Parishioner’s Picks – The Gift of Prophecy

Another Parishioner’s Pick and this one is a doozy! We want to talk about spiritual gifts and especially the gift of prophecy.

Today’s submission: The other topic I know you have touched on many times is prophecies. I believe in prophecies and I believe God still is using people, including you, to share his instructions and warnings with us on a very regular basis.

No scripture was listed so I picked one out:

Romans 12:4–8 (NIV) — 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

The gifts of the spirit and the work of the Holy Spirit are mysterious and therefore we have differing views among Christians. When I interviewed for this job about 30 years ago, Gerald Locke asked me what I believed about the Holy Spirit and His work today. I paused and said, “I really don’t know.” Gerald replied, “That’s the first honest answer I’ve heard.” And I got the job. I got the job because I was ignorant. 30 years have passed and I think I have the same response. I really don’t know. I ask that you have the patience and understanding of Gerlad Locke as I wrestle with you through this topic.

Let me start with this: we are not a charismatic church in the sense that we do not believe that miraculous gifts such as healing and tongues are still active in the church today. They were active but after the apostolic age they eventually ceased.

Another term to describe our belief is “Cessationist”

The miraculous Spirit-gifts were a first-century phenomenon.

Primarily to verify the message of the Gospel. (Hebrews 2:1-4)

These miraculous gifts gradually died out shortly after the apostolic age.

The miraculous Spirit-gifts are not experienced today.

The closing of the Canon (completion of the New Testament) eliminated the need for Spirit-gifts.

Miracles are not standard operation in the scripture. We find them in clusters at special times in God’s redemptive plan (i.e., Moses, Elijah, Jesus.)

Miraculous gifts seem to wane in the post-apostolic church.

The Spirit-gifts were transmitted only by the laying on of the apostle’s hands. (Acts 8:14ff)

This is not to say that God does not perform miracles today, it is through prayer and not through individual giftedness. (James 5)

This certainly does not mean there aren’t miracles today! God can still heal and do miracles according to His will, and he does! Cessationism doesn’t mean there are no miracles in the present age, nor does it mean that we don’t pray for healings or miracles. Yes, God works miracles, but they are relatively rare. Perhaps God is pleased in cutting-edge missionary situations to grant the same signs and wonders we see in the New Testament era. I think this is certainly possible, and that is why I call my view a nuanced cessationism.

Spiritual Gifts, Thomas R. Schreiner

We do believe that every Christian is gifted to serve through the church, the body. Not every spiritual gift is miraculous and the non-miraculous gifts still function in the church today. These gifts are still given to us.

It seems likely that some of the gifts are stitched into one’s personality in a way that gifts like tongues and miracles are not. But the supernatural character of the gift is not denied, for even in this case the gift comes from God. And the good that results from the exercise of the gift comes from the Holy Spirit and not our native talent.

Spiritual Gifts, Thomas R. Schreiner

One thing we all agree on - Each of you has a gift to serve in the church. And there are many gifts and not all have the same gifts. Even in the NT there were pole who did not have miraculous gifts. What are those gifts? There is no exhaustive list of the gifts, but one such list is on our passage of the day, Romans 12:4-8.

Romans 12:4–8 (NIV) — 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

The gifts of verses 7, 8 I think we can safely say are not miraculous gifts. What throws me for a loop is the inclusion of prophesy.

(1) These are all miraculous gifts. Seems unlikely.

(2) They are a mixture of miraculous and non-miraculous. Seems unlikely to me again. Did the church in Rome have miraculous gifts? They are never mentioned in the letter. I think they didn’t. There was no apostle who had been there.

(3) They are all non-miraculous gifts.

Prophesy, although could be included in the list of miraculous gifts, has also a non-miraculous element.

What is prophesy?

Rather, a prophecy must be the report of a spontaneous revelation from the Holy Spirit. So the distinction is quite clear: If a message is the result of conscious reflection on the text of Scripture, containing interpretation of the text and application to life, then it is (in New Testament terms) a teaching. But if a message is the report of something God brings suddenly to mind, then it is a prophecy. And, of course, even prepared teachings can be interrupted by unplanned additional material which the Bible teacher suddenly feels God is bringing to his mind—in that case, it would be a “teaching” with some prophecy mixed in.

Grudem, W. (2000). The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today (Revised Edition, p. 120). Crossway.

The foundation or basis of all prophetic ministry is the revelatory work of the Spirit. In other words, prophecy is always the communication of something the Holy Spirit has “revealed” or disclosed to a person.

Prophecy is the human report of a divine revelation. This is what distinguishes prophecy from teaching. Teaching is always based on a text of Scripture. Prophecy is always based on a spontaneous revelation.

On occasion a prophetic word can provide us with specific guidance on when to go, where to go, and with whom to go (we see this in Acts 13:1–3).

Sam Storms https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/what-is-the-nature-and-purpose-of-the-gift-of-prophecy

Is prophesy still active today?

Yes.

Much more commonly, the words “prophet” and “prophecy” were used of ordinary Christians who spoke not with absolute divine authority but simply to report something that God had laid on their hearts or brought to their minds. There are many indications in the New Testament that this ordinary gift of prophecy had authority less than that of the Bible, and even less than that of recognized Bible teaching in the early church.

Grudem, W., The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today

1 Thessalonians 5:16–22 (NIV) —16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil.

A fresh examination of the New Testament teaching on the gift of prophecy will show that it should be defined not as “predicting the future” nor as “proclaiming a word from the Lord” nor as “powerful preaching,” but rather as “telling something that God has spontaneously brought to mind.” Once we understand prophecy in this way, we can allow our churches room to enjoy one of the Holy Spirit’s most edifying gifts.

Grudem, W., The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today

Romans 12:4–8 (NIV) — 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Prophecy will never contradict the truths of our faith. Go rob a bank to pay off the church debt.

Prophecy will never add anything to the Biblical record. No new truths will be revealed about God.

Prophecy needs to be tested by the spiritually mature. Prophecy comes through human vessels who may very well miscommunicate the revelation.

Are there spiritually mature people who have the gift of giving guidance to the church and to individuals in particular aspects of their life and ministry.

1 Timothy 1:18 (NIV) — 18 Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well.

1 Timothy 4:14 (NIV) — 14 Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.

Perhaps prophecy means seeing something in someone. Seeing a gift they have and speaking that spirit-lead observation into their lives. I feel in some way I have been blessed by someone seeing something in me. Duane Bender, the minister of my youth, spoke to me while still young that I should be a preacher. He saw it in me. And that has encouraged me.

You and I simply cannot know all that we need to know by means of personal experience and collective research. There is a body of wisdom that comes to us only by means of revelation. God first reveals this wisdom to us in his grand redemptive book, the Bible, and then he opens our eyes and our hearts so that we can receive and understand what he has revealed. We need Christ to come to us by his Spirit to reveal his mind to us so that we can think his thoughts after him.

New Morning Mercies, Paul David Tripp

We are not a charismatic church but we believe the Spirit is still somehow ministering to us, guiding us and giving us insight into situations we find ourselves and others in.

This gifting can be seen in people who are especially sensitive to the prompting of the Spirit. They can discern God’s work in people’s lives that most may not see. They call us back to foundational things when we seem to be getting off track. They are often questioners and agitators readily challenging the status quo, so they often come across as troublemakers and dreamers.

Leonard Allen, Poured Out, The Spirit of God Empowering the Mission of God

This is what I want to be – sensitive to the prompting of the spirit and speaking that into my life and the life of others. I want to be open to people speaking truths reveled to them, testing those statements, but not to put myself in a position that I am not open to the Spirit speaking through people.

Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit – prompting you, guiding you, using others to give you holy advice. Listen and obey.