I was inspired to write this post by Efua of Grace Over Pain who wrote a concise explanation of the difference between a prophet and the spirit of divination.
I was encouraged by her post and I hope that it will help you also.
One morning as I was heading to work I heard a lady prophesying on the radio. It was a detailed and long prophecy concerning the BVI.
The lady’s words were eloquent and filled with great things about the future of the country.
It is the type of prophecy that every leader and resident of a country wants to hear.
I wondered to myself if those prophetic words were actually from the Lord. Immediately, the Lord placed in my spirit that we are living in the days of Jeremiah.
So, I decided to read the book of Jeremiah. As I read, I could not get past the first chapter because it was filled with divine revelations from the Lord.
I closed my bible and sat meditating on the words in the first chapter of the book of Jeremiah.
It is amazing that God called Jeremiah from he was a child.
God told Jeremiah that He knew him before he was formed in the womb. And, before he came out of the womb, God sanctified and ordained him to be a prophet to the nation.
My question to you is: Do you think that a true prophet of God must be called by God or can you learn to be a prophet?
Jeremiah told the Lord that he could not speak because he was just a mere child.
But the Lord reassured Jeremiah that whatever He told him he should speak and he should not be afraid of the people’s faces.
This led me to believe that Jeremiah began prophesying from he was a little boy.
Can you imagine how the people reacted to this little boy saying, “Thus said the Lord.” They must have laughed and brushed him aside.
This is exactly what we would do today.
But, Jeremiah persevered because he was confident that He was called by God to be a prophet and He was speaking the truth of God’s Word.
These are all the criteria that you need to remove your fear. You need to be confident in your relationship with God and that He is always with you.
It is easy to get frustrated and embarrassed when you see ridicule and indifference on the faces of the congregation as you speak to them.
But knowing that Holy Spirit is guiding you, will empower you to press on.
The Lord touched Jeremiah’s mouth and put His Word in His mouth.
The mouth of many of our modern-day prophets has not been touched by God. So from the same lips, you will hear blessing and cursing.
Just listen closely to their speech for proof.
See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant. (Jeremiah 1:10)
According to the instructions that God gave Jeremiah, before you can build and plant the prophet must first tear down and destroy spiritual strongholds.
However, most of our modern-day prophets only want to prophesy prosperity and fame without first seeking to identify the strongholds that are obstructing the person’s life and root them out.
Jeremiah prophesied to the people of Judah before and during their captivity in the land of Babylon.
Many prophets were in the land at that time but their lips were not touched by God so they speak what the people wanted to hear.
A wonderful (astonishing) and horrible thing is committed in the land; The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means, and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof? (Jeremiah 5:30-31)
Sadly, the Church gravitates and follows behind the prophets who declared exorbitant things to them such as in three months’ time they will receive one million dollars or in one year they will become a famous singer or their business will make billions of dollars.
I am not exaggerating, my friends. I have heard all of these amazing things prophesied to Christians in church.
They seem to love it and greedily gobbled down these words.
At the end of the service, the people readily throw hundreds of dollars at the feet of these prophets.
They do not seem to care if the prophetic words do not come to pass in their lives because they continue to follow and support these prophets.
Eventually, God will send them strong delusion that they believe lies because they refuse to receive the love of the truth that they might be saved (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12).
Thus, in the days of Jeremiah when all the other false prophets prophesied “peace peace” (Jeremiah 6:14) to the people of Judah, Jeremiah alone was proclaiming
Thus says the Lord: “Behold, a people comes from the north country, and a great nation will be raised from the farthest parts of the earth. They will lay hold on bow and spear; They are cruel and have no mercy; Their voice roars like the sea; And they ride on horses, as men of war set in array against you, O daughter of Zion.” (Jeremiah 6:22-23)
Consequently, the people did not like Jeremiah and they persecuted and plotted to kill him (Jeremiah 11:18-23; 18:18-23).
Jeremiah’s life was a reproach and daily derision because he only prophesied violence and plunder, which happened to be the true words from the heart of God, to the people who at that time were living idolatrous lifestyle (Jeremiah 20).
Even though Jeremiah tried to ignore the voice of God and held his peace, the Word of God was like a fire shut up in his bones and he had to release it.
Notwithstanding, the enemy could not harm Jeremiah because of God’s promised protection (Jeremiah 1:18-19).
These are the days of Jeremiah where the voices of the true prophets of God are snuffed out by the noise of the numerous false prophets.
Sadly, the people prefer to listen to the glorious sayings of the soothsayers, the enchanters, and the diviners who called themselves prophets while they ridicule the hard truth of God’s Word from the ‘Jeremiahs’.
God does not discriminate, so His Word will pierce, divide, reprove, correct wrongdoing and instruct in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).
But, God’s Word will also comfort, encourage, deliver, build, plant, heal and restore.
Therefore, when the Lord touches your lips, whatever Word He places in your mouth to deliver to the people don’t be afraid to speak out “Thus says the Lord.”
Because like Jeremiah you can say,
But the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten. (Jeremiah 20:11)
Related posts: Identifying the true prophets of God; The Balaam spirit.
Share with us your thoughts about the prophet of Jeremiah.
Featured image: (Horace Vernet,) Jeremiah on the ruins of Jerusalem (1844) (Wikipedia.org)
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