Prophecy is a direct communication from God for a particular people at a particular time and place, for a particular purpose. The Divine Word also comes through Jesus, through Scripture, through circumstances, and through visions (more commonly in non-Western cultures). The Lord wants to continue speaking to his people, he is longing to communicate directly with us; the problem is there aren't enough people willing to pay the price of being his mouth-piece. In the Bible, 'generally speaking the Lord is generally speaking.'

Prophecy is not the same as preaching or teaching, although there may often be some overlap (eg. some prophecy, as in Acts 13:16f sounds like sermonic teaching); effective preaching may at times be prophetic, at least in part. 'Prophecy is distinguished from teaching by its character of a direct message in relation to the situation... and by its reference to a particular divine revelation.' (2) In 1 Corinthians 12:28 the prophet is distinguished from the teacher, and in Ephesians 4:11 from the evangelist. The teacher bases his message on the given tradition, while the prophet speaks on the basis of a personal revelation. The prophet speaks under the immediate control of the Holy Spirit: the prophet's message is not the result of reflection, reasoning or feeling. 'False prophets' speak from their own heart, the true prophet out of the mouth of the Lord (Jeremiah 23:16). Prophecy gives the church fresh insights into God's truth (Ephesians 3), of guidance about the future (as in this story), (3) or encouragement (1 Corinthians 14:3; 1 Timothy 1:18), or inspiration or correction. It either edifies the church or brings it under judgement ('God is in this place!' - see 1 Corinthians 14:25). The biblical prophets combined judgement with hope. Their messages were sometimes very challenging: prophets 'disturb the comfortable' while pastors 'comfort the disturbed'! Prophets 'tell it like it is'.

Paul told the Thessalonians not to despise prophesyings ('inspired messages', 1 Thessalonians 5:20-22,) but 'put all things to the test: keep what is good and avoid every kind of evil.' We can be sure that God still wants to speak to his people by this means; we can also be sure that there will be 'false prophets' today as there were throughout biblical times. The Lord is sowing good seed; the devil evil weeds (Matthew 25:36-43). Sometimes, in various sects, 'prophetic utterances' have been given a higher status than scripture itself.

However, although the devil might be at work this shouldn't hinder our being open to the word of the Lord. We must 'censor' prophets (the prophets at Antioch came from Jerusalem, and no doubt Barnabas knew they were 'credent- ialled' by the church there), discipline them, correct them. The gift of 'discernment of spirits' is given to the church - then and now - to help sort out true from false prophets. Here's a practical way to 'judge' present-day prophets: if someone in the church believes he or she has a message from the Lord, that person ought to submit it first to the pastors/elders, so that it comes under the authority of the church leaders. Perhaps it could be submitted beforehand in writing.

At this point we ought to ask the general question, How do we test spiritual gifts to see if they indeed are from God? David Watson offers these seven guidelines: Is Jesus Lord of that person's life? Is Jesus acknowledged as perfect Man and perfect God? Is the manifestation of the gift in accordance with the scriptures? Is there true holiness and godliness about that person? Is there submission to church leaders? Is the church edified through this gift? Is love the controlling factor? (5)

Let us encourage one another to listen more carefully to the Lord. Ours is a very noisy age, and silence is needed if we are to hear God's 'still small voice' again. A final word from Hans Kung. A church in which the prophets are not heard 'declines and becomes a spiritless organization; outwardly everything may seem all right, things run smoothly, according to plan and along ordered paths... but inwardly it will be a place where the Spirit can no longer blow when and where He wills.' (6)

See also: Appendix 4 'Charismatic Renewal: Myths and Realities'.

Discuss: How would your congregation cope with a few prophets in their midst? What safeguards would you put in place to guard against 'false prophets'? How can your worship services be more open to a 'word from the Lord' coming from someone other than the preacher? Some larger Pentecostal churches with very effective evangelistic services are now excluding tongues and prophecy from services oriented towards out- siders. Any comment on that trend?

Further Reading: David Watson, I Believe in the Church, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1978. The article 'Prophecy, Prophet' in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1984.