On Receiving A Prophet Into Your Church

Would that all of God’s people learn to walk by the Spirit and were prophets!  Much of our understanding of modern day prophets is colored heavily by our understanding of their function in the Old Testament.  But since most of the Body of Christ does not walk by the Spirit, the Old Testament prophet is arguably just as needed today as in the Old Testament.  Nevertheless, we cannot ignore what God has really given on the day of Pentecost.  Every believer should so walk in the Spirit today as fully equipped believers. That’s a part of what ministers are to accomplish today for the Body of Christ – the equipping the saints, for their perfecting, is all about.

A prophet, or any of the other five gift ministries, is merely a subset of the full apostolic operation of Jesus Christ.  We dare not magnify the gift ministry, except to receive it as a gift from God (if it passes the tests that we are Biblically to apply to them).  Like all spiritual things, we must prove all things and hold fast to the good.  We honor those who lovingly operate their gifting accurately.  But we still check them out to be sure it bears witness with our inner man spirit, and with Scripture.  This is radically different than how prophets were to be received in the Old Testament.  So lest we get carried away with ourselves, let’s be careful that we also instruct people how to check out a prophet in this day and hour.  Not to do so by the Spirit is to open the door to extensive witchcraft in the church through false prophets (about which there is significant warning in the New Testament).

Many believers who claim the mantle of a prophet are young in the Scripture.  Some of the older ones can get a little too caught up in their prophet’s cloke to see the challenge of pastoring a flock in the prophetic.  So when, as a pastor, an individual comes to your church demanding a voice to your congregation as a prophet, and this person is clearly spiritually minded and seems Scripturally able, perhaps even Bible schooled, how do you handle this? Here’s how I have been led.  Unless God specifically tells me otherwise, I lovingly invite that person to take a seat in the pews and stay silent.  I do this not out of having a controlling spirit, nor even out of  concern that he or she will rip the hearts of the congregation to shreds.  But I do it so that I can see if God will make room for his or her gift.  I tell the prophet why I am doing this, and I share the advantages of the congregation getting to know and feel comfortable with the spiritual integrity of the prophet before I feel comfortable letting him or her give a word to the congregation.  When people know you, they can better receive what the Lord says through you.

If the prophet is genuinely led by the Lord, they will immediately see the pastoral wisdom of this request.  But even more revealing, if they become angry and pridefully tell you that you are being controlling and hindering to the purposes of God, then you can clearly see that you are dealing with one of the following:

1. a witch or warlock who is endeavoring to ravage the flock
2. a goat like Balaam who operates the spirit of God correctly as a prophet, but who has a heart that is corrupt
3. a genuine but young prophet who desperately needs mentoring in the prophetic

Obviously, a satanist masquerading as a prophet is easy to spot.  Because their father the devil cannot receive truth, neither can any of his children.  But do remember that the devil knows the Bible, can quote it (Matthew 4), but not apply it accurately.  They will not be able to receive the truth.

But, neither will a goat be able to receive the truth.  They will, however, eat sheep food.  Then they will lead the flock astray, constantly testing the fence and lead the sheep out of the pasture.  These are the kind that will whine and rebel under legitimate Godly authority, finally being told by the Lord “depart from Me, I never knew you” (Matthew 7).

Now, a young prophet is a different matter.  You can teach those who are teachable, and you can loving allow them to prophecy as they are led if you are able and confident in judging their prophecies honestly, lovingly, and accurately.  It takes a prophet-pastor to do this well.  You don’t want to stifle the Spirit of God, but you do want to coach them to keep them from mixing their soul in with the Spirit.

Usually mixing soul with Spirit arises over:

1. lack of sound Bible knowledge and understanding
2. pride

The counterfeit word from the Lord is visible when it contradicts Scripture.  Knowing the Scriptures is the first requirement for every believer, prophet or not, because every believer is required to learn to live by every rhema word of God that proceeds from His mouth (Matthew 4:4), and become a sheep that hears the voice of the Lord (John 10:27 ) and opens the door to His voice (Revelation 3:20 ).  But what if it a prophetic word doesn’t really contradict Scripture, yet carries a wrong spiritual tone?

In this case you must rely upon your inner witness of the Spirit within your inward man (Ephesians 3:16 ; Romans 7:22 ; 2 Corinthians 4:16 ).  You must learn to rely on this inner witness anyway, regardless of whether you have spotted a counterfeit Scriptural message. But here’s where you will be most challenged, and must use your pastor’s anointing to see the young prophet’s heart.  Are you too protective of the flock to allow the young prophet to practice his or her gifting, even if they might make a mistake (assuming you will be able to find them teachable enough to coach them later)?  Or is this prophet too prideful to recognize that they are yet prone to give a word of knowledge without having learned to ask for a word of wisdom to know what to do with their word of knowledge?

These are some of the issues involved in mentoring young prophets, and spotting counterfeit prophetic ministry and dealing with them properly to guard the flock.   A well-raised prophet is truly a gift to the Body of Christ.  But one with issues of the heart is a loose canon.

Spirit of the Lord arise in the heart of every Spirit-filled pastor to help us raise up mighty apostolic ministers for these times ahead in the Body of Christ!

I love you.  It’s a walk by the Spirit, and a prophet is not called to replace the Spirit of God in any believer.  Quite the opposite — they are to strengthen the Body, including edification, comfort, and exhortation.  And to do so without enabling the adversary to compromise their hearts and become Balaams for hire (in both money or in seeking approving pats on the back).

There’s a balance that both prophets AND the believers who receive them must find.  Of course, that balance comes with relationship with the Master, Jesus Christ.

With much love,

–Paul Norcross