I. WHAT IS THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY?
A. The Spirit of Prophecy is the “testimony of Jesus”. It is the living word of God. That which is the current yearning
of the heart of God. It is what He is saying by His Spirit in the here and now. What He is feeling and thinking in the context
of space and time.
Revelation 19:10 … For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
B. All of the written word of God is the timeless testimony of Jesus because He is the eternal Word of God.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in
the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was
made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the
darkness did not comprehend it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 This man
came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light,
but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
C. There are two ways the prophetic spirit operates.
1. The Holy Spirit takes the revealed word of God and highlights portions of it, or truths from it, and makes it particularly
applicable in the moment. This is the most common operation of the Spirit of Prophecy.
2. The Holy Spirit gives information not specifically revealed in the word of God but always in agreement with the word.
D. The written word of God is always the plumb line for evaluating prophecy. The word hidden in our hearts is the
pool of resource out of which comes all prophecy. It is like we all have a prophetic “bow” and each verse of scripture we
hide inside of us is another arrow in our quiver. The more “arrows” we have, the more directions the Holy Spirit can take
us when prophesying. The more we do our part (hiding the word in our hearts), the more we give the Holy Spirit to work
with.
E. Paul exhorted us to desire and pursue spiritual gifts and he placed prophecy above all the other gifts. He desired
that all the believers prophesy.
1Corinthians 14:5 I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied;
1Corinthians 14:1 Pursue love, and desire (covet, be zealous for) spiritual gifts, but especially that you may
prophesy.
F. Moses wanted all the people of Israel to be prophets.
Numbers 11:29 Then Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the LORD’S people
were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them!”
II. PROPHECY IS DECLARING WHAT THE SPIRIT OF REVELATION HAS REVEALED.
A. In between revelation and wisdom is prophecy. In other words, for revelation to become wisdom it must be declared
or prophesied.
Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of
wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
Psalms 19:7 The testimony of the LORD (Spirit of prophecy) is sure (trustworthy), making wise the simple;
B. When the Spirit of Revelation gives us Divine information, we must lift our voices and speak or sing it out in order
for it to be activated into heavenly wisdom.
Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one
another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
C. This rich dwelling of the Eternal Word within us, when declared, enriches believers in every way, in thought
(revelation) and in words (the prophetic spirit leading to wisdom). The more the testimony of Jesus (spirit of prophecy)
is strengthened in us, the more we become enriched in our inner man.
1Corinthians 1:5 that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, 6 even as
the testimony of Christ was confirmed (strengthened) in you,
1. Teaching, admonishing, and singing Divine information to one another, which is the essence of the prophetic, is a
catalyst for revelation becoming wisdom and in this process we increasingly see the richness of the Divine seed within us
– our inheritance.
Ephesians 1:18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of
His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
2. This is why Paul tells us that prophecy edifies (builds up) the church. When we tell someone (speaking or singing)
what God thinks and how He feels, it enriches and strengthens their inner man in every way.
1Corinthians 14:3 But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. 4 He who
speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.
III. ACTIVATING THE PROPHETIC
A. Fill your mind and heart with scripture
1. Since the Holy Spirit always utilizes scripture or scriptural concepts when revealing the word of the Lord to us, it is
essential that we fill our minds and hearts with scripture. When we do, this gives the Lord more to work with in the
partnership. It also gives us a grid to discern what is from the Lord and what is not.
a. We need cerebral and spiritual interaction with the word. We must prayerfully study the word asking Jesus for life
and revelation.
John 5:39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which
testify of Me. 40 But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.
B. Go easy on the “Thus saith the Lord of Hosts” approach whenever you are giving a word that isn’t contrary to the
scriptures but is not expressly detailed in the scriptures.
C. Exercise faith – take a RISK! It is right to assume that the Lord will speak through you and not the other way
around. Earnestly desiring the prophetic is commanded. We should covet it and be zealous to enter it. This means we
should be exercising the prophetic whenever we get the chance, looking for a chance to “jump in” and operate in the gift.
IV. THE PROPHETIC SPIRIT IN MUSIC
Hebrews 2:12 saying: “I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing
praise to You.”
A. When the saints gather together, Jesus sings songs of praise to the Father. Not only does the testimony of Jesus
consist of lyrical content, but also of pitch and rhythm. By definition a song is comprised of melody (multiple pitches in a
sequence), rhythm, and lyrics. Musicians and singers need to be listening not only for the content of the testimony of
Jesus, but also for the particular melody and rhythm of Jesus testimony at any given time. Connecting with this is the
essential meaning of prophesying musically.
B. Operating in the song of the Lord is much more like fishing than hunting. When you hunt you see what it is you
are after and you aim at it. When you fish, you position yourself in the most likely place and at the best time, and you
throw out bait and wait for a hit. In operating in the prophetic song, you can’t see or hear with crystal clarity, but you load
up with bait (regular singing / praying the word), you launch out into the waters of a worship set, and you cast in your line
(singing in the spirit). When you catch one, you know it, everyone knows it, but no one can clearly describe exactly what
happened under the water.
V. OPERATING IN THE PROPHETIC CAUSES TRIBULATION
Revelation 1:9 I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of
Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for (because of) the testimony
of Jesus Christ.
A. It was because of the testimony of Jesus that John was in tribulation. It was his commitment to the prophetic spirit
that got him into trouble. Before the apostle Paul was converted he spent long hours in the written scriptures memorizing,
studying, and expounding them, but it was after his conversion when he began to flow in the testimony of Jesus (Jesus’
interpretation and application of the written word) that he began to be persecuted and was finally martyred. The Pharisees
were heavily into the scriptures but no one exiled them to a remote island prison like John.
Revelation 12:17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of
her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
B. A people who flow in the prophetic spirit enrages Satan. He declares war upon a people like this. This reality
shows us how important and powerful living in the prophetic spirit is. It is a deadly weapon to destroy the works of
darkness, release divine wisdom, and build up the bride of Christ.