Prophets and Rebels

During my childhood, I worked along with my mom and brothers tending to a large garden and even larger truck patch. From end of summer and until spring of the following year, the garden and truck patch grew over with weeds and grass. Except for the strawberry plot, it all had to be tilled. We raked the weeds, cockleburs, and grass in piles and removed them. Then, we plowed rows for planting and sowed the seeds. Each day, we conducted Maintenance to prevent weeds and grass from taking over again. Considering the references to seed and planting in God’s word, can we understand that plowing comes before planting and planting comes before a harvest? If so, why do we invited individuals that have “plow-and-seed-phobia” when we advertise a harvest? Most church need a prophet but they send for an entertainer. People may complain about the prophet, “We don’t like the speaker. He is negative and makes me uncomfortable.” Good, then he is doing God’s will. How long will the “spots” among our “feasts of charity” might remain and feed without fear. (Jude 1:12)

“Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.” Hosea 10:12

When God appoints and sends someone to warn and call people to repentance, it is His pattern to send prophets. The prophet will expose the unfruitful works of darkness and rebuke the diabolical charlatans. I am not a prophet. Thus, I can defend the prophets with no motive than to set straight the matter of rejecting prophet because people have made the office sacrosanct.

I wonder, if after receiving his calling from God, Jeremiah thought, I am going to make everyone furious, and they will persecute me. That’s how people responded to his prophesying.

“Then they said, “Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us attack him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.” — Jeremiah 18:18

What were they implying? Was it to persecute Jeremiah, silence him, proving his words were not from a true prophet? How wicked! Jeremiah knew they would not accept his words, but he prophesied exactly what God gave him.

Jeremiah 26:9 (NKJV)

“Why have you prophesied in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without an inhabitant’?” And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.

Are current versions of those people not gathering together against God’s servants that preach with anointing? Jeremiah made people so angry they lowered him into a filthy sludge hole called a dungeon. There is no telling what filth, bacteria, germs, was in the sludge that came up to his neck. They did not give him anything to eat. He would have struggled to eat sunk neck-deep in a nasty mud hole. It did not stop him from prophesying again after they released him from bondage. When they released him, how did he clean himself, wash and sanitize his garments? Does anyone realize how that man of God suffered?

After near misses with execution and all the other hardships, God spoke the following to Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 39:18 (NKJV) “For I will surely deliver you, and you shall not fall by the sword; but your life shall be as a prize to you, because you have put your trust in Me,” says the LORD.’ ”

Jeremiah remained faithful before he had assurance God would deliver him from death. Where are such prophets in this dark period? I believe the prophets are here, but we do not identify them as prophets. One can identify at a pastor, an evangelist, teacher, missionary, but woe to the one that identifies as a prophet. Most prophets realize will mock and scorned them if they declare their office. People have made the title sacrosanct, as if it were a highly desirable and elite position. There is no biblical reason to do such a thing. It gives rebellious people an opening to mock and deride the prophets. Is that the intent of making the most difficult, inglorious, rejected, and sacrificial office so honorable that no one can fill it without being rebuked?

The true prophet does not identify as a prophet. He does not want or need to identify himself. His authenticity will be clear to the saints and rebels. No biblical prophet declared himself a prophet. He does not come to be honored. For what reason would people honor him? Because he offends and enrages everyone? Is it he is a loner and sacrifices his life to speak truth? Could it the offended ones also be the ones he came to rebuke?

There is no place for the prophet in the religion named after Christ. The majority follow modern Balaams and other diabolical charlatans. Those imposters who prophesy for gain make small fortunes. People live and hang on every word because it excites their carnal spirits. When true prophets come, they will not arrive through Christianity the religion. They will not seek the approval of those who believe that God must check in with them before appointing a prophet. God’s prophets will rebuke the false prophets and apostates, expose their lies, and declare His judgment on them. The ones who should recognize the prophet, but for whatever reason refuse to do so, Jehoshaphat had something to say about that.

“Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” –– 2 Chronicles 20:20

The Hebrew word for prosper does not mean wealth, as fake prophets claim. The word is saleah, which means, “so shall you be established.” Saleah is used only one time in the KJV. I believe it means the acceptance of God’s prophets is essential for steadfastness, especially in the battle against the minions of darkness. Nevertheless, most professing Christians will avoid, ignore, or demean a prophet. Other ones will fear and shut their minds and ears to their words. The compromised ones will immediately hate them. Instant hatred today manifests when you correct someone on social media. Millions of professing Christians reveling in apostasy will eventually persecute prophets. Who would wish to be accepted by apostates upon whom judgment will fall? It is a greater honor for the prophet to suffer and endure rejection. They will be the first ones to suffer when the two beasts of Revelation thirteen arrive. The prophet will live meagerly, having no hobbies, no means of relief from the constant burden of his calling. But the daggers of his enemy’s tongues will never touch his heart. God will make him impervious to their rage and evil plotting.

People need to cease their assault on the word “prophet” and stop speaking degrading comments toward the office. It is not their calling to vet and validate God’s servants. Instead, they should focus on exposing and rebuking the more plentiful false prophets. False prophets are religious “stars.” They attract large followings, are wealthy, and operate their craft practically unchallenged. The ones who should be challenging them are too occupied with distractions. The indignant ones are more alarmed an individual warning people of the coming judgement might identify himself as a prophet.

I am more concerned with the many people that identify as pastors, teachers, evangelists, et cetera, when nothing identifies them. They have the title, office, and a crowd to pander to, but that also defines a hireling. A true pastor today would have by now equipped people to be apologists. He would inform them about what to expect in the last days and to prepare. Such leaders are as negative as they are positive. He would know when a true prophet arrived and would not oppose him.

A true evangelist would stir spiritually comatose people’s hearts to life, repentance, and returning to God. He would not go about preaching stock sermons but pray fervently about what God wanted him to speak to each church. Such a man obeys God, not the modern requirement that an evangelist must be exciting, make them laugh, and is a welcomed break from hearing the pastor every week. Revival is being back to life that which is dead or near death. God’s negativity is essential to his message.

A true prophet is the most negative of the three. He comes when people apostatize. God not send him to encourage people, remind them of how blessed they are, or make them feel snug, happy, even gleeful about their condition. He speaks with the sword of the Holy Spirit. He identifies sin and the Holy Spirit convicts the guilty ones. Demonic ones can no longer hide in “sheep’s clothing.” They will vehemently react the prophet as people did when Jeremiah prophesied. They will “devise plans against” the prophet, “attack him with the tongue,” and reject everything he says.

If people want hyper-positive, emotional, entertaining church meetings, they should hire a comedian. If they want to feel good about their flagrant backsliding, they should invite a psychologist to speak. Invite a prophet to speak in a church and there will be conviction, brokenness, repentance, but also some blessed subtractions. If people want to be alert, watchful, prepared to be victorious, and strengthened to remain faithful in this dark period, they should pray for God to send prophets.

Beware of religious “hall monitors” that identify and rebuke prophets. Pray fervently and ask God to send revival no matter the cost. Naysayers that deny God would send prophets need to study the Scriptures. Afterward, they might plead in every prayer, “Oh God, please do not call me to be a prophet, but send them with fire.”