Oftentimes, we think of the holiness and separateness of prophets: “holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:21, Webster’s Bible Translation. And prophets should walk in holiness. Yet, it’s easy to overlook the word “men” in that scripture. God will speak through men and women — prophets and prophecy. The problem: Men and women are flawed human beings; they have faults, failings, and sin. Nevertheless, prophets must decide to walk in prophetic integrity. To do that, they must understand prophetic identity. Today, we need both the restoration of prophetic integrity and prophetic identity. That’s what I’d like to talk about in this post.
Yes, God ordains men and women to be prophets. Prophets are called to speak for God. That can and does create an issue. What issue does that create? “‘My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD.” Isaiah 55:8, NKJV. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9, NIV. How does that create a problem? It means those to whom the prophet is sent to speak to may not understand what the prophet is saying. Or they can misinterpret it. Or they can misapply or misappropriate what is spoken by the prophet. This can and does happen…often.
When people misunderstood, misinterpret, misapply, or misappropriate what the prophet has spoken, the prophet can and often is blamed for what the person does with the prophetic word given. That can and does create issues for the prophet. How? Prophets can be accused of prophesying falsely. Further, they can be blackballed by leaders who heard and didn’t understand what was said. If that happens, which it does happen all the time, prophets can be isolated from the body of Christ — excluded from the church — left to fend for themselves. That process can alter the prophet’s identity.
Everything prophet’s do is rooted in their identity. Flawed identities create flawed and false prophets. Sometimes, prophets can become rigid, inflexible, immovable, and unchangeable. If that happens, prophets can become dogmatic, doctrinal demons, who misunderstand God’s Word and misapply the scriptures to themselves. Then, they can develop grandiose visions of their calling. In the end, they become like the prophet Elijah — I alone am left. Then, they believe they’re the only ones hearing God’s voice. And they go into the cave of isolation. Isolated, wounded, and deceived, they can harm God’s work and God’s people. They become how they were treated.
Much of the current errors in the prophetic movement are rooted in false prophetic identities caused by leaders of the Church to keep prophets “on track”, to protect the Church from false prophets, or to avoid any accountability for their secret sins or doctrinal errors. But the false prophetic identities prophets walk in are never addressed, nor do I see a pathway for the development of a Biblical prophetic identity. Prophets and prophetic believers are called to walk in the revelation of a true prophetic identity. And that can only come through sound teaching on prophets and prophetic ministry. Unfortunately, we only have a cursory understanding of prophets and prophetic ministry.
Yes, prophets, all prophets, are called to understand the prophet’s identity. To do that, we must pull back the curtain on false belief structures that keep prophets in bondage to control, manipulation, and domination — witchcraft. That’s the real Jezebel spirit. The Jezebel spirit is rooted in witchcraft and one of its purposes is to stifle prophets and prophetic ministry in the Church and world. Why? To silence the voice of God. Satan doesn’t want God’s voice to be functioning in the Church or world or prophets and prophetic believers speaking with His voice in the Church or world.
One of the most insidious false identities promoted by Satan to stifle prophets and prophetic ministry is the flawed viewpoint that prophets should have perfect accuracy in words they give. The responsibility placed on prophets and prophetic believers is enormous. No other ministry office has that level of pressure placed on them. None. And it’s one of the reasons prophets or prophetic believers resort to the “God told me so” argument whether what they hear is accurate or not, produces good fruit or not, builds the Church or destroys it. That mentality develops because of the unrealistic expectations placed on prophets and prophetic believers.
That flawed theology is predicated on a basic misunderstanding of prophets and prophetic ministry. What do I mean? Regardless of the person giving a prophetic word, once the prophetic word is given, we, those receiving the prophetic word, become responsible for it. Yes, God really believes He’s God. And He expects us to obey His voice, even if we don’t hear it. Yikes!!! Jesus placed a greater emphasis on receiving the prophetic word than he did on giving prophetic words. When Elijah went to the widow woman in Zarephath, God spoke to Elijah and said, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 1 Kings 17:9, ESV. King Josiah was responsible for the prophetic word to him by his adversary, Neco, Pharoah of Egypt. 2 Chronicles 35:22.
Another insidious false identity that frustrates prophets and prophetic ministry is this: “if we can control prophets and prophecy, we can stop false prophets and false or inaccurate prophecy”. That theological perspective is flawed. Controlling the prophetic flow that way is like trying to control Niagara Falls with a garden hose. It doesn’t work. Even if you have a bigger hose, a fire hose, for a greater capacity, your hose still isn’t big enough. That’s right! The Church is getting hosed out of prophets and prophetic ministry through a false, flawed theological perspective.
The Bible doesn’t teach leaders to control prophets and prophecy. Rather, it teaches us to prove those prophecies we’re given. Yes, we should evaluate prophecy. Yes, we should judge prophecy (with righteous judgment not false judgments). Further, as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for. And, by and large, prophets and prophetic ministry haven’t been supported by the Church or its leaders. In the real world, minimum wage (or nothing) doesn’t work, which is what most prophets are expected to live with, and do so without complaining, which, by the way, many do. Dear apostle, pastor, ministry leader, would you accept that kind of arrangement?
Now, some of you might say, How do we know if someone is a prophet? How should we support prophets and prophetic ministry? Others leaders might say, we don’t really need prophecy. Or the prophets and prophecy we have is good enough. You’re entitled to your perspective. Nevertheless, I believe you’re missing out on one of the greatest blessings given to the Church. In my judgment, arguments like those will not hold water with God. Remember, God is the judge. He was, will be, and currently is the judge. And His judgments, as King David said, “are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” Psalms 19:9-10.
How should we handle the current errors in the prophetic movement? One, more prophecy. We should encourage believers to flow in a greater degree of prophecy. More prophecy will work to correct those errors in the prophetic movement. Two, support and bless prophets. We need reliable men and women who cannot only facilitate prophetic ministry, but move prophetic ministry to greater depths in the Spirit. Three, confront the flawed and false theological perspectives, especially among leaders within the Church, that have warped how prophets are treated and, in large part, created lone wolf or ranger prophets in Christ’s body. Prophets should be in the Church not outside the Church. Further, prophets are prophecy should be treated with respect not just handled with care. Four, instruction and teaching and training should occur. We need legitimate, accredited, trusted schools of prophets. We don’t have that, by and large. That’s one of the reasons I’ve established a school for prophets.
Restoring prophetic integrity and identity is possible and it’s needed. That means moving deeper into the realm of the Spirit. My question: We have many doctors of the Word, where are the doctors of the Spirit? That’s what prophets and apostles should be and become.
Let us pray!
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