The nature of the prophetic prediction

Prophecy itself does not represent the oracle of God. People use to misunderstand the Prophet’s labour as they approach to a prophet in order he could guess their future. Let me say you this is absolutely wrong. Prophet is the voice of God, only for certain people, certain circumstances and certain time. Prophet could prophesy every time, but it is written that, “the spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets.” (1 Corinthians 14:32). Prophesy implies itself more than predict future facts. Mainly the objective of a prophet is to speak the word of God to his people, his generation as well as call them to fidelity to the covenant with God. So this way the prophet is placed in the central position to reveal the will of God.

The basic aim of prophecy is the holiness towards God as such it has to be experimented through history. Prophecy has never come to man when he wants it, but it comes only by the will of God. This is fundamental to recognise a false prophecy. “For prophesy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:21). When a man comes to look for a prophecy and the prophet by himself gives the prophecy, it becomes a fake turning the prophecy into an oracle. However, this does not restrain the prophet to prophesy himself in particular situations being more a guide or a counselor than a visionary; this will be cleared later speaking of the kind of prophecies.

Prophesy only comes from God. It only happens when He wants to give it, as He speaks to the prophet and following the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Along my life I have known many people who have been misguided concerning prophesy. I knew a woman who was Pastor (also daughter to a pastoral family); she claimed God bestowed in her a “prophetic ministry of liberation”. Based on this conviction she prophesied everyone at church, sometimes about half an hour to every person. I remember she used wonderful words and tried to get beauty every prophecy. The matter is never a prophecy was confirmed by facts; never a prophecy of this woman was transformed into real. God was not speaking through this woman. This is not the way in which He works or speaks. God is a wise man, so He knows whom He gives his words and how he does. People of this small church as well as her husband –Senior Pastor-, watching no results of her prophecies, decided to believe God “put back” his blessings “promised through this [fake indeed] prophetess”. Let me tell you something, God never puts back his promises, He is a present God, since He always spoke of himself as the “I am”, a present being. In the past He was present, in our present He is present as He is also present in our future. When God gives you a word, He always says, “I bestow you, I give you, I announce you, I tell you, I am making…” He never speaks on future. I have ever before heard a true prophecy in which God told “I will make of you a pastor”, no. But the true word of God says “I make of you a pastor.” God gives always in present and never whatsoever purpose or circumstance is postponed. When someone gets approach to you saying you through prophecy “God will…” reject that word. It is a fake.

“Prophet” comes from the Hebrew “nabí”, which certainly has not a clear meaning; it is believed though, that it comes from “nabú” which means “one who is called”. Prophecy and prophet themselves evolve in three kinds of prophets and prophecies. These are:
1- The one who is a visionary, telling beyond human skills what will happen in future.
2- The one who acts as the voice of the Lord, because God himself spoke to this man giving him words to be spoken to the people in order they act in certain way.
3- The one who reveals the will of God, no having a revelation by God himself but through the Holy Spirit. This man basically acts guided by the gift of Word of Knowledge, or Science.

A prediction is an announcement less specific, of future”, “a miracle of knowledge, a declaration or description of something itself yet future, beyond of power of human sagacity to discern or calculate. Instead of “human divination”, God’s prophesy is always given to the church. “For the teaching of the law by the priest will not be lost, nor will counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophets.” (Jeremiah 18:18b). I think this verse speaks of the three ways of prophesy. Usually these three kinds of prophecy cohabit in the same person. We can analyse what I myself consider is the most clear example of a whole prophet and the first one, Abraham, who was tested by God to ask him to sacrifice his son, Isaac.

When Abraham was in his way to Moriah, he was asked by his son, Isaac, where the sacrifice was. Abraham replied him, “God himself will provide the sacrifice”. At this moment when Abraham spoke, he acted in the three ways as a prophet. He spoke as a visionary since he talked about what will happen in the close future, he certainly was not prepared but to offer his son in sacrifice, in despite of this he spoke saying something that certainly he did not know; Abraham told to Isaac how the Lord was guiding their lives telling what to do and what they could expect out of him, the order of the Lord was clear, “go to the region of Moriah, sacrifice him there as a burnt sacrifice” God already had given his order, what it must be obeyed and followed by his people; and finally Abraham also understood what the purpose of God was, he became to the knowledge of what the plans of God were. The outstanding skills of this prophecy rely on the fact it was not only the first prophesy spoken by a man, but also was the example and guidance to all the upcoming prophets to Israel.

We can find today, that mostly of the prophecies which are given today in the name of the Lord, are not ruled or based on this kind of prophecy. But they are given just based on human divination, the own prophet’s will, or the insane wish to give appropriate words to a person; obviously this is not the final aim of the prophetic prediction. Since the beginning of the times, the most important character of the prophecy was the prediction of the Saviour, the coming of the Messiah. The ultimate purpose of the prophecy is Jesus.

The nature of the prophetic prediction is not found in human’s divination or natural efforts; but as we can recognise through this short explanation, it only is found in the basis of holiness and guidance by the Holy Spirit. I would like to write about the ways to discern of a false prophesy and stuff, but I guess it is time to end this blog for today. Perhaps in upcoming days the Spirit guides me to write again about the second part of this blog. “Jesus, as the purpose of the prophetic prediction.”

My King reigns! Amen.