Teachings
A Call for Dynamic Messengers
Genesis 0:0-0
Dynamic Messengers are a rare breed that God calls to the forefront of His Kingdom when He is ready to move in the earth. They implore their generation to acknowledge God’s activity and respond in righteousness. While most prophets dealt with future events, the Dynamic Messenger (who functions prophetically) deals with the present. He may speak futuristically, but his primary mission deals with current issues and events. He utters his message with an urgency that discloses a “nowness” of God’s dealing with men. He ignores cryptic sayings and prophetic riddles and speaks with clear words that demand an immediate and appropriate response. With this messenger, the present is more important than the future because a secure future requires swift obedience.
These messengers are dynamic in the sense that God supernaturally empowers them to fulfill their mission. Scripture sets forth Moses, Elijah, and John the Baptist as Dynamic Messengers and it becomes evident that their dynamism (dunamis) makes their witness imposing, persuasive, and incontrovertible. At times, God anoints these messengers to impose His mandates by both declaration and demonstration—that is, by both word and “signs and wonders.” Whichever the case, it is the invisible and irresistible Spirit who authorizes these messengers.
What are the characteristics of Dynamic Messengers? I believe there are at least eight distinctions.
1. The Dynamic Messenger speaks boldly! This is no fearful or faint-hearted messenger. God’s Word burns in his heart and he proclaims it without regard to personal consequences. Too often, political correctness mitigates a preacher’s message and reduces him to a waffling politician willing to revise his message at the whim of the masses. But the Dynamic Messenger knows God has appointed him as a prophet and he is not an elected politician! So when he receives his oracle, he remains inflexible and uncompromising.
2. The Dynamic Messenger disturbs political and religious powers (1 Kings 18:17-18). This messenger has no easy life. What normal man would seek to provoke authority figures? But this messenger is different! He stands in the way of so-called, “progress.” He decries inequity. He points out paths of destruction that leaders place before people. King Ahab called Elijah, “the ‘troubler ‘of Israel.” John’s preaching so vexed the religious authorities (Sadducees and Pharisees) that they could neither validate nor invalidate his ministry when Jesus asked them to assess it. Neither the government nor the Sanhedrin could minimize John’s influence upon the First Century. The reason this messenger disturbs establishments is because his mission originates with God and he breathes the fire of heaven when he speaks.
3. The Dynamic Messenger calls for immediate response from his hearers. As stated at the outset, this spokesman isn’t so much foretelling the future as he is urging that people give attention to the present. Their message declares, “Repent now”! “Look to Christ immediately.” “Behold God’s activity today.” These messengers are acutely aware of what God is “up to” in the earth and what God wants from men.
4. The Dynamic Messenger operates in “Spirit and power.” This messenger never stands alone in His mission, but God’s transcendent presence accompanies him, which makes it impossible for men to ignore his mission. It is interesting that Elijah’s name means, “The Lord, He is God,” and this is precisely what Elijah demonstrated to Israel. With God’s power upon him, Elijah conquered the prophets of Baal, called fire from heaven, and controlled the weather. The Spirit and power by which this messenger operates can stand against kingdoms, nature, lack, and deal with “doctrines of devils.” While John the Baptist worked no miracle, he appeared in the “spirit and power of Elijah” and announced that the “kingdom of God was at hand.” The crowds immediately turned to “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” (It’s interesting that one singular voice “crying out in the wilderness” introduced Christ and His Kingdom; not a host of heralds!) The Holy Spirit working in this messenger makes “all things possible.” While the priest ushers people to God, this prophet presents God to the people.
5. The Dynamic Messenger changes hearts (Malachi 4:6). Sometimes there is no apparent explanation for the achievements of these men. Some messengers minister in jeans and t-shirts, while others wear Wall Street suits. Some are refined and eloquent, while others are coarse, uneducated, and make mockery of linguistic skills. Yet somehow, the crowds throng these messengers and hearts are changed! The answer to this mystery of success lies in a pronounced presence of the Holy Spirit abiding upon them. Thus, stubborn and obstinate hearts are softened and transformed at their word.
6. The Dynamic Messenger persuades God through earnest prayer (1 Kings 18:41-45). In the Old Testament, prophets had an “inside track” with God and possessed extraordinary power to influence Him when they prayed. In fact, Scripture reveals that men could not function in a prophetic role without prayer dominating their life. All great prophets were great in prayer! When King Abimelech sought to take Sarah as his wife, God appeared to Abimelech and announced that his actions made him as “good as dead” (Genesis 20:3). But, there was a solution. God said, “Return the man’s wife, for he [Abraham] is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live” (20:7). Prophets can “stand in the gap,” for individuals or nations, and alter the direction of history by persuading God to act.
7. The Dynamic Messenger commands justice in the land. These messengers command men to “exalt the valleys, lower the mountains, straighten the crooked, and level the rough” (Isaiah 40:3-4). They understand life’s injustices and call for correction. And there is an amazing response from heaven when their message is obeyed: “And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it” (40:5). The ultimate outcome of obedience produces the blessing of God!
8. The Dynamic Messenger confronts apostasy (1 Kings 16; 18:17-21). Because these messengers loathe false religion, they denounce it at every opportunity. They cry out for men to repent of their sins, obey God, and worship Him in righteousness.
Concluding Thoughts
Open your eyes and look around. Can you identify a Dynamic Messenger? Do you witness someone empowered by the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s activity in the world? These are “the last days” to which Scripture points. Are you that person to “stand in the gap” with a clear and anointed word from heaven?
Copyright © 2009 by Pulpit Today
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