Do Not Despise Prophesies
Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:20-24 NIV)
What is prophecy?
•ability to see and prepare for the future
•a self-serving fortune telling that ignores the Bible and presents its own importance is not prophecy of God ~ these are false prophets - false prophets deny Jesus Christ
•knowing and believing at accepting the Lord Jesus Christ will give us salvation and eternal life in Heaven is prophecy
•in Old Testament - prophets provided guidance to Kings •Samuel and Saul (1 Sam 13:13-23)
•Nathan and David (2 Sam 12:1-12)
•in New Testament • prophecy is not always pleasing to hear…John was exiled to Patmos and was only able to deliver God's words and reprimand based on gift of prophecy to benefit the church
•prophecy according to the Bible
•what does the Bible teach us about prophecy and prophets? •It's with Holy Spirit
•prophet's purpose is to benefit the church and God's will
•prophecy is a gift by the grace of God (1 Cor 12)
•How do you prophecy? •it's by God's grace, not by training
•prophecy is the professing of the truth of the Bible and that the only way to salvation is through Jesus Christ
•true prophecy benefits the person receiving the prophecy by giving comfort and reassurance (1 Cor 14:3)
•it is NOT by and to fulfill one's selfish motives not of one's own will •It's not by one's own realizations
•it's to be a spokesperson of the Holy Spirit
•even the prophecy which predicts some personal future is relevant to how it will serve God's will
•Respect true prophecy •1 Cor 14:1
•all in moderation and according to the Bible (1 Cor 14:40)
•it's for those who believe - do joy be misled (1 Cor 14:22)
•prophecy according to the Bible •Reading the Word and living according to God's will
•when you are reading and can't understand something, don't get stuck but keep reading and God will provide wisdom to pair with another part of the Bible that helps make sense of the word
•accept the Word and obey
•What is the purpose of prophecy? •To help realize what we might be doing wrong by the guidance of the Holy Spirit
•to help guide us to the future according to God's will, as it is in the Bible (John 16:13)
•only true prophecy is from Holy Spirit to assure accuracy
•do not fall into temptations of believing false prophets
•Cautions about prophecy •There are false prophets who prophecy by the enemy and of evil
•there will be those who pretend to be of God but is of evil and self serving purposes
•prophecy for money
•prophecy for self serving purpose to test God
•prophecy for self gain and curiosity to test God
•Prophecy in this way •Provide what, when, who, where, why, and how
•in Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ
•today's prophecy is the discovery of the Bible
Do not treat prophecy with contempt
•don't undermine prophecy
•don't ridicule those who are prophesying
•don't use prophecy for self serving reasons
•always refer to the Bible for true prophecy
The Holy Spirit is always guiding us so we should feel confident in the prophecy via the Bible and also be assured to be able to prophecy according to God's will
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