BIBLICAL BRIEFS 142
Prophecy is one of those wonderful gifts of God to the Body of Christ, but it can be one of the most dangerous gifts if it is not sought after, received, and judged by Biblical guidelines. One of the most important aspects of prophecy is that the prophet who receives a word from the Lord gives it to the person for whom he/she has received the word. The process is not the other way round – you never consult a prophet to receive a word. If it happens in the wrong order, and you ask a prophet for a prophetic word from the Lord, Scripture says that the Lord (NOT THE SATAN!) sends a lying spirit to the prophet to answer you what you would like to hear (1Kings 22:22-23 and 2 Cor. 18:21-22). It’s a terrifying truth. In Ezek. 14:4 (AMP) it is spelled out in a more extensive way: “Therefore speak to them and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Every man … who takes his idols [of self-will and unsubmissiveness] into his heart and puts the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to the prophet [to inquire of him], I the Lord will answer him, answer him according to the multitude of his idols …” If you, e.g., have a particular idea/desire or whatsoever is in your heart (what is referred to in this case as an idol), and actually just want to use God as a spiritual rubber stamp and you go to a person for prophetic counsel, the prophet – how pure and noble he may be – will give you a confirmation of what is your deepest heartfelt desire, as if it was a prophetic word from the Lord, on which you can only say “Amen, Confirmation!” But it is a lying spirit that has spoken to you, and not the spirit of prophecy. It is therefore of utmost importance that we do not seek prophetic counsel, but wait for prophetic counsel to come to you. Prophetic counsel can never replace the Lord’s personal voice. Most believers wrongly have a need for prophetic word because they cannot hear the voice of the Lord for themselves.
Dr Tom Gouws
