If we once get above our Bibles, and cease making the written Word of
God our sole rule both as to faith and practice, we shall soon lie open
to all manner of delusion, and be in great danger of making ship wreck
of faith and good conscience. Our blessed Lord though He had the
Spirit of God without measure, yet always was governed by, and
fought the devil with, "It is written". (George Whitefield - 1715-1764)
2P. 1:16-21 - For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
God's "prophetic vision" for revival in the Church has a solid footing in
the Word of God. Let's look at it together. Let's rediscover God's "prophetic vision" for 21st. Century
The terminology "Prophetic Vision" has become quite popular in Western Christendom. However, when you get right down to the nuts and bolts of it it's simply another way of saying "the promises of God". Prophetic vision is not by any stretch of the imagination, a new concept. It's as old as God Himself. Why am I saying it this way? I'm doing so in hopes that any fears about the "prophetic realm" will be dispelled. For example God's "prophetic vision" for the nation of Israel was to bring them "out of" Egypt and "into" Canaan Land. Once the prophetic vision was released to Israel through Moses it then became the promise of God. It then became as sure as God Himself. It became God's Word and was "forever settled in heaven". Ps. 119:89- Forever, O LORD, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.
The truth expressed in the very next verse is not without significance. Ps.119:90 - Your faithfulness endures to all generations. Once God's Word is released it is backed up from generation to generation by God's faithfulness. God will literally move heaven and earth in order to remain faithful to His "prophetic vision", His promises!
Understanding God's Prophetic Principle:
Isa. 55:9 reveals a couple of things about the LORD that can go along way to helping us not to be too surprised with the fact that God is and does things quite different that what humanity may be used to. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Understanding how God operates in the "prophetic" is helpful in enabling us to participate in what God is purposing to do in our generation. There's no doubt that if the first generation of "Exodus Israelites" had understood and embraced how God worked they would have entered the Promised Land, seen God destroy their enemies and enjoyed the blessings of God. Instead they balked in unbelief and spent the next forty years wondering in the wilderness of doubt, fear and unbelief.
An in-depth look at Rom 4:17 reveals to us the "prophetic principle" that gives foundational faith in the "prophetic vision" of God. The Amplified version helps give a clear understanding "God's ways" as it pertains to His promises.
"(God) … Who gives life to the dead and speaks of the nonexistent things that [He has foretold and promised] as if they [already] existed. [Gen. 17:5.]"
When God introduces His "prophetic vision" He calls it done before there's any actual, material evidence. For example in Gen. 17:5 God changes Abram's name to Abraham. Gen 17:5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. God called it done. He called Abram Abraham, the father of many nations long before Abraham had any children. It would be another twenty-five years before Isaac, through whom the Abrahamic covenant would be passed on to.
Another good example of God's "prophetic principle" is seen through the "prophetic vision" He released to Israel in Ex.6
Ex. 6:2-8 - God spoke to Moses and said to him, "I am the LORD. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. 6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, 'I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.'"
Reading through the exodus story it becomes quite clear that in the heart and mind of God Israel's exodus from Egypt and their possession of Canaan Land was a done deal. Before Israel's exodus had even begun God envisioned them in the Promised Land. God calls things done before they are materialized here on earth. It's through faith that we are able to see in our hearts and minds the things God sees, the things God has promised. Faith is rooted and solidly anchored in God's Word, in His promises. Faith does not require physical evidence of the promise, yet believes it's done just as God has said. This is the faith Abraham experienced. Rom 4:19-21 - He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. 20 No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
Now let's bring the "prophetic principle" into the here and now, into our "todays" of twenty-first century Christianity. Let's see how this principle applies to our generation, to our life and for revival for Canada. Do we need proof of revival before it becomes our "prophetic vision"? Do we need signs before we believe in such a way as to effect how we personally choose to live? 2Cor. 5:7 - for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Faith only finds its anchor in the Word of God. Faith will not trust in circumstances and situations. It refuses to rest in feelings or emotionalism. From 2 Peter chapter one we discover the importance the Apostle Peter put on Scriptures. He called them "more sure"! To him, the Word of God was more sure than even his own personal experiences.
2P. 1:16-21 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
This being the case we must turn our attention to God's Word for
today's "prophetic vision" regarding revival in the Church.
