MK.Charisma

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner).....................................................................

DECEPTION ELEVEN: PROPHETS WHO SAY THEY ARE NOT REQUIRED TO USE PROPER BIBLICAL PROTOCOL OR PROCEDURE


The prophets under the old covenant were used mostly to bring correction to the Lord’s people, but this is not the case in the New Testament. In the New Testament the apostles and elders assumed this duty. This does not mean that a prophet cannot be used to bring correction, but it is no longer a primary responsibility. And when prophets are used this way, they must comply with the new covenant procedure for correction given in Matthew 18 and Galatians 6:1. Anyone who tries to bring correction to someone else publicly and has not first been to him or her privately, and then with another witness, is at best out of order. At worst, they are a stumbling block.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner).....................................................................

DECEPTION TEN: NEW COVENANT PROPHETS WHO TYPE THEMSELVES AFTER OLD COVENANT PROPHETS

The spiritual gifts of New Testament prophets are basically the same as in the Old Testament, but the function of the New Testament prophet is very different. Many think of prophets as harsh and always looking for what is wrong with people. That was often the nature of the old covenant prophet, because he was under the law and therefore had to represent its severity.

However, the New Testament prophet is under the covenant of grace and truth, and likewise must represent that covenant. The Lord did not come to condemn us, but to save us by laying down His own life. That should be the nature of anyone who is called to speak for Him in this age of grace and truth. Truth without grace will at best be only half the message.

Another major difference between the prophets under these two different covenants is that the old covenant prophets often stood alone; the new covenant prophets, however, are one of a team of ministries that equips the church. Therefore, the new covenant prophet must be properly related to the rest of the team; to do so the prophet must understand the other equipping ministries listed in Ephesians 4: apostles, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.

A serious deception can enter into a ministry when a young, immature prophet tries to live under the old covenant mandate for prophets given in Deuteronomy 18:18–22:

I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And it shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him. But the prophet who shall speak a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he shall speak in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die. And you may say in your heart, “How shall we know the word which the LORD has not spoken?” When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.

This was the standard under the law. Under that covenant anyone who failed in any point of the law was under condemnation to the whole law. However, we cannot put the New Testament prophet under the law without putting the rest of the body under the law as well.

What pastor or teacher could live under a yoke that removed him from his ministry if he made just one mistake? When young, struggling prophetic ministries try to comply with this old covenant mandate, it will seriously distort their development and their character. This yoke makes it impossible for them to acknowledge and learn from their mistakes.

This does not mean that we can compromise the high standards required of one who would speak for the Lord. Mistakes must be addressed and the reasons for them found. No prophet is infallible, which is why new covenant prophecy must be judged. There are even cases where old covenant prophets missed a prediction or prophecy, but were still acknowledged as prophets by the Lord (Jonah, Isaiah, and Elijah all made statements that were not true or did not come to pass). Because anyone can make a mistake, the church is responsible for knowing the Lord’s voice.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner).....................................................................

DECEPTION NINE: SIN


Because prophets are called to see for the body, the enemy usually concentrates his attack on them through their eyes. Therefore, po*******hy or other forms of lust are serious traps. If prophets are going to function as the eye of the body, they must be careful in how they use their eyes. Job showed great wisdom when he said, “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?” (Job 31:1). Job vowed that he wouldn’t look on something that would cause him to stumble. If a prophet’s eye is on the Lord, his or her whole body will be full of light. If a prophet looks upon lust or other sin, darkness will enter his or her soul. Deception will come from that darkness.


All prophets should remember the Scripture: “But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called ‘Today,’ lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:13, emphasis added).

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner).....................................................................

DECEPTION EIGHT: A WORD THAT DOES NOT COME IN THE DEMONSTRATION OF THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

God denied Moses the blessing of leading the people into their promised land because the Lord told him to speak to the rock to bring forth water, but he struck the rock in anger. As a prophet he represented the Lord as being angry when He was not, and it cost him dearly. It is easy to understand how Moses was frustrated, but prophets must never convey their feelings as the Lord’s. Many prophetic people have disqualified themselves from higher realms of authority by representing the Lord improperly.

To think that, because God occasionally uses prophets, He thinks just as they do, or that their feelings are His feelings, is a serious delusion. Prophets must carefully distinguish their own feelings from that which is from the anointing. This is not easy to do even for mature prophets.

Elijah prayed for the judgments of the Lord to come on the people, but it was not out of his own wrath. God’s wrath is not like our wrath. Neither is His jealousy like self-centered jealousy. Prophets must always be careful not to represent their anger as being the Lord’s, or they might end up like Moses. Whenever a prophet has a word of correction for another ministry or person, the would-be prophet should ask three important questions: Do I love them? Has God given me authority with them? Has the bridge of trust been built so they could be expected to receive what I think I should share?

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner)........................................................................

DECEPTION SEVEN: BEWARE OF SOMEONE WHO
TAKES MORE AUTHORITY THAN THE LORD HAS GIVEN


Even if the Lord gives a prophet a revelation, that does not necessarily give the prophet authority to dictate policy or to compel others to take action on it.


In the Old Testament, prophets were often called “watchmen” because they were spiritually stationed on “the walls of Jerusalem.” From that position, watchmen would be the first to see someone coming. It was the watchman’s job to distinguish between friend and foe and to convey what he discerned to the elders who sat in the gates. However, it was not the watchman’s job to determine what action should be taken. It was the elders’ responsibility to determine if someone was to be let in or kept out of the city or to sound the alarm to mobilize troops.


Unfortunately, many prophetic people fall into the trap of believing that they have the responsibility to see their prophecy brought to pass. From that they will assume the authority to carry it out. This brings many unnecessary conflicts to congregations and ministries, since the Lord has established pastors and elders in the church for that purpose.


Paul talked about how careful he was to stay within the realm of authority that had been appointed to him (2 Cor. 10:12–14). Here he was speaking geographically, but it is just as true spiritually. Paul also said to the Corinthians, “If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you” (1 Cor. 9:2). By this Paul acknowledged that he was not an apostle to the whole church. When Paul went to Jerusalem, he was not given apostolic authority in the church there, although he was honored as an apostle to the Gentiles. He could not dictate policy as he could have in the churches he raised up. In Jerusalem, he was just a visiting missionary, esteemed, but not followed.

Some prophetic people fall into the trap of feeling the responsibility to tear down anything that they do not believe is from the Lord. However, prophets only have authority to tear down that which they have been used to raise up. Paul warned the church in Corinth that he had authority to tear down as well as build up because he was the father of the church there.


Would any responsible father let just anyone come in and start bringing correction or dictating policy to his family? I certainly would not let anyone bring correction to a work I had responsibility for unless he had also been involved in building it. If you are a responsible leader of a church or work, and someone who has not been a part of the building claims to be sent to bring correction or set things in order, you have the right to throw him out.


True spiritual authority is built on love and trust. Love and service earn trust. If a person comes to me with a corrective word about what to do in the nursery but has never been willing to work there, I will not even bother to listen. Like most pastors, I get piles of prophecies from people who try to dictate policy in our ministry, and many of them I do not even know! Such misuses of “prophecy” make it obvious why so many pastors come to despise prophecy. These actions may have caused so many problems that any pastor who is still open to prophecy demonstrates extraordinary grace.


Some prophets who claim to be watchmen do not have the proper trust relationship with the elders of the church, and they, therefore, try to usurp the authority of the elders. If church members or staff are called as watchmen, they must allow the Lord to establish their authority with those who have authority and not strive to gain influence themselves.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner).....................................................................

DECEPTION SIX: PROPHESYING PREJUDICES

Prophets who allow prejudices to influence the words they attach to “thus saith the Lord” will become false. Prejudices can be cultural, religious, racial—the result of unhealed wounds or character flaws. Anyone who feels called to the prophetic ministry or who is sometimes used in prophetic gifts, must heed the exhortation: “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life” (Prov. 4:23). The following are a few of the more common prejudices that can wrongly influence prophecy:


Pet doctrines can wrongly influence prophecies. The Lord does not give prophecies to verify doctrines—He gave the Bible for that. Prophecy was used to write Scripture, but now the canon is complete. Prophecy is not used to verify or establish doctrine. Prophecy may be used to illuminate specific applications of Scripture, such as the revelation that led Peter to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. Beware of using prophecy to verify doctrines, especially those that are ambiguous or obscure.


Bitterness or resentment can also influence the message. The priests in the Old Testament could not have scabs. Unhealed wounds can be a destructive element in any ministry. If we have spiritual scabs, it is because we have not taken them to the cross and applied the balm of forgiveness. Anyone who is walking in unforgiveness can be easily subjected to deception.


Rejection is another problem that can turn a true prophet into a false one. The Lord often allows His prophets to be rejected to deliver them from the fear of man. If they are going to be prophetic, they must learn to live with rejection without becoming reactionary or bitter. If they continue to be overly sensitive, this unhealed wound can affect their perception.


Rebellion is another stronghold that can lead to false prophecy. Rebellion is rooted either in rejection, self-will, or both. This can be deadly to the prophetic ministry. As Samuel warned King Saul, “rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft” (1 Sam. 15:23 NKJV). There can be a fine line between divination and revelation, and rebellious prophets can easily be led into crossing that line. Witchcraft, which is counterfeit spiritual authority, is exactly contrary to prophetic ministry.


The “party spirit” or sectarianism can also lead to false prophecy. When prophets derive their recognition from a single organization, there will be pressure to prophesy the “party line.” This can make it very difficult to preserve prophetic integrity.


Of course, all of these strongholds can pervert any ministry, not just the prophetic. All of us must esteem the word of the Lord so that we will never let our own opinions or flaws influence what we say in His great name. The more respect we have for this, the more He will trust us with spiritual authority and revelation.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS......................................................................
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century by Rick Joyner)......................................................................

DECEPTION FIVE: BEWARE OF THOSE WHO
DO NOT WALK IN WHAT THEY PREACH

A key element for anyone who would walk in a true prophetic ministry is faithfulness to his or her own message: “Who has stood in the council of the LORD? . . . Who has given heed to His word and listened?” (Jer. 23:18). Beware of those who do not walk in what they preach. This is not to say that a prophet cannot make mistakes. However, we need to discern between those who are sincerely seeking to obey and live uprightly before the Lord and those who preach His words but do not obey them.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS
(An excerpt from A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century, by Rick Joyner)............................................................................
DECEPTION FOUR: THINKING THAT YOU ALONE SEE THE TRUTH

Even prophets only see in part. If we are to have the whole picture, we must put our part together with the other parts. In the Scripture quoted above from Amos, the Lord declared that He does not do anything unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets (plural). Those who only listen to one prophet or teacher are usually a cult. The Lord has composed His body so that we all need each other. And prophets don’t just need other prophets; they need the other ministries given to the body just as much as anyone does.

When Elijah complained to the Lord that all of the prophets had been killed and that he alone was left, the Lord rebuked him. The Lord informed him that He had seven thousand righteous ones in Israel (1 Kings 19:18). The Lord instructed Elijah to anoint his successor because it was time for Elijah to come home to heaven. The deception that leads to isolation, whether real or perceived, is a deadly one; it can bring an end to the fruitfulness of even the most powerful ministry.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS............................. ......................................
An excerpt from "A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century" by Rick Joyner........................... ........................................

DECEPTION THREE: HAVING AN UNHOLY FAMILIARITY WITH GOD

True prophetic ministry must have a proper balance between friendship with the Lord and fear of the Lord. John was intimate with the Lord, but Judas was familiar. There is a difference between these two. Even though John was close enough to the Lord to lay his head on His breast, when John saw the resurrected Christ during His revelation, John fell to the ground like a dead man. That is what Paul meant when he exhorted the church to know both “the kindness and severity of God” (Rom. 11:22).


Amos 3:7 states: “Surely the LORD God does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets.” The Lord does this because the prophets are His friends, and He does not want to do anything without sharing it with them. The essence of true prophetic ministry is being that close to God. Even so, Psalm 25:14 adds: “The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him.” Wisdom is to seek to be as close to the Lord as we possibly can be, while at the same time remembering who He is and who we are. Anyone who does not fear the Lord has not seen Him as He is.


One characteristic that is evident in the lives of all true prophets is the pure and holy fear of the Lord. It is a fearful thing to presume to speak in His name when He has not spoken. What could be more of a delusion than to presume to put words into the mouth of Almighty God? Beware of any messenger who does not display this holy fear of the Lord.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS

An excerpt from "The Prophetic Vision For the 21st Century" by Rick Joyner......................................................................
DECEPTION TWO: BECOMING TOO SYMPATHETIC TO INTERESTS OF MEN


We are commanded to love people, but we must not let our hearts be captured by human interests. This happens when we get the two great commandments out of order, which causes us to love people more than we love the Lord. As James warned: “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).


To the degree that we are subject to the influences of fallen humanity, we will be found doing that which is contrary to God. The Lord Jesus said to the Pharisees, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15).The reverse is also true; the things that are highly esteemed by God are usually detestable in the sight of men. Someone is going to detest what we are doing. Who do we want it to be, God or men?


The Lord Jesus also said, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for in the same way their fathers used to treat the false prophets”(Luke 6:26). When the gospel has been preached in its purity and power, it has brought the most vehement persecution from men.


Jeremiah made a most sobering observation: “The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule on their own authority; and My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?” (Jer. 5:31). The people will actually love false prophecy, and if prophets are afraid of people, they will end up prophesying falsely to please others.

12 DECEPTIONS OF FALSE PROPHETS

An excerpt from "The Prophetic Vision For the 21st Century" by Rick Joyner......................................................................
DECEPTION ONE: ALLOWING ANY TRUTH, EVEN A BIBLICAL TRUTH, TO ECLIPSE THE CENTRALITY OF CHRIST
.......................................................................

Christ is the ultimate purpose of God. As Mike Bickle, pastor of Metro Christian Fellowship in Kansas City, Missouri, once said, “If we do not keep our attention focused on the ultimate purpose of God, we will be distracted by the lesser purposes of God.” Those who go to extremes, or become eccentric (which means to be “off center”), do so because they lose their focus on Christ. As Ephesians 1:9–10 states: “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fulness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth.”

The central purpose of the church is to reveal Jesus. The apostolic commission was not just to teach truths, but to labor until Christ was formed in His church. Only when He is formed in us can we do the works He did. We must never let any doctrine or emphasis eclipse our simple devotion of being close to Him and becoming like Him. As the apostle prayed: “I am afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3).

The ultimate goal of the Father is to have all things summed up in His Son. Truths, the church, the ministry, even worship, can become idols if we allow them to take Jesus’ rightful place as the central focus of our devotion.

DISCERNMENT PRINCIPLES TO TEST PROPHETS...................................................................
By Rick Joyner
An excerpt from "The Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century"...................................................................

PRINCIPLE ONE: KNOW THE TRUE

The most important principle for discerning the false is to know the true. The better we know someone, the less likely we are to be fooled when others try to disguise themselves as that person. And the better we know the Lord, the less likely we are to be fooled by any spirit that claims to be Him. Likewise, the better we know true prophecy, the less likely we are to be deceived by the false.

Of course, in Matthew 24:24, the Lord was warning people about those who would claim to be the Christ. Many non-Christians and pseudo-Christians have been, and will continue to be, carried away with false Christs. However, false Christs will not fool believers who know the true Christ.

The warning about “false Christs” is not just a warning about those who claim to be Christ. The Greek word for Christ can also be translated “anointed.” The warning is also meant to be more general: Many will come claiming to be “anointed” of God and be impostors. False prophets will obviously be a much greater danger to the true church than false Christs will.

I have watched a number of churches and ministries devastated by false prophets or false prophecies. Why? For basically the same reason people may be fooled by the false Christ: Those who do not know true prophecy will be easily fooled by false prophecy.

Some of the more glaring examples of this have come through the false prophecies that set a date for the Lord’s return. It is most sobering to watch so much of the church get caught up with these prophecies that are in clear contradiction to the Scripture that states, “No man knows the time.” Those churches and movements so easily captured by these false prophecies are often those that reject the gift of prophecy as being for the church today.

An example of this was when so much of the church was swept up with the “88 Reasons Why the Lord Will Return in 1988.” Every one of the prophetic people I knew at that time, and the movements that were seeking to grow in prophetic ministry, easily discerned this as spurious. It was alarming that so many who were so distracted by this did not seem to confess their mistake after it had become so obvious or even examine how this happened to them. Remarkably, many of these people simply expressed an increased disdain for the gift of prophecy.

If the apostle Paul admitted to having been “foiled by Satan” (1 Thess. 2:18, author’s trans.), it can happen to any of us. Our response to this should not be to reject prophecy. Prophecy is such a central theme of Scripture and has been a primary way the Lord has related to His people from the beginning. Our response must be to increase our resolve to know the true so we can quickly discern the false.

It is also biblical wisdom not to be “ignorant” of Satan’s schemes (2 Cor. 2:11). Therefore, it is right to examine ways that Satan has fooled either others or us. So, to sum up principle number one, we need to know the true, but we also need to admit our need for God’s grace and wisdom, being willing to honestly admit our mistakes...............................
Principle two continues tomorrow...

God's work done in God's way!

Before the final reformation of Church life and doctrine, many "powerful" practices would be shirked. Some things are good, and they may seem to have largely contributed to the progress of the Church, but they aren't necessarily initiated by God. God's will must be executed His way.

Many things we so adore today would soon appear to be the reason we aren't seeing God's best. Our successes and great works may have depended on these good things, but they won't endure the fire. God is not just interested in "Great" results. He is interested in the quality of work done.

Quality work won't necessarily be ostentatious, it may not appear great to men, it may not even be very organized. God's definition of a quality work is a work initiated by him, executed by him through human vessels, and in His way! It won't always be popular, but it would be quality.

Great results in the wrong assignment is no result! I just said let me remind you..🤔 God's reward system is based on faithfulness! It's assignment - specific!

An Excerpt from ARMY OF THE DAWN, by Prophet Rick Joyner -- A Prophet with astounding insight into the mystery of Christ!

DEAR SAINT,

If it makes you prayerless, passionless, lethargic and compromising, you've not encountered true grace. The nature of true grace is to produce hearts that are blazing with love, completely yielded and devoted to their Lord! You cannot claim to have true passion unless you are constrained to give up whatever displeases the one to whom your passion is directed!

If you're truly saved by grace, you'll be sanctified by grace. It's not enough to say "I am a saint" when you still pay allegiance to this world and its fleeting pleasures. A saint is a sacred entity, offered as a sacrifice to a Deity, who is to be used for sacred purposes only!

Oh, saint! Your Lord is jealous over you! He gave you grace, not to be used to indulge the flesh, but to serve Him acceptably!

Great leaders influence people to follow and obey them. They don't suppress their will. When a man is made to act against his will, it's either he is a babe or he follows a dictator. We should mature men to the point we can trust them to make right decisions without us getting directly involved.

When you can't trust that your children or followers can make right decisions without your involvement, you may be nursing infants. Anytime people are compelled to act against their will, they deserve it if they are infants; they are following a dictator if they are mature.

Woe to them that are nursing infants in the last days. He that hath an ear👂...

May we not defend men and offend God! Few Christians actually stand to defend the faith. The majority are more inclined to defending God's men than they are to defending God's word. They don't care if the words and actions of their men compromise and ridicule the word, but they do care if their men are being ridiculed. Esteem them as much as you can, but never above the word. Many are contending for men at the expense of the Faith. May we not defend men and offend God!

IMPORTANT NOTICE!!!

"A big thanks to all who read, contributes and supports the "Comm-unity Devotional" in any way possible. Thanks to all who sincerely believe in me and where God has placed me in His plan. Unfortunately, I shall be holding on at this point to see to a few really important stuff. I shall be back in a month time. My ability to keep writing and sharing sound and impactful words so much depends on this. Thanks for your support! I appreciate you a lot! Keep praying for us! Grace to you!"

Moses Charisma Kokroko

COMM-UNITY DEVOTIONAL 029.......................................................
STAGES OF DISCIPLESHIP (PART 2).......................................................
In part of 1 of this series we learned that the first stage of discipleship is "Following". Today we shall look into what I think must be the second stage of discipleship using Jesus' model as our guide.................
The second stage of discipleship is "Teaching!" There is no serious discipleship that doesn't involve teaching. Anywhere that prophecies reign paramount is not a good place for discipleship. Paul tells us, "And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up,..." Acts 20:32. We are built up by the word of His grace.................
Jesus taught his disciples a lot on many aspects of life and ministry. He taught them on Christian conduct, on the resurrection, on marriage, on finances, on eschatology, on the power of God, on how to tap into God's power to heal, etc. By word and by deeds, he taught them on what they needed to know Acts 1:1)...................
Everyone who wants to truly serve God needs to have a sound biblical background. And that can be possible if he submits to teaching. Many get saved, and out of a strong zeal to serve God, they boycott everything and everyone and go spend months on the mountain. Once they return, they come and start churches and begin to confuse people....................
This would be a shock to you, but many men of God do not know simple Christian doctrines, but they know all about the valley of dry bones and many prophecies. They know all about the psalms which deals with killing enemies but do not know the systematic Christian doctrines. Ask a close pastor to explain resurrection, righteousness, justification, sanctification, faith, grace, baptism, etc. You would be amazed!...................
If the men of God do not know this, what becomes of the members? We have literally left all the essential doctrines of our faith and are pursuing after some weird stuff. This is a discipleship problem. Many did not attend foundation school. So the void in that area is so apparent! ...................
There are many great teachers in the body of Christ. Anyone who cannot submit to any teacher in the body is proud. Submit to a teacher and be built up for your ministry. There's a place for personal lessons with the Holy ghost. There's a place for waiting on mountains and retreat centers; and there's also a place for submitting to a man of God for thorough discipleship.....................
Let's be patient and be built up. It takes time for God to prepare men. God gave us apostles, Prophets, evangelists, pastor and teachers for this single purpose! Discipleship can take years depending on several factors! Many problems the church is facing today is as a result of a poor discipleship. Let's go back to the essentials of Christianity!