We have seen from the Scriptures that the message of the Apostles is the revelation for the church age, and that no one is to be regarded as a preacher of the gospel if they disregard Apostolic doctrine. We’ve also seen how that the ‘foundational’ Apostles (the twelve), are in a class of their own according to God’s design, hence nobody can claim an Apostleship mandate with a divergent set of doctrines in God’s name today. We all must say what the Apostles said! In this teaching, we’ll be examining why the emphasis has been about the teachings of the Apostles and not the prophets. Aren’t we side lining the Prophets if we keep emphasizing Apostolic doctrine?
Let me begin to answer this query by saying that the gospel was first spoken through the prophets, so anyone who says the prophets should be ignored is saying we should ignore the gospel. This is why the Apostles acknowledged the Prophets in their letters or epistles. Generally, there are arguably at least close to 300 direct quotations and close to 700 partial quotations from the Old Testament in all the New Testament books (the gospels inclusive). So, that’s some massive evidence right there for the relevance of the prophetic scriptures. We cannot ignore them.
For the sake of our study, let’s see some instances where the Apostles acknowledged the message of the prophets; I’ll use Paul’s epistle to the Romans and Peter’s 1st and 2nd Epistles as case studies.
Paul’s Testimony
a. Romans 1:1-4; “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.”
Paul says he’s been separated to the gospel of God as an apostle of Christ and he quickly adds: ‘which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures’. He was simply showing us how his message is not unique; it has its source in the prophetic writings! The only difference is that it was a promise in the prophets while it’s announced as a fulfillment by the apostles. So, the prophets set the stage for the ministry of the apostles. How can we possibly ignore such men and their writings?
b. Romans 3:21-22; “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference…”
The central theme of Paul’s letter to the Romans is ‘Righteousness by faith’. Again, Paul quickly helps us to see that such profound revelation is not unique to his ministry by saying: ‘being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God’. The law and the prophets bear witness to the reality of justification by faith in Christ.
c. Romans 4:1-8; “What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered; Blessed is the man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin.”
Paul further went on to cite two key figures in Israel – Abraham and David, and showed us how they enjoyed and testified to the gift of God’s righteousness! These two figures were Prophets too (Abraham: Genesis 20:7; David: Acts 2:29-31).
Peter’s Testimony
a. 1 Peter 1:10-12; “Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven; things which angels desire to look into.”
Peter says the prophets prophesied of the grace that would come to us. He further explained what this grace message is about: ‘testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow’. So, just like Paul, he equally acknowledged the ministry of the prophets as the springboard for the message of the gospel being heralded by him.
b. 2 Peter 1:19-21; “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
In this portion, Peter went a step further by saying we ought to heed the prophetic scriptures, but then with the intent of seeing Christ in them. That was what he meant by: “until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts”. Christ is that light that dawns upon the hearts of men from the Scriptures!
Also, in the book of Acts, the gospel was preached and heralded as that which was foretold by the prophets.
Acts 3:18; “But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled.”
Acts 3:24-26; “Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. “You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ “To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”
Acts 26:22-23; “Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come; “that the Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”
Acts 28:23; “So when they had appointed him a day, many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening.”
So, the gospel was the message of the prophets! If that’s so, why then are we emphatic on Apostolic doctrine? It’s because the Prophets preached the gospel as the mystery while the Apostles explained the mystery! This is why you’d find the word ‘mystery’ or ‘mysteries’ used in their writings. Let’s see some examples of how this was used:
1. Romans 16:25; “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began but now has been made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures has been made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith…” Note the phrase, ‘mystery kept secret since the world began’. Paul says that mystery has now been made manifest from the prophetic scriptures! The word ‘manifest’ is the Greek word ‘phaneroō’ which means to render apparent or to make visible and known what has been hidden. So, the prophetic books remain a mystery without the ministry of Christ and His apostles.
2. 1 Corinthians 2:7-8; “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”
Paul calls the gospel the ‘wisdom of God in a mystery’ and ‘hidden wisdom (of God)’. Both expressions mean the same thing! He was referring to the presentation of the gospel in the prophetic writings hence, he quoted what had been prophesied by Isaiah in verse 9: “But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” And then at verse 10 he says: “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.” In other words, that which was hidden then, has been made plain to us today! The gospel is consistently presented as a mystery hidden in the past and now revealed in the present (See also Ephesians 1:9; Ephesians 3:3-4; Ephesians 3:9; Ephesians 6:19; Colossians 1:26).
Furthermore, the word ‘mystery’ as used in all these places in Paul’s letters is the Greek word, ‘mustērion’ which means ‘secret’ or ‘hidden thing’. This means, when you read the Old Testament without the insights of the New Testament, you cannot understand the message. This is why we emphasize Apostolic doctrine! There is a VEIL IN THE OLD TESTAMENT!
2 Corinthians 3:14-16; “But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.”
The word ‘veil’ as used here is the Greek word, ‘kaluma’ which means ‘a covering’. This is what you get when you get fixated on the Old Testament without receiving the revelation of the New Testament. In fact, the word ‘revelation’ was not used in the Old Testament for the gospel because that’s the very opposite of ‘a covering’; revelation is an uncovering. It’s a word that fitly describes the ministry of Christ and His apostles (Luke 2:32; Romans 16:25; Ephesians 1:17; Ephesians 3:3).
So, we are emphatic about the apostles because, without their ministry as handed to them by Christ, the prophetic writings would have remained a mystery to us. There’s a famous saying among theologians that beautifully sums this up: “THE NEW TESTAMENT WAS IN THE OLD CONCEALED, WHILE THE OLD TESTAMENT IS IN THE NEW REVEALED”. Whoever came up with that quote gave us one of the most succinct and priceless statements ever! So, we have the gospel as mysteries of the Kingdom in the Old Testament, but the New Testament is a ministry that unveils all that was hidden! Let’s example a scenario:
Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch
Acts 8:30-35; “So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. The place in the Scripture which he read was this: “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.” So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.”
The Eunuch was reading Isaiah 53, but he had no idea who it was about. Now, it’s impossible to know that prophecy was about salvation in Christ, if you don’t even know it’s speaking about Christ in the first place. We can safely conclude that the book of Isaiah was a mystery to the Eunuch until Philip revealed Jesus to him from the same book! You see what Philip did for that man? That’s what the Apostles have done IN ALL their letters – they’ve explained the prophets. Philip was obviously a disciple of the Apostles.
In summary, we are not disregarding the prophets by emphasizing the ministry of the apostles. On the contrary, by emphasizing the ministry of the apostles, we establish the prophets. Before you embark on a journey to read Genesis to Malachi, endeavor to read Matthew to John, and then read Acts to Revelation. Much more, learn to dwell in the Epistles (The Epistles begin at Romans and ends at Jude. Acts is the history of the early church, while Revelation is an apocalyptic material).
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