The New Covenant Prophet…..Preparing, Watching, Revealing

Ephesians. 4:9-13 It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the fullness of Christ.

All 5 of these ministry gifts are NECESSARY in preparing the church toward unity, maturity, and the full measure of all that is Christ in us and through us. Every person who calls themselves ‘Christian’ must have all these gifts speaking into their lives if they are to grow and develop into the fullness of salvation for which Jesus paid the price! Today I’ll begin a series on one of these gifts; that of the prophet.

To prophesy is to reveal and declare the heart of God for a circumstance, a person, a church, a season, or even a nation. We know from 1 Cor. 14:1-3 that prophecy is a spiritual gift that anyone can desire and receive, but the role of ‘prophet’ goes well beyond the gift of prophecy. Many believers can prophesy, but only a few walk in the role of prophet. Prophets certainly have the gift of prophecy but their role in the church is bigger than simply prophesying in a church service.

Rick Joyner, author, pastor, apostle, teacher and prophet said ‘no other ministry carries the potential for either blessing or disaster as does the prophetic’. Why? Because the prophet’s role is to bring forth ‘what the Father is saying today’. The prophet plays what I call ‘The God card’; speaking on behalf of God.  The responsibility to bring forth in accuracy and integrity the words and intentions of God the Father to His people is an awesome and sobering responsibility!

The New Covenant prophet ministers from the foundation of love and truth. God is love. Therefore the prophet’s ministry comes from a heart of love, first toward the Father, then toward His people. This differs from most Old Covenant prophets who certainly loved God, but many had little love for people. While some may challenge me on this assertion, remember that love as the conduit of God’s grace did not come to fulfillment until Jesus.  It is through being born-again, that we (and the prophet) have the ability to love people unconditionally (agapeo). The old covenant prophet spoke and functioned primarily out of God’s law of righteousness in opposition to sin. Jesus dealt a death blow to the power of sin through His work on the cross and resurrection. He fulfilled the law of righteousness.  By faith in Jesus we are righteous. We have the way grace, undeserved favor and blessing, flowing to those who would believe in Him.  It was God’s love (John 3:16), manifest in His Son, that makes it possible and pre-requisite for the prophet to love the Father AND His people.

This series is from Pastor Harvey Wittmier of the CrossFire Church Centennial Colorado.

The New Covenant Prophet…..preparing, watching, revealing (The Crossfire Minute Blog 3-13-13)

Coming in the next post…..the character of the prophet.