Let us turn in our Bibles today
to Deuteronomy chapter 18. Deuteronomy chapter 18. Before we read the scripture
here, let me introduce the message by saying this is the sixth and
final message at this time that I plan to bring to us with the
words of the Lord Jesus Christ in John chapter 5, when he spoke
to the religious leaders of the nation of Israel, who profess,
these religious leaders, they profess to be the disciples of
Moses. They told that man that our Lord
gave sight to, who was born blind, they said, we know that God spoke
unto Moses, as for this fellow, can you imagine that? Calling
the Lord Jesus Christ, this fellow. As to this, actually, that's
all that's in the manuscript. As for this, we know not from
whence he is. But the Lord Jesus Christ told
them, who claimed to be the disciples of Moses, had you believed Moses,
you would have believed me, for he wrote of me. What a reminder
this is to all of us. It's not having, it's not knowing,
it's not preaching the gospel that is all important. It is
believing the gospel. Whosoever believe in him should
not perish, but have everlasting life. Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew
chapter seven, that any will come unto him and that day saying
that they had preached in his name, cast out devils in his
name and had done many mighty works in his name. And to those,
our Lord said, He would say, I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of
iniquity. So once again, I would impress
upon all of us here today the words of the Apostle Paul in
Romans 1 and verse 16, for I'm not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ, for it is the power of God unto everyone that believeth. It is. The gospel is the power
of God unto everyone that believeth. It's not just having, hearing,
or even preaching the gospel that is all important. It is
believing. Believing in Christ. The Apostle
John finished his gospel. The gospel of John with these
words. These are written. that you might
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing
you might have life through his name. What things were written? All things in the word of God
which were written concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. He is
the subject of all the scripture. I brought a message to us from
Genesis because Moses wrote the book of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Moses wrote of me. So this is
the last, the fifth book that Moses wrote. And in this book
we see that Moses wrote of Christ. Now here in our text, Deuteronomy
chapter 18 and reading verses 15 through 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 you shall hearken. according
to all that thou desirest of the Lord thy God in Orop in the
day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice
of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more,
that I die not. And 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. I want to point four
things out to us in these verses today, these verses which Moses
spoke to the nation of Israel, the words of the Lord which the
Lord spoke through Moses. First, this prophet This prophet
that God promised that he would send, that he would raise up,
the first thing that we see concerning him is he would be of Moses'
brethren. He would be of Moses' brethren. Now Moses in the first part of
the text, he's speaking to the nation of Israel. And what God
is saying here is this prophet that he would raise up would
be an Israelite. He would be of the nation of
Israel, one of his brethren. Now Moses was not told at this
time from which tribe the prophet would come, but that had already
been prophesied. Jacob had foretold that it would
be from the tribe of Judah that Shiloh would come. And as we
study through the word of God, we see that Shiloh, who is the
peacemaker, is also this prophet that God promised that he would
raise up, and he would be of the nation of Israel. Have you
ever noticed the first few words of the New Testament? These are
the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of
Abraham. He would be an Israelite. The nation of Israel, of course,
began with Abraham. And the Lord Jesus Christ came
into this world as the seed, the son of Abraham. In Psalm 89 and verse 19, we
read, These are the words of God. God
said, I have laid help upon one that is mighty. I, that is God,
I have exalted one chosen out of the people. Now that term,
the people, refers to the nation of Israel. And God in that psalm
tells us, told the nation of Israel and tells us that he had
laid help upon one that is mighty. And that is, of course, the Lord
Jesus Christ, who was exalted by God, chosen out of the people. In Isaiah chapter 42, he is presented
to us as God's servant, as God's elect, as he who would do all
of his will. who would honor God's perfect
law. So that's the first thing that
we read here in this passage of scripture about this prophet
is that he would be an Israelite. But the second thing, if you
notice, he would be like unto Moses. Two times we see this. Two times that he would be of
Moses' brethren and two times we are told that he would be
like unto Moses in verse 15. The Lord thy God will raise up
unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren,
like unto me. Now those are the words of Moses
to the nation of Israel. God's going to raise up a prophet
from your brethren, and he's going to be like me, like unto
me, Moses says. Then look at verse 18 again. I will raise him up a prophet
from among their brethren like unto thee. Now when we read here
that God told Moses and Moses told the nation that this prophet
is going to be like Moses. That tells us that Moses serves
as a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. Moses himself is a type of Christ. This prophet is going to be like
unto Moses. Now, I've listed five ways. I know there are many more. I
know that. But I've listed five ways to us in which this prophet
was like unto Moses, or five ways in which Moses is a type
of this prophet, the Lord Jesus Christ. The first way, Moses
was a mediator between God and the nation of Israel. You see
that in verse 16. God speaking to Moses, according
to all that thou desirest of the Lord thy God in Horeb in
the day of the assembly saying, now this is what the people said. This is what the nation of Israel
said. Let me not hear again the voice
of the Lord my God. Neither let me see this great
fire anymore that I die not. And the Lord said unto me, they
have well spoken that which they have spoken. Moses served as
a mediator between the nation of Israel and God. Now the people
here speak of God as a great fire, as a great fire. And that pictures to us God's
absolute purity, his holiness. And also they mentioned the voice. the loudness of the voice when
God spoke, when God came down, a manifestation of God came down
on Mount Horeb. Now, in Hebrews chapter 12, speaking
of this, this figure, this great fire, it says, burning with fire,
blackness, darkness. Think about that. The fire that
we know, at least, gives light. But this fire that they saw,
burning with fire, but black, blackness, darkness. We know that hell is a place
that's described by fire, but also it is a place described
as absolute darkness. Darkness, just like the Lord
Jesus Christ experienced upon the cross when he died for the
sins of his people, he experienced that darkness that is the hiding
of God's face from him. When it's described here in Hebrews,
the presence, the manifestation of God, it's like a burning with
fire, blackness, darkness, Tempest, like a earthquake. Tempest, wind blowing, the sound
of a trumpet. And that trumpet was so loud,
that's the voice that they heard. And the voice of words. And now
listen, which they that heard, That is a nation of Israel who
were there at Mount Sinai that day. Remember, God had told Moses,
you cordoned the mountain off. Don't let anyone come up on this
mountain. Don't let any animal come up
on the mountain because whoever comes is going to die. But they
saw this fire, this blackness, this darkness, this tempest.
They heard this loud noise. and they that heard entreated. This is what the scripture here
in Hebrew says. They entreated. They entreated
that the word, the word should not be spoken to them anymore. The manifestation of God, the
holy being that he is, when he came down upon that mountain,
The people were so fearful that they said, Moses, we don't want
to hear his word anymore. You go. You go. And you receive his words. And then you speak unto us. In
other words, they entreated, they desired a mediator. And that's what you need. And
that's what I need to come. before a holy God, we need a
mediator. And the scripture says, for there's
one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. Now men have come along and they've
lied. Satan, no doubt, is behind the
lie, but they have said that the Virgin Mary, that she also
serves as a mediator. That's a lie, my friends. The
Bible clearly tells us there's one mediator between God and
men, the man, Christ Jesus. And he's that perfect mediator
because he is God, he can lay his hand upon God, he is God,
and his hand upon us. He was a man, the God-man, the
perfect mediator. the days man as he's called in
the book of Job. This prophet, this prophet that
God promises to raise up would be an Israelite and he would
be like unto Moses. He would be first of all a mediator
like Moses was. Second, Moses is the only man
in all the scripture other than the Lord Jesus Christ who exercised
all three offices. He was a prophet, and yes, before
Aaron was made priest, Moses served as a priest, offering
sacrifices, and he was the ruler, the king. All three of those
offices in Moses. He's the only man other than
the Lord Jesus Christ. who is, as mediator, he's prophet,
and we need a prophet to teach us about God. He's a priest,
and we need a priest to bring us to God. And yes, he's a king,
and we need a king who would conquer us and bring us into
submission unto him, because by nature, We will never come
to God apart from the work of the King, the Holy Spirit that
he sends to conquer his people. I like to think about that, the
fact that God's people, if you're one of his children here today,
you're his by election. God chose you in eternity. You're
here by purchase. Christ purchased you with his
precious blood. And yes, you're his by conquest. God the Holy Spirit. We're born,
like the scripture says, like a wild asses colt. We're not
going to have anybody reign over us. We're not going to have anybody
tell us what to do. That's just a rebel that we all
are when we come into this world. But God conquers. God the Holy
Spirit. He conquers his people. Brings
us into submission unto him. Well, that's a second way that
the Lord Jesus Christ was like unto Moses. Moses had all three
of those offices. A third way, Moses was God's deliverer. He was, he was God's deliverer. When God called Moses at that
burning bush, these are the words, let me read you these words from
Exodus chapter three. God said, I am come down to deliver
them out of the hand of the Egyptians. Now God delivered the nation
of Israel, his people, through Moses. And the Lord Jesus is
in this way like Moses. Egypt is a type in the scripture,
a type of the world. And in Galatians 1, verses 3
and 4, the apostle said, the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself
for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world
according to the will of God and our Father. Moses was the
deliverer. Now, think about this. He brought every Israelite out
of Egypt. when they left Egypt that night. Yes, they came out there to the
Red Sea. They didn't know what to do.
God opened up the way for them. And every last one of those Israelites
passed through on dry ground. And when the Egyptians, the enemies
of God, assailed to do the same thing, you know what happened
to them? God destroyed each and every
one of them. But the point is, Every one of
the Israelites was delivered. And every one of God's chosen
people who were given to Christ in that everlasting covenant
is sure to be delivered. Not one's going to be left behind. The Lord Jesus, in Hebrews chapter
two, we read, will one day appear before the Father, and He will
be able to say, Father, here am I. and the children which
thou hast given me. And there's not going to be any
missing. There's not going to be one missing. Well, that's
another way that Moses was a type, a picture of Christ. And here's
a fourth way. Moses was faithful. He was faithful. In Hebrews chapter three, the
writer tells us that Moses was faithful in all his house, But
listen, as a servant. He was faithful as a servant. Well, he was a type of the Lord
Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ was faithful. Faithful to do all the will which
the Father gave him to do. But he's not as a servant like
Moses. No, the writer there in Hebrews
tells us this about him. The Lord Jesus Christ is faithful
as a son, whose house, whose family we are. Moses was like
a servant. Yes, he was faithful. He served
in the work that God gave him to do. There were specific instructions
concerning the tabernacle, everything in the tabernacle, the priesthood,
the sacrifices, everything. It wasn't left to chance and
it wasn't left for man to devise. It was divinely given to Moses
and he was faithful to make sure everything was executed just
like God had given unto him. But he was, after all, a servant. It wasn't his house, it was God's
house. But the Lord Jesus Christ, he's
like Moses in this sense. He's faithful as a son. The house is his. The house is
his. Isn't that wonderful? The house,
the family of God, it's his. And he's faithful. Faithful. Here's the fifth way Moses was
a prophet. Now listen. Unlike all other
prophets. Look back to Numbers with me.
Turn back to Numbers chapter 12. Moses was a picture of Christ
in this way. He was a prophet like all other
prophets. In Numbers chapter 12. Turn back
just a few pages. You remember the nation of Israel.
Many times they came murmuring, complaining, And even his brother
Aaron and his sister Miriam, they complained. And they said,
Moses, you're taking too much on yourself. You're taking too much on yourself.
All the people are holy. God calls them together here
in Numbers chapter 12 and verse 5. The Lord came down in the
pillar of the cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle
and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forth. And
he, that is God, said, hear now my words. If there be a prophet
among you, I, the Lord, will make myself known unto him in
a vision and will speak unto him in a dream. God said, this
is a way that I will speak to any prophet among you that I
send with this one exception. My servant Moses is not so, who
is faithful in all mine house. With him, not through dreams,
not through visions, with him will I speak mouth to mouth,
even apparently, and not in dark speeches, and the similitude
of the Lord shall he behold. He was a prophet like no other,
Moses was. What a picture, what a type is
that of the Lord Jesus Christ? This prophet that God tells Moses
that he would raise up unto them, would be a prophet like no other. And that's the third thing that
we see in our text here in Deuteronomy chapter 18. He would be given God's words. This
prophet that God's going to raise up, he's going to be an Israelite. He's going to be like unto Moses.
and he's going to be given the words which he speaks. Listen to these two verses from
the gospel of John. These are words of the Lord Jesus
Christ. In John chapter seven and verse
16, he said, my doctrine is not mine, but him that sent me. You see here in our text, it
says, And he shall speak unto them all that I shall command
him. And I want you to notice that
little word, all, A-L-L. I've circled that word in my
Bible. I'm not looking, and I'm not interested in someone who
tells me they've been to hell and come back, or been to heaven
and come back, or they've got this vision or this word. Keep it to yourself. Keep it
to yourself. It was prophesied of him that
he would seal up the prophecy. Daniel chapter 9. And the Lord
Jesus Christ was given the words which he spoke, and he spoke
those words and he has told out God. He has revealed his Father. To see him is to see God. In John 14, he said, He that
loveth me not keepeth not my saying. And the word which you
hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. It was foretold
of Christ in the Psalms, listen to this, thou art fair, F-A-I-R-E-R,
thou art fairer than the children of men. Grace is poured into
thy lips. Therefore God hath blessed thee
forever. Grace was poured in the gospel. That's what the word here means,
grace means. The gospel was poured into his
lips. The words which he spoke were
the words which were given him. He said, I'm come down from heaven
not to do mine own will, but the will of him, will of the
father, which has sent me. Doing the father's will included
speaking God's word, speaking all. This is what the scripture
here says. He shall speak all that I shall
command him. He left nothing unsaid. He left
nothing unsaid. In fact, as I said, he sealed
up the vision and the prophecy. But now I want you to notice
this fourth thing. We've seen three things. Look at this fourth
thing that is prophesied of this prophet, of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look in verse 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. And my point
is, he would be heard, or men must answer to God Almighty. He will be heard, or men will
answer to God Almighty. Man must hear his word. We must hear him. And I've thought
about these four things. First of all, we must hear him
concerning righteousness. Have you heard Christ concerning
righteousness? Have you? He said, except your
righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes
and Pharisees, you shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of
heaven. Have you heard his word concerning
righteousness, that you have to have a righteousness that
satisfies God, that God will accept? Have we heard his word concerning
repentance? He said, I tell you, nay, but
except you repent, you shall all likewise perish. That's his
word, that all men must repent. They must change their mind. And that's not a one-time action. There's an initial repentance,
no doubt about that. But our life is a life of repentance. And we heard his word about worship. He said, God is a spirit. He told that woman, it's not
going to be in this mountain where your, your ancestors say,
God must be worshiped. It's not going to be in Jerusalem.
Oh, no. They that worship God must worship
him in spirit and in truth. It's not all the gaudy religious
rites and ceremonies that men have manufactured. That's not
the way that he said we must worship God. We must worship
him in spirit because he is spirit and in truth. And Jesus Christ
is the truth. I am the way, the truth, and
the life. And fourth, we must hear him
concerning faith and the will of God. He told those people
who sought him because he had fed them, They said they wanted to do the
work of God. He said, well, this is the work
of God. Here it is. This is the will
of God, that you believe on him whom he hath sent. There it is. Better hear him. Better hear him. Because if you
don't, you'll answer to God. God said, I'll require that.
of those who do not hear my word, which he speaks." What a blessed
passage of scripture, right? Where Moses wrote of Christ. Now, we're going to sing a closing
hymn. And I've got some good news to
announce to us. I've already announced some good
news, but I've got some other good news here in just a minute
after we sing this hymn. Number 46, hymn number 46. Let's stand as we sing.