A Strategic Plan

Apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers should lead in the Church. Although it’s not what you normally see in a congregation these days (because the Church has slipped so far away from its original design), the four-fold leadership team is still God’s wisdom. It’s still his plan for the Church.

And he [Christ] gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some shepherd-teachers for the equipping of the saints for the work of service (Ephesians 4:11-12; NASB/MacArthur).

God designed the four roles so that church leaders would interlock. He designed it so that they would interact. Apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers should serve together in harmony. Through them Jesus could, can, and will build his Church, but only if we align ourselves with God’s plan and support these men.

Today we’re going to look at how you can support the prophets. God’s strategy is for the success of the saints and the salvation of souls. God’s ministry design is for the good of man and the glory of God. God carries out his strategy through church leadership. These four kinds of leaders God has set among us ‘for the equipping of the saints for the work of service’ (Ephesians 4:12).

All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they (1 Corinthians 12:29; NASB)?

… having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the corner stone (Ephesians 2:20; NASB).

After the apostles, leadership role #2 in God’s Church is the prophet.

Prophecy is Essential

Before we look at the prophets themselves, let’s ask ourselves: How important should prophecy be in the Church? God says that it’s essential. Throughout all of human history, God’s people have been led by prophets. Should it be any different now in this Gospel Age? Since the seventh generation from Adam, Enoch prophesied, and in the Last Times, the Two Witnesses will prophesy.

The Old Testament was written by the prophets. Everybody knows that. But did you know that the New was also written by prophets? Acts 13:1 tells us that Paul, the man responsible for more New Testament books than any other, was a prophet. And Paul tells us, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that the very message we preach, the Gospel, was given to the Church through its prophets.

… which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it [the Gospel] has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit (Ephesians 3:5; NASB).

Yes, the Church has her prophets. Didn’t you know? Haven’t you been told? They’re the second most important leaders in the Church.

And God has appointed in the Church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues (1 Corinthians 12:28; NASB).

If the Bible says that prophets are the second most important leaders in the Church, then where are they? If we mention Peter, John, Andrew, James, Philip, Matthew, Nathanael, and Thomas you know that they are apostles. But the prophets come right after apostles on God’s lists of Church leaders, and nobody knows who they are.

Have you ever met one—a true prophet?

It seems that prophets are not given their due esteem in the Church, but is that a surprise? Very rarely in the history of Israel were prophets honored, heeded, or treated with the esteem they deserved. Jesus summed up the treatment the prophets got from the Jewish people when he said this:

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’

So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started! (Matthew 23:29-32)

Rejected Even Today

Yes, Jesus confronted the leading Jewish teachers of his day with their evil. They themselves recognized that their forefathers killed the prophets. It’s sad, but Israel rebelled against the prophets sent to it during the Old Covenant, but they didn’t stop. They killed Jesus and some of the apostles. And it goes on even today! Jewish religious leaders continue to reject the prophets sent to them under the New Covenant. That’s not my opinion. Jesus said so.

You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to Hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town…

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you… (Matthew 23:33-37)

God sent prophets to Israel long ago, and Jesus sends prophets to Israel today—but the Jews keep on killing them. They have never stopped killing those who God sends them. We ourselves have been kicked out of synagogues! The Jews of Israel today will not tolerate the presence of anyone who preaches Jesus.

… the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10; NKJV).

They Mature Among Us

Where do prophets come from? Is there a seminary somewhere where they can be trained? Is there a training program that can develop them? No. In general Christian prophets develop and mature in the midst of the Church at large.

There may be some churches where the gift is used more frequently, and there may be churches where training is offered, but in general, Christian prophets rough it. They mature by using their gift in different contexts. They grow best when they minister from church to church.

Now at this time some prophets came down from [the church in] Jerusalem to [the church in] Antioch (Acts 11:27; NASB).

You’ll know a Christian prophet because they speak on God’s behalf. They have a calling: not to say what people want to hear, but to say what God wants his people to hear. Considering that, no Christian should think lightly of prophets.

No Christian should look down upon prophetic utterances. God inspires the prophets, so hearing from them is hearing from God.

… the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets… (Revelation 22:6; NASB).

… do not despise prophetic utterances (1 Thessalonians 5:20; NASB).

Prophets should be more than welcome in any church—but it’s evident that they are not. Although God inspires the prophets, people in churches reject prophecies, turn prophets away, and close their doors to the prophetic ministry. Things never change.

I’ve heard pastors boast about how they’ve shut people out who have come to them with prophecies. Don’t be part of that trend! Learn to welcome prophecies as tough as their message may be. What if John the Apostle had come to your congregation to preach the Seven-Headed Ten-Horned Beast? Would you kick him out?

Jesus the Prophet: Muslims

Most churches have fallen into the error of thinking that prophecy is not a Christian ministry. To cure them of their error, we can remind them that Jesus himself was a prophet. Moses predicted the coming of Christ with these words:

The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you, and it will be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet will be destroyed utterly from the people (Acts 3:22-23).

Muslims often tell Christians that the Muslims believe Jesus was a prophet. They say this to gain the respect of Christians and because they know that it’s vain to argue against Jesus. But they also say it with the conviction that being a prophet is the greatest calling a man can have.

Unfortunately, the natural first response of a Christian who hears a Muslim confirm Jesus as a prophet is to say “No, Jesus wasn’t a prophet.” But he was! In this regard, the Muslims are right. Don’t end your conversations with Muslims so quickly. Use their faith in Jesus as a prophet as a springboard to deeper conversations.

Lead them to understand Jesus’ role as the Messiah, then Son of God, then Savior, Lord, and High Priest. They’ll have to come to trust the Bible and to abandon the Koran in the process. If it took the apostles time to recognize Jesus as our God [Thomas was the first to declare it a week after Jesus’ resurrection], you’ll also have to give a Muslim time to come to recognize Jesus as our God. In the meantime, don’t undo their faith in the One God. They’re right on that point!

Jesus the Prophet: Jews

When Jesus spoke with two Jewish disciples on the Emmaus road, the one named Cleopas expressed what he thought of Jesus. He said:

‘… Jesus of Nazareth… was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people’ (Luke 24:19).

And Jesus didn’t correct his disciple. Why not? Because the disciple was right. Jesus was a prophet.

Having lived in Jerusalem for two years and having visited many synagogues, I’ve never met a Jew who does not think that Jesus existed, had a prophetic ministry, and performed miracles. Most Jews think that Jesus was a very impressive man who started a new religion. In other words, they think that he was a prophet. Why not affirm that?

Jesus affirmed the faith of his early disciples in him as a prophet. Jesus is still glad to be called a prophet today. Why should you be offended by it? If he is proud of it, so should you be. Talk about his undeniable work as a Jewish prophet. Let that lead to conversations about what Jesus prophesied, taught, and did.

Know Your Lord

The Early Christian Church wasn’t afraid to affirm that Jesus was a prophet, so why are we? Jesus’ role as a prophet was a central belief of the Early Church. For them, God spoke through the prophets, and revealed his will through them. They held prophets in high esteem.

Surely, the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets (Amos 3:7).

God’s people need direction. We need guidance from God. The Church needs to know how to act. But how will we understand what God wants us to do if we don’t listen to the prophets? We simply cannot know God’s will without following the prophets he has given to us as our leaders.

How many things will God do without revealing them to the Church's prophets? None. He always sends his revelation prior to acting. The Book of Revelation is an example of that. It is a prophecy, and with it, we know exactly how the Last Times will unfold.

Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near (Revelation 1:3-4).

From the Church’s Inception

So where are the prophets today? There is a general notion in churches that prophecy is a ministry for Old Testament times. Although most Christians think that prophecy has always been an important job, few think that it is still being practiced. But prophecy is being practiced.

Prophecy is just as much a ministry for Christians under the New Covenant as it was for Jews under the Old.

Read the following New Testament passages carefully. They remind us that Christian prophets had a vital ministry when the Church started. Are the names of the six prophets mentioned in the passage familiar to you?

Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul (Acts 13:1; NASB).

As we were staying there [in Caesarea at the house of Philip the evangelist] for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea (Acts 21:10; NASB).

What of Barnabas, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen, Saul, and Agabus? You’ll recognize at least one of those names, Saul—that’s the apostle Paul! Yes, Paul was counted among the prophets in the Early Church.

A Coherent Ministry

Prophecy is not what most people think it is. It’s not a ministry reserved for eccentric hermits or misfits. It’s not a ministry of social deviants bent on upsetting communities with threats of the Day of Doom. On the contrary, it’s a very orderly ministry. A church must conduct its ministry of prophecy in an orderly way.

And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged (1 Corinthians 14:30-31).

Prophecy is a ministry for intelligent, rational, coherent people. It’s for people who like to analyze. When we minister prophecy, everyone should carefully judge the words of the prophet. Are those words truly from God?

Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said (1 Corinthians 14:29).

Prophecy is a ministry to be carried out with wisdom, knowledge, and self-control. Prophets know exactly what they are saying. They control their words, and they boldly direct their words towards (who they hope will be) receptive hearers.

… and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets (1 Corinthians 14:32; NASB).

Golden Opportunities

There are important instants in the life of the Church for us to do prophecy. The first we want to highlight is through the prayers of the elders. When church elders lay their hands on believers in a time of prayer, they are equipping God’s people. They are transmitting spiritual gifts. Paul said to Timothy:

Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery [group of elders] (1 Timothy 4:14; NASB).

With this verse we see that the elders do well to prophesy while they are actively transmitting spiritual gifts. So while they are praying for a person to receive a gift (for example) of miracles, healing, tongues, teaching, or serving—at the same time God is speaking through them with a prophetic utterance like “Thus says the Lord: You are my servant and I will strengthen you with the gift of healing that you might lay your hands on the sick and restore them. That you might touch those who have cancer to lift them out of their disease, and to call them to repentance.”

A second instant when prophecy is useful is during preaching. A sermon that’s accompanied by prophecy will encourage and strengthen a congregation during preaching. What better way to get a long message across to a listening congregation than by spicing it up with some words of prophecy?

Judas and Silas, also being prophets themselves, encouraged and strengthened the brethren with a lengthy message (Acts 15:32; NASB).

Thirdly, an important instant for prophecy to be used in the life of the Church is in home-based ministries. Prophecy is an effective tool for men or women to develop their home-based ministry. Women are encouraged to prophesy to anyone who will come to visit their home.

The deacon Phillip encouraged his daughters to have a significant ministry of prophecy, and they became famous for it. They weren't leaders in the church, but they carried out at home the same role of men who were leading in the church.

Now this man [Phillip] had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses (Acts 21:9; NASB).