Ephesians. 4:11-16

By attending a fellowship that functions with “ministry gifts”, you will benefit from the maturity and loving care of others.

God has given spiritual gifts to the corporate “body of Christ” in those who function as pastors, teachers, evangelists, prophets and apostles. (1 Corinthians 12:28-31, Ephesians 4:11-16). They complement each other and provide a balanced presentation of Biblical truth.

These are “servant gifts”, not for control but for serving. Sadly, they all too often have become “celebrity gifts” used for personal gain. Some believers follow these people instead of Jesus. Thousands of people follow so called “prophets” and “apostles” on social media or in large meetings and too often depend on their latest prophetic words or newest teaching instead of seeking Jesus and waiting upon him. (Matthew 17:4-5, 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 3:4). This has birthed many cults.

We are to follow Jesus not men. The true role of leaders is to ground and mature believers to rely on Jesus and, if necessary, to stand with him alone.

GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT – 1 Corinthians 12:4-11

God uses “gifts of his Spirit” to give comfort, encouragement, and edification to believers. These gifts are listed as wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment, tongues and interpretation.

I believe these gifts still function, and during fifty years of ministry, I have seen God work through them. Sadly, many churches don’t believe they are valid or allow them. There is a great need to use these gifts correctly; they can be misused and abused due to a lack of knowledge and sound teaching.

The apostle Paul wrote, “Brothers and sisters, don’t be children in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babes when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind”. (1 Corinthians 14:20 NLT).

GIFTS FOR GUIDANCE – John 16:3

The Lord also uses various ways to counsel and guide us. As already mentioned, one is through regular Bible teaching. This is the most important way to receive guidance. The Holy Spirit leads us into truth through the Scriptures, which are able to make us wise in all things pertaining to salvation. (John 16:13).

There are other ways, such as visions, prophecies and words of knowledge, but they must be handled correctly. The Holy Spirit can give divine knowledge to assist us, especially in counselling, but one must be very careful before one reveals things about anyone that are personal. I am against the public disclosure of anyone’s privacy without their consent. It is wise to seek counsel from mature believers, and it seldom comes through just one way. (2 Corinthians 13:1).

Be especially careful of those who say they have “a direct word from the Lord for you” whether in private or public gatherings. People have been misled by utterances purporting to be direct from God. We all can receive counsel but we need to judge any words given in God’s name.

Some people speak today as if the Lord himself is speaking through them, and they put themselves in the category of Old Testament prophets who spoke words coming directly from God himself. These words were written down and became part of scripture. Today, however, the “canon of scripture must have nothing added or taken away. (Revelation 22:18-19).

We need to respect God’s Word and not confuse his Word with our words. An example of this is writing these words down and circulating them worldwide as if God is speaking in the first-person tense to everyone, which modern-day practice is prone to do. (Ezekiel 13:6-10).

In the Old Testament God spoke directly and God still does today when he speaks personally through his Spirit to someone: he uses the “direct tense”. (Acts 9:15, 10:20, 13:2, 18:10). If, however, a prophetic word is given to the corporate body of Christ it should be given in an indirect manner; it is not the direct words of God but a person speaking their own words, hopefully under the inspiration of the Spirit. (Luke 1:46, 67).

The practice of speaking as if God is speaking, although widespread today, was not done in the early church or by early Pentecostals, but has crept in through the “Charismatic Movement”. It is “new age” prophesying, a practice, albeit dressed up in Christian terms, which elevates man into assumed divinity. It has produced confusion and false doctrines.

Every prophetic utterance must be judged and is not automatically from God. (1 John 4:1, 1 Corinthians 14:29).

When Paul was on his way to Rome, he was told several times that suffering would befall him but he was not deterred and pressed on. (Acts 20:22-23, 21:4, 11). Although the Holy Spirit spoke, nowhere did anyone say “thus says the Lord” or considered it a binding instruction.

To benefit from prophetic gifts, it is wise to use the indirect tense. For more on this, I would direct the earnest believer to the classic book by Harold Horton, “The Gifts of the Spirit”, in which he explains this principle: “It is not the Lord who speaks, but the prophet:”.

None of those filled with the Spirit on the day of Pentecost spoke for  God but about  God. (Acts 2:11). Horton explains that one should not speak, “I the Lord will hear you”, but “The Lord hear you”.

Join me as we continue on our journey through “A Life of Faith.”

Keys to Growing in Christ:

Episode 5: The Peace of God is the Key to Every Situation