The Prophetic Gift - Does god still speak today?

Before the entrance of sin, Adam and Eve enjoyed open communion with their maker. Often as they walked in the garden in the cool of the day, they heard the voice of God, and held face to face communion with their Creator. However, since man separated himself from God by transgression, the human race has been cut off from this high privilege. No longer does mankind enjoy speaking with God in the garden of Eden as Adam and Eve once did. But God has not forsaken the human race. By the plan of redemption, a way has been opened whereby the inhabitants of the earth may still have connection with heaven. God has communicated with men by His Spirit, and divine light has been imparted to the world by revelations to His chosen servants. "Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Back in 2006 I was very sick. One night God gave me a dream that changed my life. I was also healed. In this day and age, people are generally skeptical of those who claim to have dreams or visions, and this is understandable since there have been so many false prophets. In this presentation, I want to share with you my experience, and along the way, we will explore: 1. How God called prophets in the past 2. People's reaction to these prophets 3. How to test a prophet so we are not deceived And finally 4. should we expect prophets in the last? days Through the ages, God has called many different types of people to be His messengers. Both men and women, young and old. Prophecy was given so that people would not be left in darkness. One day around 3,500 years ago, Moses was caring for his father-in-law's sheep out in the desert when he came across something he had never seen before. As he approached Mount Horeb, he noticed a bush on fire, but it was not consumed. Like anyone with a bit of curiosity, he turned aside to find out why this bush was not consumed by the fire. It was then that he heard the audible voice of God warning him to take off his shoes, because the ground on which he stood was holy. From that day, the life of Moses was never the same. You know, when we think about it, no one's life is the same when they have an encounter with God. For Moses, a humble shepherd whose job it was to lead sheep through the desert in search of pastures, God called him to lead the children of Israel out of the darkness of Egypt into the promised land. And what a demanding job it would become. As we will see in this presentation, a prophet's life is rarely one of ease. More often it is fraught with extreme hardship, disappointment, and rejection. Moses was reluctant to accept this role because he knew how difficult it would be. He knew the people back in Egypt would not believe God had called him, and he sensed how unqualified he was to accomplish such a task. Around 2,000 years ago, God rose up another messenger to impart light to His people and prepare the way for the coming of the long expected Messiah. He was known as John the Baptist. Like Moses, John the Baptist was chosen before his birth to fulfill this special role. It had been over 400 years since Israel had a prophet. With the passing of Malachi, the people of God had had no more light imparted to them. When John the Baptist was raised up, Israel was again in bondage to a foreign, pagan power. The people were eagerly expecting the Messiah to free them, and many of the common people accepted the message of John the Baptist. However, the priests and leaders were not ready for a prophet, even though they were expecting the Messiah. This may have been the reason why John the Baptist never received a formal education by the institutions of his day. We read in Desire of Ages, p. 101, It was as if God was bypassing the established channels that had become corrupt, for not only did John the Baptist not receive a formal education from the schools of his day, but he never went to Jerusalem to get permission from the leadership before starting his ministry. There is nothing wrong with scholars or the study of theology, but it should never be considered a prerequisite for one who is called of God. God calls people of different educational backgrounds. Sometimes he calls a highly educated like the apostle Paul to be His chosen messenger. And at other times, as with John the Baptist, He calls those who are not educated by the established channels. Education does not qualify or disqualify one to be chosen of God. We are told in the Spirit of Prophecy that: "God will work a work in our day that but few anticipate." And in The Great Controversy, p. 606 we read that: How true is this? The Jewish leaders certainly did not anticipate the way God would work in John's day. You will recall one day a delegate of priests and levites came to John and began asking him by what authority he was baptizing. You will find the story in John's Gospel. Although baptism was common in his day, it was not customary to baptize a Jew, for they were already considered children of the covenant by birth. However, those who joined themselves to Israel were baptized. This was usually done by members of the Sanhedrin, or in the presence of three magistrates. The problem John faced was that he was not a priest, nor a member of the Sanhedrin, and instead of just baptizing Gentiles who had converted to Judaism, he had changed the custom to include the baptism of Jews. The leadership did not like this, and is probably one of the reasons why they never accepted him. Of all the prophets that Israel had, none was greater than John the Baptist. Yet John did no miracle, made no prediction, was rejected by the leaders, and died at the hands of a pagan ruler. But unlike all the prophets who came before him, he was the most privileged because he was called to herald the coming of the Messiah, and to perform His baptism. After the canon of scripture closed with the book of Revelation, so too the gift of prophecy disappeared from the Church. For 18 centuries the Bible remained the only revealed will of God. Much of that time, it was suppressed by the papacy. Anyone found with a copy of the Bible risked being burnt at the stake. On October 22, 1844, the longest time prophecy recorded in the Bible reached its fulfillment. The Prophet Daniel predicted that the Sanctuary would be cleansed and the truth of God that lights our way and was trodden under foot during the dark ages, would be restored. Through the Protestant reformation, this process had already begun, but once Daniel's prophecy reached its fulfillment, God returned the gift of prophecy to His church so that He could once again lead His people out of darkness and prepare them for the soon coming of Jesus. Two years before the closing of the 2300 day prophecy, William Ellis Foy received two visions in 1842 relating to the near advent of Christ and to last-day events. In 1844 he had a subsequent vision which left him perplexed, and he ceased his public work of sharing the visions. Hazen Little Foss was also given the gift of prophecy just prior to 1844, but he refused to share it. Therefore God passed the gift onto an unlikely candidate to bear His messages. It was not long after the passing of the great disappointment in 1844, that Ellen G. Harmon (who later became Ellen G. White after she married) received her first vision at the age of 17. Both William Foy and Hazen Foss recognized the visions given to Ellen White to be the same as they had received. The vision was given at just the right time to strengthen the disappointed believers. She was shown the Advent believers traveling on a narrow path toward the heavenly city. At the start of the path was a bight light which was the midnight cry - the message that went forth proclaiming Christ was soon to come in 1844. This light was so bright that it lit up the path all the way to heaven. Those who denied this light fell back into the wicked world below. She then saw the second coming of Christ, and was given a foretaste of what heaven would be like. Once again, we see how God called a messenger to lead His people out of darkness and guide them into greater light. This would prove to be invaluable to those who had come out of the great disappointment with their faith completely shaken. As her dream portrayed, many did not make it and fell back into the world. Others did not deny the light, but started predicting future dates when Christ would return. Still others became fanatical and were led into darkness. Only those who accepted and followed the light God was giving to His people through Ellen White remained strong and united. On July 16, 1915, Ellen White ceased her labors and now rests in the grave, waiting to hear the voice of her Saviour. For over 70 years she faithfully served God. Today, because of her ministry, the Seventh-day Adventist church has become a worldwide movement with over 17 million members. In todays modern world, people usually think of a prophet as one who predicts the future. However, as we have already seen, a prophet usually spent more time guiding God's people than revealing future events. More often, a prophet was one who was a teacher of righteousness, a reformer, and one who gave counsel, admonition and rebuke. One role that prophets were often asked to perform was that of calling for revival and reformation. History shows that God's people have a tendency to depart from the truth when left to themselves. Just look at Israel. How many times did they embrace the customs of their pagan neighbors? God had to continually call them back by one chosen to bring about a revival and reformation. True revival must be accompanied by a genuine reformation, for in the Review and Herald, Feb, 25, 1902 we read: Another role of a prophet is to warn of coming danger. Noah warned the world of a coming Flood. Joseph was sent to Egypt to help prepare for the seven years of famine. Elijah was sent to warn the people of God's judgments, while Agabus in the New Testament, warned the believers in Antioch that a great famine was about to come. (Acts 11:27-30) In this way, God was able to prepare His people for what was about to happen, so they would not be taken unawares, and so the truth would not be destroyed. A prophet of God is also used to uplift and encourage God's people. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul taught that prophecy edifies men and the church. In Revelation, John says that all who read, hear and keep the things he wrote will be blessed. The word of God also brings peace and happiness, but we must not forget that sometimes a prophet is called to rebuke sin. The prophet Isaiah was called to do this unpleasant task. In Isaiah 58:1 he writes: It is not a very pleasant job exposing the sins of God's people. Often, the one called to do this job is accused of being a Pharisee, or one who is judgmental and not revealing the love of God. But we must not forget the words of Jesus to John in Revelation 3:19: On one occasion, Jesus rebuked the priests and rulers of His day. In Matthew 23, He called them hypocrites, blind guides, fools, serpents and vipers. This may seem to be harsh, but everything Jesus did was motivated by love, even if those who were being rebuked could not discern this. Another roll that a prophet is required to perform is that of imparting new light to the people of God. Peter tells us that Sometimes new light is rejected because people don't want to give up what they have always believed. At other times, it is rejected because people have harbored wrong interpretations of the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy. For example, the Jews refused to accept Jesus because they had misinterpreted the prophecies of the Messiah. To this day, they are still looking for the Messiah to come. According to the Bible, new light never contradicts light that has been revealed in the past. It builds and enlarges upon it. Yet sometimes circumstances change, and what was applicable in the past is no longer relevant. For example, from the time of Abraham, the Jews were required to circumcise all their males. However, since Jesus died, and rose from the dead, God does not require His people to perform circumcision anymore. This had became a very divisive issue in the early church when the Holy Spirit revealed that circumcision was no longer necessary. Another misconception people often have of prophets is that they are not able to sin. You see, we know from the Bible that sin separates us from God, and we also know that men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. People therefore conclude that prophets are somehow different and are perfect. Yes, prophets are men and women who enjoy a close walk with God, but this does not mean they cannot fall. We need to remember that prophets are human just like everyone else. They too must fight the good fight every day. When we study the scriptures, we see that some of the greatest men called of God sometimes struggled to walk an upright life. For example, in the book Testimonies for the church, volume 4, p. 12 we read: For a moment, let us review the lives of some of these great men and see just how they fell. We will first look at Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation. In James 2:33, he is called the friend of God. Romans 4:16 refers to him as the father of the faithful. He is commended in Genesis 26:5 for keeping God's commandments, and Paul mentions he was a man of great faith. He said in Galatians 3:6, that Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." Despite all these positive affirmations, Abraham still dishonored God. On two separate occasions he lied about his wife Sarah in order to protect his life. Notice how Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 130 describes it: Why did Abraham conceal the truth and deceive both Pharaoh and Abimelech? It was because he distrusted God. In the same book on page 147, we read: When we distrust God, we cannot have faith in Him, and when we do not have faith in Him, we cannot please Him - according to Hebrews 11:6. Despite all his failings, God still acknowledged Abraham as His prophet. He may have had his ups and downs, but he still remained God's chosen man. In the end, Abraham fulfilled all that God wanted of him. Abraham was not the only man of God who failed to walk uprightly. The story of Jacob reveals that sometimes those called of God can fall so low that we wonder how God could have used such people. In order to receive the blessings from his father, Jacob pretended to be his brother Esau. His father knew something was not quite right and asked him if he was Esau. Jacob lied and said he was. He deceived his father. It was not Jacob's intention to deceive his father. In Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 180 we read: What a legacy to be remembered by! The blessing was already promised to him from birth, but instead of trusting God, Jacob seized it by fraud. David was a man after God's own heart and was a chosen messenger of God. He was specifically chosen when young to eventually become the second king of Israel. However, when he had become great, David abused his power and tarnished his upright character. Although he would be remembered as a great king, he would also be remembered as one who stole another man's wife and had her husband Uriah killed in battle in order to conceal his sin. At first David was convicted of his great sin, but eventually he failed to see how far he had fallen from God's high standard. We read in Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 4A, p. 86: Had God not sent Nathan the prophet to David, he would have perished. The way that God dealt with David shows us that despite how far we have fallen, He will forgive us if we genuinely repent. After David humbly repented, he continued to be God's chosen messenger. He wrote many of the Psalms, and through his descendants the Messiah was born. I want us to have a look at one last example of how one especially chosen of God can sometimes fail their Lord. The story is the experience of Peter. He was especially chosen by Christ to be one of the 12 disciples. He had spent 3 1/2 years with Jesus, witnessed many miracles and life-changing conversions. He had experienced the thrill of walking on water. He was privileged to see Christ glorified on the mount when Moses and Elijah appeared. Peter was one of the three disciples who Jesus really trusted. However, in a moment of weakness, Peter denied his Lord. Listen as Ellen White graphically describes the event in Desire of Ages, p. 712: Peter was given three opportunities to take his stand on the side of Christ and he failed each time. Each denial drew him deeper into Satan's hands until he resorted to falsehood and perjury. Was he any better than Judas who betrayed his Lord? Sadly no. Thankfully, Peter's life did not end like that of Judas. In the Review and Herald, November 26, 1886 we read: As I consider the lives of these men and what they did, how God forgave them and continued to use them, I am encouraged in my walk with Him. They were not chosen because of how good they were. They were chosen because God knew what they would become. Throughout history, God's people have often had a hard time accepting those who have been called to bear His messages. Many of God's prophets were not accepted by their contemporaries. Often they were rejected and persecuted. Sometimes they were even killed. Surprisingly, more often than not, it was the people of God who actually persecuted the prophets. For example, Jesus said in Matthew 23:37... When Noah was called to warn the world of a coming flood, the people of his day thought he was crazy. Because it had not rained before, they could not see how his prediction would come to pass. But the predicted event did eventually come to pass, and all living on the earth, except Noah and his family, perished in the flood. Why? Because they did not heed the message sent to them from heaven. From the book Prophet and Kings, page 119, we read, After Elijah delivered his message to the king, the fears of some were aroused, but the majority of the people treated it with scorn and ridicule. In Prophets and Kings, p. 123, it explains that, surprisingly, as time passed and the rains failed to come as Elijah had predicted, the people began to wonder if perhaps his message was from God. But instead of turning to God, the leaders in Israel persisted in their rebellion and urged the people to put their confidence in the power of Baal and to set aside as idle words the prophecy of Elijah. Elijah was not only rejected, but he would have lost his life if God had not preserved it. Again in Prophets and Kings, p. 127, it explains that You have to wonder why people who are suppose to be the children of God would hate His prophets with intense hatred? You would think that when God sends messages to his people, those messages would be accepted and cherished. However history shows this is often not the case. Could this happen today, or are we different? Jeremiah was called to be a prophet when but a youth. For forty years he was to stand before the nation as a witness for truth and righteousness. In a time of unparalleled apostasy he was to exemplify in life and character the worship of the only true God. The book Prophets and Kings tells us that: Nobody likes to be a bearer of bad news. But to Jeremiah was committed just that. And the people hated him for it. On one occasion, Jeremiah was instructed by God to stand in the court of the temple and declare in Jeremiah 26:4-6: Now, you can imagine how this message was perceived. It would compare to someone declaring today that if the Seventh-day Adventist Church did not repent, God would sweep away the church. Who would believe such a prophet? In Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 417, we read: Jeremiah would eventually suffer more than just rejection. Because of his unpopular message, he would be banned from entering the temple, falsely accused as a traitor, imprisoned, and cast into a miry pit. If Jeremiah had prophesied smooth things to the people, they would have accepted him. But because his message was not what they wanted to hear, he was treated as a false prophet, an enemy to the nation. I wonder how a prophet like Jeremiah would fare today in the Seventh-day Adventist Church? Would the leadership accept one who denounced them as walking contrary to the Word of God? If we were honest, we would have to agree that since history usually repeats itself because we fail to learn from the past, such a prophet would be treated no differently. Perhaps the best example of this was the way our Lord was treated. In the opening chapter of the gospel of John we read, "He came unto his own, and his own received him not." John 1:11. The Jews at the time prided themselves that if they had lived in the days of the prophets, they would not have persecuted and killed them. But one greater than the prophets was among them, and they were planning to put Him to death. The moral of the story is that God's messengers have often been rejected by their contemporaries because of the message they had to give. When assessing anyone who claims to be a prophet, we need to keep this in mind, and pray that our hearts will be open to God's leading, while at the same time remaining cautious that we are not led astray by false prophets. As Christ sat on the Mount of Olives, His disciples came to Him and asked when should they expect the events He spoke of to take place. In response, He began by warning them to beware that no man deceive them. You see, Jesus knew His followers would face many deceptions. He warned them four times in His discourse to beware of false Christ's and false prophets, for many would be deceived. So how should we respond when someone claims to come with a message from God? And how do we test a prophet? We will begin by first looking at how people often react to someone who claims to have received messages from God. Often their first reaction is rejection. History shows us that people usually find some excuse to reject God's prophets. One of the most common excuses people use to reject a prophet is: All we need is the Bible, or The Bible contains all we need for salvation. This sounds Biblical, but in fact it is very deceptive. Of course it is true that the Bible contains everything that is necessary for salvation, but this does not negate the fact that God often reveals more light for His people as time progresses. When Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible, it contained all that was necessary for salvation back then. However, it didn't contain all the light God had for His people. In succeeding generations, prophets arose with additional light. To reject that light was to reject God Himself, even if they believed in the writings of Moses. Often God had to raise up a prophet simply because His people were not following what previous prophets had revealed. In this sense, part of their calling was to direct people back to the light that had already been revealed. Likewise, even though the Bible contains all that is necessary for salvation, God still has light that is necessary for His people that is not contained in the Bible. This light is relevant to those living in the last days of earth's history. For example, Ellen White was shown that God's people were no longer to eat meat because it is no longer healthy to do so. She was also shown events that will take place in the last days that were not fully revealed in the Bible. To reject her writings would be to reject God, even if we claim to believe in the Bible. Another excuse is: False prophets have come and gone in the past. Throughout history, false prophets have come and gone, but so too have God's true prophets. In each case, the people of God have had to test these prophets before accepting or rejecting them. If we accept a false prophet, we are in danger of being led contrary to God's will. Likewise, if we reject a true prophet, we are rejecting the word of God, and who wants to do that? The next excuse which is rather common is: How do we know the prophet won't deceive us in the future? If this excuse was applied to every teacher in the church, whether a prophet or not, we would be afraid to accept anyone in the event they proved to be false. God doesn't hold us accountable for what may be revealed in the future. There are plenty of tests in the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy which if applied to a potential prophet, will reveal who they follow. God never intended for us to wait until a prophet had died before their entire life could be examined. Another popular excuse among Seventh-day Adventists is: Ellen White was the last prophet. In 1914, Ellen White received a visit by three gentlemen. One of them was Elder M. N. Campbell. Realizing that she was getting to the end of her life, he was concerned for the welfare of the church, and asked her if another prophet would be raised up to take her place. In response, Campbell reports in 1943 that, she spread her hands over a few of her books that sat nearby and said that, "in those books was outlined the information needed by our people for the rest of the journey." Some have taken this to mean that Ellen White said there would be no further prophets. Her books certainly will be needed by the people of God until the very end, but so will the books of Moses and the rest of the Bible. She never said that her books contain all the information needed for the rest of the journey. Both the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy teach that in the last days God will give dreams and visions to His people. This did not end with Ellen White for it has been almost 100 years since she was laid to rest. In the books of Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17 we learn that old men will have dreams while young men will have visions. This shows that it applies to more than one individual and is relevant to today. If we study the way God has lead His people in the past we learn that He has raised up prophets just when major events are to take place. He did it in the days of Noah, Moses and days leading up to the Babylonian captivity. Just prior to Jesus' birth and when the investigative judgement began. Doesn't it make sense that God would send a prophet just prior to Christ' second coming? Another excuse that everyone could easily claim is: I don't have time to study them out. In our fast-paced world, time seems to be getting shorter and shorter. It's getting harder to do all the things we need to do. So people who find themselves lost for time find it easy to simply dismiss a potential prophet with this excuse. Interestingly, Jesus told a parable that illustrates this excuse. Remember the parable of the great supper? Many were invited, but everyone had an excuse as to why they could not come. One asked to be excused because he had just purchased a parcel of land and wanted to go see it. Another had just bought five yoke of oxen and needed to prove them. The last had just married a wife and didn't have the time to spare. When you think about it, all these excuses come down to time. The cares of this life were crowding out their spiritual life. What about our life today? What activities do we think are important that stop us from spending time with the Lord? How many hours of TV do we watch? How much time do we spend on the internet? Perhaps if we spent less time with these things, we might have more time to spend searching the Word of God. Sometimes, instead of studying matters out for themselves, people look to their leaders for guidance. Then if these leaders reject a prophet, they feel justified in rejecting them too. Here we need to be very careful, because the Bible instructs us to respect our leaders, but as we have seen in the lives of the prophets, not all leaders walk according to God's will. Therefore, we should not blindly follow them, but be as the Bereans were and search the scriptures, testing the words of a prophet with what God has already revealed. For too long now we have been conditioned to think it is not right to say anything bad against anyone or any institution. Therefore, when a prophet is called to give a message of rebuke, many reject them and feel justified because they think the message is not loving enough. They feel that Christ would never speak like that. If we turn to our Bibles, we will find plenty of examples where God's prophets were called to give some very harsh warnings to the people of their time. The deeper that God's people are in apostasy, the harsher the warnings. This does not mean the prophet is not loving. The fact that they are giving the message shows they are loving, for who would want to stand up against the tide of growing apostasy. Only one who loves the church would be willing to do this. The last excuse I want to look at is one of Satan's most successful ones. It's when false rumors get around. Then people are afraid to have anything to do with them. This is how Satan got the Jews stirred up against Jesus. Remember, he had false witnesses say that Jesus was going to destroy the temple. It seems that human nature is generally willing to listen to false reports rather than take the time to check for themselves if the rumors are true. Until a fact is established as true, a rumor is just that, a rumor. We must also realize there are always two sides to a story, and sometimes those slandering someone else are not completely honest with the truth. This can easily be seen by all the anti-Ellen White sites on the internet. Quite often the points they bring up against her are completely false, or they misquote her to prove their agenda. Of all people, Seventh-day Adventists should not be taken in by this excuse. As Seventh-day Adventists, we are not only called to be people of the book, but we also have a heritage of a prophet in our midst. If any of these excuses were used against Ellen White by our pioneers, she would have been rejected. The excuses we have just looked at are not Biblical. When we resort to using them, it often shows 1 we lack a true understanding of the Word of God, 2 the person we are rejecting is more likely to be a true prophet. So how do we test a prophet? In Isaiah 8:20 we read: To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. When a prophet contradicts the Bible or Spirit of Prophecy, we know they are not a true prophet. There is one caution we need to be aware of with this test. Jesus was accused by the Jewish leaders of failing this test because of what He taught and did. For example, the Jews had regulated the Sabbath far beyond what God had intended, so that when Jesus healed and asked people to carry their beds on the Sabbath, He was accused of breaking and teaching others to break the Sabbath. Therefore, sometimes God's prophets are sent to correct our wrong interpretation of Scripture. Some may think the messengers are contradicting God's Word, but they are in fact bringing to light its true meaning. In Matthew 7:15-17 Jesus gave us another test whereby we can test a prophet. He said: "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit." A prophet will bring forth good fruit. Like the previous test, we need to be careful how we apply this. Some feel that a prophet cannot fall into sin, otherwise they fail this test. This is not what Jesus meant, otherwise many of the prophets which did fall into sin could not have been chosen of God. Others feel that a prophet must have a prosperous ministry in order to fulfill this test. Again, this is not what Jesus was teaching, otherwise many of the great prophets would have failed this test. Paul reveals in Galatians 5:22-24, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." A true prophet will bear this fruit. Because they are only human, they may fail from time to time, just like we often do, but if you examine their life and ministry as a whole, you will see what type of fruit they bear. Do they get irritated all the time? How do they treat their spouse and children? Are they always thinking of themselves? Do they lie to cover up their mistakes? Are they after people's money? Do they live extravagantly? These are the types of fruit a false prophet will bear. Part of bearing good fruit includes the effect a prophet's ministry has on people. Although their ministry may not seem prosperous and although it may appear as though they are not having great success, this does not mean they are not called of God. What we need to do is assess the effect of their ministry on people. Are people being drawn closer to Jesus through their ministry? The next test I would like to look at is found in John 8:42. Jesus said: "If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me." Every Christian claims to love God. But only those who obey Christ can love Him, for He said in John 14:15, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." Jesus further said in verse 21: If a prophet does not obey God's commandments, and they refuse to be corrected by the word of God, then you can know they do not love Jesus and are a false prophet. We find the next test in the book of 1 John. What did the Apostle John mean by this? Did he mean, like most Christians believe, that Jesus had a real human body? If this is all he meant, everyone claiming to be a prophet would pass this test. What good is a test if everyone can easily pass it? The truth is, when you study the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy, the test John says a prophet must pass is to confess that Jesus not only took upon Himself a human body, but He also took man's sinful nature, which is called the "flesh." For example, in Romans 8:3, Paul wrote, God's true prophets will teach that Jesus took upon Himself our fallen nature. This does not mean He sinned. No, He overcame every temptation in fallen flesh, so that we too can live as He lived. When we understand just what this test means, instead of every prophet passing the test, we now find that most would fail it. It is now a test that is relevant and helps us to discern the true from the false. Our next test comes from the book of Deuteronomy 18:21-22. We also read in Jeremiah 28:9, "The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him." This is perhaps one of the most misunderstood tests of a prophet. There are many on the internet who insist Ellen White is a false prophet because of this test. When a prophet makes an unconditional prediction and it doesn't come to pass, we can know they are not from God. However, we need to determine whether the prediction is conditional or unconditional. Prophecies that consist of man's involvement are usually conditional. For example, Jonah was called to go to Nineveh and cry against it, declaring it would be destroyed in 40 days because of its great wickedness. However, when the people heard his message of doom, they repented and God spared the city. When Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, they were told they were going to the promised land. But after the unfaithful spies brought back a false report and convinced all the people to doubt God's leading, He declared they would not enter into the land, and instead would die in the wilderness. Were Jonah and Moses false prophets because their predictions did not come to pass? No. The reason is that their predictions were conditional because they involved the decisions and actions of mankind. Jeremiah taught this in chapter 18:7-10. "At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them." We find another important test from the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 13:1-4. "If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him." This test reveals a number of important points. First, it shows us that a prophet should not be accepted if they pass one test, but fail others. They must pass all tests. Secondly, if a prophet leads us away from God, they have not been called of God. Now knowing how subtle Satan is, it is unlikely that a false prophet would come to Seventh-day Adventists and say we need to go and worship Buddha, or any other false god. Today, a false prophet would more likely lead us to take our eyes off Christ and fasten them on the world. If this is the case, have nothing to them with them. The last test we will look at comes from Jeremiah chapter 23:16. In Jeremiah's day, false prophets rose up and spoke smooth things that pleased the people. These prophets were not called of God. Notice what Jeremiah says about them. "Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD." When a prophet fulfills all these tests, we can know they are called of God and are truthworthy. However, if we refuse to accept them even after they have passed all these tests, we do so at the peril of our lives, for Jesus said in John 10:27-28, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." Only those who hear the voice of Christ and follow Him will receive eternal life. The people of Noah's day perished in the flood because they refused to hear the voice of Christ. Likewise, throughout the history of Israel, those who refused to follow the words of the prophets perished. Will it be the same in the last days? I began this presentation explaining that I have been receiving dreams from God. I now want to take the time to explain the events leading up to my third dream, "A View of Heaven." Back in 2006 I was sick and had been for about two years. The sickness had affected me so much that I began questioning why God would allow me to suffer that much. The night of December 9, I was in such great pain that I thought it would be my last. I just couldn't see that God loved me. In the early morning of December 10, I had a dream that changed my life forever. In my dream, I was shown a view of heaven. I was in the temple for the 144,000. I saw angels, children and people of different heights, many animals and plants. I heard soft music and people laughing. Then Jesus and I walked together and discussed various subjects. He explained about music and reverence. He told me that horrible things need to happen so that He can return. He explained that we are not to dwell on trivial matters or worry about the future, because He will help us in all our tests and trials. When I awoke from the dream, I wanted to go back and was wondering where I was. Also, I had temporarily lost my strength. However, the best part was that I had been completely healed that night. And to this day the illness has never returned. That dream was different from my common dreams. It was very clear, with vivid color. I could feel, smell, and hear, but I was not allowed to taste anything. The dream affected my spiritual life, and I have never been the same since. My mind is not on things of this world. I just want to walk and talk with Jesus again in that beautiful place He has prepared for us if we remain faithful. Now some have questioned whether God really gave me that dream. Some have even publicly stated that God would never give a dream to someone who was in my condition. Some even feel that God only gives dreams and visions to people who have a very deep and close relationship with Christ. But is this what we learn from the Bible? No. In the Bible we find on numerous occasions in which God gave dreams and visions to people who did not know God or who were enemies of the truth. For example, God gave Nebuchadnezzar, a pagan king, a dream that predicted future events until the time when Jesus returns. He also gave a dream to Pilate's wife, warning her that Pilate should have nothing to do with Jesus. Probably the person we would least expect to receive a dream or vision was Paul. Before his conversion, he was known as Saul and was a member of the Sanhedrin and a zealous defender of the Jewish faith. He had taken a prominent part in the trial and conviction of Stephen. At that time, He was convicted that Jesus was the Messiah, but he rejected those convictions and persecuted the Christians. Now if anyone was unworthy of receiving visions from heaven, it would have to be Saul. When Ananias was told to go and anoint him, he couldn't believe that Saul had been converted. Many today are like this. They look at the messenger and reason that they can't possibly receive a heavenly dream or vision. Yet Paul was converted while in a vision. Some people have such a narrow view of salvation, that to them, Saul's conversion contradicts everything they believe. The Bible shows that God is not limited to saving people the way we think they should be saved. Since receiving my first dream, I have published 63 dreams. God instructed that I share these messages so that His people will be ready for Christ's imminent return. I have also had many private dreams for others. The dreams cover many subjects, including the Godhead, heaven and the new earth, the battle between good and evil, doctrines such as the seventh-day Sabbath, health, Ellen White and the Spirit of Prophecy, the 144,000, the apostasy in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, facts on true repentance and reformation, final events, including God's judgments, and the shortness of time. In my dream of heaven, I was given a foretaste of what it's like to be there. Before the dream finished, Jesus requested that I share it with God's people, because time is very short. At first I was afraid to do this, since I was afraid of what people would think or say. I told my wife, Becky, the first part of the dream, but did not tell her the ending where I spoke with Jesus. For two weeks afterward, she was wondering what was wrong, because I was not sleeping well. One day when I began talking about the dream, she was impressed to ask me if there was more to the dream than what I had shared with her. I answered, yes, and with tears in my eyes, I proceeded to share the rest. Since that time, I have obeyed the voice of God and shared the dreams for all who are interested. We have a website called www.formypeople.org where people can read them in many different languages. We also mail the volumes of the dreams free of charge. Now it hasn't been easy to share the dreams. Most people immediately think you are a false prophet and don't even bother to test the dreams for themselves, as Paul admonishes in 1 Thessalonians. In today's world with the internet, many people write false or misleading things about me without contacting me first. This is not surprising since Ellen White is treated the same. Because some of the dreams rebuke sin that exists in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, many refuse to read them and think that these attack the church. This could not be further from the truth. I believe as Ellen White did, that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is God's last-day remnant church. Unlike some ministries, my dreams have never called the Seventh-day Adventist Church Babylon. I have been shown that the church will go through a terrible ordeal and will be shaken. Once this happens, it will be cleansed and purified. Those who refuse to become like Jesus will be shaken out. Earlier we looked at a few examples of God's prophets that did not always walk uprightly. We saw that Abraham lied, Jacob deceived his father, David committed adultery with Bathsheba and ensured her husband was killed in battle, and Peter lied to those who accused him of being a follower of Jesus. We learned that prophets are human and have weaknesses just like everyone. Sometimes they were overcome, but God did not forsake them. After they had repented, God continued to use them as though they had not sinned. I mention this because I too am no different than these great men of faith. Just like them, I struggle with my fallen nature every day. I too am tempted to take my eyes off Jesus and look to self. And like them, I need the saving grace of God to cleanse me from my sins. Like the apostle Paul, I do not claim to have already attained perfection, but I follow after Christ, and by His grace desire to die daily. Back in 2007, I was getting a lot of opposition to the dreams that were posted on my website. As I read the false reports on the internet I became discouraged and took my eyes off Christ. Just as with many of the prophets, the devil found a weakness in me that he was able to manipulate and cause me to fall. I mention this because reference is made to my fall on the internet. Instead of repeating all the details in this presentation, I will instead refer you to a book on my website entitled "the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth." The details are covered in volume 2, chapter 10. Many feel that what I did proves my dreams were not from God. They have said that a prophet would never have done what I did. All I can say is, look at what David did. Look at what Peter did. Look who Paul was before he received his vision. God doesn't approve of any sin. But He is a merciful God, and I know He has forgiven me and is willing to forgive all who repent. God sends messages to His people so they can be prepared for what is going to take place. The prophet Amos notes in Amos 3:7 "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." I would like to invite you to check out our website and to read the dreams. You can find it at www.formypeople.org. Already many from around the world have had their lives changed and their love for Jesus deepened or renewed as they have read for themselves God's messages for His last-day people. The things I have been shown that will take place are not going to be very pleasant. Great changes will occur in the world and in the church. We are going to need a faith that will hold onto Jesus when everyone else walks away. Friends, do you have that faith now? Are you prepared for your entire world to be turned upside down? Are you prepared for the great shaking to come that was predicted in the Spirit of Prophecy? Or are you getting settled in this world? Have the cares of this life taken priority in your life? It is my prayer that this presentation encouraged you to see that we are living in the very last days of earth's history. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me. You will find the email address on our website. May the Lord be with you and strengthen you.