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THE CRY OF THE SPIRIT DEVOTIONALS – BY RICHARD E. S. TAKIM

TODAY’S DEVOTION (FRIDAY 7TH November 2025)

“Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” John 10:5, 27-29 NKJV

WELCOME TO THE 311TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF VICTORY

Glory be to God for waking us up and giving us breath to be alive. Indeed, the Spirit of God has made us; the breath of the Almighty gives us life. Day until day we have been seeing His mercies, and night unto night His compassion.

His word has been health to us. It is glorious to have it as a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Today we want to look at something from the Holy Scriptures that is worth multiplied attention. I call it “visionary hearing.”

The Bible says, “as a man thinketh in His heart so is he.” What you think in your heart is a function of what you tuned your ear to, and it defines who you eventually become. Visionary hearing involves not tuning your ears to things that lack eternal relevance or New Testament definition of prophetic accuracy.

Let us look at something about prophetic accuracy today!!

Prophetic accuracy today, (after the cross) is no longer measured by a word coming to pass or factual things said about you. Before the cross that was its measurement. That was why the LORD (before the Cross) spoke through Moses saying:

“But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.

And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?

When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.” Deuteronomy 18:20-22 KJV

THIS SCRIPTURE CONTAIN THE STANDARD FOR MEASURING PROPHETIC ACCURACY BEFORE THE CROSS!!

If you look at the scripture, you will realize that a word coming to pass was the only way the people of Old could know if a word was from God. This measurement became obsolete over time because over the years, Satan raised men like Balaam, to be speaking words that came to pass, yet the words were not from the LORD!!

It led to the deception of many and the worship of other gods who could speak happenable words, e.g Baal, Ashtoreth, Tamuz, etc. as God. That is why in the New Covenant, a word coming to pass does not make any a divinely ordained prophet or prophetess. It is Christ formed in people through one’s prophetic ministry that makes the person a genuine prophet or prophetess.

The Bible indeed said many false prophets will rise in our days to speak words that will come to pass to deceive, if possible, even the elects.

Sadly, that means some believers will be deceived, but not the elects. It is those who will still be taking accuracy for authenticity that will be deceived; Church people who are not progressive in their theology, but either retrogressive or stagnant. It is dangerous to have a retrogressive or stagnant theology!!!

As a New Testament believer, I understand that Prophetic accuracy these days (after the cross) is no longer measured by a word coming to pass or factual things said about a person, or a situation through supernatural knowing.

It is measured by how much of Christ is formed in your character, and how much worship of “the One and only true God” is exhumed from you through the prophetic delivery of the person prophesying to you. Visionary hearing is all about not giving heed to false prophecies or doctrines, but to accurate prophecies or sound doctrine, by the definition of the New Testament.

IT IS ALL ABOUT CHOOSING WHAT YOU HEAR BECAUSE OF WHERE YOU ARE GOING IN CHRIST.

It covers all that has to do with choosing what you allow into your mind or heart because of the paths the LORD has carved for you in life. The Bible says:

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8 KJV

One of the major requirements of visionary hearing is avoiding what I call chewing gum prophecies. Yes, it is important to note that successful living for the child of God will involve not following chewing gum prophecies, and there are so many of them in church and on social media today.

One may be wondering what are chewing gum prophecies. Chewing gum prophecies are prophecies that gums you to the personality giving your itching ears prophecies. It steals one away from Christ. It makes one value the word of a prophet more than the testimony of Jesus Christ in the Holy Bible.

It makes one a seeker of what prophets are saying instead of a student of the Bible. You will never walk in accuracy of the Spirit following chew gum prophecies. You will be erring in visions and all that.

Yes, you will be busy looking for prophecies from people you consider prophetic but will have no time to sit down to search for the scriptures. Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.” (John 5:39 NKJV) But you will not heed to His word.

You will just be busy looking for who will search for what or who is killing you and all that. You will be inclined to those who seem to know your life more than even you.

The spiritual plague of chewing gum prophecies is what many in Church are struggling with today. Going about looking for who to prophesy to you, especially in the end of a year, instead of paying attention to the word of Christ in the Holy Scriptures, is not a successful Christian living. It is a path to ruin.

BELIEVERS WHO ARE ESTABLISHED IN BIBLE DOCTRINE ARE USUALLY SOUND IN FAITH AND ACCURATE IN SPIRIT.

It’s funny how so many men and women in God’s garment are trying to act like Prophets and prophetesses these days, especially on social media; trying to tell us what God is saying and all that.

It is funny to watch what looks like a competition among so called preachers, as they try to show us how much of men or women of God they are by their prophecies. I see all of them as actors and actresses in movies, because if you know what a prophecy is, and look at what they are saying, you can easily tell that they have no prophecies. They are just trying to act prophetic.

Only babies in the LORD and ignorant men and women follow people who act prophetic. Every Bible student and mature believer know that you do not act prophetic if you are a prophet by office; you prophesy.

You will not do that to show to the people that you also can have a word from God. It will be with a passion to build the prophetic ear of the Church to hear God for herself and walk with Christ intimately, until His fullness fills the people.

It’s so sad that a lot of men and women in Church today do not understand the flow of genuine prophecy. They do not understand that genuine prophecy is powered by the Testimony of Jesus Christ and will not seek to elevate a prophet but God, or seek to present one as a true man or woman of God.

If you understand the flow of prophecy, you will know that it is not always at the beginning of a year that God sends a word. So, if you see men coming up with new year prophecies (every year), just know that a lot of them are just playing spiritual or prophetic mind games on the ignorant and immature in the faith. Our devotional text says:

“Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” John 10:5, 27-29 NKJV

IF YOU ARE SHEEP OF JESUS CHRIST, YOU CAN TELL WHEN PEOPLE ARE PLAYING PROPHETIC MIND GAMES ON YOU

Once you become familiar with the voice of the LORD in the Holy Scriptures, you will no longer entertain the ministry of preachers who are strangers to the word of truth and righteousness. They will lose your followership and financial support. And they know that, hence warning their victims against ministries God has raised to mature them in the faith and make them familiar with His voice of truth in the Holy Scriptures.

You can now understand why these preachers preach messages that keeps the Church in infantile state or say nothing about their anti-Christ practices.

They prosper more and shine brighter when the Church remain an army of spiritual infants who treat aged men and women in ministry as deities or bow to young preachers calling them papas and mamas but cannot tell right from wrong.

As we bring this to a close, understand that successful Christian living does not run after seers or dream interpreters. It does not run after prophetic people. It does not follow chewing gum prophecies.

They do not build their faith on so-called seers, dream interpreters or prophetic people. The build it on the doctrine of Christ in the Holy Scripture, from where are genuine words from God flows.

It is a new day for you in Jesus precious name. Amen and amen.

MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY!

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” John 10:1-5 NKJV