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If God were Ghanaian

Esther Bible File photo

Thu, 26 Apr 2018 Source: Frank Donkor

The proliferation of Prophets in Ghana and Africa at large leaves much to be desired in recent times. It scares me anytime I think of how some churches have succeeded in jeopardizing the lives of its members in the name of using “Prophetic Gifts”.

Lives have been ruined, families destroyed, unions decoupled and dreams shattered at the expense of a prophet’s personal aggrandizement. The future of these souls looks bleak. In other words, their struggles are perpetually motivated by twisted scripture and religious propaganda. However, it is worth noting that not all Prophets are false.

I think the office of the prophet has indecorously been used by some prophets; hence, controlling the lives of the members, robbing them of their God-given spirit and finally rendering them financially bankrupt. How distinct are these prophets from the devil that comes to steal, to kill and to destroy? These prophets have made themselves God unto the people.

The Bible says in Romans 8:14 “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God”. It is worth noting that, the sons of God are supposed to be led by the Spirit of God and not by prophets. The Holy Bible teaches us in Romans 8:9: “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you.

And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ”. In my opinion, prophets should neither guide nor lead believers, but rather believers only need guidance and directions from the Spirit of God. The functions and roles of the Old Testament prophets are distinct from that of the New Testament, scilicet; Old Testament prophetic activities should not be a premise to exalt unnecessary prophecies. The main function of a prophet is to preach or teach the word of God and not to prophesy.

Jesus Christ who stood in all the fivefold ministries said of himself in Luke 4:18 that the Spirit of the Lord is upon him to preach the gospel to the poor and several scriptures confirm that.

My fellow Christian, any prophet who cannot preach the word should be feared and more importantly any prophets who claim to see 24/7 be greatly feared. Prophets are not omniscient; they only see what God shows them.

I have been at prophetic meetings where prophets hardly get what they prophesied right. It is not surprising that most people do not get expected results from directions that are not in sync with scriptures, coming from prophets and others through this have lost fortunes. Any prophet who is mainly into the business of directing people’s lives by prophecy is a fortune teller. Always remember, preaching and teaching of the word of God is the primary motive and must not be taken from the prophet’s ministry. Study the scriptures, pray and know God for yourself (Phil 3:10; 1Pet 2:2).

Some Christians have reposed so much confidence in prophets so much that, they have been robbed of their dignity has humans. Some prophets currently run the homes of married couples since some Christian wives directly take instructions from prophets and vehemently oppose their husbands. A woman confessed that she once used her menstrual blood flow to cook for the husband because her prophet said that would increase her husband’s love for her.

Another false prophet was also caught having sex with a married woman after giving her a spiritual bath. What amuses me about this sexual perversity is that, the “prophet” asked the woman to respond ENTER whenever he says POWER. Meaning, the prophet was transferring power of childbirth into the woman since that was the problem she came to see him with. Some church members have drunk the bathwater of prophets just to receive an answer to their prayers.

False prophets lay hands on such vulnerable victims by continuously preaching fear instead of faith. They would give a thousand and one reasons why the members cannot succeed and none to give them hope. They make them think they cannot do anything for themselves except by their (prophets) word. The members are mentally crippled and are made to wear garments of fear. It is therefore, not surprising the current “death prophecies” by prophets on social media. From Hebrews 2:15{And deliver them who through fear of death were their entire lifetime subject to bondage}, it is obvious the fear of death keeps people in bondage. You see, making people believe they have limited time to die has everything to do with the destruction of their future. My dear prophets, if you have nothing good to compliment the efforts of our celebrities and families, please spare them their long lives. Most Christian youth can no longer think of solutions to societal problems since they are so certain of their inabilities; thanks to the prophets.

It is unfathomable how the growth of these “so called” prophets who promulgate themselves to heal all manner of diseases have a direct correlation with the increment of sicknesses in the country. Your guess is as good as mine, it is indeed a paradox. Sick patients now die at prayer camps without reaching the hospitals and the lucky ones survive shortly before their death. Brethren, arise and see possibilities. All things are possible to them who believe in Jesus’ name. Always know prophets don’t have the final say because they need directions themselves.

The heartbreaking part of this whole menace eating deep into the moral fiber of the church by some false prophets is the role these prophets play to keep members financially poor. What at all is wrong if a member becomes financially sound? Did Jesus not get aggravated when the house of God became a market place {Matt. 21:12}? Prophets now sell from oil, “koko” to disposal cups at a margin in the name of fundraising. I seriously think we have lost the core values as Christians. All prophecies that seek to transfer money your pocket into that of the prophet should be frowned at. Most churches are so much interested in building great structures but won’t raise a dime to invest in their members. Every great strategy is employed to take money from members when church leaders need money but members are always told to ask God when they need it.

Week long revivals are organized by churches whenever the leadership sees a fall in their bank balances but not with the intension to build souls. I would like to be remembered when evangelism became second to the purchase of a prophet’s car.

It saddens me when market women sell from Monday to Saturday only to come to church a make sales to the prophet on Sunday as a responds to a mendacious prophecy and continues the cycle the next Monday. The current happenings in the Christian bracket are as a result of our inability to mature in spiritual matters {Galatians 4:1}.

It should be stated that, these prophetic falsehood is not practiced by just false prophets but also the good ones who have refused to understudy life changing prophets but rush into ministry. Can we not as a people refuse to patronize these prophets by studying scriptures for ourselves and fully putting our trust in God but not these fraudsters? I do not have much of an idea how God will react if he were Ghanaian.

Columnist: Frank Donkor