Walking through Time with Jesus

Introduction What is prophecy? The last book of the Bible, Revelation, is often said to be the only book of prophecy in the New Testament. Is it? Let’s look at what the Bible says about prophecy Much of God’s interaction with men, either written or spoken, is done through spokesmen called prophets. Using these prophets, God teaches men proper behavior and tells the consequences for not obeying God’s teachings. Men watched their futures unfold in compliance with God’s statements. They assumed that the prophet had foretold the future and did not accept that God had made the future. This caused prophets to become known as seers, predictors of the future. Kings would seek prophets to ask the outcome of battles before they were fought. Prophecy came to mean predicting the future, and prophets were expected to foretell the future. The biblical definition of prophecy is speaking for God. “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet’” (Exodus 7:1). God has often used His prophets to warn His people of His future actions—not a prediction but a revealing of His will and the results. The same, you say. No, God does not predict the future. He creates the future. The last book of the New Testament is sometimes labeled a book of prophecy. It is, but it is not the only book of prophecy in the New Testament. Jesus refers to Himself as a prophet in the Gospels. “And they took offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household’” (Matthew 13:57). He also speaks about things to come, most notably His coming crucifixion and the destruction of Jerusalem. His presence and words are not for the purpose of foretelling but for calling men to repentance and faith. Each of the Bible books was written by men “speaking for God,” and each could be labeled prophecy. They all contain references to the future history of men. Because the words “shortly come to pass” are written at the beginning of John’s book, many people see this writing to be completely a prediction of the future. Looking for a match between current events and the visions of this book and trying to predict the future will cause the reader to miss the true purpose of John’s writing. There have already been several historical events that could be said to match the “prophecies” of this book. Because of the human nature, events in history tend to repeat themselves. “That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Because that is true, events at different points in time have been matched to the same visions in John’s book. This will continue to occur until the end of time. Do not miss the message of John’s visions because you are looking for predictions of what will become human history.