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Jonah 1:2-3
"Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach
against it, because its wickedness has come up
before me." But Jonah ran away from the
LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to
Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that
port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and
sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.
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August 10
Gift of Prophecy
We know Jonah as the reluctant prophet. He
was called to go to Nineveh but instead went the
other way. Jonah didn't run for fear of
how his message would be received and that the
Ninevites would shoot the messenger. He
ran because he knew the people would repent and
God wouldn't bring upon them the disaster he
felt they deserved.
We think of prophets as someone who predicts the
future but that is not what this gift is about.
A prophet is someone who speaks for God.
In the Bible it tended to be a message about
something God told them would happen but a
person can speak for God just as well today
without knowing the future.
Modern day prophets decry sin just like the
prophets of old. They can warn of judgment
to come because God has already announced
judgment on sin. Prophets are simply
proclaiming what God has already spoken in His
Word.
Some call the gift of prophecy the gift of
preaching. Indeed many preachers do fill
the position of prophet in modern times.
But just because a person stands behind the
pulpit does not necessarily make them a prophet,
nor does a person with this gift need to use it
in a teaching capacity. They can proclaim
God's word at their work or any other place they
go. |
