Prophets

Last night at Bible study, we have been studying Deuteronomy. We have spent the last 20 weeks focusing on the Torah. These first five books of the bible were as important to Jesus and the disciples as are the Gospels for modern Christians. Our study group felt that it was important to have a better understanding of these books and how they can inform us today. Studying Leviticus was interesting. We are now beginning to look at the purported last words of Moses.
One part of the lesson for last night discussed how to know legitimate prophets from those who are false prophets. We have encountered in other studies an equal concern about false apostles or prophets who will lead people astray. We find Jesus warning that there will be false prophets who will preach in his name, Paul also warns people about those who lead people away from the basic tenets of the early church, and certainly we find the greatest warning in Revelation. The concern is how are we to discern who is a prophet and who is false. In our discussion, we felt it would be great if there were some sort of checklist that one could have that would help us make that decision.
From the Jewish Study Bible, Deuteronomy 13:2-4 states, "If there appears among you a prophet or a dream-diviner and he gives you a sign or a portent, saying 'Let us follow and worship another god--whom you have not experienced--even if the sign or portent that he named comes true, do not heed the words of that prophet or that dream diviner. For the Lord your God is testing you to see whether you really love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul." As we were discussing this, we began to look at what criteria we would use to determine whether one is speaking the word of God or just wanting to advance some personal agenda or idolatry. We agreed that a prophet is one who speaks for God. My old testament professor Dr. Washington often stated that a prophet was not a fortune teller but forth telling of God.
We in our discussion began to look at the number of people who purport to be prophets speaking for God in our world today. Some seem to be more concerned about exalting themselves than exalting Jesus or God. So one criteria would be is the prophet trying to sell their latest book or service for their own profit. Another criteria would be is what are they saying compatible to scripture and especially to the Gospels. If they seem to be preaching hate, division, exclusion, then we might question whether or not they are indeed prophets. The gospel of Jesus Christ speaks of love, accountability, and service.
As we were discussing this, we felt that as difficult as it can be to discern those who truly speak the word of God it is important that we continue to reflect on that which others speak and to be able to compare the words spoken to God's written word. For the world today continues to have both prophets and false prophets.