Aboutthechurchbody

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Tag Archives: prophecy,


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An experience in prophecy

The circumstances surrounding this experience of prophecy was a group of ministry students came to our church from a nearby college to do a church service.  While the music team was ministering I felt to go forward to prophecy at the microphone that was set up for this purpose in the church.  The  ministry team had been singing something about ‘once more’ which stood out to me.  My thoughts went to Samson and his request to God, “let me do this once more”.  The OT story goes on to say that Samson used his God given strength to push out two pillars and the whole house collapsed around him and he destroyed more of God’s enemies in his death then he did during his lifetime.

I went forward apprehensively.   The church was packed.  There was a capacity for about 800 people in this building and it was full.  I had nothing to prophecy except the ‘once more theme’.  I began with this.  While I was prophesying I was taken over by the Spirit of God.  It was like I blanked out for a short period of time.  I knew I was speaking but I couldn’t hear what I was saying.  This happened for a few seconds of time.  When this ended I was still trying to carry on with my prophecy, so to speak.  I stopped.  The whole congregation was responding to what had been said just a few seconds earlier.  It was very incredible to hear this response.  It was like a guttural response that happened as a group spontaneously from from the people.  I am not aware of what I said.  It was only a few words, I think.  I asked for the tape afterwards and was told that the prophecy had not been recorded.  No one talked to me about what had been said in the prophecy, not even my own husband, and I was afraid to ask.  I had been having struggles in that church with the long established lay leadership for a period of four years.   I was not popular.

In my next post I will give my testimony of the ‘Call of God’ for a purpose or ministry that a person may receive.

 


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The Sufferings of Christ

The Bible declares that the believer will partake of the sufferings of Christ.  That this is in their best interests. That the believer will partake of the glory when they have also suffered like their predecessor Jesus.  Jesus has gone before us, we are to follow him.  Job declares that he knew of God, he had heard of him previously, but when Job suffered he stated he then saw God, gained understanding, and abhorred himself for his complaint against God.

Job suffered when he stood alone in his faith.  His friends contradicted him, his wife encouraged him to curse God.  Job experienced the loss of his family, his children, his friends, his possessions, his standing and respect in the community.  He stayed faithful to God, and afterward was richly rewarded by God in this life, and I am confident, in the life to come.  In the kingdom of God.  How could Job be happy with what God gave him after he had experienced such devastating losses?  God makes it possible.  Our further understanding makes it possible.  God’s work in us makes it possible.  The Bible says that with God nothing is impossible.

The New Testament says that we need to arm ourselves with this knowledge of the believer suffering.  It is happening in the world today and believers in the western nations don’t understand it.  Arm yourselves with this mind, the Bible says.  Christ suffered, and so you can expect that you will suffer as well.  Are you greater than your teacher, the Bible says?

Do we suffer in a vacuum away from God?  No, God is with us.  He makes it possible.  He provides.  It is not easy, but the suffering will end.  Paul states that if it is God’s will that you suffer for a period of time endure it like a good soldier of Jesus Christ.  These are teachings that are lost to the western church doctrines in our day.  It should open our eyes as to who is a true leader of God’s people in our day and times.

 

 


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Two Covenants meaning Hagar and Sarah

Galatians 4:21 begins a teaching about the two sons of Abraham. The story in the OT of the two sons named Ishmael and Isaac tells of how Ishmael and his mother Hagar were sent away by Abraham. In Galatians the apostle Paul says that we can look figuratively at the mothers of Abraham’s sons as representing two covenants, one of the natural, and one of the promise through the power of the Spirit. Paul clearly teaches that the present Jerusalem is of Hagar. She will not share in the inheritance of God. Paul declares that there is a Jerusalem that is above and that she is the mother of those who are in Christ.
Today we have many teachers and preachers who make errors in dividing the word of truth. They teach one part of the Bible as full and complete truth, but when other parts of the Bible are read their teaching is contradicted by other Scriptures. This means there is error in what they are teaching.
The present church system that we know of in North America does not have checks and balances. There is alot of control implemented in the majority of churches. We can be certain that this type of control of people and of what we are being taught is not of God. We seem to have a mishmash of teachings related to both Hagar and Sarah. On the one hand we have freedom in Christ, on the other hand we are subjects and children to these church systems. The Hagars of our day.


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Prophecy and Visions

What do the saints do with the many prophecies given and the spiritual visions claimed as seen by others? The saints must judge these by the Spirit. The Bible declares that we have something amazing living inside those who are in Christ. The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit knows the mind of God and is able to search out the heart of the person He inhabits. He knows what God is saying to his people in the present day. As the believer interacts with God through prayer, devotionals, spiritual messages, and in their daily walk with God, the Holy Spirit speaks to them. The believer gets ‘a sense’ of what the Spirit is saying through the Word and their own experiences with God. When a prophecy is given the believer judges it by what they have been ‘hearing’. For example, if a saint senses that God has been talking to believers about overcoming sin and a prophecy comes forth about believers going out to conquer the rulers of the world, then the saint can disallow that message given. It is likely not from God. The same applies to visions for this day and time. This same judgement applies to those who are prominent and respected leaders as well as to a member of the congregation.

In the Scriptures we don’t read about prophecy happening or being given outside of a gathering together of the saints. The Holy Spirit is present tense in the congregation. He speaks for that moment and time when the saints gather. This is not something that can be prepared beforehand by someone who prophecies. The prophesier cannot predict the message ahead of time. There also needs to be an ‘unction’ given with the prophecy that the Holy Spirit applies so that the saints can ‘hear’ the voice of Jesus. These messages or prophecies are given for several reasons. To encourage, correct, comfort, plead with the saints, etc.

There is misuse of prophecy in the Church today. Many saints are following ‘a man’. This man is not Jesus. Moses was a man of God. The scriptures declare that there is only one other ‘Man’ besides Moses that God has given for eternity, and that is Jesus. The saints are to grow into the full measure of this ‘Man’.