Deuteronomy 18:15-22 – Be careful who we listen to

The reason God would raise a Moses-like prophet for His people was obvious. He wanted them to have constant guidance in their journey with Him.  Hence, they would not have to emulate the pagans of Canaan and indulge in the list of detestable practices delineated in Deuteronomy 18:10-11. God’s intention to raise that prophet among them was clear. He wanted His people to know clearly the direction they should take.

From Deuteronomy 18:15, it is safe to conclude that Moses was not just their leader but also a prophet. According to Numbers 12, God would speak to him mouth to mouth. In other words, Moses would speak exactly as God would say. The words of Moses were the very words of God. Moses recalled for them the scene at Mount Sinai when God first came to speak to the people after their exit from Egypt. They were so frightened by the awesome sight that they asked Moses to be their spokesman. They would rather hear from a middleman than from God Himself.  So instead of God speaking directly to the people, Moses became His mouthpiece.

However, we all know that Moses here was speaking prophetically of Christ Jesus, the ultimate prophet. The letter to the Hebrews in the first two opening verses reveals to us that “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son….” He came among us and spoke in His humanity, but the authority He spoke with was divine. Today Jesus is still God’s final message to the world.

Whatever was true of God, there would always be counterfeit. There would be those who claim to speak for Him presumptuously. They would be those who would speak for profit. There would also be those who would fallaciously speak on behalf of other gods. So God gave them the means to ascertain whether a prophet is true or not. In verse 22, He said, “When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.” The test of a true prophet was what he said would certainly come to pass.

We need to be careful when receiving words of prophecy. While there would be a predictive element in the words of a prophet, we know that prophecy today must rest objectively on God’s written Word. Don’t take in log, stock, and barrel a message claimed to be from God without first checking with God’s written Word. The message purported to be from God must tally with God’s Written Word. God’s message will always draw us closer to Him and never away from Him. It may be a rebuke but it will give a sense of peace. The message of God can be foretelling but more often it is forth-telling. It is given to help us walk intimately with God. There is a need for us to be discerning in the message we hear. A wrong message can lead us astray!