We Believe In Jesus: The ProphetSample

Christ’s Revelation: 1 Peter 1:10-11

Peter taught that Christ had sent the Holy Spirit to inspire and motivate the Old Testament prophets as they studied and wondered about the fulfillment of God’s promises of redemption. In this sense, the whole Old Testament is the word of Christ.

In the same way that Jesus’ prophetic ministry began before his earthly ministry, it also continued after he ascended into heaven, because Jesus also sent his Spirit to inspire the apostles and the other writers of the New Testament in their work. 

As Jesus said in John 16:13-15:

“The Spirit of truth … will guide you into all truth… All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you” (John 16:13-15).

It’s important for us to recognize that the whole Bible is Christ’s word to us because it affirms that every book of Scripture is authoritative and relevant to the life of the modern church. To receive Christ as our prophet is to receive all his words to us as revelations of God’s kingdom and covenant, including both the Old and the New Testaments. We can’t be satisfied to follow only the quotations of Jesus in the Gospels, or even all of the New Testament. We have to read, understand and obey everything in the Bible because it is all Christ’s word to us. 

Now, of course, we have to do this in ways that account for important historical changes. For example, later revelation, such as the New Testament, frequently shows us how to understand and apply earlier revelation, such as the Old Testament. But the basic principle remains unchanged: the whole Bible is the word of Christ for his church in all ages.

When we come to the Bible, all of us, I think, find that we have favorite places, we have favorite sections of the Word, and many people rightly are drawn first of all to the Gospels and to the words of Jesus. It is the case, however, as the Word affirms and as the early Christians and the first generations consistently affirmed, that all Scripture is inspired by God, and so it’s profitable, it’s useful for teaching, and useful for correcting mistakes in our lives and showing us what the right way, what the straight and level way is, the life-giving way. So even though we’re allowed to have certain preferences and be drawn to particular books and sayings, the whole witness of Scripture is important because we are whole people, and as we relate to others, this draws us together with God’s Word as the centerpiece. – Dr. James D. Smith III