Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy (1Corinthians 14:1 NASB).
What manner of man is the prophet? What goes on inside his head? How does he feel? Who or what is he?
I believe Paul (in 1Cor 14:1) was talking about the gift of prophecy that every believer has the right to partake of, and it includes "building up, and encouragement, and comfort.(1 Corinthians 14:3 GWT)"
But there is another form of prophecy which takes form in the area of an "office" (Ephesians 4:11-12). The office of a prophet is more severe in introspect that the gift of prophecy. Any believer can prophesy, but a prophet takes it to the next level. A prophet has (what seems to be) uncanny revelation of Scripture. They can draw out things that other people couldn't even if given 10 times as much time. They can foretell events, or give clear direction based upon pertinent scriptures for people's lives. They are able to accurately communicate the will of God because of the intimacy they hold with Him.
The office of a prophet can bring extreme loneliness and alienation. It is a heartbreaking thing to have to speak a Word from God into someone's life when you know that Word will bring heaviness to them. Prophecy is always building up and encouraging; but a prophet sometimes has to draw lines in the sand and let people know they will be accountable in this life for decisions they make in Christ. It's not easy. Many that I know are eagerly seeking the gift of prophecy; what will happen if the Lord pours out on them the same spirit that lies within the prophet? A study on the Hebrew prophets is enough to make you think twice about crying out for the mantle of prophecy. Isaiah was ostrasized, Jeremiah was labeled 'the weeping prophet', Ezekiel was mocked and ridiculed, Hosea's wife turned to harlotry, Jonah was inwardly torn, Elijah was suicidal, Amos wouldn't even consider himself a prophet, Joel pronounced unyeilding judgement, etc etc etc, even Jesus had times of unequaled heartache and sorrow. A common thread to the prophets is merging with the mind of God, and when you think of it like that, God is extremly sorrowful about how far humankind has turned away from and rejected Him. Why wouldn't the prophets take some of that burden upon themselves? After all, they are more accurately communicating the heart and will of God than others.
....................Know what, I'm not even getting into why I wrote this post. It hurts too much. Prophets hurt. They burn. Burning isn't nice, it hurts. Sometimes God lets me in on what it feels like to move in the prophetic. It's more intense than words can describe. It consumes your thought life, it directs your emotions, it keeps you awake at night for weeks, it dictates how you interact with your environment. For me, Jeremiah said it best:
Or speak anymore in His name,"
Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
And I am weary of holding it in,
And I cannot endure it.
So, still we cry out for prophets to arise. Because who else will direct us to the will of God? Christians seem to have a terribly hard time differentiating between the voice of God and the voice of their flesh. It is worth the pain. It is worth the hurt. It leads to freedom. And we will eat the fruit thereof.
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