Messages
from the Bible
A Sermon by Dr. Neil Chadwick
During this past decade, there has been a revival of interest in the gift of prophecy. This is one of the several "Spiritual Gifts" which has had it's hills and valleys throughout the entire history of Jewish and Christian religious practice. There have been times when prophets and prophecy were well acknowledged and well accepted, and other significant periods of time when there was near silence of the prophetic word.
The first mention of a prophet was in connection with Abraham, when God spoke in a dream to the king who had mistakenly taken Abraham's wife, Sarah, into his home. God basically said, "You're a dead man, Abimilech; Sarah is a married woman, and not only that, she's married to a prophet!" (Genesis 20:3) What interests us greatly is that God called Abraham a prophet and supernaturally rescued his wife even though he had lied, saying that Sarah was his sister!
No further mention is made of prophets until the time of Moses, half a century later. It is then that we come to understand the fundamental meaning of the word. At the beginning of the Exodus story, God told Moses, "Your brother Aaron will be your prophet." (Exodus 7:1) The prophet then is the person who speaks for someone else.
During the days of Moses, two very significant statements related to prophets were made. One was when Joshua complained that a couple of men were prophesying, men who were not part of the organized leadership of the emerging national government. This was the first of many clashes between the charismatic and the bureaucratic. The response Moses gave was remarkable, itself becoming a prophetic utterance: "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD's people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!" (Numbers 11:29)
The other significant statement by Moses was part of his farewell address, preparing the people to enter into Canaan: "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him." (Deuteronomy 18:15) This of course was taken to be a Messianic promise, fulfilled in Jesus.
During the days of the Judges, at least two leaders were referred to as prophets, and we learn that from time to time there were schools of the prophets. During the period of the Kings, notable prophets brought messages from God to give guidance or to rebuke the national leaders. There was Gad (I Samuel 22:5, II Samuel 24:11), Nathan (II Samuel 7:2; 12:25; I Kings 1), Jehu (I Kings 16:7,12), along with better known prophets such as Elijah, Elisha, and the 15 writing prophets who have their names immortalized in the Bible - nearly one half of the Old Testament was written about, or by, prophets.
Then there was another long period of prophetic silence, finally broken by John the Baptist, who came in the spirit of Elijah. There are some who believe that John signified the end of the prophetic line ("The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John." - Luke 16:16). However, Jesus Himself was clearly viewed as a prophet. In the sermons of both Peter and Steven (Acts 3:22; 7:37) reference was made to the prediction of Moses that "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people." The common people saw Jesus as a prophet, and He accepted that identity when He said, "a prophet hath no honour in his own country." (John 4:44)
With the departure of Jesus the early church quickly recognized the prophetic function.
On the Day of Pentecost, Peter's sermon included a quotation from the prophet, Joel: "Your sons and daughters will prophesy" (Acts 2:17).
There were prophets in the dominantly Jewish church of Jerusalem (Acts 11:27) as well as in the emerging Gentile churches such as in Antioch (Acts 13:1). In fact, in that model church from which Paul's missionary ministry was launched, there were known to be only two sets of leaders - the prophets and the teachers.
Paul's churches continued to include prophets within the ministry and leadership functions of the churches (I Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 2:20; 4:11), and the last New Testament book, Revelation, was designated as prophecy (1:3) written by a prophet (22:9).
Before we proceed with the historical account, let's pause a moment to clarify our definition of prophecy. Simply put, the prophet is the person who speaks openly in the name of God. The prophet declares, or proclaims, "something which is not his own . . . he is the mouthpiece of God." (Friedrich VI, p.795) This idea was not limited to the Jewish people. The Greek word has its origin in the "Oracle of Dodona," prior to the 5th century BC. The oldest written account of this oracle has the "prophet" declaring the will of Zeus by lying on the ground and listening to and interpreting the sounds of the cooing of doves, the clanging of brass vessels, or the rustling of the wind blowing through the sacred oak tree when a black dove settled on it. The prophet or prophetess would then put into words and proclaim the meaning to those who were seeking his or her advice. (Friedrich VI, p.784) So when the Jewish scholars translated the Old Testament from Hebrew into Greek (1st century BC), this word "prophet" was their logical choice.
Before the church even reached it's 100th year, institutionalism had set in and was effectively quenching the spirit of prophecy. This had been the issue ever since Joshua wanted Moses to sanction Eldad and Medad because, unlike the others who prophesied, these two didn't stay at the Tabernacle when they prophesied (Numbers 11). Fast forward to Jesus' day where we see many parallels between Jesus and Moses. A similar issue arose with the disciples - they tried to stop a man who was casting out evil spirits ". . . because he is not one of us." (Luke 9:49)
By the middle of the second century, a man by the name of Montanus had gathered a large following, bringing division to the church. Primarily, his was a call for a revival of the prophets, for Montanus and his disciples prized the records of the teachings of Christ and his apostles, but believed, although not contradicting what had been said there, that the Holy Spirit continued to speak through prophets, both men and women. Montanism also "stressed a high standard of Christian living among Christian communities, into which laxity was beginning to creep." (Latourette, p.129)
Unfortunately, Montanus was branded a heretic, and his followers were expelled from the church. Nevertheless, this movement continued to wield influence for over two hundred years. At the same time, in the name of maintaining purity and unity, the organized church (called "catholic" from 155 on) further dispelled the charismatic prophet by doing three things: developing the doctrine of apostolic succession, creating an authoritative collection of scriptures, and formulating brief doctrinal statements known as the "Creeds". Soon after, the prophetic voice went silent.
Today there are Christians who believe that charismatic gifts such as prophecy, speaking in tongues, miracles and healings were withdrawn at the death of the last of the original twelve apostles. The irony of this is that these "cessationists" have a very high view of Scripture, and yet nowhere in the Bible is there even a hint given that such gifts were withdrawn. The truth is that throughout church history, these gifts have been repeatedly stifled because the "Spirit-inspired prophets . . . were a challenge to the administrative regularity represented by the bishops." (Latourette, p.134) Evidently the Apostle Paul feared this would happen, and that's why he wrote, "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt." (I Thessalonians 5:19,20)
Of course there are times when the message delivered by the prophet has to do with the future, and in the minds of many, this alone is what prophecy is about, foretelling. In this case the prophet is like the weather man, forecasting sunshine or rain for the coming days.
By the way, before ultrasound, women wanting to discover whether they would give birth to a boy or girl had several methods to choose from. They could tie their wedding band to a thread and swing it over the unborn baby. If it swings one way it would be a boy and if the other way, a girl. They could spit into Saniflush and if it turns one color it's a boy, if it turns another color it's a girl. Or, they could take the number of the month of conception and add the age of the mother at conception and if the total is even it's a girl, if it's odd then it is a boy. (Rev. Stanley L. Derickson - http://www.open.org/~mrdsnts/d03700.htm)
In the church, especially during the last 150 years, there has been great interest in the foretelling function of prophecy. Well attended prophecy conferences, and more recently the "Left Behind" books and videos have fed this hunger to know what will happen next. One of the earmarks of new religious groups has often been the convincing predictions their founders made concerning the soon coming end of the world.
William Miller, founder of the Millerite movement, which grew to over a million adherents, predicted that Jesus would come on March 21, 1843.
The Jehovah's Witnesses estimated that the start of the war of Armageddon would be in 1914. When the year passed, they changed their prediction to declare that 1914 was the year that Jesus invisibly began his rule.
Founder of the Worldwide Church of God, Herbert W Armstrong, predicted that the Day of the Lord would happen sometime in 1936.
Unification Church leader Rev. Sun Myung Moon predicted that the Kingdom of Heaven would be established in 1981.
Moses David, leader of "The Children of God," predicted that the Battle of Armageddon would take place in 1986. Russia would defeat Israel and the United States. A worldwide Communist dictatorship would be established, and in 1993, Christ would return to earth.
In recent years the renewed interest in prophecy has taken a different direction. Instead of focusing on prophesies which predict future events, the emphasis has been more on personal prophesies - words spoken from one person to another where the speaker gives a "word from the Lord" to the listener. In some cases these have been recorded and transcribed so that the one who received the prophetic utterance can refer back to it. Often these prophesies are seen as directives for a person's life choices or ministry involvements.
For example, the prophet Agabus prophesied that if Paul were to keep his plans to go to Jerusalem, he would be bound, i.e., taken into custody, by Jewish authorities and handed over to the Romans. To illustrate this, Agabus, in the tradition of some Old Testament prophets, symbolized the prediction by binding himself with a belt. (Acts 21:11) Of course this personal prophecy did not deter Paul from his plan; although the prediction was accurate, Paul did not view it as a message intended to keep him from going to Jerusalem.
The other examples have to do with the commissioning of church missionaries. There were prophets present when Barnabas and Saul were sent out from the Antioch church according to a word spoken during their prayer meeting (Acts 13:1). Later, during the Second Missionary Journey, the elders would lay hands on young Timothy, and a prophetic word was spoken which launched his ministry as a protégé of Paul (I Timothy 1:18; 4:14).
However, there is an important distinction to be made concerning the personal prophecies as noted in the New Testament compared with what is now taking place in some churches. Although a particular person may have been singled out as the recipient of the prophetic word, there were others present who were capable of judging the content (I Corinthians 14:29). When Paul earlier had cautioned the Thessalonians to "not treat prophecies with contempt," he quickly added, "Test everything. Hold on to the good." (I Thessalonians 5:20,21) This same caution was given by John, "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." (I John 4:1) This harks back to the familiar Proverb, "In multitude of counselors there is safety." (Proverbs 24:6) In other words, prophetic utterances, words claimed to be spoken though the inspiration of the Spirit, must be subjected to another gift of the Spirit - discernment.
So we have seen that there has been a revival of prophecy as it has to do with predicting future salvation events, and there has been a revival of personal prophecies. Both of these are pleasing to us because they either satisfy our human longing to see into the future, or simplify our decision making by receiving miraculous guidance. However, there is a third revival of prophecy that, in most of the church, is still waiting to happen, a kind of Biblically promoted prophecy that isn't so much about personal gratification or guidance, but about building up the church, the Body of Christ.
This is the kind of prophecy Paul wrote about in his corrective letter to the church at Corinth. In these two key chapters (I Corinthians 12 and 14), Paul seeks to bring the church back from the brink of uncontrolled ecstasy and chaos and develop a balance within their worship gatherings. The Apostle doesn't want tongues to be forbidden (12:39), and in fact hopes that they all, like him, will speak in tongues (12:5). However, when the church is gathered in their worship assemblies, Paul clearly teaches that prophecy is preferable because the prophet speaks in a language everyone can understand. In the worship setting, speaking in tongues is acceptable so long as the message is interpreted so that it will have the same affect - God's Word will be heard, understood, and hopefully heeded. When this happens, the whole church is built up. In this case then, prophecy is speaking God's message under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for the benefit of everyone present.
An obvious and oft repeated question is, "Why do we need prophecy when we have the Bible?" What's interesting about this is how history tends to repeat itself, for this is a similar question asked by the Jewish Rabbis on into the fourth century A.D. One Rabbi, Mar Shemuel (254 AD) flatly stated that "no prophet has any right to say anything which is not contained in the Torah." Another Jewish Rabbi, R. Jehoshua b. Levi believed that "Moses spoke already all the words of the prophets and everything prophesied later derives from the prophecy of Moses." And R. Jishaq (300 AD) went so far as to put words in Isaiah's mouth saying "From the day that the Torah was given at Sinai I am there and I have received this prophecy."
In our own day a similar refrain is heard when Christian teachers claim that all that God has ever said, or ever will say, is written in the Bible. Talk about putting God in a box! Of course we believe that the Bible is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and any teaching that contradicts what is written there should be rejected. But to think that God stopped talking when the church finally got around to closing the canon - three hundred years after Jesus left earth - that is just too fantastic. Besides, plenty of heretics have based their teachings on the Bible, or at least that's what they have said. The truth is, we need both the Spirit and the Word. Yes, the teaching from the Book is essential, but can too easily be reduced to becoming religious dogma or a legal document, the "dead letter of the law." What we need is the living, breathing Spirit that gives life through the prophetic word.
Today, the voice of the prophet, speaking the word of the Lord with fresh application, needs to be heard throughout the land. Would to God that He would raise up in our church, and in every church, two or three prophets, holy men and women who speak God's word clearly, faithfully reminding us that He is a living, present, jealous, enabling God.
The fourteenth chapter of I Corinthians begins and ends with an appeal for the development of the gift of prophecy. "Eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy," Paul writes, "be eager to prophesy." My question is, why have we for so long neglected this exhortation? The value of prophecy is clearly outlined:
Prophecy results in revelation, knowledge, or word of instruction. (v.6)
Prophets edify the church (v.4), so that where there is prophecy, maturity is likely to follow. (v.20)
Prophecy also has an affect on unbelievers who will ". . . fall down and worship God, exclaiming, 'God is really among you!'" (vs.24,25)
Let's be reminded that the Bible verse behind our church's name is Jeremiah 6:16: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
Sometimes they look and sound angry, sometimes there are tears in their eyes and they can hardly speak a word without sobbing - but at other times they shout joyful reminders that it won't be long before we will arrive at the eternal city. They are the prophets, prompted by the Spirit, speaking the very words of God to all who care to listen. They have no credentials or letters of authorization, but we all know in our hearts that they speak the truth. They are dressed no differently from us, and they speak in a language we can all understand. But still they speak for God.
"Oh God," we pray. "Raise up prophets from this church, to speak God's Word to this church and beyond. Although we will spiritually evaluate their message, we will neither silence them nor turn a deaf ear, but will receive them as the very messengers of God."
The Revival of Prophecy
1. What is the Bible's first mention of a prophet, and what is surprising about this reference?
2. How does the relationship between Moses and his brother help us understand the role of the prophet?
3. Who were Eldad and Medad, and what was Joshua's complaint against them?
4. What are the names of some of the prophets who do not have Bible books named for them?
5. Some people believe that John the Baptist was the final prophet. Why do we no accept this?
6. What Old Testament quote did Peter include in his Pentecost sermon to support the continuance of the prophetic ministry?
7. Why do you think the institutionalization of the church tends to quench the prophetic spirit?
8. What three factors within the "catholic" church worked to bring an end to the prophetic function, all in the name of doctrinal purity and unity of fellowship?
9. What explains the preoccupation with the future found both outside and inside the church?
10. What Biblical examples can be given for "personal prophecies," and what safety feature was built into them?
11. What was the main motivating factor behind Paul's teaching concerning prophecy in I Corinthians 12-14?
12. What is the relation between the written word, the Bible, and the spoken word, prophecy?
13. What would be some of the benefits of allowing prophecy to be included in our worship gatherings?
14. How can we go about fulfilling Paul's command, "be eager to prophesy"?
The Revival of Prophecy
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A preoccupation with the future is everywhere, both inside and outside the church. In the world it's connected with gambling and the stock market, as well as fortune tellers, horoscopes, palmistry, Ouija boards, astrology, crystal balls, tarot cards, séances and tea leaf reading. The industry of prophecy is thriving, with Americans spending over two hundred million a year on astrology and three hundred million a year on calls to psychic hot-lines - all of it related to a desire to discover the future. A couple of years ago, a popular TV program speculated what would happen if someone received the daily newspaper a day early. Situated in Chicago, Gary Hobson received an "Early Edition" of the Sun Times each morning, and then spent his days frantically trying to rescue people from their inevitable fate.
Mormonism was founded by Joseph Smith who in 1832 claimed to have heard a voice and interpreted it as implying that if he lived to the age of 85, Jesus would return.
Of course we understand that such personal prophesies are not totally foreign to the New Testament.
Prophecy strengthens, encourages and comforts. (v.3)
The ancient path, the good way, not only winds its way through orchards ripe with the "Fruit of the Spirit," through the pastures of the pastors tending the flock of God, and up and down the hills and valleys of trials and temptations. But the sure way to know that we are still on the ancient path is that at random intervals along the way are posted the prophets.
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