PROPHETS AND PROPHECY IN TODAY'S CHURCH
By Rev. Jim and Carolyn Murphy
Table of Contents...
PART TWO - THE PROPHET
CHAPTER 11
THE CALL OF THE PROPHET
Now that we have briefly reviewed the five offices
in the church, let us analyze the prophet's call. The first question we
must ask is, “How does one know that he or she is called to be a
prophet?” And remember, by saying one is called to be a prophet, I am
now speaking of an individual who moves in the office of the prophet,
not someone who simply occasionally operates the gift of prophecy.
The Classic Call
We have examples in both the Old Testament and the
New Testament of what I call the “classic call of the prophet.” In the
Old Testament, both Jeremiah and Isaiah had this kind of call directly
from God. Isaiah's call is set forth in Isaiah, chapter six which
begins with Isaiah having a vision of Heaven and seeing the Lord seated
on a throne. He cries out,
Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live
coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it
he touched my mouth and said,
“See, this has touched your lips;
your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
Then I heard a voice of the Lord saying, “Whom
shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
He said, “Go and tell this people:” (Is 6:5-8
NIV).
At this point the Lord began to give Isaiah the
message He wanted delivered to the people of Judah.
Thus Isaiah received his call directly from God
while having a vision. This dramatic experience certainly left Isaiah
with no doubt of his call. From that hour on Isaiah moved in the office
of the prophet.
Jeremiah had very much the same type of experience.
While we are not told whether Jeremiah had a specific vision, he leaves
no doubt that the word of God came to him:
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to
the nations.”
“Ah, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I
do not know how to speak; I am only a child.”
But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, `I am
only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I
command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and
will rescue you,” declares the Lord.
Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched
my mouth and said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth. See,
today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot
and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jer
1:4-10 NIV).
The Lord then proceeded to dialogue with Jeremiah in
conveying the first of his many messages:
“I see the branch of an almond
tree,” I replied.
The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly,
for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.”
The word of the Lord came to me
again: “What do you see?”
“I see a boiling pot tilting away from the
north,” I answered. (Jer 1:11-13 NIV).
We also have a clear prophetic call on the life of
John the Baptist. We are told that an angel of the Lord appeared to
Zechariah, the father of John, before John was conceived by Elizabeth.
The angel told Zechariah:
Zechariah also confirms John's call in the song
Zechariah sang at John' birth:
“And you, my child, will be called a prophet
of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare
the way for him . . .” (Lk 1:76 NIV).
Does our examination of these three biblical
prophets' call require us to conclude that all those called to the
office of the prophet are called in such a vivid and dramatic manner? I
believe the answer is “No.”
In fact, I believe that the kind of supernatural
call that Isaiah, Jeremiah, and John the Baptist experienced is more
the exception than the rule. From my many interviews with prophets I
believe most are called to the office without a supernatural experience
such as the ones described for Isaiah, Jeremiah, and John. I believe
the awareness of the call to the prophetic office is usually a process
which occurs over a period of time.
Obviously, from the above statements, I do not put
much credibility in such things as supernatural childhood experiences
or supernatural births as “proof” of a call of a prophet. It is the
testing of the prophetic word and the fruit of the prophet's life which
confirm or deny the true call of a prophet.
How Do You Know If You Have a Prophetic Call?
If, then, as I believe, a supernatural direct call
from God suddenly informing you that you are called to be a prophet is
not likely to happen, we must ask the question again, “How do you know
if you have a call on your life to be a prophet?”
The answer is, at least in part, and however
subjective it sounds, that the Lord will show you your call. Usually, a
recognition of the call comes from certain inner characteristics
present in one who is called, combined with the leading of the Holy
Spirit, as well as confirmation from the spiritual leaders around you.
In other words, it is usually a combination of factors which will
ultimately confirm your call.
It is my hope that, after the reader has finished reading this book, he or she will have a very good idea as to whether or not he is called to be a prophet. Indeed, as I have taught this subject in many countries, there are always at least one or two students who come up to me and exclaim, “Now I see that I have a prophetic call on my life. I am very much as you describe the prophet. No one ever explained these principles to me before. Now that I understand them, I can see that I am called to be a prophet.” Or often someone will come up to me after I teach and say, “Brother Murphy, you just described brother so-and-so (or sister so-and-so.) I can see that he is a called prophet. I just never realized it before.”