On Knowing a Prophet

Do you know a Christian prophet?

I’ve known several over the years.

They are understandably rare but important for the Body of Christ.

As a “mere” church member, I’ve always recognized the value of prophets, and the need to pay attention to them.

That’s especially true if what they say makes me feel uncomfortable.

What is a prophet?

It’s not a person in a turban predicting the future.

The Bible is full of prophets: here’s a long, alphabetical list.

Among the most famous are Samuel, Daniel, and Jeremiah.

They don’t always have happy endings.

But they were chosen and “called” by God to speak truth to His people.

Sometimes they predicted the future.

Sometimes, they merely called the people back to God or reminded them of what God had to say to them.

Yes, modern Christianity still has them.

Personal experience

Two prophets, in particular, stand out.

We knew the first one many years ago in Washington.

A brilliant man, David seemed like a gadfly and a problem for the church leadership.

He always had interesting ideas that made people feel uncomfortable.

If asked, he could explain them all with Biblical references that made sense.

Lots of people ignored him, it was just too hard to contemplate what he said.

One day, I ran into David’s wife in the corridor and asked about him.

She sighed, took a deep breath, and started to explain.

When I stopped her after a bit, she looked almost fearful.

“I may not like what your husband’s saying, but I know he’s a prophet. I have to pay attention to him.”

She visibly relaxed. “You understand.”

I nodded. I’m sure it’s hard to love a prophet.

He and his family eventually started a home church and as far as I know, served God faithfully ever after.

The prophet I know better

I knew as soon as I met the man that he probably was a prophet.

He just saw Scripture from a different and more applicable angle.

Matt was fervent, which could be intimidating with his size.

His spirit was humble–he had come through difficult times.

We never knew what God would use him to suggest.

I’ve written about him here: how a parking ticket changed our church.

That ticket resulted in a ministry still going on at our church more than 10 years later.

Prayer

Because their first allegiance is to God–nothing else–prophets spend a lot of time in prayer.

That’s their mode of communication with the Creator of the Universe, and their ears are sensitive to what He indicates.

They also love Scripture.

If you encounter a “prophet” who doesn’t spend time studying the Bible and praying, I’d question if they were a prophet.

Reading the above, a friend pointed out another aspect of a prophet:

Larry Christianson once preached on prophets and there was one thought I’ve never forgotten. 

“God speaks to the one, not he many.” 

While we test what a prophet says against scripture, there is to be no expectation others will hear the same word (actually that would be a sign it’s not from God – 2 Kings 22:12). 

So saying “I’m not hearing God say that” is not a good response to a prophet.  At Christenson’s church, all votes had to be unanimous, as the one dissenting voice could be a prophet.

Humble, but driven by love

Both prophets I knew were humble men, driven by their love for God. They did not apologize for Him.

Many years ago just prior to the second Gulf War, we scheduled a prayer meeting at church. This is what happened when our prophet prayed and how I reacted:

“Lord, some of these men were brought to this place for such a time as this. The whole purpose of their lives may be to die in this war. Please be with them.”

I opened my eyes in shock. All my motherly instincts rejected the idea God would specifically call someone to die in a war.

But if God ordains the days of our lives and knows us all the way down to the numbers of hairs on our heads, He does determine the time and place where we will die. It left me uneasy, but also served as an excellent reminder we do not worship a tame God.

It took a Vietnam veteran prophet to teach me.

from Loving God Without a Label

That concept eventually worked its way into A Poppy in Remembrance.

Clear Eyes

A prophet sees their “flock,” the people God put into their lives, with clear eyes.

Those people frequently break the prophet’s heart. (See Moses).

But they love their flock, almost as intensely as they love their God.

They keep returning to us–to warn us, to call us to prayer, to remind us of Scripture, and often to embarrass us.

I’m thankful for how the prophets I’ve known help me seek God for my answers.

We need them in the church.

Thank you, Matt and David.

October 23, 2019: Matt died today with his wife of 50 years and family at his side. We’re all going to miss him.

Tweetables

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