PROTOCOL POINTS

• Blame lies first and foremost with a lack of integrity and an unwillingness to submit to spiritual authority on the part of many prophetic people today and in times gone by. We need understanding of the awesome responsibility a pastor faces, trying to protect the men and women the Lord has put in his charge.
• When Paul began his teaching concerning Spiritual Gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:1, he stated that “concerning spiritual gifts brethren I would not have you to be ignorant” and he ended that particular teaching in 1 Corinthians 14:40 that “all things be done decently and in order.”  These are both key verses to the operation of the prophetic in the church which was the heart of the teaching.
• In order for us to truly operate effectively in the gift of prophecy, there needs to be some good solid teaching that brings true understanding to the use and function of the prophetic gift in the church and that in the use and operation of the prophetic gift it must be done decently and in order.
• We need to realize that there is a difference between the gift of prophecy and the office gift of the prophet. There is a different realm of responsibility and authority, not everybody that prophesies is a prophet, but every prophet prophesies.
• The office gift of the Prophet will carry much more power and authority in sound and deed, but additionally, someone who is in the office gift will be recognized and hold a form of leadership role. Prophets will raise up other people in their gifting, both in training and impartation. Many times a Prophet will lead or be a part of a prophetic company and will be recognized as such. A prophet can lay hands on another prophet imparting and mentoring like Elisha and Elijah. A prophet can lay hands on and anoint a king or government leader like Samuel did to King David.
• A Prophet may prophesy direction both individually and corporately to the church, and occasionally bring correction in love and in the Old and New Testament the prophets declared judgment.
• As noted in Acts 13, prophets can, at the prompting of the Spirit, lay hands on, anoint and launch ministers into their assignments and calling as they did with Barnabas and Saul.
• An individual who moves in the gift of prophecy and not the office gift of the prophet needs to adhere to the New Testament model for the prophetic in 1 Corinthians 14:3, “But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification and exhortation and comfort.”
  As individuals who operate in the gift of prophecy or the office of the prophet,
• I have to understand that when I come into a church, fellowship or meeting, that God has ordained a leader in that house and in many cases that leader is called a pastor. But, if I intend to operate in my gifting, I need to operate under the proper spiritual authority God ordained in that house. If I feel like I’m going to operate in my gift, I need to make myself known to the pastor and see if that particular congregation is open to having someone bring a prophetic utterance and if so, what do they consider the proper time and timing for the use of the gift. You can only imagine how a pastor might feel who has someone in his meeting, unknown to him, stand up in the middle of the service, belting out a word, possibly even of gloom and doom over the Lords people, who he is responsible for protecting. How would you feel? I know how I would feel, and my next move would be to call on the ushers to remove this individual who didn’t have enough spiritual understanding or maturity to utilize his gift decently and in order.
• If we are going to be recognized and effective at bringing the gift back into the body, we are going to have to work together closely, the pastor and the prophet, respecting one another and our gifting, callings and responsibilities. There is a commanded blessing in unity and many times people utilizing their gift in a disorderly manner, in the wrong timing or in the wrong way brings confusion and we know that, Holy Spirit is not the author of confusion.
• First, whenever possible, we have a microphone which faces the people. That is a good indication to a prophetic person that would come to our fellowship that we want to hear the Word of the Lord, which is spoken through God’s people.
• Second, when an individual receives a word, if they are known and released to bring a prophetic word in our church, they come to the front, ask the leader in authority and normally write out or share the word with that leader, who in-turn releases them by giving them a microphone and then they wait for the right timing.
• If it is during worship, they wait for the worship leader to break and acknowledge them before delivering the word. If the word in the opinion of the leader would fit better in a different time of the service, they would indicate that and call that individual up at a later time.
• Maybe the word they received has to do with the offering or would confirm the preaching of the word, or would more appropriately fit during ministry time such as if it is a word of knowledge about an illness or disease that the Lord wants to heal.
• During the service for the most part, we only entertain corporate words and not individual words other than by the designated speaker for that service, or the person who is in authority at the service
• When delivering the word we need to, as the Bible tells us when we sound the trumpet, ‘make sure that it is a clear signal, speak as clearly as you can, try not to speak too fast because the Lord wants everyone in attendance to clearly hear and understand what he is saying. Start when He starts, stop when He stops, don’t take away or add to the word the Lord has given you.
• Try to catch the tempo of the Spirit and the timing of the service. If I have an upbeat word of encouragement or exhortation, I would probably want to bring it during the praise portion. If it is a consoling word or a word that is emotionally deep, having to do with the heart and the love of the Lord, I would probably want to bring it during worship, as the heart of the Lord’s people are open to hearing it better at that point.
• I know that it is God’s heart from the first sound, the opening moment of the service, that everything continues to build, so when I bring a word, that word needs to bring the service higher not lower. We have all been in services when the anointing on the service is built to a point, and someone comes out with a deadpan delivery or a word that has heaviness all over it, and brings the entire congregation to a lower spiritual place, rather than a higher place and He wants us to come up higher.
• So try to sense the tempo of the Spirit and the timing of God. The anointing at times is like a wave and when I’m delivering a word, I want to catch the wave and allow the anointing to bring the service higher.
• And finally, concerning delivery, I want to try my very, very best not to bring attention to myself, but rather attention to the word. At times there may be a strong internal anointing that makes me want to manifest, but the spirit of the prophet is subject to the prophet and I want to do my very best to deliver that word, clearly, precisely, with as much attention to the word as possible.
• As soon as I’m through I want to hand the microphone back to the person in authority, go to my seat and thank God in my heart that He chose to share His heart with me.

Let me close with this. I have had many personal experiences where the Lord gave me a word, I brought it to those in authority, and for one reason or another, they decided they didn’t want me to deliver it. This is when you get an opportunity to find out the maturity and character of the individual, not the pastor, but the prophetic voice, the prophetic person.

It’s about how you act and how you react. Do you stomp off, go back to your seat, pout, criticize, complain to someone else, or were you mature enough to realize that when you came up and shared what the Lord spoke to you that you did your job for God. It is a test, a test for the leader and a test for you and I. Don’t you know it’s always a test?

Prophetic Acts should also be given the same consideration: get a release – if it is up in front and a “Corporate Act.”

It is wonderful that He continually tests us because the test is an opportunity for promotion. If I pass the test, He is much more interested in our character and the fruit of the spirit in our lives than He is in the gifts of the Spirit.

You and I are responsible to be that generation that brings the prophetic voice back into the church. If it’s ever going to happen, it is going to require integrity, character and submission to authority so that all things can be done decently and in order.