A little lesson, the prophetic.
And the question, “Where are the Agabus’s of God?Â
Our current view of the prophetic is that it exists to bless others and titillate spiritual emotions. Calling out someone’s address, friend’s name or upcoming trips takes precedence over a warning or correction. However, looking closely at the New Testament’s prophetic, it exists almost exclusively to direct, instruct, and correct believers. Remember those three things next time you start reading Acts. Those are the things I’ve been told my whole life not to do with the prophetic.
Throughout the Old Testament, God used prophets to warn the people of their actions and the results. There was hardly a more thankless or dangerous job than the prophet. It is often met with very unceremonious ends. Remember Jesus’s rebuke of the Pharisees in Luke 11:47? “Woe to you because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them.”
The Old Testament prophets were not the most famous people in town. Jews didn’t flock to hear what they had to say. They often brought very “hard truths” for the people to attend. The prophets brought warnings for people to listen to and repent.
In the New Testament, two recognizable shifts occur in the prophetic. There are still directions, corrections, and instructions, but they seem almost exclusively to occur within the community context. The prophets are now a part of a local body of believers. They are not influential figures, looked upon by others, often in a fearful sense. From Ananias to Lucius, the prophets were brethren in the church, known by others. But more startling to the prophetic itself is the shift that the local community should judge the prophetic (1 Cor. 14:29, 1 John 4:1, 2 Tim. 3:16-17, 1 Cor. 6:2-3, and 1 Cor. 14:4). Words given to the community of believers must lineup with the character of Jesus and the Word of God.
Prophets in the New Testament were still there to warn, teach, and correct. The brothers at Tyre warned Paul not to go to Jerusalem. When Paul arrived at Caesarea, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea, took Paul’s girdle and used it to tie his own hands and feet together, and said, “The Holy Spirit says this: the man to whom this girdle belongs will be bound like this by the Jews in Jerusalem and handed over to the Gentiles!”
This same Agabus warned that a severe famine would spread throughout the Roman world. And there were now women who prophesied, like the four daughters of Philip. Prophesy is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and is designed to edify the body of Christ. Prophecy was utilized in Rome, Corinth, Ephesus, and Thessalonica churches.
Oh, and tradition says that Agabus went to many countries, teaching and converting many. This moved the Jews of Jerusalem to arrest him, and they tortured him by beating him severely and putting a rope around his neck. He was dragged outside the city and stoned to death. He was martyred at Antioch.
Where are the prophets today who will speak the hard truth about our culture and the church? Who will tell the hard reality, regardless of the personal consequences? Remember Samuel talking to Eli and Nathan to David? Most prophets today speak in a manner that best suits themselves rather than in the Christian community’s best interest. Where are those who discern the truth of God and speak up for it?
Why are these voices essentially nonexistent? Because there is a price to pay. Take a stand on any number of issues, and you will be shunned, marginalized, discounted, and labeled—quickly. Choose a label, any label: old-fashioned, out of touch with modern culture, right-wing white guy, homophobic, bigot, bla, bla, bla, bla, bla. You will be discredited.
The majority of prophets (?) today use their influence for personal fundraising, speaking opportunities (for a fee), conference after conference (gotta sell those books), podcasts (for a fee), money, money, money. These conferences are for Christian superstar entertainers. When is enough enough? Does this scripture resonate with you as it does with me?
Portions of 2 Timothy 3: 1-7
“But you need to be aware that in the final days the culture of society will be fierce. People will be self-centered lovers of themselves and obsessed with money. They will boast of great things as they strut in their arrogant pride. They worm their way into the hearts of the vulnerable. They are always learning but never discover the revelation-knowledge of truth.”
It seems that three pervading tendencies quiet the voices of the New Testament prophet today. The voice of correction, warning, and direction.
1) The trend (sin) of being more concerned about drawing positive attention to oneself, particularly in social media. How is social media connected to a local Christian community?
2) The tendency (sin) of being “politically” correct.
3) Ignoring the apparent warning signs of people’s behavior.
I believe these sins answer the question, “Why is there no Agabus among us?”