To Listen or not to Listen to Prophecy…That’s the Question (Part 1)

A friend sent me an email with a YouTube video link by an evangelist who talked about the New World Order, 6000 FEMA camps in America, pastors pledging allegiance to the New World Order, railroad cars moving Christians to camps, and countless other statements.

I listened to three or four minutes of the video and turned it off.

Today, I gritted my teeth and listened to the full message. Did I feel any better after listening to the twenty-six minute message? No, absolutely not. It still felt like ice water dripping on my inner spirit.

There is no doubt the evangelist has a prophetic gifting, sincerely loves the Lord, and has a little bit of truth mixed into her message. But just because a person talks about dreams, visions, prophetic words, has a few revelations, and inserts some scriptures along the way, are we supposed to accept her message as an inspired word of the Lord?

So let two or three prophets speak [those inspired to preach or teach], while the rest pay attention and weigh and discern what is said. (1 Corinthians 14:29 AMP)

It is not just the responsibility of leaders to discern whether prophecies are accurate words of the Lord. We all are called to do this. Why? Because the Holy Spirit dwells in each of us and does not just fall upon prophets, kings, and priests as in the Old Testament.

Okay, let’s be honest with ourselves.

Most of our spiritual ears have been dulled by the world around us, by our teachings, by our dependence on leaders, by television and movies, and by countless other things. Our spiritual discernment is probably at its lowest level right now.

So, what can we do to sharpen our spiritual discernment?

(Continued in Part 2)