I was once taught that for each prophecy that you receive, keep it in the shelf and wait for the fulfillment of the word. If the word does not come to pass, it is more likely than not that the word given was not inspired by God. Such an erroneous teaching would appear to be the safest and most conservative approach to be taken by Christians as we tend to shift all responsibility to God, i.e. do nothing about the word and if indeed God has spoken, He will fulfill His word. However, this teaching does not sit comfortably with the accounts of men and women who have accomplished great exploits for God whether mentioned in the Bible or in the biographies written of such giants of faith.
When we first receive a prophetic word, it is likened to a divine seed that is sown into our hearts. We have a part to play to nurture the seed and to see the seed growing to its full potential. Of course, when we say that we have a part to play, immediately we think of the misadventure of Sarah who compelled Abraham to have a child through her maidservant, Hagar in hopes of fulfilling the prophecy given by God to Abraham. The two extremes we are to avoid are (1) helping God to fulfill His Word by our own fleshly efforts; and (2) having a passive attitude where we do not do anything and just be contented to sing “que sera sera”. In this post, we will briefly examine a few principles that we can do to align ourselves with prophetic words given by God to us. There is a need to align our lives to His Word before we can see the fulfillment of His Word in our lives.
The Right Heart
Firstly, as in the parable of the sower, the right soil is of utmost importance to determine the life of the seed. The condition of our hearts is the key to seeing God’s word fulfilled in our lives. When we talk about the condition of our hearts, it is both the “internal” and the “external” conditions. We will first discuss the internal conditions of the heart i.e. this speaks about what we have kept in our heart, i.e. the attitudes of our hearts. Many at times, when God released a word to His people, His foremost desire is that the Word would accomplish a change in the lives of the hearer first before the Word brings a change to the outward circumstances. How do we ensure that the “internal” conditions of our hearts are properly aligned? Praise the Lord, for we have the Holy Spirit to help us. We have to actively ask the Holy Spirit to examine our hearts and to respond to Him accordingly. He will bring us through the process of cleansing and conditioning until our hearts are after the heart of God. Healings from past hurts, bitterness, anger, etc. are but a few of the things the Holy Spirit will do as we open our hearts to Him. The Lord will be also purifying our motives and our vision.
Focus vs Distraction
The second aspect is related to the first point above, i.e. the “external ” factors of the soil. After we have received a prophetic word and if the word has not come to pass after months or even years, we begin to question the “validity” of the word received. And at this juncture, we are prone to be distracted by many external factors. Sometimes, these external factors may be good things but may turn out to be distractions. There is a need for concentrated focus on what God has spoken over our lives before we can see it coming to pass. External factors may also come in the form of temptations, cares of the world or to be lulled by the spirit of the age. It is therefore, important to ask the Holy Spirit to always keep our eyes on Jesus, running the race with patience, knowing that He who has given the Word is faithful to fulfill it.
Seeing and Declaring
Having determined that our hearts are rightly aligned with the Word by the help of the Holy Spirit, the Lord also desires that we take an active part in seeing the Word coming to pass. How do we do that? This would involve the use of our spiritual organs. Briefly, this is when we are to allow the Holy Spirit to use our sanctified imagination as a canvass to paint the glorious picture of the fulfillment of God's vision. It is an avenue for us to see the fulfillment of the Word through the eyes of the spirit. God painted the stars in the sky and the sand on the earth on Abraham's sanctified imagination and he saw with his spiritual eyes the fulfillment of God’s promise to him. Not only do we see, but we also take part in the process by speaking and declaring, calling for those things that be not as though they were. Our tongues hold the power of life and death to the vision and Word God has implanted in our spirits.
His Grace is Sufficient
Each time a rhema Word is released, there is an impartation of grace and life to the hearer of the Word. This grace and this life is the strength imparted to birth the Word into existence in the natural realm. The measure of grace imparted is sufficient but usually we are unable to maintain the grace level in our lives when we go about with our daily tasks in life. Therefore, God in His mercies had opened the new and living way for us that we can always draw near to the Throne of Grace to receive fresh supply of grace anytime we need it. This speaks about the maintenance of our spiritual walk with God. There is a need for a consistent waiting upon God to have the divine exchange in the secret place for our lives to be aligned with His Word. A consistent walk with God will always keep the Word strong in our lives and keep us nearer to the fulfillment of His Word. Each time we think of His Word, we can draw near to God and the Lord will renew our faith and vision.
Warfare
An unavoidable fact is that there will be opposing forces against the fulfillment of His Word in our lives. Sometimes, in the natural, everything seems to be the opposite of what God has said. What should we do then? It is a time for us to arise and fight the good fight of faith. My wife received two prophecies before our second daughter was born and one of the words was that this child will bring joy to us. Towards the end of the pregnancy term (at about the ninth month) the gynecologist told us that the fetus had stopped growing since a few weeks back as there was no increase in the measurement taken via ultrasound scanning. Furthermore, just a week before the estimated due date, we were also told that my wife was not ready to give birth at all. We were a little dejected after hearing such news from the doctor. However, this was not a time to be passive and have a pity party. My wife began to storm the heavens by praying and declaring the prophetic words given. We refused to accept the medical advice and we chose to believe His Word instead. My wife began to call forth our daughter and she began to declare that the Word is done now. In less than two days after receiving the negative reports of the doctor, my wife gave birth naturally to a healthy, normal and beautiful daughter! All glory to God! Indeed, there is a part we can play and sometimes it would mean warfare on our part.
From the above discussion, we can see that as we align ourselves with the Word, we become more like the Word of Life, Jesus Himself. The Lord desires that we are full of faith when we receive His prophetic Word and that our faith is not dead but are filled with Spirit-inspired works that we do as we align our lives to His Word. This is a season where we are going to see the fulfillment of God’s promises and prophecies in our lives. It is a time to declare, believe and appropriate His promises. Let’s not be discouraged and let’s not give up. Let us cry out to the Lord, arise in my life and let the enemies be scattered in Jesus’Name! Hallelujah! Amen. What a Mighty and Loving God we have.
