Moses continued, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai. You said, ‘Don’t let us hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore or see this blazing fire, for we will die.’ “Then the Lord said to me, ‘What they have said is right. I will raise up a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell the people everything I command him. I will personally deal with anyone who will not listen to the messages the prophet proclaims on my behalf. But any prophet who falsely claims to speak in my name or who speaks in the name of another god must die.’

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Dear God, there sure are a lot of “prophets” running around, and they have a much larger voice than they used to because of our technology. But I have to say that I don’t think many of them are for real.

So what is the litmus test I use? How do I determine whether or not a “prophet” is to be embraced or shunned? I had a coworker come into my office a couple of days ago and tell me that her husband really wants to go and hear a pastor in another city who has a large following not only in his city, but also around the world. My personal opinion of him is that he falls into the category of “false prophet,” and I told her exactly what I though of him. Why? What is it about him that makes me reject him so thoroughly? Am I right or am I wrong?

First, I’ll categorize him as a prosperity gospel preacher. His sermons are all about the individual and the wonderful things you have for us here on earth. Now there’s a place for positive attitudes, working hard, self-discipline, etc., but I think characterizing you as being there to fulfill our dreams is false. At its most basic level, life is about us being here to worship and serve you, giving up our lives so that you might use us however you need to use us. Four hundred years of Israelites lived and died and slavery in Egypt so that you could build the Israelite nation. The widow who put her two coins into the collection serves as an example to us 2,000 years after her death, and yet she probably died as poor as she was when she woke up that morning that Jesus saw her. Frankly, I often look at my own life and wonder why I have it so good. Yes, my life has had challenges, but I cannot believe how good I have it.

So what does a real prophet do? One, I think they challenge me with my sin. They make me confront where I am failing you, my loved ones, my community, and myself. You did this through Moses, Elijah, Nathan, Jonah, and many other prophets. Second, I think they teach us to serve and to decrease as you increase. I heard a sermon a few months ago that I’ve mentioned in these prayers to you a few times by Andy Stanley called “Not in it to Win It.” In that sermon, he talked about how Jesus was willing to lose any number of battles so that he could win our souls. How much more should we be willing to lose battles too? Third, I think they teach us to die to our rights. Andy mentioned in that sermon that the church is at its worst when it is fighting for its own rights, but it is at its best when it is fighting for the rights of others. When we fight for our own rights then we start to look like the world. When we fight for others we look like Jesus. There are any number of truths that real prophets teach us, but I think that is a good start. In essence, it is all about you and not about us. It is about our utmost for your highest. It is all about us decreasing and you increasing.

Father, help me to find your prophets who can pour into my spirit, and help me to be someone who can bring your words to others. Be glorified through me. Love through me. Help others through me. For your glory’s sake, oh Lord. For your glory alone.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen