Everybody seems to know what prophecy is. When it comes to prophecies, one can safely say that the people are the judge. The fastest way to lose credibility is to be a professional predictor in the name of the Lord. It takes one audacious, but failed prediction to earn you an indelible tag.
This simplicity in the understanding of prophecy is derived from the literal meaning of prophecy itself. The word, prophecy, is a combination of two words, “pro” (before) and “phemi” (make clear or clarify, assert as priority). So, prophecy is that which was made clear or asserted before it happens. In a nutshell, prophecy is equivalent to accurate prediction.
Prophecy and prophet are kindred words. A prophet is the person who makes clear before it happens. In other word, a prophet is the one who made the prediction.
With this simple, root word definition, almost every prediction could pass as prophecy. The difference between prophecy and other types of predictions though, is that, while predictions based on statistical and empirical results owe their accuracy to some human or man-made mechanisms, prophecies assume a basically supernatural origin. They owe their sources to some super-human intelligence, and that is why their failure is so disgraceful.
When the prediction fails, the individuals are tagged false prophets, and their predictions, false prophecies. It is in this sense that the predictions of Nostradamus are also called his prophecies. But, prophecy has a deeper meaning than mere predictions.
The complexity of prophecy stems from the fact that not all that is called prophecy is indeed prophecy. The best definition of prophecy is found in Rev.19:10. It is more of a description than a definition.
“And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See you do it not: I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. “ (KJV).
Let’s read the same verse from other translations.
I fell at his feet to worship him, but he wouldn’t let me. “Don’t do that,” he said. “I’m a servant just like you, and like your brothers and sisters who hold to the witness of Jesus. The witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” (The Message)
Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus. (NLT)
This description elucidates two arms of genuine prophecy. On one side, prophecy is a prediction that originates and points to God. Note the phrase, “…the spirit of prophecy…” Think of this as the spirit that inspires, drives, gives, utters, and administers prophecy. It is the testimony of Jesus, or witnessing for Jesus Christ. This “metadata” introduces a qualification to the general meaning of prophecy. The NLT is more direct. It says, “… the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus …” That means, merely declaring events before they happen does not qualify as prophecy. It is prophecy only when there is Jesus in it. It is a prophecy when there is in it an element of God’s glory, or something that points your attention back to God.
Genuine prophecies must, in one way or the other, convey to us the mercies, love, goodness, favour, warning, admonition, comfort, etc. of the Lord, or an exhortation from the Lord. Every true prophecy comes from God and points man to God. Anybody could tell you what the next big event or success is that lies ahead of you; but if there is nothing there to point you to God, then it’s a mere prediction.
We can see this pattern in the prophecy of Jeremiah. He called for Johanan son of Kareah and the other guerrilla leaders, and for all the people, from the least to the greatest. He said to them, “You sent me to the LORD, the God of Israel, with your request, and this is his reply: ‘Stay here in this land. If you do, I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you. For I am sorry about all the punishment I have had to bring upon you. Do not fear the king of Babylon anymore,’ says the LORD. ‘For I am with you and will save you and rescue you from his power. I will be merciful to you by making him kind, so he will let you stay here in your land.’
“But if you refuse to obey the LORD your God, and if you say, ‘We will not stay here; instead, we will go to Egypt where we will be free from war, the call to arms, and hunger,’ then hear the LORD’s message to the remnant of Judah. This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and live there, the very war and famine you fear will catch up to you, and you will die there. That is the fate awaiting every one of you who insists on going to live in Egypt. Yes, you will die from war, famine, and disease. None of you will escape the disaster I will bring upon you there.’ (Jer.42:7-17).
This prophecy restores the faith and confidence of Judah to God. It makes Judah to draw closer to God, instead of going farther. It tells what God would do. It showcases God to the people of God.
Prophecy in the New Testament
In the New Testament, we see the second arm of prophecy. Prophecy is not just about declaring the future and pointing to God; it also carries the meaning of inspired utterance. And, this inspired utterance comes as you engage in the preaching of the Gospel. As you testify about Jesus, you could prophesy, that is, God could speak through you. Not every preaching or teaching in the New Testament qualifies as prophecy. It takes a man who has yielded himself to the Holy Spirit to prophesy when he is teaching or preaching. He delves into prophecy when he begins to utter the mind of God, whether consciously or unconsciously. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit that activates prophecy. To spew out memorized Scripture verses, sermons, stories and Gospel phrases, does not qualify as prophecy. Whether you are teaching or preaching, it is prophecy when you are speaking from the heart, pressed in the spirit, yielding your faculties to the Holy Spirit and uttering the mind of God for that moment.
For the preachers and teachers of the New Testament, their grand business is to bear testimony to the Saviour. Prophecy or prophesying is the gift of communicating and enforcing revealed truth. Those truths could relate to past, present or future significance. That is why theologians say that prophecy could be forth-telling or foretelling.
When we put these two arms together, we come to see that prophecy is an utterance inspired by the Spirit of God, and that leads back to God. The inspired utterance could relate to something past, present or future; it could be preaching, teaching, or exhortation that expresses the mind of God for the moment. The major purpose of prophecy is to exhort, comfort, and build the body of Christ.
Personal Prophecies
Most personal prophecies tell only a part of the story. In the heat of prayer meeting, someone walks up to you and says, “Your husband is on the way. By this time next year, you will have your wedding”. And it came to pass. Another person was told, “A big contract is coming to you”. And it came to pass. All these are one part of the story; the second part is, why is God doing that miracle? For some people, it could be so that God would prove His faithfulness; for another person, it could be so that the business man would use that money to further the interest of the Kingdom, etc. If you have been given one-sided prophecy which came to pass, you would be wise to search the Scriptures and prayerfully find out the second part of that story. If you fail to fulfill the purpose that is attached to that miracle, it would become a judgement, instead of blessing to you. Let’s look at the life of Esther as an example.
What motivated Mordecai to release Esther for the Beauty Queen Contest? If there had been a prophecy that Esther would become the Queen, at the end of the exercise the prophecy was fulfilled. It was a miracle. Yes, Esther had become Queen, but to what purpose?
It took several years before Esther discovered the purpose of the miracle. The Jews faced extermination threat. They needed help, and that helped was in the hands of Esther.
Mordecai said to Esther, “Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13-14).
Through Esther God delivered the Jews. And, through Esther a godly lineage that would later produce Cyrus, was initiated in the heathen land.
Granted that you may never fully comprehend the purposes of God for the prophecy, it is to our advantage to understand purpose as much as possible, so that the beneficiary of prophecy would yield himself to the fulfillment of those prophecies. And, when other Divine purposes are not known, it would be important not to forget that the main purpose for prophecy is to comfort, exhort, and build you in the faith.
Do not be addicted to prophecies
The hallmark of prophecy is what God has already revealed in the Scriptures. There are two extremes to avoid, namely, despising prophecies and depending on prophecies. Paul taught the Church and said,
“Do not extinguish the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt, but test all things. Hold fast to what is good”. (1Thes.5:19-21).
If the people of God are eager to hear from God, there would always be prophecies, but the habit of desperately seeking for prophecies on every issue is a fault. The rush for “Man of God, prophesy for me…” is an error. Declaring God’s Word over our lives is prophecy. God would rather have the believer life by faith in God’s Word than be addicted to personal prophecies.
Things to Ponder
- What is your attitude to prophecies?
- Are you addicted to personal prophecies? If yes, you would need to adjust.
- Do you resent prophecies? If yes, you would need to more accommodating.
- Do you consider the written Word of God as the ultimate prophecy? If not, you would have to.
- Do you have absolute confidence in God’s written Word? If not, you really have to.
As you prayerfully ponder over these issues, may God illuminate your understanding, and make you strong in the Word of God, while not despising prophesying, in the name of Jesus Christ.
To all our friends, partners, and the saints of God in general, we at Meizon Ministries wish you and your love ones, HAPPY NEW YEAR!