4 Levels of Prophetic Ministry

"The one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort." (1 Corinthians 14:3, NIV)

Years ago, I was answering questions in a panel setting and someone asked, “Which is the best spiritual gift?”

I answered something like, “The one that is needed at the moment—that’s the best spiritual gift.” It could be any of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as healings, wisdom, word of knowledge—or prophecy. At the same time, we must remember what Paul wrote: “Desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy” (1 Cor. 14:1).The gift of prophecy is often the most prominent, because through it God can speak directly into a situation. Prophecy displays a great breadth of applications and expressions and, as we will explore in this chapter, what I call “levels.”

I know there are different approaches to this topic, depending on a person’s background. I will tell you up front that my understanding comes from my own prophetic journey. It started in the Jesus People movement of the 1970s, which planted my evangelical roots in charismatic soil. Along the way, I learned to hear God’s voice through the Word of Faith movement and the discipleship movement. With many others, I rode the Third Wave Movement that started rolling in the 1980s and I was part of the birthing of the modern prophetic movement in 1988. Over the years, I became part of C. Peter Wagner’s endeavors toward global apostolic and prophetic reformation. Besides Peter, the names of people I could honor along the way are too numerous to mention, but some of them include Derek Prince, John Wimber, Bob Jones, Paul Cain, John Paul Jackson, Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda, Cindy Jacobs, Bill Hamon, John Sanford, Elizabeth Alves, and others.

Edification, Exhortation, and Consolation

In 1 Corinthians 14:3 Paul supplies three descriptive words to summarize what should be the goal of any prophecy. The New International Version’s wording—prophecy is for “strengthening, encouraging and comfort.” Other translations use words such as “edification and exhortation and consolation.”

The gift is for building people up, not for pointing an accusatory finger of judgment. However, experienced prophets, especially those who occupy a recognized office of prophet, will have the capacity and authority to both equip others as well as to speak words of correction and direction.

I want to take some time to differentiate four levels of prophetic gifting and authority: Level One—occasional inspirational prophecy; Level Two—consistent prophetic gifting; Level Three—proven prophetic ministry; and Level Four—the office of a prophet.

Helpful Distinctions

Throughout any discussion of prophecy, we must remember the superiority of God’s living word over anything that we can come up with on our own. Even if we are highly educated and very experienced, our knowledge and wisdom will fall short. Even if we are dealing with what seems to be a straightforward and simple situation, we should hold our own reactions in check until we verify them with the Holy Spirit. God’s love is so much greater than ours. His oversight is so much more complete. Why do we rely on ourselves so much when He is so much better?

It is not that inspirational prophecy or weak prophetic words that express much of the human heart are worthless—not at all. But throughout, our desire should be to be God’s mouthpiece, tainted as little as possible by our pitifully inadequate comprehension. Again, as Paul put it, “Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy” (1 Cor. 14:1).

Many of us move in and out of using various gifts and graces as our circumstances allow and require. In my case, I prophesied early on, only to become fully occupied as a pastor, caring for a congregation. I did not just sign on the dotted line to declare “I want to be a prophet.” God put a desire in me, and I believe He does that for anyone He calls. He does the choosing and we do the responding. The important thing is to be faithful in whatever you are being called to do at the moment, even if it is not very thrilling. Faithfulness brings increase. (See Luke 16:10.)

By that I do not mean that you earn your way into a new gift or a higher level of usefulness. No, all of it is purely God’s free gift. But you can learn how to use it capably, in the power of His Spirit and with His love, as you seek Him out every day. You can learn from your mistakes and you can learn from your victories. You can learn how to discern the voice of God in the midst of other voices. Activating all of your senses, you can find out the different ways He speaks to you. You learn His way of love.

Level One: Occasional Inspirational Prophecy

All believers, not only those who have been identified as “prophets,” can prophesy. Did you know that? Remember what Peter said on the day of Pentecost, quoting the prophet Joel:

And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,

That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

Your young men shall see visions,Your old men shall dream dreams.

And on My menservants and on My maidservants

I will pour out My Spirit in those days;

And they shall prophesy.

I will show wonders in heaven above

And signs in the earth beneath (Acts 2:17–19, nkjv).In other words, any believer is able to speak out something that God brings to mind. In addition, as I noted above, Scripture urges us to seek the gift of prophecy (see 1 Cor. 14:5).

Occasional inspirational prophecy can take the form of casual (but inspired) words of encouragement offered to other people. It can be really brief—like, “Yes.” If that is what God brought to your mind to say, it is a little prophetic word. Its importance may seem slightly heightened to you, or you may know that it is something you would not normally think of saying on your own.You just “give expression to the impression,” to borrow a phrase I have heard. You notice that your heart is beating in time with God’s heart of love and His fortifying comfort.

Most often these are simply concepts, thoughts, or ideas that God brings to mind, although occasionally people at this level receive visions, mental pictures, or prophetic dreams. While the potential is there to speak the very words of God, these people use their own words, primarily, to express a thought that has occurred to them.Such words are not to be spoken from public platforms but rather are meant for a small group setting one-on-one situation, and all parties should be willing to test them (see 1 Cor. 14:29–33).

Level Two: Consistent Prophetic Gifting

The key word here is “consistent.” Prophets at this level experience a consistent stream of words, open visions, snapshot pictures, and dreams, which they are often able to report, interpret, and apply in an accurate way. Their prophetic output is still limited primarily to upbuilding words, but they are beginning to receive words with a greater weight of authority on them. Often people at this level of giving become quite interested in and committed to intercessory prayer. This makes sense, because while prophets make the desires of God known to people, intercessors make the desires of people known to God, even as they endeavor to pray according to the will of God.

Not everyone receives prophetic words the same way. You can start to pick up how they receive words by listening to them. Some will start out with, “I feel…” or “I sense that…” while others will report, “I heard the voice of the Lord in a dream” or “I’m getting a picture of…” Others may have “open visions” (a theophany) in which they can hear the Lord’s audible voice. (A theophany is sometimes an indication of a calling beyond the prophetic ministry to the office of prophet.)

Each congregational body will include a number of people who will be recognized by fellow members and leadership alike as having a prophetic gift. In time, someone with a consistent prophetic gifting could be invited to minister publicly to the congregation (again, in accordance with 1 Corinthians 14:29–33). This would normally happen in the context of a local congregation, which is our equipping place for ministry to the world at large. These people are gifted in that they have an unusual amount of revelation, but they must be trained not only in following the protocol of the house, but also in how to grow in maturity of character and wisdom about God’s corporate purposes.Words of direction or correction should not be spoken in a public, “unfiltered” way. They should first be submitted to the leadership in writing for possible later public delivery when it is deemed appropriate.

Prophetic people discover that their authority level increases with their track record. I had to learn a lot about that one. I could not figure out why, when I would deliver a word, nobody would even seem to hear it, but then when someone else would deliver an almost identical word, it would be well-received. It is because revelation and authority are not the same thing. Your authority level goes up as it becomes recognized by others, and that does not happen if you are forcing your way in with your gift. It depends on where and how you are serving and how much of a bridge of trust has been built over time.

Level Three: Proven Prophetic Ministry

People with a proven prophetic ministry have demonstrated over time that they possess mature character and wisdom regarding God’s purposes for His people. At least occasionally, their prophetic gift will operate in tandem with “signs and wonders” gifts such as healing, miracles, or deliverance, and they will have earned the respect and authority to administer corrections and possibly rebukes. Like all words from God, theirs will need to be confirmed by witnesses and judged by other prophets, but they will be uncommonly accurate and edifying.

At the same time, they have not become fiery “thus saith the Lord” prophets. In fact, they may appear to be weak instead of powerful, speaking in brokenness and humility. (See 2 Corinthians 13:7–9.) Thus, they can be misunderstood easily. Their function is to provide, in addition to significant strengthening and encouragement, sensitive direction and correction, and to help illuminate and articulate the particular truths or doctrines that the Lord wants the members of the body to know.

Level three prophets may be recognized and commissioned by their local church or apostolic network to minister not only inside the local assembly but also outside, as God leads. Often they are able to receive detailed information about those to whom they minister, including names, faces, future events, and dates. These prophets will not be strangers to open visions, and they may also deliver words in which they explain the symbolic meanings of what they are seeing. They will receive words, dreams, or visions in a spontaneous inspired flow, if not daily, at least very regularly.

Level Four: The Office of a Prophet

A person who holds the New Testament office of a prophet, although he or she will speak God’s words in a powerful way, nevertheless has less authority than those who wrote Scripture (see Eph. 4:11–12). I challenge people who aspire to the office of a prophet by saying, “You are not an office ministry prophet unless you have the capacity to equip and multiply.” This level of prophecy goes way beyond the scope of an inspirational gift, and they will be used most often to speak encouragement but also direction and correction, equipping and commissioning.

Distinguishing characteristics of an office ministry prophet may start at birth—a miraculous birth or an angelic visitation. The prophet may not be recognized for many years, but in retrospect this would be one of the signs. Think of the prophet Samuel, for example, born to a barren mother named Hannah who promised him to the Lord (see 1 Sam. 1). My own mother, while she was not a Hannah, miscarried a baby on July 3, 1951 and she prayed, “Lord, if You give me another son, I will dedicate him to Christ’s service.” And I was born exactly one year later, to the day!

Those with the office of a prophet have been proven over years of ministry, and they receive an unusually prolific flow of revelatory information. Sometimes they seem to be more at home in heaven than on earth, especially when they report an open vision by announcing, “I was there….” Without fail, their words carry much authority, as they speak with great accuracy and power, frequently ministering in signs and wonders gifts as well. More often than other prophets, they have experienced rejection and misunderstanding. I say that they are a little bit like Jacob at times, in that they walk with a limp.Through their gifts, they provide edification, confirmation, direction, and correction to those in church government and often to leaders in the secular world. They establish, articulate, and emphasize what the Holy Spirit wants to have highlighted. In addition, they may predict future events with accuracy to help the Body of Christ mature in its position in the world. As they are fulfilled, these predictions are used to amaze and wake up unconverted people so that they will want to encounter God for themselves.This may include the prediction of “unspiritual” events such as weather patterns and natural signs (storms, droughts, earthquakes), international political shifts, and so on. Their accuracy gains them recognition on a broad scale, and they are used to address people of influence in the secular world as well as individuals, congregations, and streams within the Body of Christ.

I have been invited to pray and prophesy over billionaires, the chief justice of the supreme court of Korea, a NASA director, and others. I will not divulge anything about our meetings, because they are private. In addition, since I live in Nashville, I have prayed over more famous musicians than I ever would have expected.And then there was the lady I saw in the foyer of a building not long ago. She was not famous or rich at all, but what happened was miraculous. As I started to walk out of the building, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and told me to take the money out of my billfold. I do not normally carry cash with me, but He said, “You have a hundred dollar bill in your billfold.” I looked, and sure enough, I did. Then He said, “There’s going to be a lady seated in the foyer as you are on your way out, and I want you to give her the hundred dollars.” I saw a picture of a half-toothless woman in my mind.

I started walking and guess what? There was an old lady sitting there who was half toothless. I stopped and looked right at her and had her open her hand. I said, “Here, honey, this is for you. This is from God.” I kissed her hand.She was startled almost speechless, but she said, “Well, you mean this is for me?”“Yeah, it’s for you, because God wants you to know He cares. He loves you with an everlasting love. He really does.” And I went on my way.I found out she had never been to church ever in her life, not even once, but she came to church the next day. She recognized me and she said, “You’re that man who gave me that hundred dollars. I never had no man touch me like you touched me.” She told me that she had just been released from prison, where she had been for twenty years because she had murdered somebody. (If I had known that ahead of time, I probably would have run out the back door!)I told her, “Darling, there’s Somebody who wants to touch you, and His name is Jesus. He’s going to touch you in the depths of your heart, and you will never forget it.” And she gave her life to Christ Jesus on the spot.For me, that is just as grand as prophesying to a king or a president.

The Gift of Prophecy and the Office of a Prophet

Each of the four levels of activity comes from the same Lord and Spirit and they overlap in many ways. But that does not mean that we can ignore their distinctions. In fact, we must acknowledge the distinctions so as not to act presumptuously in the outworking of the gift. This becomes especially important as we consider the higher levels of operation.Here I have listed eleven of the most important distinctions between the gift of prophecy and the office of a prophet so that we can compare them:

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

• Given by Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12; 14)

• All can prophesy (1 Cor. 14:24, 31)

• Edification, exhortation, comfort (1 Cor. 14:3)

• Given to help the Body, for the common good

• A member of the Body (1 Cor. 12:12)

• Revelations of past, present (1 Cor. 12:8–10)

• Primarily speaks to the one Body of which it is a member (1 Cor. 12:14–26)

• Delivers the Word (1 Cor. 14:12)

• Speaks to the Church (1 Cor. 14:2)

• Intercessors make desires of people known to God

• Speaks God’s grace

Office Gifts

• Given by Jesus (Eph. 4)

• Some prophets (Eph. 4:11; 1 Cor. 12:29)

• Same, plus correction, direction (Old Testament prophets)

• Given to lay foundation of Church, lead (1 Cor. 12:7) and equip the people (Eph. 2:20; 4:12)

• A joint of the Body (Eph. 4:16)

• Revelations of past, present, future (Acts 11:28; 21:10)

• May speak to one Body and to the nations (Acts 21:10; Jer. 1:5, 10)

• Becomes the Word (Agabus, Isaiah, Hosea)

• Speaks to the past, present, and future Church, social, political, economic, geographical arenas. (Nahum, Hosea, Obadiah, Elijah, Daniel, Agabus)

• Prophets make desires of God known to the people

• Speaks God’s grace and judgment

The office of a prophet entails an increase of revelation and authority that cannot be attained apart from long experience, attentive training, and recognition (even commissioning) from others.

Keep It Simple

Our good Father extends an invitation to every one of us to learn from Him and to mature into the next level. All that is required on our part is a willing heart that hungers for more of the Lord Himself. Keep small in your own eyes and God will do exceedingly, abundantly above all that you can ever ask or think (see Eph. 3:20). Keep it simple and always let His extravagant love pour through you. Remember that the spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus.

May you have the perseverance and patience to grow in the supernatural ways of God. Pray with me now:

Father, in Jesus’ great name we declare that we want what you want. That means that we desire to bring edification and exhortation and comfort to our part of the Body of Christ and to anybody You lead our way. We choose to lean into You, to press into Your love so that we can grow and mature in the grace that You so richly supply. Give us wisdom to properly discern and steward the present level of our gifting while we also hunger to grow and mature into a fuller stature in Your Son Jesus. Grant us increasing wisdom, revelation, and authority in every prophetic venture we undertake in the years ahead. We are truly grateful! Amen.