Ministry in the body of Christ and body ministry - Prophets.

(preaching Notes)
by Roger Pawsey

1 Cor12:1 Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.

1 Cor 12:31 But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way. (the way of love explained in chapter 13)

1 Cor 14:1 Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.

Eph 4:11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
Eph 4:12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up

A THE PROPHET -'He gave some ...prophets' we attempt to define.

a) Gr. 'prophetes' = a public expounder or teller forth. Forth telling is basic meaning, not foretelling. Proclamation rather than prediction. The common idea that it is telling the future only misleads us in understanding the ministry.

b) Gr. 'prophemi' from phemi' -to speak, and 'pro' -before / in front of meaning: to speak before or in front of in reference to - time- beforehand place- in front of: meaning publicly

c) Heb. 'nabah' = to bubble up, to pour forth 'nataph' = to drop, to distil, as the heavens drop rain, or the hands perfume. Song 4:11 "Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb," Song 5:5 "my hands dripped with myrrh,"

There is a current of inspiration. The heart bubbles up, the spirit dictates - declares, and the prophet overflows in unpremeditated speech.

1. The Prophet speaks to man on behalf of God

Exo 7:1 "Then the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet...."

Exo 4:16 "He will speak to the people for you,"

Lift this to a higher level and we see that a prophet speaks to man on behalf of God by inspiration and revelation.

2. The Prophetic Ministry must not be confused with preaching

There are several Greek words for 'preaching': proclaim, announce, herald, cry, tell, witness, etc.

Preaching - is the natural mind, soaked in the Word of God, operated upon by the Holy Spirit.

Prophecy - is the mind of Christ, by revelation and inspiration.

BUT preaching can be lifted into the supreme level of prophecy when by inspiration the preacher may utter things totally unpremeditated. Three elements are involved in prophecy: 1. Inspiration = feeling inspired 2. Revelation = seeing the picture or hearing the word or sensing / feeling what God is saying 3. Utterance = saying out what is seen or heard

The utterance is NOT the declaration of the evangelist

NOT the reasoned instruction of the shepherd/teacher

A Prophet speaks under tremendous pressure of the Spirit, the revelation burns within him, Jer.2O:9, often called in the Old Testament 'the burden of the Lord', Jer 20:9 "But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot."

BUT imagine a prophet having received the word of the Lord then having to go and convey it to an enemy, such as Ahab. He might not feel very inspired at the time of speaking - the inspiration gone and not even sure about the revelation

B. THE PROPHETS - and the 'GIFT OF PROPHECY' 1 Cor.12:4 -11

1 Cor 12:4 "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
1 Cor 12:5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.
1 Cor 12:6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
1 Cor 12:7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
1 Cor 12:8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
1 Cor 12:9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
1 Cor 12:10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
1 Cor 12:11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines."

1. The COMPARING of 'The gift of Prophecy' and the 'Gift of a Prophet' will help our understanding.

a) All may seek to prophesy 1 Cor 14:1 "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy."
b) All not called prophets. In 1 Cor 12: 28-29 "Are all prophets?" answer "No!"
c) Gift is 'Gift of Christ' to the Church Eph.4:8
d) Gift is 'Gift of Spirit' to the individual 1 Cor.12:4
e) One 'has' a gift (Gr. charisma) 1 Cor.12:4 f) Other 'is' a gift (Gr. doma) Eph.4:8 - emphasises the concrete character or nature of the gift.

All prophets prophesy, but not all who prophesy are prophets. They are not seers like Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, John, etc.

More than inspiration is required. Greater gifts of revelation - 'Word of Wisdom' and 'Word of Knowledge' - are essential to the prophet and seer.

2. THE PURPOSES of 'The Gift of Prophecy'

1 Cor 14:3 "But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.
1 Cor 14:4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church."

a) Strengthening (EDIFICATION) 'oikdome' = to build up as building an edifice. To build up/establish/confirm the church 1 Cor.14:4,5,9,12,26,31. Not personal (not to self to build up self) but to the Church. The prophet, however, may operate outside the local Church. Words of Personal prophecy!!!!!

b) Encouragement (EXHORTATION) 'paraklesis' = a calling to one's side to help. The Holy Spirit is the paraclete and He can comfort through this gift. Comfort through strengthening. (cp.Luke 22:43) Luke 22:43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. Luke 22:44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

c) COMFORT 'paramuthia' = to draw near to, speaking soothing, consoling words. Has more tenderness than exhortation. SO the purposes of the gift of prophecy are for (g) building up (h) stirring up and (i) cheering up. They are not for destruction, criticism and demolition.

d) WORSHIP sometimes this threefold purpose (1 Cor.14:3) comes through prophecy as praise, worship and prayer. Such as Psalm 150- inspired utterance in praise. Prophecy with the guitar 1 Chron.25:1. (NAS) Moreover, David and the commanders of the army set apart for the service {some} of the sons of Asaph and of Heman and of Jeduthun, who {were} to prophesy with lyres, harps, and cymbals;

C. THE PROPHETS -THEIR MINISTRY

As with apostles, the issue is function -not status.

1. FORTH-telling but not simply of preaching. The prophet possesses the threefold function of prophecy - edification, exhortation, comfort, at a very high level of inspiration and content. Strengthening and confirming faith. See: Judas and Silas visiting Antioch. Acts 15:32.

2. FORE-telling This was the outstanding content - revelation by words of knowledge and words of wisdom. . Agabus regarding the Great Dearth Acts 11:27 Agabus regarding Paul's capture at Jerusalem Acts 21:10,11 John - a supreme New Testament example in Book of Revelation.

3. WORSHIP This area of prophecy will be theirs too, with a very high level of inspiration and content. Under great inspiration utterances and songs could lift the people in spiritual worship. Moses, Miriam. Ex.15, esp.v.20. "Then Miriam the prophetess, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing. Miriam sang."

D. THE PROPHETS - AND 'GUIDANCE'

Misunderstanding in this area can lead to two chief mistakes:

a) to rule by the prophets - blindly follow the man whereas in the New Testament the ruling of the local Church is in the hands of the of a local leadership who seek to guide by The Word.

b) to neglect totally the prophetic ministry and office - reducing it to preaching In the New Testament examples of the prophets' activity it is significant that they did not directly guide but gave the revelation. The people concerned were left with the responsibility of reacting wisely to the revelation so given.

1) Agabus - Foretelling Famine Acts 11:28 Acts 11:29 "The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea."

2) Agabus - Foretelling the Fate of Paul Acts 21:11 Acts 21:12 "we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go Acts 21:13 Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." Acts 21:14 When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, "The Lord's will be done."

3) Paul's Dilemma regarding place of service Acts 16:6-10 Acts 16:6 "Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. Acts 16:7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. Acts 16:8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. Acts 16:9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." Acts 16:10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding ( and we recognised) that God had called us to preach the gospel to them."

Remember that Silas, a recognised prophet, was with them. (Acts 15:40)

SO - prophetic ministry does not remove personal responsibility of human judgement. BUT- on the other hand, we must not neglect this ministry.

NOTE: Although there is no system of 'enquiring of the prophet' we 'enquire of The Lord' and He may use a prophet as the vehicle to convey a 'word' for us, clarifying and confirming, etc. So through the prophetic ministry help can be given in a situation.

The sending forth of Barnabas and Saul -Acts 13:1-4 It was the Spirit who spoke. It was significant that we are not told how. It could have been by word of a prophet - several prophets were present.

Note: the 'word' was not primarily to Barnabas and Saul but to the gathered leaders to release these two to the work to which the Holy Spirit had already called them. "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." Paul had known from the beginning the Lord's intention for his life. Acts 22:6-15, 26:13-19.

The prophet is made sensitive by the Holy Spirit to both the situation and The Lord.
a burden is stirring, deeply moving.
a seer - we may see the mess, the need; but what is the answer?
an utterance - inspiration, revelation, utterance.

A 'Prepared' ministry
The prophet does not prepare his message in his study in the same way as a 'Shepherd-Teacher' but he is not unprepared. His spirit is constantly feeding upon / taking in the 'testimony of Christ'. See Rev.19:10 For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
a) He sees the heart of God
b) He sees the situation
c) He, by the Holy Spirit, is enabled to bring the Word of the Lord into that situation.

SO - the ministry can be directional but not dictatorial, can be guiding but not controlling. A prophet submits his word, he does not enforce it.

E. THE PROPHETS - are not infallible There are false prophets, about whom Jesus warns us, who would rise up and deceive many. Yet all are human and we are imperfect vessels and any prophecy will be tainted by our humanity. The words used are often the vocabulary of the speaker.

1. PROPHETS - are to be controlled

a) Speak two or three 1 Cor.14:29 "If they are many then they must take their turn." v.31.

b) They must control themselves v.32 "the spirit of the prophet is subject to the prophet." The very nature of prophecy makes this exhortation necessary:
a) Spontaneity v.30 'if anything is revealed to another ... implies that the revelation is unpremeditated.
b) Inspirational i.e. the 'bubbling up', 'pouring forth', can be of such great pressure on the prophet's spirit. But he must exercise restraint for the sake of avoiding confusion. v.32-33.
c) Control themselves to the point of being quiet - 1 Cor 14:30 "And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop."

2. PROPHETS - are to be judged We have seen New Testament examples of this. How do we test a prophet?

a) The manner of his life Matt.7:15-20 "by their fruits you shall know them" Life style important although the Lord used Balaam.
b) Are their predictions fulfilled? Deut.18:18-22 There will be inaccuracies - timing is the most difficult aspect for a prophet to get right.
c) Let the other prophets judge, weigh, 'weighed' tested by experience of others present. Let us give credibility to the gift by weighing carefully what is said.
d) Do they conform to the Word? This is the essential element: Isa 8:20 "To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn."

Deut.13:1-5 "even if their predictions do come true, it must be according to the Word of God.
Deu 13:3 you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deu 13:4 It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him.

1 Cor 14:37 If anybody thinks he is a prophet or spiritually gifted, let him acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord's command.
1 Cor 14:38 If he ignores this, he himself will be ignored.
1 Cor 14:39 Therefore, my brothers, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.
1 Cor 14:40 But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way."

An unruly prophet may not be genuine. The Holy Spirit in the prophet will not contradict the Holy Spirit in the Word. God cannot contradict Himself. True inspiration will acknowledge the supreme inspiration of the Word. God has exalted His Word and His Name.

3. PROPHETS - and the canon of Scripture This arises out of (d) above

a) There is the inspiration and revelation which has given us the canon of scripture. 'All scripture is given by inspiration ...'
2 Tim 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed.

Psa 19:7 "The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
Psa 19:8 The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
Psa 19:9 The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous.
Psa 19:10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
Psa 19:11 By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward." 'All scripture prophecy is infallible and inspired'

2 Pet 1:20 "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation.
2 Pet 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

b) There is the inspiration and revelation, which give us the contemporary prophetic ministry. This will not contradict the former.

The Canon of Scripture

a) The Canon of Scripture Two features apply: 1. The inspiration at the time 2. The inspired selection and recording of all that was of perennial worth

b) The Contemporary non-canonical This too is inspired by the Holy Spirit, operating as this study has sought to explain, but it is directed to contemporary situations, and is not for all time as is Holy Scripture, which it will never contradict. 'Prophecy will cease' (1 Cor.13:8) 'but the Word of the Lord abideth for everl (1 Peter 1:23)

The Lord grant unto us prophets. Should there be those among us who manifest the prophetic gift, let us pray that their ministry will mature to the edifying of the Church.

1 Th 5:19 "Do not put out the Spirit's fire;
1 Th 5:20 do not treat prophecies with contempt."
1 Th 5:21 "Test everything. Hold on to the good."