Got a Prophecy to Give? Ask a Question!
Deuteronomy 18:19 If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account. 20 But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death." 21 You may say to yourselves, "How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD ?"
There was a time when bringing an inaccurate prophetic utterance resulted in grave consequences (pardon the pun!). However, that day is NOT today.
A lot of words have been spoken in the name of the Lord that the Lord has not spoken. Too often people are allowed to get away with making erroneous utterances with neither scriptural judgment by others (I Cor. 14:29-32), nor correction when it is needed. Today, prophecy is intended mainly for the purposes of "edification, exhortation, and comfort." (1 Cor. 14:3)
There is also the problem of people attempting to "discern" the hearts and minds of others. I can recall sad occasions when believers, as well as myself, have drawn wrong conclusions based on something "heard" or "sensed." I was once told that I had lost my "motivation" for ministry, when in reality I was struggling through a difficult season looking for God's direction.
Here's some advice: When you feel like you know something, or that the Lord is showing you something about someone else, ASK THAT PERSON A QUESTION!
If you ask a good question based on your concerns or probable leading from the Lord, you will gain understanding on the matter and be more effective in ministering to others. Simply proceeding on the basis of what one thinks "God said" is not more important than the reality of another person's situation.
In essence, we have placed too much emphasis on the Old Testament order of prophets speaking to people on God's behalf, when under the New Testament order, we have God speaking to us through Jesus Christ, the Word of God, and by the Holy Spirit.
God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds (Hebrews 1:1-2)
When we keep Jesus in view, and loving people at the core of our approach, everything will work better!
