Prophetic Word for 2013


As I've felt stirred to release a prophetic word for 2013, much of what the Lord has shown me has been building over the last two or three years. We are now entering into 2013, and much of what has been prophesied and declared in years past is coming to fruition this year.

Change is Upon Us

We are living in a time of great change, largely because the Church that is coming forth has never been seen before. She is bold, she is beautiful, and she knows who she is! There is a great reformation going on within the body of Christ, where there has been so many misunderstandings regarding scripture and the way we interpret the bible. I believe God is raising up anointed teachers that will have a heart after God, they will teach out of a deep love for the Lord, bringing a solid biblical foundation to the Church (James 3:1).

There is going to be a great return to the scriptures, with the power of revelation flowing through the Church again. God wants all of His children to encounter Him for themselves, and the spirit of wisdom & revelation are going to illuminate our understanding of who God is, and how He feels about us (Ephesians 1:17-19).

There have been many people who feel like their lives have been on hold for a number of years; and they have not known how to move forward with the plan of God for their lives. God is granting His people the grace they need to step out in faith and move toward the things He has already placed inside of them. Many people are going to take the plunge and move towards the things that have been in there heart from the beginning. This will require wisdom and faith, but God is more than ready to supply you with what you need.

The spirit of revelation flows in unity with grace, as revelation empowers you to accomplish what God has placed in your spirit. Many people have been waiting for God to tell them what to do, when in reality God has already placed His desires within them.

Investigation

2013 will be a year of investigation for the body of Christ, as God is going to stir up a spirit of discovery in His people to look into His word and ask hard questions. Currently the Church is being challenged to become a new wineskin, in order to retain the new wine of Gods word & Spirit. God is stirring up a desire to search out the truth. You will hear of many people who are willing to lay aside what they know, in order to search out what they do not know (Proverbs 25:2).

The Role of a Prophet

The role of a prophet in the New Testament is to encourage the Church to fully engage with the voice of the Lord for themselves, not settling for anything less than an authentic relationship with Him. A NT Prophet has not been anointed to be a mediator between God and the church, as Christ has become our mediator for all eternity (1 Timothy 2:5).

The ascension gift of a prophet is to help mature the body of Christ, not to be the go between for you and God. There is a great restoration of prophetic anointing that is flowing out of the Church today, but God is far from finished regarding the biblical function and application of prophetic ministry. (Ephesians 4:11-16)

A true prophetic anointing will remove the spiritual limitations in your path, and enable you to see what you were not able to see before. A true prophetic anointing will stir you to run further into your future than you ever thought possible, seeing the future as God intended you to see it.

In 2013 and beyond, the misunderstandings much of the Church has had regarding the prophetic anointing, and how it relates to the Church today under a New Covenant are going to be cleared up. There have been many prophets who are still prophesying out of a former glory, rather than speaking to Gods people through His finished work.

There are many people who want to be the voice of the Lord to this nation, yet they are prophesying based on their opinion of how God sees this nation. This can create confusion because they are filtering what God is telling them through their own pre-conceived idea about what is in store for us. I believe God is raising up prophetic voices that can keep their opinions out of the equation, while releasing a pure word in season.

The Father wants His children to hear His voice for themselves; He wants us weaned from the dependency of prophetic words. God wants us to look to Him for the answers, and not go chasing a prophetic word. This does not diminish the value of prophetic ministry, this just means that it's time we mature in our relationship with God and let prophetic words enhance that relationship when needed.

The Maturation of the Church

God is forming a fully functional body for Himself; as the church is becoming more like Jesus. We are learning what pleases Him, as we are made in His image and likeness. The days of living under a hierarchy form of Church government are coming to a close, as God never intended the Church to have positions of authority that Lord over one another. The difference between the kingdom of God and all the other government structures we see in the earth is that Gods kingdom is a family, built on relationship.

Many have tried to govern the Church as a top down structure, rather than seeing the church as a bottom up kingdom. The Apostle Paul wrote: Having been built on the foundation of the apostles & prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20). A true Apostolic & Prophetic anointing will always come underneath the people of God and lift them up into the next realm of glory God has prepared for them. I believe there is going to be a greater understanding of the five fold ministry, and how it will function within our churches and the community's we live in.

Blessings,
Josh Crofton
Croftonhouse Ministries