Let us turn to 1 Corinthians 14:29-32, which says, “And as to prophets, two or three should speak, and the others discern. But if something is revealed to another sitting by, the first should be silent. For you can all prophesy one by one that all may learn and all may be encouraged. And the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets.” Prophethood is the highest ministry among all ministries of God’s word. The Holy Spirit gives the word to the prophets, and the same Spirit is within the prophets. It is the spirits of the prophets which enable the prophets to speak God’s word. But something else is also mentioned: A speaker has to watch to see if others have also received God’s word. If they have, then he has to allow them to speak. Although the first one may have God’s word in his mouth, he should stop and allow others who have received a revelation to speak. If four or five persons have received a revelation, they should not all speak; at most two or three should speak, while the rest should keep quiet, because the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. When the Holy Spirit is upon a person and he is serving as God’s minister of the word, the spirit of such a person is subject to him. “The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets”—this is God’s own word.
Here we find a basic principle: In releasing God’s word, the Holy Spirit decides what should be spoken, but the prophets decide when and how the word should be spoken. In a meeting, if two or three have received a revelation and are speaking, the fourth and the fifth should shut their mouths even though they have also received a revelation. Although the word they have received is from the Holy Spirit, they have to decide when they should release it. They cannot speak whenever they want. If someone else receives a revelation while they are speaking, they have to stop and allow the other to speak. Hence, the word is given by the Spirit, but the time and way it is delivered is determined by the prophets. The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. When the Spirit of God wants you to speak, you should bear in mind that your spirit is subject to you. The time and way to speak is determined by the prophets. One does not speak whenever the word comes to him.
The responsibility of the ministers of the word is great. Much of the responsibility rests on the shoulder of the ministers, not on God. If the ministers are not proper, God’s word will suffer loss. The words may be the right words, but the attitude of the speaker may be wrong or the timing may be wrong. As a consequence, God’s word will suffer loss. If we are not proper, we cannot release a proper word. Or if we are not trustworthy, the word will fail even while it is still in us. If the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets, how great is the responsibility of the prophets! It is relatively easy to speak when the word comes upon us. It is also easy to stop speaking when the word does not come upon us. But when the Lord gives us the word, we still have to decide how and when we should speak such a word. If we have never been dealt with or restricted by the Lord and if there is no constitution of the Holy Spirit or knowledge of His way in us, His word will suffer damage in our hands. The Lord entrusts His word to us, and we have to consider how and when we should deliver it. This is a tremendous responsibility, and we must not regard it lightly.
We should realize that the ministry of the word means that God has entrusted His word to man. This word is not a replay from a tape recorder, but a word that is placed within man. It gives room for man to consider the way and time for it to be delivered. The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. The Lord intends that such spirits be subject to the prophets. The time and way for the word to be delivered is entirely the responsibility of the prophets; they are not the responsibility of the Spirit. If a prophet has not experienced the proper dealings, discipline, and restriction, his spirit will run wild, and trouble will result. The critical issue today is not related to whether one is a prophet but to what kind of person a prophet is. The distinction is not between prophets and non-prophets but between one prophet and another prophet, that is, the difference between one prophet and another. Putting it in another way, what is the difference between Jeremiah and Balaam? We must be clear about this basic principle before the Lord. Today there is the need for God’s word, and there is the need for the ministry of the word. Without God’s word, there is no ministry of the word, and without a proper person, there is also no ministry of the word.
One basic problem in the church is the lack of proper ministers of the word. This does not mean that God’s word is rare or that the vision or light is unclear. It means that there is a shortage of men whom God can use. God desires that the spirits of prophets be subject to prophets. Who are the prophets to whom the spirits of the prophets will be subject? Can the spirits of prophets be subject to those who walk according to their own will, who give ground to the flesh, and who are stubborn in their mind and emotion? If a man does not bear the mark of the cross in his spirit, he is a wild and proud man. He may have suffered years of discipline, but he is not yet defeated. The Lord’s smiting hand may have been on him once, twice, or even ten times, but he is still not defeated. In spite of the Lord’s repeated chastisement, he is still unyielding. Such a man proves himself to be a useless vessel. Is the problem before us a shortage of vision, light, or the word? No. It is a shortage of prophets whom God can use.
A characteristic of Paul was God’s ability to use him and God’s willingness to entrust him. If God cannot use a person, He cannot entrust His word to him. If God entrusts His word to you and charges you to speak, how are you going to speak? You have to speak according to what you are. When God lets you speak His word, your mind will frustrate God’s word if it is not working properly. If your emotion is improper, your emotion will contaminate God’s word. If your motive is not proper, your motive will damage God’s word. If your opinion is not proper, your opinion will contaminate God’s word. If your spirit is not proper, you will give others the impression of an improper spirit even though all of your words may be correct. The fundamental problem today is that God’s word has suffered much in the hands of man! His word has suffered much loss in the hands of man! This is why God cannot entrust His word to man.
The more we are dealt with by the Lord and the deeper His dealing touches our being, the closer we are to having a revelation. When a man’s emotion, mind, will, and spirit are all dealt with, the Holy Spirit puts His word in that person’s mouth, and his utterance is an inspiration, a revelation. The inspiration that the Bible refers to occurs when human elements are kept under the control of the Holy Spirit and are barred from going off on their own tangents. When the word is put into the mouth of such a person, the resulting ministry of the word is a revelation, an inspiration. This is why we say that the more dealings we receive, the more inspiration we will have. Our mind, emotion, and will all have to pass through God’s dealings. Even our memory has to pass through God’s dealings. Moreover, our understanding is very much related to God’s word. Hence, our understanding must pass through God’s dealings as well. Our hearts need to be dealt with. Our motives also need to be dealt with. God has to work on our entire being. We have to remember that a minister of the word cannot be constituted without paying a price. We should not think that constitution can occur without the paying of a price. Can a man become a minister of the word simply because he has a quick mentality? No. We should never have the mistaken thought that human wisdom, knowledge, or eloquence can add anything to God’s word. We have to be smitten, pressed, and dismantled. All of those who know the Lord realize that His hand is very heavy upon those whom He uses. The purpose of His hand is to make a person a useful vessel. The Lord has to break and dismantle us before we can become a minister of the word. Being a minister of God’s word does not come without the paying of a price.
Some people have gone through years of dealings, perhaps ten, twenty, or even thirty years. During all those years, the Lord’s hand has been upon them. He has dealt with them again and again and has worked on them over and over again. Are we so dull? Are we so sleepy? It is impossible for us to remain as we are and hope to participate in the ministry of the word. We need to prostrate ourselves before the Lord and say, “I am a useless vessel. I have to go on. I have to be smitten and broken to the point where I can become useful in Your hand. Otherwise, I have no way to accomplish anything for You.” Once we reach this point, the Lord’s word will be released through us freely.
In summary, the Holy Spirit puts God’s word into us. It is His responsibility to tell us what we should speak. But He leaves the decision of how and when we should speak to us. God entrusts us and believes in us. His charge is that the spirits of prophets be subject to prophets. How grave is the responsibility of the prophets! The way of the ministry of the word is the way of releasing God’s word through man’s mind and man’s word. If our contribution is not up to the proper standard, God’s word is no longer His word. This brings in serious consequences! It is easy for God to speak from the heavens. It is easy for Him to speak through the angels. But He loves us and has chosen us. It is indeed unfortunate if we become an obstacle to Him everywhere and in everything. We are often proven to be useless vessels. In order for God to secure ministers of the word, we have to beg for mercy. We have to say to the Lord, “I will not let You go unless I receive mercy from You.” If we do not receive mercy from Him, His word will stop with us. Today the entire responsibility rests upon our shoulders.
We have preached the word for more than ten or twenty years, but how much of what we have preached has been the utterance of God’s word? We claim that we are preaching God’s word, but how much of God’s word truly has been preached? The basic principle of the ministry of the word is the principle of incarnation, the word becoming flesh. The word cannot skip the flesh. Where there are ministers, there is God’s word. Where there are no ministers, God’s word is not found. If we do not find the ministers, we do not find God’s word. There must be ministers before there can be God’s word. How great is the responsibility of the ministers before the Lord. If we are ministers, we have to realize that the responsibility is on our shoulders. God must secure ministers before He can speak. Without ministers, God cannot speak. Today God does not speak directly to man, the heavens do not speak directly to man, and the angels do not speak directly to man. If man does not open up his mouth, no one will hear God’s word, and His word will be locked up. During the past two thousand years, God’s word was released whenever He found some men. Sometimes He would find one man, and His word would be released in a mighty way. If God finds some ministers today, His word will be released in a mighty way once again. If the church will stand on new ground and if it will satisfy God to become His vessel, God’s word will once again be released in a mighty way. But if we stand still, God will have no way to go forward on this earth. Let me repeat: It is the ministers who bring in God’s word. Without the ministers there is no word. The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. We must be uplifted to Paul’s standard. When we speak God’s word, we should have the feeling that both we and the Lord are speaking. Then we will see the riches. God’s word is indeed rich. May He be merciful to us and grant us the word. May we see many ministers of the word being raised up.