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Supernatural
Biblical Guidance 7
Recognizing
Holy Spirit Inspired Prophecy
by
Pastor John Hamel
“And the next day
we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered
into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and
abode with him. And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which
did prophesy. And as we tarried there many days, there came down from
Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus. And when he was come unto us, he took
Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the
hands of the Gentiles.
"And when we heard these things, both we, and
they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul
answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for
I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of
the Lord Jesus. And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased,
saying, The will of the Lord be done.” (Acts 21:8-14)
We have been studying supernatural Biblical
guidance. Recently we have studied dreams and visions. Much of what we shared about
dreams applies to visions and vice versa.
In this lesson we will study supernatural
Biblical prophecy and guidance.
Prophecy is a completely different
manifestation of the Holy Spirit. We will uncover the Scriptural ways
to discern whether or not a prophecy has come forth by the Holy Spirit.
This study, like all of
our other studies in this series, is not exhaustive but merely
suggestive. We are giving you a foundation to build upon during your
own personal study time.
Notice in our text Scripture that Philip
“had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.” There is no
indication in the Scripture that any of Philip’s four daughters stood in
the Office of the Prophet or Prophetess.
No doubt, Philip’s four daughters operated in the simple Gift of Prophecy.
There was no prediction when these women prophesied. They simply spoke
for the express purpose of edifying, exhorting and comforting the Body.
(1Corinthians 14:3)
On the other hand, we find in verse ten
that a certain Prophet named Agabus came and
prophesied, or predicted, what would happen to Paul at Jerusalem. The
Scripture reveals that Agabus stood in the Office
of the Prophet. The simple Gift of Prophecy and the Ministry of the
Prophet are two separate operations of the Holy Spirit. Some people
have a tendency to believe that the two operations are the same when they
are not.
First Corinthians 14:1 reveals that all
Believers should desire to prophesy. Yet, in First Corinthians 12:29 it is revealed that all cannot be
Prophets. The Holy Spirit in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians
is not telling the entire Body of Christ to seek something they cannot
have. Neither is He contradicting Himself. The Holy Spirit is
referring to two separate operations or manifestations. Just because
God uses someone in the simple Gift of Prophecy, it does not mean that individual
is a Prophet. You must have a very consistent, very regular
manifestation of the Revelation Gifts in operation in order to stand in the
Office of the Prophet.
Some individuals who operate in the simple
Gift of Prophecy, after hearing a Prophet operate in the Revelation Gifts, decide, “Wow, I prophesy,
I can do that, too!” They end up giving false guidance that did not
come from the Holy Spirit, destroying good Christian people who did not
have enough knowledge of Scripture to not listen to such foolishness.
The simple Gift of Prophecy does not give you the authority to go around
telling people God’s will for their lives. You could end up dying
prematurely stepping into an office that you are not called to. King
Saul stepped into an office he was not called to, the Prophet’s Office, and
it cost him his kingdom, his life and his sons’ lives. (1Samuel
13:1-14; 31:1-13) Just because you operate in the simple Gift of
Prophecy it does not mean that you can predict future events, as the
Prophet Agabus did. It simply means that
you can encourage people through supernatural utterance in the same way
Philip’s daughters did.
We will specifically focus in this lesson
on how to discern whether a prophecy is inspired of the Holy Spirit when it
comes through the Office of a Prophet. Prophets are imperfect human
beings. The Gifts of the Spirit are perfect Gifts manifesting through
imperfect people. Prophets can make mistakes just like anyone
else. This is why we continue to stress the importance of developing
a strong knowledge of God’s written Word and a strong sensitivity to the inner witness.
Should a Prophet speak to you in a way that
does not confirm what you already know, set it aside. Should a
Prophet speak to you in a way that gives you “unrest” in your spirit, set
it aside. The vast majority of the time,
prophecy should only confirm what you already know. Prophecy should
always, always, always be judged by the written Word of God and the inner
witness of the Holy Spirit.
Let us look concisely at how to judge
Prophecy that does contain guidance or revelation.
Look
at the Prophet's Fruits Not Their Gifts
“Beware of false prophets, which come to
you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. …Wherefore
BY THEIR FRUITS YE SHALL KNOW THEM.” (Matthew 7:15,20)
People have a tendency to see signs, wonders and miracles and assume that everything
about the miracle worker is of God. Satan can perform counterfeit
miracles to confuse the Body. (Mark 13:22,23) Do not
be duped by someone telling you that you are to give them money because
they perform miracles, have a television program or receive the accolades
of man.
Look for the fruits
of humility, love and obedience.
Rebellion, pride, dishonesty, a lack
of submission, boastfulness, arrogance, merchandising the ability to set
people free, alcohol, drug and tobacco addiction, multiple marriages,
terrible home life, rotten children, berating and chiding employees, etc.,
are not Fruits of the Spirit. God may allow these things for a
season, but judgment always comes. (1Corinthians 11:32) When you
see such behavior in a “Prophet,” reject it. Do not allow Satan to
tell you, “You’re just being judgmental.” You are to judge such
behavior as wrong according to the Bible. (1Corinthians 5:12,13) Do not open yourself up to
anyone who displays such rebellion no matter who it is, even a “big name”
Minister.
Who
Does the Prophecy Magnify?
If the prophecy magnifies the one doing the
prophesying or the one being prophesied over, you have trouble right out of
the starting gate. Jesus said the Holy Spirit would only magnify Him,
no one else. (John 16:14) I always look for the degree to which the
Prophet involves Jesus. (1Corinthians 12:3) There better be a whole
lot of talking about Jesus and His Blood
going on before I am going to open myself up to anybody. If the
prophecy is intended to scare me, exalt me or the Prophet, confuse me or
lead me away from the Bible in any way, I very simply do not buy it.
This is where false prophets like Jeanne Dixon, Edgar Cayce, John Edwards,
etc., blow it. You will never hear of them exalting Jesus or His
Blood. A strong word of advice
concerning these individuals and others who mimic them. Walk
away. Better still, run away. Their teachings are not something to be
set aside lightly. They are
something to be thrown away forcefully.
Is the Actual Prophecy in Line with the Bible?
The Apostle John, by inspiration of the
Holy Spirit, said that the Father, the Word (meaning Jesus, see John 1:14) and the Holy Spirit are always one in
purpose. This is why it is absolutely essential for all
Believers to acquire an excellent knowledge of the written Word.
Without this you simply cannot discern between right and wrong prophecy.
(Hebrews 5:12-14)
Some individuals are truly called by the
Holy Spirit into the Prophet’s Ministry but they themselves remain ignorant
of the Scripture. This will often cause them to speak in a way that
is not in line with the Bible. This does not mean that they are of Satan, it simply means that they are handling their
calling in a highly irresponsible manner. How are you going to know
if someone is speaking in a way that is out of line with the Bible if you
yourself are ignorant of what the Bible says? Prophecy will always
line up with the Word. Otherwise, it did not come by the Holy Spirit.
(2Peter 1:20,21)
Does
the Prophecy Actually Come to Pass?
The Bible reveals that if a “Prophet”
continues to speak forth things that do not come to pass, it is not the
Spirit of the Lord speaking through the “Prophet”. (Deuteronomy
18:20-22) Ask around about the Prophet. Are they regularly
producing evidence that their prophecies are of the Holy Spirit? If
they have a track record of unfulfilled prophecies, just ignore them.
A “Prophet” with a history of unfulfilled prophecies is nothing more than a
hot air balloon looking to sell you a ride.
Jeanne Dixon, the author of the book, “A
Gift of Prophecy”, is a perfect example of a false prophet with a horrible
track record of unfulfilled prophecies. She predicted a woman President
in the 1980’s, a comet striking the Earth in the 1980’s resulting in the
worst tidal waves and earthquakes of the Century. She predicted that
Lyndon Baines Johnson would become a great elder statesman after his
Presidency. She also predicted many “finding the Lord” through
psychic phenomena and ESP, which the Scripture absolutely forbids.
(Leviticus 20:6,7) Yet in spite of her horrendous track record, she
was sought after by politicians and the wealthy the world over.
Somebody once said, “Well, what about her prophecies that have come to
pass?” That brings us to our next point.
Fulfillment
Does Not Always Mean the Holy Spirit Has Spoken
Once again we turn to the Bible for wisdom. The Bible reveals that a prophecy being
fulfilled does not necessarily mean it came from the Holy Spirit. If
the fulfilled prophecy results in the one being prophesied over turning
away from Jesus or the Bible, it did not come from the Holy Spirit.
(Deuteronomy 13:1-5)
Again this is the problem with Jeanne
Dixon. Many of her prophecies have come to pass, such as the
assassination of JFK, RFK, M.L. King, Mahatma Ghandi
and Marilyn Monroe’s suicide. But how do prophesying nothing but
negative tragedies edify, exhort and comfort people? When God shows
us such things, it is so we can take authority
and stop them from occurring. Jeanne Dixon never moved to prevent one
of these tragedies. She always moved to sell such prophecies to the
trashy tabloids, hoping in her heart that they would be fulfilled so that
she could be glorified.
Jeanne Dixon never refers to the Blood of
Jesus in any of her books, writings, tabloid articles or prophecies.
Yet, she always referred to her psychic, demonic abilities as “the talent
the Lord has given me.” She believed that all psychic phenomenons came from God, when they do not. Satan is a supernatural being, too, and
he disguises himself as an Angel of light. (2Corinthians 11:14)
Jeanne Dixon received her gift during a
vision where a snake wrapped itself around her. When she looked in
its eyes she received the “wisdom of the ages.” She has
used every form of revelation condemned by Scripture. Jeanne Dixon is
what I call a “Buckshot False Prophetess.” Anyone who has ever fired
buckshot knows it sprays in every direction and is bound to hit
something. Jeanne Dixon has sprayed in every direction so much
prophecy about so many things that she was bound to hit something.
This does not mean that the Holy Spirit is speaking through her.
There are many more just like Jeanne Dixon
coming in the days ahead. Many have already arrived on the
scene. Already satellite, cable and the Internet are bringing false
prophets, sorcery, familiar spirits and doctrines of demons
into hundreds of millions of churches, schools, businesses and homes
worldwide. Will you be ready for them with knowledge of the
Scripture? To be forewarned is to be forearmed.
Does the Prophecy Produce Liberty or Enslavement?
You know the drill by now. Anything
that causes unrest in your spirit or confusion in your mind is not to be
“set aside lightly.” IT IS TO BE THROWN AWAY FORCEFULLY! If a
prophecy scares you, produces hopelessness, fear or turmoil, it is
wrong.
The Bible says that where the Spirit of the Lord is in
manifestation, there is liberty, never enslavement. (2Corinthians 3:17) Whenever dreams, visions or
prophecies are in manifestation for the purpose of guidance, warning or
revelation, they will always be full of solution.
Even if God is showing you
where you are missing it somewhere, it is so you can repent and change it. Hezekiah turned his bad news
prophecy into a good news prophecy by taking the correction and
repenting. This is what God wanted him to do. (Isaiah 38:1-6)
The false prophetess, Jeanne Dixon, always
insisted that her negative prophecies could not be reversed because “They
were the will of God.” This reveals her horrible ignorance of not
only the Word of God but the love nature and
will of God as well.
Remember, look at the
Prophet’s fruits, not their Gifts.
Stop and think about whom the prophecy is magnifying. Is the prophecy
in line with the Holy Word of God? Does the prophecy come to
pass? Even if it does come to pass, if it does not meet the above
criteria, it is just buckshot prophecy. Some false prophet just got
lucky.
If the prophecy produces enslavement as opposed to liberty,
you can know of a surety that it did not come from Jesus, the One Who came to set the captives free.
(Luke 4:18)
Never allow anyone to condemn you, bind
you, intimidate you or extract money or material goods away from you with
Prophecy. (2Kings 5:1-27; 2Corinthians 11:20) You have a
responsibility to judge everything that is spoken over you.
Someone said,
“That’s being judgmental.” To which I said, “Yes, indeed! That’s exactly what the Apostle Paul told
us to do when it comes to Doctrine and behavior.” (1Corinthians 5:12,13)
The Body of Christ has a great
responsibility in these days to grow up spiritually. Charismatics,
above all, have a tendency to be misled and deceived by the operation of
the false Prophet.
This is because
we have yearned for so long to see that Office restored in the Earth that
many are accepting counterfeit operations of that precious Office.
We must become familiar with both
Scriptural and counterfeit forms of supernatural prophecy and guidance.
Be blessed … John
and Barbara Hamel
How
to Be Born Again (Receive Christ as Your Savior)
How
to Receive The Holy Spirit & Power
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