於2010-02-09發佈
我們正在研讀我們需要更多認得主的聲音,以及在我們時代擁有可靠、可信的先知性事工。此在使徒行傳二章17-18節反應出來,這段經文引用約珥書二章:

神說:在末後的日子,我要將我的靈澆灌凡有血氣的。你們的兒女要說預言;你們的少年人要見異象;老年人要做異夢。在那些日子,我要將我的靈澆灌我的僕人和使女,他們就要說預言

這裡清楚指出『在末後的日子』,主將大大澆灌祂的靈,帶出預言、異夢與異象。顯然這即是末日的一個主要徵兆,但它不單是一個徵兆而已,此發生在末後的日子是因為在此時我們需要更多從主來的指引,這即是先知性啟示的主要目的。

為此緣故,我們花幾十年的時間尋求更佳認得主的聲音、瞭解異夢與異象。現在我們已經能夠幫助上千人在其中成長,更佳瞭解他們的先知性恩賜,當中有許多人已經能夠幫助別人做相同的事。這些恩賜對我們的事工極為珍貴,儘管我們以此聞名,不斷有人從世界各地而來,為要領受先知性指引或在這些恩賜上成熟。我們仍持續學習,我們的學習永無止境,這即是何以在舊約時代有先知學校。

在哥林多前書十三章告訴我們,我們知道的有限、看見的有限、所預言的也有限。這意謂沒有人擁有完整的圖畫,我們若要有完整圖畫,我們必須將我們的部分與其他看見的人擺在一起。我們彼此需要,主將祂的身體組合在一起好使我們彼此需要。我們越能與祂身體其他部分連結,我們就越強壯。

我知道幾個相關性的大型運動,同樣也致力在先知性事工與恩賜中成長,每一個都與我們很不同,但我認為這是件好事。神使用他們來說話並給予我們事工極珍貴的先知性啟示。他們的風格可能不同,甚至他們聽見主的方式也不一樣,但那仍是主。我們比較容易吸引那些會看異象的人─凡是看見的人。其他的可能更易於聽見主的話,比較像是耳朵。我們也聽見,但我們更容易看見。同樣地,他們有時也會像我們一樣看見,但他們仍傾向聽見。

當那些聽見的人來到我們當中,我認為我們的人開始聽得更好,或許那些人也開始看得更多。我們需要藉此方式挑旺彼此的恩賜,我們也需要有足夠的安全感,我們在基督裡彼此不同,卻仍彼此欣賞。

主將我們比作羊是有原因的─在許多方式我們就像羊一樣,羊的其中一個特性是若不與其他羊群交配,它們會一代比一代更弱。這同樣也發生在不與基督身體其他部分交流的大型運動與教派中。

神讓我擁有一些協助重建教會先知性事工的影響力,我想要與同樣呼召的人同工。然而,我也瞭解到若單是先知性事工聚在一起,而不與基督身體其他部分交流,這也是不健康的。當 神託付我為末世事工之目的來協助教會重建先知性事工,主告訴我直到先知與教師學習一起敬拜 神,正如他們在安提阿教會所做的,祂才會在教會再次釋放真正的使徒性事工。為此緣故,我總是試圖將我們的事工帶入與連結最強壯的教導性事工。

我也強力嘗試與護教運動連結,我認為那裡有一些最棒的教師。我意識到一些對我們最大的攻擊來自於他們,他們幾乎普遍性懷疑我們正在做的事。同樣地,我對他們所教導的一些事也感到困擾,我甚至認為他們裡面可能有一些假教師。稗子充滿在 神撒麥子之處,但整體上我認為他們對真正先知性事工的幫助可能超過其他團體。倘若先知性的人要被託付在末世所需要的啟示,我們必須在健全的教義上強壯,越來越喜愛 神在經上寫的話。彼此的信任正在這些事工之間建立,那是從主來的,但即使他們持續不瞭解我們,我們需要許多他們所擁有的。我們需要夠謙卑來得著,卻也在自己的身份上夠強壯而不妥協。

(摘自 喬納 word for the week, Week 5, 2010)

Prepared for the Times, Part 5
Week 5, 2010 

We are studying the increasing need to know the Lord’s voice, and for authentic, trustworthy prophetic ministry in our times. This is reflected in
Acts 2:17-18, which is a quote from Joel 2:

  “And it shall be in the last days,” God says, “that I will pour forth of My Spirit on all mankind: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.
“Even upon My bondslaves, both men and women, I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit, and they shall prophesy.”

This makes it clear that “in the last days” the Lord will be widely pouring out His Spirit and the result of this will be prophecy, dreams, and visions. This will obviously be one of the major signs of the last days, but it is more than a sign. This happens in the last days because we are going to need much greater guidance from the Lord during this time, which is the main purpose of prophetic revelation.

For this reason, we have spent decades seeking to know the voice of the Lord better and to understand dreams and visions. We have now been able to help thousands grow in and understand their prophetic gifts better, and many of them have been able to help others do the same. These gifts have been invaluable to our ministry. Even though we have become known for this and have people continually coming from all over the world to either receive prophetic guidance or to understand their own gifts better, we feel that we have a long way to go in maturing in these gifts. We are constantly learning, and we will never come to the place where we don’t have more to learn. This is why they had schools of the prophets in the Old Testament times. 

We are told in I Corinthians 13 that we know in part, see in part, and prophesy in part. This means no one has the whole picture, and if we are going to have the whole picture, we are going to have to put our part together with what others are seeing. We need each other. The Lord has composed His body so that we all need each other. The more we are able to connect with other parts of His body, the stronger we will be. 

I know several relatively large movements that are likewise devoted to growing in prophetic ministries and gifts. Each one is very different from ours, but I think this is a good thing. They have been used by God to speak and give us invaluable prophetic revelation for our ministry. Their style may be different, and even the way they hear from the Lord is different, but it is still the Lord. We tend to attract those who are more prone to visions—those who see. Others may be more prone to hear words from the Lord, being more like ears. We hear as well, but we tend to be more visionary. Likewise, they see at times like we do, but still they tend to be more of those who hear. 

When those who hear come around us I think our people start to hear better, and maybe they start to see a little more. We need to stir up the gifts in each other this way. We also need to be secure enough in who we are in Christ to be different from one another and still appreciate one another. 

The Lord compared us to sheep for a reason—in many ways we are like sheep. One characteristic of sheep is that if flocks do not crossbreed with other flocks, they will get weaker with each successive generation. This happens to great movements and denominations that do not interchange with other parts of the body of Christ.

Having some influence to help restore prophetic ministry to the church, I want to work with others who are likewise called to do this. However, I also realize that if the prophetic ministries all gather together and do not interchange with the rest of the body this will not be healthy. When I was commissioned with the purpose of helping to restore prophetic ministry to the church for its last-day ministry, I was told that it would not be until the prophets and teachers learned to worship the Lord together as they did at Antioch that He would release true apostolic ministry in the church again. For this reason, I have always tried to relate to, and bring into, our ministry the strongest teaching ministries. 

I have also tried to strongly connect to the apologetics movement, where I think some of the greatest teachers are. I realize that some of the biggest attacks on what we are devoted to has come from this camp and that they are almost universally skeptical of what we are doing; likewise, I have trouble with various things that some of them teach, and I even think there may be some false teachers in their camp. Tares are located in every field that the Lord has planted, but overall I think this is the camp that could help true prophetic ministry possibly more than any other. If prophetic people are going to be trusted with the kind of revelation that we will need for the times to come, we must be strong in sound doctrine, loving the written Word of God more and more. There is trust building between these camps, and it is from the Lord, but even if they continue not to understand us, we need much of what they have. We need to be humble enough to get it and strong enough in who we are not to compromise that either.