PropheticReformation.com

Introducing ~ John Paul Jackson

Founder of Streams Ministries

John Paul Jackson was the first person that I heard mention the subject of Prophetic Reformation - here is an article he wrote on the subject in 1993.

John Paul (59) is a frequent visitor to the UK and the CLAN gathering in Scotland.

"Those who hope to reap a strong prophetic ministry tomorrow must sow the seeds of brokenness and character today.

A pastor once said to me: “Of all the ministries in the church, the prophetic ministry scares me the most. It can simultaneously destroy and bring life with unparalleled spiritual velocity.” How could a gift that is such a blessing, also be so destructive and cause pastors to dread its arrival in their congregations?

My answer may surprise you, since I’ve been labeled as having such a gift. After growing up in a Pentecostal denomination, as well as meeting with hundreds of pastors in various evangelical circles, combined with my own personal experiences in prophetic ministry, I come to one conclusion. The mass of evidence points accusingly at prophetic ministers rather than the church.

True, the church has not handled those of us with prophetic gifting with the greatest wisdom. However, the greater weight falls squarely on our own shoulders. Some of those with prophetic gifting have demanded authority in the church based not on today’s fruit, but on tomorrow’s anointing. In our insecurity, we have spoken our own opinions as if they were from God – and this is only the tip of the iceberg. Even so, this does not negate the possibility of a true gift being contained in an impure vessel.

It is the vessel that contaminates the gift and causes excesses so that the church cannot embrace a gift they view as infected. The thought of bringing that infection into the body and giving it authority is not a comforting thought to the church!

Prophetic ministry and its acceptance in the church are in trouble
unless there are sweeping changes. It is going to take more
than training – it is going to take total prophetic reformation.
The way that prophetic people view themselves and the church
and the way the church views the prophetic ministry must
radically change.

· Credibility
This reformation must begin within prophetic ministries themselves. As prophetic ministers, we must allow our thinking, our perspectives and our revelation to come under divine scrutiny.

We must bring “integrity” and “character” back into the prophetic ministry. Only as we do so, will we be able to distinguish between the holy and the profane.

We must establish prophetic credibility before there can be any prophetic authority. Only then can we expect pastors and people to listen, understand and take action on anything the Lord might speak through us.

If this reform doesn’t happen, there’s a grave danger the church will finally reject prophetic ministry altogether. This is not just a remote possibility; it is closer to reality than one might think.

The Pentecostal denomination I was raised in is now doing just that. How could a denomination that began with true prophetic revelation depart from its roots? Because they couldn’t reconcile the problems created by the vessel with the benefits derived from the gift.

Though sad, the greater problem involves a lack of prophetically gifted people who are willing to be accountable, and admit their immaturity in gifting and in character. Many revelatory people are allowing their entire identity to lie in their gifting. Thus, any questioning to their gift becomes a direct assault on their personal identity.

The church awaits mature, broken, prophetic individuals whose focus is on the well being of the Body of Christ rather than the well being of their gift. Until such prophetic persons come forward, the church will of necessity keep those with less integrity at arm’s length.

· Maturation
We are not suddenly gifted to be a prophet of God and stand before kings. We may be called, but maturing to become a prophet or a prophetic voice is a process that takes many years.

This idea first occurred to me while reading The Elijah Task,
by John Sanford. When I read, “It shall probably take no less
than a dozen years” to make a man (prophet) of God, I
became so angry that I threw the book across the room! I
had already engaged in so many supernatural experiences
that surely I was a “prophet of God.” That was twelve
years ago. Now I realize it may take a lifetime.

There seems to be a three-segment time line of maturation that no revelatory voice can escape. These three segments happen in various ways, yet each is a magnet that draws those prophetically gifted into its grip.

The first segment, the call, happens quickly. The third, the commissioning, is the most glorious. The second segment, training, is long and arduous. Those with revelatory gifts typically overlook this second segment. Yet there maturation is cultivated with painstaking intensity.

Even the most gifted people must wrestle with maturation. For example, Jeremiah, from the time he had his initial encounter with the Lord to the time he began to prophesy, waited fifteen years. Moses endured this process for forty years before he exercised his calling. Elisha spent years serving under Elijah. The prime example we have of maturing in both character and gifting is Samuel, a prophet, a judge, and priest of the Most High God.

· Man of Transition
Samuel came at a time when the land of Israel desperately needed a change. Samson, a man of divinely given power – but little character – had been dead many years. It was a time when brother was against brother, tribe against tribe. The judges ruled by crisis management. There was a lack of strong leadership. Everyone was doing what was right in his or her own eyes. Fathers were absent, which resulted in a lack of discipline in the family. The men of God – the prophets and priests – had idols and concubines. Temple prostitution was rampant. No wonder true visions and revelations from the Lord were scarce.

During Samuel’s rule, schools of prophets were established (see 1 Sam. 10:1-11). I believe one of the purposes for these schools was to reform the spiritual and prophetic people to a place of responsibility, accountability and integrity. Samuel, seeing what was happening around him – the chaos, vulgarity and self-centeredness – must have decided “enough!”

We need this reformation within prophetic ministry today!

Prophetic ministers – and I include myself – have historically been isolated, with little accountability, becoming laws unto ourselves. We’ve spoken our opinions as if they were from God. We’ve carelessly spoken out of our own anger and hurt. We’ve caused confusion and division in the church. We have promoted incorrect doctrine, rebellion, and isolationism all with the imprimatur: “Thus saith the Lord.”

Many of these things were done in woeful ignorance, innocence and immaturity. Unfortunately, this has cast a shadow on all prophetic ministry. Some of us in prophetic ministry have tried to do great things before we have conquered what we perceived as the “lesser” things, such as our own emotional makeup.

Prophetic people often are known more for being characters than for having character. Sadly, the church distrusts what God entrusts us with.

Oh that we could learn that, “Greater is he that rules his spirit than he who takes a city” (Prove. 16:32). Isn’t the greater part of prophetic ministry to lead others by our lives before we lead them by revelation? This is what the prophet Samuel did (1 Sam. 12: 2b-4).

Though the Lord often appeared to Samuel and spoke to him, Samuel still had to grow up before God and man (1 Sam. 3:21; 2:26). We read that Jesus grew before God and man (Luke 2:52). This concept of maturing in our gift, as well as in our character, is not new . . . just ignored. If Jesus had to grow through that process, how much more important is it for us to grow through that process?

· Character
A good character allows people to trust and give us favor. As one’s character matures, it enhances the individual’s gift. After Samuel’s time of growing in favor, God carried out two things. First, God let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground (become void). Second, the word of Samuel was revealed to all of Israel (1 Sam. 3:19; 4:1).

We as prophetic individuals often focus so much on our gifting, that we ignore the aspect of character development. Consequently, we tend to be known more for being characters than for having character. Unfortunately, the church then distrusts what God entrusts us with.

It’s time for a new generation of prophetic and revelatory people to arise. Many have stayed hidden in their closets of prayer waiting on God to give them their promised prophetic inheritance. These prayer warriors have staked all their promises on the scripture “An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning will not be blessed at the end” (Prov. 20:21). They have been waiting for their character to become equal to or exceed the level of their gifting. However, most prophetic people have been guilty of telling all they know – and even more than they know – in many instances.

Even now, the church is shouting to us, “We can’t hear you. Your actions are speaking louder than your words.” Only when we embrace the character changes the Lord is bringing our way will the church change. It will change how it receives, listens and responds to the messages from God that we may speak.

· The Essence
The essence of this reformation is this: we as prophetic people need a revelation of how the Lord values character over giftedness and brokenness over glory. That spiritual knowledge will determine every action we take and every word we speak. It will influence how we approach the pastor, the relationship we have to the church, and the way our gift is received.

The solution lies within us and our own personal reformation. It must take root in us individually before it will grow and become a corporate move that will reform prophetic ministry. I believe those who hope to have a strong prophetic ministry tomorrow will grasp this vision today.

Those who allow this reformation to shape their personal lives and ministries shall stand a chance of being one of the “Samuels” of today. The day may come when it will be said of them, “All that they prophesy comes to pass, because all that they prophesy comes from God.”

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