Prophecy: The spirit of Prophecy
 

Core values are still important today in the realm of prophecy. There are many voices speaking into the prophetic arena and unfortunately there is a varied mix of quality that ranges from bad to excellent. This article addresses those core values and how following them will raise a prophetic word into the class of excellence. A dilemma exists because God demands excellence but works through people that have imperfect traits in character, motives and thought filters. However, the Holy Spirit can help raise the prophetic gift in your life to a higher level of quality, if you permit Him to lead you. Let's examine these core values closely.
 
First, let me bring focus to the subject. There are predictions made daily by those promoting horoscopes, occult themes, witchcraft and other deceptive teachings. There can be a definite supernatural reality to these but they are anchored in the dark kingdom of Satan. These prophetic voices bring deception, curses and confusion to those that promote them and those that receive them, so I place these at the very lowest end of the evaluation scale. We will not be accepting these types of predictions on this website. In this article, I am addressing core values as related to the gift of prophecy that the Holy Spirit is releasing.
 
There is a defining quote I must refer to from the Book of Revelation in your Bible. Revelation 19:10 states, “ for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” This means that the content of an excellent prophetic word must bring focus to the person of Jesus Christ and subsequently lead people into a deeper encounter and relationship with Him. To achieve that level of excellence, the prophet must seek for and maintain a deep spiritual relationship with the Lord. He or she must know the heart, the character and the mind of the Lord Jesus. Some will dismiss this as being impossible but it is a written promise within God's word and therefore possible because of the Holy Spirit's Presence within the Believer. The Holy Spirit has been sent from the Heavenly Father to reveal Jesus to you. He is able to not only reveal the person of Jesus to you but what is on His mind and heart for that specific prophetic word. When that level of revelation belongs to you, your gift of prophecy will function on a much higher level. This means that personal knowledge of Jesus is vitally important.
 
How do you increase your knowledge of Jesus? You must spend time with Him. Invite the Holy Spirit to bring understanding to you while reading about the life and ministry of Jesus in the Gospels. Watch for what motivated Jesus in ministry. Notice what He responded to and commended in others. Identify His purpose in ministry, His traits and His goals. Ask the Holy Spirit for inspiration and understanding. You will find revelation when you approach prophecy on this level.
 
It is also important that you understand who He is and His mission. Jesus Christ is the only given Son of God. He came to earth as God but took upon Himself the form of mankind. He came to demonstrate the love and mercy of God. He healed the sick, raised the dead and set many free from demonic oppression. He only said what He heard the Father saying and only did what the Father wanted done. He also came to satisfy God the Father's demand for justice. The price of sin had to be paid and Jesus paid that redemptive price by shedding His blood on a cross of death. He spent three days in the grave and was resurrected so that all who believe on Him might be saved. He later ascended back to Heaven to be seated on the right hand of God the Father. An excellent prophetic word will be anchored on these truths, operate out of these truths and bring people into an experience with these truths. If you lose that focus your prophetic words can easily drift into sensationalism, speculation and fantasy.
 
Demonstrating excellence in the prophetic gift also means you will encourage, instruct and comfort people. Your word will encourage them to seek after God and His kingdom and it will instruct them in developing spiritual maturity. It will also comfort them in the context of their journey with God in a very troubled world.

 
Prophecy may not but often does reveal future events. This is probably what most people equate prophecy with but it is only one aspect of this supernatural gift. Wisdom and caution is needed here. The down side of the predictive element is that people can easily become distracted from God and attracted to the prediction or the one giving it. Therefore, you need to ask the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom in what and how you share predictions about future events. I believe God is releasing many predictive words over the nations in this season. These predictions always carry a promise. Even if the prediction forecasts some calamity, God will provide room for mercy and a change of plans, if people will turn to Him in prayer and away from their evil behaviour. Again it bears repeating that the prophet must know the heart of God even in predicting calamities. God has eternity in mind and if all else fails to get the attention of mankind, He prefers to shake them up so they get serious about their eternal well being rather than seeing them go into eternal torment. His love reaches out even in judgement. Judgement will come upon sin but God may choose to use desperate circumstances when necessary, to bring men back to the reality of how short this life is in comparison to eternity. If they fail to follow after Him by putting their trust in Jesus as Lord and Saviour, then they have chosen eternal separation from God by default.
 
In summary, excellence in prophecy means you as a prophet will speak with love and mercy; not in anger or harshness. Your prophetic messages will also encourage, instruct and comfort people. You may or may not predict future events. Finally, your prophet ministry should be prompted and lead by the Holy Spirit; reflecting the heart, thoughts and wisdom of the Lord. Pursuing these core values will raise your prophetic ministry into excellence. The Holy Spirit will lead you into an intimate knowledge of the Father's heart as you spend time with Him and He will give you deep prophetic encounters with His supernatural Presence. This is the spirit of prophecy. Core values are important, so embrace them with God's help in your prophetic ministry.
 
May His goodness and mercy overtake you today.
 
Sincerely.... Keith Paul - President of Restoration Place Ministries