I have seen some arguements about prophets and what it means to be one. I found an article that might settle the dust but since it is so long I have to post it in parts: Part One:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CONTRIBUTING RESOURCES: Author: Jim Wies [email protected]
Cornerstone Church and Ministries [http://www.cornerstonemin.org]
Why Is Character Important In Prophetic Ministry?
While we can master the skill of "message giving", the Holy Spirit also has an agenda to make the messenger as well as the message. It is interesting to note that Balaam, whose story is in the book of Numbers, delivered very accurate prophetic words, and even gave the only Messianic prophesy recorded in the book of Numbers, but was called a false prophet in the New Testament.
Why?.. It was a character issue. So God goes about making the messenger as well as giving him the message.
God's school of character curriculum for prophets occurs in the school of life much more than in any class room. This school is God's dealing with a man or woman that may endure a lifetime. For unless the character foundation is sufficiently laid, when the heady glory of success comes through our giftings, it will only serve to topple our ministry and be to our demise.
Anointing DOES NOT automatically guarantee a persons correct doctrine, character or maturity level. This is a very, very important lesson to learn especially in this day when we are seeing a resurgence of many signs and wonders and supernatural giftings; making it critical that the church move in wisdom and discernment.
The sad lesson we see from Biblical as well as contemporary examples is that gifting without character and maturity can actually be a contributing agent to a ministers demise. We see King Saul, for example, who was a very gifted and charismatic leader, but whose lack of a foundation of character eventually caught up to him. Or we see Jonah, a prophet who had a severe unforgiveness problem and, though his ministry was very successful to the Ninevites, it only lead him to suicidal depression. (A later lesson will take an in-depth look at Jonah and the problem of angry prophets.)
With that concept in mind we can understand that God will demonstrate his wisdom and love through the "processes" he takes his prophets through as He prepares them for usefulness. It is not pleasant, but necessary. Hebrews 12:11 states: "All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." It is with loving care that God goes about beating the "self-life" out of us so that we can be mightily used by Him. One man put it very well when he said "death to self" is like the insulation on an electrical wire so that God can pour his voltage through it with out it damaging everything the wire comes in contact with. If we have selfish motives intact, we become dangerous when the "juice" starts flowing.
We also need to see that God deals with a man or woman in terms of their entire lifetime as they invite Him to move them slowly but surely toward their destiny. He seems at times to not be in a hurry at all. Then at other times takes us on a crash course to learn some hard but necessary lesson. He does all this with our good as well as our usefulness in mind. Some of the more commonly recognized "schools" God puts his "prophets-in- training" through will be explored in this article and the next.
The School of Brokenness
Brokenness is what rids a man of any confidence in his own soul's resources. We see an unbroken Moses after forty years of secular training in the finest leadership schools Egypt had to offer. He then realized he was called to be a deliverer so he went about trying to knock off the Egyptian army one guy at a time. His efforts only got him banished to the desert. Then we see him after 40 years of desert tempering and finally at 80 years of age we see a man who was called the meekest man on earth. Now he was ready to be used of God in a mighty way. Brokeness made the difference.
One who has been through God's "school" of brokenness is no longer marked by that obstinacy, hardness and sharpness which are hallmarks of an unbroken man. Meekness is the sign of brokeness. It is Jacob walking with a limp. It is Paul, admitting he was a persecutor of the Church. Meekness is not the same as weakness, but is characterized by a humble reliance on God's power and strength. Moses relied upon God's power, not his own. We see Moses, not defending himself to his accusers but rather falling on his face in intercession while God moves dramatically to defend him.
The one who is meek will also exhibit a sensitivity to others. They will be approachable and teachable instead of hard and unentreatable. The one who is meek is not arrogantly independent but rather recognizes his/her need for corporateness. The more confidence a person has in themselves at the beginning of this school, the longer and harder the breaking is. But when God accomplishes the work He is after, He can exhibit mighty signs and wonders through a person because He and they both know God will get the credit.
God's means and ways of introducing us to the "school" of brokenness are as varied and various as there are people. It usually looks like a grave failure within a persons life. It accomplishes the transformation from self confidence to God confidence. He knows just what it takes to bring any one of us to the end of our self. If you are one who has experienced exceptional brokenness or calamity in your life, it just might be the earmark of one of God's special projects. Akin to this is the school of humility.
The School of Humility
Humility is essential for usefulness in the Kingdom of God. It is especially essential for His prophets. We must be free from pride so that our ministry does not vaunt self or attract others to us but rather testifies of Jesus, giving glory to Him.
God says He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. But humility is not low self esteem as some have thought. Nor is it simply the absence of pride. It can best be described as an absence of self, or a freedom from a pre-occupation with self. We must come to know at heart level and make peace with the fact that by our flesh, apart from Him, we can accomplish nothing (and at the same time through Him we can do all things).
One who is humble is free from having to defend himself or explain himself. It is freedom to serve in the lowest or highest position God decides to place you in. It is not gained by measuring ourselves by our selves or comparing ourselves among our selves but rather by seeing God! Isaiah got a glimpse of God in Isa. 6 and suddenly he had a right perspective on himself. It resulted in a confession and then a commissioning. He did not think of himself more highly than he ought nor more poorly than he ought, but had a sober and proper perspective. I do not think we have the capacity within ourselves of rightly assessing our own selves apart from God. This kind of humility is the result of seeing Him.
The Result - The goal of all these things is to bring the prophet to the place of utter and total dependence on Him; and thus to bring the prophet to the place of being a doer of God's will; a vessel of honor, useful to the Kings service. It is to bring the prophet to the place of being a friend of God and a carrier of God's own heart. The prophet is quarried and chiseled carefully to become a critical foundation stone in the church, and a champion throughout eternity.
The Schools of Brokenness and Aloneness/Rejection
"For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us." 2 Cor 4:6-7
A prophet is a unique instrument in the hand of God. He/she is prepared by God to communicate the knowledge of the glory of God to humanity. We do, however, have this problem of a wonderful treasure in earthen vessels. Last week's article covered the importance of brokenness and humility in order that we might be empty of self; that we might more adequately represent Him. It seems however, there is always the residue of self that keeps us recognizing that the excellence of the power is of God and not of us. John Sandford says in his book "The Elijah Task" that he has even observed God intentionally allowing the prophet to "miss it" on occasion just to keep the prophet from getting too puffed up in his own sense of infallibility <ouch>. Any prophetic minister who claims infallibility has already deluded themselves and is a very dangerous person. And anyone who demands of a New Testament prophet 100% accuracy (based on an Old Testament concept) does not understand New Testament standards of administering the gifts.
It is good to recognize that the communications we receive in our "spirit man" are still filtered through our own personality and character. Watchman Nee brings this incredible concept out in his book "The Ministry of God's Word", where he showed that even Holy Scripture - every jot and tittle of which is God inspired - still has the flavor of the particular author; i.e. Paul's style of writing vs. John's style.. yet God used their personality to communicate His Words. The fact is, our ministry IS tainted by us. We have a great treasure, but it still is contained in an earthen vessel.
Thus the need to purify the vessel. If the vessel is tainted, the ministry will be tainted. If the minister has gaps in his/her character, there will be gaps in his/her ability to deliver a pure message. Yet God has chosen to use us to represent Him to the world and the church. Wow! That is why he also goes through painstaking lengths to purify us from things that would harm us and taint the ministry of God's word.
The two "schools" of character building we want to address in this lesson are the "school of offense" and the "school of aloneness and rejection". These two schools are particularly designed to rid the prophet of the problem of anger and the problem of fear of man. We will be spending a greater amount of time on each issue when we look at Jonah the angry prophet and Jeremiah the insecure prophet in later lessons, but we must understand that these two things are the biggest hindrances to effective ministry in the life of any prophet.
The School of Offense
God will allow his "prophet-in-the-making" to endure the school of offense because His prophets must be free of offense lest their angry "spirit" filters through their message, making it un-receivable. Luke 17:1-2 tells us that offense is inevitable in life. "Then He said to the disciples, "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."
The critical lessons from this Scripture are two fold. First, that we WILL have opportunity to be offended, and we must not allow it to poison us; and second, that we must not be the ones originating the offense. A prophet's concern must always be that he make his "truth" receivable. A primary hindrance to usefulness in prophetic ministry is unresolved anger in the heart of the prophet. It only takes one time of being "torched" by an angry "prophet" to know that a person like that can cause grave offense and defilement.
When the inevitable offense comes to our life, as it does with all, we are told to forgive and not allow it to taint our soul. Otherwise we ourselves will be candidates to defile others with our bitter heart. Heb 12:15 says it this way: "See to it that no one fail to obtain the grace of God; that no "root of bitterness" springing up causes trouble, and by it many become defiled"; and Scripture clearly states in James 1:19-20 "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be... slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." It is wounded people who wound other people.
Of course the antidote for offense is forgiveness. God calls the servant of His to be courteous to the obnoxious, loving to the unlovable and merciful to the unworthy. He expects us to forgive even as He does. The prophet of the Lord must be an "expert forgiver" and of course the only way you become an expert at anything is lots of practice.. <grin>.
That is exactly why most prophets-in-training have had ravaging opportunities through life to gather offense; and have thereby learned how to swiftly and readily draw upon the grace of God to forgive.. and forgive.. and forgive. This revelation hit me like a bolt of lightning one day when I explained to someone who was amazed at my cool calm manner in dealing with a very offensive person; "I've been burned by experts, this incident is a piece of cake." It is those who have overcome very severe wounding offenses and have allowed the grace and forgiveness of God to work deeply in their souls that can remain objective messengers of God without letting their own anger bleed through.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CONTRIBUTING RESOURCES: Author: Jim Wies [email protected]
Cornerstone Church and Ministries [http://www.cornerstonemin.org]
Why Is Character Important In Prophetic Ministry?
While we can master the skill of "message giving", the Holy Spirit also has an agenda to make the messenger as well as the message. It is interesting to note that Balaam, whose story is in the book of Numbers, delivered very accurate prophetic words, and even gave the only Messianic prophesy recorded in the book of Numbers, but was called a false prophet in the New Testament.
Why?.. It was a character issue. So God goes about making the messenger as well as giving him the message.
God's school of character curriculum for prophets occurs in the school of life much more than in any class room. This school is God's dealing with a man or woman that may endure a lifetime. For unless the character foundation is sufficiently laid, when the heady glory of success comes through our giftings, it will only serve to topple our ministry and be to our demise.
Anointing DOES NOT automatically guarantee a persons correct doctrine, character or maturity level. This is a very, very important lesson to learn especially in this day when we are seeing a resurgence of many signs and wonders and supernatural giftings; making it critical that the church move in wisdom and discernment.
The sad lesson we see from Biblical as well as contemporary examples is that gifting without character and maturity can actually be a contributing agent to a ministers demise. We see King Saul, for example, who was a very gifted and charismatic leader, but whose lack of a foundation of character eventually caught up to him. Or we see Jonah, a prophet who had a severe unforgiveness problem and, though his ministry was very successful to the Ninevites, it only lead him to suicidal depression. (A later lesson will take an in-depth look at Jonah and the problem of angry prophets.)
With that concept in mind we can understand that God will demonstrate his wisdom and love through the "processes" he takes his prophets through as He prepares them for usefulness. It is not pleasant, but necessary. Hebrews 12:11 states: "All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." It is with loving care that God goes about beating the "self-life" out of us so that we can be mightily used by Him. One man put it very well when he said "death to self" is like the insulation on an electrical wire so that God can pour his voltage through it with out it damaging everything the wire comes in contact with. If we have selfish motives intact, we become dangerous when the "juice" starts flowing.
We also need to see that God deals with a man or woman in terms of their entire lifetime as they invite Him to move them slowly but surely toward their destiny. He seems at times to not be in a hurry at all. Then at other times takes us on a crash course to learn some hard but necessary lesson. He does all this with our good as well as our usefulness in mind. Some of the more commonly recognized "schools" God puts his "prophets-in- training" through will be explored in this article and the next.
The School of Brokenness
Brokenness is what rids a man of any confidence in his own soul's resources. We see an unbroken Moses after forty years of secular training in the finest leadership schools Egypt had to offer. He then realized he was called to be a deliverer so he went about trying to knock off the Egyptian army one guy at a time. His efforts only got him banished to the desert. Then we see him after 40 years of desert tempering and finally at 80 years of age we see a man who was called the meekest man on earth. Now he was ready to be used of God in a mighty way. Brokeness made the difference.
One who has been through God's "school" of brokenness is no longer marked by that obstinacy, hardness and sharpness which are hallmarks of an unbroken man. Meekness is the sign of brokeness. It is Jacob walking with a limp. It is Paul, admitting he was a persecutor of the Church. Meekness is not the same as weakness, but is characterized by a humble reliance on God's power and strength. Moses relied upon God's power, not his own. We see Moses, not defending himself to his accusers but rather falling on his face in intercession while God moves dramatically to defend him.
The one who is meek will also exhibit a sensitivity to others. They will be approachable and teachable instead of hard and unentreatable. The one who is meek is not arrogantly independent but rather recognizes his/her need for corporateness. The more confidence a person has in themselves at the beginning of this school, the longer and harder the breaking is. But when God accomplishes the work He is after, He can exhibit mighty signs and wonders through a person because He and they both know God will get the credit.
God's means and ways of introducing us to the "school" of brokenness are as varied and various as there are people. It usually looks like a grave failure within a persons life. It accomplishes the transformation from self confidence to God confidence. He knows just what it takes to bring any one of us to the end of our self. If you are one who has experienced exceptional brokenness or calamity in your life, it just might be the earmark of one of God's special projects. Akin to this is the school of humility.
The School of Humility
Humility is essential for usefulness in the Kingdom of God. It is especially essential for His prophets. We must be free from pride so that our ministry does not vaunt self or attract others to us but rather testifies of Jesus, giving glory to Him.
God says He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. But humility is not low self esteem as some have thought. Nor is it simply the absence of pride. It can best be described as an absence of self, or a freedom from a pre-occupation with self. We must come to know at heart level and make peace with the fact that by our flesh, apart from Him, we can accomplish nothing (and at the same time through Him we can do all things).
One who is humble is free from having to defend himself or explain himself. It is freedom to serve in the lowest or highest position God decides to place you in. It is not gained by measuring ourselves by our selves or comparing ourselves among our selves but rather by seeing God! Isaiah got a glimpse of God in Isa. 6 and suddenly he had a right perspective on himself. It resulted in a confession and then a commissioning. He did not think of himself more highly than he ought nor more poorly than he ought, but had a sober and proper perspective. I do not think we have the capacity within ourselves of rightly assessing our own selves apart from God. This kind of humility is the result of seeing Him.
The Result - The goal of all these things is to bring the prophet to the place of utter and total dependence on Him; and thus to bring the prophet to the place of being a doer of God's will; a vessel of honor, useful to the Kings service. It is to bring the prophet to the place of being a friend of God and a carrier of God's own heart. The prophet is quarried and chiseled carefully to become a critical foundation stone in the church, and a champion throughout eternity.
The Schools of Brokenness and Aloneness/Rejection
"For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us." 2 Cor 4:6-7
A prophet is a unique instrument in the hand of God. He/she is prepared by God to communicate the knowledge of the glory of God to humanity. We do, however, have this problem of a wonderful treasure in earthen vessels. Last week's article covered the importance of brokenness and humility in order that we might be empty of self; that we might more adequately represent Him. It seems however, there is always the residue of self that keeps us recognizing that the excellence of the power is of God and not of us. John Sandford says in his book "The Elijah Task" that he has even observed God intentionally allowing the prophet to "miss it" on occasion just to keep the prophet from getting too puffed up in his own sense of infallibility <ouch>. Any prophetic minister who claims infallibility has already deluded themselves and is a very dangerous person. And anyone who demands of a New Testament prophet 100% accuracy (based on an Old Testament concept) does not understand New Testament standards of administering the gifts.
It is good to recognize that the communications we receive in our "spirit man" are still filtered through our own personality and character. Watchman Nee brings this incredible concept out in his book "The Ministry of God's Word", where he showed that even Holy Scripture - every jot and tittle of which is God inspired - still has the flavor of the particular author; i.e. Paul's style of writing vs. John's style.. yet God used their personality to communicate His Words. The fact is, our ministry IS tainted by us. We have a great treasure, but it still is contained in an earthen vessel.
Thus the need to purify the vessel. If the vessel is tainted, the ministry will be tainted. If the minister has gaps in his/her character, there will be gaps in his/her ability to deliver a pure message. Yet God has chosen to use us to represent Him to the world and the church. Wow! That is why he also goes through painstaking lengths to purify us from things that would harm us and taint the ministry of God's word.
The two "schools" of character building we want to address in this lesson are the "school of offense" and the "school of aloneness and rejection". These two schools are particularly designed to rid the prophet of the problem of anger and the problem of fear of man. We will be spending a greater amount of time on each issue when we look at Jonah the angry prophet and Jeremiah the insecure prophet in later lessons, but we must understand that these two things are the biggest hindrances to effective ministry in the life of any prophet.
The School of Offense
God will allow his "prophet-in-the-making" to endure the school of offense because His prophets must be free of offense lest their angry "spirit" filters through their message, making it un-receivable. Luke 17:1-2 tells us that offense is inevitable in life. "Then He said to the disciples, "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."
The critical lessons from this Scripture are two fold. First, that we WILL have opportunity to be offended, and we must not allow it to poison us; and second, that we must not be the ones originating the offense. A prophet's concern must always be that he make his "truth" receivable. A primary hindrance to usefulness in prophetic ministry is unresolved anger in the heart of the prophet. It only takes one time of being "torched" by an angry "prophet" to know that a person like that can cause grave offense and defilement.
When the inevitable offense comes to our life, as it does with all, we are told to forgive and not allow it to taint our soul. Otherwise we ourselves will be candidates to defile others with our bitter heart. Heb 12:15 says it this way: "See to it that no one fail to obtain the grace of God; that no "root of bitterness" springing up causes trouble, and by it many become defiled"; and Scripture clearly states in James 1:19-20 "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be... slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." It is wounded people who wound other people.
Of course the antidote for offense is forgiveness. God calls the servant of His to be courteous to the obnoxious, loving to the unlovable and merciful to the unworthy. He expects us to forgive even as He does. The prophet of the Lord must be an "expert forgiver" and of course the only way you become an expert at anything is lots of practice.. <grin>.
That is exactly why most prophets-in-training have had ravaging opportunities through life to gather offense; and have thereby learned how to swiftly and readily draw upon the grace of God to forgive.. and forgive.. and forgive. This revelation hit me like a bolt of lightning one day when I explained to someone who was amazed at my cool calm manner in dealing with a very offensive person; "I've been burned by experts, this incident is a piece of cake." It is those who have overcome very severe wounding offenses and have allowed the grace and forgiveness of God to work deeply in their souls that can remain objective messengers of God without letting their own anger bleed through.