John Eckhardt - Prophecy with Laying on of Hands of the Presbytery

N eglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.

1 Timothy 4:14 ,15

There is great need for local churches to have prophetic presbyteries that will strengthen, release, and help the church move into a greater level of breakthrough and ministry. I am surprised by the number of churches that have never had a time for prophetic presbytery, although this was practiced in the early church, and has been restored to the modern church for over fifty years. Churches must have a revelation of the power of prophetic presbyteries and set aside time for them periodically. David Blomgren's book, Prophetic Gatherings In The Church, is a classic on the subject of prophetic presbyteries, but unfortunately, is now out of print. Steve Schultz has recently released a practical manual on prophetic presbyteries, and has a vision to see this practice restored to the church. I recommend that churches in the I.M.P.A.C.T. Network of churches have prophetic presbyteries to release potential candidates into their place in the Body of Christ, and help release them into their destinies.

Prophetic presbytery is a time when presbyters (elders) lay hands on and prophesy over selected believers to speak the will of God over them, impart gifts, and release them into their membership ministries. A presbyter is an elder who has the resident gift of prophecy. Ideally, a presbytery should consist of apostles and prophets who are elders of a local church. The presbyters do not have to be from the local church where the presbytery is being held. In other words, local churches can call in presbyters from other churches to conduct the presbytery.

Bill Hamon defines Prophetic Presbytery as a time when two or more prophets and/or prophetic ministers lay hands on and prophesy over individuals at a specified time and place. Prophetic presbyteries are conducted for several reasons:

1. Revealing a Saint's membership ministry in the Body of Christ.

2. Ministering a prophetic rhema word of God to individuals.

3. Impartation and activation of divinely ordained gifts, graces, and callings.

4. Revelation, clarification, and confirmation of leadership ministry in the local church.

5. "Laying on of hands and prophecy" over those called and properly prepared to be an ordained fivefold minister.

Prophetic presbyteries are governmental because they are conducted by the authority (elders) of the church. This is different from receiving prophetic words from a prophetic team. Presbyteries have more of a setting and releasing aspect for those receiving ministry. Candidates are chosen by the leadership of the church. Prophetic presbytery is not a time for anyone and everyone to receive a word.

The presbytery team can consist of two or more presbyters. Three or four presbyters are ideal. Each presbyter takes time to prophesy over the candidates before the entire congregation. Each presbyter has a part to release, and no one presbyter will have all of the Word of the Lord. Presbyters must work together as a team. There is no competition between the presbyters. They should all be mature (elders). The presbytery is lead by a senior presbyter (usually an apostle with the most experience and maturity among the presbyters). Apostles will be able to prophesy with authority and revelation from their apostolic office. They also have an anointing to set. Prophets, however, are much needed in a presbytery, because they bring detail and clarity by releasing the Word of the Lord from the prophet's office. Apostles and prophets make a powerful team in a presbytery.

Presbyters with a resident gift of prophecy can prophecy on a regular basis to God's people. They do not have to wait for a special anointing to prophesy, but can prophesy because of the resident gift of prophecy. The simple gift of prophecy is for edification, exhortation, and comfort. Apostles and prophets can speak direction, correction, and revelation, because of other gifts (e.g. word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith) that operate through their offices. A prophetic presbytery will go beyond edification, exhortation, and comfort, and include impartation, direction, confirmation, and revelation, because of the resident gift of prophecy in the presbyters, and the strength and anointing of their offices.

The strength of a prophetic presbytery will depend upon the presbyters and candidates. The more mature and gifted the presbyters, and the more qualified the candidates, the stronger the prophetic flow will be. The faith of the church, and an atmosphere created through prayer, fasting and worship will also determine the strength of the presbytery. God desires for churches to have strong prophetic gatherings. Strong utterances and impartations should be expected if a presbytery is conducted properly. These should be times of great refreshing and blessing for the entire church. Even those not receiving ministry can rejoice and be blessed by seeing others in the body receive. As others in the body are strengthened and released, the entire church is blessed. We should rejoice with them that rejoice.

The entire leadership of the church should be present during a presbytery. They need to hear the prophetic words spoken over people who are under their leadership. The leadership of a church is responsible to oversee the members, and have a responsibility to help guide the candidates after they receive prophetic ministry. Members should also be encouraged to come and give their support. The corporate anointing is needed to have a strong presbytery. Those not receiving ministry are not to sit idly by and be spectators of what is transpiring. They should help create an atmosphere, through their faith and prayer, which will assist the presbyters and candidates to receive the full blessing of the Lord.

It is wise to invite presbyters who are new to the church, and not too familiar with the people receiving ministry. It is also good to have a presbyter return, who has functioned as a presbyter before (if this is not the first presbytery). There may be leaders within the local church who can function on a presbytery, but is recommended that the leadership brings in presbyters from outside the local church, who are not familiar with the candidates.

After each presbyter has prophesied (it is not necessary for all the presbyters to prophecy over each candidate), it is time for the presbytery to lay hands on and pray over the candidate (or candidates, if a couple). This is a time of impartation and transfer of gifts and anointing. The candidate will be encouraged, confirmed, strengthened, and released into a greater sphere of ministry as a result of prophetic presbytery. The church will also be blessed by hearing the word spoken over the candidates. This will help the church and leadership to discern the gifting and calling upon the candidates. The church will be built up because key people (candidates) have received prophetic presbytery.

Candidates should be members of the local church selected by its leadership. They should be saved, Spirit filled, and evidence spiritual maturity. Prophetic presbytery is not a time to fix problems that believers may have. It is unfair to the presbyters to select people who are not qualified for this kind of ministry. It is recommended that the candidates be members of a local church for at least a year, to prevent people from joining a church just to receive this kind of ministry.

We believe that all believers can receive prophecy. Churches today are raising up prophetic teams to accomplish this. However, prophetic presbytery is a time in which only a select few can receive in depth prophetic ministry. It is recommended that the number be limited to between three and seven settings. The presbytery can take place over several days. It takes time to minister in prophetic presbytery. This is not a time to call in prophets to prophesy over everything moving in your church. After candidates receive prophetic presbytery time can be given to call people from the congregation and prophesy over them. This is to encourage believers, but it is not the main reason why the presbyters have come. The church can also receive corporate words during a time of prophetic presbytery.