Do you know about the pastor who was promised by Jesus before he ascended to heaven? Have you even heard this term before? Let’s learn more about this Promised Pastor, who it is, and what this pastor does.
What Does ‘Promised Pastor’ Mean?
In every generation of the Bible, God gives His words to His people. However, He does not speak directly to all people at once. Instead, He chooses one pastor and gives His word to that appointed person. That appointed person’s duty is to then deliver God’s words to His people.
What makes a promised pastor different from other pastors is that the promised pastor comes according to prophecies recorded in the Bible. This pastor fulfills what was promised about them in the Bible, proving that they were sent by God. Since God promised this person, God will, of course, be with and work through them to speak to His people. But this pastor of promise also has a specific duty that must be carried out here on earth.
The Promised Pastor of the Old Testament
In the Old Testament, God spoke through prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah about a Messiah who would come and save Israel. At that time, it was like God was giving a blueprint of that promised person.
It was prophesied where the Messiah would come from, how the Messiah would be born, his hometown, what he would do, how he would be treated and much more. All of these prophecies and promises were made hundreds of years before the actual fulfillment came.
Today, it’s easy for us to recognize that it was Jesus who came according to these prophecies (John 5:39).
But imagine being alive 2,000 years ago without your Bible app or not even being able to read. You could only learn about these prophecies from your religious leader. Do you think you would have recognized Jesus as the Messiah that God promised to send?
Jesus, the Fulfillment of the Promised Messiah
At the time of the first coming, Jesus’ disciples recognized, believed in, and testified about Jesus. They testified that Jesus was the words of prophecy that became flesh and that he was the fulfillment of all of the Old Testament prophecies. This gospel has been spread throughout the world for the past 2,000 years, heard by Christians and non-Christians alike.
However, during his time here, Jesus also prophesied about another pastor who would appear at the time of his second coming. This pastor will carry out an appointed task given to him by Jesus. If Jesus was the Promised Pastor of the Old Testament, then we must know who the Promised Pastor of the New Testament is. This is especially important for us as believers since this is the person that Jesus promised to work through. (Revelation 3:12, 3:21, 22:16)
“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
Revelation 22:16
The Promised Pastor of the New Testament
The Advocate, the Counselor
The Greek word parakletos is variously translated as advocate or counselor. An advocate is ‘someone who speaks in another’s defense’ and a counselor is ‘one who advises’. The Chinese and Korean words refer to someone who helps alongside. In fact, the direct translation of the Chinese characters is a teacher who protects with grace.
Thus, whether referring to spirit or flesh, the advocate is someone who teaches and protects with grace. Any pastor who belongs to God must speak God’s words on His behalf, protect God’s people with grace, and teach only words that lead to God. Not just anyone, however, can become the advocate mentioned in the Bible.
The Advocates in the Bible
The first is Jesus (1 John 2:1), and because Jesus promised to send another advocate (John 14:16-17, 26), the other advocate is not Jesus himself.
Is this second advocate a spirit or flesh? The advocate Jesus promised to send is both spirit and flesh. A spirit was sent from heaven by Jesus and is referred to as the Holy Spirit of Truth (John 14:16-17). It is called the Spirit of Truth because it speaks God’s word of truth on behalf of Jesus (John 17:17, Revelation 19:10).
The Spirit of the Advocate that Jesus sends to this earth chooses a person to work through.
Enter the Promised Pastor of the New Testament. This person works in the physical world as the physical advocate because the Spirit of the Advocate is with him. He teaches and speaks the word of God that he sees and hears from the spiritual Advocate, and he protects God’s people with grace on behalf of the spiritual Advocate (Revelation 10).
This second advocate, the Promised Pastor, comes in the name of Jesus (John 14:26) and works according to the Bible to fulfill what Jesus promised throughout the four gospels and the book of Revelation. This will all take place when Jesus returns to complete his work.
How to Recognize the Promised Pastor in the Book of Revelation
In Revelation 10, we see God give the closed book (meaning no one can understand it) of Revelation to Jesus. Jesus then opens it, meaning Jesus fulfills the prophecies that were recorded, and it can now be seen and understood. Jesus gives the open book to an angel and that angel (the Spirit of the Advocate) gives it to Apostle John, who is the one recording this vision. John’s task is to now give the open book of Revelation to the servants of God (Revelation 1:1-3).
According to John 16, God speaks to Jesus, Jesus speaks to the Spirit of the Advocate, the Spirit of the Advocate speaks to the chosen pastor, and the chosen pastor speaks to “you” (i.e. the disciples and God’s people) (John 16:13-15). There is an order to how we learn and how God delivers His Word.
Understanding How Prophecy and Fulfillment Works
We know that Apostle John has since died. So who will be the person that receives the open book and understanding when Jesus comes? We must recognize that Revelation is a prophecy. So then we can understand that Apostle John represents someone who will experience the fulfillment of these prophecies. At the second coming of the Lord, as the prophecies of Revelation are being fulfilled, the characters mentioned in the prophecies will actually appear in reality.
At that time, the Promised Pastor, who comes in the position of Apostle John, will testify about the prophecies in Revelation and about their fulfillment according to what he has seen and heard (Revelation 1:1-3, 22:6-8).
He witnesses the events of Revelation in physical reality and listens to an angel explain them to him. He receives the book (of Revelation) opened by Jesus and is tasked with testifying it to the whole world (Revelation 10). God, Jesus, and the spiritual kingdom descend on this pastor and work through him (Revelation 3:12, Revelation 21).
This does not make this pastor Jesus or God. Spirits work through flesh. In Acts 9:15 Jesus calls Paul his chosen instrument that he will use to carry the gospel to the Gentiles. So the Promised Pastor is merely an instrument, a person chosen to carry the fulfillment of Revelation to the world.
The Duty of the Promised Pastor
The Promised Pastor of the New Testament is not only tasked with testifying the fulfillment of the events of Revelation.
This pastor is also given the task of establishing the kingdom of heaven here on earth for God, Jesus, and heaven in the spiritual realm to come down to.
This includes establishing 12 Tribes of people who are sealed with the word of God, who will then go on to be priests and will teach all the nations this testimony (Revelation 7, 14).
The name of that kingdom of heaven on earth is Shincheonji – New Heaven and New Earth, the promised temple where God has promised to come down to and dwell together with His people forever.
Finding the Promised Pastor Today
Today, nothing is more important for Christians than to find the pastor who acts as the Advocate, the Promised Pastor. That is because he speaks on behalf of the Spirit of Truth. While it might seem impossible or completely different from anything you have ever heard, does that make it wrong? We must know the Bible so that we can verify if these things are true or false. If we don’t know what God and Jesus promised, how on earth can we recognize it? If the fulfillment of Revelation was standing right in front of you, you probably wouldn’t be able to recognize it because it will differ from your expecations.
How to Recognize the One Sent By Jesus
How then, can we recognize this Promised Pastor who is united with the Spirit of Truth? Since 1 Corinthians 2:10 says that the spirit searches even the deep things of God, we can recognize the Promised Pastor as the person who has mastered the Bible and who is teaching it accordingly.
The Promised Pastor is the one who will be teaching the promised theology. This pastor will be reminding us of Jesus’ teachings and explaining the meaning of them clearly (John 16:25). We must be able to verify all of these things with the Bible. Judge and choose by examing the words this person is speaking according to the Bible. Not according to what others say or even our own thoughts.
In every generation throughout the Bible, the place where God’s word is coming, is the place where God is. And we know, that the place where God is – is heaven. So if God and Jesus are with the Promised Pastor, wouldn’t you want to go to that place and learn from this person? Although it might not be what you expected, why let expectations keep you from understanding what God and Jesus have promised?
We’re sure you must have many questions, so please feel free to contact us.
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