If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established – Isaiah 7:19a

Isaiah was an Old Testament prophet; his mission was to be God’s messenger. As a prophet, he was to confront, exhort, and warn the people of God’s judgment. Because of this confrontation and the continuing tendency of people to disobey God, true prophets usually were not very popular.

Isaiah’s warning of God’s judgment made him unpopular with the people. The prophet was sent to the people who professed to be Christians; they weren’t sent to the nonbeliever.  If you read the Bible, every time a Prophet was sent, he was sent to those who were professing to be God’s people. A true prophet of God doesn’t come with a message of materialistic prosperity.

God’s desire is for His people to prosper in every area of their lives, but His main desire is for us to prosper in our souls and spirit. Preaching the gospel is not about materialistic gain but spiritual gain. It would be sad to prosper in worldly goods, and our souls are impoverished.

Earthly possessions can’t be taken with us when our spirit departs from our body, but our body, soul, and spirit will determine whether or not we will enter heaven (And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly, and I pray God your whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ – 1st Thessalonians 5:23).

The office of a prophet hasn’t diminished (And He gave some apostles; and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting (equipping) of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ – Ephesians 4:11-12).  The prophet of the Old and New Testaments, as well as today’s prophets, don’t come with a prosperity message but to confront sin, exhort meaning to compel the people to have a closer relationship with God, to advise, and give them direction and instructions for the body of Christ.

Prophets with messages of homes, cars, spouses, money, and materialistic messages haven’t been sent by God. The prophecy is by their own spirit and Satan to get the people’s focus off of God’s instructions and to focus on things that don’t bring about spiritual growth or commitment.

Nowhere in the Bible do you read about prophets coming with a message that God is giving people money, and so forth. God’s concern is about His people’s spirituality that will bring them to heaven or cause them to go to hell, and in either case, we will not need our earthly possessions.

Jesus went to build a kingdom for the people of God (In my Father’s house are many mansions (dwellings): if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you  John 14:2). If we reject God’s instructions and enter hell, the spirit will be in torment (Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched – Mark 9:44). This is why the office of the Prophet is to confront, exhort and warn the people of God’s judgment to keep them from going into a place of torment.

The prophet comes to exhort the people to continue in the faith; he or she receives instructions from God and gives them to the people. Sometimes when saints are weary, God will send a message through the prophet to encourage them and give the message God has for them.

The prophet doesn’t have lines for the people to stand in to give them a word, and for them to supposedly get the word, it will cost them; God doesn’t charge for His Word or His blessings. Every spiritual office functions differently, and it is without cost to the people!

Prophets of Satan will influence the people to serve false gods (If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder. And the sign or the wonder come pass whereof he spake unto, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve the; thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams; for the Lord your, God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul – Deuteronomy 13:1-3).  False prophets will have one seeking fame and fortune, education, husbands and wives, homes, and cars. There is n nothing wrong with having any of these things, but when you seek them more than you seek God, you have made them your god.

They will even go as far as having one seeking their ministry rather than seeking the God of the ministry. False prophets have been around for thousands of years and have not stopped coming. As a matter of fact, they are more on the rise than before because the goal of Satan is to influence as many as he can to turn from God.

He’s aware that Jesus will be returning soon, and he’s sending his prophets and ministers to enslave Christians who don’t have a relationship with God and those that don’t know the Scriptures or the character of God.

Be careful who you’re following and what you allow in your heart and spirit. Take time and pray, read and study the Bible. Get in a relationship with the God you say you’re serving.  Relationship with Him is to know Him; to know Him is to know His Word. He is His Word, and His Word is Him.

Beware of false prophets and ministers who want to make you feel good but don’t prepare you for the coming of the Lord or death!