CHAPTER THREE –IDENTIFYING THAT PROPHET
Back to The Rise of False Prophets
Let’s establish a premise regarding That Prophet. If we begin our examination of this figure with the conclusion that the splinter leader declaring himself to be its fulfillment is wrong in his claim, then who is or who will beThat Prophet? Can we know?
Yes, and the answer is not difficult.
The reader needs a picture of Moses prophecy for later reference. We will refer to it often. Read Deuteronomy 18:15-22 carefully:
“The LORD your God will raise up unto you a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, like unto me; unto him you shall hearken; According to all that you desire of the LORD your God in Horeb 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 you, 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. But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if you say in your heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken? When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken, but the prophet has spoken it presumptuously: you shall not be afraid of him.”
We saw that Mr. Armstrong taught about prophets in a general way. Let’s now learn what he taught specificallyabout “That Prophet.” Then we will examine why he taught this as he did. Let’s remove all “mystery” cloaking this subject.
Mr. Armstrong was never in doubt about who That Prophet is. For many years, the Church understood the correct answer as a basic article of belief among God’s true doctrines. I was first taught it in the late 60s as a student at Ambassador College—and I still have my sophomore “Deuteronomy” notes written directly into my margin in 1968 from Old Testament Survey Bible class!
Now carefully read this statement from Mr. Armstrong:
“The time is just before the RESURRECTION of the just, at Christ’s coming. As Moses delivered the ancient Israelites from Egyptian slavery, so CHRIST is coming to deliver modern Britain and America from the now-impending Babylonish slavery. (See Deut. 18:15; Acts 7:37; Jer. 23:5-8.)
The United States and Britain in Prophecy, p. 173
This statement is also found in the August 1979 issue of The Plain Truth, when Mr. Armstrong was reprinting this large book serially. The emphasis is his. It explains, with two other verses included, who Mr. Armstrong knew would fulfill the role of this great Prophet, and leaves no doubt that Jesus Christ is That Prophet!
We have asked whether God would have left Mr. Armstrong in the dark on the role of prophets in the Church. Now we must ask a much bigger question. Could Mr. Armstrong be so confused that he did not know who would fulfill Deuteronomy 18:15-22? Could he have somehow been deceived about a prophecy as important as the Coming of Christ and His bringing God’s government to earth? Is it “no big deal” that many today wrongly believe that this great Prophet is really some obscure local church pastor?
At best, we might theorize that a local pastor professing himself to be “That Prophet” could have temporarilybeen a real prophet had God used him to reveal truth to Mr. Armstrong during his lifetime. Of course, had this happened, Mr. Armstrong would have recognized this man as a true prophet of God and identified him as such to the Church, and we would all have become familiar with him. (Remember, however, that this would still not qualify such a man to be THAT Prophet.) He would have been “number two” in the Church, outranking all other ministers! So, to quote Paul, “I speak as a fool!”
Obviously, none of this happened!
Before leaving what the Church taught, we must include two quotes from other early WCG publications. Note the original, 58-Lesson Bible Correspondence Course. In the early years, the entire membership of the WCG was urged to diligently study these lessons, and of course, most of the “old-timers”—some of you—did this. It was written in great detail and contained much valuable information. While Mr. Armstrong did later shorten it to 32 Lessons, because of minor errors that he had grown out of, and partly because of expense, it is clear from his above statements that he never left or altered his understanding of who That Prophet would be.
The next statement is very direct:
“Is Moses therefore referred to as a type of Christ? Acts 7:37. The word ‘prophet’ refers to Christ. Note the words, ‘Like unto me.’ Also see Acts 3:20-22. What did God send Jesus Christ to deliver us from? Rom. 3:24-25.
“COMMENT: Moses, sent by God to deliver Israel from physical bondage, was a TYPE pointing to Christ whom God sent to deliver repentant believers from spiritual bondage!”
Lesson 25, 1960, 1969
The prophecy is written in a way that Moses is identified as a type of Christ, not an end-time, self-appointed “That Prophet” local church pastor that thousands now follow!
Note Mr. Armstrong’s reference to Acts 7:37, and that Stephen speaks there directly from Deuteronomy 18:15: “This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me: Him shall you hear.” Just moments later, Stephen was stoned by his audience, in part for what he said here. The reason he quoted Deuteronomy 18 ALL is because of an antecedent in Acts 6:14. Stephen was being accused of “blasphemy and speaking against Moses” (Acts 6:11). Acts 6:14 contains the specific charge—and identifies who is That Prophet. Notice: “For we have heard him [Stephen] say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us.”
Stephen’s purpose in quoting Deuteronomy 18:15 was to show his accusers that “this Jesus of Nazareth” was the very one who would fulfill Moses’ prophecy! In context, the account reveals that he was trying to explain that he was not “against” Moses, but that he understood Moses! Stephen recognized that Moses was obviously talking about Christ as the fulfillment of That Prophet! What could be plainer? The Jews simply did not comprehend what Stephen understood about this Prophet’s identity—because they had rejected Jesus as the Christ. They were furious with what he said.
This is the problem with some today who, like the Jews, never had clear knowledge of who would be That Prophet!
Now grasp this. Do not miss the fact that these same Jews KILLED Stephen when he tried to explain this truth to them! Remember their perspective on this verse when we study John 1:20-21! The subject of Christ, and this includes all of His roles, is one that can make people extremely angry.
I have taken the time to explain this because the Correspondence Course made this plain well over forty-five years ago. The entire Church believed it—in fact, no one ever questioned it. It was basic doctrine understood by all. Not until the mid-90s did anyone doubt Christ’s future fulfillment of That Prophet!
Who will you believe?
Another statement should be examined at this point:
“‘For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ’ (John 1:17). Was Moses ever acquainted with grace and truth? Did Jesus ignore the law? Did these two prophets—one the founder of Israel and mediator of the Old Covenant, the other the Son of God and Mediator of the New Covenant—have anything in common?…
“Jesus descended from Judah. Moses came from Levi. Both were sons of Abraham. Jesus was a ‘babe in a manger.’ Moses was a babe in a boat. Moses was born a slave. Jesus was the single object of intense persecution by a king whom Satan inspired to exterminate Him while He was yet a child. Moses was adopted into Pharaoh’s family and became a prince of Egypt. Jesus was the Prince of Peace. Moses was a general of the armies of Egypt. Jesus was Captain of the Host. Moses fled for his life into exile in Sinai, away from Egypt. Jesus was taken, to save His life, in exile into Egypt by His parents…
“Moses was the main prototype of the great Prophet to come—Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews also compared the two prophets. ‘Therefore, holy brethren, who share in a heavenly call, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession [profession, KJV]. He was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in God’s house. Yet Jesus has been counted worthy of much more glory than Moses as the builder of a house has more honor than the house…Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later’ (Heb. 3:1-3, 5).
“Both Jesus and Moses were faithful to their tasks and their callings. They accomplished the work of God in their respective ages. Yet Moses was a figure and a type of the Prophet to come—Jesus the Messiah or Anointed of God.”
A Tale of Two Prophets, 1977-78
It is obvious that the author parallels the life of Moses with the life of Christ. A Tale of Two Prophets was a long booklet, including much additional information. In it, the author also parallels the role of Moses with the role of Christ. This was the entire point of this very extensive booklet. Remember, Moses was inspired by Christ Himself (as the God of the Old Testament) to say that this prophet would be “like unto me.” This is very important and identifies the only possible candidate to be a type of Moses!
Jesus Christ alone lived certain events in His own physical life that either did fulfill or will fulfill roles in a way that closely patterned Moses’ life!
Moses ruled physical Israel. Christ rules spiritual Israel. Moses judged Israel and appointed others to help him. Christ will judge the world with the help of the saints. Moses led physical Israel from physical Egypt. Christ leads spiritual Israelites out of spiritual Egypt. Moses was a man “mighty in word and deed” (Acts 7:22) in Egypt. As the God who designed and created the universe, this is obviously true of Christ. Moses was the mediator of the Old Covenant and Jesus is the New Testament mediator. Moses and Christ each brought the law from the Lawgiver—the Father—to the Church, of the Old and New Testaments. Both were threatened and persecuted. And…Moses and Christ were BOTH PROPHETS!
Moses was—by far—the greatest type of Christ, and vice versa, that the Bible identifies. There is more to be said later about this from the New Testament about exactly why Christ was not only the greatest, but also theultimate Prophet. We will learn that Revelation states that even Laodiceans understand these basic verses.
Prepare to be surprised!
We have seen what Mr. Armstrong and others wrote about That Prophet. There are other passages that speak directly about this topic.
Mr. Armstrong regularly repeated three things. First, “Don’t believe me, believe your Bible” (often citing Paul: “Prove all things, hold fast that which is good”). Second, “Let the Bible interpret the Bible.” Third, “Always start with the most basic scriptures and build from that point.” (The second and third are among the once, but now less familiar, Twelve Rules of Bible Study).
We must employ all three principles with this subject.
Let’s now absolutely prove who is That Prophet, allowing the Bible to interpret itself: “And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; Him shall you 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 the people” (Acts 3:20-23).
The apostle Peter plainly—ABSOLUTELY UNMISTAKABLY!—equates Jesus Christ with the Prophet of Deuteronomy 18:15! This is why Mr. Armstrong taught this truth as he did! There is no other possible way to read this passage—at least not for the honest mind.
Surely there has never been, or ever could be, any human prophet whose every word could be heard by ALLPEOPLE, and we could add, who have ever lived. Certainly, no human being could ever achieve this. Moses told his audience long ago that they would “hear” this Prophet. How would this be possible if this figure came beyond their lifetime? When Stephen quoted Moses, in Acts 7 ALL, he told his audience that they also would hear this Prophet. I repeat: How would this be possible if this person were to come beyond their lifetime?
The only Prophet that all people from all previous ages could hear is Jesus Christ! He is the only possible “candidate” who could be heard “In all things whatsoever He shall say unto you.” Of course, literally, beginning in the near future, everyone will hear everything that Christ speaks!
So, there is only one conceivable way that any person alive today could claim to be “That Prophet”—he would eventually have to claim that his writings and “revelations” are to become part of Scripture! How so? This is the only way that all human beings—from Creation through the Great White Throne Judgment—could ever be exposed to such a man’s prophecies.
Do you see—do you clearly understand—this point? Remember, the words of true prophets form part of the foundation of truth on which the Church is built. And Mr. Armstrong explained that the Bible for our time is complete!
Peter also mentions how “all [God’s] holy prophets since the world began” have talked about the fulfillment of Deuteronomy 18:15. I have given entire sermons showing that every single prophet (along with all other servants of God), beginning with Abel, have pointed to the Coming of Jesus Christ to set up His kingdom. It can be easily proven that when Peter said this, he knew exactly what he was saying. Of course, God was inspiring him, and that should be enough to believe it! (Our book The Work of God – Its Final Chapter! covers this understanding in detail.)
Recall that in The United States and Britain in Prophecy, Mr. Armstrong paralleled Deuteronomy 18:15 with both Acts 7:37 and Jeremiah 23:5-8! Why? Because Jeremiah’s words form the core of an important millennialprophecy describing Christ’s Return. That prophecy refers to “raising unto David a Righteous Branch” and “a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.” It also states that “in His days Judah shall be saved.” This obviously parallels Deuteronomy 18 ALL.
Carefully study all of Jeremiah 23 ALL. Most of it is about false prophets! But Jeremiah 23:5-8 are referring to Christ, and are central to the chapter. God inspires Jeremiah to include this section because the ultimate great Prophet—who stands above all of the false prophets plaguing both ancient and modern national Israel, and the Church—is Jesus Christ! No description of false prophets is complete without contrasting them to the greatest Prophet of all time! This is the point of Jeremiah 23:5-8, and it does this!
Two pivotal passages explain this chapter’s time setting—that it is a warning for our time! Notice: “In the latter days you shall consider it perfectly. I have not sent these prophets yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.”
This is a stunning statement—and POWERFUL WARNING—from God (Jeremiah 23:20-21) for those who will receive it!
All false prophets claim that they are sent and inspired by God. He declared that this is what happens. God wanted His people at the end of the age to be warned about their deception and, by now, you recognize that I am doing this. Notice further that these prophets are known to “lie” (Jeremiah 23:25). The biggest way that they do this is by claiming, “I have dreamed, I have dreamed!” Then they presumptuously present these dreams—usually supposed revelations from God—“in [God’s] name.” This should strike deep fear into you, because all shouldgreatly FEAR to follow one of these false prophets.
If someone claims to be not only a prophet but also to be “That Prophet,” he is both a liar and a blasphemer!(He makes himself God!) He may be “running,” but God has certainly not sent him! If he claims titles belonging to the all-powerful living Jesus Christ, then he is no less than a BLASPHEMING IDOL, seeking to replace Christ with himself. This is serious—but I told you that this book would be blunt!
There is much more to consider.
Back to The Rise of False Prophets