In every generation, God raises prophets not to entertain but to inform, reform, and warn. A genuine prophet is not a crowd-pleaser; he is a divine DSS officer—a spiritual intelligence agent stationed in the realm of men to download classified information from heaven and relay it before events unfold. But in today’s Nigeria, this sacred mantle has been reduced to stagecraft, emotional manipulation, and celebrity cultism. The question is not whether God still speaks, but whether His genuine messengers still stand.
From ancient Israel to modern nations, God has always sent prophets as divine watchmen. Amos 3:7 affirms: “Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.” In other words, before any national crisis, leadership change, or judgment, God alerts His prophets. They are not magicians or guessers; they carry divine blueprints, just as intelligence officers carry government secrets. But today, many who wear the title ‘Prophet’ operate more like political pundits or spiritual marketers than holy messengers.
To trace the origin of genuine prophetic ministry is to return to men like Elijah, Jeremiah, John the Baptist, and even Apostle Ayo Babalola in Nigeria—men who were not merely gifted but burdened. They didn’t just prophesy for people to clap, they cried, fasted, mourned, and sometimes isolated themselves. Their calling wasn’t motivated by fame or fortune; they bore national burdens in their bones. The mandate of a genuine prophet is not to echo trends but to interrupt patterns—to shake kingdoms, speak uncomfortable truths, and call leaders to repentance.
Prophet Jeremiah wept for Jerusalem. Elijah confronted kings. John the Baptist rebuked rulers in power. Similarly, Prophet TB Joshua lived out a global prophetic mandate, mixing power with humility. He once said, “A true prophet is known by the content of their conscience, not the crowd around them.” In contrast, today’s prophets are often defined by the number of SUVs in their convoys or likes on Instagram, not the depth of their consecration or the accuracy of their national insight.
At the core of a genuine prophet lies a refined conscience—a sacred alert system that responds more to God than to applause. The prophet’s heart is not lifted by money, position, or popularity, but by divine presence. Prophet Isaiah cried, “Woe is me, for I am undone…”—not after fame, but after an encounter with holiness. The conscience of a true prophet is sensitive, bruised by sin, and addicted to divine truth. It is that conscience that makes him weep when others laugh, hide when others show off, and speak when silence is comfortable.
Today, however, Nigeria’s spiritual landscape is flooded with stage prophets—those who mimic the motions of prophecy but lack the spirit behind it. They collect intelligence from familiar spirits, surveillance, and psychological reading, not from the throne room of God. Pastor Dr. Paul Enenche once declared, “If you speak for God, speak with fear and trembling. You are handling eternal destinies.” That holy fear is lost in a generation more obsessed with seed sowing than soul saving.
The prophetic mantle is more than visions and declarations. It is a national priesthood, a watchtower ministry that sees danger ahead and cries out. A genuine prophet is a man wounded by God to warn others. His dreams are not personal ambitions; they are spiritual intelligence reports, warnings about coming calamities, judgments, or transitions. He speaks ahead of time and remains consistent after time proves him right or wrong. That is what separates the prophets from the performers.
If Nigeria must experience a true revival, it must return to honouring genuine prophetic voices—those who walk with limp like Jacob after wrestling with God, not those who strut with swagger before men. Until we embrace prophets who prioritize conscience over convenience, truth over trend, and divine mandate over media fame, we will continue to suffer from spiritual misinformation—guided not by heaven’s intelligence, but by human speculation.
– Inah Boniface Ocholi writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
08152094428 (SMS Only)
