In our passage today, Jesus tells us that, as Spirit-filled believers, the Holy Spirit in us will communicate with us, guiding us, speaking to us and even revealing things to us that are yet to come. On Wednesday of last week, we looked at several of the blessings associated with the filling of the Holy Spirit, one of which was hearing God’s voice. We saw how the Spirit, in many different incidents in the book of Acts, directed the people to do God’s will. The Holy Spirit still speaks to us today, both through the Scriptures and in many other ways (all of which, as we said last week, need to be tested by the Scriptures, which is the ultimate authority, filter and safeguard for all such communications). Wayne Grudem, in his Systematic Theology, defines the gift of prophecy as a message from God, that we then tell others. So, aside from the direction we were given yesterday on how to pursue Spiritual gifts, what does pursuing prophecy (which is the gift that Paul told us to most earnestly desire) look like in our lives?

For starters, if we are going to receive a word from the Lord, we must first believe that God speaks. We must come to him in simple faith and, in prayer, seek to listen and learn how to hear the promptings of the Spirit. As we learn to better understand how God speaks to us, we may need to take some risks to humbly test what we believe he is saying. For example, if the Lord lays a person on your heart who may be in need of encouragement or prayer, instead of wondering, “is that God or is that me?,” just reach out to that person and tell them you felt as if God may have brought them to mind for you and then pass on whatever encouraging words or thoughts you felt led to share. Don’t claim to speak in the name of the Lord! Just let them know that they were on your mind and then share with them what you feel led to share. Their response typically reveals if it was truly God who led you to do this. And that is encouraging to both of you! 

As you grow in this gift, there are a few helpful things to remember. Humility is key! As indicated above, you want to avoid throwing out phrases like “God told me to tell you…” and instead, humbly share the word and possibly ask something like, “Does that mean anything to you?” Also, as we learned yesterday, love for the Lord and for our brother or sister must be our motivation and a desire to build them up, or encourage, or console them must be our goal. And lastly, if someone gives you a word, and you are able, do not blindly accept it, but always test it. 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21 tells us “not to not despise prophecies but to test everything; hold fast to what is good.” Since Paul had to warn against despising prophecies, it is likely that the church in Thessalonica was struggling with some aspect of the practice of it! However, as John Wimber once said, “The answer to abuse is not disuse; it is right use.” 

I have been given prophecies for my family and for our church that I cannot test other than by simply waiting to see if they come to pass. But, in the meantime, they have encouraged me and helped me persevere when things have been difficult. Perhaps these types of prophecies are the reason that Paul specifically encouraged us to seek the gift!