"If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith" (Romans 12:6)

In this series on Spiritual Gifts listed in the New Testament, Monica Hill turns from her overview of the various gifts to looking at each of the Gifts listed in Romans 12 in turn.
The first of the gifts mentioned in Romans 12 – prophecy - is mentioned in three of the lists given by Paul - Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4. Although they all have the same definition of prophecy, there is a distinction between each of them.

In Romans 12, prophecy is one of the natural gifts and is often equated with a good speaker who is able to expound the word of God so that others can understand it and benefit from it. Although this can be an intellectual exercise it is different from the Ministry of the Prophet (Ephesians 4) and the Manifestation (1 Cor 12) and is easily recognised when it 'has an anointing'.

The Romans passage wisely adds the condition that turns good speaking into prophetic proclamation: "in accordance with your faith". This gives the glory to God and follows up the invocation "do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you" (12:3).

There is the lovely story in Acts 24 of this potential gift recognised in Apollos by Aquila and Priscilla:

Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures...He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately. (Acts 24:24-26)

Apollos became one of the 'anointed preachers' who could draw great crowds to hear the Gospel.

Defining Prophecy

In order to find the biblical definition of prophecy we have to go right back to the time of Moses. In Exodus 3, Moses argues with God after receiving the command to go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt. In the following chapter he pleads that he is not eloquent and asks God to send someone else.

God then makes a special arrangement whereby God would speak to Moses, Moses would speak to Aaron, and Aaron would speak to the people. "It will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him" (Ex 4:16). This gives us the definition of a prophet as the mouthpiece of God.

In Exodus, we find the definition of a prophet as the mouthpiece of God."

Exercising the Gift

Moses said "Would that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!" (Num 11:29). This appears straightforward, but we need to put this desire of Moses into context. During the 40 years of Israel's travel through the wilderness, life was not easy and on this occasion the people had become very rebellious and were blaming Moses for bringing them out of Egypt.

When Moses complained to the Lord that he could not cope, the Lord rebuked him saying "Is the Lord's arm too short? [The Amplified Version reads "do you think the Lord's ability and power is thwarted and inadequate?"] Now you will see whether or not what I say will come true for you."

Moses was told to bring together 70 of the elders of Israel into the 'Tent of Meeting' where worship took place. God said:

I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit that is on you and put the Spirit on them. They will help you carry the burden of the people so that you will not have to carry it alone (Num 11:17).

When the Spirit came upon them they prophesied, or as the Amplified version says "they sounded forth the praises of God and declared His will". Another interesting point is that the two men who had stayed in the camp also prophesied. Although this seemed outrageous to Joshua, Moses replied "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!"

Being able to celebrate the Lord's presence with others who have also caught the vision and are really sounding forth praises of God and declaring his will is a wonderful, exhilarating experience for all concerned. This is the outpouring of the Spirit foretold in Joel 2 which was fulfilled at Pentecost:

In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

The Acts version of the record from Pentecost adds the last four words to Joel's prophecy, "and they shall prophesy" to emphasise their importance. This means that every believer, baptised in the Spirit, is potentially able to prophesy. This is true of men and women, young and old, rich and poor.

Every believer, baptised in the Spirit, is potentially able to prophesy."

Old Testament Prophets

Today we often think of the prophetic gift as being relevant more to the Old Testament when the role of the prophets was greatly revered. They were individuals who were so in tune with God that they understood and knew what God wanted to say to his people. This has provided the basis of the teaching in the New Testament.

The task of the Prophets then (both those whose words have been recorded as well as those who we only know their names) was to bring the word of the Lord which was living in them to the nation. God used them to reveal his nature and purposes so that Israel would understand the God who had established a covenant relationship with them through their forefathers thus preparing them to be "a light unto the Gentiles"; a role which was eventually personified in Messiah Jesus.

New Testament Prophets

The prophetic role today is still to bring knowledge and understanding and to reveal the nature and purposes of God through the church to the world. Moses' words "I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!" is carried out most effectively when it creates a mature body of believers who can relate their faith to everyday life.

In this way they can present a united front to the world with a powerful spirit-filled anointing upon their works of service, which glorifies Jesus and causes multitudes to want to know him and find that their lives are transformed by God.

As we continue to seek an answer to the question 'What is a prophet?', Edmund Heddle looks at the truth stated in Revelation 19:10: "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy".

First, let us notice the close connection that existed between witness-bearing and prophecy in the early church. Jesus' final words to his disciples before his ascension promised:

You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnesses (Acts 1:8).

Later on, when the Day of Pentecost arrived, Peter explained the extraordinary happenings as a fulfilment of prophecy. But in quoting Joel 2:28-29, Peter added four of his own words, not found in the original prophecy: 'And they shall prophesy'.

Prophecy and witness

Putting together the two stated results of the Spirit's coming -'you shall be witnesses' and 'shall prophesy', it becomes clear that what the disciples of Jesus were to engage in was 'prophetic witnessing'. This means they would be speaking under the inspiration of the Spirit, with the words he gave them to speak, and the central theme of their speaking would be Jesus. To them this would be a fulfilment of the promise Jesus made in the Upper Room, when he said "The Spirit of truth...will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses" (John 15:25-27).

Primary witness

Jesus shows here that in the work of spreading the gospel throughout the world, the primary witness was the Holy Spirit and that although the secondary witness of the disciples was essential, without the Holy Spirit their witness would be totally ineffective. This essential relationship in witnessing underlies what Peter said to the Jewish Sanhedrin: "We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit" (Acts 5:32).

In the work of the gospel, the primary witness is the Holy Spirit and the secondary witness is us. Both are essential"

Old Testament Prophets

The close link between prophecy and witnessing to Christ is also seen in what the New Testament says about the prophets of the Old Covenant. Peter preaching in the house of Cornelius declared "To him all the prophets bear witness" (Acts 10:43).

The writer to the Hebrews refers to the Holy Spirit bearing witness to Christ's perfect offering for our sins (Heb 10:14-18). Peter makes it clear that prophets were moved to prophesy things that were totally beyond their understanding. He said: They enquired what person or time was indicated by the Spirit of Christ within them when predicting the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glory. (1 Pet 1:11)

Devoted to prophecy

It is in the Book of Revelation that we see the closest connection between prophecy and witness, or testimony to Jesus. Revelation is the only book in the New Testament devoted entirely to prophecy (Rev 1:3, 10:11 and 22:18). It is a prophetic message from the Lord Jesus through John, to be read at the worship services of the church in Asia Minor. John never refers to himself as a prophet, though he is not the only example of an apostle prophesying (Acts 27:21-26).

In the book of Revelation we see the closest connection between prophecy and witness"

C. M. Kempton Hewitt shows how important the Book of Revelation is to our understanding of New Testament prophecy. He writes:

The Book of the Revelation is necessary to complete the New Testament canon. Without it we would know very little about the form and function of prophecy in the primitive church.¹

Important statement

The most illuminating statement about prophecv in the Book of Revelation (and possibly in the whole New Testament) is the verse we have already referred to in chapter 19:10 – "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." William Barclay in his commentary describes it as "an ambiguous phrase and a very import one."

John had been listening to a breath-taking account of the final salvation God will bring about and the blessedness of those who are invited the marriage supper of the Lamb. Finally, when the angel assures him the absolute certainty of these things, John understandably falls down to worship the angel. The angel immediately warned him against such action, saying, "You must not do that! I am but a servant like yourself and your brothers who hold fast the testimony Jesus. Worship God!" Then follows the statement, "For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy", though it is not clear whether it is part of the angel's message or whether it is John's inspired comment.

Difficult phrase

Commenting on this phrase, the Translator's New Testament (produced by the Bible Society to assist those making new translations in the vernacular) states:

This is a difficult phrase, partly because of the two possible interpretations of the first part of the sentence (the testimony of Jesus may mean 'the testimony which Jesus bore' or it may mean 'the Christian testimony to Jesus'); partly because it is not clear whether the reference is to OT or NT prophets and partly because of the form of words in 'is the spirit of prophecy'.

On the other hand, Henry Alford in the Greek New Testament² is quite decided about the right way to understand this phrase. He argues that Jesus in the genitive must be objective and therefore the phrase must be understood as 'the testimony borne to Jesus by these fellow-servants'. He adds, "There is no reason for destroying its force by making Jesus subjective and ',the Testimony of Jesus' to mean 'the witness which proceeds from Jesus'."

Rev 19:10 is a difficult, ambiguous phrase. But one thing is for certain: it affirms a clear link between prophecy and witness to Jesus."

William Barclay, however, noting that scholarship is divided on whether the phrase means 'the witness which the Christian bears to Christ' or 'the witness which Christ bears to men' wonders whether the double meaning is intentional and writes (in his Commentary on Revelation):

This is the kind of double meaning of which the Greek language is capable; and it may well be that John intended the double meaning and that we are not meant to choose between the meanings, but to accept both of them.

Prophets and witnesses

One thing is certain, however the verse may be understood: this phrase affirms an inseparable link between Christian prophecy and witness to Jesus.

David Hill³ draws attention to the parallel between this verse and a similar situation and verse in chapter 22:9 and concludes that the brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus are to be identified with the prophets. He declares:

What appears to be implied by the collocation of clauses in this verse is that all members of the church are, in principle or potentially, prophets, just as the whole church presents itself, in exemplary fashion, in the form of the two witnesses [emphasis added, see also Rev 11:3].

The Spirit glorifies Jesus

Enough has been said to establish the connection in Scripture between prophecy on the one hand and witness, or testimony, to Jesus on the other. But such a link is only to be expected. Jesus said "The Spirit of truth...He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you" (John 16:13-14). We should expect therefore that all prophecy that is truly inspired by the Holy Spirit will witness to Jesus; to who he is, to what he has said and done, to what he is doing now and to what he will yet do.

We should expect that all prophecy that is truly Holy Spirit-inspired will witness to who Jesus is, what he has said and done, is doing now and will yet do"

Angels and men share task

From the incident before us we see that it is prophecy that links men and angels as fellow-servants of God; as those who are engaged in one common task, bearing witness to Jesus. Martin Kiddle writes⁴:

The Christian who holds the testimony of Jesus does no less than an angel. The angel proclaims the eternal truth of Christ's gospel; he comes from the Presence with messages to men [Luke 1:30-35; 2:10-12]...But the prophet also performs this task; he also proclaims the mind of Christ.

It is prophecy that links men and angels as fellow-servants of God, engaged in one common task of bearing witness to Jesus"

The angel forbade John to worship him. But both angels and men join to worship the Lord Jesus. He is the one whom the disciples worshipped without rebuke (Matt 28:9, 17) and concerning whom Scripture says, "Let all the angels of God worship him" (Heb 1:6).

Witnesses and martyrs

The Book of the Revelation warns us that the prophets of the New Testament church, like their predecessors in the Old Testament, must expect persecution it they bear a faithful witness to Jesus Christ. Remember the writer himself was imprisoned on the isle of Patmos "on account of the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus" (Rev 1:9), and many other apostles were put to death. And so the witness (in Greek, 'martus') becomes the martyr.

Testing prophecy

It is precisely because prophecy affirms things about Jesus that both Paul and John are insistent that all prophecy must be tested. They warn us not to accept every inspired utterance at its face value. We do well to remember Jesus' warning that there would be false prophets as well as true ones (1 Cor 14:29, 1 Thess 5:19-22, 1 John 4: 1-3, Matt 7:15-20).

It is precisely because prophecy affirms things about Jesus that all prophecy must be tested."

Christ-like prophesying

The inspiring Spirit at the heart of all true prophecy is ever seeking to point men to Jesus and to the truth about Jesus. We can take it, however, that the phrase we have been studying refers not only to the content of the prophecy, but also to the manner in which the utterance is presented. If a prophecy is to bear effective testimony to Jesus it must at the same time bear witness to his loving and gracious attitude of service. Bernard of Clairvaux got it right when he said "Learn the lesson that if you are to do the work of a prophet, what you need is not a sceptre but a hoe." Prophets, like Jesus, are to be servants and must not use their gift to lord it over God's people (Luke 22:27).

Prophecy's dark side

George Mallone points out that "singing only one tune in prophecy fails to express the full nature of Christ as it is revealed in Scripture".⁵ There is a dark side to the prophet's ministry and a full-orbed presentation of judgement and grace must feature in any adequate testimony to the Lord Jesus.

Speaking in love

As we sum up our answer to the question 'What is a prophet?' we see that it is someone who is so filled with the Holy Spirit that this influences everything that he says and the way that he says it. John Gunstone said:

I have heard prophetic utterances that brought congregations to their knees in penitence and joy, and I have heard other utterances devoid of inspiration that spoke only of the anger and frustration of the one who gave them.⁶

Prophets must never forget the danger pointed out by Paul, when he said "If I have prophetic powers...but have not love, I am nothing" (1 Cor 13:2).

Prophets must never forget the danger pointed out by Paul, when he said "If I have prophetic powers...but have not love, I am nothing" (1 Cor 13:2).

So, whether we are thinking of the continuing prophetic witness all believers are responsible to maintain, or of the gift of prophecy manifest occasionally in the church, or of those who have been given a prophetic ministry in the church and in the world, all true Christian prophesying will be distinguished by the fact that it points to Jesus and promotes his honour. For this is what the Spirit of prophecy is constantly urging all true prophets to do.

First published in Prophecy Today, 1985, Vol 1, Issue 3.

References

1 Handbook of Biblical Prophecy, Baker, p112.

2 Vol 4, p726.

3 New Testament Prophecy, Marshalls, pp89-90.

4 Moffatt Commentary on Revelation

5 Those Controversial Gifts, Hodder & Stoughton, pp40-41.

6 A People for His Praise, Hodder & Stoughton, p105.

In this second installment on the ministry of prophecy, Edmund Heddle looks at how prophets are called and equipped by God.

Neither in the Old Testament times nor in the New Testament Church did the prophets appoint themselves. Only a false prophet would dare to take that office upon himself (Jer 23:21).

Prophets did not inherit the calling from their fathers, nor did they receive it by human appointment. It was by God himself that they were chosen and called. The initiative in making a prophet rested with God alone and all true prophets received a specific and personal call from him.

The Prophetic Call

The prophetic call might come to men and women at different points in their lifetime and in a variety of personal situations.

No prophet is self-appointed: all are called and equipped by God alone."

• Moses, already an ageing man, received his call as he turned aside to contemplate a bush that blazed with flames and yet did not burn away (Ex 3:1-4, 17).
• The young Isaiah saw a vision of the thrice-holy God that humbled him to confess his sinful speaking. After cleansing his lips God challenged him to undertake the work of being a prophet, Isaiah gave a glad answer in the classic response: "Here am I; send me!" (Isa 6:1-9).
• For Hosea it was through the sad experience of his own unhappy domestic life that he came to realise that God was calling him to prophesy. God called him first to experience in his home circumstances the continued unfaithfulness of his wife before he was ready to proclaim the continuing love and the unwearying patience of God towards his unfaithful people (Hos 1:2, 11:8-9, 14:4).
• Jeremiah was still only a youth when God's call came, to which he responded with protestations that he was far too young for such responsibility. God replied by telling him that he had in fact been called even before his birth! God, however, reassured him by promising that he would be given the very words that he wanted him to speak (Jer 1:4-9).
• Many years before, another young man, Samuel, had heard the voice of God one night calling him to be a prophet. Like Jeremiah he also had been given a message he did not want to pass on (1 Sam 3:1-21).
• Amos, working as a herdsman in his native Judaea heard God calling him to leave those pasture lands and go to Israel to challenge the sophisticated priests and rulers in the religious centre at Bethel (Amos 7:12-15).
• Scripture does not tell us when and where Micah was called to prophesy but he tells how the anointing Spirit had come upon him, enabling him to speak God's word to both Israel and Judah (Mic 3:8).
• Ezekiel shared being in exile with God's people in Babylon, sitting where they sat and becoming overwhelmed by what he saw until in the fourth month of the fifth year of their captivity he was called to the prophetic ministry (Eze 2:3-7, 3:14-15).
• There were a number of prophets who were reluctant to pass on the message they had received, but only Jonah tried to escape from the prophetic call by running away. Only after alarming experiences did the persistence and mercy of God give his disobedient servant a second chance (Jonah 1:1, 3:1).

Not all the prophets of the Bible give details of their call, but we can be certain that none of them were self-appointed. They were speaking because they had to; they were speaking what they spoke because, having heard what God had to say, they were obliged to pass it on (Jer 20:9).

Today throughout the world there are still men and women who must speak out, because they too have heard what the Lord God has to say."

The Task of the Prophet

The nature of the work which the prophets were called to perform may be seen by a study of the Hebrew words which were used to describe them and their prophesying. In 1 Samuel 9:9 there is an editorial note to the effect that "he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer". Such a verse as this and 1 Chronicles 29:29 appear to use these words with a discrimination that is not sustained throughout the rest of the Old Testament. However, there is a distinction between their meaning.

Ro'eh (translated 'seer') is an active participle of the verb 'to see' and chozeh (also translated 'seer') is a similar part of the verb 'to gaze at'. Both words indicate that a prophet was someone who saw things to which other men were blind. The ability to see was not to be attributed to their own insight, neither had it been discovered by an occult means similar to heathen divination; it was the result of illumination by the Spirit of God. Samuel was a 'seer' to whom people turned when they wanted to know of God's will or sought direction in national, local or personal affairs (1 Sam 7:3-4, 9:3-11).

In contrast to these two words translated 'seer', which together occur a total of not more than thirty times in the Scriptures of the Old Testament, the word 'nabhi' (translated 'prophet') occurs over 300 times. The derivation of this word has occasioned considerable debate, but it is widely believed it can be traced to an Akkadian root 'nabu' meaning 'to call'. The choice in understanding lies between the prophet as being one who is called by God; or the prophet as being the one who calls, either to men for God or to God for men, ie by intercession.

The prophet is a person who is called to see what God is showing and to pass on its significance to his fellow men."

It seems better to understand 'nabhi' not in the passive sense of the one who is called i.e. the recipient of the vocation; but in the active sense of an announcer or messenger ie the one who is charged with carrying out the vocation. The prophet is a person who is called to see what God is showing and to pass on its significance to his fellow men. Today the world situation as never before underlines our desperate need of seers who can see with God's eyes and prophets who can speak forth his authoritative word.

Description of a Prophet

There are a number of significant phrases in the Old Testament which tell us yet more about the prophet and his calling. The prophet is called:

1. A man of God (1 Sam 9:6), implying that as a man of righteous character he was more closely in touch with God than other men. From the time of Moses down to the time of the monarchy the phrase was in use (1 Kings 13:1, 2 Kings 4:9).
2. The servant of the LORD. This is another description going back to the time of Moses (Josh 1:2) and it became the standard way of referring to all later prophets, especially when they were referred to collectively (2 Kings 17:13 and 23, Ezra 9:11, Jer 7:25). A prophet's primary task is to serve God and to do all that is expected of him, however strange God's orders might be (Isa 20:3).
3. The messenger of the LORD. This phrase found in the post-exile prophets shows that the particular service which the prophets rendered was that of passing on messages from God (Hag 1:13, Mal 3:1). 'Malachi' means 'my messenger'.
4. The man of the Spirit (Hos 9:7). This description draws attention to the fact that the source of the prophet's inspiration and power is nothing less than the Spirit of God himself (2 Chron 15:1-2, and 24:20, Neh 9:30, Mic 3:8).
5. My anointed one (Ps 105:15). It is clear that this phrase from Psalm 105 refers to the patriarchs and attributes their ability for hearing God's voice to the anointing of God's Spirit upon them. In Isaiah 61:1 the prophet claims that he had been anointed by the Spirit of God; an experience which years later Jesus declared had been fulfilled in his own experience (Luke 4:17-19).
6. A watchman. This word draws attention to the awesome responsibility the prophet has of first keeping his eye on what is happening and then not failing to issue the appropriate warning to the people (Hos 9:8, Eze 3:17 and 33:1-9).
7. A trumpet-blower. Closely associated with the duties of the watchman is that of blowing the trumpet (Jer 6:17). The prophet's word must be loud and clear so that there can be no mistaking the urgency of his message (Isa 58:1, Jer 4:5, Hos 8:1, Joel 2:1 and 15, Amos 3:6).

Reluctance

We have seen that it is God who chooses and calls individuals to serve as prophets. The first reaction may be one of unworthiness, unfitness or even total unwillingness. But with that call comes the deepening conviction that it is their eyes through which God's view of the human situation is to be perceived; it is their heart that is to sense and share his feelings about that situation and it is their lips that must patiently and courageously pass on what he has to say about it.

When God calls, first reactions are often feelings of unworthiness, unfitness or total unwillingness. But with his call comes deepening conviction..."

They may feel unfitted, as herdsman Amos did when he confronted the sophisticated ecclesiastics of Bethel. They may, like Jonah, try to run as far as possible in the opposite direction. They may even get to the lengths of accusing God of taking advantage of them (Jer 20:7-8).

Prophetic Imperative

But the 'goodly fellowship of the prophets' shares one common obligation; they must pass on what God has revealed (Amos 3:8b). This message may not be what the majority of people want to hear with their unending pursuit of peace and the 'smooth things' that false prophets promise (Isa 30:10). It may not even be the kind of message that the prophet himself likes passing on. In that case the prophet must put aside his own ideas, feelings and prejudices. As a watchman he must watch carefully; as a seer see clearly; as a trumpeter alert people effectively to their danger; so that as a true prophet he may faithfully pass on God's word.

Prophetic messages may not be what people want to hear, or what prophets like passing on. But those who God calls, he also anoints and equips to be faithful by his Holy Spirit."

No prophets could ever meet such demands from their own resources. It is essential to the carrying out of their calling that the anointing of the Spirit has come down upon them (Zech 4:6). All we have discovered about the prophets of the Old Testament applies equally to those whom God is calling to the ministry of prophecy today.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol. 1, No. 2, 1985.

Who were the prophets and do they still exist today? Edmund Heddle unpacks some key aspects of this vital ministry and gifting...

To the man in the street a prophet is someone who predicts the future, and to prophesy is to foretell some happening; a view which is shared in many cases by the man in the pew. It is true that the prophets of the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, do foretell what is to happen, but this predictive element forms only part of their message. They are primarily forthtellers!

Exodus 4:10-16 records an instructive incident that reveals the nature of the prophet's ministry. God had told Moses to go to Pharaoh to demand the release of the children of Israel from the slavery in which they were held. Moses, however, excuses himself (even after the encouragement of miraculous signs) on the ground of his lack of eloquence. God is displeased at Moses' refusal, but suggests that his brother Aaron, a good speaker, should take his place. According to Exodus 7:1, Aaron became Moses' 'prophet' and Moses is told:

You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth...He shall speak for you...He shall be a mouth for you. (Ex 4:15-16).

From this passage it is seen that a prophet is to be a mouth for God, a spokesman, whose task is to listen to what God is saying and to pass on that message.

How do prophets hear from God?

If a prophet is God's mouthpiece, how is he to hear what God wants him to pass on? The essential preparation is shown clearly in Numbers 11:16-17 and 24-30. Moses had reached a point where the burden of dealing with the people of God was more than he could cope with on his own. So God tells him to assemble seventy elders at the tent of meeting with the object of providing him with assistance.

Then God said, "I will take some of the Spirit which is upon you and put it on them." When this was done and the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. This was also true for two of their number who had not accompanied the others to the tent of meeting, but who were found prophesying in the camp. Prophesying is only possible when the Spirit of God has come upon God's man.

Prophesying is only possible when the Spirit of God has come upon God's servant."

Moses' servant, Joshua, thought his master would be upset that the two who had gone to the tent of meeting were prophesying and he presumed to ask Moses to silence them! Moses' magnanimous reply indicated that he had no desire to limit the number of prophets; instead he said, "I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them!"

Who gets to prophesy?

This desire of Moses for the universalising of prophecy was years later taken up by the prophet Joel as he foretold the day when as a result of the outpouring of God's Spirit, the whole people of God would become a prophetic people.

And afterwards, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. You sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants [literally 'slaves'] I will pour out my Spirit in those days. (Joel 2:28-29)

These words of Joel were quoted by Peter as he sought to explain the happenings of the Day of Pentecost, just a few weeks after Jesus had returned to heaven. With the descent of the Spirit a new age had dawned, for this universalising of the prophetic potentiality constituted the greatest difference between Old and New Testament prophecy.

No longer was prophecy limited to certain individuals among God's people; instead both men and women, old and young and those without worldly status were alike able to prophesy. The New Testament makes it clear that not all of the Lord's people would have the ministry of a prophet (1 Cor 12:29) but all were able, and were encouraged, to prophesy. (1 Cor 14:1, 5).

The greatest difference between Old and New Testament prophecy is that since Pentecost, the gift of prophecy has been made available for all believers."

How does prophesying actually happen?

As well as showing the absolute necessity of the Spirit coming upon a man if he is to prophesy, the Old Testament has much more to teach about the process of prophesying.

The prophets of old were men who stood in the Lord's council, shared his secrets, were sent with his message and declared it with their words, actions and lives."

• The prophets of the Old Testament were men who stood in the Lord's council. (Jer 23:18, 22) They were granted the privilege of an audience with the Lord God himself. They were men in touch with the Throne and the whole quality of their revelations was dependent upon this fundamental relationship.
• The prophets were men who shared the Lord's secrets (Amos 3:7). Amos uses here a word that describes people in a close deliberation and what is shared at such times. He clearly believed that the Almighty shared with his prophets what he was going to do: a fact which is evident from a word from God concerning Abraham and the impending judgment of Sodom, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?" (Gen 18:17)
• The prophets were men sent with the Lord's message (Amos 7:14-15). Amos said, "I was neither a prophet nor a prophet's son...but the Lord said to me 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel'." So this shepherd from Judah was sent to prophesy to the Northern Kingdom. God not only gives his word to his prophets, he also directs them as to who is to be their audience.
• The prophets were men who spoke the Lord's message in the Lord's words (Deut 18:18; Jer 1:9). When the young Jeremiah complained that he was not old or mature enough for the prophetic calling, God promised to give him the very words he was to speak. He was given an 'instructed tongue' (Isa 50:4).
• The prophets were men who showed the Lord's message by visual aids (Isa 20:2-3; Jer 13:1-11; 19:1-15). In order to illustrate and enforce their message, prophets were told to perform unusual actions, like burying a new waistbelt or smashing a pottery vessel before a crowd. Others got their message over by the use of vivid parables or word pictures. Micah stripped naked (Mic 1:8) in order to show the shame and degradation that would come upon the city unless the people repented.
• The prophets were men whose lives constituted part of their message. Hosea finds himself married to a prostitute; Ezekiel is forbidden to mourn when his wife suddenly died and Jeremiah is forbidden to marry at all. In this way the prophets were enabled to feel in their own experience the sufferings of the God, whose prophetic message they were responsible to communicate.

How did prophetic ministries begin?

As well as describing the process of prophesying, the Old Testament gives some insight into how the prophets received their word from God.

A study of the opening verses of the sixteen prophetic books of the Old Testament will divide up the prophets into those who saw the message in vision and those to whom the spoken word of the Lord came.

As it stands, this last statement can be misleading as the word translated 'came' is part of the verb 'to be' and might be better translated 'the word of the Lord became a living reality to' the prophet. It would appear that the first group had a direct encounter with what they were to say, whereas the second group experienced the message coming into focus in their minds as they considered a situation under the illumination of the Holy Spirit.

What about today?

In ways like these, men called by God, on whom the Spirit had fallen, became a 'mouth for God' in their generation. Today, as never before, there are homes, communities and nations that desperately need to hear what God in his love is yearning to say to them. Nothing, therefore, could be more important than the recovery of the ministry of prophecy today.

First published in Prophecy Today, March/April 1985, Vol. 1 No. 1.