Page 1 of 4 123 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 31

Thread: Does 'Believe the Prophets' Apply to Us Today? Michael Brown

  1. #1
    Administrator fuego's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    16,274
    Thanked: 14133
    Blog Entries
    1

    Does 'Believe the Prophets' Apply to Us Today? Michael Brown

    For several weeks now, 2 Chronicles 20:20 has been quoted repeatedly, urging us to believe God's prophets when they say that Trump will serve a second term while also rebuking those who question what the prophets say. That is a very serious misuse of that scripture. Please allow me to explain.

    But first, understand this. I fully affirm prophetic ministry today and have been teaching on it since the 1980s. I have worked with New Testament prophets for years, I have been asked to be a mentor to some prophets, and at times, I have been used prophetically as well. So, my issue is not with the validity of prophetic ministry today. And my issue here is not with whether these prophets heard that Trump would serve a second term, nor I am debating here whether the election was stolen. My issue is with the current misuse of "believe the prophets and you will prosper."

    "Believe the Prophets" Is Not a New Testament Concept
    You see, in the Old Testament, the average Israelite could not hear the voice of God for himself or herself, since they were not indwelt by the Spirit as we are today. So, the prophets played a special role in the nation, giving them life and death prophetic words. That's also why prophets who prophesied falsely were held to strict standards — like stoning.

    But today, we don't stone those who prophesy falsely because they are not held to the same standard. Instead, in these New Testament times, the Spirit has been poured out on all flesh and all believers, potentially, can prophesy. More importantly, all of us can hear the voice of God for ourselves. We don't need to go to a prophet for a word because the Spirit speaks to all of us. (And of course, we have THE Word, the Bible.)

    So, in the New Testament different prophets speak, then their words are weighed carefully by others. Everything is tested, and we hold fast to what is good. We are not simply told to "believe the prophets." Again, that is not a New Testament concept.

    It's also important to understand that prophets do not lead the Church. They are simply one aspect of the five-fold ministry, and, while they may receive revelation (as one pastor who worked with some powerful prophets explained), they may not have the interpretation, and they often do not have the application. That's why prophetic leaders are simply one part of a larger leadership team, from whom direction should be given to the Church.

    Don't Judge Believers Who Don't Believe the Prophets
    Interestingly, in the last year, there were no major prophets who brought public warnings about COVID-19. (Some said the Lord showed them privately, and some may have spoken of a coming shaking, but none publicly prophesied the pandemic in advance.) In addition, some prominent prophets said that the virus would dissipate beginning mid-April, during Passover, and these words have been played on internet over and again to make charismatics look bad and even to make all believers look bad. So, if ever there was a wrong time to be preaching "believe the prophets," it is now. As a group, they hardly have a perfect track record.

    That being said, if the Lord has spoken to your heart that God wants Trump in office, and if you are convinced that there is fraud, by all means, give yourselves to prayer for God's righteous outcome. Go for it! But under no circumstances should you judge others who have not heard God say this, telling them they must believe the prophets. Hardly. And what about Jesus-loving, Spirit-filled believers who contacted me privately before the elections to tell me they believed God showed them Biden would win? Do we tell them to ignore the voice of the Spirit in their own lives and to believe other prophets, even though these prophets do not have a perfect track record?

    Perhaps you recognize me as a teacher of the Word but you think I'm lacking in prophetic insight. That's fine, since I write these words as a teacher of the Word and as a child of God. In short, we must not confuse Old Testament prophetic ministry with New Testament prophetic ministry. And if you want to use an Old Testament text like 2 Chronicles 20:20 (which, by the way, was spoken by the king, not the prophets) and you want to have the authority of Old Testament prophets, then you'll have to accept the Old Testament penalties for false prophecy too. Be careful what you wish for.

    A Consensus Among Prophets Doesn't Mean Their Words Are True
    One last note: when you read the Bible, you see that it was often one prophet, like Jeremiah or Micaiah, who was right while the rest of the prophets, the overwhelming majority, were wrong. So, just because there's a consensus among charismatic prophets doesn't mean their words are true. Not only so, but it could be those who make us uncomfortable and challenge the crowd who are the ones speaking for God.

    When it comes to the current prophetic words, I would love to see them prove true, since friends of mine have predicted that Trump would have a second term and I personally voted for Trump. And again, if there is electoral fraud, I pray it will be exposed — and exposed quickly. But don't let anyone tell you that you must "believe the prophets." You have your own walk with the Lord, and as one of Jesus' sheep, you can hear His voice.

    Does 'Believe the Prophets' Apply to Us Today? | The Stream

    Recent video on teaching about the prophetic and the prophet in the NT.


    Contemporary Prophetic Ministry: Proper Use and Abuse


  2. The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to fuego For This Useful Post:

    curly sue (12-04-2020), Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020), LionHeart (12-04-2020), MercyandFaith (12-03-2020)

  3. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by fuego View Post
    "Believe the Prophets" Is Not a New Testament Concept
    Is it a NT concept?

    The only references I can find to this is in Luke 24:25, And then He said to them, "You foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! and Acts 26:27, King Agrippa, do you believe the Prophets? I know that you believe. Both are talking about OT Prophets, specifically those in Scripture.

  4. #3
    Prophets can be trusted after they are tested by church elders. Agabus was trusted and believed.They actually received his predictive prophecy and prepared to help those affected negatively by it..
    "But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man."

  5. The Following User Says Thank You to LionHeart For This Useful Post:

    Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020)

  6. #4
    Administrator fuego's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    16,274
    Thanked: 14133
    Blog Entries
    1
    One thing Dr Brown brings up is not one person publicly had a prophecy about covid. I mean it's easy to prophecy a Trump win, because he's running. It's not hidden. But something that isn't known, and can't be known would happen by anybody but God, no prophet gave a warning about it. About the closest you can come with Trump is Kim Clement, when Trump wasn't even on the radar to be elected. At the same time though didn't he prophecy two terms for Trump? I can't remember. But Trump could come back in 2024 and that would fulfill that part of Clement's prophecy. Not sure what I'm trying to say other than many that we recognize as prophets don't really have a good track record of actually prophesying something that could only be known by God, such as covid.

  7. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to fuego For This Useful Post:

    Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020), LionHeart (12-04-2020)

  8. #5
    Kim Clement did prophesy two terms for Trump.That said, I was on a stage with him in 1995. He was prophesying to those he selected from the audience of about 800 people. He gave me a word about my father in law that was totally off and we knew it.There was a strong Anointing on that stage but he was just making things up when he did not have something substantial to say. It was a terrible show and opened my eyes to the gimmicks he was using.He did get it right in some cases. He pointed to man in the very back row and told him to come forward. He told him he had a child on drugs. I knew the man and that was right on about his child. But there was so many misses and Kim was jerking the microphone back and forth from the people if they did not agree with his prophecy. It was a very bad show. I followed up talking to a couple of people who attended previous meetings. They said they knew of none of his prophecies that came to pass. This local Pastor had him back only one time in 20 years.Many prophets shoot for the spectacular and when that fails they fall into error. If we just flow in the supernatural we will avoid the deceptions that can accompany certain types of ministries. For example, if God is evidently not speaking we should not try to get prophetic Words from the Lord. It will fail miserably. Also, God will move spectacularly at times but we cannot make that happen no matter how hard we try.

  9. The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to LionHeart For This Useful Post:

    Cardinal TT (12-04-2020), Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020), fuego (12-04-2020), MercyandFaith (12-04-2020), Nikos (12-04-2020), Romans828 (12-04-2020)

  10. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by fuego View Post
    One thing Dr Brown brings up is not one person publicly had a prophecy about covid. I mean it's easy to prophecy a Trump win, because he's running. It's not hidden. But something that isn't known, and can't be known would happen by anybody but God, no prophet gave a warning about it. About the closest you can come with Trump is Kim Clement, when Trump wasn't even on the radar to be elected. At the same time though didn't he prophecy two terms for Trump? I can't remember. But Trump could come back in 2024 and that would fulfill that part of Clement's prophecy. Not sure what I'm trying to say other than many that we recognize as prophets don't really have a good track record of actually prophesying something that could only be known by God, such as covid.
    Chuck Pierce supposedly foretold Covid. (check out link here)

    Chuck Pierce Prophesied 'Massive Plague-Like Invasion' in September — Charisma News

    However, two things make me skeptical:

    First, this prophecy apparently never was really publicized until the Covid pandemic was well underway (although that could be because it wasn't taken seriously until the pandemic was severe.)

    Secondly, Pierce indicated the pandemic would only last to or through Passover this year (April 2020.) Needless to say, the pandemic has most certainly not stopped after April.

  11. The Following User Says Thank You to MercyandFaith For This Useful Post:

    Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020)

  12. #7
    Senior Member Colonel's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Location
    Oslo, Norway
    Posts
    14,487
    Thanked: 5793
    Quote Originally Posted by LionHeart View Post
    Kim Clement did prophesy two terms for Trump.That said, I was on a stage with him in 1995. He was prophesying to those he selected from the audience of about 800 people. He gave me a word about my father in law that was totally off and we knew it.There was a strong Anointing on that stage but he was just making things up when he did not have something substantial to say. It was a terrible show and opened my eyes to the gimmicks he was using.He did get it right in some cases. He pointed to man in the very back row and told him to come forward. He told him he had a child on drugs. I knew the man and that was right on about his child. But there was so many misses and Kim was jerking the microphone back and forth from the people if they did not agree with his prophecy. It was a very bad show. I followed up talking to a couple of people who attended previous meetings. They said they knew of none of his prophecies that came to pass. This local Pastor had him back only one time in 20 years.Many prophets shoot for the spectacular and when that fails they fall into error. If we just flow in the supernatural we will avoid the deceptions that can accompany certain types of ministries. For example, if God is evidently not speaking we should not try to get prophetic Words from the Lord. It will fail miserably. Also, God will move spectacularly at times but we cannot make that happen no matter how hard we try.
    The worst kind must be the prophets that hand out personal prophecies to whoever signs up for it, often for a substantial sum of money. That's forcing prophecies when God doesn't speak. Prophets are typically much better at hearing God when he does speak than hearing that he doesn't speak.

  13. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Colonel For This Useful Post:

    Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020), MercyandFaith (12-04-2020)

  14. #8
    1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

    Where do you think false prophesy, i.e. prophesy that is wrong, i.e. prophesy that is not from God, actually comes from?

  15. #9
    Senior Member Nikos's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Location
    Iowa
    Posts
    12,927
    Thanked: 7617
    Blog Entries
    49
    Quote Originally Posted by LionHeart View Post
    Kim Clement did prophesy two terms for Trump.That said, I was on a stage with him in 1995. He was prophesying to those he selected from the audience of about 800 people. He gave me a word about my father in law that was totally off and we knew it.There was a strong Anointing on that stage but he was just making things up when he did not have something substantial to say. It was a terrible show and opened my eyes to the gimmicks he was using.He did get it right in some cases. He pointed to man in the very back row and told him to come forward. He told him he had a child on drugs. I knew the man and that was right on about his child. But there was so many misses and Kim was jerking the microphone back and forth from the people if they did not agree with his prophecy. It was a very bad show. I followed up talking to a couple of people who attended previous meetings. They said they knew of none of his prophecies that came to pass. This local Pastor had him back only one time in 20 years.Many prophets shoot for the spectacular and when that fails they fall into error. If we just flow in the supernatural we will avoid the deceptions that can accompany certain types of ministries. For example, if God is evidently not speaking we should not try to get prophetic Words from the Lord. It will fail miserably. Also, God will move spectacularly at times but we cannot make that happen no matter how hard we try.
    Good insight. Thanks.

  16. The Following User Says Thank You to Nikos For This Useful Post:

    Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020)

  17. #10
    Administrator fuego's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    16,274
    Thanked: 14133
    Blog Entries
    1
    Quote Originally Posted by FunFromOz View Post
    1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

    Where do you think false prophesy, i.e. prophesy that is wrong, i.e. prophesy that is not from God, actually comes from?
    Well it says test the spirits. A person could be wrong and still not of the devil, not be of an evil spirit. Flesh/soul gets in the way. Prophesying out of their mind/soul instead of their spirit. A 'false prophet' in the Bible is a wolf in sheeps clothing. Not a sheep that misses it. That's entirely two different things.

  18. The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to fuego For This Useful Post:

    A.J. (12-06-2020), curly sue (12-05-2020), Ezekiel 33 (12-07-2020), MercyandFaith (12-04-2020)

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
You can avoid major, expensive repair costs with an extended service plan for your Pontiac. Many vehicle repairs can cost thousands of dollars in unexpected expense, now may be the time to consider an extended service plan for your vehicle.