The English have the 12 days of Christmas in song.  The high churches have the 24 (ish) days of advent.  At Crave Something More, and here at Conversant Life, I’ll be writing a series called the “21 Days of CSM Christmas.”  Starting December 5 and finishing on Christmas Day, I will write once a day about all things Christmas, in the hopes that we will all continue to see Jesus as the greatest satisfaction to our soul’s deepest cravings.

Day 4:  The Sacred Conspiracy of Christmas

Let’s be conspiracy theorists for a moment.  Say you are a guy (let’s call you Joseph), and you’re engaged to this sweet hometown girl (let’s call her Mary), and you have watched this girl for years and years and have finally mustered up the courage to ask her to be your wife.  And then she goes to visit relatives for a few months, and she comes back pregos, and you’re wondering what you should do.

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"You should try our cashmere sweaters. They'll lift you up. I know that Jesus is supposed to lift you up, but cashmere sweaters are the next best thing." —A retailer on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving

You can't make up quotes like that. I responded, "I'm blogging that."

I don't need to stand on a soap box and tell you everything wrong with Black Friday. You already know. (And that's a big list.) I also don't need to tell you all the good things about Black Friday. (That's a big list too.) Instead, let's imagine Jesus and his prophet friends in cashmere sweaters.

We've been discussing the spiritual offices listed in 1 Corinthians 12:27–31. So far, I've asked: Are spiritual gifts really gifts, or are they more like curses? I've also said: We don't compare ourselves to Elijah, but should. And I've noted that we treat pastors like restaurant managers. Now I have another question: Do we treat prophets like retail clerks?

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I've never heard someone say, "My spiritual office is apostle." Or, "My spiritual office is prophet." But I have heard people say that their gift set seems similar to Paul's, Elijah's, John's or Peter's. Most people, though, are hesitant to even say this. They're afraid of what will happen if they do.

We wonder if our fellow church members will think we're odd. I've had lots of people confide in me about this. They say things like:

 "If I tell them that God has called me to something like healing, they may ostracize me, or even kick me out of the church."

"When I thought about telling my pastor that God has called me to be a prophet, the first thing that crossed my mind was: 'He will tell me I'm crazy.' "

"How can you tell a church leader you're called like an apostle? They will think you are on a power trip."

"If I tell them I want to teach, they will say I'm too young."

These are legitimate concerns. And yes, some people are crazy. But these concerns say something about you and me--us church-goers. We make people feel isolated. We have convinced people that if they tell us that they're "called," we will make them feel even more alone. We need to make a change.

Paul tells us to think in terms of spiritual offices. Warning: After you read this passage, your view of the church may change. You may want to go and alter the entire structure of your church. Don't worry, it's a good idea.

"Now you are the body of Christ [the church] and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts [that's all these things:] of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts." (1 Corinthians 12:27-31, emphasis mine).

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Prophets are usually characterized as fortune tellers. In all actuality, they are truth tellers. We struggle with the notion of prophecy today. This is usually because we think that prophets aren’t needed (because we have the Bible), or because we’ve watched the loonies who claim to be prophets.

There’s an easy solution to the loonies: No one person has a corner on God’s truth or revelation. No one person can alter God’s Word, or add anything to it. For just a moment, let’s set aside the loonies as an anomaly and discuss the real point of a prophet.

A prophet is meant to reveal truth. They’re not meant to add to it, or make it up—they’re meant to make it known. The gift of prophecy really has to do with opening a can of worms.

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These are tough days for optimists and humanists. For optimists, it's tough to stay positive because of all the junk going on in the world: there's trouble in the Middle East, our economy continues to teeter precariously, the Gulf oil disaster is out of control, and Al and Tipper Gore are separating after 40 years of marriage. If this can happen, is there any hope for the rest of us?

For the humanist, it's discouraging for many of the same reasons, but the frustration comes not so much from the problems in the world as it does from our inability to solve them. The worse things seem to get, the more it seems we are not in control, and that just frustrates the heck out of anyone who puts their trust in humankind.

Even our technology, which is supposed to be the savior of the world (okay, maybe only Steve Jobs thinks that, but you get the idea), has us spooked. Nevermind that we can't fix the Gulf oil leak. What about Facebook? Talk about losing control. Even though Facebook has tried to assure its nearly half a billion users that they have nothing to fear, a lot of people are concerned that the social media giant knows way too much about us. "People actually use Facebook like it's crack," said one 24-year old social-media savvy user. "So I don't see what the next step is aside from world domination."

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Was Jesus’ death and resurrection prophesied? I think so. Was it prophesied that he would suffer on our behalf? I think so. Try “prophesied 500 years before Jesus came on the scene” on for size:

Isaiah 53:10 (My Translation)

Yet Yahweh was pleased to crush [the servant]; he afflicted [him] (with sickness). If [Zion or Jerusalem] places his life a guilt offering

Then Something Miraculous Happens: Isaiah 53:10–12 (My Translation)

[The servant] will see offspring, he will prolong days and the will of Yahweh in his hand will succeed. From the trouble of his life he will see light. He will be satisfied.

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There are as many nuts behind well lit pulpits as there are in dark alleys. Seeing beyond the priest collar, and the polo tie is the difference between re-emerging from the womb and entering a tomb.

Visionaries, miracle workers, prophets—they are all shrouded in mystery. We encounter one, and we wonder: Are they authentic or phony? Full of truth or fiction? What are the signs of a prophet we can trust—an Isaiah, Ezekiel, or John the Baptist? Answer: Where they came from and where they are going. Let’s look to Ezekiel as an example and then converse about all the nuts claiming to be prophets.

Ezekiel says, “In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God” (Ezek 1:1 ESV).

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