When I was called into ministry, there was no job description for prophets. Prophets and prophetic ministry were fairly new. Bill Hamon hadn't written his excellent book, Prophets and Personal Prophecy, which is an excellent resource. I had experienced prophetic ministry through prophets. But much of what was written on prophets and prophecy was elementary. Today, little has changed. Much of the church still doesn't believe in prophets or prophecy. That is a real problem.
Why is that such a problem? Before God does anything, He reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets. Although some have wrongly classified New Testament prophets and prophetic ministry as being different from Old Testament prophets and prophetic ministry, the difference being promoted is not the real difference between the two ministries. Their difference is based on the authority given to the New Testament prophet versus the authority that the Old Testament prophet had. Jesus said,
I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is! Matt. 11:11, NLT.
John the Baptist was the last in a line of Old Testament prophets. In this verse, Jesus was looking at John through the lens of his prophetic office and calling. No other person, including all the prophets who came before him, was greater than him. John was assigned the task of preparing the way for the Messiah. In Malachi, he is called "My Messenger." Mal 3:1. What a high calling he had. But John's prophetic calling and office were less than any calling of any believer that is on planet earth today. Do you believe that?
John's job description was to prepare the way for the Messiah. And that is what he did. Every believer today is greater than John. Why? Because each believer has been given authority on earth to speak for Jesus Christ. Paul explains what believers are assigned by Christ on earth:
We are Ambassadors therefore in the place of The Messiah... 2 Cor. 5:20, Aramaic Bible in Plain English
That is our job description as believers. We are called to be ambassadors for Christ. As such, we are called to bring Heaven's kingdom on planet earth. Much of the Church is waiting for the coming of Christ's kingdom. We are rapture-minded. Much of the Church is still singing, "Some glad morning when this life is over." But, wait! Is that what we should be singing? I don't believe so. I believe our perspective of our calling as believers are radically skewed towards ineffectiveness and fruitlessness.
Why has that happened? Because the Church today places little demand on believers. Believers are good with the way things are. We have become good church members but poor citizens of Heaven. What do I mean? We don't know how to rule and reign with Christ. But that is the job description of every believer on planet earth: to establish Christ's kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven. Didn't Jesus teach us to pray,
Let your kingdom come. Let your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Matt. 6:10, God's Word Translation.
If every believer is called to bring Christ's kingdom and if every believer is called to be an oracle for God, then why does God still need prophets? That is the question. And that is what I will answer here. My goal is to provide a solid frame of reference for prophetic ministry in the New Testament through a Biblical understanding of the role of the prophet. Yes, the prophet does have a role to play today in the establishment of Christ's kingdom on earth.
To understand the role of the prophet today, we must look back at what prophets did in the Old Testament. I believe prophets today have greater authority than prophets did in the Old Testament. The basis for my belief is what the Apostle Paul states in Ephesians 4:7-13. Specifically, the Apostle Paul states, "When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." Eph. 4:8. Here, the Apostle Paul, using this scripture from Psalm 68:18, could easily mean those individuals given to Mankind: the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher.
The Apostle Paul uses the Greek word, Doma, to describe what is being given. Jesus gave gifts, ministers to Mankind: "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers". Eph. 4:11. When God assigns ministers to Mankind, they are given a work that they are designed to do. What are the "five-fold ministries" designed to do? To train believers to rule and reign with Christ.
The five-fold ministry gifts given were given to Mankind for the purpose of bringing Christ's kingdom to planet earth. Their job is to teach and train believers how to govern on earth as it is in Heaven. That was and is Jesus's mission for His ministry gifts. But many ministers have diverted the mission into a sub mission. Why has that happened? Because of the absence of prophets governing in the Church. When prophets go missing in action, Mankind suffers the consequences of their absence.
Like the Apostle Paul, "I magnify mine office". Rom. 11:13. I am a prophet. I am called to teach and train other prophets. That is what I am gifted for. God called me from birth. As a baby, I received my first prophecy. Later, I received dreams, visions, revelations, visitations, prophecies, and much more. Now I am being given for the purpose of bringing understanding of the prophet's office and ministry. Much of our understanding of prophets and prophetic ministry has been cursory. That must change. Prophets are needed today.
And I believe there are more prophets on planet earth today than at any time in history. Prophets are vital to the purposes of God. As such, prophets must learn to discern what their job description is. Prophets must learn what their role is. God says "My people have been cut off for lack of knowledge". Hos. 4:6, Literal Standard Version. Is the Church suffering because of the absence of understanding concerning the role of the prophet? Yes.
Israel understood, at least in part, the role of the prophet. Prophets in the Old Testament were men or women called by God to speak for God to the nation. When they were silent, Israel suffered. When prophets spoke, Israel prospered. Today, we have many believers who are prophesying. That is good. The Apostle Paul states clearly,
For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged.
But, by and large, the Church isn't prospering through the prophesying of believers. Why is that? Because there is a significant difference between being able to prophesy and being able to establish God's kingdom through the prophecy. Prophecy is a tool that has been given by God to the Church to build His kingdom on earth. Prophets are called to teach and train believers how to establish Christ's kingdom by learning
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Matt. 4:4, NKJV.
When believers learn how to live by God's proceeding word, then God's kingdom is built on earth. Prophets have been given a radical calling to Mankind: to teach Mankind to obey God's voice. Even unbelievers are impacted when they hear God's voice. God's voice on earth challenges Mankind; it is designed to. Without the prophet's voice, Mankind yields to its own thoughts, speaks those thoughts, and then ignores the consequences of what was said.
In Isaiah 6:5, NLT, Isaiah is given a revelation of this exact thing. Isaiah's response,
I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips.
Isaiah didn't know. Israel didn't know. Yet, Isaiah had previously prophesied, "Yes, Jerusalem is doomed! Judah is collapsing! Everything they say and do is against the LORD; they openly insult God himself." Is. 3:8, Good News Translation. Doesn't that sound like America? Is America collapsing? Is it possible that prophets have failed to gain Isaiah's vision of who the Lord is? Are the lips of today's prophets and prophetic voices impure?
Isaiah was assigned to turn Israel back to God. But he was participating in Israel's sins. Then he was cleansed. God spoke to him. God revealed to Isaiah his sin. Isaiah repented and his assignment was revealed:
Go, and tell this people, You hear indeed, but don't understand; and you see indeed, but don't perceive. Is. 6:9, World English Bible. The heart of this people has grown dull, and their ears sluggish, and they have closed their eyes, otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn back, and I would heal them. Is. 6:10, New Heart English Bible.
Isaiah prophesied until Israel was desolate. That was his calling. Repeatedly, Isaiah called Israel to repentance. But what Isaiah said fell on deaf ears. In the end, he gained a vision of the Messiah as he prophesied. Today, prophets must gain a vision of the Messiah while prophesying to a hard-hearted and hard-headed world. Men and women can be stubborn. But we must not let their stubbornness define us. No, we must listen to the greater voice of God.
That is a small part of the prophet's role. We must recover that part of the prophetic calling: to expose Mankind's sins, which have made Mankind desolate. Then, we must prophesy to Mankind a vision of the Messiah, a vision that brings healing to hurting hearts. We must stop prophesying pink clouds and polka dots. That kind of prophesying keeps Mankind in perpetual bondage to its sin. Sin is Mankind's primary issue. Prophets must expose sin for the purpose of bringing healing. Then, and only then, will Christ's kingdom be built on earth, as it is in Heaven.
Post a Comment