Suppose a prophet full of lies would say to you,
"I'll preach to you the joys of wine and alcohol!"
That's just the kind of prophet you would like!
Micah 2:11, NLT
I've been spending lots of time with the Prophets recently, the real ones, in the Bible, and the things that really jump out at me are the things they have to say about themselves and their fellow proclaimers. Though I've read Micah several times through the years, reading through him this last time was a real eye-opening experience, especially in the New Living Translation. It's almost as if he sat in some of the meetings I've been in myself.
When prophets like Micah and Isaiah, and later Jeremiah and Ezekiel, were announcing impending and imminent doom and issuing their calls for repentance, they always had counterparts who were appealing to the crowds with watered down messages of peace, prosperity and pleasure. When the prophets of God were calling for fasting and prayer and affliction of soul, the other guys were running around saying, "Hey, everything's gonna be fine! Eat your food, drink your wine, enjoy life! It's all gonna be okay!"
Those prophets were full of lies. They prophesied for their own self-aggrandizement, for their own selfish gain. They prophesied because they wanted to be popular and appreciated. They wanted to be lauded by the masses, featured as keynote speakers at all the big conferences. If they'd been preaching today, they'd be the ones on TV with their million-dollar plastic smiles refusing to preach against sin and wickedness, but instead insisting that God loves everybody and has a wonderful plan for their lives. Just be positive, think happy thoughts, speak words of blessing over yourself and others, and all your problems will just vanish away.
The prophets of God said, "Not so!" The true prophets of God told people the truth: "Things have to be right between you and God, before things can be right for you anywhere else!"
Micah even said, tongue-in-cheek I'm sure, "If someone came to your preaching about the joys of wine and alcohol, that's the kind of preaching you'd enjoy." It's a message about feelings and emotions and physical pleasures. It's a message about distraction from reality, disruption of Godly order, and carefully disguised dissipation. Which is why I cringe when I hear these so-called prophets telling gullible audiences that the answer to all their problems is to get drunk (or high) on the Holy Spirit. Like a little stumbling around and rolling on the floor, acting silly with a goofy look on your face is what Jesus had in mind when He said, "You shall receive power..."
Not many years ago, I remember the self-proclaimed "Holy Ghost Bartender" who spent half his speaking time doing stand-up, and the other half telling people that the overwhelming laughter was the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. And then people would begin to act like drunken idiots, becoming the center of attention themselves and creating a ripple effect of hilarity instead of doing what the Holy Spirit is supposed to do, which is draw attention to Jesus. How do you think Christ the Lord feels when people would rather watch the show than focus on Him?
Jesus was accused of drunkenness when he ate with sinners, but He never acted like an out-of-control fool. The disciples were accused of drunkenness on the day of Pentecost because they were heard speaking in lots of different languages, but Peter had to dispute the observation by saying, "These ARE NOT drunk, as you suppose." And Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:18, "Don't be drunk with wine, which will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Spirit!" Drunkenness is a sin, and drunken behavior is foolishness according to the Scriptures. And multiple times over we are encouraged to be sober minded.
Unfortunately, there are too many who want to be silly, who want to be distracted, who don't want to face the realities of righteousness and holiness. Instead, they'd rather listen to a guy who tickles their fancy and get the feel-goods all over. Exactly like Micah said they would.
What kind of prophet are you looking for?
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