Truth and False Prophets

nam-eno · Newbie Joined: Jul 05, 2007 Posts: 77 Status: **Offline**

080706

The Lord spoke to Adm and Eve. The Lord spoke to Abraham. The Lord spoke to Moses, Elijah and the prophets. The Lord can speak to each one of us, but do we seek to hear?

If someone stands and proclaims that they have heard the Lord, what are our thoughts? We were warned of false prophets, how, then, would we know if we are being led astray?

When Thomas was able to place his hands in the wounds of Jesus, when he was able to touch the holes in the hands of Jesus and Thomas was able to insert his fingers into the side of Jesus, Thomas believed. Jesus told Thomas, â€œYou believe because you have seen, you have touched my hands and inserted your fingers into my side; but blessed are those who have not seen and believe.â€

There is much of the Lord we have not seen and; therefore, our blessing is found in faith. But is that not the snare of the evil one, to present us with false prophets so that we may be turned away from our faith; and are we so naive to think the evil one will make it easy to see his treachery? The most difficult lie to uncover is one that is wrapped in truth.

Sin is not just the wholesale embrace of evil, totally turning the back of one on God. Sin is missing the truth of the Word, the goodness of the way of the Lord. So, how the, are we to uncover the partial truths of the false prophet, the slight deception that misguides us? If it were simple, our choice would be clear. Still, the responsibility lies within us.

If we understand the Word of the Lord, we will know when half truths and slight deceptions are presented to us. To understand the word of the Lord, we must spend time with the Word. We must hear it in church, we must read it from its source.

But words must be interpreted. A false prophet may twist the message that â€œwe may be forgiven of our sinsâ€ to â€œthere is no sin.â€ Words may be taken out of context for almost any purpose, but we must read the whole story.

Still, it is possible to miss the true meaning of the Word. We may ask ourselves, is what is being presented to us consistent with the greatest commandment of God, to love God and to love one another? If the words of false prophets call us to judge when Jesus told us not to judge, is not the false prophet not leading us to sin? If the words of false prophets lead us away from love, are we not being led into sin?

But scripture tells us there is a time to every purpose, so how doe we know in what time and purpose is that of the Lord? In events of uncertainty, when the purpose of the Lord is not clear, we must seek discernment from God. We must pray that God will grant us the wisdom to recognize His will.

We must do many things to protect ourselves from false prophets. We must seek the leadership of our clergy and pray that God guides them as they tend to the flock of God. We must read the Word. We must understand the context of the Word and we must seek time with the Word through the church of God. We must also pray so that God will grant us discernment and wisdom to understand and follow in the way of the Lord.

Dear Lord, You spoke to Moses, You spoke to Elijah, You spoke to Abraham, You spoke to Adam and Eve; I pray to hear Your voice. I pray that You help me to see and understand the truth of Your word, of Your way. I pray that You grant me the wisdom to see through and shun the false prophet.

Dear Lord, I am a sinner; and I know it is my sin that closes my heart and my ears to Your voice. I am weary of my sin and I need Your gentle hand to guide me to Your purpose. Dear Lord, help me to hear and understand Your voice. Amen.

Peace be with you,
Nam Eno