Thursday, June 16, 2011

Prophecy IV / Why?






































(The Rebuilding of the Temple / Gustave Dore)

When addressing the question of "Why is the prophetic important?" I feel it is important to offer the rejoinder, "Why wouldn't it be?"

When Scripture so clearly states such things as...

"...earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy." [1 Cor. 14:]

and

"... I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy." [1 Cor. 14:5]

and

"... Do not despise prophecies." [1 Thes. 5:20]

... it seems like it would be incumbent upon believers to answer question like, "What does this mean?" and "How do I apply this to my life?"

Let's consider Ephesians 4:11-12.

"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ."

I would assume most Christians wouldn't demand an explanation of "why" regarding all of these roles of leadership in the church. (E.g. few Christians would have suspicions or misgiving about why the church needs teaching or teachers.) Since they are all commonly referenced in the NT, one would think that the basis of such confidence would simply be founded in Scripture. But why then would we ask "why" of the prophet and not of the teacher or shepherd?

I suspect this inconsistency results from one or both of the following:
  1. Lack of first hand experience with the prophetic (or confusion regarding our experiences with it)
  2. The natural equivalents of the other roles (i.e., we are more able to comprehend these other roles from a natural point of view)
Thus our receptiveness to the prophetic has more to do with our experience and natural reasoning than with the counsel of Scripture. But this shouldn't be the way Christians operate.

My first post on the prophetic was titled De-/Re-Mystifying the Prophetic. To re-mystify the prophetic, is to restore it to it's supernatural power. To de-mystify it is to restore it to it's understandable place in Christian life.


WHO BUILT THE TEMPLE?
Returning to Paul's letter to the Ephesians, we see that prophecy is one of the 5 main gifts at work in the church for the sake of equipping "the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ." And I reiterate Paul's statement that "the one who prophesies builds up the church." [1 Cor. 14:4]

Paul often likened the church to a temple. This temple image is actually the predominant image he uses in both 1 Corinthians and Ephesians.

The is reminiscent of something we see in the OT. The central narrative of the book of Ezra is the halting process of rebuilding the Temple of God.

We're told that the building began under the decree of Cyrus King of Persia. Within two years, the foundation had been laid, [Ezra 3:8-13] but the regional inhabitant intimidated the temple builders and eventually secured a decree from King Artaxerxes to cease their building [chp 4].

After Artaxerxe's decree is read, work on the Temple ceases for roughly 9 years, but then something happened.

We read,
"Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel who was over them." [5:1]
What was the result?

"Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God that is in Jerusalem..." [5:2a]

We're also told,
"...and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them." [5:2b]
So while Ezra was clearly the teacher and Zerubbabel was the leader/governor and Joshua was the high priest/shepherd, it was the prophets Haggai and Zecchariah whom God used to reignite and support the rebuilding (something none of the other leaders could accomplish).

Four years elapse, and the Temple is completed. The commentary given in Ezra is as follows:
"And the elders of the Jews built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo." [6:14]
So we observe the etching atop this post, and what do we see? Ezra standing triumphant over the building. But that is not the picture of Scripture. It isn't that Ezra, Zerubbabel, Joshua or even Nehemiah didn't play a critical role. That's not the point. The point is that the credit is given to the prophets, and we see that they were utterly indispensable. The building was re-begun through the prophetic, supported through the prophetic and completed through the prophetic.

I would think this would pique our curiosity about what exact they said. Fortunately we have many such accounts preserved in the books which bear their names.

Haggai's words were piercingly blunt and upbraiding.

"Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD.' Then the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, 'Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?'" [Hag. 1:2-4]

"Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways. Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD." [1:7-8]
They exposed deep hypocrisy--stating their obvious negligence in no uncertain terms. However the people were justifying their lifestyles to this point, Haggai's words laid bare the heart of the matter. They were God's commentary on the people's inertia.

Zecchariah, on the other hand, spoke breathtaking words filled with sweeping vision and hope.

He assured the people,
"For thus said the LORD of hosts, after his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye..." [Zec. 2:8]

"Thus says the LORD of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath." [8:2]

Zecchariah heralded, "don't despise the day of small beginnings!" [4:10] He urged them, "Let your hands be strong, you who in these days have been hearing these words from the mouth of the prophets..." [8:9]

He spoke words of power over the governor Zerubbabel: "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts." [4:6]

He spoke sobering-yet-uplifting words over the High Priest Joshua. [chp 3]

And he made Messianic allusions,
"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey."
[9:9]


And the Temple was built!

Had I lived in that day, I probably would have preferred Zecchariah's message of hope and power over Haggai's penetrating indictments. Nevertheless, they were speaking the words the people and their leaders needed to hear.

Do we begin to see the indispensable value of the prophetic in the life of the church where beleaguered and half-hearted leaders languish? Where inertia and hypocrisy are pandemic in the pews?

Can we "rise to become a holy temple in the Lord" [Eph. 2:21b] without it? Do we require it any less than the people in the days of Ezra did to prosper in rebuilding through the prophetic words of Haggai and Zecchariah?

This does not detract from the contributions nor indispensability of other forms of spiritual leadership (apostles, pastors, teachers, evangelists, deacons, elders, et al.), it only highlights the critical value of the prophet.

WHAT'S MISSING?
I would suggest that most believers have experienced the prophetic, though they may not have known it. A time when a word or maybe a prayer from another was inexplicably incisive. A time when a message so searched and moved an entire room that everyone left with in the same spirit. A time when truth was uttered to us in such a personal-yet-straightforward way that it altered our perspective on everything henceforth.

However, my concern is that our ignorance on the subject will limit the potential of such experiences. We will not know when to consult the prophets in our lives, nor even who they are! We will not give proper weight to the prophetic words--thus "quenching the Spirit" through "despising" or "disregarding" the prophetic [1 Thes. 5:20-21]

If we have no working knowledge of the prophetic in our lives, our benefits from it will be randomized and sporadic like the tee shots of one who has never been taught to golf.

I'll address some of the "hows" that can aid our discernment in the matter, but, as mentioned in my previous post, here are three overarching functions. (Bearing in mind that the prophetic is God's way of speaking to one person through another.)

1. To Heal
Most of us struggle to see the good in our own lives; God's fingerprints. Oftentimes is has been buried under a landslide of harm, woundedness and deception. These are spiritual and emotional wounds and they bear the markings of our enemy whose objectives surround "stealing, killing and destroying." [Jn. 10:10] In contrast, Jesus tells us that He has come to give us life abundant.

This enlightenment can come through Scripture [Jn. 17:17] and/or through the Spirit's ministry of truth and love in the life of that individual. [Jn. 16:13] However, it may be that we need to sit in prayer and conversation with a prophet, that they may declare truths to us that we cannot perceive.

This may take the form of references to Scripture, or even probing questions and insights [Pro. 20:5]. It may be phrased in such as such, "I sense that God is telling you..." or "I think God is asking you..." Again, we're not talking about Canonical utterances, only spiritual insights with the God ordained prophetic power to bring healing. ("...there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." 1 Cor. 12:5-7)

Remember, Paul describes the prophetic ministry as one of "consolation". [1 Cor. 14:3] This, too, was much of the prophetic ministry of Zecchariah.

2. To Awaken
No matter how loud the cacophony of noise, one can slumber if it remains a homogenous din. What is required is something piercing or jarring--even/especially physically.

As in the days of Ezra, Haggai needed to play this role.

Individuals and groups wander into the most egregious errors, and it is the prophetic voice which brings awakening as from a spiritual slumber.

Incidentally, this has been my favorite aspect of the Bonhoeffer biography. This is ostensibly a case study of a prophet. While his countrymen and church alike capitulated over how to view Hitler and the Third Reich, Bonhoeffer spoke as one who was awake before his time. God used him to awaken many others inside and outside Germany.

John the Baptist, too, was an awakener.

When we sense that God has given insight to one person or another, we must yield our own myopia and seek to see what/how they see.








3. To Call
One of the most straightforward purposes of the prophetic in the NT is in the realm of calling. Prophets were consulted (much the same as OT kings employed prophets), and their words factored heavily into decisions and directions. [Acts 15:31-33]

We see this clearly in Timothy's calling. Of all of the sources Paul could have chosen to remind Timothy of regarding his calling (the endorsement of the church leaders, his fit, his giftings or even Paul's own apostolic authority), Paul referred to "your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you." [1 Tim. 4:14]

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
Firstly, it is worth mentioning that those verses that describe the Spirit's presence in the life of the believer are actually in the plural, thus, literally:







"Don’t your all know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives among you all?" [1 Cor. 3:16]
Thus, the Spirit can and does communicate from within individual believers [Rom 8:16]. However, He also communicates through others to individuals. This is the essence of the prophetic, which brings me to my second consideration.
There are things which, if said by another person, carry a weight no thing we tell ourselves can ever carry. The prophetic is often God's way of confirming something He is already telling someone. When a prophet speaks, it put's the stamp of Omniscient origins. ("Oh, this isn't just a thought I made up, it is something that originated outside of me--in the mind of God.")
I have a friend who is a wise and holy old man. There was a situation where sin led to fallout in a ministry situation. An veteran couple was asked by leadership to come and take the reigns. While they were prayerfully mulling over this decision, my friend approached them. While their invitation was unbeknownst to him, nevertheless he spoke to them of his deep conviction that they were the couple who should consider this opportunity.
There is no substitute for the prophetic which can replicate the Divine force of such interactions.

===
(ADDENDUM)
I want to end this post with what I would call the more controversial roles of the prophet. There are three of these also, and I call them "controversial" because they constitute higher stakes and deeper levels of discernment. They are to, (1) disclose, (2) condemn and (3) foretell.
1. To Disclose
Paul clearly states that the result of the prophetic is that, "the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you." [1 Cor. 14:25]

In Jesus' interactions with His opponents, we're often told of His "knowing their thoughts" [Mat. 9:4]
This is also what we see Peter doing in the case of Ananias and Sapphira. [Acts 5:1-10]
So on rare occasions the prophet, too, is enabled to discern and declare the thoughts of others, which leads me to point 2.
2. To Condemn
Going back to my initial quote from Noam Chomsky, the prophet often has the unenviable calling to speak against injustice and evil--often against authorities.

This was Nathan's call with David. [2 Sam. 12:1-10].

This constitutes much of the OT prophetic books.

This aspect of the prophetic led to the demise of John the Baptist, [Mat. 14:1-12] as well as Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

3. To Foretell
Even still this must be a facet of the prophetic, for it always has been. We see this during the course of Paul's ministry, as the prophet Agabus warns Paul of the suffering he is bound to encounter should he choose to go on to Jerusalem. [Acts 21:10-12]

In all cases, the prophetic requires maturity and discernment (on the part of the transmitter and the receiver), and these final three cases demonstrate this.

This is why I'll take up the "how" in my next post. Seeking to shed some light on how Scripture instructs us to "weigh carefully what is said".

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