SCRIPTURE:
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.Isaiah 9:6
PROPHET
There’s a couple of things that I know about being a prophet. Not because I am a prophet, though I did prophesy Wesley would be canceled last year. RIP.
Here are some thoughts from memory on prophecy.In seminary we learned all about prophets. Prophets are God’s messengers. They do not always tell the future. Sometimes they do. Their message often is a message of repentance. The Bible is filled with major and minor Prophets in the Old Testament (look it up). In the New Testament prophecy is a specific spiritual gift that some people in the church have. One can also argue that the characters in the New Testament all had prophetic aspects to their ministry. There’s also a bunch of prophecies in the Old Testament that were fulfilled in Jesus.
The most memorable lesson I learned about a prophet is that the word prophecy is also translated as burden. It was a burden to be a prophet. Most prophets did not want to be a prophet. Why? Well because the work was so hard. People didn’t believe you, people made fun of you, your life was in danger, you were viewed as crazy and most of the time the message that God had for the prophet was so counter-cultural that it challenged the powers of their time. Don’t strive to be a prophet. Let the ministry of prophecy be given to you by God. Perhaps one of the sure signs that God is calling you into a prophetic ministry is if you DON’T want to do it. Anyone who strives to be a prophet is likely just someone who likes making people mad. They like the “booos” lol. Yet, the work of prophecy is an important role of the church and many of us are called to it.
Besides the characters in the Bible, who is a prophet? Name me a couple. I can think of one right away. Martin Luther King. He believed God called him to proclaim the message of de-segregation. There were many times where he wanted to quit because he was tired of the death threats. In the end, he was killed.But the world needed his message.Today, reflect on the prophets of past and present. Those who were and are brave enough to go against the culture for the sake of the culture.Also, reflect in humility if you were like me and strived to be a prophet.Let the ministry of prophecy come from God, wrestle with it, and then when you find enough courage to (as they say in the real estate world) “do it scared,” then you know you’re on the right track.