Prophecy

"Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy."
-1 Cor. 14:1

=What is prophecy?=
With a word, God created the heavens and the earth. In the valley of dry bones, God commanded Elijah to prophesy to the dry bones, so he did, and they rose, connected to each other, grew flesh, and became a mighty army.

==Hebrew: nabi==
To flow forth or bubble up with inspiration; to prophesy under the influence of the Spirit

==Greek: prophetia==
To know and to speak forth the mind or council of God

==Laymen's definitions==
*To declare to someone something that God wishes to say to them.
*To call things that are not as though they are.
*To create a new creation by speaking the God-given destiny over others.
*To speak words that contain not just the words themselves, but the Spirit of God to enable their fulfillment.

=What is the purpose of prophesy?=
"But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men."
-1 Cor. 14:3

==Edification==
"Improve spiritually or morally by instruction or example," or the non-spiritual definition is "uplifting enlightenment."

==Exhortation==
"is the gift of being able to encourage others by well timed and wise counsel." A non-spiritual definition defines it as "a speech or discourse that encourages, incites, or earnestly advises."

==Testimony of Jesus==
The [[bible]] says "the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophesy" (Rev. 19:10).
What does that mean? [[Bill Johnson]] believes it means that the telling of the testimonies of what He has done will cause it to happen again.

==Call Out Potential==
[[Larry Randolph]] says the purpose of prophesy is "to see and call out the potential in people's lives."

=Is prophesy only for prophets to give?=
Short answer, no.

==Charisma vs. Doma==
The word prophecy used in the gifts of prophecy given to Christians is the Greek word charisma, which is different from the word for prophet (doma), which refers to a governmental office (Romans 12:6, Eph 4:11). The gifts are for all in the church; in fact, we are instructed desire spiritual gifts, but most especially, prophesy.

=What should I do with prophesies?=
We are exhorted to "not put out the Spirit's fire," to "not treat prophecies with contempt," to "test everything," and to "hold on to the good" (1 Thess. 5:19-21). People are going to give words that are not from the spirit of God.

In Luke, when Jesus and his disciples were not welcomed in a town, they asked Jesus, "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?" To which Jesus, responded, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of," (Luke 9:54-55) because [[mercy over judgement|mercy triumphs over judgment]].

=False Prophesy=
"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." 1 John 4:1

"…for a tree is recognized by its fruit." - Matthew 12:33
==Example==
[[Kris Vallotin]], a pastor at [[Bethel Church]], wrote about a recent experience of a bad prophecy in our church. Over a period of 12 months, five different guest speakers came and prophesied that revival was coming to the youth. He said, "the first few times I heard the message my mind was troubled and my spirit was grieved, but I couldn't perceive what was wrong." After praying and asking God, God reminded Him how in Acts 2:17 is says that revival is coming not just to the young, but the young and the old. Through omission, this message was telling the old they weren't important or valued anymore, and it was part of the devil's plan to separate the generations.

True prophecy, however, has blessed my life beyond measure. I have the most amazing revelation of the goodness of God's love. I know that God values me and likes me. I know that I actually am forgiven. The culture of prophecy at my church has allowed me to grow beyond what I originally thought possible.

=Resources=
*User Friendly Prophecy can not be found. by [[Larry Randolph]]

*The Supernatural Ways of Royalty by [[Bill Johnson]] and [[Kris Vallotton]]

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