Do We Have Prophets in the New Testament?
1) Direct answer
Yes. The New Testament has prophets, and God still sets prophets in the Church today. They do not add new Scripture, but they call God’s people back to the written Word, reveal what is hidden, warn, and edify the Body.
2) Scriptural explanation
- God placed prophets in the Church: “God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets…” (1 Corinthians 12:28). “He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets… for the perfecting of the saints… till we all come… unto a perfect man” (Ephesians 4:11-13). We have not yet arrived at that global perfection, so the ministry remains.
- New Testament examples: Prophets and teachers in Antioch (Acts 13:1). Agabus who foretold famine and Paul’s bonds (Acts 11:27-28; 21:10-11). Judas and Silas, “being prophets also themselves” (Acts 15:32). Philip’s four daughters who prophesied (Acts 21:9).
- Order and testing: “Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge” (1 Corinthians 14:29). “Despise not prophesyings. Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:20-21). The standard is the Word: “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). If a thing is spoken in the Name of the Lord and does not come to pass, don’t fear it (Deuteronomy 18:21-22).
- End-time promise: “Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things” (Matthew 17:11; see Malachi 4:5-6). That points to a prophetic ministry before the great and dreadful day of the Lord—a restoring call back to the original Word, not the writing of a new Bible. Revelation 10:7 shows that in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be finished—again, not adding Scripture, but bringing to light what God already gave.
3) Simple clarifying logic
- If Jesus “gave” prophets for the Church “till we all come” to full maturity, then prophets continue until that purpose is fulfilled.
- The same Holy Spirit who inspired prophecy in Acts has not changed. Therefore the gifts and offices He set remain, with the same Bible standard of judgment.
- True prophecy never contradicts Scripture, never leads to sin or pride, and always exalts Jesus Christ and holiness. False prophecy fails the Word test, the fruit test, and the fulfillment test.
4) Reinforcing statement
Now notice, the Bible does not tell us to reject prophecy; it tells us not to despise it, but to judge it by the Word. A true New Testament prophet will point the Bride back to the written Word, reveal the secrets of the heart, and prepare a people for the coming of the Lord.
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What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
The invasion of the United States
54-0509 §16
Our scene bases, this morning, on a tragic. And the Old Testament, to me, is always a shadow, or a forecasting, of the New Testament. Many times, someone has said, "Brother Branham, why is it you always take the Old Testament? Nearly always, taking a text, you'll go back to the Old Testament." I do it because I like typology. I like... My education is very limited, as all know. And the only way that I know to be somewhere near right, is to see what the pattern was, to look off the blueprint and see what it was. And...
On the wings of a snow-white Dove
65-1128E §81
You know what? There's people living today that was dying then, and still alive because of that effort. What did it do? It sprung up divine healings in every church there is in the country, now even Presbyterians and so forth. It hushed their mouth; for it taken God to anoint somebody to slay the Goliath, to show that it could be done. Then the rest of them took courage (that's right) and went on. It can be done again, for He still sends His love on the wings of a Dove. Christians, I want you to listen. If I would...
Trying to do God a service without it being God's will
65-1127B §137
Notice, God told the prophet, said, "Eat the scroll," in the Old Testament. The prophet of the New Testament, He said, "Eat the little book." Why? That the prophet and the Word would be one! See? That's the Ark, the Word of God. God has promised His Word, how it would be fulfilled and how it would come to pass when He chose His bride, how it would be done. It's happening right before you, in the name of the Lord, and that's by the original Word! The evening-time message is here. How many remembers Haywood, when he...
God is His own interpreter
64-0205 §8
When God makes a promise and God says... In the beginning, in Genesis, He allotted His Word to each age as it come down from the beginning to the end. And, down through these ages, the church world has got all these things all mixed up by traditions, and so forth, and God always sends on the scene, down through the Old Testament and New, prophets. And the Word of the Lord comes to the prophet. And how does it do it? It manifests the Word of God. God's manifestation; that tells whether it's right or wrong. Nobody ha...
The Identified Masterpiece of God
64-1205 §56
...r's Word. God said He would be there, and there He was---the perfect masterpiece of God's great handiwork. Oh, my! He was the perfect reflection of Him. He reflected everything that God had spoke of. He reflected what Adam said about Him, He reflected about all the prophets said, about all the patriarchs said. Everything that He said, He was the fulfillment of the Word. All types was fulfilled in Him. He became Jehovah of the New Testament. He was the Old Testament Jehovah. The Word, then, which was in the pillar o...