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LttN Ministries LttN Ministries IncEquipping Christian Leaders in the Developing World |
 
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Prophetic Ministry Today by Dr Gavin D Williams Introduction The decades of the 1980’s and 1990’s were a
remarkable time in the Christian Church around the world. We learned of a
revival sweeping In many lands, God breathed on His church with
times of refreshing and renewal. The word ‘Revival’ was on the lips of many
Christians. Could we be on the edge of the great spiritual awakening which many
believe will come before the return of the Lord Jesus Christ? During these days, my wife and I have been
privileged to travel to many lands. We have seen for ourselves some of the
wonderful things God is doing. We watched in awe as the walls between
conservative and charismatic/pentecostal Christians began to come down. We
witnessed the development of a new ‘Kingdom spirit’ in many parts of the
Church. We were present when pastors of many denominations came before the Lord
in unity and repentance. We participated in amazing prayer events which drew
together Christians of many different traditions to seek the face of God
together. These are wonderful days indeed. One of the exciting things to emerge in these
days was the growing certainty that God is speaking to His people in new ways
and with new clarity. Ordinary people began to talk of ‘hearing the voice of
the Lord’. We began to hear of a new breed of modern day ‘prophets’ and
the flow of the ‘gift of prophecy’. These
developments have been very exciting for some Christians but deeply disturbing
for others. Whatever we may think of these developments, they
are a present reality in the Church today and they are unlikely to go away. Even
in lands remote from the flow of western media and literature and in the most
conservative churches, leaders are being confronted with people who claim to be
prophets sent by God. Some speak with remarkable accuracy and an evident
anointing of the Holy Spirit. Others are clearly false prophets sent by the
enemy to disturb the Church. The first encounter many Christians have with
modern day prophetic ministry is when someone wants to give them a prophetic
message. Sometimes these messages are helpful and encouraging. Other times the
messages are misguided, discouraging or even more damaging. There are even some
who are using their ‘self proclaimed’ prophetic status to control the lives
of individuals or whole church communities. These developments have given rise to a whole
list of questions: Does God speak to people today apart from that which He has
already revealed in the Bible? If so, how does He speak? How can we determine
what is God and what is of the flesh or worse? Are there modern day prophets? Is
the gift of prophecy flowing in the church today? This book is written in an attempt to answer,
simply, practically and from a biblical viewpoint, some of the many questions
which are troubling Christians and their leaders. It
is written out of the experiences my wife and I have had as pastors,
missionaries and Kingdom workers who serve the Lord Jesus across the whole range
of the Christian Church. It is written by one who has confronted the tough
questions personally searched for the answers with an open heart. My principle purpose in writing this book is to
provide a resource which I hope will be accessible to my brothers and sisters in
Developing Lands. They do not have the many excellent books and resources
available to Christians in the West. Yet they face the same challenges. This
book is deliberately brief. It is my hope that it will be translated into other
languages and be of assistance to many faithful servants of the Lord. My desire
is to equip God’s people as they seek to walk into all that He has for them.
At the same time, I hope to warn them of some of the counterfeits which the
enemy is sending to disturb Jesus’ church. As you read this book, I ask only that you
approach the material with an open Bible, an open heart and the prayer that the
Lord will guide you into His truth. His dealings with you are between you and
Him. But whatever else you do, listen to Him. Dr
Gavin Williams June
2004 Chapter 6 Prophetic
Ministry in Operation When we accept that the spiritual gift of prophecy operates in the church today, we must look at the more practical issues of “how?” Is the prophet someone who has divine authority to go wherever they want delivering messages from God to whomever they choose? The answer is a very clear ‘NO!” Like any spiritual gift, the gift of prophecy is given “… for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7). In God’s order, people ministering in the gift of prophecy are part of the whole Body, the Church, and have a right place and function within that Body. The
New Testament church was a vital and growing organism in which the gifts of the
Spirit flowed effectively. My own studies in the New Testament and practical
experience in church leadership bring me to the conviction that there were three
distinct levels of prophetic operation evident in the Prophetic
Declaration In
1 Corinthians 14, the Apostle Paul writes about proper order in regular worship
gatherings. The church in In
this free flowing style of worship it was quite normal for someone to bring what
we might call a ‘prophetic declaration’ (1 Corinthians In most churches today, the structure we have developed leaves little opportunity for such prophetic declarations. However, more and more churches are recognizing the benefits of providing opportunity for the Holy Spirit to speak directly into the life the church. In some churches, people who sense they may have a prophetic declaration are encouraged to come to one of the pastors or elders and share what is on their heart. If the pastor or elder affirms the declaration to be appropriate for the time, the person is released to speak before the whole church family. In this way the gift of prophecy remains in submission to the anointed leaders of the church. In a situation like this people, who believe they may have a spiritual gift of prophecy, message of knowledge or message of wisdom, have opportunity to test and develop the gift. It is also the opportunity for leaders to recognize people in the life of the church who may have such gifts. The
Gift of Prophecy We have already noted that the Apostle Paul mentioned the gift of prophecy in each of his lists of spiritual gifts. By giving instruction about the operation of this spiritual gift, he encouraged the use of prophecy in the church. But what is the gift of prophecy and how is it different from a prophetic declaration? Well
known Christian scholar, Dr C Peter Wagner defines the gift of prophecy as ‘The
special ability God gives to certain members of the Body of Christ to receive
and communicate an immediate message from God to His people through a divinely
anointed utterance.” (Pastors and Prophets.) While a prophetic declaration
may come from anyone in the church, people with the gift of prophecy have a
special anointing which enables them to hear from God and communicate with
greater clarity and on a more regular basis. Consider this: In our churches we hear many different preachers and teachers. When we hear someone who understands the Bible and has a special ability to communicate the truth to our hearts with real spiritual authority, we might say, ‘that man is a gifted preacher.’ What we mean is that his ministry demonstrates the gifting and anointing of the Holy Spirit. They have the spiritual gift of preaching and teaching. The same applies to people who have the gift of prophecy. Let us suppose that in a church there is a person who makes prophetic declarations from time to time with the approval of the pastors or elders. People feel that when they speak, there is a special sense that God has ministered to His people. Perhaps, on another occasion, that person has come to the pastor or elders with a message they believe God has given them for the life of the Church. After testing that message of guidance, the leaders confirm that this was from the Lord. Gradually the leaders and the body recognize that this person has the gift of prophecy and releases them into prophetic ministry. In one church where I was pastor, an older lady came quietly into the life of the church. During a service several months later, she came and shared a message the Lord had given her to for a young man whom we were commissioning to special ministry. I believed it was a true message from God and I gave her the freedom to speak. Her message brought great encouragement to the young man and to the church. On another occasion she came and although I believed her message to be right, I felt the time was wrong and so I asked her to wait to another occasion. She quietly returned to her seat. Over several months we came to know her as a wonderful woman of God who had a powerful prophetic gift and a humble spirit. After a year or so, I gave her freedom to speak whenever the Lord placed something on her heart. I had come to respect and trust her as a gifted and godly prophetic voice. That lady was the source of great blessing to my wife and I personally and also to the life of the church. There
is something important you will have noticed here. Like all spiritual gifts, the
gift of prophecy is recognized by the church, not claimed by the individual. The
authority to function in the gift of prophecy is given by the leadership not
demanded by the person. The gift of prophecy is given for the benefit and
blessing of the whole church not for the personal benefit and authority of the
person with the gift. The purpose of the gift of prophecy is set forward in 1
Corinthians 14:3, “But everyone who
prophecies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.” The
Office of Prophet In Ephesians 4:11, the Apostle Paul details the fivefold leadership structure of the Church. Here he lists the five offices of apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher. People who hold these places in the life of the church are sometimes recognized by the title apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor or teacher. For example, Paul held the office of apostle. It is not unusual to see these particular gifts flowing in those who function as the pastors and elders of the Church or in people who exercise ministry to the wider community of God’s people. But who recognizes and affirms someone as an apostle or prophet? I do not believe that anyone has the right to claim these titles for themselves. It is the function of the Church through their spiritual leaders to see the anointing of God that rests upon a person and affirm their role. This kind of recognition only comes when spiritual leaders see an extra-ordinary anointing of God resting upon someone who has the appropriate spiritual gifts. Such recognition comes only after the person has proved faithful over a long period in which their spiritual gifting and integrity have been well tested. Let us give you a word of caution. Be careful of anyone who claims to be a prophet. True prophetic people rarely have to make any claims. If someone comes to me and tells me they are a prophet, I immediately ask, “Who says that you are a prophet?” Before I even listen to what they have to say, I want to know who has tested and endorsed their gifting. I have found that most people who make such claims have appointed themselves. My wife and I do not allow such people to prophesy over us. There are some people who seem to have a prophetic ability given to them from birth. They have an ability to see and know things about people that others cannot see and know. This natural ability does not qualify someone for spiritual leadership or prophetic office. Like any natural ability, this gift of insight must be submitted to Jesus Christ and the leaders of His church. Like any spiritual gift, such abilities must be developed carefully to ensure that they are used in the right way and for the right purposes. Like any other gift, it will be of no benefit unless is flows from a true and godly character. We will say more about this in the next chapter. Copyright 2004 Gavin D Williams
Published by LttN Publications Budgewoi, Australia
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