills the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation. All believers are prophets, priests and kings Jesus is: our chief prophet our only high priest our eternal king of kings Jesus is a prophet, a priest and a king IN fact all believers fill all three offices as well all believers have roles as prophets, priests, and kings But Jesus Chief prophet, Only HIGH priest eternal King 1

2 Prophet: One who speaks for God Jesus our chief prophet reveals to us the will of God for our salvation Believers prophets also called to speak for God all who are called to know salvation are also called to tell of salvation Prophet: One who speaks for God Jesus our chief prophet reveals to us the will of God for our salvation Believers prophets also called to speak for God all who are called to know salvation are also called to tell of salvation Today we will look more closely at Jesus as our chief Prophet but not going to focus on the office as much as the message he brought to fill that office Jesus is our chief prophet he speaks for God what does he say to us? Luke 4 begin with verses

3 Luke 4:14-19 (NIV) Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15 He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18 The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord s favor. 3

4 4 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15 He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18 The Spirit of the Lord is on me, I. The Gospel only comes when it comes in Spiritual Power The Gospel only comes in Spiritual power simple gospel good news for life Jesus came to die He came to be the satisfaction for God s perfect justice on sin All who believe all who place their faith in Jesus accomplishing this for them have their sins forgiven- and are given fellowship with God and eternal life This is the simple gospel When I preach the gospel I must preach in faith but this gospel only comes in the power of the Spirit I must understand whatever gifts I have as a preacher can be used to hold people s interest or attention but only the power of the holy spirit brings faith to a soul If you hear and believe it is because the HOLY SPIRIT of God has personally touched your life Jesus teaching came with the power of the Spirit That power brought faith to some and left blindness and unbelief to others Yet even knowing that the Spirit moves as it will and is not subject to my control Yet I am called to call all of you - to believe Believe for your salvation lest you face God s wrath on your sin Believe for your day to day life lest your life be vain Believe for the peace of your heart lest you fix your affections on things that neither last or satisfy You must believe 4

5 Luke 4:17-19 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18 The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, I. The Gospel only comes when it comes in Spiritual Power II. The Gospel is music to the broken The gospel is music it is GOOD NEWS to the broken Isaiah lists and Jesus quotes examples of broken people the poor the imprisoned, the blind, the oppressed Two ways to understand this -= both appropriate the Scripture repeatedly reveals that God has a compassion for the poor and oppressed in this world Jesus repeatedly reached out to people rejected by the rest of society from lepers to adulterers to tax collectors It is the people who are suffering who seem to be most frequently open to the gospel Yet as the Spirit of God comes to our hearts we begin to recognize WE ARE ALL BROKEN - Our sinful pride wrestles to feel in control WHEN we really HEAR the gospel we realize other pursuits are futility our pride as sin that our sin is poverty to our soul our sin is oppressive to our lives Our sin is blindness in our hearts and the gospel of Jesus Christ is the answer to the emptiness in our lives The gospel is music to the broken but look how the people of Nazareth responded 5

6 20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. 22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. Isn t this Joseph s son? they asked. 23 Jesus said to them, Surely you will quote this proverb to me: Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum. 24 I tell you the truth, he continued, no prophet is accepted in his hometown. 25 I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. 6

7 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. 27 And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed only Naaman the Syrian. 28 All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. 29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. 30 But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way. I. The Gospel only comes when it comes in Spiritual Power II. The Gospel is music to the broken III. The Gospel is offensive noise to the self righteous The gospel is music to the broken but these people did not hear music They did not know their brokenness the were good people they did not need Jesus the gospel is noise to the self righteous why were these people present? they wanted Jesus to put on a show - they wanted to see a miracle They did not erupt when he claimed himself to be the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy but when he called them to account for their own hearts they were mad When He suggested that just because they were Israelites did not mean God smiled upon them His message was offensive Oprah this week spiritual emphasis I was able to withstand about 10 minutes it was network heresy Jesus was not even represented This was not a message of music for broken people it was a message of self righteousness --all you need to be content is right in your own self you are your personal savior you just need to tap into your own spirituality God will deal harshly with such a promotion of blasphemy The truth of the gospel is contradictory to the selfish heart weakness leads to strength acknowledging sin and our inability to contend with it leads to freedom from its grasp giving up control leads to peace humility leads to being valued suffering leads to joy The gospel is music to the believer it is noise to the self-righteous 7

8 Why are you here this morning? Are you here broken and wanting the healing of the gospel and to worship its source? Or are you here looking for some thought or bit of music concept or experience that you can incorporate into your own life so you can mange this in your own strength for another week? Is attendance at church a portion of your self help self improvement program Or are you ready to give up and say Jesus - I have nothing but you so I need to give all of me to you If you have really grasped the gospel then every reminder of your own weakens and sinful ness is simply a reminder of all that Jesus has done for you and how deeply he loves you it is motivation to love him back If you have not grasped the gospel then you are just looking for the next emotional experience or the next insight of self improvement or the next grasp at personal spirituality PAUSE but you are still depending on your own strength for life At the bottom line perhaps it comes down to this 8

9 When someone points out your sin, DO YOU HEAR MUSIC OR NOISE? When someone points out your sin, do YOU HEAR MUSIC POR NOISE? The gospel is music to the heart of the broken sinner 9