ARTICLES

WEIGHING A PROPHETIC WORD

by Lyn Packer

Scripture encourages us to weigh the prophetic words we hear, whether they’re spoken over us personally or are a corporate public word.

In a public meeting Scripture tells us – “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.” (1 Cor 14:29.)

Paul, Silas and Timothy write to the Church in Thessalonica and tell them,  “Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil”. (1 Thess 5:19-22.)

These same verses give us some good advice also about weighing prophetic words given on social media platforms.

Your ability to weigh up prophecy is not based on whether you have a prophetic gift yourself or not.  Understanding God’s heart, having good Biblical knowledge, and using things like wisdom, discernment and relying on the anointing of the Holy Spirit within you to witness to what is of God (1 John 2:27) are the main considerations and are invaluable when it comes to weighing up a prophetic insight or words.

The following are some guidelines I use, both in my personal life and in ministry, to weigh prophecy. I ask if they align with these things…

• The nature and character of God as He reveals Himself in Scripture – loving, kind, merciful, faithful, steadfast, encouraging etc. And His heart for mankind – that all should know Him, His love and His forgiveness.

• Scripture and God’s revealed will for mankind as shown there – a prophetic word should not contradict Scripture in general but should be tested, particularly to see whether it is in line with the New Covenant (which is the Covenant that the Church was formed under and operates in). All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.’ (2 Tim 3:16.)

• Does the word glorify God and draw us closer to Him and Jesus? “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” (Rev 19:10.)

• Does the Prophetic Insight fall into the category of ‘Encouragement, Exhortation and Comfort? “But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort.” (1 Cor 14:3.)  Is the word redemptive, or punitive and judgemental? Does this word bring encouragement, comfort and exhortation, or does it bring discouragement and condemnation? Is there any aspect of control or manipulation in this word?

• What is likely to be the fruit of this word? Do we have a sense of peace about this word and its outcome? “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” (James 3:17, NIV.)

• Do we bear witness in our spirit that this is a word from God or do we discern a different spirit at work - the human spirit or a demonic spirit? 1 John 4:1 tells us “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” 

• Is the person submitting it trustworthy, submitted to the Lord and do they have a healthy relationship with the Body of Christ?

We need to be good stewards of the revelation God releases prophetically into the earth, and weighing a word is part of that stewardship, therefore we need to make sure that we don’t accept any prophetic word that is given without checking whether it’s truly a word from God.

My prayer is that you will be a good steward, wise in the ways of God, and I hope that this is article is a help to you as you process prophetic words.

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