The Gift of the Prophets

Throughout this series, we’ve been chatting through the equipping or “ascension gifts” that are listed in Ephesians Chapter 4. As we’ve looked at Scripture, we’ve seen that these gifts are still active and urgently needed for the church to be all that Jesus intends for her to be, mature and healthy. In my last blog, we looked at the gift of the Apostle as one who is “sent” to start new Gospel works or to strengthen and encourage already established churches. Today I want to zero in on another one of the controversial gifts, the Prophetic gift.

Like we did with the apostles, before we dive into who prophets are and what their ministry is all about, I want to make a clear distinction about what prophetic leaders are not.

A prophetic leader is not…

Someone whose statements are infallible and equal to Scripture.

Just as Scripture is perfect but can be misinterpreted, genuine prophecy is perfect but can, too, be misinterpreted. That being said, when prophecy is spoken by a fallible person, it instantly falls beneath the level of Scripture. It is on par with the remarks of a biblical sermon- we must hold to what lines up with Scripture but discard what doesn’t line up with Scripture. John Piper writes, “I take prophecy as something that God spontaneously brings to mind in the moment. And because we are fallible in the way we perceive it and the way we think about it and the way we speak it, it does not carry that same level of infallible, Scripture-level authority.” 

As people who believe that the same Holy Spirit who inspired the writing of the Scripture inspires prophetic leaders to prophesy today, there is no reason why a prophet’s message should ever contradict Scripture. 1 Thessalonians 5: 19-22 says, “Do not quench the Spirit; Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; Abstain from every form of evil.” We are not to reject prophecies outright as some churches do, neither are we to naively receive anything. We should embrace supposed prophetic words from those we trust while inspecting them to see if they align with the Scriptures and what the Holy Spirit is saying to us personally.

Someone who is a weirdo.

Prophets were sometimes called to do strange things in the Old Testament, but the strange things always pointed to or illustrated the heart of the message they were proclaiming. That being said, prophetic leaders are not “more prophetic” or “more gifted”, the stranger they are. As a matter of fact, some of the most goldy, gifted prophetic leaders you could ever meet today are some of the most down to earth men and women around. Someone acting strangely should arouse the need for discernment, not make someone more trustworthy.

Someone who spends much time predicting the future.

As much as we tend to think of the Book of Revelation in the New Testament or Messianic Prophecies in the Old Testament when we think of prophecy, much of the prophecy we have in Scripture has to do with obedience in the present not events in the future. Sam Storms writes, “It would be a mistake to think of prophets in the OT as only predicting the future. Their primary role was to make known the holiness of God and the covenant obligations; to denounce injustice, idolatry, and empty ritualism; and to call God’s covenant people, Israel, to repentance and faithfulness. In the period leading up to the exile and Judah’s deportation to Babylon in the sixth century BC, the prophets often delivered messages denouncing rampant social injustice and the oppression of the poor. In the postexilic period, the prophets turn their attention more specifically to the promise of national renewal and the spiritual blessings that come with trusting God and obeying his will.”

Now that we’ve clarified what a prophet is not, let’s chat through what a prophet is.

A prophetic leader is...

Someone who faithfully calls the church back to God.

False prophets call the church to them, to be dependent on them for access to God. The opposite is the case of a true prophet. True prophets call God’s people back to their covenant with Him. They remind the church of the blood of Jesus poured out for them, the body broken for them, the love they have received and the love they are commanded to give one another and the world as Jesus commanded them. They drive the church to prayer, worship, justice and devotion to Jesus. They make God’s love felt and call the church to respond to that love with radical obedience.

Someone who lovingly speaks the truth even when it hurts.

Throughout the Old Testament, we see a consistent theme: a God who lovingly calls his wayward people back to himself. The incarnation is the New Testament picture of God pursuing humanity. With that being said, both the Old Testament prophets and Jesus himself strongly rebuked God’s people before there was an offer of grace or reconciliation. There is a call to repentance. They help the church see how they have strayed like the prodigal son or the older brother. They show them the folly of their idolatry and the rotten fruit of injustice and disobedience that always go along with it. They show God’s people that they smell before they offer them a spiritual bath in his grace.

Someone who can encourage you in a beautifully personal way.

Prophets take what is true in the Gospel and apply it personally, often reminding us of our identity in Jesus, our inheritance in the Gospel, the affection of our Father or our calling that we are struggling to walk in. They just do it in a very personal, specific way for the moment at hand or the person or church that is in front of them. In the presence of a true prophetic leader there is a sense that you are in the presence of God. You walk away more enamored with Jesus than with the prophet. In 1 Corinthians, Paul describes genuine prophetic ministry this way: “”But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort.” Prophets should leave you feeling strengthened, encouraged or comforted.

As a family of churches, we know that there are many, many, many people and local churches who need to be strengthened, encouraged and comforted to walk in their callings as faithful disciples. For this reason and because the Scriptures don’t tell us otherwise, we believe that prophetic leaders can and still do minister in God’s church today.