Prophetic Correction or Assignments of Accusation?
by Nathan Shaw
Recently God spoke to me in the middle of a meeting: “Assignments of accusation are operating under the umbrella of prophetic correction.” I reached for a piece of paper and jotted the revelation down while it was still clear in my mind. I knew that the assignments of accusation were being released globally and were seeking to escalate tensions within the body of Christ. It’s a clever strategy of the enemy to disguise accusation by wrapping it up in something that seems righteous. At the end of the day, no matter what form accusation comes in, it is still accusation.
It’s true that from time to time prophets are called to bring correction. In no way do I mean to diminish this important aspect of prophetic ministry. However, it is extremely important to discern the difference between correction and accusation. Accusation feeds a critical, judgmental spirit. It causes us to see what’s wrong at the expense of what’s right. God is a loving father. His natural inclination is to bless and affirm. Satan is a murderer and full of hate. His natural inclination is to condemn and accuse (John 8:44, 10:10, Revelation 12:10). When God corrects He does so as a loving Father. For this reason Scripture strongly warns us not to treat His people roughly (Galatians 6:1, Romans 14:4, 10, James 4:11-12).
God gives each person a domain of authority (2 Corinthians 10:13). When a person attempts to bring correction outside this domain of authority, they become vulnerable to releasing accusation instead. Actually, it’s very easy to do this, particularly when we believe we are promoting a righteous cause. Fathers and mothers intuitively know that the authority entrusted to them by God is to govern their own households and not the households of others. A father and mother are best able to bring correction to their children because of the close and loving relationship they have with them. The same is true in the body of Christ. When God entrusts someone with a certain authority in one part of His body, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they have that same authority in another part.
Correction always works best in the context of loving relationship. In 1 Corinthians 14:29 Paul exhorted the Corinthian prophets to judge the prophetic words given in their public meetings. The word judge here means to discern, evaluate or weigh. Unfortunately many people forget the context of this verse: Both the prophets speaking and the prophets judging were living in covenant community with each other. In this context judging means discerning and discovering God’s voice and God’s heart together. It doesn’t mean accusing individual prophets. Paul made it clear that everything they did was to be governed by love (1 Corinthians 13). False responsibility drives people to continually correct prophecies and doctrines and fix people and situations. Jesus didn’t do that. He only did what He saw the Father doing (John 5:19). God is a loving Father. We can trust Him to bring any necessary correction to His body.
It is not uncommon for prophets to release revelations that seem totally opposite to revelations given to other prophets. Prophets, or groups of prophets, so easily end up pitted against each another with both sides attempting to bring correction. James wisely said, “Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath” (James 1:19). We should know when to speak and when to remain silent. There are many situations in which remaining silent is the greater wisdom. Jesus Himself remained silent when He was being falsely accused before Caiaphas the High Priest (Matthew 26:63, Mark 14:61).
Scripture reveals many instances in which revelations were given that just didn’t make sense and even seemed totally wrong. Joseph had a dream that the sun, moon and eleven stars bowed down to him (Genesis 37:9). Joseph’s father, Jacob, was shocked by the dream, and rebuked Joseph: “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?” (Genesis 37:10). In the ancient world mindset of Jacob’s time it seemed inconceivable for a mother and father to bow down to a son. Despite Jacob’s initial shock it goes on to say that he pondered the matter (Genesis 37:11). Jacob recognized that Joseph’s dream could in fact refer to something unforeseen. In events that followed, Jacob was led to believe that Joseph had died. Now it definitely seemed like the revelation was wrong. Regardless, the dream happened as predicted. We are often too quick to judge revelations from God. This situation teaches us to ponder revelations rather than jump to premature conclusions and false accusations.
When Jesus was in Caesarea Philippi He made two astonishing predictions. Firstly, He prophesied to Peter: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19). Wow! Having the keys of the kingdom of heaven is a high level of authority! Peter wasn’t ready to carry that authority yet. Secondly, Jesus predicted that He would die a cruel death on a cross (Matthew 16:21). Peter was indignant and began to rebuke Jesus: “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” (Matthew 16:22). Jesus’ response definitely stopped Peter in his tracks: “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23). Jesus called Peter Satan! Interestingly the name Satan means accuser. Peter wasn’t seeing the full picture and it caused him to accuse Jesus of being flat out wrong. Jesus’ response was an important rebuke for someone soon to be entrusted with the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
We stand on the brink of a prophetic moment in history so powerful that it will redefine the battle for generations to come. Satan knows this and is doing everything in his power to prevent it from happening. That’s why he is releasing such powerful assignments of accusation and disguising them as prophetic correction. His aim is to distract our attention and cloud our vision. The good news is that God reveals Satan’s schemes so that we don’t fall for them (2 Corinthians 2:11). It’s a good time to examine our hearts and make sure that we are not vulnerable to becoming launching pads for these assignments. We live in momentous times. God has much to reveal to us. Let’s make sure that our vision doesn’t become clouded.
© 2021 Nathan Shaw.
Related Book:
A Defining Moment in History
There is an intense spiritual battle raging in the United States of America and the nations of the earth. The outcome will be far reaching, impacting future generations and the destinies of many nations. A Defining Moment in History reveals God’s heart for the nations and your role in the unfolding battle.
“This is not a book you can read quickly! Time is needed to ponder the prophecies and let them marinate in your spirit. Their significance, along with the accompanying scriptures, teachings, revelations and insights, make this a very important book to read” – Linda Valen, Ministry Director, Master Potter Ministries.
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