Posted by: pastorapbell | May 9, 2011

as our God execute judgement on our behalf since we don’t know what to do!

As a prophet of God one of the main thing one need to watch out for are those who want to kill your gifting and stunt your growth. These are people who operate under the spirit of Jezebel. Jezebel was the main opponent to Elijah so much so that because of her he nearly had a nervous breakdown. However the way to defeat the Jezebelic spirit is to confront it. Running and hiding is not an option. The spirit of Jezebel will try to mock what you do and will try to divert the plan of God for your life. The mocking spirit was also apparent in the life of Elisha, he confronted it and God acted against the mockers (2kings 2:23). Today the mocking spirit will rise up against you to try to divert you from the plans that God has for you. Like Elijah and Elisha after him, conform that mocking spirit and pray to God the father to deal with it. The prophets of Baal who ate at Jezebel’s table were humiliated and destroyed. The boys who mocked Elisha were destroyed. Those who mocked you will also be destroyed in Jesus’ name.

We are in a season of intense warfare now and we need to be prepared for the onslaught of the enemy. As we open our spiritual eyes we will see the mockers, the liars and the haters who are sent to cause confusion in our lives. Be assured that they will not succeed as the Holy Spirit alerts us and goes ahead of us to subdue all the mockers.

Read 2Chronicles 20:12

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Posted by: pastorapbell | May 8, 2011

as we associate with those who can minister into the areas where we are lacking

Every prophet must remember that their gifting is not their own benefit but for those they serve. From the biblical characters we have been studying, we see that the benefits of association far outweigh those of working in isolation. Once Elisha took the mantle from Elijah he gathered to himself people who were teachable and who could develop their gifting to serve their respective communities. However being a part of the company of prophets does not exempt you from poor decision making. Essentially, having the gift in one area of your life does not cover all the bases. One of Elisha’s charges had this problem.  He ran up a huge debt for his family and then he died, possibly from his own efforts of trying to make ends meet (2Kings 4:1). You can be successful in one area of your life but a total failure in another.  As the leader of the company of prophets, it was to Elisha that the prophet’s widow went. When she met up with Elisha she held nothing back. She told him everything because of the threat of her children being taken and sold into slavery. The miracle of the oil that seems to be the focus of the story is the result of the prophetic word not the point that the redactor is making. Getting into unmanageable debt is a problem for everyone, dealing with debt is a serious problem today particularly in the current financial climate. However, as you associate with the Holy Spirit and a company of people who have the mind of God the oil of gladness in our lives will flow continuously and give us the necessary tools to manage the areas of our lives where we have lack. Read 2Kings 4:1-7.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | May 6, 2011

as we make the gift subject to us rather than define who we are!

Prophets, Priests and Kings are subject to God’s laws, no one is exempt. Often an experienced operator can rely on their experience and forget about the grace of God. This is when pride and the other vices associated with pride raises its head. To develop and hone the prophetic anointing the individual must spend copious time in prayer, fasting and careful study of the word. However there must be a mentor or someone to challenge our perception. Since someone with the prophetic anointing can easily become puffed up and arrogant. Elijah modelled for us the downside of challenging the unholy alliance (1Kings 19). As we expose ourselves more and more to God so we also expose ourselves more and more the attack from demonic  forces. The prophet must be one who seeks out and reveal the plans of the enemy to God for him to destroy them. Because we have authority on the Earth we have a say in who operates here. And so as followers of Jesus who live in the kingdom of light, we must dispel the darkness so that the light of the gospel may come to all. A skewed worldview will cause someone with the prophetic anointing to subvert God’s plan for a particular location. Consider Daniel and how he operated. He was a prophet of his time, and although he was in exile he did not defile himself or compromise his understanding of who God is, like many of his contemporaries. He took the hard decision to listen to God and reveal what he said with a spirit of humility. Today all those with the gift must remember that it is for the benefit of others and not a trophy to display. Read Daniel 2 and then pray like Daniel.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | May 5, 2011

as we test our associations

As we develop our prophetic gifting we will be faced with others who have been in the business a long time and supposedly know what to do in all and every circumstances. These people who have heard from God in the past have become fat and fastidious and typically rely on the exploits of the past. The mandate for us today is to hear our own word and fulfil our own vision. When God puts something in your heart, know that it is God and keep in step with his Spirit. There was a young prophet in scripture whom God used to speak to king Jeroboam about setting himself up as priest and making unholy offerings on the altar before God and the nation. The unnamed prophet came at the very moment he was about to offer up his sacrifice (1Kingd 13:1). The prophet discharged the word from the Lord about a future king (Josiah) who would be born some three hundred years later and who would remove those who defiled the name of the Lord from his presence. On hearing the news, the king stretched out his hand and declared that he should be seized. However, because it was God who spoke to the prophet, the king could not retract the hand and asked the man of God to pray for him. After the hand was restored the king offered to reward the prophet. The Lord spoke to him and told him not to eat or drink from anyone but to return to Judah (12:10). On his way back an old prophet was told about the prophetic word that he delivered and went in search for him. When he caught up with him he invited him back to his place for a meal and to hear all what God had done. The young prophet told him that he was mandated to go straight back to Judah by God.  The old prophet told him that an angel appeared to him and said it was alright to return with him, which was a blatant lie. After eating and drinking at the older prophet’s home, the Lord spoke through the same older prophet to tell the man of God that because of his disobedience his life was required of him. His destiny was cut short because he equated age with integrity. Today remember this, when God speaks to you, if you are in doubt go back to him again and again, and then do as he says. Read the full story in 1 Kings 13:1-25.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | May 4, 2011

as we locate another principle of association

After receiving the mantle from Elijah, Elisha’s propensity to perform miracles not only increased it was also very visible. He was committed to walking in Elijah’s footsteps so much so that he relinquished his past employment and made up his mind to follow the Lord whatever the outcome would be. He was now the successor of Elijah and the mouth-piece for God in the locality. Elisha lived under an ‘open heaven’. This is a place where the membrane between Earth and Heaven is so thin that the weight of God’s glory can be felt and experienced and also angelic activity is a common everyday occurrence. If a prophet of God is living in this vicinity, then speaking evil about them can be as calamitous as touching them. This was the case in our text 2kings 2:23-25: as he went from Bethel on route to Mount Carmel. He was confronted by 42 small boys who didn’t know who he was nor did they understand the anointing on his life. They proceeded to tease him and call him names, they were very particular about his baldness. He cursed them in the name of the Lord then two bears mauled them. Although this is a particularly gruesome example, it is there in the bible to show us that when we are ignorant of the anointing on an individual’s life, leave them and their destiny to God. The word from the prophet can cause blessings or curses to come upon those in his circle of influence. The open heaven scenario determines that the place where the prophet lives is a thin place. It is also a place of miracles and angelic activity. Today if we want to see and experience the power and glory of God, let us live at one of these thin places under an open heaven. Read Psalm 27:1-4.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | May 3, 2011

as we investigate the principles of association

When Elisha received the mantle from Elijah the rest of the prophetic company knew this. They recognised that there was something different about Elisha. Having been in the company of the great man the anointing and the double portion was now resting on him. Probably Elisha did not feel any different from he did the day before, however his colleagues recognised the anointing on his life and declared “the spirit of Elijah rest on Elisha” 2kings 2:15.  Our associations dictate the anointing that rests on us. We may not be able to recognise it but others will. We are reminded that bad company corrupts good manners (1Cor 15:33). So today let us be very careful who we associate with and seek God before taking on the mantle of others.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | April 28, 2011

as we earth our gifts in the soil of integrity, honesty and trustworthyness

“If I have faith so that I can move a mountain and have not love I am like a tinkling cymbal.” Paul the Apostle A.D. 50’s ish

The importance of integrity in cannot be overemphasised for one who exhibits the prophetic anointing. Honesty, Integrity and trust are the hallmarks of a person who has the gift of a prophet and who discharges that gift with sensitivity and love. It is one thing to discharge a prophetic word and another to be there to mop up any fall-out that follows. Like many of the OT prophets the delivery of the word that have the power to give life and to exact death must be done with sensitivity. Nathan gave King David the word about his wrong doing as a story about a man who, although he had many sheep took the only sheep that a poorer neighbour of his had. When David realised that the story was really about him, he repented and wrote psalm 51. The prophet must be trustworthy. That is, they must be people whose words are true and are laden with integrity. The idea is not to be a portent of bad news but to deliver messages that will bring people back to the father, after all this is at the heart of the father that his creation returns to the protection of his glory. Elisha followed Elijah relentlessly until he received his cloak/mantle/covering and was able to become a prophet of integrity. After delivering what seemed to be a ridiculous word to captain Naaman he refused his goods and money. His trainee however had no such integrity and took the goods and money offered by the captain. Elisha saw in the spirit what took place and prophesied that his servant and his descendants would suffer from the disease of leprosy that captain Naaman was healed of. Honesty, integrity and trust are traits that should be imbedded in all aspiring prophets.  Read 2Kings 5:19-27.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | April 27, 2011

as we hone the prophetic voice and get ready for the shifting!!

Having described the roles and responsibilities of the prophet we must now decide if we are called to this office. Once we realise that we have the gift and calling to be a prophetic voice to our community, there is one salient thing that we must develop, and that is ‘Character’.  Having the gift is one thing, knowing how to use is for the advancement of God’s kingdom and not our own device is another.  Currently there are many gifted people around who are aware of what God is doing at this particular time in history. However, like the prophets who were guests at Jezebel’s table, they are prophesying for reward.  I know that there are those who are prepared to speak out against the god of this world and against his devises and pervasive push into the heart of the church of Jesus. Today there is a shifting occurring in the spiritual realm, in that across the world the body of Christ recognises that the battle will not be won by preaching and motivation, but by prayer, fasting and above all love. If you have a desire to see God’s kingdom come and his will be done in your locality, then you must set the tone. Repent, confess your faults and forgive those who have hurt you and those you have duped. Fast and pray and above all exhibited the love of Jesus to all to bring about restoration, reconciliation and healing. I want to see the glory of God manifested in my locality and so I must forgive those who have hurt me, repent for keeping bitterness in my heart about them, honour and bless them and pray for total healing and reconciliation.

The prophetic voice must come from a position of humility, but let it be known that this humility is more powerful than a two edged sword as it pierces the very conscience of those who encounter it.

Read 2kings 2:1-13.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | April 25, 2011

as we challenge modern day prophets to speak out

As the kings of Israel and Judah moved away from the precepts laid down by the Lord, their propensity to worship other gods and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord increased. Our God is merciful and gives people enough chances to redeem themselves and return to him. However it takes strength and courage not to go with the flow and to ride against the tide of ‘modernity’. As people become more and more modern their need for an invisible God diminishes, even more so as they surround themselves with things. The job of the prophet is to alert the leaders in the nation to the facts that although God is invisible he is still watching everything we do and he is keeping a record of all of our actions, be they good or bad. The prophet then must be someone who is bold, focussed and totally committed. A prophet who is not prepared to challenge the status quo is not worth listening to. A prophet who can easily be bought is also not worth listening to. To operate in the prophetic, the individual must be totally committed to speak as they are prompted by the Holy Spirit. Our subject this month, Elijah was prepared to challenge the most powerful man in the land to let him understand that ultimately God is sovereign. It is he who promotes and demotes. It is he who set the length of our days. He is outside time, beyond our comprehension and can turn our circumstances around in the blink of an eye. This is the God that David the second king of Israel was undignified before. This is the same God who gave Solomon supernatural wisdom in Art, Science, Literature and Theology. However Solomon dabbled with alternative worship and set the tone for the departure for his successors. The fact that members of current royal families operate in ways that pleases themselves rather than the king of heaven is not surprising. So what do we need today?  As it was in the days of David and more so in the days of the evil Ahab we need the prophetic voices to declare the word of the Lord to them. “Repent for the kingdom of God and his Christ is here” and everyone is required to act especially the monarchy that set the tone for the nation.  As we celebrate the royal wedding, let us declare that wedding is an intuition from God, and that it should be between a man and a woman! Be a part of the restoration process, do the right thing. Read Colossians 1:15-23.

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Posted by: pastorapbell | April 23, 2011

as we seek to understand the purpose of the prophetic anointing!

The purpose of the king is to bring order and sovereignty to a location. So when a king was ruling over a particular area he exercised dominion there [his domain], essentially what he says is law and anyone acting outside of that was subject to whatever punishment he thought fit. The role of the prophet is to bring the will of the eternal king, Yahweh, to the attention of mere mortals. However, the prophetic will change the destiny of individuals and or nations. Can the modern day prophet still change the destiny of a king or a nation today? Are there people whom God has appointed to speak on his behalf in our day? Do you have a prophetic anointing on your life and if so how are you using it?

In Elijah’s day there were many prophets, but the majority of them were eating at Jezebel’s table and therefore were unable to challenge the very people who were violating the purposes of God. Prophets who compromise cannot see or hear what God is saying and therefore will speak according to their paymaster. This was the case with those who ate with Jezebel and that is the case today. Rather than speaking out about actions and behaviour that violate God’s word the prophets keep silent for political expediency.  Today, as we celebrate the Passover, a time when Lamb of God was slain for the redemption of humanity, let us develop our prophetic anointing so that we can speak to those things, behaviours and actions which are causing people to stumble and let us be carriers of the fire of God to bring transformation and hope to our communities. And like Elijah, let us challenge all those who eat at Jezebel’s table in our on-going spiritual battle. Read 1kings 18:17-19.

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