The Gift Of Prophecy

Would you rather listen than read? Listen here.

Prophecy In The Old Testament

I love reading about the Old Testament prophets. The stories and experiences they had beat most novels we can read today. Throughout the Old Testament, three figures played important roles. These were the king, the priest, and the prophet. The king was the leader of the nation. The priest spoke to God on behalf of the people, and the prophet spoke to the people on behalf of God.

Prophets like Jeremiah had to go into dark places and share challenging words from God to the people. Jeremiah constantly reminded Judah of the devastation they would encounter if they did not return to the Lord. Elijah faced hundreds of prophets that served Baal. Daniel stood up to King Nebuchadnezzar to speak God’s truth to him. To fulfill this call took immense courage and God-given strength.

But Jesus…

Jesus came and fulfilled these three roles. He is our three-in-one. Jesus became our King of Kings, our Great High Priest and our Prophet. During His time on Earth, Jesus also shared prophecy. You can read Matthew 24, also known as the Olivet Discourse, where Jesus tells of what will happen in the end times.

Before His death, Jesus told His followers that when He leaves, another (Holy Spirit) will come. Jesus said, through the Holy Spirit, we will do greater things than He. Jesus then sent out His disciples to practice what they had seen Him do.

The Gift Of Prophecy

Throughout the Bible, we find many ways God equips us for furthering His kingdom, and one of those ways is through His gifts. As I mentioned in the previous post on Mercy, you can read that here, Paul gives us some of those gifts in Romans 12:6-8. The one we will look at here is prophecy.

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith.”

Romans 12:6 NIV

We know before Jesus, prophets shared messages from God to the people. These were usually warnings, like when Jonah went to warn Nineveh of their fate if they did not change, or messages of future events like the coming of Jesus. So, what does prophecy look like now after Jesus?

The Gift Of Prophecy

Prophecy is still a God-given message that God shares with someone and that person shares the message with the intended audience. Sometimes the message God gives can be for a group, a single person, or for the one who receives it.

For example, I shared about a time a woman was praying for Sam and I (you can read that here). She knew things we had only shared with one another and she said things that soon came to pass.

In another example, God has given me scriptures to initiate a move. With each move we have made, God has given me a scripture for the upcoming location. One afternoon, I was vacuuming in our Florida home when I felt the Lord prompt me to look inside the book a woman from a previous church had sent me. It doesn’t take much to stop my cleaning process, so I stopped and grabbed the book. Opening it, right inside the cover she had written the scripture, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14 NIV).

I had read this scripture many times, but this time when I looked at it, it jumped off the page and I knew I needed to pay attention. In my heart, I felt God would move us soon that this scripture was for some place new. Within six months, we sat in the pews of a new church in Houston, Tx. God then confirmed His message. Within thirty minutes of Sam’s first sermon in the new church, a parishioner sent him a text saying I know God has brought you here for such a time as this. This is just one of the many ways prophecy can look today.

Concerns To Watch For

With the gift of prophecy, we need to watch for a couple of areas where people confuse it. One is that many people place the gift of prophecy above all other gifts. Paul says it is better to prophesy in church than to speak in tongues, but nowhere does it say that prophecy is the best gift to have. In Romans 12, we read the importance of all gifts and the body of Christ needs all gifts.

“Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit. But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort.”

1 Corinthians 14:1-3 NIV

Another area of concern, many people get prophecy confused with another gift called words of knowledge. Briefly, this means God gives you a word for someone else. This usually brings confirmation to another person or encourages them, but it is not forward looking.

“To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit.”

1 Corintians 12:8 NIV

A final concern, we always need to make sure words of prophecy line up with scripture. God would not give prophecy that would tell someone to do something against what scripture says. Everything, as with all gifts, must line up with His Word.

Prophecy

The gift of prophecy is incredible. I have seen someone receive and share prophetic words to a man that challenged him to make changes. God used this person to inspire this man to make changes so he could be a better husband, father, and leader for his family. This is much like in the Old Testament, when prophets encouraged the people to return to God. Messages like this can also be shared with churches that need to return their focus to Jesus.

The gift of prophecy is a beautiful gift God gives to some to connect them more closely to Himself and to further His kingdom. All gifts are for one reason to glorify God and to grow His church. Those with this gift are great listeners. In prayer, they don’t just share their concerns with God, but they listen to see what God would say to them.

If you have ever experienced this gift of prophecy, I would love for you to share it in the comments. If you believe God has spoken words like this before, but were unsure what to do with it. I encourage you to ask God to continue sharing messages with you and to give you the confidence to share it with the intended party. Above all, continue to pray for how God will use you to grow His church and live that out. We are all called to go and make disciples of all nations.

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