John 6:38
Jesus Teaches Us He Came from Heaven
38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.
Luke 16:19-31
Listening to the Prophets
19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Matthew 16:13-14
Jesus More Than a Prophet
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
John 4:19
Jesus More Than a Prophet
19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet.
John 5:22-23
Jesus More Than a Prophet
22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.
Matthew 1:18
Born Without an Earthly Father
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.
John 1:1-14
Jesus Has Been With God from the Beginning
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
In the Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man, Jesus teaches us about Moses and the Prophets...Moses and the Prophets were our road map to heaven before Jesus came...In all of His teachings we learn much about the prophets...Jesus teaches us, here in this parable, that if do not listen to Moses or what the Prophets have written for us, we also will not be convinced of the Divinity of One, even if They have this divine ability to rise from the dead...
Jesus is often referred to as a prophet...But He is so much more than a prophet...He is different from the prophets...He not only taught, and has the greatest of words and teachings ever spoken, He did many miracles...The prophets heard from God and spoke of what they heard from Him...Jesus came from heaven...He came from God...He was with God from the very beginning...His mother was impregnated by the Holy Spirit of God...He is the Son of God...His miracles helped prove that He is the Son of the Blessed One...
When Jesus asks His disciples, who people think He might be, almost all the people of His time were very respectful of Him and what He was doing...Today, I think He gets this same general respect...But He was so much different than anyone, including John the Baptist, Elijah, and Jeremiah (all who are Great Saints of ours)...And when we think about Jesus' question of who He is today, I think He presented Himself in such a way (and that is the way He wanted to present Himself and to be) that we still read and think about Him, as just being another prophet...But He is divine, and so much more -INFINITELY MORE...And a lot of Him and this is missed in His humbleness and His gentleness -and that maybe is one of the reasons we miss seeing Him, as the Divine Son of God...
The Bible is sacred and holy...As we read the Bible and go from the Old Testament to the New Testament, I think we can miss these things...We can miss that Jesus is much, much more than a prophet...He did miracles, He was sinless, He healed all those who had faith in Him and the Father...He was not just another prophet...He is the Perfect Man to come to earth...I think that needs repeating, He is and was the Perfect Man to come to earth and teach...And if we think about it, and ask our young children and teenagers, others, and most of all "Who do we think Jesus is" -do we as mankind get it?...He is that original, He is that unique, He is that great...He is the One the prophets were waiting for...He is the Messiah from heaven...He is the One they were writing about in their prophecies...He is so great that not only should we honor His Father, we should honor and worship Him as well...He is the Greatest Man who has walked our earth...