Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy - Prophetic Gifts Today In The New Testament Church

Guidelines for Testing Prophetic Utterances

The Person Who Prophesies

1. Is Jesus Lord of this person's life? 32 The local church has a right to expect that anyone who prophesies in a worship service is a devoted fol lower of Jesus Christ.The leadership should ascertain a person's spiritual credentials before he or she is allowed to minister or minister again.Some call this "the relationship test": Does this person know the Lord? Is the fruit of his or her life and ministry good? 2. Is this person filled with the Holy Spirit? Prophecy is, after all, a manifestation of the Holy Spirit."No one can say, 'Jesus is Lord,' except by the Holy Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:3; see Revelation 19:10), so we may logically conclude that no one can speak forth the words of Jesus prophet ically without the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.Ronald A.N.Kydd supports this conclusion: "Basic to the understanding of a 'spiritual gift' is the idea that it is an ability which is given to someone by God.He is its source.It is not at the disposal of a man, but rather it comes into play when God chooses." 33 3. Is there a reasonable measure of true godliness and holiness about the person? We expect those who preach to us to live a lifestyle free from the covetous, immoral and materialistic attitudes of today's world.This should also be the lifestyle of those who minister in the gifts of the Spirit. "Is this a praying person?" is also a logical question. The Didache, dating from the last half of the first century, instructed the early Christians to beware of prophets who demanded money and wanted to make extended visits to the local church, thereby abusing hos pitality. 3 4 The first-century Church, it seems, was more "concerned with discerning prophets [and motives] rather than prophecies.The warnings of the epistles are directed towards false prophets, not specific false prophecies." 35 4. Does this person display the fruit of the Holy Spirit in his or her life? Galatians 5 contrasts the "deeds of the flesh" (verse 19) and the "fruit of the Spirit" (verse 22).All of us respond more positively to a prophecy if we sense in that person a loving humility that reflects the life of Jesus. Does this person's life add up? Does he or she demonstrate the character of Christ? Some call this "the moral test," and it is an important one. The Didache says that "not everybody making ecstatic utterances is a prophet, but only if he behaves like the Lord" (11:8) and that "every prophet who teaches the truth but fails to practice what he preaches is a false prophet" (11:10).True prophecy produces fruit in character and conduct consis tent with the fruit of the Holy Spirit. George Mallone suggests a cautious response when hearing prophecy: "Without a character reference, we are to remain quietly agnostic about what is said....Churches should not let those unknown to the commu 323 •