“… A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people… Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (KJV, Acts 3:22-26).
“A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren”
In this verse, Peter is telling the crowd of people what Moses prophesied many years before. Take note of the fact that Moses recorded (in Deuteronomy 18:15) that there would be a prophet like him that would rise up from among the people.
The brethren in reference here were the Jewish people. One of the defining marks of the Messiah is that He would be of Jewish descent. Many things were said about the Messiah, and in the verse today, we can see that one of them is that He would be a prophet.
In the Old Testament, the prophet was declared to be the voice of God. The prophet spoke three primary messages. The first message typically consisted of declarations pertaining to repentance. The second message typically consisted of warnings if someone chose not to repent. The third message was one of comfort and hope for the people.
“like unto me”
Moses related the prophet that God would raise up from among the Jewish people to a prophet that would be like Moses. Moses was a unique man; nobody since has been quite like him. Moses was a man that met with God face to face. He was also a man that acted as a mediator: he stood between God and man and united the two.
Moses was a man who spoke the words of God to the people. Thus, Jesus would also be One Who would speak the words of God to the people. Jesus is also the Great Mediator between God and man. However, one of the major differences between the ministries of Moses and Jesus is that, while Moses was a sinful and imperfect man, Jesus is the perfect Prophet and the perfect Mediator.
“him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you”
Moses directed the people to listen to the words of the prophet that would come. Moses also stressed the fact that the prophet who would come must be heard in all of his words.
This is an important fact to consider. It was as though Moses was preparing the people and was saying that when Jesus would come, He would usher in a new period in which the eyes of the people must rest upon Christ and turn from the teachings of Moses.
A time arose in the ministry of Jesus when He took three of His disciples up a mountain. When Jesus and His disciples were on the top of the mountain, Jesus was transfigured. The glory of God was revealed in Jesus on that day.
Moses and Elijah appeared at that same time, and Peter desired to make them all tents to dwell in. At this point, the Father spoke and told the disciples that they must listen to the voice of Christ. That which Moses foretold many years prior, the Father confirmed on the Mount of Transfiguration.
“And it shall come to pass”
The words that we read here must be heeded. Moses told us a direct word from the Lord when he said, “[I]t shall come to pass.” Surely, every word of God proves true. Time-and-time again people have sought to disprove the Bible without any real success.
Many times, people have discredited the Bible, but in due time have seen the error of their ways. For instance, people once thought that the story of Samson was not true because the end of the book of Judges records two large pillars holding up a house. It was these two pillars that Samson pulled down to kill the Philistines at the end of his life.
It was thought for some time that houses were not built that way based on the archeological evidence of the day. However, in due time, it was discovered that houses were built with two center pillars that did indeed hold up the roof, and thus the Bible was yet again proven to be true.
Matters such as the one previously presented have arisen often. It is a true fact that what God says shall come to pass.
“that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people”
While it is certain that what God says shall come to pass, it is also certain that God has given firm warnings of the judgment that is to come. For anyone who will not hear the words of the prophet (i.e., Jesus), that person will be destroyed.
Here we see a firm warning of the judgment that is sure to come on Judgment Day. There is no point to water this fact down to where it has no real substance left within it. To say that everything is going to be okay or to say everything will work out in the end because God is love misses the mark.
Is God love? Absolutely – the Bible tells us that! But what does the Bible tell us about God’s love? It tells us that God is love, and in love, He sent His Son so that people could express true saving faith in the Son, thereby receiving eternal life and being spared from the judgment.
Therefore, people must respond to God with saving faith because what God has decreed will surely come to pass.
“Unto you first God”
Here we read about the Gospel call to the Jew first and then to the Gentile. The Jews were God’s chosen people and those through whom Christ was revealed. God used the Jew in an amazing way. The history of the Jew is one to be appreciated and respected.
Paul tells us in Romans 1:16 that the Gospel is for the Jew first. This does not mean that God loves the Jew more than He loves other people. Simply put, when Christ came to the earth, He came to the Jew first, then to the masses. We also read in the book of Acts that the Gospel was to be spread in Jerusalem first.
“having raised up his Son Jesus”
Peter highlights the fact that Jesus has been raised from the dead. The resurrection of Christ is nothing short of a miracle. The Christian recognizes the fact that miracles are real occurrences.
Many people live as though miracles do not happen. This is a naturalistic approach to life. As the naturalist looks into the world, he seeks to explain everything within the confines of nature. For the naturalist, there is nothing outside of the box of the universe.
However, the Christian says that God is outside of the box and believes that there are times when God chooses to intervene and disrupt the laws of nature. Such cases are deemed supernatural events – events that cannot be explained from a naturalistic viewpoint.
The Christian need not be intimidated by the naturalist. Instead, he must realize that they have two different worldviews that lay the foundation for everything else they believe. The Christian believes in the God of the Bible; therefore, miracles are not that crazy to believe. The naturalist does not believe that God exists; therefore, there is no explanation for miracles, and therefore, miracles are discarded.
But here we see that God raised His Son Jesus from the dead, and on that claim, the Christian hangs his hat.
“sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities”
God sent His Son into the world to bless the world, not to condemn the world. Here we see the heart of God in sending His Son. Sin has had devastating effects on God’s creation, and there had to be a solution to the sin problem.
Simply put, there is a solution to the sin problem, and His name is Jesus. People need not look to the world for help, nor to the latest psychological method. Christ is the Savior of the world, and through Him, man is blessed.
Final prayer
Father, I thank You for the ways that You have revealed Christ to me. Teach me to cling to the Savior each day. In Jesus’ name, Amen.