“Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:19–21
It’s clear that the church in Thessalonica was wrestling with issues that sound remarkably familiar to what we see in the church today, especially in America. The apostle Paul recognized a tendency in the church to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” when it came to the gift of prophecy. In the above passage of Scripture, he offers both a correction and an encouragement—not just for them, but for all of us.
Paul saw prophecy as a vital part of a healthy church. But for it to function well, there are two key responsibilities we must embrace:
Step 1: Test All Prophecies
Paul doesn’t say to blindly accept prophetic words, nor to reject them outright. Instead, he urges us to test them all. That means listening carefully, praying, and discerning which words align with the character of God and the truth of Scripture.
Under the new covenant, the Holy Spirit dwells within God’s people—and with Him comes the ability to discern what is from God and what isn’t. Paul knew people could miss it—out of pride, error, or misunderstanding. But his point is clear: when prophecy goes wrong, the problem isn’t the gift—it’s the human packaging.
Our response should not be to reject prophecy altogether, but to sift through the imperfections and uncover the truth God is still speaking.
Step 2: Hold On to What Is Good
Our friend Steve Backlund tells a story about a time when he was pastoring in a town in Nevada that had an active gold mine. He described how in the mining process, enormous amounts of dirt are removed to extract the gold—but no one complains about the dirt. They’re after the gold. That’s the mindset we’re called to as believers: to be gold miners in the prophetic.
Yes, prophecy involves people—and with people, there will be mess. But the dirt isn’t the point. The gold is.
God is asking us to become a people who can recognize His voice even when it’s wrapped in human weakness, and to treasure the good when we find it.
In this podcast episode, John Thomas and Pastor Kristi Graner continue their discussion on what a healthy prophetic culture looks like.
We invite you to listen and to ask God to awaken and deepen the gift of prophecy in your own life.
