Are You the Prophet?

Deuteronomy 18 puts a huge promise in the middle of God giving his covenant again to Israel. Moses tells the people that God will raise up a Prophet like him, from among their brothers, and says, “It is to him you shall listen.” Israel had asked not to hear God’s terrifying voice at Horeb, lest they die, and God mercifully promised to put his own words in this coming Prophet’s mouth.

John the Baptist arrives after four hundred years without a prophet, in a land of deep darkness. John looks and sounds like Elijah, calling people to repent, confronting wicked rulers, and preparing the way for the kingdom of heaven. The Pharisees and Sadducees recognize that something big is happening, but their hearts are not toward God. Their question, “Are you the Prophet?” reveals that they know Deuteronomy’s promise, even while they do not want the repentance John demands.

Jesus comes preaching the same urgent call: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Christ is not merely another prophet in a long line of prophets. Jesus is the Prophet like Moses, and Matthew lays out the parallels all through his Gospel. Moses escapes Pharaoh’s slaughter of the Hebrew boys, and Jesus escapes Herod’s slaughter of Bethlehem’s boys. Moses comes out of Egypt to deliver Israel from slavery, and Jesus comes out of Egypt to deliver his people from sin and death.

Moses fasts forty days on the mountain to receive God’s law, while Jesus fasts forty days in the wilderness before defeating Satan’s temptations. Moses receives manna from heaven for Israel, while Jesus multiplies bread and declares, “I am the bread of life.” Moses splits the sea by God’s authority, while Jesus walks on water and rebukes the storm by his own authority. Moses gives God’s law, while Jesus fulfills and rightly interprets that law, exposing sin all the way down to lust, hatred, coveting, and idolatry.

Moses serves faithfully in God’s house, but Jesus is faithful as the Son over God’s house. Moses is the shadow; Jesus is the substance. The law can lean over the pit and truthfully say, “You’re stuck,” but it cannot pull anybody out. Christ does more than toss down a rope ladder. Jesus takes the sinner’s place, bears sin and its curse, and gives his perfect righteousness to all who believe.

Christ accomplishes the true Exodus at Jerusalem. Jesus calls people not merely to believe that forgiveness exists, but to follow him wherever he leads, trusting the Good Shepherd whose steadfast covenant love chases his people all the way home.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus is the Prophet to hear [00:20:17] Deuteronomy’s command is not a casual suggestion to appreciate Jesus’ words when they seem helpful. God requires his people to listen to the Prophet whose words are God’s own words. Christ’s authority reaches into belief, repentance, obedience, and every place where a heart would rather remain in control. [20:17]
• 2. Moses was shadow; Jesus is substance [00:42:29] Moses really was great, humble, faithful, and chosen by God. Yet Moses could only point ahead to the Son who would fulfill everything Israel’s deliverer foreshadowed. Jesus possesses more glory than Moses because Jesus is not simply part of God’s house, but the Son over it and the builder of all things. [42:29]
• 3. The law exposes the pit [00:43:42] God’s commandments tell the truth about sin, even when that truth feels heavy and uncomfortable. The law shows that nobody can climb out through personal effort, religious performance, or a better ladder. Christ enters the pit himself, takes guilt and judgment, and raises sinners into his own righteousness. [43:42]
• 4. Christ accomplishes the greater Exodus [00:37:34] Moses delivered Israel from a visible slavery under Pharaoh, but Christ delivers believers from the deeper bondage of sin and death. The cross is the Exodus Jesus accomplishes at Jerusalem, where the spotless Lamb bears the covenant curse. Salvation is therefore not self-improvement but rescue through substitution. [37:34]
• 5. Jesus calls people to follow him [00:45:55] Faith cannot stop at agreeing that Jesus forgives sins. Christ calls each person to follow him wherever he leads, no matter the cost, because he is both the Good Shepherd and the spotless Lamb. His people can trust his lead because his covenant love does not quit halfway through the valley.
  
  ## [45:55]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:54] - The Prophet Like Moses
• [01:25] - Israel’s Deep Spiritual Darkness
• [04:23] - John the Baptist as New Elijah
• [06:51] - “Who Are You?”
• [13:47] - The Prophet of Deuteronomy 18
• [18:57] - God’s Promise Through Moses
• [21:35] - Jesus Begins His Ministry
• [23:52] - Jesus Is the Prophet Like Moses
• [24:12] - Moses and Jesus Compared
• [35:34] - Christ’s Active Obedience
• [37:55] - The Exodus Accomplished at Jerusalem
• [40:11] - Moses the Servant, Jesus the Son
• [42:56] - The Law and the Pit of Sin
• [45:55] - Follow Jesus, the Good Shepherd

Bible Reading

Deuteronomy 18:15–19
“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen— just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ And the Lord said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.’” [20:32]

Matthew 4:17
“From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” [23:33]

John 1:21
“And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ And he answered, ‘No.’” [14:05]

Hebrews 3:1–6
“Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God's house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God's house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God's house as a son. And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.” [40:52]

Observation questions

1. In Deuteronomy 18, what does God promise to put in the coming Prophet’s mouth, and what response does God require from the people?
2. What details in John the Baptist’s ministry made the religious leaders ask whether he was Elijah or “the Prophet”? [12:18]
3. What is the shared message preached by John the Baptist and Jesus in Matthew 4:17, and what does that message call people to do? [23:29]
4. According to Hebrews 3:1–6, how is Moses described, and how is Christ described differently in relation to God’s house? [40:15]

Interpretation questions

1. Why would God’s command, “It is to him you shall listen,” be much stronger than simply appreciating Jesus’ wisdom when it feels helpful? [20:41]
2. The religious leaders recognized that John’s ministry was important, yet they resisted repentance. What can make a person interested in spiritual things while still unwilling to turn from sin? [19:25]
3. Moses delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, while Jesus delivers his people from sin and death. How does this greater Exodus shape what salvation means for someone who feels trapped by guilt, fear, or sinful habits? [37:04]
4. Hebrews calls Moses a faithful servant but calls Christ the Son over God’s house. How does this help believers honor Moses and God’s law without treating Moses as equal to Jesus? [42:29]

Application questions

1. Jesus is the Prophet whom God commands us to hear. Is there an area of life where Christ’s words are clear, but obedience is being delayed because control feels safer? What would listening to him look like this week? [20:32]
2. Repentance is more than feeling bad about sin; it bears fruit in a changed direction. What is one specific pattern, attitude, or relationship where repentance could become visible in practical action? [19:34]
3. The law exposes sin down to the heart: lust, hatred, coveting, and idolatry. Which of these heart-level sins is easiest to excuse or hide, and how can it be honestly brought before Christ? [16:38]
4. The law can tell a sinner that he is stuck, but it cannot pull him out of the pit. When guilt or failure comes, is the first instinct to try harder, hide, or receive Christ’s mercy? Why? [44:05]
5. Christ took the place of sinners, bearing their sin and giving them his righteousness. How could remembering this exchange change the way a believer responds after a real failure this week? [45:01]
6. Jesus does not merely call people to believe that forgiveness exists; he says, “Follow me.” Where might following Jesus involve a cost right now—in time, reputation, comfort, money, or a relationship? [46:00]
7. Jesus is both the spotless Lamb and the Good Shepherd. What fear about the future needs to be placed in the hands of the Shepherd who promises steadfast covenant love all the way home? [46:42]