How the book of Hebrews defeats the idea of new revelations?

How does the book of Hebrews defeat the idea of new revelations?



There is an open thesis going around in the Christian world that says that God still speaks through prophets and apostles nowadays. And also that God has confirmed these prophets and apostles. Some of these prophets and apostles have had visions of angels, heaven and even God. These may be genuine claims, i.e. they genuinely believe so,1 2 3 but my question is how does one confirm these claims. Do we take these prophets and apostles at their word? Is it safe to do so? Is it biblical to do so?4 I mean, why can’t we see confirmations of these so-called “prophets and apostles” in front of sceptics or doubters or enemies, the way God did in the Old and New Testament for prophets like Moses and Elijah and apostles like Peter and Paul? We do we see only fake miracles, fake signs, fake wonders and unproven claims from people claiming to be prophets and apostles? Why do we see manipulation and not genuine manifestation?5 And what’s even more concerning, why do we see false teachings or half-cooked teachings attached to most if not all of these fake “prophets and apostles” in our contemporary times? These people are distracting Christians away from the true Christ of the Bible and His Gospel. We are not even talking about cults like Jehovah Witnesses, the Mormons, the Eastern Lighting or even the Mother Jerusalem cult. Having said that we are also not confining our concerns just to the groups that have been labelled as the New Apostolic Reformation in the Christian/Evangelical world. Even I have my vulnerabilities to heresy.

As a man of faith, I make a claim here that the Bible can be objectively defended by Christians. But that defence is reasonable as far as reason and faith demand. That is why skeptics exist. God even allows for apostates to stake their claims. I do not want to make gnostic claims for the Christian faith against these skeptics and apostates, to do so is to betray genuine orthodoxy.6 And both reason and faith tells me, from the revelation contained in the Word of God, that God will judge all of us justly when the day of judgment comes upon us. Therefore, beware all, Christians, sceptics and apostates!

As a man in the field of Christian ministry, I am very concerned over claims made by so-called “prophets and apostles” in our time today.

For example,7 some of them have claimed that God had revealed to them that Donald Trump will be re-elected in the 2020 US presidential elections. But this did not happen. Some of these prophets have recanted and apologized, and it is hard to find these. Some of them have simply deleted the videos that contain their “prophecies” from their social media accounts (I think this is cowardice and even cult-like behaviour).8 Doing so will just make their supporters forget this embarrassment, a bane of our short-attention-span world. Some of these “prophets” have just modified their claims (this is a classic cult move). They say that Trump will win the next one or that he lost because of electoral cheating! Some of them have even modified the definition of prophecy, prophets and related terms (again, this is another classic cult move). Tragically, one of the ways that they modify the terms is by saying that the current prophets are lesser prophets as compared to the Biblical ones and therefore are not required to be accurate when they prophesy, therefore they are not false prophets.9 These so-called “prophets” and “apostles” have taken the responsibilities for the confusion that they have allowed, away from themselves and over to victims of their confusion or over to their sceptics or, blasphemously, even to God himself. But the fact remains, Trump is not the US president as of 2021-22. And it is also a fact these people are still claiming prophethood and apostleship. They have taken the focus of the innocent from the worthy Lord Jesus Christ and away to a false narrative and false Christ. That’s why I am concerned.

It seems to me that anyone can claim to be a prophet or an apostle by just saying so and have followers after them. No biblical test is required! No concrete evidence for their claims. It seems that God speaks to these people but they are not responsible when they give a false word from the Lord.10

And it seems that people who are genuinely concerned over this neutering of responsibilities and misrepresentation of the Biblical God are just nit-picky, demon-inspired Pharisees.11 Not true but that’s the conclusion that some of them give against their critics.

I believe that careful study of the books of Romans and Hebrews will make us stay faithful to the Jesus of the Bible and away from heresies of various kinds.

Any message or theology or word from the Lord or prophecy, cannot be genuine if it distracts us from the central figure of Christianity. The central figure of Christianity is the Lord Jesus Christ. I think that is the conclusion that the writer of Hebrews gives us. The writer of Hebrews wanted his original readers to focus on having faith in Jesus even though sometimes life gets confusing because of so many unbiblical claims about Jesus and the Christian faith. The writer wanted his Hebrew readers to focus on Jesus even though it can become difficult because of theological and existential clashes with the Jewish establishments. He also wanted them to remain faithful to Jesus even though it may become painful because of persecution or God’s discipline. The conclusion of Hebrews is that Jesus is not only superior to the prophets of old and the angels but also superior in such a way that He defeats confusing teachings, superior to the demands of the majority in the society, and superior to the pain and suffering no matter from where it comes, whether it be from the normal course of life, from persecution, or from God’s discipline. This is how the book of Hebrews defeats these new revelations, not just from the cults. The message of the so-called “prophets and apostles” is not so. Their message takes away focus from the Lord Jesus and to the desires of some so-called “Christians” who want to somehow take over society and who do not want to suffer for the Saviour who suffered for them.

The first two chapters of Hebrews teaches us some important lessons about the Lord Jesus:

  1. Jesus is the one who spoke for God (1:2)

  2. Who He is and what he spoke is much more superior as compared to what that of the prophets of old and the angels (1:1-4)

  3. Jesus is divine (1:2)

  4. If He is better than angels (1:1-14), and if just retribution was given on those who disobeyed instructions of God from genuine angels (2:2) then how much more serious is it if we ignore the Lord Jesus Christ and the revelation that he brought (2:1-3)?

  5. How much more serious is it if we drift away or neglect the words of Jesus as confirmed by His original disciples and apostles, who were confirmed by God (1:3-4)?

Let’s read Hebrews 1:1-4 in the NET and ESV:

“After God spoke long ago in various portions and in various ways to our ancestors through the prophets, 2 in these last days he has spoken to us in a son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he created the world. 3 The Son is the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. 4 Thus he became so far better than the angels as he has inherited a name superior to theirs.” NET

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.”

ESV Also see Hebrews 2:1-4:

“Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. 2 For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, 3 how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, 4 while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” ESV 

The note from the NET Bible on the phrase “in various portions” or “at many times” in verse 2 of Hebrews chapter 1 tells us of various interpretations that have been proposed. Notice the agreements, the differences and subtle implications: 1. I think every orthodox Christian understands that God’s revelation came in parts or fragments in the past and that “the final and complete revelation” is “contained in God’s Son.” 2. God did speak on various occasions, just the time differences between Abraham and Moses confirms this. 3. And we also understand that God used different methods like dreams, visions or audible voice to communicate what He wanted. (Please see the note here: https://netbible.org/bible/Hebrews+1#)

The differences and implications would come if some interpreters would interpret Hebrews 1 and 2 and other scriptures to say that God is still speaking in parts through contemporary “prophets and apostles”. This, despite knowing that God has spoken with finality through His Son. The notion that God still speaks in parts through contemporary “prophets and apostles” nowadays is not found in the Hebrews 1:1-4. Even Hebrews 2:1-4 does not contain this idea. The focus of Hebrews 2:1-4 is to give the application of Hebrews 1, i.e. if we do not want to drift and face retribution then we must pay closer attention to what Jesus has spoken, which was confirmed by his original disciples/apostles, which was further confirmed by God with signs and wonders through the Lord Jesus and through His apostles and these were done according to the Holy Spirit’s own will. If the so-called “prophets and apostles” are genuine then where is God’s confirmation in front of believers and unbelievers, the way God confirmed through Jesus and the apostles?

I don’t think anyone makes a case for continuationism from Hebrews. But just in case, these false prophets and apostles cannot even hide behind the phrase that’s found at the last of Hebrews 1:4 the Spirit distributed the miracles and gifts only “according to His own will.” “Since this is done according to His will,” they may say, “then how can we prove our prophethood and apostleship to sceptics like you.” To this, we again go back to the argument from the book of Hebrews. Is your message or word or prophecy distracting people from the genuine Jesus? If yes, then you have betrayed the Gospel. And also by the simple test of: has what you have spoken come to pass? If not, then you are a false prophet or a false apostle and need the Gospel.

And we are not talking about simple mistakes or errors here. We are talking about misrepresenting God and His message which is far more serious a problem. How can “Christians” hang around a misrepresentation of God and His Gospel? How can “Christians” defend a misrepresentation of God and His holiness through the false prophecies of Trump’s re-election? I know God cares for everyone, but why does your God care so much about who wins or loses in an election in the US? What about my country? If you do hear God in part, then why are all the parts not fitting together when the time has come; whether Biblically or experientially? I think this is more sinister than most of us think.

When challenged about our theology we can only prove them by careful study of the Bible. Not by false claims or emotional experiences that can be induced by those claims themselves. When challenged about our beliefs we also prove them by only preaching the Gospel, by living the Gospel, by suffering for Jesus’ sake and through seeing the fruit of the work of the Holy Spirit in various lives, in God’s time, not immediately, and not according to our wishes and whims. The book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is the final voice or spokesperson or revelator of God and that we must suffer for Him because He is trustworthy even in the midst of confusion or pain. We must not be distracted. The book of Hebrews defeats the claims of “Christian” cults as well as the claims of groups like the New Apostolic Reformation because no revelation should take our focus from the Lord Jesus Christ.

  1. See “The False Apostles of New Apostolic Reformation,” LongforTruth1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xkb7Iiom3Ok↩︎

  2. See “The Modern-Day Prophets are Full of Hot Air,” LongforTruth1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH2AUHLmXdc↩︎

  3. See “F4F | The Parallels Between Hank Kunneman and the False Prophets,” Fighting for the Faith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0xtAM9574k↩︎

  4. Deuteronomy 18:22 and 2 Corinthians 12:11-13.↩︎

  5. See “Clouds Without Water: Session 2 - Mangled Manifestations,” by Justin Peters posted at Parker Bible Church’s YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOKtcxzSNLo↩︎

  6. See “Are You Hearing God’s Voice? The Dangers of Christian Mysticism,” LongforTruth1, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbwe5vsmGPU↩︎

  7. See “F4F | Trump Prophecies Goat Rodeo,” Fighting for the Faith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tInkLuK74Xg↩︎

  8. I recently listened to an audio book by Steven Hassan titled “Combatting Cult Mind Control” and here he lists ways by which cults (and cult-like organizations) undermine our freedom by controlling their followers behaviour, information, thoughts and emotions. Please notice that some of these prophets and apostles have already deleted their Trump prophecies.↩︎

  9. “F4F | Kris Vallatton Claims Agabus Was an Inaccurate Prophet,” Fighting for the Faith, https://youtu.be/VlbqWeyDUws and also “F4F | The False Deity of the Newly Released Prophtic Standards,” Fighting for the Faith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOBDNJtLsjc↩︎

  10. See “YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A CESSATIONIST | Giving a False Prophecy Makes You A False Prophet,” Fighting for the Faith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx5DwtM0tqs and also “YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A CESSATIONIST | The Holy Spirit Won’t Contradict the Written Word,” Fighting for the Faith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_a5rrdE4X8↩︎

  11. See “Todd White: NOT Telling the Truth,” The Messed Up Church, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyyTLjwJx1I and “Todd White: Taken Out of Context?,” The Messed Up Church, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TA1sM6ZXcXs]↩︎

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