Prophet

Bold and provoking. People may be theologically knowing and spiritually ignorant. Sometimes I see the Bible as very "blunt" because many of the statements made by Jesus, the prophets, apostles and others were very, very blunt. How much "prophecies" do we really need after the Book of Revelation? The definition of prophet is this as A. W. Tozer explains it "Be assured that the prophet-preacher will not be welcomed by all those in the church pews. He is blunt and straightforward, seeking not to please people but God." In another article he wrote: "The Church today desparately needs prophets who can see where we are and give direction as to where to go; who understand current trends and discern their outcome." A prophet is a person who knows the times and what God is trying to say to the people of today's times. Prophecy is the evaluation of the present situation by knowing the past and looking into the future as the Bible describes. It is God who gives accurate evaluation, not a title of a person (i.e. Prophet). The Holy Spirit is our Prophet and we do not need "titles" but we do need to use our spiritual gifts without worrying about our own "title". A.W. Tozer said beautifully as this: Today we need prophetic preachers; not preachers of prophecy merely, but preachers with a gift of prophecy. The word of wisdom is missing. We need the gift of discernment again in our pulpits. It is not ability to predict that we need, but the anointed eye, the power of spiritual penetration and interpretation, the ability to appraise the religious scene as viewed from God’s position, and to tell us what is actually going on.