Biblically Speaking: What's a NT Prophet?

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,  to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up  until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:11-13)

There are volumes of books written on the subject of prophets and prophecy, and there is far too much information to do the topic justice in this space. Rather, this will serve mainly as an overview, and will look specifically at the issue of prophecy in the New Testament church.

This, like apostleship, remains one of the more controversial topics in New Testament Christianity. Many believe that the gift is no longer for today, while others believe that it is one of the most important gifts that the Church could possibly have.

Just as with the title of “apostle”, much confusion occurs over the title of “prophet”. When a “prophet” gets a prediction wrong, it degrades the role within the church. It seems wise to avoid the seeking of such a title. Choosing a path of humility is a better way of avoiding controversy and becoming a stumbling block for others. One can function in a gifting, and be a blessing to others, without demanding or requiring a title to go with it. 

If we believe that the Bible is the full revelation of what we need to know about God and His Kingdom, (and we do believe this!), then we must also conclude that it has the answers we are looking for.

So, to begin: What is New Testament prophecy?

It is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, whereby He speaks a message to a person that is to be communicated to the Church or to an individual (1Co 12:10; 1Co 14). We see it in action throughout the Gospels and the book of Acts, and instructions are given for its role and function in 1Corinthians. A simple definition for the prophetic gift might be, “Communicating the heart and the will of the Father, as revealed by the Holy Spirit.”

As in all things, Jesus is our key example. He referred to Himself as a Prophet (Mt 13:57), and was acknowledged as such by the people who witnessed Him (Mt 14:5; 21:11; Lk 7:16; 24:20; Jn 4:19; 6:14; 9:17).

Jesus walked with a constant connection to the Father, telling His disciples, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (Jn 5:19). Likewise, when describing the coming Holy Spirit, who would be poured out on the earth after Jesus’ departure, Jesus said that “He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears,” (Jn 16:13) – ie, what He hears from the Father and Son. So when Jesus walked the earth, He communicated what the Father was doing and saying to the people; after Jesus left, the Spirit would come and continue the same ministry, communicating to the people what the Father is saying.

Another key question regarding the prophetic: Is the gift of prophecy for today, or was it only for the early church?

Those who would say that the gift is no longer functioning (also known as “cessassionists”) often point to 1Corinthians 13:8-10: “But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.”

Cessassionists believe that this Scripture passage makes it clear: prophecies will “cease”. They hold that the “perfection” of the last verse refers to the perfect revelation of Scripture, and that since the canon of perfect Scripture has been completed, that there is no room or need for any more revelation to come through prophecy.

The problem with this view is found in the context of this particular passage in 1Corinthians. For one thing, it mentions that prophecy, tongues, and knowledge will all end when “perfection” comes. Regardless of how one feels about the gifts of prophecy and tongues, we would all have to agree that the principle of knowledge still exists, and in fact we are encouraged to grow in knowledge by Scripture (Ph 1:9; Col 1:9-10; 2:3; 3:10; 1Ti 2:4; 2Pe 1:5). Since knowledge did not pass away with the completion of canonical Scripture, it stands to reason that the “perfection” has not yet come, and that therefore the other two gifts mentioned have not passed away either.

Also, it is worth looking at the next verse in that same passage of 1Corinthians: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1Co 13:12). So, the most obvious reading of this verse would indicate that “face to face” is referring to literally standing before Jesus, face to face, and that to “know fully” is a reference to knowing Jesus in His Presence, and not just “in part” while here on earth. When we stand before the throne, there will be no need for prophecy, tongues, growing in knowledge, or any other spiritual gifts, because we will be face to face with our Saviour and will know Him freely. The spiritual gifts are given to help us to see Him and experience Him while we wait for Him here on earth; once we are in heaven, however, we will then be “face to face” (v.12) and see His “perfection” (v.10) and all of the “imperfect” tools on earth that point to Him will cease, as they will no longer be needed at all.

Besides this Scriptural argument, there is also a common-sense argument as well. If we serve the “Living” God (2Co 6:16; 1Th 1:9; Heb 9:14), and if He is a Father who loves us (2Th 2:16; 1Jn 3:1), then why would He stop speaking to us, giving us guidance and direction and a revelation of His specific will for us? And if Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would come and speak to us (Jn 16:13), and if we believe that the Holy Spirit is still here on earth, then why would the Holy Spirit stop speaking to us? If would seem to be an awful waste of His time and abilities, not to mention unscriptural, if the Spirit of God dwelled inside of us and never communicated anything at all!

Another key issue to discuss is the matter of the difference, if any, between Old Testament prophecy and New Testament prophecy.

This is a tricky problem, with many holding that the gift must be the same throughout Scripture, while others believe that there was a shift at the cross that changed how it functioned.

Many have maligned prophecy in the New Testament era by pointing to the unfulfilled prophecies of modern-day ministers, and then quoting Deuteronomy 18:20-22:

“But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death.” You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD ?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.”

This is the Law, and it was faithfully obeyed at the time. If one reads the book of Jeremiah, we see him fighting with false prophets throughout. It was a very real problem in the OT, and carried a very heavy penalty (death). This was for a very important reason, one which is crucial to understand.

The reason is this: the Holy Spirit had not been poured out on everyone yet. This would not happen until Acts chapter 2, in fulfillment of Joel 2. Today, every believer has the Holy Spirit living inside them (Rom 8:11; 2Ti 1:14), but this was not the case in the OT. The Spirit would come upon specific people for a specific purpose, so that they could prophesy or fulfill some other God-appointed task (Jg 3:10; 6:34; 1Sam 16:13; 2Ch 20:14; Eze 11:5), but He did not come upon everyone.

Because only some had access to the Holy Spirit, it was very important they be listened to, and that their words be accurate. If people simply presumed to speak for the LORD, they could do much damage, since individuals did not have access to the Spirit so that they could discern things for themselves. OT Prophets needed to be trustworthy, and so God laid down a very strict standard for them.

This is not, however, the way that God wanted things to stay! And this is why the prophet Joel spoke of a new day, when God would pour out His Spirit on ALL people (Joel 2:28), which Peter proclaimed had begun in Acts 2, as the fullness of the New Covenant came into effect.

Jeremiah foretold what this New Covenant would look like, saying:

“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Jer 31:33-34)

We have to always remember that the cross changed everything. It changed the way that every single one of us could relate to God. In the past, all of humanity was at a distance from Him because of our sin. In the OT, priests and prophets stood between us and God, with priests speaking to Him and interceding for us, and with prophets speaking to us for Him (and interceding as well). Because of this, the rules placed upon priests were rigorous (see Leviticus), and the standard for prophets was unbelievably high, because the entire nation was at the mercy of these ministers, as the nation depended fully on these offices for their spiritual well-being.

This is completely different now! Now, we are each filled with the Spirit, and each can connect with God on our own, and so while we do still need the help of others to grow together, we are no longer fully dependant on others to interact with God on our behalf. The priestly role was dramatically and forever changed after the cross. Does it not stand to reason that the prophetic role might have shifted as well?

In the NT, Scripture tells us that within the church, “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.” (1Co 14:29) If the prophetic gift is supposed to be infallible in the NT, as it was in the OT, then why does Scripture tell us to weigh what the prophets say? Shouldn’t their words be automatically accepted, if their revelations were perfect all the time, as in the OT? 1Th 5:20-21 repeats the sentiment, saying that we should “not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.” Again, why would it be important to test prophetic words, and hold onto the good, putting aside the wrong, if all of it is supposed to be 100% accurate, all the time?

Some have suggested that these passages refer to false prophets who had infiltrated the church, but they are not called false prophets in these verses, and the Bible has no problem referring to the false as “false” elsewhere in the NT. The clearest understanding of these verses, in light of the New Covenant, is that prophetic voices will speak, they might not be 100% accurate, and because of that, it is up to each individual believer to make up their own mind concerning the words spoken.

In the OT, the words of a prophet were to be considered words from God Himself. The very fact that we are commanded to weigh things on this side of the cross means that the role of “prophet” in the NT does not match the power or authority of the OT prophets, where a moment’s hesitation to obeying a prophet’s words could lead to dire consequences (1Ki 20:36; 2Ki 13:19-19)

In the Old Testament, the burden was on the prophet to establish that he was from God by his words being fulfilled. In the New Testament, the burden is upon each individual believer to decide whether a prophet’s words are from God or not. And the fact that we are told to weigh a prophet’s words must mean that there is the possibility of error, even from a prophet’s mouth.

Even just in practical thinking, the idea of a 100% accurate prophetic gifting is hard to grasp. Every Christian prays for direction, wisdom, and understanding from God. And every Christian has made a mistake or two along the way, mishearing or misunderstanding the will of God. Pastors and teachers and evangelists make mistakes in their walk with God. Even the original apostles made errors in the Gospels and in Acts. Must the prophetic gift alone be considered infallible, especially in the era of grace? Based on all of the evidence, it seems reasonable to conclude that, as the cross changed every other manner in which we interact with God, so too the prophetic gift has undergone a change, as we all now have the ability to hear from God ourselves by His Spirit. The prophetic gifting is given to the Church so that those who are sensitive to the Spirit can communicate His will. We are not, however, dependant on the gift as they were in the OT, since all of us can hear from the Lord ourselves.

Let’s move on, and look deeper at the gift itself within the New Testament. There are not a large number of actual descriptions of the gift of prophesy in the NT, but the ones that we do have are very telling indeed.

First, just as in the Old Testament, NT prophecy can be predictive. The Holy Spirit knows what the Father is doing, and at times will communicate to God’s people concerning events before they happen. Jesus said specifically that one of the Spirit’s roles would be to “tell you what is yet to come,” (Jn 16:13). We see this practically in Agabus, who is given the title of prophet in the book of Acts, and who by the Holy Spirit predicted a famine in the Roman world (Ac 11:28), as well as Paul’s imprisonment by the Romans (Ac 21:11). Peter accurately discerned Ananais and Sapphira’s sin (Ac 5:1-11), as well as heard from the Holy Spirit that Cornelius’ men were coming to look for him and that he was to go with them (Ac 10:19). Paul was shown by the Spirit that suffering awaited him in the various places that he visited (Ac 20:23). So we see that one of the functions of this spiritual gift is to give insight to God’s people on events before they happen so that the Church may be prepared.

Much focus is put on this aspect of the prophetic gift, but it is by no means the ONLY way that the gift can function.

Prophecy is also given for “strengthening, encouragement and comfort” (1Co 14:3). 1Corinthians makes it clear that the primary function of NT prophesy is to edify the church (14:4). Nowhere in the New Testament does it speak of using prophecy in judgment or in the tearing down of others. That is something that occurred in the OT, but the NT focus of the gift seems to be more for the building up of the church. Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as the “Paraclete” (Jn 15:26), which can be translated as “Counselor, Helper, Comforter”. It therefore stands to reason that, if the role of the Holy Spirit in the church is to be a Helper and Comforter, that He would more focused on building up and encouraging His people.

This is not to say that prophecy cannot include warning, as that too is a biblical idea. But many prophetic voices have looked at the OT prophets, and somehow missed 1Co 14:3-4, and have functioned in an attitude of judgement, criticism, and negativity. NT prophecy is primarily given to help the church.

As well, prophecy can show God’s power to unbelievers. Scripture says “if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!” (1Co 14:24-25) The Holy Spirit is not only concerned with building the church, as we know that God is desiring that all people should come to salvation (2Pe 3:9). The Spirit of God can move through a prophetic person with supernatural knowledge and insight that can cut to the heart of an unsaved person, showing them that there is a God in heaven and convicting them of their sins, drawing them to Christ.

Prophecy can be used to release spiritual giftings. Paul acknowledges that this is what happened with Timothy, telling him “Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.” (1Ti 4:14) This is not the only way the spiritual gifts are released, but the Holy Spirit can show someone what He is doing in another believer’s life, and use that person to pray and proclaim it into being.

Finally, it is worth noting that Paul referred to prophecy as the spiritual gift that should be the most desired (1Co 14:1), because it is a gift that greatly blesses other people. He tells the Church that we should “be eager to prophesy” (14:39). It is a gift whereby the Holy Spirit speaks to His Church, encouraging and building it up, and because of that, it is a gift that we desperately need. He has already spoken clearly through His written Word, and prophecy must always be consistent with Scripture, but He has words that are meant to encourage us where we are at and help us grow in our understanding of Jesus. If Jesus promised that the Spirit would speak, then, as Paul commanded, we should eagerly seek the gift so that we can know what He is saying to the Church. The prophetic gift is key to understanding the will and purpose of Heaven, and it will keep us on track, so that we can fully walk in the call of God for our lives.