“…Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” (Malachi 4: 4-6)
The Bible is the story of the Glory. It is the story of how the Father of glory sent the Lord of glory to restore man to his place of glory. Man’s restoration to his place of glory follows a four-stage cycle that begins with revelation followed by relationship, responsibility and finally restoration. This four-stage cycle is what we find in a father’s ministry.
The father’s ministry is a prophetic ministry and it is the hallmark of the end-time church – the glorious church. When you talk about the prophetic ministry, different people imagine different things. The New Testament though is very clear about prophesy and its purpose. It says this in 2 Corinthians 14: 3: “…he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men”. Every man needs these three things (edification, exhortation and comfort) to fully awaken to his identity in Christ and to reach his full potential in God – his place of glory. We know that from different accounts of Scripture.
The Apostle Paul pointed to the above needs of man in describing his ministry to believers in Thessalonica: “…you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:11–12). Jesus also identified comfort as the primary ministry of the Father when He referred to the Holy Spirit as the Comforter: “…the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will help you remember everything that I have told you” – (John 14:16, Amplified Bible).
The above scriptures confirm to us that the primary ministry of a father to his children is not to meet their material needs as many of us think but to provide them the edification, exhortation and comfort they need to grow up to their fullness in the knowledge of God – their true Father. This is why the prophetic ministry is a father’s ministry; and it is this ministry that the Spirit of God is reviving across the church today.
Thanks for this wonderful message, truly we are living in a world which is hurting, people are hurting outside there, and needs men and women who can speak word of comfort and encouragement.
God bless you.