And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,…
Prophets in the Bible are almost always connected to the monarchy – not always, but almost always. Their job is to keep the leadership honest and following God’s commands. They are the only ones with the authority to correct the king, and they are a constant reminder to the king that his kingdom is not his own. The kingdom belongs to God.
Many prophets dealt with issues of social justice and the need for the kingdom to care for its poor and needy. On occasion, they also weighed in on military strategy, and this is where we usually see the “future predictions” – “God will deliver them into your hands”, “Send out the band and then soldiers”, “Don’t trust Egypt”, those kinds of things.
Today, prophets are the ones who see the failings in church leadership, see when we are straying from God’s Word, and how we as a church address social issues. The prophet’s job is to offer correction and encouragement, but with a broken heart that reflects God’s broken heart over our sins. The prophet is supposed to primarily be support and prayer cover for leadership and the body.
Prophets aren’t just attacked by their leaders…
The problem is that too often people who are called to this role get puffed up in our own self-importance, or leadership has been burned by prophets that were. And when a prophet forgets their place, tries to take over a church, demand allegiance for themselves, or merely says things to gain favor with leadership, we become useless to the body. Our motives become corrupted and therefore every word we speak is also corrupted.
A prophet today is not validated by their ability to predict the future, but rather in their humility while not compromising what God has said. We sometimes get “words of knowledge”, “prophetic words” or “corrective words”. A “word of knowledge” is supernatural insight into a situation for which they had no knowledge of apart from God’s revelation to them through the Holy Spirit. In many of these occurrences, there is a need or issue in another person’s life where they need to be the physical presence of one who represents God’s love and mercy to speak into their lives.
A prophetic word is often more strategic. I have known of situations in which a prophetic voice encouraged change in ministry programs, finding people to fill vital roles within the church, warned of potential dangers or pitfalls. In one instance, a prophetic voice encouraged the purchase of land that years later would impact traffic flow in and out of the church parking lot due to a change in city streets.
A corrective word is just that – word of correction revealing the need for discipline. A fellow believer is in sin, and God desires that this sin should be addressed in specific and concrete terms leaving no room for doubt that a change has to be made. This often resembles a word of knowledge as these are often hidden sins. Sins that one believes are not harming another because no one knows, and it is just between them and God. However, that illusion comes crashing down when they are confronted by someone who knows through God’s direct intervention.
A note on a delivering the corrective word – There are two distinct temptations when one is called to deliver a corrective word. One is to feel morally superior and smug over another’s failure. Another is to be offended and outraged that anyone would engage in such behaviors. Going to someone while entertaining either of these attitudes is almost always a recipe for disaster, denial, and defense. God’s heart is grieved when relationship is broken, and one of the hallmarks of a true prophet is the ability to feel what God feels. If there is no grief over another’s sin then it is probably wise to remain silent and in prayer until you can.
Each of these manifestations of the prophetic gifting the church today overlap and often blur into each other. What they all share is that they are the result of supernatural revelation and wisdom that exceed human ability or perception. A true prophetic word for the church only applies to very specific instances within the church, will not violate Scripture, and all were given to help protect or heal another.
They are not new additions to the Bible and they are not binding outside of the community in which they were given, although they might be informative for other churches or people facing similar situations. And while there may be elements of foretelling the future in some cases, the emphasis of prophecy should always be the revelation of God’s heart that is consistent with our ultimate standard first revealed in his Word.
Did you know that over a quarter of the named prophets in the Bible are women? I (Doug) learned this and much more from guest writer Emily Dixon, who is the author of “Scandalous: What Good Christians Girls Don’t Talk About But Probably Should” and co-host of the Faith and Other Oddities podcast. I recommend both.
The header image is from the Rothschild Canticles, circa 1390 (Beinecke MS 404). It’s a picture of Jesus embracing Mary after the Resurrection.
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