Being in the dark about your own life is one of the most uncomfortable feelings of all time. Imagine everyone around you knowing something about you while you have no idea. For a control freak, the stakes are higher. There will always be an itching need to be in the know. Society proves that the more you know, the more advantage you have in life.
Unfortunately, because of that persistent itch to know, people have sought weird ways of retrieving information. Today, probably more than ever before, people are consulting mediums, witches, fortune-tellers, and even prophets, so they can remain looped in on the unfolding of life. Quite literally, we exist in times where anything can drastically change at any moment. Such uncertainties are probably to blame for the choices we make. Perhaps that’s all that the enemy is capitalizing on.
Since we (hopefully) know that fortune-tellers, witches and mediums are out of the question for Christians, let us talk about the seeking after a prophetic word. It is an incredible attribute in the Christian faith where God ensures that His children are not blindsided. One of the ways that God proves His love to people is by sending incredible prophets whose words do not fall until they are fulfilled – men like Prophet Samuel and Elijah. However, God’s intention is not that we glorify the prophets more than the God who speaks to the prophet.
The Christian faith is different from all others because it is about a relationship. Therefore, having a relationship with God is the right way to approach the prophetic. Instead of over-relying on a prophet’s word, we have an inner witness that must always testify within us. In the ancient days, a word from a prophet of God was the only anticipation to initiate newness, transitions, seasons, and usher in victory. However, after the Holy Spirit was given to us, things changed quite a bit.
In Acts 20, we see how Paul was aware of his imprisonment and afflictions that awaited him – because the Holy Spirit testified within him (Acts 20:23). Paul was not caught off guard. He always knew how things would unfold. After the Holy Spirit had informed and prepared Paul, other people around him began to tell him the same (Acts 21:4; 21:10-11). In this case, the word of a prophet became a confirmation of the testimony of the Holy Spirit in Paul.
Before you receive a word from a prophet, you should start by knowing what God is saying about the matter. God instructs us to test every spirit before we are sold out on their words. It is necessary because we are living in dangerous times where knowledge and intelligence gives you the advantage that makes the difference. One of the surest ways to test a prophetic word over your life is by comparing it to God’s word, and considering the inner witness in you. Did God let you in on it first before you sort out a prophet?
While there is nothing wrong with hearing from a prophet, the order is wrong and dangerous if you must hear from a person first before you hear it from God. Therefore, be slow to seek a prophetic word – until you have heard it from God. Let the word of the prophet be a confirmation to what you have already known by the testimony of the Holy Spirit inside you. Let it be that you care more about your relationship with God than a word for your future. Besides, doesn’t the presence of God matter more than a projected possible outcome of your future? God says that it is He that announces hidden things from old before they come to pass (Isaiah 48:3-5).
Get to know God’s voice for yourself. Know His heart enough that you can distinguish spirits. Hear the word from God first before you idolize a prophetic word from a prophet. And when God is intent on His word, He will confirm it through wise counsel and prophets of God. However, the order must always be God first, then men. Do not let the hunger for knowledge and intelligence drive you to secularizing the prophetic. Prophets are not mediums or fortune-tellers. If anything, their primary goal should be to point you back to Jesus. Say at the feet of the One who knows it all – God.
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 48:3-5; Acts 20:23, 21:4 & 21:10-11
