A prophecy does not become doctrine until it is fulfilled. Jesus was a prophecy in the old covenant writings and did not exist until Yahweh placed him into the womb of a virgin. This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 . When writing the gospels it was noted by the Apostles of various prophecies that were fulfilled concerning Jesus. Prophecy that has not yet been fulfilled remains in some cases obscure and we make spiritual hypotheses as to what we think they mean. We may be correct or we may be wrong but we should not attempt to make our ideas doctrine. We see through a glass darkly, we need time to pass before there is enough light to see more clearly. I have seen that current conditions cannot always be used to interpret prophecy because things can change over time. I have also seen that certain prophecies have both a carnal and spiritual fulfillment that can sometimes confuse us as to which is which. An example would be that events about Judahs captivity in Babylon are a shadow of the Babylon mentioned in the book of Revelation. Often symbolism is used in prophecy requiring the proper understanding of the symbolism to understand the prophecy. An example is the use of beasts in identifying nations in Daniel and the beast rising up out of the sea in Revelation 13:1 . Doctrine for the saints is confirmed by the Holy Spirit that teaches us the truth of how prophecy has been fulfilled. The understanding of the truth of only one person, the Father, being Yahweh and not a trinity or binary God is taught by the Holy Spirit of that God. This for the elect saints is not prophecy but doctrine. The saints believe in what they know because of the source from which they received it. For me this makes faith so strong that I see it as fact. In my prayers I have asked the Father to never allow me to believe in a lie but, if I was, to correct me. All of this is making our foundation sure with gold, silver and precious stones rather than wood, hay or stubble.
