DYNAMICS OF HEARING GOD Pt.17

PROPHETIC CONFIRMATION AND INSTRUCTION(A)

This is one area in this teaching I want to tread softly and be clearly understood. There is a raging debate among bible scholars. Some believe God doesn't use the prophets in the new testament like he did in the old testament. Another believe that God still uses prophets today the same way he did in the old testament. Before we press further, there's a need for us to know how prophets were used in both testaments. Under the old covenant, prophets were also known seers. They received revelations from God and deliver to the people. Not only that, the people also consulted them to know the mind of God. Two cases comes to mind here. The case of Saul when he was looking for his father's donkey( 1Sam9:6-27, 10:1-2) and when Ahab wanted to go to war with Ramoth-Gilead( 1Kings 22:7-22). It was practically impossible for anyone under the old covenant to hear God by himself because the Spirit of God moved on certain persons like the priests and prophets only. He was not dwelling in the people as he does in New testament believers.

However, reading through the new testament especially the epistles, we didn't see anyone who consulted a prophet for direction. In Acts 13,what we saw was that the prophets that gathered confirmed to Paul and Barnabas what God had already told them in private. Reading further to Acts 21, prophet Agabus prophesied about Paul's suffering in Jerusalem but Paul knew about it prior to the time Agabus came(Acts20:22) and he testified that God told him suffering awaits him in every town, (Acts 20:23). So what was prophesied to Paul was a reminder of what he knew already. The question still remains, do prophets operate the same way today as they did in old testament? For me, that should not be the bone of contention but the spiritual sensitivity of the people whom the prophets will minister to. God can use a genuine prophet to confirm to you what you already know that may not be clear to you. He can still use his prophets to tell you what you don't know that you ought to know through the gift of word of knowledge and word of wisdom. I have experienced both prophetic dimensions(receiving confirmation and instruction). In prophetic operation nothing has changed because it is the same Spirit that worked through Prophet Samuel that operated through Prophet Agabus. The former gave prophetic instruction while the latter confirmed what was revealed already.

However, the people being ministered to in both testaments are different. The new testament believer should not seek to be led by prophets because leading is the work of the Holy Spirit(Rom8:16) not prophets. Now, we all have access to the Spirit of God and no one has monopoly of God. The moment you start running after prophets, you will open yourself to the spirit of deception. However, if God gives a prophet a message to a new testament believer(God can and he still does today), the believer has every right to check the word of God to see if such message aligns properly with scriptures and to confirm from the Holy Spirit if the message truly is from him before acting on it. This is the advantage we have above old testament believers. They do not have any means of checking with God in private if what they heard was genuine. Why? They do not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in them. God can send his prophets to give you instructions on areas of obscurity but we must test the spirit (1John4:1) and subject it to confirmation before acting on it. The Holy Spirit will never allow you to be misled if your relationship with him is solid. If a lying prophet comes your way, he will let you know provided you're sensitive.