When you think of the Reformation you tend to think of Calvinism, orthodoxy, and surely not prophecy or prophetic utterance! In one sense the reformers were prophets - calling the Church into God's truth on a grand scale. When I speak of prophecy in this article, I mean the manifestation of revelatory words as Paul describes as one of the nine gifts of the Spirit in 1 Cor 12-14.

However, the Reformation was more than just a return to the light and to the Scriptures. Martin Luther taught on the value of the prophetic in his commentary on Joel 2:28: "For what are all other gifts, however numerous they may be, in comparison with this gift, when the Spirit of God Himself, the eternal God, descends into our hearts, yea, into our bodies, and dwells in us, governs, guides, and leads us? Thus with respect to this declaration of the prophet, prophecy, visions and dreams are, in truth, one precious gift."

Martin Luther was not just an armchair theologian. After wrestling with God in prayer for his sick friend Philip Melanchthon, he operated under a prophetic gift and declared to him, "Be of good cheer, Philip, you shall not die." As a result, a gift of healing was released and his dying friend was revived.

On the back of the Reformation, an amazing story of the "French Prophets" emerged. They are also known as "the little prophets of the Cevennes", named after the young age of those who prophesied and the Cevennes mountains where they hid from persecution.

There had been a quasi religious freedom for the Protestants in France since 1598 and the Edict of Nantes. However, in 1685, Louis XIV revoked the treaty and persecution returned. Like the Montanist movement, they experienced strong convulsions and ecstatic movements as the word of the Lord was being proclaimed. To a large extent, this was the contentious issue with the French church and government. Thousands were martyred, many fled to England, others entrenched in the mountains. Those who attempted to defend themselves during the years 1701-1710 were called 'the Camisards." Miracles, healings, tongues and prophecy flowed in their meetings. The anointing seemed to be very contagious. Within a year of the first prophetic word given by a young girl in February, 1688, there were a thousand prophets.

The rise of the gift of prophecy is not confined to these last few decades. It seems like we are following in the path of other pioneers, some of them were children. Have you witnessed child prophets in your midst?

One peasant named Halmede had a son 12 years old who had received the blessing. It wasn't a blessing to him, knowing that many households were massacred for such news. The local parish priest counseled the father that a forced fast with added beatings would stop his son from prophesying. But to no avail, Halmede returned in a short while with the same complaint. The last hope offered was the use of a snake skin as a charm, or amulet which would be placed over the boy's head when he began to shake and prophecy. However, when this was attempted, the child was shaken with a violent trembling and with a loud voice he shouted out the displeasure of the Lord over the sinful act that the father was committing. Then, like a bolt of lightening, Halmede was struck and began to weep tears of repentance. Within a few days he also became a shaking prophet like his son with gifts of revelation and knowledge.

The common manifestations of the "French Prophets" were as follows: falling to the ground, groaning from the chest, the jerks, visions, prophesying in perfect French when 'patois' was their only spoken language, and a host of other gifts of the Spirit and miracles. One man named Jean Cavalier testified that God's presence would often come upon him and he would experience 'the jerks' and at times fall to the ground. This lasted for nine months, until one Sunday morning prayer time in his house when God loosed his tongue and he prophesied after an extended period of shaking. Children as young as fourteen months prophesied the word of the Lord in impeccable Parisian French. They often spoke of the angelic song that would be heard in their meetings. There were even signs in the sky as fire would fall from heaven to blind the eyes of their enemies. These revelations were usually focused on winning the lost in their midst and encouraging the saved. Yet when they fled to London for refuge many were taunted. A puppet play was even written, mocking their experiences of God.

In their defense, Mr. A. Bost, the 1707 chronicler who recorded their testimonies while in their London exile affirmed that "just one of them was worth a thousand of us". In his final reflections he asks this stirring question, "We have seen the declarations in our Holy Bible which announce so clearly that God will not cease to manifest Himself in His church through many signs of His power. Do we even desire these signs? Or at least do we deplore their absence?"

How do you respond to such a question? I personally deplore the absence of this kind of prophetic gifting in the Body of Christ. A little shaking during the delivery of a 'Word from the Lord' has not offended me, neither the prophet Jeremiah. He said "my heart is broken within me; all my bones tremble. I am like a drunken man, like a man overcome by wine, because of the Lord and His holy words" (Jer.23:9).

Shaking prophecies didn't stop there. The Evangelical Gazette of Berlin, in March, 1846, published an account of an extraordinary revival taking place in Sweden. The revival began in 1844 in Smaland, the poorest province of the country. Simple villagers, not knowing how to read or write, experienced an outpouring of the Spirit and began prophesying in perfect Swedish. They were called the 'roestars', which literally means the yellers or proclaimers, like John 1:23 - "the voice of one calling out in the desert." They too would tremble and shake both before a word was given and during. They would be on the ground or remain standing for up to two hours while the revelation was proclaimed. It seemed that they were shut up with God and their senses were locked away in Him. Even the persecutors who tried to stop them would at times be seized with the same prophetic manifestations and became 'roestars' themselves!

Discussion Question:

What do you think of physical manifestations (shaking, etc) during the delivery of a prophetic word today. Is it acceptable? Is it desirable?