The "Nonprophet" Church

On May 15, 2019, Alabama enacted the Human Life Protection Act, a groundbreaking pro-life bill to protect unborn children. The story overwhelmed the national news cycle and drew severe criticism from pro-choice lobbies and social media. It was a moment of intense divisiveness as many expressed their fury and threatened consequences against Alabama. People seemed to be losing their heads.

Later that week while mowing my yard, I was passing the time in prayer. I had recently listened to Lou Engle speak on the issue of abortion and my heart had been moved to pray fervently for Alabama. As I prayed, I was reminded of recent Arkansas pro-life bills and the Arkansas Legislators whose lives had been threatened because of their pro-life stance. I began to thank God for the courage of our state Legislators and prayed for their safety.

As I prayed, I was caught by surprise as I heard these words resound in my spirit, “My church in America has become non-prophet to remain nonprofit.” I was filled with a sense of conviction that many of our pastors had not taken as bold a pro-life stance as our State Legislature. Our churches would not risk the same threats or consequences. I felt the Lord’s pain over the loss of our prophetic courage.

Another phrase resounded in my spirit, “The church in America has traded their prophetic voice for a bowl of tax-exempt soup [referring to the story of Jacob and Esau in Genesis 25:29-34], and I will not allow my church to be non-prophet any longer.“

I understood that God’s controversy against the American church’s refusal to speak at the risk of their tax exemption. The Lord cares too much about the prophetic voice of the church in America to let our tax status keep us non-prophet.

If the future should hold the removal of the church’s tax exemption, will it be the work of an angry devil or a jealous God? Perhaps it will be the hand of the Lord to restore our prophetic voice. Having observed generational and political trends, I notice a growing sentiment against the church’s nonprofit status and an increasing expectation of its eventual removal. The days ahead are uncertain, but this is sure: the church must restore its courage as a prophetic voice. The cost of remaining “non-prophet” far outway the cost of compromising to remain nonprofit.

If these truly are the days when we will see the ending of abortion, a great awakening in America, and the global expansion of the kingdom of God, then are these not the days to give our all? The world desperately needs the church to be a prophetic voice again, and I do not believe God will allow us to settle for less.