Prophets alive today?

R

rreighe Feb 25, 2009

I was talking to one of my freinds who goes to the new church i was talking about on the Emerging Church Is Now thread and my freind was talking about how some prophet visited thier (before i went) church and he prophesised in God's name and then revived a church that was in a near by city. my freind also said that the prophets are still alive today but they are in hiding and have to keep it a secret. why do they have to keep it a secret? is it the UN and the New Age that would try to kill/assasinate them? or are the concerned that people would think of them as a false prophet? i realy dont have a clue. also the church i was talking about that he visited was the GOOD church i go to. the one that is BIBLICAL and NOT New Age-ish like my other sunday chuch. please help me understand this matter.

ps i would love to meet or become one (God/Jesus/Holy Spirit's prophet) that would be awsome!

P

PaulWest Feb 26, 2009

i would love to meet or become one (God/Jesus/Holy Spirit's prophet) that would be awsome

According to the definition of "prophet", whenever you see and hear a man speak forth the will of God, you are experiencing prophesy. Prophesy is not relegated to merely telling the future, as we see here in North America.

T

TaylorOtwell Feb 26, 2009

I agree with Brother Paul. This is historically acurate as well. An old Puritan preaching guide is called "The Art of Prophesying". The verbal proclamation of the Lord's truth is prophecy. Notice also that Paul calls an unbeliever a prophet, who was simply describing the condition of his kinsmen.

With care in Christ,
Taylor

sermonindex Feb 26, 2009

There are prophets for today but they are few and far between.

W

wayneman Feb 26, 2009

TaylorOtwell wrote:
I agree with Brother Paul. This is historically acurate as well. An old Puritan preaching guide is called "The Art of Prophesying". The verbal proclamation of the Lord's truth is prophecy. Notice also that Paul calls an unbeliever a prophet, who was simply describing the condition of his kinsmen.
With care in Christ,
Taylor

"The testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy." Rev. 19;10

But are there people in the church today that have the gift of prophecy described in I. Cor. 12-14? There are some interesting anecdotes from reliable sources--Chuck Smith, for example. And someone prophesied over Reagan that he would be president one day, years before it came to pass. But does anyone have any first-hand accounts of the gift of prophecy in use today?

S

Smokey Feb 26, 2009

The office of prophet is a legitimate office that should still be active today.

Act 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
Act 2:18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

I believe that the reason we do not see "genuine, from the mind of God" prophets today, is that there are so very few true Christians alive today. Jesus asks the following question in Luke 8:8.
Luk 18:8B Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Also we have to ponder the statement of Jesus In Matthew 7:21-23

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Blessings Greg :-o

L

Lysa Feb 26, 2009

rreighe wrote:
my freind also said that the prophets are still alive today but they are in hiding and have to keep it a secret. why do they have to keep it a secret? is it the UN and the New Age that would try to kill/assasinate them? or are the concerned that people would think of them as a false prophet? i realy dont have a clue. ...please help me understand this matter.

Dear brother, let's always weigh what others say to the word of God! That statement your friend made is so false it's not even funny. It's from the figment of somebody's imagination. Yes, there are true prophets today but they are ~~[b]~~not[/b] hiding. The very idea they have to hide is not even Biblical. (And my personal opinion is that a true prophet does not have to advertise in the back of charasmatic magazines.)

***Jeremiah 13.10, 23.17; Luke 1.51; Romans 1.21; 2 Cor 10.5***

ps i would love to meet or become one (God/Jesus/Holy Spirit's prophet) that would be awsome!

I say this with all loves: Keep your eyes focused on Jesus and not on any prophets. Prophets are people and people fail us. Christ never fails!!

Paul, who was an apostle and a prophet, said the following:

~~[i]~~I count all things as loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, ~~[b]~~and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ and be found in him,[/b] not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: ~~[b]~~That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.[/b][/i]

This is what was important to the Apostle (and I dare say, prophet) Paul. Knowing HIM and the fellowship of HIS sufferings.

L

Lysa Feb 26, 2009

PaulWest wrote:
According to the definition of "prophet", whenever you see and hear a man speak forth the will of God, you are experiencing prophesy. Prophesy is not relegated to merely telling the future, as we see here in North America.

I am not trying to hijack this thread. I'm not challenging you, Paul because I don't even know how you feel about this; I just wanted to challenge the "logic" of that definition...

~~[i]~~And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and ~~[b]~~your daughters shall prophesy,[/b] your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:[/i]
Joel 2:28

~~[i]~~And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons ~~[b]~~and your daughters shall prophesy,[/b] and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
And on my servants and ~~[b]~~on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:[/i][/b]
Acts 2:17-18

~~[i]~~And the same man had ~~[b]~~four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.[/b][/i]
Acts 21:9

It just seems to me that if more believed the Scriptures, they wouldn't be so hostile to women speaking forth the will of God!! :-D (huge grin) Hold the stones for another thread!!

P

PaulWest Feb 26, 2009

Hold the stones for another thread

No stones here, sister. That topic indeed is for another thread. It is my belief that the art of prophesying need not always be behind a pulpit. In my experience, my most powerful times of speaking forth the mind of the Spirit into the life of another person has always been one-on-one. This is just as much the ministry and gift of "prophesy" as a man in a suit standing behind a pulpit.

W

wayneman Feb 26, 2009

Hold the stones for another thread

Lysa,

All right, we'll let you off with a sponge-pelting this time!

Have you read "The Magna Carta of Women" by Jessie Penn-Lewis? It's right up your alley! :-D

http://lighthouselibrary.com/read.php?sel=3138&searchfor=||PENN-LEWIS, JESSIE||&type=&what=author

R

rreighe Feb 26, 2009

you have seen in the Bible where it says Men but it is understood to be both men and wemon. who is to say that (sorry i haven't looked at your post in like a day so i forgot who posted it) that persion wasn't meaning the same way? plus this is totaly off subject. if you want to start a thread about wemon men equal rights you go ahead... this is to all of you.
this topic was for prophets that are alive today, not for gender equality. please....

R

rreighe Feb 26, 2009

if yall think i want to meet a prophet so i can treat him like some famous persion that is just flat out wrong! i just think it would be a little cool. the prophet say "yeah this and this and this will happen, in order" and then this and this and this realy happen, in order it will just bring some excitement and do you know who many people will become God's after that? siriusly, think about it! MANY! and also there the Bishop, Priest, Evangelist, along with the Prophet and i have only met people of the first two. i have a feeling i am leaving someone else out but yeah... you get the idea i hope.

and do you have any idea of how humble Paul was? obviously alot which is amazing and it would just be so inspiring to meet somone that humble it would make me be like "yes!" and suff.

T

TaylorOtwell Feb 26, 2009

No stones here, sister. That topic indeed is for another thread. It is my belief that the art of prophesying need not always be behind a pulpit. In my experience, my most powerful times of speaking forth the mind of the Spirit into the life of another person has always been one-on-one. This is just as much the ministry and gift of "prophesy" as a man in a suit standing behind a pulpit.

Ditto. I believe, Lysa, upon examining the Scriptures, prophecy is mentioned in many contexts outside of the weekly, Lord's Day assembly of the saints. Paul clearly gave guidelines for who must speak, who may speak, and must not speak in the weekly 1 Cor. 14 assembly. However, women can have a verbal ministry outside of that context, such as teaching the younger women per Titus 2.

With care in Christ,
Taylor

R

rreighe Feb 27, 2009

........just an idea... i am not sure. not totally sure. remember i am 17. i was born in '91 so yeah...

sermonindex Feb 27, 2009

Agreeing with Lysa here. They've never been in hiding. They're just part of Ephesians 4:11. Just part of the church ministries, no more - no less. Never to be lifted above the other 4 in that verse. All members of HIS Body are necessary - and not just those called to one of those 5.

Today - we're in the days that Jesus warned of.
There are more false-prophets than true.

The other mistake being made now-a-days is, confusing the gift of "prophesy" from 1 Corth 12 and Romans 12 with the calling of Eph 4.

Any Saint can prophesy Paul said. That never makes one a prophet by calling - but only fulfills the promises of Jesus to all of His Sheep.

Moderator Paul is correct in saying these days are filled with the belief that this calling is for "foretelling". A true Prophet draws the Saints away from man and points to The WORD of GOD, both the written Word and HE Who came in the flesh. Once there, then the Saints can read others with discernment of whether what they are reading or hearing lines up with The Word of GOD.

We can seek to prophesy, the Apostle Paul said - but we cannot pray to be called to 'be' a prophet. That is up to HIM. One must be called from the start to be any of the 5 in Eph 4.
Such a multitude who have 'usurped' any one of those 5 and slapped that label/title upon themselves... most especially the first two, "apostle & prophets" in these last days - just as Jesus said would happen. We need discernment more than any other generation that's lived. If there were 'anything' to pray for - it should be for discernment gained by The Word of GOD.

Seek Him for HIMSELF and whatever 'gift' in The Book, He can use you in - "as He wills" and 'when' He wills - when it is needed in the Body.
His concern is for the Boby's welfare - as it says from Eph 4:11-16. Those verses are very important in these last days and should be read slowly, for the mind of Christ for His Body... not just the individual's good.
The "gifts" are not the "callings" of Eph 4 and these 5 "callings" should Never make you dependent upon 'themselves', but point you to dependence on HIM - The Spirit of Truth will lead & guide you. They point you to HIM - all 5 will if they're genuine.

I believe Leonard Ravenhill said the rest of it best in his description of what a prophet is. We only disagree in where he asks "Where are they?"

They've never left HIS Church - but they're out-numbered these days by the counterfeit and if you haven't met one - it may be for one of the reasons that Brother Ravenhill mentions in his Message.

GOD Bless you.

H

HomeFree89 Feb 27, 2009

rreighe,

Forgive me if what I'm going to say has already been said, I have not read through this whole thread.

There is the gift of prophecy(1 Cor. 12-14), but I do not believe there are prophets like John the Baptist, etc. around today.

I believe the Bible shows that in Matt. 11:13, Luke 16:16, and Heb. 1-2.

This is something fairly new to me, so if I'm wrong, I would love to hear some other views.

sermonindex Feb 27, 2009

Rather than edit the post I left, I should have put ""just" foretelling" in that sentence.
In the book of Acts we do see "foretelling" but that is not their primary focus.

Also just noticed a Member had brought up the "Testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy". I'm sorry I hadn't read that far. Amen!
That is "the Spirit of Truth" as we see in John 16:13,14 that is known to "the Overcomers" through-out the Revelation of John.
That testimony/Spirit is in all that are His John 10 Sheep and not a calling nor a gift mentioned in those chpt.s mentioned above - that is about All Overcomers, called by HIS Name.

While typing these two posts, songs solely about the Cross have been playing on the radio [not a sparrow falls - no coincidences].

Ravenhill and so many of the others who's writings we see from the past or present "point to The Cross." Praise HIM!

L

Lysa Feb 27, 2009

HomeFree89 wrote:
rreighe,
Forgive me if what I'm going to say has already been said, I have not read through this whole thread.
There is the gift of prophecy (1 Cor. 12-14), but I do not believe there are prophets like John the Baptist, etc. around today.
I believe the Bible shows that in Matt. 11:13, Luke 16:16, and Heb. 1-2.
This is something fairly new to me, so if I'm wrong, I would love to hear some other views.

If the gifts and the calling were completed by the apostles and even John then there would have been no reason for Paul ~~[b]~~30 to 40 years later[/b] put them into the letter to the Corinthians. (1 Corinthians 12.28).

And also when Paul wrote to Ephesians 4.11 - 4.16.

God bless,

L

Lysa Feb 27, 2009

thingsabove wrote:
There are prophets for today but they are few and far between.

Jesus-is-GOD wrote:
They've never left HIS Church - but they're out-numbered these days by the counterfeit and if you haven't met one - it may be for one of the reasons that Brother Ravenhill mentions in his Message.

Amen to thingsabove.

Jesus-is-God, I believe that one of the reasons a true prophet is outnumbered by the false is because they are humble and they dare not bring glory to themselves (as we see the multitude of the false doing).

It's been a while since I've heard Ravenhill's message but if you've never meet one, one of the reasons is because they don't go around advertising themselves (as we see the multitude of the false doing). And also because they have studied to be quiet, to do their own business and to work with their own hands (1 thess 4.11)!!

Some Christian circles believe that if you have the gift of prophesy, you are a prophet. These are usually those who have never met a true prophet! The gift of prophesy and the calling of a prophet are not one and the same.

And some Christian circles believe that if you have the gift of prophesy, you are a preacher/pastor. The gift of prophesy and the calling of a preacher/pastor are not one and the same either. Although the preacher/pastor can have the gift of prophesy but having the gift of prophesy does not automatically make one a pastor/preacher.

rreighe, I know you are only 17 but train yourself to listen only to the Holy Spirit. Please stay away from any seminars, conferences or "revivials" that put in their advertisment, "prophet so and so" will be here giving their message of "everything is beautiful" for the 600th time this year, love offering to follow your very own personal prophesy.

True prophets may seem outnumbered but I do not believe they are!

God bless you,

R

rreighe Feb 27, 2009

m k. yeah... wow... thanks... alot...

i still wouldn't mind meeting one... but yeah just because i still do want to meet one doesn't meen i'm putting them any higher than anything or anyone else... which would be wrong. i just want to meet one, just like i'm sure you would want to meet a real pastor or such and such... maybe. might. hmm... (i'm thinking alot and making it obvious). well i can't think of much constructive to say so... thanks agian.

allan