Essential to the health of the church, prophets in the fivefold ministry outlined in Ephesians 4 have a specific contribution to the church by equipping the people of God to discern the heart and will of God, and align with it. Key for people in hearing God for the first time, prophets help the church understand and experience the ongoing hearing of the voice of God as natural and normal. In this sense, they are spokespeople for God, sharing His thoughts and feelings. In fact, author J.R. Woodward, in his book ‘Creating A Missional Culture’ refers to prophets in the fivefold ministry as ‘heart revealers.’
Typically, prophets have the following traits:
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- Passionate about standing against injustice of any kind
- Compelled to help the voiceless, oppressed, and defenceless
- Imaginative and creative
- Can be vivid dreamers and visionaries
- Strong emotions and passions
- Strong intuition about whether something is from God or not
- Reflective and contemplative
- Enjoy time alone away from people
- Usually right with your gut instincts
- Sense God quickly and clearly
- Unafraid to challenge or confront wrong
- Strong ideals and principles you will fight for
A church that lacks prophets or a prophetic culture will see:
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- people not hearing or experiencing God’s voice
- a people who do not learn how to hear God’s voice themselves
- a lack of focus on spirituality, devotion, or intimacy with God
- confusion about whether things are from God, the devil, or the flesh
- a lack of discernment and insight
The heart of prophets in the fivefold ministry is that every person can know God’s heart, hear His voice, and partner with both His will and the works of His hands.
Prophets will therefore ask the following questions of a church culture they are part of:
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- How can we help people discover and embrace God’s heart for them?
- What can we do so people can hear God’s voice for themselves and those around them?
- How do we facilitate deep, authentic, spiritual encounters for people?
- Does this help us achieve the vision God has put before us?
- What is stopping us from connecting fully with God?
I have developed a FiveFold Flow Assessment for you to discover which of the fivefold expressions you are strongest in. You can find out more HERE.
This post is part of a series looking at the fivefold ministry. You can see the other articles in this series here:
