Last month I spoke of 'the only test', referring to the test by which we all will be tested in the fullness of time. If you have come straight to this page, by the way, you need to read last month's page first. But there is a testing process which we are expected to carry out ourselves, and that is what I am going to write about this month.
While we all need to remember the exhortation 'Judge not ... that ye be not judged', it is worth while emphasising that 'judge' in this sense means 'condemn'. We dare not stand in judgment to condemn another's motives for lots of good reasons, among which is the fact that we do not have the competence. We do not have the authority either, but mainly we dare not through ignorance. Only One can look into the heart and see all there is to be seen, all the difficulties, all the influences, all the true intentions, in the deeds and lives of others. We are even in not too good a position to judge ourselves, so let us refrain from judging others.
But we do have to test others. Yes, we have a responsibility to avoid being deceived.
Our Lord has placed all the community of His people, regardless of the human organisation we adhere to, in a brotherhood in which there are ministries: he has given ' ... some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers ... ' (Ephesians 4 v11) There are other more general terms, such as elder (presbuteros), overseer (episcopos), and steward (diakonos), while the term 'priest' is used of all believers (and only of all believers) in 1 Peter 2 v9 ' ... you are ... a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God ...'
Different organisations use different translations of the original Greek words, or sometimes transliterations, such as presbyter, but the reality of the ministries in the list from Ephesians, for church founding and building (apostleship), speaking forth the word (prophecy), proclaiming the gospel (evangelism), counselling and teaching, is what every part of the Lord's Church should experience, regardless of the terminology used.
But along with the promise of provision of ministries, there are warnings. 'At that time [the last days] many will turn away from the faith, and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.' (Matthew 24 v10-11).
It is consistent with these warnings that John writes (1 John 4 v1-3) 'Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world ... every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.' I have added a page with links to sites where assistance in this testing is offered.
So we have a situation where prophecy (literally 'speaking forth', not necessarily about the future) is part of the way God guides His people, and the warning that there will be many false prophets, and we must make every effort not to be deceived. Last month I listed the five most prevalent modern organisations, each claiming to be the sole depository of truth, and named the founding prophetic figures (three men and two women) each organisation reveres. Now I have close friends or relatives in all these organisations bar one, and admire their many fine qualities. Logically four out of five of these founding prophets must be false, and all five out of five may be false. How are we to decide? By which organisation is numerically the greatest, or the most geographically widespread? Or by some other criterion?
Let me tell you what I think about prophecy.
Its purpose is to proclaim an already established (but in danger of being forgotten) truth, or to direct action into a particular sphere, such as when Barnabas and Saul were sent off to evangelize the island of Cyprus. Read Acts 13 v1-3 and you will see the connection straight away. Prophetic insight will always bring the focus back to the Lord, '... that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow ..' (Philippians 2 v10) If a claimed prophetic ministry enhances the glory of the prophet I want none of it, but if it enhances the glory of Jesus, then I will listen intently. That is my test.
Check it out for yourself: if you hear the name of the prophet more often than the name of Jesus, then your doubts are justified. If the prophet wants to remain simply a voice directing attention to the Saviour, then listen to that voice. And draw nearer to the Saviour. If the prophet's word is true, it is Jesus' voice you are really hearing. So that is the test: if you are drawn nearer to Jesus, and sense His peace and love more completely, and enjoy a sweeter communion with Him, then praise Him for the human means that may have been used. But the true prophet wants none of your praise, nor any of your allegiance.
There is one, and only one, reliable source of information about the true Jesus, and that is from those who knew Him when he lived on this earth. The collection of their writings is called the New Testament. If any sect or denomination wants to keep you away from these writings, then they want to keep you away from the true Jesus too. If any sect or denomination wants to explain these writings to you, to provide you with the 'key' that will unlock them, please be suspicious. There is only one way to find out what the first generation of those who knew Jesus directly wrote about Him, and that is to read their writings for yourself, without human additions and commentaries. To help make this a more approachable task, I offer you a reading plan. It simply suggests a sequence for reading every word of the New Testament. The arrangement in the published editions of the New Testament is not a proposed reading sequence. The reading plan offered here is no more than an alternative - and carefully considered - sequence, which you are invited to follow. Please click the link, and you will see what I mean ...
Reading Plan
No comments:
Post a Comment