Prophecy and the Prophetic – Part 2

(Revelation 19:10)

Continuing on this theme, I retained the same Bible reference because of its importance.  Apart from the Spirit of Christ leading us, a spiritual gift becomes corrupted.  We learn to be in tune with the Lord.  We learn to speak only what we hear Him say.  I have made mistakes, not rightly understanding a situation or the Lord’s thought on it and said things I ought not have said.  Timing is also a part of using our gift maturely.  I have learned this in practical ways such as not bringing up money issues with my wife early in the morning.  Bad timing.  If we find ourselves always wanting to share our revelation, we may need to learn to defer so that others have opportunity to share theirs.

We also learn that God’s truth can be spoken without it sounded like a “prophecy”.  The Lord speaks to us in a way we can understand.  He knows our personal and cultural language.  It seems to me this is an overlooked part of 1 Cor. 13 where Paul writes about speaking with the languages of men and of angels.  That includes earthly languages.  Are we speaking to show off or are we led by the Spirit to bring a timely and truly helpful word?  He spoke in parables and used natural realities to teach spiritual truths.  The Bible is full of the Lord speaking to us through natural pictures.

Since the time of Christ upon this earth, the Lord has been speaking.  He was speaking before Christ’s appearing but He clarified and magnified the message in His Son, Jesus Christ.  Read Hebrews chapter 1 again.  Knowing the Son and the only true God is the essence of it all.  The Holy Spirit was poured out to be carried to the ends of the earth by transformed messengers.  So we are today.  As He is, so are we in this world.  We become the message.  Yes, we speak but it is also the Spirit when people are drawn to us because they recognize something in us.  When they see, when they hear Christ in us, the hope of glory, they desire that glory.  His glory is His life.

John knew the Lord closely, intimately, by the Spirit, before his eyes were opened wider on Patmos.   He was given a full revelation of the awesome One, the Lamb of God.  And the Lord and angels gave him messages of things yet to come.  His revelation is similar to Daniel’s and Ezekiel’s and Isaiah’s.  The Lord was still speaking through His servants, whom He called prophets.  Looking back we see fulfillments.  Jesus prophesied (foretold) of the destruction of Jerusalem.  Every believer, and I suppose some non-believers, have read Matthew 24.  Jesus says that the end will be as it was in the days of Noah.  Simply understood, those who are in a hearing relationship with God will prepare.  The others, with evil in their hearts will be taken away.  The Lord brought a flood of rain and waters from underground.  He will do it by fire at the last day, the great and terrible day of the Lord.  Further, He says, two will be side by side and one will be taken away and the other left.  They are at work, at their places of daily responsibility.  Who was taken away in the flood?  The wicked, evil-hearted ones.

Jesus, knowing the Father’s perspective and ways, knew the temple would not stand.  The system under the religious, the combination of Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, Essenes, and others, was desolate.  It could not bring life.  That system was wiped away in 70 AD.  It’s continuation by some today is still desolate and dead without Christ.  Jesus told of a situation and warned that when they saw an abomination in a desolate place, they should flee to the mountains.  Like Lot, they would be safe there.  This going higher to safety is a natural, but a spiritual picture as well.    We draw close to the Lord as He warns of coming trouble.

The Bible, in the new testament writings, is full of warnings so that we may prepare.  In Acts, we twice read of Agabus, who spoke of a coming famine, and later, gave a personal prophecy regarding Paul.  In the second case he gave a visual demonstration as well as words concerning what Paul would soon experience.  Note that in Acts 21:10, it’s recorded that he made a trip to deliver that message.  That is a picture of being directed by and obeying the Spirit.  The Lord does the same with us today.

We are all learning to follow the Spirit’s lead today.  In the Lord’s eternal purpose, nothing is new under the sun.  It may be new to us personally.  May we remain open vessels to receive new understandings of what God ordained beforehand that we should walk in.  When He comes He will reward us for what we have done.  That will not include those works of our own, done independently of relationship with Him.  Those will be burned in the fire.  Whatever we do, whatever we say, may it be done in love and humility as He leads.

Prophecy and the Prophetic

(Revelation 19:10)

The importance of words remains foremost in my mind.  Life and death are in the power of the tongue.  I have learned some personal lessons here.  As with any principle of truth, we can try to live by this one.  Life does not operate that way.  We live by the Spirit, and we learn to walk by that same Spirit.  Similarly we need to learn to talk by that Spirit.  Walking and talking go together.  I will mention some extreme examples of words spoken that do not seem right to us.  Jesus cursed a fig tree and it shriveled and died.  Peter confronted Ananias concerning his hypocrisy and he dropped dead.  He then told his wife Sapphira that she would be carried out dead also.  (Acts 5:1-11)  Some speak of this as if their holding back part of their property was the cause of death.  I don’t hear the Spirit say that.  I understand the story that their hypocrisy, their lying, caused their quick departure.  The church was newly born and the Spirit cut off that hypocrisy abruptly and gave a tough love lesson to the church.

Peter had insight by the Spirit and asked questions that confirmed what he, Peter, was understanding.  Peter did not cause their death, but he cooperated with the Spirit for the Lord’s purpose to proceed.  This is an aspect of what we call prophetic.  During the Reformation, many truths were restored in principle and men and women began to again walk in them.  The corrupted “church” of the Dark Ages had buried much truth.  One such truth is that every true follower of Christ is a prophet, priest, and king.  Let’s focus on the prophet aspect and look at the reference scripture.  The testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy.  True prophecy will bear the image of Christ, of Jesus.  It will smell, feel, and taste like Jesus.  If my spirit does not bear witness to words from someone, I do not receive them.  Jesus and the apostles warn us of false prophets.  Have you known of such?

I have.  I have written of a specific experience of discerning self-ambition in so-called ministry and will not repeat the details here.  The heart of the matter is motivation.  Is one seeking their own glory in their use of a gift from God, or are they truly looking for the life of God to be increased in the one receiving?  In 1 Cor. 14, Paul refers to prophecy as that which edifies, that which builds someone up in their spirit, in their inner man.  True words from God should encourage one to go with God.  This can include correction.  We need to be open to correction.  Many have gone away from the Lord because they cannot make changes.  Often a wound remains from the past.  In other cases, a purely rebellious, wicked spirit can be at work.  Consider Ananias and Sapphira again.  Self-ambition.  Read the previous portion in Acts concerning Barnabas.  They wanted to look good and be admired like Barnabas.  Such is criminal activity in God’s house.  I have known it and had to severely end a relationship with a man in ministry because he was using me and my family.

When the life of a larger group, church, or ministry is in danger of corruption, a strong word may come.  When it is not heeded, separation may come.  Take a look at the history of the church at large.  Our problems rise to schisms when we then think we are superior to the others.  The issue is to go on with God and of necessity leave the others behind.  That always includes humility.  Some of those who have missed God may turn again later.  Ultimately, it is God’s house.  He dropped Ananias and Sapphira.  I know that word sounds brutal.  Imagine being there and seeing it firsthand.  It should cause us to go to the Lord and stay in a place of humility.  Great fear fell on them all.  But not all prophecy is severe.  In fact it is far and away to encourage the hearer to one end; to press on, to continue on to know the Lord.  Whatever gift, whatever the Spirit may work in us, we remain a vessel in His hands.  It is not about us, that is, the focus should be on the Lord Himself.  True prophecy increases the life of Christ in the hearer.  If it doesn’t bring you closer to the One who is worthy of your life, let it slide away.  And be aware the next time that person talks with you.  If you do not receive something of value, look for real fellowship elsewhere.

Logos and Rhema

(Hebrews 1:1-3)

God has spoken to the world through His Son.  He sent His Son and gave Him as the Lamb, the sacrifice to end all sacrifices.  Our activity is simply to agree, receive, give thanks, and present our bodies a living sacrifice every day.  And to be still so that we might hear what the Spirit of Christ may say to us today.  Today if you would hear His voice, harden not your hearts.  His words are given through the written word where we read the facts of spiritual truth.  This is logos.

The writer of Hebrews begins with the thought of the preeminence of Christ.  Some think Paul wrote that letter and some think it Apollos or some other.  I tend to the thought that it was Paul and he did not identify himself because of the opposition to himself among Jews.  We ought to recognize that some come to a reception of the truth quickly, and for others it takes some time, from our perspective.  We can never rush someone else into revelation and true spiritual relationship with Jesus.  We cannot make it happen.  We cannot do it for ourselves.  But we can, and must respond, to the revelation we receive.

Whoever the writer of Hebrews was, he wrote to those who still held onto some of the old.  Read the entire letter and much is included to help us to leave the shadows.  Everything done through the law and the prophets was a type and shadow.  As I write that, it does not mean that God was not the author of it all by the Spirit.  Here is a mystery.  That means it is simply the truth that His ways are higher, deeper, and wiser, that ours.  His ways include mystery that we cannot grasp by analysis.  The idea of dispensationalism is that God changes the way He works.  I think it is better to say He chose to reveal Himself to mankind in an increasing clear manner.  His revelation culminated in sending His Son to take on human flesh (incarnation) and being sacrificed for us.  And He was raised from the dead without any work through any human vessel.  While the prophets had done similar miraculous works, Jesus’ resurrection was uniquely God alone.

Malachi is the last recorded prophet included in what we call the canon of scripture.  He was in the period of history we call the Old Testament.  At a much later point in history, men earnestly considered what should be included in the Bible, as the written record of the Lord’s relationship with mankind.  We ought to say that some include other writings.  We avoid such debates here.  The point of this is that we have a written record and we need to pay close attention to it.  If we think we can operate outside or apart from what is written, we are open to deception.  Jesus Himself used what was written in the law and the prophets to resist Satan himself.  This was direct confrontation.

I believe the Lord’s hand was upon those who confirmed which books were collected into what we call the Old Testament.  But we miss the entire message if we do not understand that the word testament is another word for covenant and that is a relationship upon which the writings are based.  It is much more than a collection of stories or principles.  The law and prophets provide a record of a family relationship that had failed but set the stage for the Savior.  Natural Israel was to be the bride of the Lord but she could not.  The flesh profits nothing.

Through Malachi, the Lord ended the record of His controversy with Israel.  We should understand in that period few understood God’s mercy and grace as well as His severity.  And I don’t think anyone understood His highest nature is that of Father.  They would never use that word.  Yet Moses, Elijah, and David were men who lived that experience.  Moses spoke to the Lord as a friend.  His was a close relationship.  Same with Elijah and David.  The psalms tell us that the Lord’s ways are lovingkindness and truth.  By the new birth, we come into a living relationship as a child and the normal spiritual life in Christ is to grow to full spiritual maturity.

These words are from the Spirit.  They are expressions of the truth in the Bible.  The apostles who wrote the gospels and the letters had close spiritual walks with the Lord.  He desires that for all of us.  The words that the Lord, in the still small voice would speak to us, are apples of gold.  If they do not line up with what’s written we should question them.  When something is called gold it is divine.  It’s from God.  It has His life in it.  It produces goodness, righteousness, in the one who hears and receives it.  It brings faith.  Faith comes by hearing and hearing by a word of God.  And that is the rhema, the spoken, the uttered word of God.  This spoken word is spiritual, and it has at times been physically heard.