PARENTAL PROPHECY
While reading a verse of scripture found in Genesis we noticed that knowing the future is available to all godly parents. Yes, as children of light we should know the future concerning our children but more importantly we should be willing to speak out that future in the ears of our children and in the ears of God. Let us start our lesson with some key verses of this teaching found in Genesis 49:1-2 KJV.
1 And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.
2 Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.
Although Jacob was not perfect in his walk with God all during his lifetime we do notice that his carnality didn’t stop him from having divine encounters with God. Since Jacob was not a prophet no future revelation came to him because of his office. Generally speaking when God calls you to a specific office His ministry gifts are without repentance and they operate on all people who need ministry from that office and those same gifts will operate in the minister’s family when called upon by members of their family. Jacob was not referred to as a priest of God to offer up prayers for the sins of his people, so that ministry anointing was not present either. What we do notice with Jacob is that he was a God fearing parent who cared for his wife(s), concubine(s) and children. This made Jacob a type of biblical father figure who basically prayed for and counseled with his family. Yes, Jacob was never proclaimed the king of a nation although he was the king over his family/household. The reason we (ihlcc) bring these three offices up is because we know a special anointing came upon the prophet, priest and king to execute their respective office but that anointing wouldn’t apply in the case of Jacob. Likewise, that type of anointing or ministry gift does apply to many of us who are not called to the full-time ministry as an apostle, prophet, pastor, teacher or evangelist. However, we must know as Children of God when we are over a family we also have a special anointing to govern our family and our household when people are living with us. Yes, this ministry gift of divine parenthood may not get as much recognition but it is no less powerful in its own right. In the example of Jacob, which refers to the common earthly side of his nature (mere man – supplanter) as opposed to his spiritual name of Israel (prince), we see that a God fearing saint can operate on a higher level with God. Yes, we could say Jacob was a great patriarch but we (ihlcc) could also say that God made us great in Christ Jesus. We must always remember in Jesus Christ we are born of God’s Holy Spirit so that we can operate in the Mind of Christ, which is the divine wisdom of God, full of current and future insight.
1 Corinthians 2:9-16 KJV
9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
The Holy Bible shows us the details of Jacob’s life and reveals to us that Jacob was not known for being exceptionally spiritual but rather for being a son of Isaac who was favored by God in the midst of his trails and tribulations on earth. The Lord didn’t want us to glorify Jacob as a great spiritual giant but desired that we would look at the human nature of Jacob and realize that he too had like passions as we do. Jacob had many children indeed so that no one could complain about the things their own children did. The key to understanding God’s message with Jacob is understanding that through it all God brought them, yes the whole family, deliverance. Yes, Jacob had to deal with murders as children, and the thoughts of a dead child, and the actual death of grandchildren. He also knew what it was like to reason with emotionally scarred children and sons who had wicked hearts that produced evil deeds. Jacob personally knew about the ugliness of rape and yet through it all he kept his faith in our almighty God. Jacob’s earthly name is used in the bible around three-hundred and seventy-seven times to remind us of the human side of mankind in which a nation was born from an earthly seed named “Jacob”. We should never lose sight of the fact that Jacob was a man that God helped to become a great nation solely by the grace and goodness of God. Remember we said the name Jacob meant “supplanter” which comes from the word “supplant”. The word “supplant” basically means to take the place of another by trickery to receive the good things coming to that other person. This replacement can also come in the form of disgracing the other person to receive their blessing. We typically refer to that as overthrowing a person’s good fortune or undermining their plan/pathway to their goal (blessing). This shows us that we have an evil nature just like Jacob but God through His infinite Grace and Love resurrected us into a new life. This life of a Christian is even a higher calling than being renamed a Prince, as Jacob’s name was changed to “Israel”. Just as the name “Israel” means prince who has power with God the word Christian means we have the same power that Christ operated in while on the earth. Since the name “Israel” is the name of a godly prince that God fights for, we as Christians have the same inheritance and promise. Remember it is the Lord Himself with His Heavenly Host that fights our battles also when we walk by faith resting in His Grace. As Christians we first have to acknowledge that we are but mere men outside of Christ but as dearly beloved children of God all things are possible to those that believe. Hence, it is up to us to believe in the power of God to show us things to come by operating in His divine power, which is not by our works, but solely by our openness to His operations of grace and vision inside of us.
John 16:13 KJV
Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
We must be willing to believe that revelation concerning our children will come to us supernaturally simply because we have a covenant with God. We never want to focus on how spiritual we are because that would only lead to works and pride, but operate just like Jacob by allowing God’s Grace to provide this information to us through our faith in God’s awesome power. Remember Jacob knew very well the power of his earthly father’s words because he purposed to steal the “parental prophecy” from Esau, his brother, spoken from the mouth of Isaac in Genesis 27:1-30. Specifically when we speak of “parental prophecy” we (ihlcc) are speaking of verbally blessing our children with words spoken to them and to God. Although every word we speak concerning our children’s future may not be good, it is our constant profession that they will be a wise, prosperous, obedience child of God on earth while they are on their way to Heaven. “Parental Prophecy” speaks the good rich word of God over the children no matter what they are doing. It is our confession of faith in which we have positive hope that our words will create our children’s future. It is foolish to leave your children’s future up to chance and circumstance when we have full operation of the mighty power of God. It is wiser to speak forth your children’s future as a blood washed child of God to force the destiny of the child into a predefined person already described by God. At the very least we should never leave the spiritual state of salvation up to the child but rather decree that our children are saved to let salvation come to them rather than hoping that they will choose Jesus one day.
Job 22:26-28 KJV
26 For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.
27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.
28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.
The more you operate in the unknown the less control you will have in your life and the life of your children which translates into a less desirable future. Uncertainty only invokes instability which creates in all people frustration, worry and confusion. We have the wisdom of God in our heart so why should we settle for uncertainty in the light of God’s precious promises found in His Holy Word guarantying our successful certainty in Christ. We have the power of God’s Holy written words which cannot fail and since we are speaking God’s Will, which is His Words, we know God is responsible to bring His Own Words to pass in the life of our children and yes, even in our grandchildren. Notice the following verses that speak to us about our godly influence reaching our grandchildren in the earth.
Genesis 45:9-10 KJV
9 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:
10 And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast:
Psalms 103:17 KJV
But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;
Psalms 128:4-6 KJV
4 Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.
5 The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.
Proverbs 13:22 KJV
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.
Proverbs 17:6 KJV
Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.
Jeremiah 2:9 KJV
Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.
Ezekiel 37:24-27 KJV
24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.
26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.
27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Notice the confidence of God Almighty to speak out the future as though it is already established. Notice the boldness of God to call the children and grandchildren blessed forevermore. We (ihlcc) are certain that if all Christians operated in this godly boldness our children and grandchildren would do might exploits in the earth today and in the future. Yes, grandparents have the God given right (authority) to speak over their children’s children to decree blessings of good fortune and prosperity. We even notice this happened in the life of Jacob according to Genesis 48:3-6 KJV
3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
5 And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.
6 And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.
First notice that Jacob was speaking to Joseph and Jacob said Joseph son’s Ephraim and Manasseh were his. Think about it, Jacob was claiming Ephraim and Manasseh as his own children in front of Joseph their earthly (natural) father by blood. The audaciousness (boldness) of Jacob seems illogical when you don’t understand the full reason why Jacob was imposing his will. The reason Jacob claimed Ephraim and Manasseh was twofold. For one, Jacob as the spiritual elder Israel, had a deeper understanding of God’s divine grace concerning the future of the nation of Israel so he had God’s vision concerning their place within the nation. Also the second reason is Jacob had influence into Ephraim and Manasseh because they were born unto Joseph while Jacob was still alive so he could indeed influence their future. While we are on the earth we can (and should) influence events on the earth but when we leave the earth we lose that right (authority). We see that in Genesis 48:11-16 KJV
11 And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.
12 And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near unto him.
14 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn.
15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,
16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
Notice when Jacob prophesied over his child Joseph and his grandchildren Ephraim and Manasseh his spiritual name of “Israel” is used. The point being if you are going to prophesy over your children you better birth that prophecy from your divine nature of God and not just a carnal thought you have in your mind. All biblical prophecy is divinely inspired by God and likewise your “parental prophecy” should be inspired by God’s Word too. Whether that is quoting the Holy Scriptures over your child or speaking forth a godly principle that you heard in your heart from God or repeating exactly what the Lord told you concerning a specific situation it all must point back to glorifying God through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. We also notice with Jacob when he prophesied over his children he waited until he was nearing the end of his life. This was done simply because he would not be around to give them occasional as needed guidance for the current situations they were facing at certain times. This reminds us to speak about the future when necessary but not all the time because now faith is and today is the day of salvation. Our (ihlcc) thoughts are this; we should always decree the future we desire for our children but just like God and Jacob if they are acting contrary to God’s Word, which is His Wisdom, we must be bold enough to announce that their current (foreseeable) future does not look so bright due to past ungodly actions as Jacob did with Reuben, Simeon and Levi in Genesis 49:3-7 KJV
3 Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.
5 Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations.
6 O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.
7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.
The good news for us is that we have the Blood of Jesus to cover our sins and the sins of our children and our children’s children so that we can still see blessings come upon our children and grandchildren. Yes even when our children have made ungodly decisions in the past and carried out evil actions as a result of those ungodly decisions they still have a way out in Christ (complete forgiveness once repentance of heart is fulfilled). The key is we need to be bold enough to continue to speak God’s Word over them and we should be wise enough to see beyond the negative actions of our children into their full potential in Jesus Christ. Jacob could not claim the Blood of Jesus as the cleansing agent for his children but that is one reason we have a better covenant as Christians than the children of Israel. Always as a rule of thumb when speaking prophecy speak more generally than detailed because God may change the specifics of how prophecy is carried out but He will never change the principle or foundational words spoken in-line with His Word when spoken by a faithful servant or child of God. Also, we know that Jacob did not have divine insight into the safety of Jacob during the years he thought Jacob was dead. This is because Jacob believed the report of his other children thinking that they would not kill their brother but some evil beast would be no respecter of persons.-Refer to Genesis 37:33,34 Jacob walked by sight rather than faith in that specific incident. What we should always do is take our thoughts to God about exactly what happen rather than assume (or conclude) the worst based on the evidence. An evil plan tricked the servant of God because it was given to Jacob by people he trusted, yes even family (your own children) can lie to you. This is another reason Jacob is portrayed as a man instead of a spiritual giant. Yes, no one can throw stones at Jacob because we all have had situations where we walked by sight (carnal reasonings) over spiritual insight (faith). If we were in the same situation we may of drawn the same conclusion, except the Grace of God. This is why we love and appreciate the witness of truth in our heart given to us by the Holy Spirit of God. Praise you, Lord Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. Jacob had no clue that God protected Joseph simply because he could not see Joseph before his eyes. We, as good Christians, must know “We walk by faith and not by sight” quoting 2 Corinthians 5:7. Therefore it is God’s will for us to believe in God’s keeping power and only believe the negative report of death when we have personally identified the body with no life in it. At that point we can ponder (or decree) raising the child from the dead if our faith is that robust (strong, vibrant, healthy) at that moment in time. However wisdom dictates that if you didn’t previously believe that death has no part or lot (no place) in your children because your children will live a long (full) life on the earth in Jesus Name you will probably not have raising the death scriptures on your heart and mind at that critical time. It is a good practice to speak well over all your children in prayer and daily confession the awesome word of God promised to us in the scriptures. We (ihlcc) also believe it to be prudent to be willing to speak openly with your children specific truths revealed to you at that time to deal with the current detailed situations in their life. The key is knowing (understanding) that you have the God given right to know what the future holds for your children in the general sense. We can also know specifics about their immediate future if God deems it necessary for us to know it or our own spirit taps into their future by spiritual development. Every Christian should have some sense of spiritual perception about them that will reveal certain aspects about the future because we are children of light and our light will show up certain parts of the future. Typically, the future is known as darkness due to the unknown but our light of love and peace opens the window wide for God’s light to shine forth through us revealing things to come. Our Heavenly Father knows all and Jesus Christ His Holy Righteous Son sees all and since we are in Him we partake of His Divine Light. We can’t help but to know certain things about our children because of God’s wisdom inside of us just as our Heavenly Father knows exact what our future holds by His Spirit inside of us too.
John 13:18-19 KJV
18 I (Jesus) speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.
19 Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.
I can remember one time Angela and I were wondering about our daughter’s future and the Lord told us, “I could tell you what I am speaking to her but I chose to speak (lead) her directly”. This meant that we must walk by faith as we preach to our children to walk by faith. The key is developing our children to hear from God so that they can be lead independently of us. Our gracious Lord will help us to accurately hear His Word coming up inside our heart and we must be equally attentive to His exact words without adding anything to them. Our children are precious gifts from God so we must be in unison with God to minister to them His Words in the Spirit of His Love. We are blessed to have the word of God at our immediate (constant) disposal now all it takes is wisdom, understanding and love. When we watch and pray we see exactly what the problem is and speak to our children (or pray to God) exactly what needs to be said. This is a partnership between God, our children (including grandchildren) and us (as parents) so we must be willing and obedient to do that which is right in His (God’s) Sight. Truthfully, it is always right (holy and proper) to speak good words of faith, hope and love over our children both now specifically and concerning their future generally through the doctrine of “Parental Prophecy” in Jesus Name. Amen!
In His Love, Eric & Angela Foster