In the book 'Prophecy Past and Present' Clifford Hill set out twelve biblical tests of prophecy. These were compiled from reading the Didache and other Early Church writings, which present a picture of practices in the early centuries of the Christian church.

When writing to the Thessalonians Paul urged the church not to dampen the fire of the Holy Spirit or to treat prophecies with contempt, but to test everything they received. They were to hold on to that which was good but reject “every kind of evil” (1 Thess 5:19-21). These tests need to be studied carefully by the churches today, and especially by ministers and worship leaders who have leadership responsibilities within the body of Christ.

The following is a brief summary of those tests:

1) Prayer. All prophetic revelation should be received in prayer and should be prayed over carefully for discernment.

2) Witness of the Spirit. Those who have the Spirit of God within them should have an immediate witness of the Spirit as to whether what they are hearing is of the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of truth - or is from some other source.

3) Scripture. No prophecy today will contradict the revealed word of God in the Bible. If it is not in accord with scripture it is false.

4) Meditation. It is sometimes necessary to take time to discern the significance of a prophetic revelation and whether or not it is a clever deception or truly a word from God.

5) Confirmation. If the word truly comes from God there will usually be confirmation of this through various ways.

6) Unity. If the word is truly from the Lord and there is love and trust within the fellowship, a prophetic revelation will increase unity and all the believers will affirm it to be a word from God. If not, there is something wrong, either with the word or in the fellowship, and there is great need for that fellowship to pray together until love and unity flow through the body.

7) Build up. Every true prophetic revelation will build up the faith of the body of Christ even if it is a difficult word.

8) Love. Every true prophetic word will be spoken in love even if it is a call for repentance.

9) Glorify Christ. Every true word that comes from God will always glorify Christ.

10) Conditions. If a prophetic word is one that includes a promise of either blessings or judgment, there will be conditions.

11) Fulfilment. If the word is of a predictive nature and is truly of God, it will be fulfilled.

12) Character. The moral and spiritual character of the prophet was always regarded as of crucial importance in the New Testament churches and in the Early Church of the first few centuries. So it should be today. For God does not use unholy lives through whom to convey his precious word to his people.