Open Heaven 9 September 2024: Rejecting Negative Prophesies (1)
MEMORISE: 1 John 4:1
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.”
READ: Ezekiel 13:1-9 (KJV)
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the LORD;
3 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow* their own spirit, and have seen nothing!
4 O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.
5 Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.
6 They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
7 Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken?
8 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD.
9 And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
Read Yesterday’s Open Heaven Devotional Here
There are all kinds of ‘prophets’ these days. While there are genuine ones, many are false and give false prophesies that are sponsored by the devil. When a negative prophecy is from a prophet who genuinely hears from God, the fellow involved can cry to God like Hezekiah did in (2 Kings 20:1-11), and God can decide to change it. Tomorrow, I will discuss more about what you can do concerning negative prophecies but the discussion today will be centred on false prophecies.
We don’t have many accounts of false prophets in the Bible because God said in Ezekiel 13:9 that they will not be in the assembly of Israel or written about in the books of Israel. These days, false prophets try to plant fear in people with their prophecies. If these people allow fear to take root in their hearts, they have given those prophecies the power and permission they need to be accomplished. This is because what a person fears is likely to come upon him or her (Job 3:25-26). As a Christian, when such prophecies come your way, don’t allow fear into your heart; God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). Rather than being afraid, meditate on the word of God that negates the false prophecy and pray to God about it. Many false prophets have told me, “Thus saith the Lord.” However, God would always tell me, “Don’t mind that fellow; that message is not from Me.”
Not long after the great Archbishop Benson Idahosa went to be with the Lord, some investors opened a bank and invited me to pray before they commenced operations. After praying, they asked me to open an account with them so that I will be their first customer. I told them that I didn’t have money to open the account, so they opened it for me with 50,000 naira of their money. Shortly after that, some newspapers reported that I had started a bank with 50,000,000 naira; the news was everywhere. We had a meeting of Pentecostal pastors in Nigeria just after that, and one ‘prophet’, misled by the newspaper reports, prophesied that I would soon be called home just like the archbishop. Others at the meeting urged me to react, but I stayed quiet because I know what the word of God says about my life. The man who made that prophecy is no more today, and I am still here by God’s grace.
KEY POINT:
Fear will give room for false prophecies to be fulfilled. Believe only in God’s word concerning you.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Daniel 1-3
Open Heaven 9 September 2024
