Psalm 105:15 “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm.”
In this little phrase from the Psalms, God makes the point that there is a sense in which all his children are prophets. Obviously not every one of us is an Elijah or a Jeremiah (praise the Lord!), but Scripture makes it clear that God’s purpose is for us to be a prophetic people. As the body of Christ, we are God’s clear incarnate word to this 21st century confused world. But what does it mean?
One aspect is that we, as the community of God’s redeemed people, by our very existence and lifestyle, bear witness to what God is doing today in the world. Our witness to Jesus by the way we live and by telling others of him is the work of “the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus” (Revelation 19:10). For many people, we are the only evidence they may see that the gospel is true and is good news – indeed great news because it tells of God’s intervention in history to rescue and redeem us for this world and the next. Eternal life for us starts now, and is not merely a matter of length, but supremely of quality; it is life of the Kingdom of God, demonstrating the ever-increasing fullness of the Spirit of God.
Sadly, many of us who claim to be Christians simply talk the talk without being willing to walk the walk. We’re still the number one in our lives. Our priorities for life are not aligned with those of the Kingdom. And therefore our credibility as witnesses is in danger of being pathetic rather than prophetic.
Is my life compelling evidence that Jesus Christ is Lord and risen from the dead? Is there anything that compromises or blurs my testimony to Jesus? Is there one thing I can do today to improve the quality of the prophetic witness of my life?
Lord, forgive me for where I’ve been more pathetic than prophetic. I choose to be the latter today, for your glory. Amen!
Micah* is 6-years-old and lives on the streets of Burundi. No child should have to live like this. With New Generation, and all our partners in Burundi, we are bringing hope to people like Micah – of all ages, classes and backgrounds, who desperately need hope this Christmas. If you’d like to support us, please consider supporting our work with a regular or a one-off gift. Thank you, and Happy Christmas!
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