How different life would be if we could know the future. How much better would our life be if we only knew exactly what tomorrow brings, what next month will be like, what next year or ten years will show us. There’s a TV show with an intriguing premise called Early Edition. Each morning the main character goes out to retrieve the morning paper, yet the headlines are not for that day, but the next. He uses this advance warning as a way to save people from impending doom, but never for personal gain.

History is full of people who, had they an early edition, may well have made different choices.

A Western Union internal memo from 1876 stated: "This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us."

A Yale University management professor in response to a paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service said: "The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a 'C,' the idea must be feasible." That student took that idea and began Federal Express.

An executive with Decca Recording Co. in 1962 listened to a new group called the Beatles, but (you guessed it) rejected them and said: "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out."

Who do you listen to ? Where do you go for advice? In the ‘80’s the commercials told us that when E.F. Hutton speaks... people listen. But no one is listening to them now. They may have had enough insight to pick a good ad agency, but not the right investments. They failed because they could not predict the future; in that sense these prophets for profit demonstrated their inability to know the future.

Our passage this morning looks at false prophets, those poor prognosticators, awful augurs, sinful seers. Moses warns the Israelites not to make use of their means of determining truth and gives us some help in determining whether we are being lied to or not. But the heart of this passage tells us not just what to avoid when it comes to ascertaining whether God is speaking or not, but we are given what to look for. What we need to know about God and His will for us is not determined by our efforts, but by His revealing to us what we need to know.

14. The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so.

15. The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.

16. For this is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, "Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die."

17. The LORD said to me: "What they say is good.

18. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.

19. If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.

20. But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death."

21. You may say to yourselves, "How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD?"

22. If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.

Deuteronomy, as the review of the Law for a new generation, has reiterated the events in the wilderness in chapters one to five. In chapter five the Decalogue is restated, followed by the principles of the Covenant up through chapter 11. Then in chapters 12-26 specific stipulations are given. That is the section we now find ourselves in. In Deuteronomy 17-18 Moses gives instructions regarding the three major figures in Israel: the king, the priest and the prophet. These offices point to the threefold offices of Christ, so it should come as no surprise that what Moses describes here finds its fulfillment in Christ.

But before we get to the positive picture, we need to cover the prohibitions here. What are the characteristics of the false prophet? What is said here is as pertinent today as it was 3,200 years ago. Today, as people are thoroughly dissatisfied with materialistic lifestyles and empty world views, many are open to new and dangerous paths of spiritual discovery. This passage offers some important teaching on these forbidden occult practices.

While our passage gives a brief summary of what is forbidden, the previous verses give more clarity. Moses gives a grocery list of things to avoid. Such nefarious behaviors are among the primary reasons the Israelites were to take Canaan and rout the inhabitants. Their despicable lifestyles could no longer be tolerated.

"Sorcerer" in the Old Testament is related to the word for clouds, perhaps referring to discerning events through weather. It is used of those who engage in astrology, using the positions of the stars and planets to foretell events.

Divination, a general term for predicting the future, often involves a shaman casting bones or arrows on the ground, so that, depending on how they lie, he can know the future.

The general term to describe assorted mystical theories and practices is occult, which means "hidden," because there is secret knowledge only accessible by those who have special insight or power.

Millions of Americans engage in various levels of occult activity, including such things as consulting a daily horoscope or calling a "Psychic-reader" on the telephone. Others may purchase healing crystals, attend channeling seminars, or conduct seances. Still others engage in full-blown occult religions.

What does the Bible have to say about occult beliefs and practices? They are morally repugnant to God. Not only are they ineffective and the work of charlatans, but by their very nature they are an affront to God, seeking to discern what God has not revealed. They seek to manipulate God, if that were possible, by placating or tricking Him by stealth.

While it is not necessary to know a great deal about modern occult practices, every child of God should be aware of God's will with regard to these matters.

One account of a psychic counselor I found ironic, but illustrates the chicanery which goes on.

Joan Cook of Broomfield, Colorado, was a counselor on the Psychic Friends Network for six months. She said she is no psychic, but at $24 a hour it was a great job. She was recommended for the job by her teacher in a counseling class, who said Cook would be free to do traditional counseling on the network. But she quickly discovered that her callers didn’t want basic, common-sense advice. They wanted supernatural insights.

One night, Joan got a call from Tonya in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Tonya wanted to know whether her husband was going to beat her. Cook tried to convince her to call the emergency number 911. She also gave Tonya the names of churches that might provide counseling. The woman’s reaction: "I called for a READING. I want my READING!"

So, Cook says, she concocted a tarot reading to back up her recommendation. Only when Tonya was thoroughly convinced the advice came from the cards and not just some ordinary individual did she seem inclined to access the free resources already available to her in her own community. Why was Tonya’s husband so angry? Tonya had racked up a $5,000 phone bill talking to "psychic" counselors.

The reason God will not permit such activity is because it is idolatrous. Leviticus 20:6 paints the common analogy between the occult and prostitution when it says: "I will set my face against the person who turns to mediums and spiritists to prostitute himself by following them, and I will cut him off from his people."

Consulting mediums is like committing adultery against God. Jesus Christ is the husband of the Church. He is God's fullest revelation. All that we need to know and all the power which it is good for us to have comes through Him and His word. When we go after other secret oracles and psychic powers we say in effect that our Husband is unsatisfactory and we must seek for lovers elsewhere. When a Christian peeks at his horoscope he is treating Jesus the same way a husband treats a wife when he peeks at porn to provide the titillation he no longer gets from her. Involvement in the occult is wrong because it is spiritual adultery, it is rebellion against the sovereignty of God and it belittles His revelation while exalting human pride.

In order to so manipulate, the false prophet must presume to know something that he or she does not know. There are two options in verse 20: they are either speaking about God falsely or speaking about false gods.

How can we judge? When they worship false gods, that’s easy. A few weeks back we looked at Deuteronomy 13 where we are warned that even if they do something supernatural, inexplicable, but in so doing draw us away from worshiping God, we must not listen to them.

But it is harder when they presume to be speaking for God. When they seem to point us to the true God, how can we discern? The answer is found in the message. Such a test, though, at first seems hard to use. But there are two scenarios.

The word does not take place

What the NIV translates as a future fulfillment, literally means "the word is not." The word has no substance, or what the prophet says simply is not so. The word supposedly spoken by God through the prophet was not in accord with the word of God already revealed and it was therefore automatically suspect.

What does this mean for you and me? We must be well acquainted with God’s Word, so that we are not so quickly duped in believing someone just because they hold a Bible in their hands or say the right words. Does the person speaking allow Scripture to interpret Scripture, examining the plain meaning of the text, looking at the context, etc.? Does it have Christ as its focus, His work on the cross as the key.

The word does not come true

If the prophet speaks of events yet to come and is wrong, if his predictions are not fulfilled, 100% of the time, then that person is not a prophet. There would need to be some evidence to verify this accuracy, rather than speaking only in the vaguest terms or of events too far removed in time to verify.

What this means is that we must be able to discern in the midst of conflict or when we are tempted to be led astray because we like what we see.

At the outbreak of the Civil War neither the Confederacy nor the Union had settled on standardized uniforms. This had a profound effect on the outcome of one of the war's first battles.

At the first Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), a Union artillery commander was in charge of two canons. As the battle progressed he saw troops in blue advancing towards his position. He wheeled his cannons around to fire on the troops, but he was interrupted by his commanding officer.

"Those are Union troops," his senior officer declared. "Those are your relief and supply platoons." Despite protests to the contrary, the commander gave explicit orders to not fire on the advancing troops.

When the advancing brigade got within range, they fell into position, lowered their muskets and fired several volleys. The Union artillery were routed and their cannons were captured.

A Confederate victory could have been avoided had a flag officer have simply recognized which were his troops and which were of the enemy.

Do you know God’s Word well enough to spot the enemy, even when they appear like an ally?

A true prophet follows God’s movement - verse 15a

The crux of this passage is not about false prophets though, not about to whom we should not listen, but rather to whom we must listen. All the above mentioned practices have one thing in common: the starting point is with us seeking God. An important characteristic of a false prophet is that he must jump through hoops in order to figure out what he should say. On the other hand, the true prophet is raised up by God.

Prophecy was neither for self-appointed egotists nor for a self-perpetuating manic guild. It was:

God who wanted to do the speaking.

God who had guidance and laws to give.

God who would address God’s own people with words of warning and encouragement.

Prophecy, unlike all the forecasting arts aforementioned, would not be what humans could discover, but what God would reveal. "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." 2 Peter 1:20-21

Don’t miss the reassuring promise here. The search for reliable information, needed and necessary knowledge, is given to us. There need be no hand wringing, no fear which captures our hearts so that we must look under every rock for an indication as to what the future holds.

In Matthew 17 Jesus takes Peter, James and John to a high mountain where Jesus was transfigured so that His face shone like the sun and His clothes became white as light. Who else appeared there with Jesus but Moses and Elijah, the two great prophets of the Old Testament. It was there God once again places His stamp of approval on Jesus when He says:

"This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"

The words of Deuteronomy18:15 are quoted. He is identified as the One whom God raised up.

A true prophet follows God’s model - verse 15b

Next Moses says the prophet will be like him. But what does that mean? The context helps a bit: He will be "from among your brothers". So He will not be an outsider, but a part of the Covenant family. The prophet will follow the example set by Moses. What do we know about Moses?

In Numbers 12 Moses's prophetic work is challenged by his brother and sister when they said: "Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Hasn’t he also spoken through us?"

Then there is inserted an editorial comment regarding Moses. Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.

Who else but Christ fits this model? In Matthew 12:20 we see how Jesus fulfills a prophecy in Isaiah 42:3 where we are told that a bruised reed He will not break.

Arrogance and self promotion are not hallmarks of God’s prophet.

Moses was known as the Lawgiver of Israel and it was he who delivered God’s people from Egypt. And yet it was Christ who came making the Law of Moses not only more clear, but He was the only one who kept the Law perfectly. John 1:17 tells us that "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."

The reason for a prophet to be given is explained in verse 16. It is what the people pled for at Sinai. After the people heard the voice of God speak the Decalogue, they melted in fear.

23. When you heard the voice out of the darkness, while the mountain was ablaze with fire, all the leading men of your tribes and your elders came to me.

24. And you said, "The LORD our God has shown us his glory and his majesty, and we have heard his voice from the fire. Today we have seen that a man can live even if God speaks with him.

25. But now, why should we die? This great fire will consume us, and we will die if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any longer.

26. For what mortal man has ever heard the voice of the living God speaking out of fire, as we have, and survived?

27. Go near and listen to all that the LORD our God says. Then tell us whatever the LORD our God tells you. We will listen and obey."

28. The LORD heard you when you spoke to me and the LORD said to me, "I have heard what this people said to you. Everything they said was good. Deuteronomy 5:23-28

There is a need for a mediator as no one can hear, no less see, God and live. This is what John continues to say in his first chapter, verse 18: "No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known." Christ is the only mediator between God and man.

Be leery of those who say God told them such and such. We often spiritualize our language, making what we say carry more authority by such words, but we are not prophets as though we have direct revelation. We need to shed that language so as not to demean what God is saying in His Word.

A true prophet follows God’s message - verse 18b

Of course, the true prophet speaks not his own message, but God’s. The phrase in verse 18b illustrates the role of the prophet: "I will put my words in his mouth and he will tell them everything I command him."

The common KJV introduction: "thus saith the Lord" points to the author of the message, and if God is speaking, then the consequences are perilous if we do not listen.

It would be easy to see that the common prophets of the Old Testament had to follow that strict guideline, that they spoke not what was on their minds, but what God told them. But what about Christ in this aspect? As God Incarnate would not He speak what He knew best?

Look in John 7:16; 8:28; and 12:44-50.

The answer is simple. The work of the Triune God in our salvation was unified. The Son spoke on behalf of the Father. What He spoke pointed to the work of redemption with the Cross as the focus.

This brings us to the question so many wonder about. Are there prophets today?

There may be secondary applications for the preacher. It is important that the motivation to enter this occupation be not for personal gain or prestige; it is important to follow the model set by Moses to be humble, as well as to speak only what God places before us in His Word. It is my task not to confront you with my own ideas, but the authoritative Word of God. Augustine said, "I am never so happy in speaking as when I have ample support in the Scripture."

But as we have seen, the prophet Moses spoke of is not synonymous with what I do. The One of whom Moses spoke was Jesus Christ. What I do is but a mirror reflecting the prophetic work of Christ. If we exclude the idea of a prophetic voice in the sense of speaking to contemporary issues with force and power, then the answer is a simple ... no.

It is important that we understand that Christ is THE Prophet

In Acts 3 Peter explains to the crowd the centrality of Christ’s work following the healing of a lame man. Peter points to Christ as the fulfillment of Deuteronomy 18.

All the prophets pointed to this time. With that we have a tool to understand the prophets and prophecy. The prophets spoke of Christ, the final and greatest Prophet.

The author of Hebrews brings up this point as well. In Hebrews 1 which we read for our call to worship, we see that Christ is the final Word, the complete Word, the all-sufficient Word from God to us.

In the past God spoke through the prophets ... but in these last days He has spoken. There is a sense of finality, of completeness. No one else will ever compare to His radiance, His glory, as He perfectly reflects God.