Have you ever encountered a prophet? I mean the real thing, the genuine article. I’m not talking about some guy with wild eyes and a bad hair day who’s telling you, The world is going to end next December 13th at 4:23 in the morning. No, I’m talking about an authentic sent-from-the-Lord type of prophet.

Prophets true and false come in many different descriptions, and sometimes the ones sent by God don’t really know who they are. They don’t realize the significance of what they are and what they’re doing and what they’re saying. How do you evaluate a prophet? How would you know if one came on the scene and really had a message from God? Make no mistake about it; there are false prophets out there—and false prophets, obviously, deserve no consideration at all.

One thing you can know: those that set dates for the return of Jesus Christ are surely uninspired and can be safely ignored. Why would I say that? Well, because Jesus himself said it in Matthew 24. There are also those who prophesy the future, but teach against God’s law. In another day in time, you could stone those fellows. Today, you can just shut the door in their faces without incurring any displeasure from God. But there is another group of prophets (or people who claim to be, at least) who are not so easily defined.