I wanted to address an issue that I believe is overlooked in much of the church today. The issue of false prophets. I’m not talking about Joel Osteen or Kenneth Copeland. I’m talking about false prophets that are not as easily identified as those in Charismania or in the common cults such as the Watchtower Society, Mormon church, or Roman church.
A false prophet is a person who speaks for the Lord or from the Lord and speaks falsely. The person who says God has said something but God didn’t speak. This person is defined as a false prophet and according to Scripture they are not to be listened to.
“When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.” (Deuteronomy 18:22)
I attend a Baptist church and the issue of people speaking for the Lord and then not following through is out of hand. I attended one particular church where over several years half a dozen people stood in front of the church claiming God had called them to pastor or be missionaries. None of those men followed through. One was even put into the office of a deacon after the fact.
They stood up in the assembly of the saints and said God had called them to something that they never acted on. This tells me God didn’t call them or they walked away from the call. If they walked away from the call there should be some concern. We should think twice before giving them any duties within the church.
If God didn’t call them then there needs to be an acknowledgement before the church. If they claimed God spoke publicly they should confess their error publicly. I attended one particular church where a man claimed to be called to preach. After a year he decided he was wrong and in a strong integrity move he went back to the church to confess it.
I can’t tell you how many church planters have come through saying God called them to a city only to try for several years then decide it’s not working and leave. If God called you there who are you to decide it isn’t working? Missionaries in the old days would labor sometimes 7 or 8 years without a single convert. They pressed on because God had called them. Today we have such a results based almost business like model of ministry that a person really feels they need to produce results or quit.
I suppose to sum the point up we need to be careful when saying God has spoken to us. To say God called me or God led me should carry a lot of weight and not be phrases we just throw out lightly. Churches need to hold members accountable to fulfill what they claim God has called them to and address the issue when they don’t act on the claim.
The Gospel Beacon 