Old Testament Prophets, Then and Now

by Bean, Howard

• ISBN13: 9781449768782
• ISBN10: 1449768784
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-10-09
• Publisher: Westbow Press

Excerpts

Chapter 13 Now the next prophet of God has no name, for whatever reason only God knows. But, I will still give him a second name like all the others, which will be, the prophet that did not try the spirits of God or the prophet of disobedience. And what this means is he did not ask God. Now this man of God was led by the holy word of God because the Lord told this prophet to go and prophesy against the altar that Jeroboam had put up in Bethel, which was a calf. As I have said before when God tells you to go and prophesy against something, no matter whom or what it is without doubt, you are to do the will of God. Even though Jeroboam was King and he was there when this young prophet came up and he prophesied against it and the priests as well, as in I Kings, 13 – 1 – 2. We must realize that this prophecy was not for the moment but it would happen about three hundred and forty-eight years later, and three hundred and twenty years before Josiah, would be born as in II Kings, 23 – 15 – 20. This prophet of God gave them a sign that this would come to pass and he said that the altar shall be rent, and the ashes shall be poured out. Now, this prophecy happened that very day, but before the altar was rent Jeroboam said as he put forth his hand, and said, lay hold on him as in I Kings, 13 – 3 – 4. Now before Jeroboam could pull back his hand it had dried up to where he could not pull it in again, so we must know what the word of God says about someone putting their hand on a prophet or trying to harm them, as in I Chr, 16 – 22. So as Jeroboam looked at his hand the altar was rent and the ashes poured out just as a prophet said that it would for a sign that what he had prophesied would come to pass, because this was the word of the Lord, as in I Kings, 13 – 5. Then Jeroboam knew that he was of God, and Jeroboam also knew that you don't come against a man of God, so Jeroboam said to the prophet in treat now the face of the Lord thy God, I pray that God would restore my hand again. And the man of God, prayed to God for Jeroboam's hand to be restored and God made his hand to be like it was before, as in I Kings, 13 – 6. So as God told this prophet, not to go back the same way he came the Lord also told him that he was not to eat or drink, nor turn the same way back, as in I Kings, 13 – 7 – 10. The man of God turn down the King of Israel, and went his way until he met, an older prophet while he was sitting under an oak tree, and the older prophet asked him if he was, the prophet that came from Judah, as in I Kings, 13 – 14. Then the older prophet offered him to come and eat bread and the young prophet told him, just as he told King Jeroboam. But what he said to the king was even if you give me half of your house I will not go back with you as in I Kings, 13 – 15. This is what all the Christians today need to remember about this prophet and that it was not hard for him to turn down Jeroboam, because he was an evil king that broke the Commandments of God by worshiping false gods and idols when he knew the true God, that gave him ten of the tribes of Israel. But now, he is confronted by an older prophet that tells him that God by his word sent an Angel, and told him to bring him back, and he can eat bread and drink water at the elder prophet's house. But this older prophet lied to him, as in I Kings, 13 – 15 – 18, now, I believe that the only reason that the younger prophet listen to him was because just like many Christians do today, they will look on the outside of the man or woman of God because they have maybe more experience in receiving the word of God than they do. So the young prophet went with him to his house and ate and drank with him as in I Kings, 13 – 19. Now the real reason that the older prophet, I believe lied to him is because he wanted the young prophet to think that he too was a great prophet of God, as in I Kings, 13 – 18. But now the truth comes out about the older prophet and the deadly lie that he told to this young prophet, just so he could look so holy and to be something that he wasn't to this young prophet as in I Kings, 13 – 20 – 32. If we would really look at this chapter we can see what this young prophet's problem was all about, first he had respect to man more than he had respect to the word of God, or that came to him by God's own mouth as in I Kings, 13 – 22. For we are to try the spirits to know whether they are of God or not, first because the devil will send his demons out to look like they are of God. But as it says as in I John, 4 – 1, about trying the spirits and then in II Cor, 11 – 13 – 15, what it says about the devil transforming into an Angel of light, or his ministers that are transformed into ministers of righteousness, so you see if this young prophet would have only ask God if this old prophet was telling the truth or not God would have never gotten mad at him for asking, just as God would not get mad at any child of God, for asking to make sure that this is what God had really said or not. For as it says as in James, 1 – 5, God will not get mad at you for asking. Now because this young prophet did not obey God and he listened to an old prophet that deceived him he lost his life, and the lion slew him, but the lion did not eat him nor did the lion kill his ass, not even the old prophet that came to take his body and bury him in his own grave. I must say this because it doesn't seem like you can stress this enough, listen to God above all things by the power of the Holy Spirit, and through the word of God, and never listened to anyone that says God, or an Angel told them to say this to you until you go to God in prayer in the name of Jesus, and ask God if he had sent him or them to you so that you will not be deceived like this younger prophet was. Because God will never get mad at you for asking in the name of Jesus, for you are trusting in God instead of man, by doing this, and you can never go wrong by trusting in God more than any person, whether they are a prophet, pastor, evangelist watchmen preacher, teacher or even an elder: always ask God, and trust in him, above all things Amen. To write about all the good prophets in the word of God without writing about the bad ones as well would be a great injustice to God's word. The word of God tells us not only about all the good, but it also tells us all about the bad and the sins that people before us had done, even the prophets, priests Kings, leaders, nations and let us not forget about the elders as well, so this is why we must not try to hide anything that the word of God tells us. What we must remember and realize and understand is that the word of God is actually our roadmap to heaven. For my people perish or die for lack of knowledge and this knowledge is the word of God, as in Hos, 4 – 6.