Name above all Names – Begg & Ferguson

“Learn much of the Lord Jesus. For every look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ. Let your soul be filled with a sense of the excellence of Christ.”

“Name above all Names” – Begg / Ferguson

A few of us get together once a month to discuss a book we are reading. It’s been a super valuable time for me personally – not least because it holds me to account for what I’m reading, but I’ve also had the privilege of sharing spiritual things with others in a small group.

The latest book we’re reading is called “Name above all Names” and it’s written by Alister Begg and Sinclair Ferguson. I’d highly recommend the book even though I’m not quite finished with it yet. They basically take the trifold office of Jesus as Prophet, Priest and King and expound on it. Here are some of my own thoughts:

Mankind has a 3-fold problem of ignorance, guilt and corruption. We are all ignorance of God, we are all guilty of wanting to rule ourselves and we do not desire to be governed.

  1. Ignorant (Rom 1:21, Gen 6:5,  Eph 4:17-18,  Rom 1:25, 2 Cor 4:4)
  2. Guilt (Rom 5:12, 18-19, Psalms 51:4, Psalms 130:3,
  3. Corrupt (Romans 7:14-19, Eph 2:1, Psalms 14:1-3

As a shadow of things to come, God gave three major offices to Israel to address the threefold problem of man. The Prophet, The Priest and the King.

  1. Prophet ~Speaking God’s words – “Thus saith”, representing God to the people
  2. Priest – Offering sacrifices & praise because on behalf of the people, representing the people to God
  3. King – administering justice, represented God’s rule over the people

Jesus is the Prophet, Priest and King

  • PROPHET like Moses (Deut 18:15, Luke 13:33, Matt 16:13-14, Luke 7:16, John 4:19, John 6:4,
    • In John 6 we see some remarkable things when we contrast the feeding of the 5000 and the manna that came from heaven (in relation to how Jesus fulfils the role of a “prophet like unto Moses”. In John 6:5 there was a question raised by Jesus, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?”. This echoes the question that Moses raised in Numbers 11:13, “Where can I get meat for all these people?”. In John 6:41 the people grumble. In Numbers 11:1 the people grumble. In John 6:31 manna is described. In Numbers 11:7-9 the manna is described. In John 6:9 – “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?”, Moses raised this very question in Numbers 11:22, “We don’t have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them.”
    • However, in Acts 3:18-26, Luke 24:27 we see that Jesus isn’t a messenger from God but He is the very source of the revelation. The prophets would say “Thus saith the Lord”, but Jesus said, “The words that I speak” … “I say unto you”.
  • PRIEST – He is often called a priest
    • Hebrews 5:1 = the characteristic of a true priest, symbolically talking the people before God – Heb 4:14, Heb 9:24, Heb 6:19-20, Heb 3:1-2, Heb 10:19-22, Heb 4:16
    • He offers gifts and sacrifices for sins – Heb 10:4, Heb 9:26
    • He makes intercession for the people – Heb 7:25, Heb 7:25, Rom 8:34
    • He intercedes – 1 Timothy 2:5, Zech 6:13
  • KING – In the Old Testament the King had authority over the nation.
    • People wanted to force Jesus to be King – John 6:15, John 18:36, Matthew 4:17
    • Kings rule over people hearts – Matthew 21:5

Jesus is the solution to the threefold disease of ignorance, guilt, and tyranny. Our ignorance is healed by the PROPHETIC as its light scatters the darkness of error; The PROPHET shows God to us, as Jesus said “If you have seen me you have seen the Father also”. GUILT is pardoned by the PRIEST, based on the merit of the Priest. The Priest leads us to God. Tyranny and corruption by sin are conquered by the KING. The King removes the bondage of sin and death and subdues rebellion.

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