Jesus is More than the Prophesied Prophet: Lord, Messiah, Emmanuel

“When the people saw him do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed,
‘Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!’
When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king,
he slipped away into the hills by himself” (John 6:14-15, NLT).

The people were impressed. What Jesus had done in multiplying the loaves and fish was a sign that Jesus was not a mere mortal. At the very least he was the prophesied Prophet to come. The people saw and filled their stomachs as a result of this sign – who could have missed it? And this led them to believe that Jesus was “the Prophet” Moses predicted (Deuteronomy 18:15-18). Apostle John who wrote this Gospel doesn’t say the people were wrong to think of Jesus as “the Prophet,” but the next verse (“force him to be their king”) shows they thought this Prophet should be a political leader. In this they were wrong.

Do you know? Elisha foreshadowed this Prophet (who was one and the same as the Messiah) to come. According to 2 Kings 4:42-44, Elisha fed one hundred men with twenty loaves (a 5:1 ratio), but Jesus fed five thousand with five loaves (that’s a 1,000:1 ratio!). Isaiah 25:6-9 says the Messiah will prepare a banquet or feast for all people, Jews and Gentiles. This miracle showed Jesus to be the actual, real Messiah. (By the way, most Muslim scholars and teachers claim “the Prophet” that Moses predicted was prophet Muhammad. But by a careful study on the context of this verses of prophesy, this claim can easily be ignore. I have written a booklet entitled Muhammad in the Bible? to prove that this claim [and some other claims] is wrong. You may ask for your copy by commenting below).

The people wanted a king, a leader who would free Israel from Rome during the New Testament times. The people expected this of the coming Messiah-King (but Jesus first coming was to be Messiah-Servant. Jesus came as lowly servant, soon his second coming, he will rule as King of the Universe). When Jesus realized their intentions, he left. Jesus’ Kingdom would not be an earthly one established by a vote of popularity. He came for the people, not popularity. In the wilderness, Satan had already offered Jesus this same opportunity for political power (Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus said no then, he said no here too. Jesus knew immediate opportunity was nothing compared to what His Father had planned.

Think about this: Later we find that the people may have been more interested in Jesus’ meeting their physical needs than anything else (see John 6:22-40). If we were there, will we noticing about Jesus’ true identity and power? As the disciples watched Jesus, they began to discover his person and purpose. More than feeding the hungry people on a hillside, Jesus was revealing his true identity and limitless power. In each incident, each interaction with the Lord, the disciples understood a bit more. Pray that God may give us increased realization of Jesus’ character and holiness and power. We should thank God for revealing Himself through the living Word, Jesus and the written Word, the Bible. Jesus is more than “the Prophet,” he is God in the flesh, he is the Messiah, he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords – the Son of the living God, Emmanuel.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.