Examining Failed Prophecies, Inaccurate Discernment, Misinterpretation Of Prophetic Revelations & The Will Of God. (Part 3)

Examining Failed Prophecies, Inaccurate Discernment, Misinterpretation Of Prophetic Revelations & The Will Of God.

(Part 3)



With respect to timing in the prophetic,
it is very important to know when to speak/share a prophetic word/revelation & when not to.

It is one thing to receive a prophetic word/revelation from the Lord, and another to be released of the Lord/given utterance to speak forth the same.

In Ephesians 6:18-19, we see Paul writing to the assembly in Ephesus and admonishing them to pray with all perseverance & supplication for all saints and also for him that utterance may be given unto him, to enable him open his mouth boldly, to make known/disclose the mystery of the gospel.

This admonition unto prayer, is of course, in the consciousness/awareness of spiritual conflict, having said to them earlier: "For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against authorities, against the universal lords of this darkness, against spiritual power of wickedness in the heavenlies."(vs.12)

These dark hierarchies are set against the word of God to the hilt and do not only fight against it's reception and understanding but also against it's accurate delivery with utterance given of God. The apostle thus, in awakening the saints to the reality of this spiritual conflict, tells the assembly to pray for him also that utterance may be given unto him, to enable him open his mouth boldly & make known/disclose the mystery of the gospel.

In Colossians 4:2-4, we see the apostle give a similar admonition to the saints to pray for him & his co-labourers, that God will open to them a door of utterance to speak the mystery of Christ.

The word 'utterance' used here is the same used in Ephesians 6:19 and it is logos in the greek, meaning word, speech, communication or sayings as used in Revelation 19:9: "These are the true sayings(utterances) of God".

It's one thing to have/receive a revelation from God and another to have/receive utterance of God, to speak forth/share.

One can have a prophetic message/revelation from God & go forth to speak without receiving utterance of God.

Note that the apostle in Ephesians 6:19 did not admonish the saints to pray for him that the mystery of Christ may be revealed to him. It had been already revealed to him as earlier stated in this same epistle (See Ephesians 3:1-3).
He thus had received the revelation yet he was asking the saints to pray for him to receive utterance to speak forth & disclose the mystery.

If we rush to share/speak without receiving utterance, if we speak without being released of the Lord to do so, we can run into trouble or have a miscarriage of the prophetic, being void of the utterances/sayings of God, which comes with precision & power, and never fails from being fulfilled in it's season.

Luke 1:37 says that with God or in the vicinity of God, no word uttered by or from God is impossible or void of strength/power to be done/fulfilled.

"Para theos ou pas rhema adunateō" in the greek lexicon.

Most english translations left out the greek word "rhema" in this text, and rendered it as "with God nothing shall be impossible" making it open-ended, but the context in which the angel Gabriel speaks is the word/utterance of/from God, having brought/delivered the word from God to Mary.
He thus says to her: "with God(In the vicinity of God) no rhema(word or utterance) from God is void of power".


💢 A Time To Seal A Prophecy & A Time To Unseal/Speak.

In Mark 9:9, we see the Lord Jesus charge Peter, James & John not to share the prophetic vision of the transfiguration encounter till his resurrection.

From the account in the gospels, it was evident they had no clear understanding of what transpired then, neither did they have utterance from God to rightly explain what they encountered on the mount.

The very thing which Peter uttered in the face of the encounter as he woke up and saw Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah, shows he had no understanding of the prophetic nature of the encounter.

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And Peter answering says to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good that we should be here; and let us make three tabernacles, for thee one, and for Moses one, and for Elias one. Mark 9:5

Scripture in the next verse(6) says he said this for he knew not what he should say, for they were filled with fear.

After saying this, the response of the voice from the excellent glory came like a divine interruption and overshadowed them saying
"This is my beloved son hear ye him" and what was the first speech/commandment from the beloved son to them, as they came down from the mount of that encounter? "Tell no man the vision till the son of man is risen"(vs 9).

Both in the old and new testaments, we have examples of divine instructions given to men to shut up or seal prophetic words/visions given to them till the time appointed.

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Daniel 12:4
But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end

Rev 10:4 Darby And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write: and I heard a voice out of the heaven saying, Seal the things which the seven thunders have spoken, and write them not. 

In Rev 22:10 we see also how John was instructed not to seal the words of the prophecy of the book for the time is near. 
There is thus a time to seal and a time not to seal, a time to keep the mouth shut and a time to speak forth as instructed or compelled of God.


💢 Misinterpretation Of Prophetic Revelations & The Will Of God.

Lastly, there is the case of the misinterpretation of the will of God in the prophetic.

Some believe that if a prophecy is given and it doesn't come to pass, then whatever came to pass instead of it, must be the will of God.
There are also those who believe that whatever God allows and does not positively stop in judgment, is his 'permissive will.'  However, there is nothing like the permissive will of God.
God doesn't have different wills which could conflict or be at variance, else he would be adjudged to be double minded.

I wonder where certain preachers & christians adopted this wrong teaching of what they call 'God's permissive will' when there's no such thing in scripture.

Romans 12:2 which they cite to explain this wrong conception simply speaks of one thing...the will of God.
The writer as inspired by the Spirit used 3 adjectives to describe the character of God's will.
(1.) It is Good.
(2.) It is Acceptable.
(3.) It is Perfect.

In essence, the will of God is good, it is acceptable/well pleasing to him & it is perfect.

The writer never said there is the good will of God, the acceptable will of God & the perfect will of God. God cannot be divided in his will as having three different wills, neither should we present him as a God who has a will that is imperfect. His will is good, it is acceptable to him and it is perfect.

The word translated as 'acceptable' in Romans 12:2 which some often refer to as permissive, is the original Greek word 'euarestos' which means well pleasing, acceptable, fully agreeable.

It is the same word used in Hebrews 13:21 which reads "Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is WELLPLEASING in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen".

Here scripture shows us again the character of God's will, that it is that which is well pleasing to God, fully agreeable to him. Also in Ephesians 1:5 scripture calls it 'the good pleasure of his will'.

Even without scriptures our common knowledge of English language is enough to make us know that there's a difference between what is acceptable(well pleasing)/fully agreeable & that which is merely permitted or tolerated.

The word permissive means to allow something not necessarily what is acceptable. It is synonymous with words like tolerant, forbearing, lenient, indulging. What a man wills is what he wants/wishes or desires to be done or to have, the fact that we often bear/put up with things that are contrary to what we want/will does not make those things our will.  

The fact that God allows certain things/men to run their chosen course though they are contrary to his will/counsel does not in anyway mean that it is his 'permissive will' as many wrongly assume. He has set a day of judgment in which he will put down all intransigence and everything contrary/opposed to his will thus he does not always act sovereignly now to stop/judge whatever is contrary to his will.

King Saul was clearly not the will of God for Israel as much as having the tribe of Levites as priests over Israel was not God's will for Israel.
God's original intention for Israel was that the entire nation of Israel will be to him a kingdom of priests & a holy nation wholly under the rule & leadership of God as their king but as early as they got their deliverance & exodus from Egypt, they rebelled at Sinai - Exodus 19:1-6.

Right from Sinai God demonstrated both his judgment & mercy. Judging those that sinned at Sinai & having mercy upon the entire nation/people by not wiping them out completely.

In working towards his prophecy of the promised seed of the woman & his covenant with Abraham, God still bore & carried Israel as a nation in all their rebellion simply because he was working towards the counsel of his will & not that he merely permitted or put up with their rebellion for scripture shows clearly his often expression of displeasure, wrath & open judgments on whatever was not acceptable to him.

King Saul was never God's permissive will for there's clearly nothing like God's permissive will.
In Hosea 13:10-11 God through the prophet revealed what was his will for Israel concerning the kingdom.

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10  I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?

11  I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.

Note: It was in his anger that he gave them king Saul & in his wrath he took him away, clearly judging that which is not his will.

Scripture never said God gave them a king in his 'permissive will' as many assume rather it was in his anger he gave them a king clearly demonstrating right from the onset that it was not his will.
In giving them Saul, God simply gave Israel up to their own lusts.
In Acts 7 Stephen summarised that entire history of Israel's rebellion & resistance of the Spirit of God & pointed out the fact that God often gave them up to their own lusts & ways(Acts 7:41-42)