Chapter 2
MAN IS A PROPHET
By
The Man Who Saw God Face To Face
Raphael Okechukwu Nweze
MAN AS A PROPHET
Man is the image and likeness of God. This means that man has the nature and characteristics of God. God is the source and epitome of prophesy. Invariably, man is a prophet, because he is a son of God. However, the prophetic ability differs from individual to individual.
The gift of conscience is a prophetic one. It directs man in his actions, so that he does not go against the will of God. The efficiency of the conscience is based on the reasoning and in-built will of God in man.
Today, prophesy is very common in spiritual churches. It is spreading like wild fire among the Christendom and the world. All these are in line with the prophecy of Joel.
28 "And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
Joel 2:28-29
Apart from prophecies by divine modes of communications - dreams, visions etc, - man prophesies through experiences, probabilities, trends, proverbs, aphorisms, results, estimates, budgets, observations, calculations, interpolation, etc. All these means of prophecy show that prophecy is common in everyday life of man, though it does not appear obviously so. In fact, the ability to predict accurately is now a standard measurement of understanding, knowledgeability, wisdom, insight, foresight and intelligence, in all fields of human endeavour. For example, who is a shrewd business man if not the person who can predict market trends and trade accordingly? All space explorations are usually preceded, accompanied and confirmed by accurate predictions, which man calls scientific calculations.
EVERYDAY PROPHECY
Prophecy is as common as the air, in the life of humanity. Its commonness has made it apparently imperceptible that man uses prophesy in every aspect of his life. What is common is easily overlooked.
A plan is a prophecy; its implementation is fulfillment. Plans are used in science, arts, meeting, construction, activities etc. The laws of nature, which constitute truth (truth being the basis of prophecy), are the eternal plan for nature, which is God’s will in creation.
Proverbs which are commonly used are full of prophecies. Like the revelations of God, they foretell, forewarn, guide, teach, correct and admonish people from time to time. Even, prophetic message are often delivered in proverbs or by symbolism.
A mathematician, who knows the length of a straight and long load, can foretell how long it will take to cover the distance, if he knows the speed. He can, similarly, predict, accurately, the amount of food necessary for a million people per year, by his reasoning and calculations. In the objective tests, students aim at the correct predictions of the answers.
In space exploration, prophecy is applicable. By calculation, the astronauts know their destinations and condition, before hand, in the course of their space travels. After the American space shuttle, Columbia, had a successful visit to and a safe return from the space, the Newsweek - a weekly international magazine - remarked, “The true new frontier of space is the vanishing margin between predicted and actual performance, and that was where Columbia made its mark”. (Newsweek, April 27, 1981, P.10).
In the everyday forecasts of weather, wind or rain, prophecy is being adopted. Similarly, market trends are prophecies, telling people what to buy and sell; just as people hurry home each time the weather becomes cloudy, during rainy season. And what is military intelligence service, if not to use collected information to predict accurately the plans, interests, means and movements of the enemy and how best to attack and defeat them? Similarly, the quantity surveyor can predict, without fail, the amount of labor, time, money and materials necessary for a building construction.
Conclusively, the examples are numerous and diverse. Prophecy, prediction, is an everyday activity of man. Man predicts from the realities of life and nature. Still, so many do not recognize these facts. That people cannot readily recognise the characteristics of God, their Father, is not encouraging.