Intimations of the Prophetic

Last week I started writing on the aspect of living under a prophetic anointing. When we talk about this we have to consciously avoid the modern caricatures and mis-perceptions that are attached to the words prophecy, prophetic, and prophet. Too often we see these things as out of reach for the modern person.

Now, to bring this into our modern world, we need to go back to the ancient text of Scripture and follow the line of thought that we began with last week. When Joshua complained, to the seeming inappropriateness, of two leaders prophecying outside of the assigned meeting, Moses issued the first intimation of a coming prophetic anointing that would rest on the Body of Christ. Moses said, "would that all God's people were prophets. Would that God would put his Spirit on all of them" (Numbers 11:29 - The Message).

We also talked about three themes that stood out in this first group anointing (1. the transfer of anointing from one to many, 2. the authenticating sign-gift of prophesy, 3. the service component for meeting needs, for which this anointing is all about). This would be the shadow from which the reality would emerge in the New Testament book of Acts.

So lets look at a few more prophetic intimations; glimpses, if you will, of what is coming for New Testament believers. I will limit this to two prophecies that bear this out the best.

First, Isaiah created the language of the Spirit of God being poured out or flooding the nation of Israel (see Isaiah 32:15; 44:3). From this point forward this water metaphor would dominate the language of the Spirit's anointing among the Old Testament prophets (see Ezekiel 39:29; Joel 2:28). Let's see its significance in the next two prophecies.

Isaiah 59:19-21 reads like this, For [the Messiah] will come like a flood tide driven by the breath of the LORD. "The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem," says the LORD, "to buy back those in Israel who have turned from their sins. And this is my covenant with them," says the LORD. "My Spirit will not leave them, and neither will these words I have given you. They will be on your lips and on the lips of your children and your children's children forever. I, the LORD, have spoken!" (New Living Translation)

Here Isaiah references the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ and the Spirit's anointing on his church (here called your children and your children's children forever). It also reveals to us the pattern mentioned above. The Spirit, that would rest on the Redeemer, would be transfered to his spiritual posterity. Also, this anointing would be seen on the lips of both the Redeemer and his children. This is clearly a statement of their prophetic speech which authenticated their anointing. This prophetic speech would also be the way they would each serve their generation and bring about the shining glory of God's presence as stated in the next chapter that follows.

Notice the over-arching theme that stands out in this passage. It says, My Spirit will not leave them. In the Scripture the Spirit of God is often associated with prophecy. Since prophecy, in its simplest definition, means the revelation or voice of God given to a people, then this implies that the Church would always be God's voice to each and every generation. Notice that it would not be given to a select few but to every child of God!

The second prophetic intimation found among the prophets is that of Joel. Joel foretold: And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days (Joel 2:28-29, NKJV). Here we see the prophetic Spirit being given to all people no matter their heritage, age, or economic status. With the coming of the New Age of Jesus, no longer would prophecy be housed in just a select few of holy men. Now, in this New Age of Jesus, the voice of God to our culture would be on the lips of every born-again child of God! God's presence would shine through their lives and their speech as a beacon of light to a dark world. God's power would be seen in their lives as a force for good as salt sprinkled over food (see Matthew 5:13-16).

So, why don't you accept that God is calling you to be His prophetic voice in this world? Why don't you find out how He has uniquely gifted you to reveal God's heart to the people around you? Believe me, you don't need a pulpit or a street corner to do this. All you need is to be a vessal through which God's Spirit can flow through your life to a hurting world.

Modern Day Prophets?

Over the next few blogs I would like to focus on an aspect of Biblical teaching that is too often glossed over, relegated to ancient insignificance, or distorted by modern day caricatures. The name "prophet" sounds so unreachable for us that we consign its activity in our post-modern world to either wild-eyed preachers on street corners or leaders of false religions like "The Prophet Joseph Smith" in Mormonism or "The Prophet Muhammad" in the religion of Islam.

However, the Bible informs us that this gifting is for His people in every age. This was not so during the time leading up to Jesus Christ. Before the dawn of the new age the anointing for various spiritual areas of leadership was confined to a select few. So much so, that these exceptional figures stood out like giants on the landscape of Israel's history. Prophets, priests, and kings made up the select group of people empowered to serve their generation. Men like Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, and Jeremiah are just a few of well known prophets of that period. Too often we tend to carry this exceptionality into our own times. Men like Charles Finney, Billy Sunday, Billy Graham, and Pat Robertson represent modern day prophets to many of us.

However, in and throughout the Tanakh, or Old Testament, there are intimations of a coming time when, the Messiah himself, will transfer a prophetic anointing from himself to a group of people who represent His Body in this earth. He called the extension of Himself, the Church, and through them He would bring His convicting message and wonder working power to this earth. Even as the holy anointing oil was placed on the head of Aaron, and worked its way down his beard, and unto the extremities of the hem of his robe (see Psalm 133:2); so to, the anointing that rested on Jesus as Messiah is everflowing, through the power of the Holy Spirit, down upon the Body of Christ, His Church.

The maiden voyage of this prophetic intimation is found in Numbers when Moses was overwhelmed with his responsibility of carrying the spiritual burden, of the millions of people he was leading, through the Sinai peninsula. The people, with characteristic crabbiness, had complained about their limited diet of manna. Moses knew that the people's attitude could cause another outbreak of judgment from God. He knew he needed to intercede, again, for God's mercy.

This led to some what of a breakdown for Moses, before God, regarding his ability to stand in the gap for God's people. He cried out to God for relief and God answered his request. He instructed Moses to bring seventy well-respected leaders to His Tent for a transfer of God's power to these men so they could assist Moses in his spiritual work. As these 70 stood around the Tent the Scripture declares, God came down in a cloud and spoke to Moses and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy leaders. When the Spirit rested on them they prophesied. But they didn't continue; it was a onetime event (Numbers 11:25 - The Message).

In this one verse rest the pattern of anointing for prophetic leadership embedded throughout the text of Scripture. First, there is the transfer of anointing from the one to the many. In this case from Moses to the seventy elders empowered to spiritually lead the thousands of Israelites through the desert. Second, there is the sign-gift of prophetic speech authenticating each leaders right to convey God's revelation to their generation. Third, and finally, there is the service component, in which the burden of the one is disseminated to the many so that Israel would be better served to bring honor to God.

Let me leave you with this final observation regarding this maiden voyage for prophetic empowerment. When one of the young men gave a report of two of the elders prophesying who had failed to show up at the Tent, Joshua was incensed and reported his displeasure to Moses. Moses, the first prophet, responded with, what I believe to be, the original prophesy of a coming age in which the Messiah would anoint a company of prophets (His Church) to carry out his world wide evangelistic strategy. He said, Would that all God's people were prophets. Would that God would put his Spirit on all of them (v. 29). Stay tuned!

The Significance of Jesus

Jesus is the central figure of human history. He has been written about, in all catagories of literature, more than any other individual by a mile. More songs, more histories, more poems, more periodicals, more annals, more prose, have spoken of Him in either positive or negative tones.

We still, to this day, measure time by the influence of this One Solitary Life. Since His birth we see the yearly significance of his influence in a Latin abbreviation, attached to the end of any given year, that declares His soveriegn hold over time. Now every year is anno Domini, in the year of our Lord. So why does Jesus hold sway over time and history?

The answer lies in the question itself. Jesus holds sway over time and history because he also stands above time and history. His God-in-flesh uniqueness allows him to be the one who is both in and over these realities.

This is what makes the Cross so central in this One Unique Life. John quotes Jesus as saying: And I, when I am lifted up from this earth, will draw all people to myself (John 12:32 - ESV). Jesus was referring to the Cross by which he would be suspended between heaven and earth and die for the sins of the world. It was the Cross that became the magnetic draw of humanity. Why? One reason is that Jesus who was both from heaven and earth united both the God of heaven with the Humanity of earth. The Cross acted as the nexus point between the darkness of our fallen world with the transcedent light of Paradise; between the evil in the human heart with the righteousness of a sinless Savior; between the age that is with the age to come.

In Jesus, the divine and human forged an unbreakable bond by which the Creator would re-unite Himself with His creation. In Jesus, God would lift humanity from its bondage to death and decay and lift us into the glorious freedom of the adopted sons and daughters of Heaven.

The Cross captures the heart of humanity like nothing else because it solves the fundamental rupture between ourselves and our Originator. Sin disconnects us; it disenfranchises us from God's original plan. God's plan for us was to enjoy His life; to live life without limits. Sin, instead brings death and limits radically the life we were intended to enjoy. Sin and death rob us of the awareness of this plan; it limits our understanding of the scope and majesty of our divine destiny. An ancient sage declared it this way: He...has planted eternity in men's hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy], yet so men cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

The signficance of Jesus is that He satifies the longing of the human heart. Jesus brings into clear view what was once clouded and opague because of our sin. We write about Him and mark our calenders by Him because who He is and what He has done captivates our minds and hearts at the deepest level and we can't get enough of Him!

A Prophet in an Orthodox Cassock

Sometimes a voice rises, that pushes through the backrooms of theological debate, and becomes a clarion call to reformation and renewal. It can often come from a place unlooked for and unexpected. Like Luther who, before the time of his ascendancy to world renown, was a simple pastor and theologian trying to lead his own small flock from the excesses and corruptions of false teaching. Luther’s teachings and corrections sweep like a prairie fire across the landscape of the Church and brought renewal and reformation to the broad spectrum of churches and parishes. Why? Because deep within the heart of true believers, every where, something was terribly amiss. Like the proverbial elephant in the room, something needed addressing that no body wanted to touch and no body wanted to face. But once the subject matter was addressed the boil was lanced, the issues were faced, and spiritual health began to come into the Body of Christ..

A young leader in the Russian Orthodox Church in Vienna and Austria is a good case and point. Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev is this young leader. He positioned himself during a midweek session at the World Council of Churches Central Committee meeting. He was allowed to ask questions of the moderator. And with the skill of an accomplished Senator in debate, he crafted his questions with a long introduction in the spirit of a modern day prophet. His words brought shame and conviction to an organization that has greatly erred from its spiritual foundations. His words remind me of the truth that God is building a universal church composed from all church organizations across the globe. I am glad to be called a fellow brother of this young Russian Orthodox bishop!

Listen to his words in full and pray for him to have greater influence in Europe:

"I would like to draw your attention to the danger of liberal Christianity. The liberalization of moral standards, initiated by some Protestant and Anglican communities several decades ago and developing with ever-increasing speed, has now brought us to a situation where we can no longer preach one and the same code of moral conduct. We can no longer speak about Christian morality, because moral standards promoted by 'traditional' and 'liberal' Christians are markedly different, and the abyss between these two wings of contemporary Christianity is rapidly growing.

We are being told by some allegedly Christian leaders,who still bear the titles of Reverends and Most Reverends, that marriage between a woman and a man is no longer the only option for creating a Christian family,that there are other patterns, and that the church must be 'inclusive' enough to recognize alternative lifestyles and give them official and solemn blessing.

We are being told that human life is no longer an unquestionable value,that it can be summarily aborted in the womb … and that Christian 'traditionalists' should reconsider their standpoints in order to be in tune with modern developments. We are being told that abortion is acceptable … and that the church must accommodate all these 'values' in the name of human rights.”

What, then, is left of Christianity? In the confusing and disoriented world in which we live, where is the prophetic voice of Christians? What can we offer, or can we offer anything at all to the secular world, apart from what the secular world will offer to itself as a value system on which society should be built? Do we have our own value system which we should preach, or should we simply applaud every novelty in public morality which becomes fashionable in the secular society?”

When are we going to stop making Christianity politically correct and all-inclusive? Why do we insist on accommodating every possible alternative to the centuries-old Christian tradition? Where is the limit, or is there no limit at all?

Many Christians worldwide look to Christian leaders in the hope that they will defend Christianity against the challenges that it faces…. Our holy mission is to preach what Christ preached, to teach what the apostles taught, and to propagate what the holy Fathers propagated.

I am convinced that liberal Christianity will not survive for a long time. A politically correct Christianity will die. …traditional Christians will consolidate their forces in order to protect the faith and moral teaching which the Lord gave, the Apostles preached, and the Fathers preserved."

I may not dress in the distinct black cassock of a Russian Orthodox bishop nor agree with every nuance of his doctrinal distinctions but he and I both stand on the bedrock foundation of the Word of God and the Apostle’s Creed. So may his tribe increase and may his influence abound to the glory of God.

Using Fantasy To Teach Faith

This coming May 16th, Walden Media and Disney, are releasing the second installment of C. S. Lewis' masterpiece of children's fantasy, The Chronicles of Narnia. The movie, based on the fourth book in the series, is called Prince Caspian. However, it was the second book written by Lewis in the series. This may be the reason that Walden has decided to follow the original order of publication.

Lewis concept was to allow children to grab the truths of the Christian message in a format that captured their imagination. He used the Pevensie children, and others to follow, to allow every child the ability to enter the greater story of good conquering evil. Through them he invested the young reader with a since of greatness so that their young lives could be seen to make an impact in a world assaulted by evil powers.

The original audience of the fantasy novels had just emerged from the black cloud of Hitler's Nazism. Much like today, with the specter of aggressive Islamic Fundamentalism and their butchering of the innocent, children can find something in this story that can give them hope amidst the black smock of terrorism.

In Narnia there is something to fight for. In Narnia there is something to lay one's life down for. In Narnia there is a powerful being to find hope and strength in. In Narnia children can become world changers.

Aslan, the Christ figure, is the most necessary component of winning the battle. However, the Sons of Adam and the Daughters of Eve are also necessary. When they come into the picture as the royal entourage that they are; all of Narnia comes back to life! In the real world of England where Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are from they are still too young and too weak to make a difference but in Narnia their strength is renewed and their powers are restored.

I encourage you to go out and pick up the book and begin to read Prince Caspian before the movie comes out in May. Introduce yourself and your children to a fun read and show them that their is a possible world where they can grow up to become heroes like the Pevensies and Prince Caspian himself.