PROPHETIC MESSAGES

The Spirit of God said: “I will add onto the Church daily those who are being saved. They will come from the North and the South, from the East and the West. And they will be taught by my servant and the church shall grow and thousands will be led by My Spirit become a part of my global movement to establish my Kingdom in all the Earth.

(Prophecy Received on March 23, 2013)

LIVING BY GOD’S PROPHECY

God wants us to know His Ways and how He expects us to live our lives to please. Being a generous father, God has given us the gift and a privilege to receive messages from Him through His Word and through inspired and gifted members of the church who receive messages and guidance from God. While DLM believe that God still speaks through people in our day, we are cautioned to always check the messages that we receive with the directions from the Word of God (the Bible).

God wants to continue to review His Mind and Direction concerning specific things concerning our lives through the gift of prophecy. Personal prophecy, as Paul mentions here, is for building up and encouraging individual Christians, and of the Church as a whole. While the gifts of prophecy were relevant in the First Century, and it is still true in the Twenty-First Century.

But like none of the other spiritual gifts mentioned in the New Testament, personal prophecy has the greatest ability to bring edification on the one hand, and to damage on the other hand — based on how the believer responds to the prophetic word.

To help people properly engage with New Testament prophecy, we must understand practical ways that a believer in the modern-day church can and should respond to a personal prophetic word so that s/he is directed astray.

TESTING PROPHETIC MESSAGES

1. Record, Read and Meditate upon the Word

It is recommended that all prophetic words be recorded and that they should be transcribed and kept for future reference to track spiritual growth.

When reviewing a prophecy, it should be noted that not every element of the word will be applicable to the recipient’s present experience. In 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21, the apostle Paul writes, “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything; hold fast to what is good.” This Scripture warns us to prove and judge prophecy, not the prophet, if some elements may not seem to relate at the present time.

2. Remove All Hindrances to Receiving the Promise

When dealing with personal prophecy, a Christian must be willing to judge him or herself to make certain they are able to hear from God. Attitudes that can hinder our hearing from the Lord include negative mind-sets, an inflated or a low self-image, pride, self-justification, blame-shifting, self-preservation, people-pleasing, carnal reasoning and procrastination. Hidden or unconfessed sin or unforgiveness can also hinder our ability to hear from God. (1 Samuel 15).

3. Wait Patiently upon the Lord

We are told in Isaiah 40:31 to wait patiently upon the Lord. The principle of waiting on the Lord is found throughout Scripture. The biblical meaning of waiting is active, expectant faith.

4. Allow God to Form Character in the Process

God’s primary intent in the life of the believer is to call leaders and to test every area of their lives in preparation for ministry. Prophecies given to us about future ministry should be received with joy, and with respect for the process God will use to prepare us for that leadership.

The foundation of a person’s character will determine the height of the person’s ministry. God’s timetable of ministry revolves around our growth and maturity in Him and our willingness to allow Him to be Lord in every area of our lives.

5. Receive God’s Promise in Faith

The Scriptures show us that people of God have missed God’s best for them by not receiving His Word in faith. Hebrews 4:2 says, “For indeed the good news came to us just as to them; but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.”

While the accomplishment of any prophetic directive is largely up to God, our role in the process is to put aside doubt, and to give God freedom to make whatever changes in us that are necessary to bring about His plan.

FULFILMENT OF PROPHETIC MESSAGES

God’s prophetic message will not necessarily come to pass unless we continue to follow Him and faith to see God’s prophetic word fulfilled. We exercise faith to get hold of God’s prophetic message by:

Going back and reading over them again and again. If you’ve neglected the prophetic messages, repent and commit yourself to responding in faith instead. Begin to speak out what God has spoken to you. This is faith. Confess God’s prophetic message to yourself and to others.

Act on the prophetic word. Get involved in refresher lessons to understand what God said you will do. For example, you can start that Bible correspondence course to prepare yourself for the mission field. Set aside the money you’ll be needing to make it all come to pass. Get ready to see God’s prophetic word bear fruit.

Flow with the authority God has place over you and in you, and join with others to exercise corporate faith — both for the words given to you and for the words given to the whole congregation.

God wants you to act in love and be willing to act in low in fulfilling the prophetic message to you. What a privilege it is to be His minister of reconciliation to his lost sheep (2 Cor. 5:18-20).