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The Prophet: The Watchman
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In my previous posts on this subject I
established the importance of Godly character and maturity in the role of
Prophet. Prophets prophesy encouragement, strengthening, and comfort
according to 1 Cor. 14, but their role in the church goes beyond that.
Their ministry is less about personal words and more about
impartation to churches, ministries, leaders and nations. I
will complete this series of posts by looking at three key aspects of
his/her ministry.
First there is the ministry of ‘The
Watchman’: seeing beyond the horizon. Prophets watch for and hear God’s
view of what is coming. They stand upon the protective wall of the
church watching and listening for what cannot be seen with the natural eye.
Pastors, teachers, and elders that care for and watch over the church are the
gatekeepers. Watchmen inform the gatekeepers of what is coming.
This is more than prophetic impressions. A pastor may have an
‘impression’ in his spirit that something is coming…an inner sense, a warning,
or an impending change. The prophet can bring the Father’s perspective of that
warning or change. He/she can bring clarity and more detail
to the pastor. The apostle can then bring strategy and structure to handle what
the watchman sees.
Then there is the ministry of ‘The
Preparer’: equipping for coming events. “During this time some
prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, name Agabus,
stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread
over the entire Roman World. (This happened during the reign of Claudius)”
Acts 11:27. Agabus revealed something the Father wanted the church
to know…a difficult event, a famine, was coming……they needed preparation or
equipping for the famine. They responded by sending money to believers in
Judea. Agabus also warned Paul of hard things that would happen if he
went to Jerusalem. That warning was to prepare him, not to
deter him from his destiny.
And lastly there is the ministry
of ‘The Revealer’: direction and correction. A prophet may give
prophetic direction to the church. Maturity is absolutely key in this regard.
Church leaders and overseers do not need directive revelation on a daily or
weekly basis. They have the Holy Spirit! They have a heart for the
people for whom they have responsibility. They have been given a gift to
lead and care for people. Paul taught, evangelized and preached for
months and years before he had a prophetic vision to go to Macedonia. (Acts
16:6-10) In this case he received a vision directly, but often it is a prophet
that will receive it and pass it on to a leader. His apostolic direction flowed
out of his apostolic gifting……he was doing what he was called to do; to go and
make disciples of all nations. However, a directive vision was necessary
to move his ministry from Asia to Europe…to a new world needing the gospel.
This was the same gift, same ministry, but different geographic direction for that
gift and ministry.
On occasion, the prophet may bring
corrective revelation to something that is not in alignment. In this
case the emphasis is less about knowledge and more about Truth; correctly
applying Truth. Churches, ministries and denominations can get caught up
in popular tactics and teachings that SEEM to be effective in getting people
into and keeping them in a church. However, what’s popular in the culture
is not always productive in the Kingdom. The church must be grounded in
the Word and in Truth. A prophet can reveal a corrective
realignment to Truth in Grace. The heart of the Father is for us to stay
aligned with the Truth of His Word and grounded in the Grace of His Kingdom.
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