Cultivating A Prophetic Spirit at the End of the Age
Part of God’s plan for the earth during this season of tribulation that is coming (see the previous post “An Introduction To End Time Events and Their Meaning For The Church in this Hour”) is to raise up a prophetic witness in the Earth that proclaims the reality of Jesus. He wants fiery messengers that not only declare who Jesus is, but what He is after in the hour of testing. Again, its important to know that Paul declares “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day…” (1 Thessalonians 5:4-5). Joel 2:28-32 declares God’s intention to speak to His people in unprecedented ways at the end of the age. The prophetic spirit will operate like never before. The messengers God is raising up will not only have dreams and visions, but they will declare things that will be backed up by supernatural signs in the heavens. The highest display of this will be the two witnesses that God will raise up to challenge the Anti-Christ (Revelation 11:3-6). But Daniel declares that in those days, “The people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits,” (Daniel 11:32, NKJV).
It’s important to understand that the messengers operating in this prophetic anointing won’t just appear on the scene out of nowhere. They are currently being raised up in our church nurseries, our high schools, and the secular business world. They are us. Those of us who are alive on the earth have the responsibility of cultivating revelation of what’s coming. The prophetic anointing doesn’t just fall on an individual in one day. It comes as believers day after day submit to the Lordship of Jesus when no one is looking. This listening to Jesus and submitting to Him start now. We must cultivate a prophetic spirit in our fellowships and our own individual lives so that we can receive as much as God will give in the day of trial.
Prayer and Fasting
One of the best ways to begin to break off apathy our lives and develop prophetically is to begin a journey of prayer and fasting. Most of us pray, but very few of us pray to actually hear from God. Beloved, our God is always speaking. He is always declaring and creating by His word. Part of the purpose of prayer is to hear God about relevant issues of our lives. The Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25, Mark 13, and Luke 21) and the book of Revelation are stunning declarations that God desires to tell us about the end times. I believe God wants to shine new light on old scripture so that our hearts are awakened to the hour we’re living in. As we posture our hearts in prayer to understand what the scripture says, God will give dreams, visions, and insights into the word that will produce biblical urgency for the hour we live in and give us strategy to prepare for the events that are coming (cf. Eph 1:17-19). This is what we desperately need in this hour.
Fasting is another crucial element that must be added to our spiritual journey if we desire to understand the hour we’re living in. Fasting, for those outside of the lingo, is a discipline in which believers voluntarily give up eating for a period of time in order to humble themselves before God. Fasting positions our hearts before God so He can expand our hearts and give us more revelation. This discipline will have incredible significance when God is pouring out judgment on the Earth (Joel 2:1, 2:12-17). Because fasting helps our heart receive from God faster and opens us up to supernatural direction (Acts 13:2) it is a needed tool in gaining insight for the hour ahead.
The biblical model for this pursuit is Daniel. Daniel saw in scripture a prophetic promise for Israel that would affect his generation. When he became aware of the promise in scripture, he set his heart to receive revelation from the Lord about the details of what the Lord desired to do in his generation (Daniel 9:2-3). As he is prayed, the angel Gabriel visited him, and not only gave him information about his generation but also gave him a description of the future history of Israel. We look to Daniel for much of our end-time revelation because he persisted in prayer and fasting and God answered him with true revelation. This is the need of the hour—Daniels who will fast and pray to understand the times and seasons we’re living in. Only a gripped heart will prepare for them appropriately.
The Harvest
Again, we must remember, we are not just preparing for ourselves. Daniel declares in Daniel 11:33, “Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many…” We prepare because we believe God not only wants to direct us by His voice, but He is going to entrust us with direction that will save many in those days. While the nations are raging against Jesus, those with prophetic insight will be declaring the way to safety in the midst of trial. Unbelievers and believers will be delivered from destruction because we took time now to hear God’s voice. Signs in the heavens will back up our words and the end result will be the salvation of many. “And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be delivered; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape, as the Lord has said even among the survivors whom the Lord calls,” (Joel 2:32). Beloved, cultivating a prophetic spirit isn’t an option or a hobby, it’s a necessity that will affect the salvation of many. Let’s begin a lifestyle of prayer and fasting to cultivate a prophetic spirit for the days ahead.
It’s important to understand that the messengers operating in this prophetic anointing won’t just appear on the scene out of nowhere. They are currently being raised up in our church nurseries, our high schools, and the secular business world. They are us. Those of us who are alive on the earth have the responsibility of cultivating revelation of what’s coming. The prophetic anointing doesn’t just fall on an individual in one day. It comes as believers day after day submit to the Lordship of Jesus when no one is looking. This listening to Jesus and submitting to Him start now. We must cultivate a prophetic spirit in our fellowships and our own individual lives so that we can receive as much as God will give in the day of trial.
Prayer and Fasting
One of the best ways to begin to break off apathy our lives and develop prophetically is to begin a journey of prayer and fasting. Most of us pray, but very few of us pray to actually hear from God. Beloved, our God is always speaking. He is always declaring and creating by His word. Part of the purpose of prayer is to hear God about relevant issues of our lives. The Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25, Mark 13, and Luke 21) and the book of Revelation are stunning declarations that God desires to tell us about the end times. I believe God wants to shine new light on old scripture so that our hearts are awakened to the hour we’re living in. As we posture our hearts in prayer to understand what the scripture says, God will give dreams, visions, and insights into the word that will produce biblical urgency for the hour we live in and give us strategy to prepare for the events that are coming (cf. Eph 1:17-19). This is what we desperately need in this hour.
Fasting is another crucial element that must be added to our spiritual journey if we desire to understand the hour we’re living in. Fasting, for those outside of the lingo, is a discipline in which believers voluntarily give up eating for a period of time in order to humble themselves before God. Fasting positions our hearts before God so He can expand our hearts and give us more revelation. This discipline will have incredible significance when God is pouring out judgment on the Earth (Joel 2:1, 2:12-17). Because fasting helps our heart receive from God faster and opens us up to supernatural direction (Acts 13:2) it is a needed tool in gaining insight for the hour ahead.
The biblical model for this pursuit is Daniel. Daniel saw in scripture a prophetic promise for Israel that would affect his generation. When he became aware of the promise in scripture, he set his heart to receive revelation from the Lord about the details of what the Lord desired to do in his generation (Daniel 9:2-3). As he is prayed, the angel Gabriel visited him, and not only gave him information about his generation but also gave him a description of the future history of Israel. We look to Daniel for much of our end-time revelation because he persisted in prayer and fasting and God answered him with true revelation. This is the need of the hour—Daniels who will fast and pray to understand the times and seasons we’re living in. Only a gripped heart will prepare for them appropriately.
The Harvest
Again, we must remember, we are not just preparing for ourselves. Daniel declares in Daniel 11:33, “Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many…” We prepare because we believe God not only wants to direct us by His voice, but He is going to entrust us with direction that will save many in those days. While the nations are raging against Jesus, those with prophetic insight will be declaring the way to safety in the midst of trial. Unbelievers and believers will be delivered from destruction because we took time now to hear God’s voice. Signs in the heavens will back up our words and the end result will be the salvation of many. “And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be delivered; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape, as the Lord has said even among the survivors whom the Lord calls,” (Joel 2:32). Beloved, cultivating a prophetic spirit isn’t an option or a hobby, it’s a necessity that will affect the salvation of many. Let’s begin a lifestyle of prayer and fasting to cultivate a prophetic spirit for the days ahead.
posted by Travis at 3:46 PM
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