C.B. Peter Morgan, Contributor
Morgan
Since the inauguration of the new Prime Minister of Jamaica on March 30 of this year, the Church has become as topical an issue as crime and violence. The most probable reason for this is the fascination of the people with the public prognostications of the Church's prophets which, surprisingly to many, have come to pass.
The question that has arisen among Church and political leaders within the nation is, is there a valid role for the biblical prophet in the nation today?
God and His People
In the Old Testament God's order for the administration of His people in the nation came through three public offices: kings, priests and prophets. All three were called the servants of God. They were recognised as intermediaries between God and man to ensure proper stewardship of God's earth and the world in which we live. (See Deut.17:14-20; 18:1-22.)
Kings were the executives ruling in the affairs of men to ensure the protection of the judicial rights of every citizen. They also ensured the availability and proper administration of the economic resources of the nation.
In our parliamentary democracy today, the Prime Minister is the executive leader, the primus inter pares (first among her colleagues). As elected representatives of the people, the Prime Minister and her colleagues bear the collective responsibility to ensure the righteous governance of the people, according to the law and the precepts of God.
Leaders of the nation are first servants of God before they can serve the people. To her credit, our Prime Minister has come to grips with this, as did ancient King Solomon who stated, "When the righteous rule, the people rejoice. When the wicked rule, the people mourn."
Priests were the representatives interceding on behalf of the people before God, making reconciliatory atonement for the sins of the nation. They provided pastoral care for the people according to the law/word of God.
Today, pastors and priests must intentionally shape the minds of their people to live with integrity according to the biblical/moral ethic. They must influence their hearts towards an unswerving devotion to God. Equally, within their local churches, they must develop leaders with a sense of stewardship for their environment and corporate responsibility for their fellowmen.
The Establishment
of the Prophet
Prophets in the Old Testament became a necessity because the people were not able to face God in the intimacy of His holiness. He could not, therefore, communicate directly with them His will and His word. The prophet jealously guards the integrity of God's word as it is performed by leaders of the nation, and as it is taught by the pastors/priests to the people.
Prophetic Integrity
The integrity of the prophet and his word are, therefore, of absolute importance. The people of God in the Old Testament received clear instructions to abhor false prophets who mislead the people and who engage them in detestable practices. (Duet.: 18:9-22.)
1. A true prophet is appointed by God - "one of their own brethren from among them so that they may hear from God as is their desire."
2. A prophet shall die if he speaks words in the Lord's name which He did not command him to speak; or if he speaks in the name of another god.
3. Validation of the prophet's word is if the word comes to pass. And if it doesn't, he should "not be feared" or respected.
4. False prophets include anyone who makes his child pass through the fire (ritual of child sacrifice); one who practises witchcraft; a soothsayer; one who interprets omens; a sorcerer; one who conjures spells; a medium; a spiritist; one who calls up the dead.
" All who do these things are an abomination to the Lord." (v.12.)
In fact, for the biblical prophet, "foretelling" was not the point of prophecy. The principal responsibility of the prophet was a moral and spiritual one; to get the people to heed the Law of God and to return to obedience to His will and purpose, both individually and corporately as a people.
God's prophetic instruction to Moses in Deuteronomy 10:11-13 is not unlike his call to our national leaders today:
"Arise, begin your journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land which I swore to their fathers to give them." (v11).
In fact the prophet Amos declared:
"Surely the Lord does nothing unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets." (Amos 3:7.)
In Jamaica, when God revealed to the prophets who the next Prime Minister would be, it was not to sensationalise the gift or to 'big up' the prophet. It was both a call to the appointee, as well as to the people, to take note that God is about to visit His people, both with blessings and with judgement.
"And now Israel, what does the Lord require of you?" (v12).
This is the response of the people:
1. Fear the Lord your God.
2. Walk in all His ways.
3. Love Him.
4. Serve Him with all your heart. and with all your soul.
5. Keep the Lord's commandments and His statutes.
Many Christians and non-Christians have been queuing up before the prophets as if they are fortune tellers spying into the future. It may do more harm than good if prophesying becomes a shortcut for faith in God, and an option for responsible obedience to His word.
How can we harness the prophetic movement to make it accountable while, at the same time, maintain the initiative necessary to fulfil the role of the Church in bringing prophetic hope to the nation? That is our focus in the next article.
Bishop C.B. Peter Morgan of Kingston City Church may be reached at bishoppm04@yahoo.co.uk.
