Christological Titles – Prophet
On Thursday evening, August 27, 1963, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was pacing the floor of the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C. The next day he would be standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, addressing a crowd 250,000 strong on the issue of racial equality. The event was the celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. The dilemma which confronted King was how to adequately express himself in the eight minutes he was allocated.
Throughout the night he worked on his speech, writing one draft after another. He demanded that his aides remain awake, entreating them to comment on each new effort. His friends vainly tried to convince him to throw the manuscript away altogether, and just allow the Holy Spirit to inspire the words from his mouth. King would not entertain such a thought, and the vigil continued. Early morning the speech was completed, typed, and distributed to the media.
Late that afternoon King ascended the marble steps of the memorial and stood stoically at the podium. A breathless audience awaited the noble orator. Slowly and deliberately, King commenced to read his carefully prepared text. “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today…” continuing in a controlled academic manner for several more paragraphs.
Unexpectedly. Unhesitatingly. Unpremeditatedly. King thrusts aside his notes as if his soul was consumed by the Pentecostal fire of the Holy Spirit. “I have a dream,” he thundered. It was inspired preaching that needed no notes. “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed – we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.” Unable to contain the spirit burning within, he continued to promulgate, “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.”
King was a true prophet that August day. The homily shattered ambivalence and sustained hope with the oft repeated line, “I have a dream!”
Judaism has three words for prophet, which were adopted by the early church without of modification. Roeh and chozeh have similar definitions meaning “seer.” The dictionary defines seer as, “one that predicts events or developments; a person credited with extraordinary moral and spiritual insight.” The third word is nabi, which means “a person blest with the Spirit causing an ecstatic dimension.” A prophet is able to envision the future and convey that image with a sense of urgency.
The prophets of Israel conveyed their messages in three distinct forms, all reflective in the early church. They were first and foremost preachers who eloquently extolled upon the scriptures. Could anyone surpass Moses’ allocution to the people of the Golden Calf? (Ex 32ff) Secondly, in addition to preaching they often spoke in parables. Recall Nathan, as he told the parable of the one ewe-lamb to bring David suddenly to his senses. (II Sam 12: 1-6) Thirdly, they were theatrical. There were times when words were useless, when the spoken word would not penetrate the refusal of men and women to listen and understand. It was then that the prophets resorted to symbolic, dramatic actions in the assurance that the eye could be opened when the ear closed. Recollect Ezekiel’s use of a sharp sword as a barber’s razor to demonstrate imposing judgment. (Ezek 5:1ff)
The function of a prophet was to be a messenger from God. A prophet dictated the commandments of God; as Nathan did by stationing the Levites in the Temple with cymbals, harps and lyres so all would hear. (II Chr 29:25) A prophet testified against sin. Nehemiah condemned the great blasphemies of the nation. (Neh 9:26) Perhaps a prophet’s most important calling was to direct a wayward people back to God. The summons of Jeremiah was, “Turn now every one of you from his evil way.” (Jer 35:15) A prophet, endowed with the Spirit of God was the mouthpiece of God. Again, a role duplicated in the first century church.
A prophet is described as a holy man. A prophet was sent by God, illustrated by the ordination of Jeremiah to be a prophet to the nations. (Jer 1:5) A prophet spoke for God. Hosea experienced this, as God spoke directly to him and then the message was conveyed to the multitudes. (Hos 12:10) A prophet was an authentic representative of God, an unchanging representation for both Judaism and Christianity.
Everything that we have learned about prophets is replicated perfectly in the life of Jesus. Jesus considered himself a prophet, and others saw him as a prophet. After he had raised the son of the widow of Nain the reaction of the people was, “A great prophet has arisen among us.” (Lk 7:16) When Jesus asked his disciples what people were saying about him, their answer was “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (Mt 16:14) Those who understood his greatness, aware of his uniqueness, clearly acknowledged Jesus to be a prophet. Jesus did not refuse nor reject this title when spoken of by others, both by those within his inner circle and the populace at large.
There is nothing more certain than Jesus regarded his role as one destined to be a prophet. Rejected at Nazareth he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country.” (Lk 4:24) When he was warned not to journey to Jerusalem, he responded, “It cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.” (Lk 13:33) Jesus decisively placed himself in the heritage of the great seers of Judaism.
Aptly, the title of prophet characterizes Jesus. He came forth from God bestowed with a message of redemption. He fulfilled this calling without disunity from the prophets of Israel. Jesus was in a succession of the prophets; the demarcation point was he was also the One to whom all prophets pointed and of whom all the prophets spoke.
As the prophets of today, we must boldly proclaim the Word of God, allowing our discourse to promote the welfare of humanity. At times we may feel inadequate for this task, though trusting in the leading of God’s spirit our words will always be commensurate to the occasion.
When Count Niclaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, the founder of the Moravians, was ten years old he began to share with his playmates that Jesus is their Redeemer. The Count later reflected on his early attempts at witnessing, surmising, “My deficiency in knowledge was compensated by sincerity.”
In testifying for Jesus, the sincerity of our testimony will surmount any limitations of elocution and knowledge we may impose upon ourselves as a hindrance.