Why is the gift of prophecy not needed today the way it was in the early church?

Les explains that in the early church, it did take men with that kind of gift, but today we have the Word of God. He stresses that it doesn't matter what he says or thinks; what matters is what the book says. The Word of God is now available in written form, even on the screen, and it is in such a format that anybody can access it. He points to Tyndale, who wanted a copy of the Scriptures in the hands of every plow boy in England, noting those plow boys had almost no education, yet the Word was sufficient to feed a hungry heart. Paul's discussion of the gift of prophecy was under a whole different set of circumstances than today, so the gift is not needed the same way.