Theological column by Adrienne Greene
Q:
Dear Pastor,
Is a personal prophecy the same as a promise from God?
A:
There certainly is a lot of prophecy happening right now. If you’ve wisely made the leap to Christian news networks (like Newsmax; Greg Stephens’ Victory News; or Gene Bailey’s Flashpoint), you’re hearing all about our modern-day prophets who are speaking into the headlines almost daily.
Your question seeks to make a distinction between the prophecies and the promises of God. Are they the same? We must first set a backdrop in order to answer the question of personal prophecy.
Our Bible is packed full of prophetic books—whole tomes written by anointed men of God to speak for him on the earth during a specific time. Here are the prophetic books of the Bible: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Lamentations and Revelation. Since the Bible is made of up 66 books, this means that almost 30 percent of it is prophetic. What is prophetic? Simply put, God has made a way to speak to his people about their future. It is a supernatural utterance…a knowing or an understanding…that empowers the people of God with encouragement, education, prediction or correction.
Prior to Messiah’s arrival on earth, certain devout Jews were anointed with prophetic power and used to speak the will of God into all arenas of life: political, spiritual, personal, relational, financial, etc. New Testament Christians were given this same power through the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter two. These supernatural powers are listed for us in Paul’s writings: “The Spirit gives to one the gift of the word of wisdom. To another, the same Spirit gives the gift of the word of revelation knowledge. And to another, the same Spirit gives the gift of faith. And to another, the same Spirit gives gifts of healing. And to another the power to work miracles. And to another the gift of prophecy. And to another the gift to discern what the Spirit is speaking. And to another the gift of speaking different kinds of tongues. And to another the gift of interpretation of tongues. Remember, it is the same Holy Spirit who distributes, activates, and operates these different gifts as he chooses for each believer” (1 Corinthians 12:8-11, TPT.)
In times of turmoil, tragedy, or political unrest, the Lord will stir up the Holy Spirit gifts in his people so they will be able to overcome difficulty. There is nothing more politically afoul than the nation of America right now. The proof of this is the catastrophic consequences of poor decisions being made via our government that are devastating national interests, destroying global alliances and decimating people groups. Political unrest always produces the rise of the prophetic community.
Thankfully, parts of the Body of Christ are able to embrace and thrive in the more unusual presentations of the Spirit. Charismatics and Pentecostals seem to operate in the prophetic most often; even to the degree of personal prophecies given to its congregants. Are these personal prophecies, promises from God? Are they declarations of guaranteed outcomes? Yes and no.
When the Lord tells us something about our future, he is looking for partnership. Whether he gives us a dream in the night, a spiritual nudge during a Bible-study, or a prophetic word from a fellow Christian, God is revealing his plan and his will. But we must embrace the journey to God’s declared-destination, through obedience. For example: a 400-pound person is finding success on a weight-loss journey at last. They attend a church service where the Holy Spirit, through a gifted minister, prophesies that this person will run marathons. Will they run marathons? Not in their current condition! The Lord is prophesying an outcome that requires partnership with him in order to occur. He is using a prophetic pronouncement to empower the one he loves, and to link his arm in theirs.
Do you have a question or comment for Pastor Adrienne? Send your inquiries to: info@adriennewgreene.com or write to P.O. Box 214, Harrison, OH 45030. For more information and resources, please visit www.askpastoradrienne.com or the “Ask Pastor Adrienne” YouTube channel for sermons and insights.
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