Are there modern-day prophets ? According to LDS doctrine the Mormon Church is headed by its own prophet and, in a sense, all Mormon men are prophets, at least to their families and, in cases, to their "stakes" ( local church organizations ) when serving in leadership capacities. There also is a revival, small scale but real enough, of Christian prophetism in some Bible churches and other Evangelical communities. The following article gives us a glimpse into that world. But is the article's definition of "prophet" valid, granting that there is just about universal agreement that predicting the future, while it may be part of a prophet's message, is NOT what prophecy is all about, certainly not most of the time, and at best only on special occasions. A prophet, we are told is a "truth teller." Seems to me that is an inadequate definition ; this would make some journalists prophets, some private detectives, some academics, some lawyers, even some political reformers. Not to take anything away from such people, but this isn't really prophetism. The test is whether someone provides wisdom based on new insights, wisdom that can be tested in the real world, and insights that are genuinely original --even if a prophet will just about inevitably say that his inspiration came from a spiritual source. And, of course, there can be prophetesses, like Philip's daughters and the prophetess who had a relationship with Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible, or Moses' sister, and still others. In any case, the crux of the matter is wisdom, and new truths, not simply being truthful, as important as that is. By definition , moreover, a prophet may arise where you would least expect, and not say things that you "have known to be true all along." If all a prophet did was to re-iterate known truths there would be zero need for his services. Another necessary definition is that an actual prophet will say any number of things that you did not know, even some things that, in the here and now, you may think are wrong. Consider any Biblical prophet that comes to mind, or for non-Christians or non-Jews, other religious prophets. All --at least all that matter-- have been non-conformists of one kind or another. Not off the deep end, but non-conformist in a serious sense. This is the major problem with the article, it expects institutional religion to produce and validate prophets. History teaches us that --certainly 90% of the time-- this is precisely where you will not find prophets. Billy ============================================ _NC Megachurch Pastor: Modern Day Prophets Exist, but Different Than Old Testament Ones_ (http://www.christianpost.com/news/nc-megachurch-pastor-modern-day-prophets-exist-but-different-than-old-testament-ones-71704/) Christian Post Tue, Mar. 20, 2012 Posted: 04:29 PM EDT ____________________________________ Are there modern day prophets? J.D. Greear, pastor of The Summit Church in North Carolina, believes there are, but that they are different from Old Testament prophets. In his post on the _"Between the Times" blog_ (http://betweenthetimes.com/2012/03/15/are-there-modern-day-prophets-in-the-church/) , Greear noted that prophets in the Bible did extreme things for God to make a point. But he emphasized that this doesn't necessarily mean that "their model is something everyone should adopt, nor do modern day prophets carry the same weight of authority that the Old Testament prophets held." "Old Testament prophets were revealing new messages from God; modern day prophets are merely elevating already-revealed messages to us," he writes. Regardless, he believes we can learn from what other pastors and modern-day church leaders are doing among their own congregations. "God is using them to speak to us. We must heed the message being given and ask God what we need to do with the truths they embody… we can still recognize them as an appointed messenger from God," he writes. The website _ChristianAnswers.net_ (http://www.christianpost.com/cpadm/article/ChristianAnswers.net) describes prophets as "the immediate organs of God for the communication of his mind and will to men. The great task assigned to the prophets whom God raised up among the people was 'to correct moral and religious abuses, to proclaim the great moral and religious truths which are connected with the character of God.'" Julie Ferwerda, author of the book The Perfect Fit: Piecing Together True Love, writes that based on this definition, "in over-simplistic terms, you could say a prophet is a truth teller." She explains that the gift of prophecy can take different forms such as "in dreams, special insight either in the Bible or in life situations, direction for future events, declaration of sin, and even just 'truth-telling.'" Greear cites David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Alabama, as an example of a modern day truth-teller. Platt led his church through something called "the Radical Experiment," which included dramatic budget cuts and the elimination of certain ministries to make the point that the church isn't a "social club." Platt also hosts a "Secret Church" periodically, preaching for 6 hours with almost no break. Greear writes that by doing that, Platt is making the point "that the word, not the entertainment, is the living power of the church." Another example Greear gave is Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., where Pastor Mark Dever has refused to expand out of his current church building or change locations even though they are at capacity. Greear writes, "They believe that churches are too often focused on building an audience than they are the members, and they want membership to be meaningful." He explains that this is a reminder that God is using Dever's work and Capitol Hill Baptist as a reminder that the church is not an audience. "I am very grateful for the prophets God has raised up in our Christian culture. Even if I don't apply the truth they stand for in exactly the same ways that they do, I recognize the gracious, disciplining hand of God in them,"Greear said. "God leads prophets sometimes to do things that many of us see as extreme. This doesn't mean that that they are giving a pattern for us, but God is using them to make a point." Brittany Smith ____________________________________
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