According to 1 Corinthians 14, a number of questions may be asked when attempting to evaluate a prophetic utterance:-
Both Jesus and the apostles warned about fraudulent prophets.
They were characterised by greed, 2 Pet 2:3,13, arrogance, 2 Pet 2:18, immoral lives, 2 Pet 2:2,10-13, and general ungodliness, Jude 4.
Bar-Jesus was a Jewish magician whom Paul and Barnabas denounced as false and deceitful, Ac 13:6-10. Such false prophets belong to the same line as Jezebel from the church of Thyatira, Rev 2:20.
Christian believers in every age are to test those who make prophetic claims. …
‘Christ,’ says Paul in his Letter to the Ephesians (Eph 4:11f), ‘gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.’
Most Christian teachers would agree that the office of apostle was limited to those who were the first witnesses of Christ’s resurrection. On the other hand, they would take it for granted that evangelists and pastor-teachers are found in every era and place.…
I have found it useful to compile a list (albeit partial) of passages that are relevant to discussions about Israel and the Church and related questions such as restoration to the land, etc.
The debate cannot simply be reduced to whether we interpret the Bible more, or less, ‘literally’. It’s a question of how the New Testament understands the Old Testament promises to have been fulfilled in Christ.
Here’s a list of relevant passages, with some notes appended.…
According to the Network Participant’s Guide, the traits of a prophet are that s/he is discerning, compelling, uncompromising, outspoken, authoritative, convicting, and confronting. Phew! no wonder the gift of prophecy can sometimes seem too hot to handle! Such a set of traits raises important questions about the authority of the prophet, and how this relates to other kinds of authority within the church. I’m going to argue that that the authority (and therefore the accountability) of the prophet is similar to the authority (and accountability) of the teacher.…
I should like to offer a few bits of historical evidence regarding the prophetic gift. One point about this particular evidence is that it comes from the centre, not the fringe, of the evangelical tradition. I would also point out that these examples all relate to times of spiritual awakening (revival).
The Scottish reformer Robert Bruce was renowned for his extraordinary spiritual powers. He himself said, ‘There comes never thing to me, trouble or alteration, but He gives me warning before.’ It was said in those days that ‘it is ordinary with God to give his servants whom he stirres up and employes in extraordinary employments with extraordinar gifts and endewments, such as the gift of prophecie.…
