Clifford Hill continues to look at words of revival.

In this instalment of our series re-publishing Blessing the Church? (Hill et al, 1995), we continue to look at prophecies of revival that have been ubiquitous in the charismatic movement. Click here for previous instalments.

Prophecy in the Vineyard Movement

A significant element in the Vineyard/KCF ministry team which was developed in the late 1980s was the way in which the prophets confirmed one another's prophecies and added additional concepts which became incorporated into the body of teaching being given through the ministry.

Bob Jones, for example, confirmed Paul Cain's teaching on 'the new breed' and stated that this elite company of believers would eventually achieve divinity. He saw them,

…progressively going on in this righteousness until you take on the very divine nature of Christ himself and you begin to see Christ in the church. Christ won't come for the church until you see Christ in the church. Papa planted Jesus, he sowed him down here in this earth to have a whole nation of brothers and sisters that looked just like Jesus and he will have it.

My daddy's big enough to have his way and he's going to have him a nation of priests and kings. That's what his heart's desire is to have him a nation of sons and daughters that will talk to him just like his Son did. His son was an alpha son, your children are the omega sons and daughters.¹

Jones believed that the generation of children born since 1973 would form the final generation of believers whom God was preparing as the Bride of Christ to take control of the world and present the Kingdom to Christ on his return. Jones continued, “I do believe what he's beginning to do is a restoration of his very nature down here. Your children will cone behind you and they'll start on your level of righteousness and holiness and they'll take off from there."²

This, of course, is complete fantasy and a denial of the teaching of Jesus who said, “no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again” (John 3:3). Our children cannot inherit our righteousness however much they may benefit from our love, our teaching, and our personal example.

The Vineyard/KCF prophets confirmed one another’s prophecies and added additional concepts – which became incorporated into the ministry’s body of teaching.

Jones went on to say that he had “a literal visitation from the Lord” and that Jesus told him a new version of Psalm 12:1, that it should read “Help, Lord, release the champions, the dread champions”. In the Bible, Psalm 12:1 reads “Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men”.

Jones's version³ is completely different and has no other authority except his claim to have had a personal visitation and personal revelation from God. On the strength of that vision he built a whole doctrine which was accepted by John Wimber and incorporated into the Vineyard teaching. This became clear from Wimber's use of the concept.

Appealing to the British Church

In the leaflet advertising the October 1990 meetings there was a personal message from John Wimber who wrote, “God has given us a vision to see the body of Christ move from being an inactive audience to a Spirit-filled army”.⁴

This sounds wholly good and highly attractive to ministers who have seen very little growth in their churches, and to church members who long to break out from the cocoon of traditionalism that has characterised the Church in Britain for much of the 20^th Century. But Wimber continued, “In our opinion God is about to unloose a powerful outpouring of the Holy Spirit of an unprecedented magnitude...He is looking for individuals who will be ‘dread champions’ for his cause”.⁵

The significance of this phrase would have been lost on most of those who hurried to return their booking forms and registration fees. The phrase 'dread champions' was part of the teaching being given by Wimber, Cain and the Kansas City Prophets. It was linked with their teaching about 'a new breed' whom God was going to raise in the last generation before the Second Coming of Christ to evangelise the world and subdue the nations.

Peter Fenwick, in previous instalments of this study, has referred to one of the foundational teachings of the Restorationist movement being that evangelism would no longer be necessary because God was going to do it as a sovereign act. The respected and renewed Church would be so attractive that unbelievers would flock to it.

Wimber borrowed phrases from the Kansas City Prophets that showed his allegiance to their teachings.

This teaching was at the heart of the Wimber message in 1990. But by this time he had added a significant new dimension to 'restorationist' teaching. Wimber believed that signs and wonders performed by an elect company of leaders through a mighty impartation of supernatural power would sweep unbelievers into the Kingdom. In essence, this belief lay at the heart of his teaching on 'power evangelism'.

Confirming Each Other’s Words

A few months before they came to Britain that year, Paul Cain had been teaching at Anaheim with John Wimber, setting out his beliefs. He said that God was bringing to birth a new breed of Christians who would actually be the incarnate word of God and through them the Gospel of the Kingdom would be proclaimed, not simply by their words but by their lives. Cain said: “God's strange act is going to bring a new order of things and bring a new breed in and bring a transformation.”⁶

Amid much clapping, shouting, whistling and cheering he told the crowd,

There's going to be something in the wave of power and evangelism in these last days. Little children are going to lay their darling little hands on the sick and heal multitudes...We are going to be just like the Lord in that respect. They're going to say, 'Here comes that dreadful, fearful army of champions. Here comes those with a word of knowledge, the word of wisdom, the working of miracles, with a healing ministry, with the power to heal the sick and raise the dead, with the power to know what's going on behind the Iron Curtain.' You're going to really be a fearful group before this thing's all over with and I am resting in that.⁷

It is noticeable that Cain had picked up Jones's phrase about an 'army of champions'. This is another example of the prophets confirming each other's words. This is a highly dangerous practice which was roundly condemned by Jeremiah:

‘Is not my word like fire,' declares the LORD, 'and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? Therefore,' declares the LORD, 'I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from me. ‘Yes’, declares the LORD, 'I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, "The LORD declares".' (Jer 23:29-31)

In ancient Israel the law required that the testimony of one witness should be confirmed by that of at least one other. If several prophets came declaring the same message it was regarded as divine confirmation.

The practice of prophets confirming each other’s words is highly dangerous and was roundly condemned by Jeremiah.

In Jeremiah's day the false prophets were picking up popular prophecies from each other saying that God would not allow Jerusalem to fall to the Babylonians, that the Egyptians would come to their aid and that no harm would come to the people. This encouraged them to continue living in the kind of idolatry and immorality described in Jeremiah 7:1-12 and it closed their minds to the warnings God was sending through the true prophets.

Bob Jones, Paul Cain, John Paul-Jackson, Jim Goll, Mike Bickle and Jack Deere (the Kansas City Fellowship School of Prophets) all confirmed each other's prophecies, adding bits out of their own imaginations. These all sounded good to the people so they were readily believed, even though they were contrary to Scripture. But the Word of God does not change: “How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds?” (Jer 23:26).

Flights of Fantasy

Cain's prophecies were highly popular and the crowd got even more excited when he told them that God was about to give them this supernatural power which would transform their lives:

God is saying 'Arise and shine, for your light is come, behold the darkness will cover the earth and deep darkness, but the Lord will raise you up, the Lord will rise upon you and the nations will come to your light. You're going to shine, shine, shine! You're going to be the light of day and the light of life!...

God's going to have a whole company of people that are going to be like that and then the world will see the light and they are going to come to it, they are going to see it, all nations will come to your light and that's the way we are going to get world evangelisation.⁸

This teaching, which so excited the people, was utterly false, but John Wimber endorsed it so the people accepted it. They probably did not know the Bible well enough to know that it is Jesus who is the Light of Life and the words from Isaiah 60:1, “Arise, shine, for your light has come,” are part of a prophecy about the coming of Messiah.

Surely God will not share his glory with anyone else and nations will come to his light not to ours. It is surely a wicked deception to say “the nations will come to your light”! It is also interesting to see how Cain used prophecy to confirm the Latter Rain teaching that world evangelisation would result from the supernatural power which was going to be given to believers. This teaching was central to Wimber's message.

In Jeremiah’s day, false prophets were picking up popular prophecies from each other which worked to close the people’s minds to God’s true warnings.

In the same speech Paul Cain prophesied that the new breed would possess power to overcome the enemies of the Gospel and strike terror into them: “There's going to be an awesome, reverential fear and respect for the church because the church is going to regain her power, lose her restrictions, lose her weakness...you're going to be called upon by presidents and kings of nations, heads of state…"⁹

He then went on to say that believers would be given the power to strike dead those who opposed them, as happened to Ananias and Sapphira. He said that he knew two men who possessed this power, they were William Branham and Mordecai Hamm. He said, “If I had a hero, I think it would be William Branham or Mordecai Hamm.” He continued:

God is going to have his army and they are going to be a fearful bunch and they are going to go to every place on the face of the earth. All we have to do is see two people so anointed, two people here, two people there, two people over yonder and they will go forth and take that part of China, that part of Africa, that part of that island, or that whole island, or this nation or that nation, for one can set a thousand to flight and two can set ten thousand to flight.¹⁰

It is amazing what flights of fantasy people will absorb and actually believe if their respected leaders tell them it is true.

This is what has been happening in the charismatic movement, yet we scornfully dismissed the Hindu 'milk miracle' in September 1995. The Times reported that throughout Britain Hindus “gripped by a devotional frenzy” queued up at the local shrines to offer spoonfuls of milk to their gods. “It began with rumours on Thursday that the elephant-headed Gamesh idol in a New Delhi suburb had drunk half a cup of milk and within 24 hours millions of Hindus around the world seemed to have heard of the 'signal from the gods'" (The Times, 23 September 1995).

Some of the things we ask people to believe at charismatic celebrations are almost as unbelievable as the Hindu milk miracle. In the same speech as that reported above, amidst much cheering and clapping, Paul Cain promised:

You just wait until God does this strange act. Well, they'll fall all over you getting to God. All we have to do is seize what we are talking about tonight and they'll fall all over you getting to God! You are going to employ the tools of the trade after the impartation comes.¹¹

He went on to say that John Wimber was going to give that impartation: “When brother John Wimber stands here and gives that impartation, you're going to see more signs and wonders.”¹²

Teaching on Impartation

This teaching on 'impartation' is another doctrine which comes from the Latter Rain movement. Franklin Hall taught that he was given by God the power to impart immortality. He was giving this teaching in the early days of the Latter Rain movement in the 1940s but as recently as 1988, 40 years later, he was still giving the same teaching. He said at that time that at the moment he only had the power to give partial immortality from the feet up to the knees but gradually this would extend to the whole body.

It is amazing what flights of fantasy people will absorb and actually believe if their respected leaders tell them it is true.

This teaching on impartation has been picked up by others in the charismatic movement. For example, in the March 1995 newsletter sent out from Kingdom Faith Ministries by Colin Urquhart, he writes:

Dear friends, REVIVAL IS HERE! Praise God! The revival breakthrough has come to us at Kingdom Faith, by the grace of God. This month's tape tells you of the anointing that has caused this to happen. It is a word of personal testimony of what happened when Hector Gimenez was told by God to impart to me the same anointing that was on his own life.

This teaching on impartation is contrary to Scripture. As David Noakes will show in future instalments of this series, the teaching of Haggai 2 shows that we are able to pass on corruption, but not blessing. Blessing comes down directly from God. We can of course pray for God to bestow blessing upon someone, but we cannot impart that blessing ourselves. That authority is not given to us as human beings.

This is just one of the many aberrations and errant teachings that have got into the charismatic movement through false prophecy which then becomes incorporated into doctrine and forms part of a body of false teaching.

Next week: A summary of Latter Rain prophecies and some concluding thoughts for this chapter.

References

1 Paul Cain, speaking at 'School of Prophecy', Anaheim, California, USA, Vineyard Ministries International, November 1989; transcript of tapes published by Holly Assembly of God, Missouri. Session 7, Part II, p1.

2 Ibid p9.

3 Ibid p14.

4 Leaflet issued by Vintage Ministries, Edinburgh.

5 Ibid.

6 See note 1, p9.

7 Ibid p9.

8 Ibid p11.

9 Ibid p15.

10 Ibid p19.

11 Ibid p21.

12 Ibid p21.

Monica Hill continues to look at the spiritual ‘manifestations’ of 1 Corinthians 12.

This article is part of a series. Click here to access the archive.

“to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits” (1 Corinthians 12:7-10)

“…the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort” (1 Corinthians 14:3)

“Be eager to prophesy” (1 Corinthians 14:39)

In this series we have already looked at the ministry of the prophet in Ephesians 4 and also at the natural gift of prophecy in Romans 12, which is often related to the proclamation of the word of God.

Although these two gifts come from the same root as the manifestation of prophecy mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12, and all three are often linked together and have much in common, there are also many differences which we need to explore here.

What is a Prophecy?

Bringing a word of prophecy as a specific message from God is almost always a manifestation of the Spirit given to an individual just as the Spirit wills, and will usually be in response to a specific situation in the community or the nation (we will deal later with prophetic words for individuals, which often contain words of knowledge, although we broached this last week).

Words of prophecy or ‘prophetic words’ are not ‘owned’ by individuals or given only to those who have a prophetic ministry. Any mature believer who has a close relationship with God will be listening for his word and receiving his guidance all the time – it will be part of his or her daily life. The Lord desires that we are open and eager to share the good things we have received with others - especially those things that build up the Body (this may well include scriptural words of Jesus and of course, prophecy will never undermine Scripture).

When a mature believer is willing to be a messenger, God can use them to speak to the rest of the Body concerning the fellowship, the nation or the world. Edmund Heddle highlights examples from the New Testament of reasons for the use of prophecy – to warn of trouble ahead, to foretell a future event, to appoint church workers, to mobilise for action and to bring enlightenment.¹

Prophetic words are not ‘owned’ by individuals or given only to those who have a prophetic ministry – they can be given to any mature believer.

Having received a word of prophecy, the messenger is then tasked with portraying this word from God to others in the Body of Christ. This should always have as its main purpose that of building up believers in some way. The Spirit will not only give the word, but will also alert the messenger to what they should be doing with it – and usually will also open up opportunities for it to be delivered.

Figure 1.Many people think that ‘prophetic words’ always have to be given in the first person, as a direct word from God, in order to be authentic. But giving it as a word in the third person – ‘This is what I hear the Lord saying to me…’ - can be tested by hearers more easily, not only for its validity (see section below on Weighing Prophecy), but also for its source.

Distinguishing Between Spirits

The manifestation of ‘distinguishing between spirits’ is listed alongside ‘prophecy’ in 1 Corinthians 12 and is an initial safeguard which should always be exercised immediately that a prophecy is given. When an individual receives a word, others who have the allied gift of ‘distinguishing between spirits’ should, on hearing it, be judging whether it really is from God, or from an evil spirit, or - what is often more likely - from the messenger’s own spirit.

This is not testing the message as such, but identifying the source, and does not preclude the necessity to test every word that is received. As we can all be aware, there are many times that a message can start off well but then be influenced by the messenger who at times is tempted to ‘help God out’ – to express it more clearly and perhaps slightly change the emphasis! Many messages can be like the curate’s egg – ‘good in parts’ - and just because this happens, it does not mean that the whole word should be ignored.

A Word About Discernment

Distinguishing between spirits is not the same as ‘discernment’. The latter is not an instant gift given to specific individuals but can be seen much more as a fruit which comes with experience, available to ALL believers as they mature in their faith and become fully in tune with biblical teaching.

All believers should be able to discern between right and wrong and should be able to give reasons for this from Scripture.

Distinguishing between spirits is a gift given to specific individuals – discernment is a fruit which comes to all believers as they mature.

Prophecy in Practice

We are given a good example of prophecy being exercised wrongly in the local church in what went on in Corinth, from which we also get the teaching Paul gave to bring things back into order. We get the impression that this community of new believers were not good advocates for the faith and needed much help - from which we can also benefit!

The lovely passage on the nature of true love in 1 Corinthians 13 places the exercise of prophecy in context, so that all can be aware of what is needed as the gifts are being exercised. The great love poem used at so many weddings follows Paul’s significant teaching on how everyone is part of the Body of Christ, in which he emphasises that if love for one another is not shown and does not surpass everything, whatever gifts believers feel they have will be of no significance (1 Cor 14:1-5).

This is in spite of, or even because of, the fact that they were competing for what they felt were the ‘greater’ gifts. Instead, they were challenged to “try to excel in those that build up the church” (1 Cor 14:12).

Weighing Prophecy

There is a list of 12 ‘tests of prophecy’ elsewhere on this site with which we should all familiarise ourselves so that we can learn from the mistakes of the Corinthian church. Additionally, the same instructions apply to us today as did to them: “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said”.

The fear of interrupting someone who speaks authoritatively in our society does not often permit us to follow these instructions: “if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged”. This is because “The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace” (1 Cor 14:29-33).

The Corinthian church is a good example of how not to do prophecy!

In addition to helping promote orderly worship, this certainly also helps us to understand that we should not be in a trance when giving a word from the Lord – we can be in control of our mouths, our minds and all our actions when we prophesy and we can be fully aware of what God is saying to others through us – but without adding to the word or distorting it.

‘Prophecies’ to Individuals

More recently in some circles the practice has been to bring prophetic words to individuals, who may also be identified by a word of knowledge. This needs to be followed up very carefully, as it can often mistakenly lay the recipient open to thinking that any word brought afterwards is a prophecy that will come true – especially if it promises healing.

Furthermore, there may be all sorts of reasons why people receive words for others and choose to make them public – so continue to test prophecies.

Finally…

Prophecy is NOT tongues, which is speaking TO God (we will look at this in more depth next week), but it is FROM God and given especially for believers to edify and build up the Church, so that the Church can be the prophet to the nation.

Witnessing a whole church prophesying can be very powerful – especially to unbelievers. An unbeliever can be convicted of sin by hearing a prophetic word and in this way it can have power:

But if an unbeliever or an enquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’ (1 Cor 14:24-25).

Finally, the manifestation of prophetic messages to the Church needs to be linked to the expounding of the word of God. The prophetic dimension of Christian life is often missing in the prayer life of the Church as there is a lack of expectation that God speaks to his people today.

Without this expectation, and without the manifestation of prophecy from God to each one of us, there will be no significant declaration of his word relating biblical truth to contemporary world events. But if preachers expound the word of God from the pulpit and draw attention to its teaching on these matters, it would transform the witness of the Church today.

References

1 See Heddle, E, 2016. Spiritual Gifts. Issachar Ministries. See also Figure 1.

David Forbes gives some historical background to the Book of Revelation, as we start a new series on the messages given to the churches in Asia.

In 81 AD, Domitian became Emperor of Rome and its dominions. During his reign he launched a particularly savage persecution of both Christians and Jews, the main reason for which was Caesar worship. Domitian was the first Roman Emperor, apart from the insane Caligula, to take his 'divinity' seriously, and demand Caesar worship. He insisted on always being addressed as Lord and God and carried out a campaign of bitter persecution against all those who would not worship him - the atheists, as he called them.

This is the historical background to the Book of Revelation. All over the Roman Empire men and women were required to acknowledge that the Emperor was Lord, or die - especially on the Lord's (or Lordy) Day (Rev 1:10), a special day in the year when every citizen was required to cast some incense on the altar fire in a local temple and repeat the words 'Caesar is Lord'.

What were Christians, for whom only Jesus is Lord, to do? They were relatively few in number and they had no influence or power to fight against the might of an Empire which no nation or people had been able to withstand. The choice was simple, Caesar or Christ, and as a result there were many Christian martyrs. Why were they under such tyranny? Why were they being left to suffer and die so cruelly? Where was God? Where was their promised salvation through Jesus the Messiah? How long, Sovereign Lord? they cried.

Emperor Domitian, who insisted upon Caesar worship. See Photo Credits.It was to bring hope and encouragement in these times of great trial and terror that the Book of the Revelation was written to the believers in the churches of the great Roman province of Asia.

Apocalyptic Writing

In order to understand further the message of the letters to the churches we need to appreciate their literary form. The Book of the Revelation is unique in the New Testament, in that it belongs to a type of Jewish literature called the apocalyptic writings. Indeed, the very first word of the letter is the Greek apokalupsis – 'the revelation' in English. Apocalyptic literature was one of the most common types of Jewish writing during the period between the Old and New Testaments.

After the return from exile in Babylon, the Jewish people soon became the subjects of Alexander the Great and his successors, during which time they were put under great pressure from Hellenism. Hellenism was the adopting of all things Greek - language, education, philosophy and culture – by the peoples who came under the rule of Alexander and his generals.

This was especially so when, during the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-164 BC), every attempt was made to force Greek political and cultural institutions upon them and the observance of the Jewish religion became punishable by death. Many Jews at this time chose death rather than be false to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Mass martyrdom became the order of the day.

It was to bring hope and encouragement in times of great trial and terror that the Book of the Revelation was written to the believers.

At that time, and then again during the period of Roman domination when the various revolts by the Jewish Zealots brought about the death of many, people began to question where God was and why he was not bringing about salvation for them. Had not God chosen them as his people? Had the prophets not promised that one day, God himself would come with a mighty intervention to deliver them from all their enemies and raise up his Messiah, who would inaugurate an everlasting kingdom of righteousness and peace? Where was the Day of the Lord?

It was to deal with these questions and to bring a ray of encouragement and hope into a difficult situation of pressure and confusion that apocalyptic writing came into being. It dealt with the sin of the present time, with the evils of tyranny, oppression and persecution, and with the great intervention of God when he would descend on to the stage of history and put everything right. He would bring to an end the world that they knew and bring in his golden age of blessing. The message of apocalyptic literature was that though things maybe bad and will probably get worse, don't weaken and give up - hang on, because everything will be all right in the end. God will vindicate his people and be victorious!

Differences Between Prophetic and Apocalyptic Literature

There are many examples of apocalyptic literature from the period between the two Testaments. Writings such as Enoch, The Assumption of Moses, The Ascension of Isaiah, The Apocalypse of Baruch and Fourth Ezra are just some. The Book of Daniel is considered by Jewish people to be an apocalyptic book, rather than a prophetic one. It is the only such kind of writing to be included in the canon of the Hebrew Bible, where it appears in the section called ketuvim, 'the writings', rather than in the section called nevi'im, 'the prophets'. There was considerable difference between what the Jewish people understood as prophecy, such as the messages given through Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos and Zechariah for example, and what they understood as apocalyptic writing.

Dominated by successive cruel empires, the Jewish people were questioning where God was. Apocalyptic writing came into being to answer their questions.

The Hebrew prophets thought mainly in terms of this present world. Their message was often put in terms of the need for social, economic and political justice. They were concerned that men should hear the word of God and turn back to him in repentance. The prophets were concerned that people should learn to obey and serve him in this present world. It was here and now that God's will needed to be done and his purposes of peace and blessing be fulfilled.

The message of the apocalyptist was that the world was beyond saving and that it was dominated by evil. The only remedy was for God to destroy it and set up a new golden age in a new world. It was a written, rather than a spoken message; whereas the prophet spoke forth the word of God clearly and boldly so that all could understand, the apocalyptist always wrote his message down. It was usually in the language of dream and vision, and the actual words used were usually in coded form. The reason for this was doubtless that if the writings ever fell into the hands of the oppressing power, they would not be able to learn the message of the visions and therefore would be unprepared for what was coming.

Whereas everybody knew the identity of Israel's prophets, Jewish apocalyptic writing is pseudonymous - that is to say that it was written not under the author's name, but under the name of someone else. The Jewish writers opted to attribute their writings to the great and well-known men of the past, such as Moses or Isaiah, Enoch, Ezra or Baruch. It may be that they did this because they believed that they were not worthy to be read and thought that by attributing their writings to the great men of the past they were investing them with an authority that they themselves could never give.

Revelation: Provenance and Authorship

The Book of the Revelation is very much an apocalyptic writing. It has most of the hallmarks of apocalyptic literature. It is different, however, in that it is not pseudonymous and that it has a strong Messianic perspective. The Day of the Lord is none other than the great and glorious appearing of Jesus the Messiah, who has already once appeared as the Paschal lamb to take away the sin of the world and is now appearing for the second time to set up his earthly kingdom.

Revelation is very Hebraic, full of Old Testament allusion, pointing to many Jewish traditions and even quoting ideas from other Jewish apocalyptic writings. It includes around 500 allusions to the text of the Old Testament, particularly the books of Exodus, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Zechariah and Daniel. So without a thorough knowledge of the Old Testament, and these books in particular, the original readers of John's Apocalypse would have struggled to understand the message.

The Hebrew prophets spoke and wrote mainly in terms of the present world - apocalyptic writers looked forward to the world to come.

Similarly, many of God's people today are confused and puzzled by this letter simply because of their lack of understanding of its Hebraic nature in biblical background and culture, as well as language. Although it was written in the common Greek language of the day, it is a kind of translation – Greek, full of Hebraic language idiom.

lndeed, because of the bad grammar and syntax (which probably makes it the worst Greek in the New Testament), many scholars have had difficulty accepting that it was written by the same man who penned a Gospel and three Epistles.

The author, John, tells us that he was given what he calls a prophecy by the Lord Jesus himself, on the island of Patmos, most probably in exile as a result of the Domitian persecution. Here is a further difference between this book and other Jewish apocalyptic literature, in that it is reflecting the fact that God has restored prophecy to his people, as a result of the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus knows what his people are suffering and he wants to tell them what must soon take place.

To the Churches in Asia...

The Revelation is presented overall in the form of a letter to seven churches in the province of Asia, who themselves are each given an individual message in letter form from the Lord. When we speak of Asia we are not, of course, referring to the continent of Asia that we know today, but the Roman province which we now know as Turkey. It comprised the western (Mediterranean) sea-coast of Asia Minor with Phrygia, Mysia, Caria and Lycia. Its administrative capitol and seat of the Roman governor was the great city of Pergamos (also called Pergamon or Pergamum, close to modern-day Bergama, Turkey).

The seven churches that are named; Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, are by no means the only churches that we know of in the Roman province of Asia. The Bible also tells us of churches in Colossae, Hierapolis, Troas and Miletus. From the letters of Bishop Ignatius of Antioch, we learn that there were also churches at Magnesia and Tralles. Why then should only seven be selected and why this particular selection?

Many scholars doubt that Revelation was penned by the same 'John' who penned a Gospel and three Epistles.

One reason may be that the particular churches chosen were situated on a kind of ring-road around the centre of the province. William Barclay says that they could be regarded as the centres of seven postal districts and that letters sent to these cities could easily then be circulated around the whole province. Undoubtedly the purpose of the letter was that it should be read in all the churches so that all believers might know the Lord's message. Even the individual letters to the seven churches were intended to be read by all.

The churches of Asia Minor, and indeed all the churches of the Roman world, were going through great trauma as a result of the Domitian persecution. However, it must have been of comfort to them to know that the Lord himself knew precisely what their problems were as well as the solution to them.

Next week, we will look at the message given to the church in Ephesus.

This article was first published in Prophecy Today, Vol 12 No 6, Nov/Dec 1996. Revised December 2016.

Click here for the other articles in this series.

In exciting confirmation of the words brought recently in Chichester and by David Noakes, we review words given at an intercessory prayer day held in Somerset in July.

Across Britain, God is speaking to those who will listen. Just because you pray alone or in a small group, it doesn't mean that God will not speak words of national significance to and through you! He is simply looking for dedicated servants who will spend time in his presence, learning his word faithfully and listening to his heart.

Issachar Ministries has been running a number of intercessory events around the country in recent months, gathering local prayer groups together to intercede for the nation and listen to what God is saying. Last week we reported on their Chichester meeting – this week we bring further news from a similar event held in July, near Wells in Somerset.

Those in attendance gathered themselves into small groups to spend time listening to the Lord, taking notes and feeding back afterwards to the rest of the gathering. Below we have written up the main points and themes that were shared – see if you can spot the similarities to those shared at the Chichester meeting a couple of weeks ago!

Opportunity in Difficult Times

First, many people felt strongly that difficult times lie ahead for Britain, but that in this the Church will have great opportunity for witness.

Warnings were given that our withdrawal from the European Union will not be easy, and that the enemy will try to fight against what God has done. There will be a great need for mature Christians, interceding for the negotiations, helping others to understand God's purposes in Brexit and being directly involved in the business and politics of the exit process. "Solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil" (Heb 5:14).

Words were also given about the degree to which Britain has abandoned her Christian heritage – and how the Church needs to recognise this, and grieve it as Jeremiah grieved over Jerusalem (e.g. Jer 4:19).

Yet, groups also heard that in the difficult times ahead there will come great opportunity for sharing our faith with an unbelieving world. Christians need to arise, pray and actively help others to recognise Jesus – including young people who receive no Christian input in school or at home.

Israel and the Middle East

Some groups were led to pray about the situation in Syria. They fed back that God is weeping over the destruction in that nation, desiring all people to know his love and mercy. It was also felt that Christians should be actively watching what God is doing so that they can explain his purposes to unbelievers.

A number of groups had words about Islam, that God is at work across the Muslim world setting people free from darkness and giving Christians opportunities to witness about their faith. Christians also need to pray for those who come out of Islam into Christianity.

Trusting in the Lord

There were also many encouragements to trust and hope in the Lord, so that the testing times ahead will bear fruit and cause the Church to grow. "The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord" (Lam 3:25-26). "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength" (Isa 30:15). Finally, it is essential that we become a listening people (not just interceding), so that we are able to proclaim the word of the Lord that he is speaking to his people today.

The teaching of Jesus is that Christians are those who have "crossed over from death to life" (John 5:19). This is the good news that we have to share with others!

By the Mouth of Two or Three Witnesses...

You may notice, reading the above, a close congruency with the words shared last week from the Chichester meeting, and also with the word published the previous week from David Noakes. Please note that the Somerset meeting was held in July – well before these others were given or published!

It is wonderful to have such a confirmation of God's 'now' word for Britain, being given through ordinary Christians gathering in different areas across the nation. "By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established" (2 Cor 13:1, NKJV).

The Lord is speaking – we hope you will be as encouraged by this as we are, especially if you regularly pray for the nation and/or are part of a local prayer group!

Clifford Denton concludes our series testing prophecies about Britain's future on the run-up to the EU Referendum.

The Referendum on 23 June is pivotal for the UK. Politicians themselves agree that this is the most important decision for the UK since the Second World War. Political logic alone, however, is proving inadequate, based as it is on human opinion more than listening to God.

It could be the making or breaking of political careers. More importantly, it could be the making or breaking of our nation – a nation much loved and used of God. How much we need to know what God himself is saying and how reasonable it is to expect him to be speaking to us!

This is why we have been seeking to encourage our readers to lead the way in testing prophecies on this topic to see if we, together, can discern what God is saying. This, my last article in the series, is not meant to over-ride all those discussions that have been going on in prayer groups around the country, but to add an overview - which itself can be tested to see if it is a valid summary.

Political logic alone is inadequate – based as it is on human opinion, more than listening to God.

Summary

Expecting Human Bias

We all have a mindset through which we filter what we hear. We have all come through a certain educational process, responding to the world around us, the media we follow, the books we read, the schools we attended, and even the way we may have been taught to read our Bibles.

That is why we can expect some human bias even in the way prophecies are received and passed on - and why we must together always carefully and prayerfully test what we hear to discern more clearly what God is saying to us.

Expecting God's Guidance

We, the family of God, should always expect God's guidance in times of need. Ours is a walk with God (Rom 8). As Amos pointed out, we must walk together in agreement with God (Amos 3:3), expecting to hear the prophetic word (Amos 3:7).

The expectation of hearing the prophetic word is reaffirmed in the New Testament (Eph 4:11). Especially in our times of fellowship we can expect to receive from God more than enough to share (1 Cor 14:26-33).

Expecting Continuity with Scripture

Any contemporary prophecy must stand up to the test of the Bible. So let us first recap on where we believe we are in the fulfilment of biblical prophecy. The leaders of Prophecy Today have, since 1986, been convinced that the world in general is experiencing fulfilment of the prophecy of Haggai (Hag 2:21-22; Heb 12:25-29).

This was tested on Mount Carmel and in Jerusalem in 1986 at the major gatherings of those with prophetic ministry. The magazine Prophecy Today was published soon after and many issues in the world have come to pass since then to support the view that this was a current word from God to impact the entire world.

As the family of God, we should expect to hear God's guidance in times of need.

What then of the UK in particular? With the biblical pattern of warning signs (for example in Deuteronomy 28 and Amos 4) as our reference point, we understand that the UK over the last few decades has had warning signs from Almighty God. And should we not expect this with the rapid decline in our nation measured by the standards of the Bible?

This is not to say that the prophetic warnings to Israel are directly relevant to the UK, but that the biblical pattern of signs of increasing magnitude in nature, the weather, on our crops, in our society and in our families indicate that God's protection has been disappearing in increasing measure.

Expecting Conditions...or Not?

There is an aspect to the 'big picture' that we all find hard to assess: how to fit contemporary events into the fulfilment of prophecies found in the Book of Revelation - in particular the rise of the anti-Christian world system (Rev 13-14, also 17-18).

Whilst most contemporary prophecy has conditions – for blessings or for difficult times from the hand of the Lord - some things are not subject to such conditions. One is the Covenant that God made with Abraham (Gen 17:1-8) that a covenant family will be gathered from all nations. Another is the general outworking of the end-time prophecies of Revelation (N.B. Rev 21:18-19).

Surely the prophecy of Haggai fits within the latter times foretold in Revelation. I wonder if we have taken this as seriously as we ought! The decision as to our continued membership of the EU must be somehow related to the era foretold by Haggai.

Expectations of Timing

Another difficulty facing us in testing prophecy is timing. That is a reason why we need the particular help of God at decision points in our own lives and in our nation's life. He helps us to understand when the right time is reached for a particular prophetic fulfilment of Scripture.

We certainly need God's help regarding our place in Europe. God alone knows the timing and the relevance of our decision to the outworking of his own plans and purposes in these end times. That is one reason why the political arguments being bandied around by the media look so inconclusive in isolation.

An aspect of the big picture we all find hard to assess is how to fit contemporary events into the fulfilment of prophecies found in Revelation.

Prophecies of Revival

Some of the prophecies we tested give expectation of revival in Britain. The sermon of Peter in Solomon's Portico (Acts 3:19) encourages us that in the era before the return of Jesus we can pray with confidence for times of refreshing. Believers need such spiritual refreshment especially in times of pressure growing from the world around them. We are encouraged therefore to keep praying for such times – with confidence.

Whether the moves of God's Spirit in the lives of his people will result in a major national outpouring or not has the condition of repentance outlined in Jeremiah 18:9-10. Whilst we might hope for the fulfilment of the Mother Barbara Prophecy and the visions of Jean Darnell, we must also realise that this condition is in force for Britain as a whole. This is reflected in the prophecy of Paul Slennett. Christians are called to prayer and the nation is called to repentance.

Prophecies About the EU

And so to our main focus for this time - consideration of our membership of the EU. The signs of our times put alongside the dramatic expectations of the end times from a biblical perspective, indicate that the decision we are about to make relating to the EU is extremely important.

We have considered two major contemporary prophecies over the last few weeks that exhort us to come out of the EU. Let's pause and consider this. If God himself is saying this, then we must take it very seriously.

David Noakes' prophecy speaks to Britain in very earnest yet loving terms. The promises of blessings to the nation as a whole are conditional on repentance in the nation after coming out of the EU – a condition, as stated above, included within the second of the major prophecies, that which was passed on to us by Paul Slennett.

Paul Slennett's prophecy covers more ground than the others we have tested. A difficulty lies in the emphasis on an earthquake related to the City (which we interpret as the City of London). If we believe that we are in the days of the fulfilment of Haggai's prophecy, within the overall end time picture, then we should not be surprised that the Lord is warning about the collapse of financial institutions and of some cities within the context of a revived Greco-Roman-Babylonian world empire. The financial shakings of recent years will be small compared with this and could be seen, therefore, as warning tremors.

Some recent prophecies give expectation of revival – but such moves of God's Spirit have the condition of repentance.

Did Paul Slennett, through his prophecy, therefore, foresee both early financial tremors and the greater collapse of the city of London within the end time perspective of the Book of Revelation? We should not be surprised at this if the timing is near for all the major shakings foretold in Scripture.

Also within this prophecy is an injunction for the Church to wake up and become prayerful.

Conclusion

With these two major prophetic words, there is apparent agreement that we should come out of the EU, for God's own good purposes in our nation (subject to other conditions) to be made possible. The rest is for continued prayer. Consequences will follow for the nation and for the Church, whichever way we go.

Here at Prophecy Today UK, we believe that God is warning us to come out of what will eventually develop or merge into a growingly anti-Christian world power.

If we go back to the 'big picture', we recall that God divided the nations into manageable portions so, as Paul taught in Acts 17:26-27, mankind would earnestly seek him. His priority over all history is the outworking of his covenanted promise to Abraham to draw a family from all nations. The possibilities are very wide, such that an entire nation could be included, if we consider Jeremiah 18:9-10 in the context of the Great Commission (Matt 28:19-20).

There is no doubt that Britain has, over many years, been blessed, used of God and guided by him, but now that the return of Jesus is close, new and high standards are required of us, not slippage into the ways of the world. The UK is at a decision point, perhaps the most important decision point in our history. Coming out of the EU could be the beginning of a turning back to God such that he will guide our entire nation through these end times. The prophecies we have tested offer this hope, impossible though it seems in human thinking - so far have we slipped.

Coming out of the EU could be the beginning of a turning back to God. Impossible though this seems, the prophecies we have tested offer this hope.

There may be many things for us to clarify through prayer and study in the next few years, but surely the balance of the prophecies we have tested over the last few weeks is that God, in his mercy, has spoken to us. There is a future that he can see more clearly than us. He has shown us that we should not allow ourselves to be swallowed up into the coming ungodly Empire. We should regroup as a nation in step with his purposes for us.

Let's continue to weigh this together in our fellowships and communities over the next two to three weeks leading up to the Referendum.

There are many prophecies currently in circulation to do with Britain and her future in/out of the EU. Will you join with us so we can test these as a community?

The up-coming EU Referendum is drawing Christians all around the nation to think and pray about the direction in which Britain and Europe are headed. There have been a number of recent prophecies circulating churches and prayer groups, many of which call the UK to come out of the EU and give warnings about the direction in which the EU will eventually go.

It could not be more important for Christians to test these prophecies – so we are beginning a new series through which we might, as a community of faith, do this together. It also seems a pertinent time to re-print and test other significant prophecies for our nation that have been given historically.

Expecting Bias

In recent discussions within the Prophecy Today team we have noted that we should expect human bias in all contemporary prophecies, as a matter of course. Each of us is at a certain point in our biblical understanding and is still growing and this can shape the way we hear and speak out what we feel God is saying. We may also have denominational bias or be influenced by our educational background or life experiences.

There have been a number of recent prophecies about the EU circulating churches and prayer groups – it could not be more important for these to be tested.

There are times when the prophetic word is so strong that these biases are bypassed but we need not be embarrassed to put all prophecy to the test, or to question some elements of it. Sometimes we may deliver part of a prophecy accurately and then 'add a bit'. We are not the next Isaiah or Jeremiah, but part of the body of believers – a prophetic people acting together. All prophecy must be thoroughly tested and then we can be sure we really do have the word of God, as he confirms the understanding of his word to his people.

Seeing Prophecies in Context

Prophecy Today began in 1986 after major conferences in Israel where attention was drawn to Haggai's prophecy, repeated in the Book of Hebrews, concerning the shaking of the nations. We believe that this is the era we are in now and this is a prime reason for our re-publishing Prophecy Today online at this time. Though this view is still subject to testing, including by our readers, it continues to shape our work.

The outworking of this prophecy is involving much detail, and the prophecy itself fits into an overall 'end time' perspective. Among the issues for us to understand, therefore, is the UK's continuing membership of the EU – because whichever way we go, consequences will follow.

We believe we that the UK's membership in the EU needs to be understood in context of the wider fulfilment of Haggai's prophecy of a final great shaking of the nations.

Testing Prophecies: Things to Note

Testing of prophecy is best done methodically. We have chosen to begin our series by outlining three broad principles – though for a comprehensive testing, we recommend the list of 12 tests compiled by Dr Clifford Hill.¹

First, we know that sometimes God will do things unconditionally, even overriding human will (e.g. whilst steering us through a time of need), but apart from these times, most predictive prophecies (i.e. promises of blessing or judgment) are conditional. In these cases, 'if' is one of the big words of the Bible, and we would expect 'ifs' to feature within most contemporary prophecy.

Secondly, when we believe that the Lord has spoken, even if we feel strongly that it is from him, it is usually more helpful to ask others to test the prophecy using the words "I believe the Lord may be saying..." rather than as a direct word: "The Lord says...".

Thirdly, in testing prophecy for nations other than Israel, our reference point comes from Jeremiah 18. Jeremiah had been taken to the potter's house. Whilst telling Jeremiah what was to become of Judah, using the potter as a metaphor for how God could reform Judah, the following was revealed as God's promise for any nation: "If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned" (Jer 18:7) (note the ongoing nature of the prophecy and also the 'if').

In testing prophecy for nations other than Israel, our reference point comes from Jeremiah 18.

This Week: Test the 'Mother Barbara Prophecy'

Over the coming weeks we want to lay out some prominent prophecies spoken through the last century about our nation, and test them together. Take time alone in prayer and in prayer groups to do this.

This week, let us go back to reconsider a prophecy that has encouraged many Christians, especially women's prayer groups such as the Lydia Fellowship, for decades. This is the prophecy of 1911 passed on to Mother Barbara by Bishop Aristocoli shortly before his death:

Tell the women they must belong absolutely to God. They must believe in the great things that are happening that God is doing on the earth. They must prepare their souls, their children and their husbands. And they will have very much work to do for God. Oh, what a great work the women will have to do in the end time, and the men will follow them. Not one country will be without trial – do no be frightened of anything you will hear.

An evil will shortly take Russia and wherever this evil comes rivers of blood will flow. This evil will take the whole of the world and wherever it goes rivers of blood will flow because of it. It is not the Russian soul but an imposition of the Russian soul. It is not an ideology or a philosophy, but a spirit from hell.

In the last days Germany will be divided in two.

France will be just nothing.

Italy will be judged by natural disasters.

Britain will lose her empire and all her colonies and will come to almost total ruin, but will be saved through praying women.

America will feed the world, but will finally collapse.

Russia and China will destroy each other. Finally, Russia will be free and from her believers will go forth and turn many nations to God.

Let us begin to test aspects of this:

• Helpful Style: In what has come to be known as 'The Mother Barbara Prophecy', there is no claim that it is indeed a prophecy – no "thus saith the Lord" – more measured exhortation (though there is a prophetic nature to the foretelling of the future).
• Standing the Test of Time: Much has come to pass in world history which seems to verify the prophecy, especially relating to Russia and Germany, though Germany is now reunited. Now we are in the time when clarity is needed, since implications for contemporary Europe seem to be bound up in the last sections.
• Lack of Clarity: There has been tremendous encouragement for women called to prayer that through answered prayer Britain will be saved, yet what does it mean for a nation to be saved?
• Lack of Conditions: The prophecy states that Britain will be saved, but gives no conditions on such salvation.

What else do you notice about this prophecy? We encourage you to weigh it using the twelve tests of prophecy discussed previously, to assess once more this prophetic word in the light of Britain today and its relationship with the EU.

Do post your responses below for others to see, or email them in for our consideration.

Next week: Smith Wigglesworth's 1947 prophecy

References

1 Hill, C. Prophecy Past and Present: An Exploration of the Prophetic Ministry in the Bible and the Church. Copies available from the Issachar Ministries office – email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A prophecy to the nation in relation to the forthcoming Referendum on EU membership - for your weighing and testing.

The Prophecy Today UK editorial team has decided to publish a prophecy to the nation in relation to the forthcoming Referendum on EU membership. The prophecy has already been widely circulated and we believe our readers should see it in the context of seeking guidance from God in regard to the Referendum.

We remind readers that all modern prophecy should be tested and not simply accepted as having come from a reliable messenger. Please read the prophecy and then the following note by our Editor-in-Chief, Clifford Hill.

DAVID NOAKES' PROPHECY

This was the word given by David when meeting with a small group of Ministry leaders on 17 November 2015.

"Nation of Britain, I have loved you with a love which has not ceased, despite the state of apostasy and degradation into which you have fallen. My anger towards those church leaders who have taught false things in my Name, and encouraged others to believe and act as they do, is intense and my judgment upon them will be severe. Yet I have compassion upon those who have been like sheep without godly shepherds; and my heart still longs to exercise mercy upon a nation whose forefathers upheld my Name and took my Word to the ends of the earth; a nation whose belief in the truth of my Word framed godly laws and inspired a culture of uprightness.

"Rather than rely on Me and my faithfulness to you, you chose, for worldly purposes, to join yourself to an institution which has denied my Name and refused to acknowledge Me in its councils. My fierce anger is upon that institution on account of its rebellion, its defiant rejection of me and its hardness of heart towards my ancient people Israel.

"I warn you now that the European institution will not repent, even though I bring disaster and destruction upon it. I urge you, O Britain still beloved by Me for the sake of your godly forefathers, come out of her, so that you may not be caught up in that same destruction, for I am even now arising in judgment to bring to nothing what she has sought to achieve. If you will separate yourself from her declared rejection of God, I will have mercy upon you and restore my hand of protection; and I will use you once again to bring light to many lost in the darkness which is now steadily increasing.

"Hear Me, O once godly nation and respond to my call, or you also will come to ruin in that same judgment of destruction. This is not my will for you, but you must choose the course which you will take. I urge you to respond to Me and choose life under my hand of discipline and protection, rather than death in the disaster which is even now coming upon Europe."

David Noakes

About the author: David Noakes was a solicitor in London until he joined Clifford Hill’s ministry in 1984. He has been part of the Prophetic Word Ministries/Prophecy Today team since that time, although he has also exercised an independent ministry speaking at conferences both in Britain and overseas. He has visited Israel many times and until recently was chairman of Hatikvah Film Trust, working with Hugh Kitson making films about Israel. He is a well-known Bible teacher with an established ministry and remains an official advisor to Issachar Ministries (Prophecy Today UK's parent charity).

Additional Note from Dr Clifford Hill

The Apostle Paul warned the church in Thessaloniki not to treat prophecies with contempt but to "Test everything. Hold on to the good, avoid every kind of evil" (1 Thess 5:21). This still applies today. If anyone receives a revelation it should be tested by others, however well-known and reliable the speaker.

I can testify to David's reliability and integrity. We have been close friends and colleagues for more than 30 years. I first heard him prophesy at a gathering of men and women with prophetic ministries at Mt Carmel in April 1986. Since then we have spoken at countless meetings together and many times he has received a word from the Lord that has been helpful to a local fellowship.

This prophecy is different and I have to say that it would have been much easier to weigh and test if David had expressed it in the third person rather than the first person singular. But that should not prevent us from a careful consideration asking fundamental questions, such as:

• Does it conform to Scripture or is there any way in which it does not?
• Does the prophecy edify and build up the church?
• Is the prophecy expressed in love?
• Does the prophecy glorify Christ?
• If the prophecy is predictive or has promises of blessings or warnings of judgment, Are there any conditions to this prophecy?
• Does the prophet himself/herself pass the character test required of one bringing a revelation from God? This character test was one of the major tests of prophecy in the New Testament churches.
• Finally, Is there a witness of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the believers who hear this prophecy?

An expansion of these tests can be found here. These tests of prophecy were expanded still further in my book Prophecy Past and Present, published by Eagle (Guildford, 1995).¹

We are not going to answer these questions here because it is for readers to weigh the prophecy for themselves. We are simply indicating the way in which mature Christians should consider any word of revelation that is given today and we remind readers that our words are the human expression of what we believe we are hearing from God in our prayer times. These words have to go through our minds and none of us can claim to be sinless - so the words we speak must be weighed and tested, in accordance with the teaching of the Apostle Paul.

Over the next few weeks on Prophecy Today, Clifford Denton will discuss some of the well-known prophecies that have been given in modern times.

Dr Clifford Hill

References

1 pp237-251, in the chapter 'Testing Prophecy'. Copies of PROPHECY PAST AND PRESENT: An Exploration of the Prophetic Ministry in the Bible and the Church Today are still available from the Issachar Ministries office – email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Edmund Heddle unpacks Peter's valuable instructions on prophecy.

In his two New Testament letters Peter augments and complements the teaching on prophecy and prophesying found in the letters of Paul. The two writers between them establish a complete answer to the question 'What is a prophet?' Peter's letters contain five paragraphs in which he deals with prophets and prophesying, each full of valuable instruction, and we shall deal with each paragraph in turn.

Prophecies Concerning the Coming Messiah (l Peter 1:10-12)

Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and the circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels desire to look into these things.

The Old Testament prophets who foretold the coming of Messiah referred to him as the gift of God's grace. This they did under the direction of the Holy Spirit, who revealed through them the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glory that would follow. The prophets were clear about the coming of the Messiah – but who he should be, what he should do, and at what point in history he would appear - all of these things they longed to know but were kept in the dark.

It was revealed to them that the prophecies they uttered were not for the immediate benefit of either themselves or God's people. They had been given for the enlightenment and blessing of a later generation, namely the people of Peter's day.

So the message had remained hidden, though they searched intently and with the greatest care. Prophets on earth and angels in heaven longed to understand the fullness of the prophetic revelation. The Greek word translated 'look into' is the same as the word used in John 20:11 to describe Mary Magdalene's entrance into the grave of Jesus, where she stooped down to look, standing at the side of the tomb so as not to get into her own light. How carefully should we look into the prophetic word, especially where the immediate application appears to be neither easily understandable nor relevant.

Old Testament prophets foretold the coming of the Messiah but were kept in the dark about the meanings of their own prophetic revelations.

The lesson from this paragraph is that no one prophet conveys the whole message. Paul in 1 Corinthians 14:29 suggests that "two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said."

Prophecy needs to be taken seriously and is best weighed in the company of the Lord's people. We need the Holy Spirit as much in understanding prophecy as in its
proclamation. The prophetic word about the Messiah remained hidden until Peter himself - the Spirit-filled preacher on the day of Pentecost - brought the explanation of their age-long bewilderment.

Using God's Grace-Gifts for His Glory (1 Peter 4:10-11)

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides so that in all things God maybe praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

God's grace is 'multicoloured' and is revealed in the gifts (charisma) of his Spirit. Peter mentions two gifts here:

1. The ability to speak God's words or, as it is usually termed, the ability to prophesy. "...the very words of God" is an attempt to translate the Greek word logion, which is usually translated by the word 'oracle' and means a divine response or utterance. This word is used in the scriptures of the Mosaic law, God's written utterances through Old Testament writers, the totality of Christian doctrine (Acts 7:38; Rom 3:2; Heb 5:12) and, incredibly, in the Spirit-inspired utterances of ordinary Spirit-filled-believers.

2. The ability to serve the body of Christ by gifts of divine power such as healing, miracles, deliverance from powers of darkness, and others (1 Cor 12:9-10). We are stewards of these gifts. Whatever gift God decides to give us for another individual or group we must pass on. God's gifts are unstinted and unlimited, except by our disobedience and unbelief. As stewards we shall one day be required give an account of our stewardship. God's provision is always lavish, and we are the ones who limit his gifts.

God's grace is multicoloured and his provision is always lavish – we are the ones who limit his gifts.

The Greek word translated as 'provides' is an interesting one; its literal translation is to provide a chorus in the theatre - to defray the cost of putting on a chorus at a public festival. Later on it came to describe the supplying and equipping of an army or a fleet. But in all cases its use conveys the idea of abundance.

Two things are required of us. First, that we are filled with God's Spirit and that we are willing to receive the gifts from the Lord and, secondly, that we obediently use them in the service of those for whom they have been provided. We are to let the spiritual gifts reach a fullness of development through us. Only then will their ultimate objective be achieved, namely that God may be praised. "To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever."

Paying Attention to the Prophetic Word (2 Peter 1:19-21)

And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Peter says that the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah had been made more certain by the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain, at which event he and the others present were eye-witnesses of his majesty. They were there when the voice came from heaven saying, "This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased" (v17). "You will do well to pay attention to the prophetic word which is for you like a light shining in a dark place", is the admonition Peter addresses to his readers.

We cannot live the whole of our lives in the glory of our transcendent Lord. We are in a sin-darkened world which Peter describes with words that translate to mean dirty, squalid and murky. The time will come when a new day dawns, preceded by the morning star. In classical literature the morning star is Venus, which rises in great brilliance before the dawn. But for Peter it must be Jesus (Rev 22:16). The words 'in your hearts' are thought by some scholars to belong to the next verse.

The Greek word for morning star is phosphorus, which means 'light-bringer'. Until the dawning of the day of Christ the prophetic word is like a light shining in a dark place. We should do well to give attention to it as society deteriorates and things become ever more difficult for those who are wholly committed to Christ.

Peter goes on to show that prophetic Scripture can be relied on totally because it originated not in the human mind or will but in the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. No true prophecy was ever produced by mere human effort. Never at any time was it man's initiative that brought into being the scriptures. Man had his part to play; dwelling in God's presence and listening to his voice, he was told to record what he heard but he had to be careful never to add his own thoughts. Peter likened the prophets to sailing boats carried along by the wind.

No true prophecy was ever produced by mere human effort. Man had his part to play, but he had to be careful to never add to what God was revealing.

Scripture could be depended upon as a light-bringer. The initiative in prophesying must always be with the Holy Spirit. As Paul says after listing the nine supernatural gifts, "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines" (1 Cor 12:11).

The corollary to Peter's statement, ie that it was the Spirit who originated Scripture, is that it can be neither understood nor interpreted by mere human ability. The modern practice of prophesying needs to be brought into line with the fact that no true prophecy ever comes from human initiative, also that no prophecy can be understood apart from the enabling of God's Spirit. How blessed are those who, though living in a wicked and dangerous world, nevertheless have the word of the prophets made more sure.

Prophetic Promises Remembered (2 Peter 3:1-4, 8-13)

Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Saviour through your apostles.

First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come...they will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised?...everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation"...but do not forget this one thing, dear friends: with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise...he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief...since everything will be destroyed...what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God...in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

Peter is concerned that the prophet's words concerning the destruction of both earth and heaven prior to the establishment of the new heaven and the new earth were being forgotten and were ceasing to have a challenging effect on the behaviour of God's people. He recalls the words of Jesus, who challenged the people of his day to watch "because you do not know on what day your Lord will come" (Matt 24:36-44).

Peter in his two letters makes three references to Noah and the Noachic flood (1 Pet 3:20; 2 Pet 2:5; 2 Pet 3:5). The promised flood was a long time in coming but finally it arrived and did exactly what God said it would do.

Isaiah had foretold the establishment of a new heaven and a new earth (Isa 65:17-19, 66:22) but the process was to involve the destruction of things as they are. Since their fathers had died things had gone on just the same and people blamed God for being dilatory. But Peter explained that the delay in fulfilling the promise was due to the patience of God and his great desire that none should perish. Peter told them it was not that God had forgotten but that he loved. The delay is no indication of divine forgetfulness but rather of compassion.

Peter warned believers that God's apparent delay in delivering his promised judgment on the world was due not to forgetfulness, but rather to divine compassion and love.

Patience is likewise required of God's people. The promise of the prophets is that the new heaven and the new earth will be preceded by universal destruction. This ought to exercise a profound effect on Christians' life and conduct.

To Sum Up...

Peter reviews the coming of the Messiah; unfolds the resources of the spiritual gifts; confirms the authority of the prophetic word; and reveals the importance of preparing for the day of the Lord.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 7 No 4, July/August 1991.

True prophets are those who have been set on fire by the Spirit of God.

When God began to reveal himself to Moses he chose to do so in flames of fire enveloping a bush. As Moses came upon the scene he was puzzled to see that, although the bush was on fire, it did not burn up. So he decided to look into the matter more closely. When the Lord saw that he had gone over to investigate, God called to him from within the bush.

What do we learn from this encounter about the nature of the God we worship, and what have today's prophets to learn from the fact that the God they proclaim is a consuming fire? (Ex 3:1-6).

Lessons at the Burning Bush

Moses was mystified to observe that, although the bush was obviously on fire, it was not consumed. This showed him that Yahweh, the God who had chosen to reveal himself to Moses, was completely self-sufficient. The flames needed no fuel. This God needed no help from anyone else. He was self-perpetuating. Therefore, he could be trusted absolutely.

Another lesson was that mortal man must not approach Yahweh. For God had said to Moses, "Do not come any closer...Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground". Moses had become aware that he was in fact being confronted by none other than God himself. "For Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God" (Ex 3:6).

The burning bush that was not consumed shows that God is completely self-sufficient and needs no help from anyone else – and therefore he can be trusted absolutely.

God subsequently told Moses that he was aware of the suffering of his people at the hands of their Egyptian overseers, and that he had come down to rescue them (Ex 3:7-8). By the conclusion of this encounter, Moses knew that God was totally self-sufficient, and that he was holy and must not be approached by sinful man. But he also knew that God cared about his people Israel and intended to rescue them from their Egyptian slavery in fulfilment of his covenant relationship with their fathers (Ex 3:6).

Other Revelations of God by Fire

The first incident in which God appears in fire comes at the end of the story of the fall of man, when God had to banish Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden and placed "cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life" (Gen 3:24). The Garden of Eden was closed to man because of his sin, and the flaming sword disclosed the wrath of a holy God on all who, like Adam, are disobedient.

However, the method of navigation in darkness which God gave to his pilgrim people reveals the beneficial use of fire. "By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night" (Ex 13:31). The same God who had banned them from Eden now took his place at the head of their wandering tribes to lead them by the pillar of fire until they reached their promised land.

The same God who banned his people from Eden with a flaming sword took his place at their head in Exodus, leading them by fire to the Promised Land.

Offerings Made by Fire

The Levitical offerings which prefigure the saving work of Christ and enable us to understand the way of salvation are listed in the book of Leviticus chapters 1 to 7, and it contains one phrase which repeats over 40 times. The offerings were made to the Lord "by fire" (Lev 2:3).

This fire, which was kindled by God himself, was never to be allowed to die. "The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out" (Lev 6:13). We are told that this "fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering, whereupon the people shouted for joy and fell face down" (Lev 9:24). The two sons of Aaron the high priest, Nadab and Abihu, dared to offer unauthorised fire on God's altar, and perished for their presumption (Lev 10:1-2).

Charles Wesley had the right attitude to the place of sacred fire in our reverence and esteem when he wrote, "O thou who camest from above the pure celestial fire to impart, kindle a flame of sacred love on the mean altar of my heart. There let it for thy glory burn with inextinguishable blaze".

In Leviticus we read about the sacred altar fire, kindled by God himself, which shows that he demands reverence and esteem.

Commandments Through the Fire

It was through the medium of fire, Moses told the people, that God spoke his commandments. Communication of the Law in this manner must have impressed Moses, for he refers to it at least nine times in the book of Deuteronomy:

Then the Lord spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice. He declared to you his covenant, the ten commandments which he commanded you to follow. (Deut 4:12-13)

The impression it had on Moses can be judged by his challenge to the people, "Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have and lived?" (Deut 4:33).

Proof by Fire

Centuries later the prophet Elijah brought a challenge to the prophets of Baal with the proclamation, "You call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord. The God who answers by fire - he is God!" (1 Ki 18:24). After hours of fruitless praying and screaming to their god, and at the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah stepped forward and quietly asked that God would vindicate his confidence and act. "Then the fire of the Lord fell...When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, 'The Lord - he is God. The Lord - he is God!'" (1 Ki 18:38-39).

Two Words for 'Burning'

There are at least nine words in the Hebrew Bible which can be translated 'burn', five of which occur only two or three times. One word, alah, means 'to ascend', but the other two are interesting because of the way in which they are used. The word qatar is reserved for those offerings, whether of incense or of sacrificial animals, the smells of which ascend to God as a pleasant aroma. On the other hand, the term saraph is reserved for destructive burning.

It is important to note this distinction, for the Bible throughout is careful to differentiate between the fire of God that destroys and the fire that blesses. Amos says, "This is what the Sovereign Lord showed: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire" (Amos 7:4). On the other hand, according to the prophet Zechariah, "Jerusalem will be a city without walls...I myself will be a wall of fire around it", declares the Lord" (Zech 2:4-5).

The different Hebrew words translated as 'burn' distinguish between the fire of God that destroys and the fire that blesses.

So the God of the Bible who is revealed to us in contrasting ways is both the consuming fire of Deuteronomy 4:24 and Hebrews 12:29 and the refining fire of Malachi 3:3-4 that purifies us until we are like gold and silver.

The Burning Heart of the Prophet

In the prophecy of Jeremiah, we have three examples of how the prophet reacted to his particular situation.

1. "Therefore this is what the Lord God almighty says: 'Because the people have spoken these words, I will make my words in your mouth a fire and these people the wood it consumes.'" These people had been saying that Jeremiah and other prophets were wind-bags (Jer 5:13) and that, despite their rebellious spirit, "no harm will come to us" (Jer 5:12). But God promises that he will make their words disappear like a pile of dry sticks when they are set alight.
2. "But if I say, 'I will not mention him or speak any more in his name. His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones...'" Jeremiah had decided that he could no longer serve as a prophet. He is not thrilled with the message God has given him, and bares his heart as he tells that the flame burning in his heart compels him to carry on despite all the problems (Jer 20:9).
3. "'Is not my word like fire', declares the Lord, 'and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?'" (Jer 23:29). In contrast with the false prophets and their powerless words, God's truth is like fire and like a hammer. It is both penetrating and purifying, and so should encourage all who have experienced frustration and pointlessness to begin again with new confidence in the fire of God's presence with them. Jeremiah's experience is beautifully expressed in the words of Psalm 39:2-3: "when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased. My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue."

To Jeremiah, God's word was like a fire burning in his heart and mouth, powerful and compelling.

His Servants Like Flames of Fire

These words from Psalm 104:4 indicate what God wants his servants to be. He wants them to blaze. This is why part of the experience of Pentecost is that of being completely immersed in the fire of God (Matt 3:11). On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of God came upon the disciples, and the visual manifestations that accompanied his presence were tongues of fire.

We can therefore conclude that a true prophet is someone who has been set on fire by the Spirit of God. He is one who has made a complete offering of himself to God, one who not only proclaims the fire of God's love but also reverences the God who is a consuming fire. He is one whose heart has been strangely warmed, and who can keep on speaking even when this makes him unpopular and unacceptable with the false prophets who are content to prophesy only what people want to hear (Jer 23: 16-18).

Seeing God as Fire

The prophet Ezekiel writes, "While I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. I looked and saw an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The centre of the fire looked like glowing metal..." (Ezek 1:1, 1:4). Ezekiel continues, "...he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him" (Ezekiel 1:27-28).

A true prophet has made a complete offering of himself to God, and proclaims the fire of God's love whilst also reverencing the God who is a consuming fire.

The experience of sitting among the exiles by the river for a week overwhelmed Ezekiel. Every prophet has times when all he can see is the disaster, the difficulty and the discouragement all around. How good if at that time we can also be envisioned to see Jesus "crowned with glory and honour" (Heb 2:9). Suddenly we experience the light and heat which streams to us from the God who is never cold and
forbidding but is always welcoming like a warm fire.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 7 No 1, January/February 1991.

Moses prophesied that a prophet like himself would one day be raised up by the Lord. This prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus – but does it end there?

It was Moses who prophesied that the Lord would raise up a prophet like himself, a prophet descended from the race of Israel who would be given God's words to proclaim. As one authorised to speak in God's name he would do so with divine authority, and God promised that he would punish anyone who refused to obey his message.

This provision was made when, on Mount Sinai, the people begged Moses that they would not again have to listen to God himself or to behold his fiery presence. God commended them for this request and promised instead that he would raise up in their nation a prophet who would mediate God's word to them (Deut 18:16-19).

God's Alternative to the Occult

The promise to send another prophet like Moses was (and is) given as an alternative to seeking guidance and help through witchcraft and spiritualism:

Don't let your people practise divination or look for omens or use spells or charms, and don't let them consult the spirits of the dead. The Lord your God hates people who do these disgusting things...in the land you are to occupy, people follow the advice of those who practise divination and look for omens, but the Lord your God does not allow you to do this. Instead, he will send you a prophet like me...and you are to obey him (Deut 18:10-15).

God's views do not change with the passing of time. He is still absolutely opposed to witchcraft, spiritism and any other kind of occult practices. Those who do these things arouse his anger. Such steps are in any case, unnecessary for his people because he has made provision for their guidance and well-being through the prophet like Moses.

God's Promise Fulfilled

The promise of God to send a prophet like Moses was fulfilled in two ways. Every time a prophet emerged in the course of Israel's history he would be seen to be the fulfilment of God's promise through Moses, even if only partially. Speaking to those who had witnessed the healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, Peter referred to God's promise of a prophet like Moses and saw its fulfilment in "all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken" (Acts 3:22-24).

An oft-repeated question down the years was, "Are you the prophet?", the question that was asked concerning John the Baptist and Jesus himself (John 1:21-25, Matt 16:14).

None of the succession of prophets that brought God's word to Israel down the years completely fulfilled Moses' promise - until the coming of Jesus. They spoke the words God gave them to speak, but he was the word, the complete speaking forth of the word of God. "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in many ways, but in these last times he has spoken to us by his Son..." (Heb 1:1-2).

None of the prophets through the years completely fulfilled Moses' promise – until Jesus. The prophets spoke the words of God - he WAS the Word of God.

After the crowd had witnessed the miraculous feeding of 5000 people they drew the conclusion, "Surely this is the prophet who is to come into the world" (John 6:14). The sermons preached to the early church show that Peter and Stephen believed that Jesus was the complete fulfilment of God's promise to raise up a prophet like Moses (Acts 3:22-23; 7:37).

Jesus is Like Moses

There are a number of fascinating parallels between the life of Moses and that of Jesus. Their young lives were spared in infancy (Ex 2:9-10; Matt 2:13-14). They both renounced a royal court to share their brothers' sufferings (Acts 7:22-23; Phil 2:6-8). Both were said to be meek (Num 12:3; Matt 11:29). Both were said to be faithful (Heb 3:2). Both were men with the compassion of a shepherd (Num 27:17; Matt 9:36). Each had the supreme privilege of beholding the face of God (2 Cor 3:7-13; John 1:18).

They were the ministers of covenants (Deut 29:12; Heb 8:6). Their ministry was to reveal God's will to his people (Deut 6:1; Matt 5:21-48) but where his will had been rejected both had a mighty ministry of intercession on behalf of those people (Deut 9:18-19; Heb 5:7 and 7:25).

Those with a prophetic ministry today do well to cultivate the qualities revealed in this summary of the characteristics of Moses and, supremely, those of the "greater than Moses" (Heb 3:3). Among the prophets heard today there are too many who have forgotten the warning "if I have no love my speech is no more than a noisy gong or a clanging bell" (1 Cor 13:1).

There are many fascinating parallels between the lives of Jesus and Moses, including character qualities that those with a prophetic ministry today would do well to imitate.

Jesus Spoke Only God's Words

The most important characteristic of 'the prophet like Moses' that the Lord promised to raise up for his people is this: "I will put my words in his mouth and he will tell them everything I command him" (Deut 18:18).

Jesus claimed that the initiative in his speaking always came from the Father, and that he never opened his mouth to say what he wanted to say: "I do nothing on my own initiative but I speak these things as the Father taught me" (John 8:28). "For I did not speak on my own initiative, but the Father himself who sent me has given me commandment, what to say and what to speak" (NAS) or, as the NIV helpfully translates, "what to say and how to say it".

If it is still true that "man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matt 4:4) (and we can be sure that the Lord has not changed his ideas on the subject), then we must face up to the fact that the well-being of God's people depends upon their regular attention to his word, spoken through his prophetic messengers.

It is still true that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word from the mouth of God. The well-being of God's people depends on their regular attention to his word.

How tragic that so many of the Lord's people have dished up every Sunday the latest theories and ideas currently being circulated in their particular group of churches; the experience and theories of their leadership or the latest humanistic conclusions of their Bible critics. God's people need his word spoken in the power of his Spirit, for there is no hope of their spiritual growth if this element is missing from their diet.

Jesus is THE Prophet

Although Moses' promise that God would raise up a prophet like him was partially fulfilled in the prophets subsequently sent to Israel and Judah, it was not until the coming of Jesus that Moses' promise was finally fulfilled. Those who heard him and watched what he was able to do came to the unanimous conclusion that he was THE promised prophet.

When Jesus raised the son of the widow of Nain from death: "They were all filled with awe and praised God. 'A great prophet has appeared among us' they said" (Luke 7:16). When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey "the whole city was stirred and asked 'Who is this?' The crowds answered 'This is Jesus the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee'" (Matt 21:10-11).

After Jesus' crucifixion two disconsolate followers journeying to Emmaus nevertheless said of him: "He was a prophet powerful in word and deed before God and all the people" (Luke 24:19). Later on a New Testament writer compares and contrasts Moses and Jesus. He declares them both to have been faithful but expresses the difference between them: "Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house...but Christ is faithful as a son over God's house" (Heb 3:5-6).

Proclaiming God's Standards

If we ask the question 'What is a prophet?' we find many aspects calling for attention in order to reach a complete definition. One aspect which stands out in any study of Moses or Jesus as examples of what a prophet should be is that they took a courageous stand for God's standards. One answer to the question 'What is a prophet?' must therefore be 'someone who makes God's will known and who makes obedience possible'.

God's laws are not designed to make life as miserable as possible but to open our lives to the fullness of his blessing. Hear the heartbeat of God in the words: "Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever!" (Deut 5:29).

God's laws are not designed to make life as miserable as possible, but to open our lives to the fullness of his blessing.

Prophets Like Moses Today

If a knowledge of God's standards and his will are the secret of his blessing in the church and in society as a whole, where are we to find those authorised to get the message over? There were prophets in the early church (e.g. Acts 11:28, 13:1-2, 15:32, 21:10). They were not office-bearers limited to one Christian community, neither were they elected to office or set apart by an ecclesiastical ceremony; they simply received a word from God and then proceeded to speak it wherever he sent them. They came and went as the Spirit moved them. The local church was required to test them and then to receive or reject their message.

The picture of these wandering prophets, unburdened by pastoral duties and uninvolved in ecclesiastical responsibilities, coming into a fellowship, speaking what God had given them to say and then departing elsewhere is one we need to recover today; that is, if we have the courage so to do.

Moses Spoke to the Nations

The word ecclesia is used in the Greek version of the Old Testament in Deuteronomy 18:16, where Moses refers to the 'church' of his day. What he said, however, was intended not just for a restricted community, but also, for all mankind.

In Old Testament days Nathan spoke to King David about his treatment of Bathsheba's husband (2 Sam 12:1-15); Elijah spoke about the way King Ahab and Queen Jezebel had appropriated Naboth's vineyard (1 Kings 21:17-29); Amos addressed the pampered women of Samaria who caused their husbands to oppress the poor so that they could sleep on ivory beds, over-eat and spend a fortune on beauty preparations (Amos 4:1 and 6:4-6); and Jonah was told to rebuke Nineveh (Jonah 1:2).

We accept that Old Testament prophets spoke the word of the Lord to rulers, cities and nations. Why then do prophets today operate almost exclusively in Christian circles?

In New Testament times, John the Baptist not only sought to prepare the hearts of the faithful for the coming Messiah but also rebuked Herod Antipas for his immorality and gave guidance to soldiers and tax-collectors (Luke 3:12-14, 19). We accept that Old Testament prophets spoke the word of the Lord to rulers, cities and nations. Why then are New Testament prophets today operating almost exclusively in Christian circles? In their day Chrysostom and Ambrose did not hesitate to speak God's word to emperors and others in authority. May God raise up prophets like Moses who will fearlessly declare God's standards to our rebellious, sick world.

First published in Prophecy Today, Vol 4 No 2, March/April 1988.