Prophecy is not Scripture

It is important to recognize that the prophecies of Moses that we call the Law of Moses is the measure of all other prophecy.

It is also obvious that there were many other prophets who spoke for God and were recognized for their ministry whose words were never recorded as Scripture.  Abraham was called a prophet by God Himself.  Miriam had the reputation as a prophetess beyond the song of victory that she wrote.  Samuel had words of prophecy.  It says God did not allow any of his words to fall to the ground but does not identify those words.  Saul met a group of prophets and asked them where his father’s donkeys were. They told him but it is not recorded why he thought asking them would be useful. What reputation did they have?  Meeting one of these guys would be great when I can’t find my car in the huge local mall, never mind the keys.  Then we could move to Stephen’s seven daughters who prophesied and Agabus who is only recorded as having one prophecy but who had a reputation as a prophet not just bringing encouragement but also foretelling the future.  With some thought you can add to the list.  Prophecy in and of itself is not now and never was considered Scripture even if it was accurate and met all the other requirements of valid prophecy.  There were other factors at work that caused our spiritual forefathers to esteem some prophetic revelation and place it in a unique category and compile it in books and draw them together in the canon of Scripture.

Did the prophets know they were writing Scripture? I think not.  I think they were concerned to hear correctly and record their words accurately.  Others made the decision, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, to collect their words and in some cases edit them, and record them with great care and pass them on from generation to generation.

Prophecy is a precious gift in our assemblies.  It is  important to desire it and to pay attention to it even as it creates tests for us in discernment and application.

Ken Hall c. Dec. 12, 2014 all rights reserved.

Hearing the voice of God c. Nov. 29/14

Some evangelicals choke on the idea that god speaks to people today.  Paul identifies four ways God spoke people in his day: prophecy, word of wisdom, word of knowledge, and tongues with interpretation.  In addition we see dreams, visions, trances and angelic communications informing people of God’s will.  This is true in the New Testament as well as the Old. In addition there is a kind of analysis to be performed by those who have the gift of Discernment of spirits, which also then serves as a kind of communication from God.

Some say these communications ceased when the Scriptures were written.  One writer even identifies the point in the book of Romans when this happened.  The peculiar thing is that these same writers and thinkers affirm that we are in the “last days”.  This is precisely the term Joel uses and Peter quotes from in Acts 2:17.  Joel says dreams, visions and prophecy will be a marked feature of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at that time – now these times.

The objection is that such revelations will rival Scripture.  Even Wayne Grudem, who supports modern communications from God distinguishes between OT prophecy and NT prophecy.  He supposes that in the OT the prophecy was not challenged or judged by the community as the NT community is challenged to do.  Actually the OT community was challenged in exactly the same way.  The filter given to Israel contains three elements: is the prophet speaking in the name of Yahweh; is he in accord with the revelation given to Moses; do his words come true, and have other prophets said the same thing.  This latter qualification is significant in the book of Jeremiah.  If the prophet does not meet these criteria he is to be rejected or killed. Even the gift of Discernment is active among the prophets as they see the spirits that are moving in the prophet.

In the NT the community, led by either the other prophets or the elders, is to reject the words if they do not harmonize with what the Spirit is saying to the church and in the letters of John the people are expected to be able to hear what the Spirit is saying.  In the OT and NT the people in the community are responsible to hear, discern and act for their own protection and for the community.  They are not simply to rely on accurate exegesis by the teachers, who so often disagree, but on direction from the Spirit also.

Gideon’s army

I have been thinking about Gideon’s army after watching  a dog drink.  He dipped one paw in the water and licked it off.  Then he dipped another paw in the water and licked it off. It was hard for him to keep his balance in the soft soil beside the stream.  Then he dipped his right rear paw in the water and licked it off.   Then the same with the rear left.  He did this till he was satisfied.  Then he wagged his tale and continued to scamper through the fields.

 

Many commentaries say that for a soldier to lie down and drink with his nose in the water like a dog would be dangerous and unworthy of a disciplined fighter.  Therefore, they say, these three hundred must have used their hands to bring the water to their mouths so that they could be watchful and ready to fight.  Their assumption is that those chosen must have demonstrated their superiority as warriors by their behaviour even if it makes nonsense of the phrase “they lapped like dogs”.  It indicates the implicit belief that God chooses us because of our virtues and forms another foundation for human pride. They cannot accept that God chooses the foolish things to bring to nought the things of the wise.

The text clearly says they lapped like dogs i.e. their noses were in the water.  They were chosen because of their childlike behaviour –  oblivious to danger and unskilled in war but perfectly suited to the strategies of God.

It seems that they were the most unskilled in combat and therefore willing to employ the methods God had chosen.  They were willing  to go to battle weaponless and to entrust their lives and victory to God.

Church Unity and the Holy Spirit

I grew up in an evangelical Baptist church in Toronto.  My parents encouraged me to attend but did not go themselves.  When I was in my later teens I developed a thirst for more experience of God, more fellowship with Him.  I had  several encounters with Him but wanted more.  A number of us in the youth group were longing for the same thing.

A. W. Tozer was at Avenue Road Church during this time.  We read The Root of the Righteous and The Missing Gifts and others of his writings.  Sometimes I would skip the evening service in our church and dash up to Avenue Road to hear him.   One night he spoke on the dry bones of Ezekiel.  It had such an impact on me that I felt dazed as I headed home filled with amazement and a longing for God’s presence.

Eventually the youth  group leadership team asked our pastor if we could invite Dr. Tozer to speak to the youth.  His response was “I don’t want any of those  second blessing boys in my church.”  That was my introduction to the contentious questions about the work and gifts of the Holy Spirit.

I don’t think any of us were really put off by pastor’s response.  We admired him and enjoyed his teaching.  The church was growing and people were coming to believe in the Lord Jesus.  But we continued to  be hungry for more.  As I shared this desire for more experience of God some people became quite agitated being persuaded that it is a fools errand such as I encountered around this time when I was working on construction in Edmonton.  One of the older workers told me they needed a rubber hammer and would I get one from the supply shack.  The supply manager rolled his eyes and sent me back empty handed but wiser.  However, I have never gotten past the feeling and persuasion that there is a soul-satisfying experience of God that comes through faith in Jesus and an experiential relationship with the Holy Spirit.