People are called ‘prophets’ these days when they speak out about things they believe are wrong and need to be changed. Stand-up comedians are sometimes draped with the mantel and so you will find people like Russell Brand appearing on ‘Question Time.’ In his latest book Keep Talking David Dimbleby, former chairman of QT, avers that this in general is a good thing because it shows that significant opinion does not belong exclusively to an elite group of politicians, economists and pundits.
Fair enough. But this term ‘prophet’ as popularly used is a bit different from the prophets we encounter in Scripture. They were people who in times of crisis in the nation of Israel received a message from God which they in turn shared with the nation. This was based on God’s blueprint for living as received in the Law supremely revealed in the Ten Commandments, the departure from which had caused crisis in the nation. There can be no turning away from eternal values and expect no consequences. The prophets received the Word of God in different circumstances but were confident enough of the message to introduce it with the words: ‘Thus says the Lord . . .’ What follows is not something dreamed up by the prophet or the offering of an opinion. This was a message from God.
It is these people we remember in the second Sunday in Advent and the days following. We began Advent remembering the community of Israel and their faithful waiting for the Messiah to be revealed. Emerging from that community the prophets pointed forward to that day and the impact this would have on Israel and the world. The apostles experienced signs of the Kingdom in the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus They preached His promise of the fulfilment of His Kingdom when he came again, not this time as a baby in a small town in a small nation but as the Lord of the Universe.
Advent is a reminder to us that what sets the Church apart is not philanthropy or political engagement but her message. The Word faithfully preached has Jesus at the centre, the Way, the Truth and the Life, who was, and is, and is to come.
