The Holy Spirit in Ministry Study Guide

The Holy Spirit in Ministry Study Guide Compiled by Peter Earle Edited by Geoff Waugh *** © 2008, 2018 Citipointe Ministry College, PO Box 2111 Mansfield, Qld 4122, Australia. Renewal Journal Publications Acknowledgement: We thank the contribution made by the staff of the Citipointe Ministry College in the compilation and development of this unit. This unit was prepared and compiled by Peter Earle and edited by Geoff Waugh This book is adapted from material prepared for external and internal study. It is now superseded and replaced by more recent developments. However, it is a useful resource on this topic for your personal and group studies. Please contact the college to enquire about current courses. ‘Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified (John 7:38-39). Study Guides Signs and Wonders: Study Guide The Holy Spirit in Ministry Revival History Holy Spirit Movements through History Renewal Theology 1 Renewal Theology 2 Ministry Practicum Renewal Journal Publications www.renewaljournal.com Logo: basin & towel, lamp & parchment, in the light of the cross 2 Contents Introduction Module 1: The Holy Spirit & His Ministry 1. Knowing the Spirit 2. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit 3. The Anointing 4. The Ways of the Spirit 5. Building in the Spirit 6. Listening to the Holy Spirit Module 2: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part One 7. The Speaking Gifts 8. The Ministry of the Prophetic 9. The Revelation Gifts 10. Power, Faith & Spiritual Authority Module 3: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part Two 11. The Power Gifts 12. Healing & Miracles Appendix 1: Unit Outline Appendix 2: Renewal Journal Publications 3 *** Living in the Spirit See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 4 Introduction Welcome to this former unit of study in Distance Education from Citipointe Ministry College and the School of Ministries of Christian Heritage College. We pray that God will bless you abundantly as you study What is this course? This course is part of the Diploma of Ministry, the Bachelor of Ministry and the Master of Ministry developed by the School of Ministries and accredited from 1996. They are nationally recognised courses offering education for ministry with a local church. Their aim is to prepare potential ministries to fulfil a wide range of needs and to promote the ministry of the Holy Spirit. These courses are available as internal and Distance Education programs and this book is an edited version of the original Study Guide for Distance Education students. Current subjects are updated and developed from these original subjects and the materials are now available online for all students. Originally Distance Education students received a Study Guide with the contents of this book adapted here from the original Study Guide. Distance students also received a Book of Readings which now is compiled as part of the internet resources. Originally Distance Education students also received cassettes of the class lectures, but now those resources are also available online. Address inquiries about current courses to Citipointe Ministry College, the School of Ministries of Christian Heritage College. Christian Heritage College 322 Wecker Road Carindale Qld 4152 Phone: +61 7 3374 7900 Email: [email protected] Website: https://www.chc.edu.au/ 5 General Unit Introduction Welcome to “The Holy Spirit in Ministry” What are the main aims for this unit? Upon completion of this module, students should be able to:  Identify biblical themes concerning the Holy Spirit in Ministry  Evaluate theological and historical approaches to the ministry of the Holy Spirit  Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of differing approaches to ministering in the anointing and empowering of the Holy Spirit  Assess the significance of current practices in Pentecostal and Charismatic ministry  Apply insights from this study to the practice of ministry (see also Appendix 1 6 Introduction to the Modules As you look over this book, you should get the general idea of where this course goes, and be able to get started on your study. Enjoy your reading. Read what interests you first. You will develop your own style of study, particularly reading what interests you most, and studying what you need to know for your assignments and the examination. There is no one right way to study. Find the way that suits you best. These suggestions may help. What are the modules for this unit?  Module 1: The Holy Spirit & His Ministry. This module encourages the student to know the ways of the Holy Spirit, to understand how He works through mankind, and how we can build a relationship with Him so that we are able to hear His voice more clearly and follow His leading.  Module 2: Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part One. This module deals with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit – in particular the Speaking Gifts, the Prophetic Gifts, the Revelation Gifts, and the power, faith and spiritual authority believers have through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  Module 3: Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part Two. The last module deals with Signs, Wonders, Miracles and Healings available through the power of the Holy Spirit, both in the past and in the present. You will probably have other useful books. Many Christians have good books on the Holy Spirit. Use them. What are the textbooks for this unit? These detailed comments on your textbooks will help you get going with your reading. This subject covers a lot of fascinating reading. Your textbooks are:  Jacobs, Cindy. The Voice of God. Regal.  Pytches, David. 1985. Come Holy Spirit. London: Hodder & Stoughton.  Waugh, Geoff. 1996, 2009. Flashpoints of Revival. Brisbane: Renewal Journal.  Wimber, John and Springer, Kevin. Power Evangelism. London: Hodder & Stoughton. Directions at the beginning of each Topic will guide you to the most useful reading for this unit. However, you can begin reading with whatever interests you most. Different people learn in different ways. There is no one right way What other books would be helpful?  Bridge, Donald. 1985. Signs and Wonders Today. Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press. 7  Burgess, S.M. & McGee, G.B. (Eds). 1988. Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.  Cassidy, Michael. 1983. Bursting the Wineskins. London: Hodder & Stoughton.  Deere, Jack. 1993. Surprised by the Voice of God. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.  Fee, Gordon D. 1996. Paul, the Spirit and the People of God. Peabody: Hendrickson.  Green, Michael. 1985. I Believe in the Holy Spirit. (Rev. Ed.) London: Hodder & Stoughton.  Hummel, Charles. 1989. Fire in the Fireplace. Downers Grove: IVP.  Kraft, Charles H. 198. Christianity with Power. Ann Arbor: Vine  MacNutt, Francis. 1974. Healing. London: Bantam.  MacNutt, Francis. 1990. Overcome by the Spirit. New York: Revell.  Wagner, C. Peter. 1986. Spiritual Power and Church Growth. London: Hodder & Stoughton  Wagner, C. Peter. 1992. Warfare Prayer. Tunbridge Wells: Monarch.  White, John. 1988. When the Spirit Comes with Power. London: Hodder & Stoughton Related books by Geoff Waugh (Renewal Journal publications) 2009, Flashpoints of Revival. Updated to 21st century. 2009, Living in the Spirit 2009, Fruit and Gifts of the Spirit 2011, Body Ministry, adapted from D.Miss. dissertation. 2011, Your Spiritual Gifts. 2011, Great Revival Stories. 2015, Learning Together in Ministry, from Chapter 15 of Body Ministry. 2015, The Lion of Judah. Compiled from 6 books. 2015, Signs and Wonders: Study Guide, with Cecilia Oliver. 2015, Jesus the Model for Supernatural Mission, and 2016, Teaching Them to Obey in Love, compiled into 2016, Great Commission Mission, compiled from 2 books. 2016, Kingdom Life in the Gospels. Compiled from 4 Kingdom Life books. 2017, A Preface to The Acts 2018, Journey into Mission. See www.renewaljournal.com for details and more resources. What assignments were required? Originally students completed three assignment in this subject. We have retained them here for your interest and as examples of the work involved in these studies. 8 Assignment 1 (40%) – Major Essay (2000 words) Select one of the essay questions listed below: Discuss and evaluate the use of the anointing in platform ministry within a local church.  Identify key issues in establishing a prophetic ministry (e.g. prophet, prophetic, intercession, prophetic preaching etc.) or a sings and wonders (healing and miracles) ministry in a local church.  Examine and comment on the place of the voice of God in a believer’s life and ministry.  Identify two important aspects of either the work or Person of the Holy Spirit and how they relate to ministry effectiveness. Assignment 2 (30%) – Project (1500 words) Write an article to be published in a ministry journal or magazine on one of the following subjects: Spiritual empowerment through new Apostolic churches.  Third wave power evangelism.  Signs and wonders in the Pentecostal and Charismatic movement.  Spiritual empowerment through the fruit of the Spirit.  Write on the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of as prominent person in the Pentecostal Movement (past or present). Name the journal or magazine (real or one you have made up yourself), and do a realistic, magazine layout including appendix, front page of the journal or magazine, and Table of Contents. Look at some good Christian magazines/journals for ideas of layout, e.g. Christianity Today, Renewal Journal. Assignment 3 (30%) – Reflection (1500 words) Reflect on the growth and future development of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in your life. This paper should include but is not restricted to the following:  Critically examine your past experience with gifts against biblical witness.  Analyze any difficulties you found in moving in the gifts against biblical and contemporary teaching on ministry gifts.  Establish a theological and personal position for what gifts you consider important to your ministry call. 9 How are assignments assessed? Students are graded on their ability to meet the following criteria: 1. Knowledge and understanding of key themes 2. Identification and analysis of the issues 3. Ability to use analytical skills 4. Evidence of prescribed and wider reading 5. Skill in using biographical referencing 6. Application to contemporary situations 7. Skill in using biblical references 8. Writing skills, and the development of an introduction and conclusion 9. Clarity and accuracy of grammar 10. Logical development and cohesion 11. Evidence of review 12. Appropriateness to a tertiary level. Assessment Grading Assessment items 1-3 will be graded from A+ to EA level: outstanding work B level: commendable work C level: satisfactory work D level: unsatisfactory work (may be resubmitted) E level: fail 10 Unit Overview Module 1: The Holy Spirit & His Ministry 1. Knowing the Spirit 2. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit 3. The Anointing . 4. The Ways of the Spirit 5. Building in the Spirit 6. Listening to the Holy Spirit Module 2: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part One 7. The Speaking Gifts 8. The Ministry of the Prophetic 9. The Revelation Gifts 10. Power, Faith & Spiritual Authority Module 3: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part Two 11. The Power Gifts 12. Healing & Miracles 11 *** 12 MODULE 1 The Holy Spirit & His Ministry Topic 1: Knowing the Spirit Topic 2: The Ministry of the Holy Spirit Topic 3: The Anointing Topic 4: The Ways of the Spirit Topic 5: Building in the Spirit Topic 6: Listening to the Spirit 13 *** Fruit and Gifts of the Spirit See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 14 Topic 1 – Knowing the Spirit Introduction The Holy Spirit is a member of the Godhead, who enters and subsequently resides within the believer at salvation. He plays an integral part in our salvation, redemption, and sanctification, but more than that He is a special person in His own right. To spend time learning to know the Holy Spirit is one of the most beneficial things any believer can do to enrich his/her life. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. The importance of understanding the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit. 2. What implications the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit have on the believer’s life 3. Keys to a relationship with the Holy Spirit. 4. An understanding of the indwelling and baptism of the Holy Spirit. 5. Issues related to the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Topic Notes Isa 61:6 “But you shall be named the priests of the LORD, They shall call you the servants of our God.” 2 Cor 3:5-6 “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Zech 4:6 “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts.” The Deity of the Holy Spirit He is God. He has the attributes of God – He is eternal, all knowing, all powerful, and all present . God is three Persons in one – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. God became man in Jesus so that Jesus could die for our sins, and Jesus rose from the dead to offer salvation to all people, through spiritual renewal and rebirth. When Jesus ascended into heaven His physical presence left the earth, but He promised to send the Holy Spirit, so that His spiritual presence would still be among mankind (see Lk 24:49). The Holy Spirit first became available to all believers at Pentecost (Acts 2). Whereas in Old Testament days the Holy Spirit empowered specific individuals for specific purposes, now all believers have the power of the Holy Spirit available to them. 15 Ministry Implications The Holy Spirit serves and reveals Christ, as Christ did the Father. He is holy. Believers live under grace and are justified from their sin in Christ, but willful sin and disobedience affects the relationship. The nature of the relationship can best be described by the fruit of the Spirit. We must learn to be Christlike and so Spirit-like. Jesus is Lord and the Holy Spirit is too. Robert Gromacki says: Have a regular time and place for encountering the Holy Spirit. First we must acknowledge the full eternal deity of the Holy Spirit. We must affirm His co-equality with the Father and the Son. Thus we must view His divine personhood and ministry seriously. Because He is God, we must bow before Him in humble respect and obedience. Second, we must learn to verbalise the doctrine of the Trinity accurately. We must not be sloppy in our choice of words or in our expression of the relationship of the three persons within the divine Being. Since we affirm Trinitarian monotheism, we should be able to defend that teaching from the Scriptures…. . let’s learn about proper biblical subordination from the person of the Holy Spirit. From His doing the will of the Father and the Son, we too, can learn to be submissive in our homes, our churches and society. (The Holy Spirit, 1999, p.44-45). Further Steps to Knowing the Holy Spirit from His Deity 1. Worship, honour, praise, and give thanks to Him. Worship Him in Spirit and truth. 2. Confess any known sin 3. Obey the Holy Spirit and put Him first in your life. 4. Approach Him through faith and grace 5. Have a regular time and place for encountering the Holy Spirit. The Personality of the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit has all the attributes of personality. The Holy Spirit has intellect (1Cor 2:1-10-11; Eph 1:17), emotions (Eph 4:30), a will (1 Cor 12:11). He teaches (Jn 14:25), witnesses (Jn 15:26), guides (Rom 8:14), convinces (Jn 16:78) and restrains (Gen 6:3). The Holy Spirit commands and directs mankind (Acts 8:29; 13:2, 13:4), intercedes (Rom 8:26) and can be obeyed (Acts 10:19-21a). He can be lied to (Acts 5:3), resisted (Acts 7:51), grieved (Eph 4:30) and blasphemed (Matt 12:31). Within these human attributes the Holy Spirit can also relate to people (Acts 15:28), as He also relates to the Godhead (Jn 16:4, Matt 28:19, Lk 4:14). Ministry Implications The Holy Spirit is often considered by His acts, and therefore made impersonal, but the believer can enter into a relationship with Him. He is our friend. He is 16 our “teacher”, “helper” and “comforter” (Jn 14:26). Leadership is often a lonely position, but true friendship with the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, will overcome this. R. A. Torrey says: The Holy Spirit is a person. Theoretically we may believe this. Do we in our real thought of Him, or in our practical attitude toward Him, treat Him as a person? Do we regard Him as indeed as real a person as Jesus Christ – loving, wise and strong, as worthy of our confidence and love and surrender, as He? He came to be to the disciples, and to us, what Christ had been to them during the days of His personal companionship with them (Jn14:16,l7). Do we know “the communion of fellowship” of the Holy Ghost?” (2 Cor 13-14) (What the Bible Teaches, 1933, p.229) Robert Gromacki says: First we must not be afraid of the Holy Spirit. He is a warm, loving, divine person. He is not a dark, mysterious, ethereal thing. We need to see Him for who He is, not just for what He can do in our lives. How can we do this? A helpful way is to read the Scriptures each day with a pen and paper at hand. Whenever you come to a passage where the Holy Spirit is mentioned, list it. Then think about the personal qualities of the Spirit which can be gleaned from the passage. Write them down. Then when you pray, thank God for these personal traits of the Holy Spirit. Second, we must worship God every day in spirit and in truth. Love Him with all your heart, soul, strength and mind. Love God as the triune God. Focus on all three persons, not just on the Father or the Son. Third, we must bond with the Holy Spirit. Realise He lives within you. Thank Him for being your Teacher, and Encourager. Be conscious that He is the Paraclete. Fourth, we must be careful not to sin against Him. We must remember that our sinful actions and attitudes grieve His holy person. (The Holy Spirit, 1999, p.19-20). Steps to Knowing the Person of the Holy Spirit               Be conscious of the Holy Spirit and know that He dwells in you. Know that He is your helper – ask Him for help. Dedicate your day and all important decisions to Him. Expect Him to talk to you through the Word of God. Listen to the Holy Spirit. Talk to Him, ask Him questions, develop a friendship. Be aware of His presence. Learn how He guides, acts etc. Expect to be convicted, inspired, comforted, spoken to etc. Follow the Leading of the Holy Spirit. Learn more about the Holy Spirit and practice His presence. Repent of attitudes and activities that offend the Holy Spirit. Sense His will and moods. Expect Him to manifest Himself with signs and wonders. 17 Relationship of the Spirit to the Word The Word and the Spirit work together in agreement (Gen 1:1-2). Jesus was the “Word” that became flesh (Jn 1:14). The Holy Spirit comes to reveal the Word (Jn 16:13-15). Just as Jesus came to reveal the Father, so the Spirit has come to reveal Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit will therefore not contradict the word of God since it is truth. The Holy Spirit has not come to speak of Himself, and do His will, but to reveal the will of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit stands in place of Jesus Christ for the believer. As regards the inspiration and authority of the Bible, the Pentecostal churches are still firmly within the conservative evangelical tradition. The Statements of Faith of the main groups describe Scripture variously as “The inspired word of God, the infallible, all-sufficient rule for faith and practice”, and warnings are given “that none may add thereto or take away therefrom except at their peril.” W.J. Hollenweger, The Pentecostals, London: SCM 1972 The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit 1 Cor 6:19 “your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit” The believer is a “temple”, the resident being God, the Holy Spirit. Mankind, in our original constitution, was a glorious temple. Two facts prove this. Firstly, we were created in God’s image (Gen 1:26), and secondly God dwelt in us. At that point humans were holy, without sin. When sin came, however, mankind lost this original resemblance to God and became “at enmity with God” (Rom 8:7), thus, as it were, dethroning God from His temple and in effect seeking to be a god. Having cast God out, we moved in a circle where self was the centre. The temple, now empty of God, was open to other ‘gods’. To be cleansed and fit for God to dwell there again, it needed to be cleansed, and renewed – mankind needed to be renewed, regenerated - “born again.” It was God’s eternal purpose to restore this temple. Satan had spoiled His handiwork, sin had marred man’s image, but God, motivated by His love for His creation, planned restoration. Man’s destruction was his own, but his recovery would be God’s. The price of pardon was Jesus’ own life and blood. Heb 2:14 “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” The next step in the accomplishment of restoration was the resurrection of Christ. God made the way for the permanent indwelling of the Spirit in the believer through the obedience, death and resurrection of Christ. Thus God made the way for the permanent indwelling of the Spirit in the believer. Through the incarnation, obedience, death and resurrection of Christ a way was 18 opened by which God could again dwell with man. He could resume His abode in the very temple He had destroyed. 1 Pet 4:5 “as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house” Rom 8:9 “But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you” Rom 8:11 “But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you…" 1 Cor 3:16 “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” 2 Cor 6:16 “And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God; as God has said, I will dwell in them…" Eph 2:22 “In whom you also are built together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” The Holy Spirit enters a soul at regeneration, and dwells in the believer as a manifestation of divine glory. Solomon’s temple was of earthly splendour, but the Holy Spirit dwells within us, “not in temples made with hands” (Mk 14:58). As a temple of the Holy Spirit, you should keep yourself holy. You are not your own, but were bought at a price. You should be separate from the evil that is in the world. 2 Cor 6:16 ‘And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people."’ The importance of the abiding, indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the believer, cannot be overestimated. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8) Throughout the book of Acts we see people full of the Holy Spirit. See Acts 1:5 where this experience is called the “baptism of the Holy Ghost”; (Acts 2:4) “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit”” (Acts 4:8) Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit; (Acts 4:31) the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit; (Acts 13:52) the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit; (Acts 6:3-5) the deacons were filled with the Holy Spirit; (Acts 9:17; 13:10) Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit; (Acts 11:24) Barnabas was filled with the Spirit; Eph 5:18 has the command “Be filled with the Spirit”. See also Acts 19:1-7, and Eph 1:13. Jesus Christ commanded His disciples to be baptised in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). He described this as the “promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4, 2:33). The disciples were baptised in the Holy Spirit and fire at Pentecost (Acts 2). Pentecostals generally believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a distinct experience from the new birth, which fills the believer with the Holy Spirit. The 19 purpose of this filling is an endowment of power. Most Pentecostals believe that the initial evidence of being filled with the Spirit, is speaking in tongues. However, many Charismatic Christians believe that the evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is one of the nine gifts of the Spirit. “Third-wave” Christians blur the difference even further by not believing in any particular, separate baptism in the Holy Spirit, but in many differing, anointings of God. Issues in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit 1. Is the baptism of the Holy Spirit a subsequent experience to regeneration? 2. Is speaking in tongues the initial evidence? 3. What about those who claim to have been baptised in the Spirit but have never spoken in tongues? 4. What about those who exercise spiritual gifts but have never spoken in tongues? 5. Do all Christians need to be baptised in the Holy Spirit? 6. Is the baptism of the Holy Spirit the same as the “second blessing”? 7. Is there one baptism and many fillings? 8. Are “baptism” and “being filled” the same thing? 9. Regardless of our experience of empowerment, are we living the life empowered by the Spirit, led by the Spirit, which is transforming us into Christlike behaviour and actions? Should we include singing to the Holy Spirit in worship? Major Points of this Topic  The Holy Spirit is God and thus has all the attributes of the Godhead.  We can know Him better through worship, praise, honour, confession of sins, and obedience, and must approach Him through faith and grace.  The believer can have a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit and the Word agree.  The Holy Spirit can “indwell” the believer.  There is a “baptism” in the Holy Spirit available to believers.  Issues relating to the “baptism” in the Holy Spirit. Review or Discussion Questions 10. What is the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the Son and the Father? 11. How do you relate to another person and how does this apply to God? 12. How can personal revelation be judged? 13. How can the major attributes of the Holy Spirit be used to develop our relationship with Christ? 20 14. What are the symbols of the Holy Spirit and how can they develop our relationship with Him? Optional Readings or Research  Lockyer, Herbert. 1995. All about the Holy Spirit. Nashville:Nelson Pub.  Walvoord, John E. 1991. The Holy Spirit. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.  Virkler, Mark & Patti. 1990. Naturally Supernatural. Shippensburg: Destiny Image Pub *** 21 Body Ministry The Body of Christ Alive in His Spirit See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 22 Topic 2 – The Ministry of the Holy Spirit Introduction The Holy Spirit comes to humanity, not of His own will, but by the will of the Father. His primary purpose is to take the place of Jesus here on earth and as such is our guide, comforter, helper, teacher and empowerer. He possesses all the attributes of God the Father. Christ led, guided and directed His disciples while on earth, now He has gone and the Holy Spirit has taken His place to reveal Christ in the life of the believer. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. The ministry of the Holy Spirit as the agent of Christ. 2. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit in the believer. 3. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts. 4. Personal attributes and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Topic Notes Introduction The Spirit’s Mission – Called by God for a Purpose The second part of “parakletos”, the Greek word used to describe the Holy Spirit, comes from the verb “kaleo” which means “to beckon or call. This verb was used in Rom 1:1 “called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ” – there is purpose and intent in the calling. God calls us to fellowship with Him, He calls unbelievers to repentance and salvation (Matt 9:13) Paul and Peter used the word kaleo to describe God’s call to salvation and ministry for themselves and others (Rom 1:1; 8;30: 9:11,24; 1 Cor 1:9; 7:15; Eph 4:1,4; 1 Thess 2:12; Heb 9:15; 1 Pet 1:15; 2:9). Paul also used this word to describe his call to apostolic ministry (1 Cor 15:9; Gal 1:15; 2 Tim 2:9). The verb carries purpose or destiny, a summoning forth for a specific purpose. When God calls someone that call gives them insight into the divine purpose, divine intent, divine plan and divine design for their existence. Thus the Holy Spirit has not accidentally assumed His role in our lives, but was called for a purpose by God Himself. Holy Spirit, the Agent of Christ John 14:12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” 23 Jn 16:13-15 “When He, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever he hears, he will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore, I said, that He takes of Mine, and will disclose it to you.” The Holy Spirit will not act of Himself, but for the One who sent Him. The Holy Spirit’s primary mission is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and the primary way He will do that is by communicating to Jesus’ disciples that which He receives from Jesus. The Spirit is essentially an emissary of Jesus, representing Him in His absence (v7). He is omnipresent, always available to those to whom He is sent and He never says anything except what He is told to say. Everything He does honours and glorifies the One who sent Him. Jn 14:16-18 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. The Spirit is the representative, deputy, or agent of Christ. Christ is going away to prepare a place for us (v2-3), but He sends another Helper to take His place until He returns. He will be a replacement, just like the original. (Greek word ‘another’ “allos” means “another in the same manner”). The work of the Spirit in general is to glorify Jesus Christ; to act as His personal Representative/Deputy/Agent and carry on His work in His absence; to serve as the link/liaison between Christ and His people until the second coming; to take the blessing purchased by Christ on the cross and communicate or apply them to the hearts of His followers; to make Jesus real to us. Donald T. Williams, The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, 1994, Broadman and Holman, p.22-23 24 The Holy Spirit is our Comforter Jesus called Him “The Comforter” (Jn 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7). “Comfort” may mean rest and relaxation after a tiring day, someone listening to and sharing your sorrows, someone who will step into your shoes and take your place when a situation makes it necessary, someone to hug and love you when there has been a death in your family. The Greek word “parakletos”, translated “comforter” was originally used in a legal sense to denote one who pleaded a case for someone else in a court of law. It was also used to denote a personal counsellor, adviser or coach. “Para” means alongside, or by and is used in 2 Tim 2:2 when Paul told Timothy “And the things you have learned of me .... commit them to faithful men” Paul had trained and advised Timothy, been his helper, etc. When people are close to one another they affect each other and may even begin to take on the other person’s characteristics, feelings, personality traits, habits and gestures. After a while you may even know what the other person is thinking before it is spoken. The relationship with the Holy Spirit thus described indicates that He is not so distant we must beg or plead for His assistance, He is always with us in heart, spirit, soul and physical location. He comes to us at the moment of salvation (Eph 1:13) Three Features of the Comforter  He is close to us (Jn 14:16): Jesus said He would abide with us forever.  He has a calling: He was called to be beside each believer (para, kaleo)  He has a specific purpose: He was called by God to bring conviction of sin (Jn 16:8), empower us for the ministry by imparting spiritual gifts (1 Cor 12:11), healing people through us etc. The Holy Spirit as Teacher Jn 14:16 “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another teacher(helper)” Jesus, who had been the mentor, teacher etc. to His disciples had left them to return to His Father in heaven, and had said these words to His disciples. The Holy Spirit was to take over where Jesus had left off, be the teacher and enabler. When a person comes to Christ, direct from a world of sin and spiritual death, he/she is largely unaware of the spiritual world (1 Pet 2:2). Spiritual maturity takes time to develop, but the Holy Spirit comes to teach us all we need to know, we only have to cooperate with Him. If Jesus needed the partnership of the Holy Spirit to do His work on earth, how much more so do we need to be taught by Him. A teacher will not do the job for us, but will teach, advise, correct, instruct, 25 train, guide and direct us until we develop our own abilities to their fullest potential. 1 Jn 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received of Him abides in you, and you need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all things … you will abide in Him.” Rom 8:14 “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” Gal 1:11-12 “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ” Paul was taught by the Holy Spirit, who was the Spirit of Christ. The Holy Spirit’s role as teacher was to speak for Jesus and not of Himself . Jn 16:13,15 “He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak .... he shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” 1 Cor 1:5-6 “That in everything you are enriched by Him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed (make firm, concrete, stable, solid) in you.” The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth Jesus called Him the “Spirit of Truth” three times (Jn 14:17; 15:26; 16:13), indicating that we can trust His leadership. He will never mislead you. We must give the Holy Spirit ultimate authority in our lives, learn to trust His leadership and obey His instructions. Anything less will produce inferior results in our lives. The Holy Spirit helps us to witness about Christ Jn 15:26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify of Me” Acts 1:8”But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Witnessing about Christ is not about what you do, it’s about what you are! There is no witness and no testimony without the work of the Holy Spirit. Whether the Spirit’s testimony gives you a new revelation of Jesus Christ or directs you to people who are lost, the Holy Spirit loves to testify of Jesus. Jesus said the disciples would be witnesses “after” the Holy Spirit came upon them (Acts 1:8) - supernatural power is required to witness powerfully of Christ. Before the Holy Spirit visited them at Pentecost, they were hiding in fear, locked together in the upper room. Once the Holy Spirit had come upon them, they witnessed powerfully, so that literally thousands were saved. 26 The Holy Spirit Heals The Holy Spirit knows all things, He knows why people are sick, and why they are not being healed. He knows if there is bitterness or unforgiveness in their hearts which may be hindering the healing. He simply needs a human vessel through which to deliver His healing power. Your inadequacies are no excuse for not being a vessel for the healing power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes the people themselves need to get aggressive for their healing, like the two blind beggars in Matt 9:27-31. (The Greek word translated “crying out” comes from the Greek “krazo” – “to scream, yell, exclaim or cry out”.) Jesus would have heard their aggressive cries, but He still walked past them and did not heal them until they followed Him and confronted Him with their needs. Those whom the Holy Spirit led Jesus to heal, He healed with a 100% success rate: “and He healed them all” (Lk 6:19). Lk 5:17 “the power of the Lord was present to heal” The Holy Spirit Indwells us Jn 14:17 “ The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” Jesus breathed on his disciples and told them “Receive the Holy Spirit”(Jn 20:22 NKJV). The word “receive” comes from the Greek “lambano””to receive something right now”. In the past the Holy Spirit had temporarily come upon people to empower them for ministry and service, but had never permanently lived inside a human being. When Jesus said the Holy Spirit would “dwell” within the disciples, He was declaring that, for the first time in history, the Spirit of God was going to be present in the hearts of believers on a long-term basis. The Greek word “meno” – “to say or to abide” indicates permanence. Your heart was not meant to be a hotel – God never intended for the Holy Spirit to be your guest. If the Holy Spirit were only a temporary guest, you could not develop a partnership with Him, but because He has come to stay as a permanent resident, this is a relationship worth your time and energy. 27 The Holy Spirit Reminds Us Jn 14:26 “He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” Jesus spoke many things to His disciples over the three years He was with them, it would have been humanly impossible to recall every single one, which is why Jesus told them that the Holy Spirit would bring them to their remembrance. When Jesus entered Jerusalem prior to His death, the people shouted “Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord!” (Jn 12:13). It was not until later (Jn 12:16) that the disciples realised that Old Testament Scripture had been fulfilled before their eyes. (See also Jn 12:14-15, compared to Zech 9:9). When we are in the midst of a situation and do not know what to do, the Holy Spirit will reach into the Word of God, withdraw the exact verse or truth we need, and put us in remembrance of it at just the right moment. The Holy Spirit Convicts Jn 16:8-10 “And when He is come, He will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgement; of sin, because they do not believe me, of righteousness, because I go to My Father, and you see me no more; of judgement, because the ruler of this world is judged” Remember how it felt before you were saved, when you had done something wrong, but you thought no one had seen you. Then later you found out that someone had been watching you all the time? You were unmistakeably guilty. This is how a sinner feels the first time the Holy Spirit convicts him of sin. The Bible says that sin has made their understanding “darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart ....” (Eph 4:18) – they are unable to respond to God. These factors change instantaneously when the Holy Spirit awakens them to their spiritual condition. Jesus said the Holy Spirit would “reprove” the world of sin (Greek “elegcho” – “to expose, convict, or cross-examine for the purpose of conviction”) It is the work of the Holy Spirit to convict sinners of their lost condition. The whole world stands guilty before God (Rom 3:19), but they don’t realise their guilt. Jn 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father ... draws him” This drawing is done by the Holy Spirit. The lost are “dead in trespasses and sins”(Eph 2:1) - dead people don’t feel anything, especially the conviction of sin. It requires the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. 28 The Holy Spirit Convinces Jn 15:10 “And when he is come, He will reprove ... of righteousness, because I go to My Father, and you see Me no more” The Holy Spirit comes to convince us of righteousness. Negative, base, sinful thinking has been a part of our humanity for so long that it requires a special convincing work of the Holy Spirit to make us realise what God has done for us. He convinces us of our right standing with God. God says we are “His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2:10). This is a powerful, life-changing truth, but it takes the Holy Spirit to move this truth from our heads to our hearts. Just as the Holy Spirit must convict the sinner of his lost condition, He must also convince believers of their new right standing with God. The Holy Spirit Guides We would all like to know what we should do with our lives, what direction we should take. While the Bible contains God’s revelation of Himself to man, it does not always answer our specific questions about the details of daily life such as who we should marry, which job to take etc. The Bible gives us guiding principles such as: to abstain from the appearance of evil (1 Thess 5:22); not to be yoked with unbelievers (2 Cor 6:14); memorising the word of God so we will not sin (Ps 119:11). For answers to other questions we must seek the assistance of the Holy Spirit. Jn 16:13 “He will guide you into all truth” This guiding work was crucial to the early church, they trusted the leading of the Holy Spirit to form doctrines, select leaders, where to minister, whom to send out as missionaries etc. Acts 13:2 “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Spirit said ‘Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them’” Acts 15:28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things.” Acts 16:6-7 “Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.” The Holy Spirit guides by either a yes or a no! He will try to stop us from doing something that looks good to us, but is either a trap of the enemy or not God’s will, or He will open a door of opportunity and give us total peace to walk through it. 29 The Holy Spirit Reveals Jn 16:13 “ However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.” Whatever the Holy Spirit reveals to us, we can be sure it comes straight from the throne of God. We can trust what He is saying to us, whether it has to do with how we are living our lives, what our calling and purpose are, which job to take, whom to marry, or how to deal with our children. The Holy Spirit will most often reveal things to us during times of prayer. Rom 8:26 “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” It is the Holy Spirit’s responsibility to reveal to us the will or wisdom of God for our lives through prayer. Prayer is not something we do by ourselves – it is a twoway conversation between us and the Holy Spirit, an outgrowth and manifestation of the intimacy and partnership we share with Him. During this intimate time of communication He reveals where Jesus is going with a certain situation and what He wants us to do or not to do. Whatever the Holy Spirit is revealing to you, you can be sure He will live up to His responsibility. He will come right alongside you and reveal to you everything you need to know to turn your problem into a victory. The Holy Spirit Worships Jn 16:14 “He shall glorify Me” One of the responsibilities of the Holy Spirit is to glorify Christ. Since the Holy Spirit is an invisible, non-material, spirit being, He needs to use a vessel - you! He can heal the sick, cast out demons, and lead lost people to Christ through you – these acts glorify Jesus. The Holy Spirit also glorifies Christ in worship. Eph 5:18-19 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” All the Spirit wants is to magnify, lift up, exalt and glorify Jesus. Worshiping the Lord in communion with the Holy Spirit is what makes Jesus Christ real in our daily lives. 30 The Holy Spirit can be Jealous Jas 4:4-5 “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?” The believers in this scripture were having too close a relationship with the world – hence James called them ‘adulterers’ and ‘adulteresses’. The word ‘adultery’ carries the connotation of unfaithfulness, impurity, violation of a commitment to marriage. Feelings of rejection, betrayal, being lied to, misled and deceived are some of the emotions felt by the ones against whom adultery has been committed. The people to whom James was speaking had in some way gone outside their relationship with Christ to find fulfilment and companionship with someone or something else. They were unfaithful to their spouse – Jesus Christ. (the church is His bride) When believers do this the Holy Spirit feels the grief of a violated spouse. When we understand that sin not only affects us, but also the indwelling Holy Spirit, it changes our permissive attitude toward sin and causes us to live more holy lives for Him. Individuals, ministries and churches often fall into the trap of comparing themselves to others and assuming that because they themselves look better, they are doing okay. The church at Ephesus was the biggest church in New Testament times, the epitome of what a church should be. Everyone wanted to visit and preach there, and it prided itself on sound doctrine and thinking and on its hardworking believers. But when Jesus spoke to the church at Ephesus in Rev 2:45 He said “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen” We should never be satisfied with where we are in our spiritual growth until we reach the ultimate goal of being conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit can be Grieved Eph 4:30 “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” If we want to develop intimate communion with the Holy Spirit the last thing we want to do is grieve Him. When we cease to make our relationship with the Holy Spirit the number one priority in our lives and let other things take His rightful place, it hurts Him the same way it hurts a spouse to find that his or her mate has been unfaithful. Jesus is Lord, but the Holy Spirit is the One who lives in us, leads us, guides us, teaches us, reminds us, comforts us, seals us, sanctifies us, empowers us and works to produce the character of Christ in us. 31 He has been sent to reveal the will of God, which is the mind of Christ, and to give us the victory that Christ won at the cross and resurrection. If we ignore Him, turn a deaf ear to Him or consistently disobey what He nudges us to do, it grieves Him. The verses that precede this one about grieving the Holy Spirit say to put away “lying” (4:25), “let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (4:26), “Neither give place to the devil” (4:27), “steal no more” (4:28), “let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth” (4:29); and finally “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice” (4:31). These things grieve the Holy Spirit. Since Paul was speaking to Christians when he wrote these verses, it means Christians were grieving the Holy Spirit by acting in this fashion. He had come to produce holiness in them, but worldliness was dominating their lives, and they were quenching Him – He was being left out of the picture. You would never think of throwing mud and garbage all over a beautiful building, yet the Holy Spirit lives in you, you are His building! In spite of this we drag Him through the mud of our lives when we sin deliberately. We don’t normally commit the outward sins, the ones we must deal with are inward attitudes such as grudges, bitterness, anger and malice. These attitudes grieve the Holy Spirit. If you make yourselves constantly aware of the Spirit’s indwelling presence, it will help change the way we think, speak and act. What you do in your life today, you do with Him inside you. Wherever you go you take Him with you. When you choose to sin, you are dragging Him with you through that filth. The Holy Spirit Loves The Holy Spirit is in love with us – the fact that our mixing and mingling with the world is viewed as adultery by Him reveals the intense love and affection He has for us. His work, attention, gifts, power and Word are all directed towards us – we are the object of His love and affection. He passionately yearns to fulfil His responsibility to the Father to help, teach, guide and empower us. Likewise the Holy Spirit desires to possess you – all of you – and this desire is so intense, that compared to natural, human lust, it almost appears excessive. He is focused on changing you, empowering you, conforming you to the image of Jesus Christ and helping you to fulfil God’s plan for your life. He will never be satisfied with a shallow fellowship – He wants real communion with you. Sometimes it is just the cares of this life that pull us away from Him, we can get so busy, so committed to doing so many things, that it deteriorates our spiritual life. Where is your mind most of the time? In the garage, at work, in your house, in your yard, at the movies etc.? Where are your thoughts? No matter how much you have to do, there should still be time to spend with God. If having communion with the Holy Spirit is a priority, you’ll make time for Him. If we draw closer to Him, He will draw closer to us. 1 Cor 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all “ 32 The Ministry and Personality of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts Ministry and Ministry and Personality of the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit speaks, directs, commands The Holy Spirit anoints/is an anointing The Holy Spirit anoints with power The Holy Spirit anoints for healing The Holy Spirit anoints for deliverance The Holy Spirit anoints for witnessing The Holy Spirit baptises The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of revelation and prophecy The Holy Spirit fills/brings fullness The Holy Spirit is poured out The Holy Spirit brings visions and dreams The Holy Spirit comes upon men and women of any age The Holy Spirit is a promise of God The Holy Spirit is a gift of God The Holy Spirit is received, falls upon … The Holy Spirit is promised after repentance and baptism The Holy Spirit brings boldness The Holy Spirit can be lied to The Holy Spirit can be tested The Holy Spirit is a witness of Christ The Holy Spirit is given to those who are obedient The Holy Spirit is the spirit of wisdom/guidance The Holy Spirit can be resisted The Holy Spirit can be received by prayer The Holy Spirit can be received by the laying on of hands The Holy Spirit ‘catches up’ or ‘translates’ people from one place to another The Holy Spirit comforts The Holy Spirit ordains for ministry The Holy Spirit brings joy The Holy Spirit forbids The Holy Spirit compels The Holy Spirit enables men to speak in tongues Major Points of this Topic  The Holy Spirit is a Person and not an “It”. 33 Scripture Acts 1:2; 8:29; 11:12; 13:2,4; 18:5; 29:22 Acts 10:38; Acts 1:8; 10:38; 8:19 Acts 10:38; 9:17 Acts 10:38 Acts 1:8 Acts 1:5;11:16 Acts 1:16; 2:17,18; 10:19; 11:28; 19:6; 20:23; 21:42; 1:11; 28:5 Acts 2:4; 4:8; 4:31; 6:3,5; 7:55; 9:17; 11:24; 13:9, 52 Acts 2:17 Acts 2:17; 10:19 Acts 2:17-18 Acts 2:33 Acts 2:38; 10:45; 15:8 Acts 2:33, 38; 10:44,47; 11:15; 19:2,6 ; Acts 2:38 Acts 4:31 Acts 5:3 Acts 5:9 Acts 5:32 Acts 5:32 Acts 6:10; 15:28; 19:21 Acts 7:51 Acts 8:15 Acts 8:17; 9:17 Acts 8:39 Acts 9:31 Acts 13:4; 20:28 Acts 13:52 Acts 16:6-7 Acts 18:5 Acts 2:4;19:6  The Holy Spirit has all the attributes of God the Father, and Jesus.  The Holy Spirit takes Jesus’ place in the life of the believer.  The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of wisdom and revelation. Revision or Discussion Questions 1. What is the Holy Spirit’s primary role in the life of the believer? 2. How do the Holy Spirit’s attributes help the believer in ministry? 3. What specific ministry of the Holy Spirit have you regularly experienced in your life? 4. How could you develop a greater awareness of the Holy Spirit in your life? 5. What aspects of the Holy Spirit would you most like to see developed in your life and how would you cultivate their development? Optional Readings for this Topic  Winslow, Octavius. 1991. The Work of the Holy Spirit. Worcester:Billing & Sons Ltd.  Swindoll, Charles R. 1993. Flying Closer to the Flame. Milton Keynes: Nelson Word Ltd. 34 Topic 3 – The Anointing Introduction In the Old Testament priests were anointed for service, with a special anointing oil, made to God’s prescription. In the New Testament, however, we see that “The Anointing” is not an inanimate object, but is in fact the Person of the Holy Spirit, operating through, and abiding in, the life of the believer. Exodus 28:41 “You shall anoint them, consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister to Me as priests." Isa 10:27 “It shall come to pass in that day that his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, And his yoke from your neck, And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.” Acts 10:38 "how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. 1 John 2:27 But the anointing that you have received from him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you." From this Topic You Will Learn. 1. What the anointing is. 2. The different types of anointing. 3. What the Bible says about the anointing. 4. The relationship of atmosphere to the anointing. 5. How to build the anointing. 6. How to release the anointing. Topic Notes What is the Anointing? It is the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit, which divinely equips the believer for ministry. When a believer is baptized or filled with the Spirit he or she is anointed. They are filled with the Spirit and endowed with power. There is the personal anointing which abides in the believer and the corporate anointing which manifests upon a believer or group of believers at different times. When the Spirit of God comes down, or upon, an individual, they are considered to be anointed (Luke 4:18,19). The terms spirit filled, baptized into the Spirit, are synonymous with the anointing. Jesus was the Christ, the Anointed One. In the Old Testament the people of God looked for coming of the Messiah. The Messiah was the expected deliverer of God’s people. The Hebrew word for Messiah is anointing. Jesus was the Messiah, the Anointed One. Jesus had to be anointed to fulfil His work. The church is now the Body of Christ, or the anointed body. Believers must be baptized into the body 35 by water and spirit. Without this they are powerless to do the works of Christ. Believers have “Christ within”, and are also “in Christ”. The anointing is within and without. “The anointing is the supernatural equipment to get the job done. God will never call someone to do something without equipping them with the necessary tools to get the task done. Just like a mountain climber has to have the right boots and equipment, so we, if we would be able ministers of the new covenant, need the anointing.” Rodney M.Howard-Browne, The Touch of God, Louisville, Kentucky: R.H.B.E.A Publications, 1992. p.9 The Personal Anointing:  The anointing within (Internal). 1 John 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received from him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you." Acts 10:38 "how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” The personal anointing comes and abides within the believer. This anointing remains in the individual enabling them to exercise both their gifts and ministry calling. Our mental and emotional state does not change the existence of the anointing but our thoughts and emotions can effect our confidence in it. We are constantly commanded not to fear and to bring our thoughts back into captivity to Christ. The anointing is there to teach and guide us in the things of the Lord, to build Christlike character, direct our ministry and empower us to do the works of Christ. The anointing is the Holy Spirit in the believer, being the representative, or agent of, Christ. The Corporate Anointing:  The anointing without or upon (External) Lk 5:17 And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching , that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them." Lk 4:18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;” The corporate anointing comes upon, and goes from, a believer or congregation. It does not remain. While the corporate anointing is manifested, many can do exploits that they would not normally be able to perform. When it is lifted they return to their previous state or ability. 36 There are Different Anointings Isa 11:2 “The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” Lk 4:18-19 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." Eph 4:7 “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.” Whenever the Spirit comes upon the believer he or she can receive a different anointing. Some of these different anointings include healing, preaching, filling with laughter, saving souls, and setting people free. The anointing can manifest the gifts of the Spirit as well as the different callings. Believers need to be aware of, and sensitive to, changes in the anointing as well as differing anointings. When the corporate anointing comes the minister is equipped with fresh power and ability to function with God’s ability. What Others are Saying about the Anointing “There is a difference between the fivefold ministry and the laity, and the difference is the anointing.” Rodney M. Howard-Browne, 1992. p.40 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me ... We know that Jesus made this statement many times. The anointing came upon Him, covering Him like a coat. I like to say that a mantle came upon Him. (I like to use the word “mantle”.) There are many different types of anointings in a mantle. For example, there are different types of anointings in the mantle, or office, of a pastor. I have been around a pastor who truly was a pastor, yet he couldn’t preach his way out of a wet paper sack. He wasn’t even a good teacher. But, boy, could he pastor! He loved and empathized with his people, and the people loved him. Even though a teaching centre was just down the street and his flock would go there for special meetings, they’d come home to be around that pastor. Why? Because he had a mantle. He was a shepherd. Even though he couldn’t preach that well, he was still a ‘feeder’ A shepherd is a feeder; he feeds the sheep. Ed Dupresne. 1994. pp 8-9 When the presence of God comes into a building, it always comes for a purpose. His presence comes to minister to people to set them free. When His power begins to manifest, those who are ministering need to be sensitive to the flow of the Holy Ghost. If the preacher pushes right on with his own purpose, his own plan, to follow his own agenda for the 37 meeting, then many times the Holy Spirit is grieved and His hands are tied and nothing will happen. I know many times when I get into the meetings, the Lord will prompt me to go in a different direction than I had planned. When I obey Him and do what He wants done then lives are touched. Under the anointing, God can do more in two minutes than we can do in months. Rodney M. Howard Browne, 1992. p.8 The anointing is that divine energy that separates you from yourself and fills you with the glory of God so that when you act, it is like God acting, and when you speak, it is like God speaking.” I soon knew when I was anointed and when I was not. It is awesome to face a group of people, few or many, knowing that they have mortal bodies but immortal souls, that some are terminally ill, that all are sick in some way, and understanding they came not only to hear me but also to hear God’s voice speaking inside them through the Word preached. Not feeling that awesomeness leads to tickling their fancy with a message that has no heart or soul in it, or lulling the people to believe God is not all powerful and able to do ‘exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think’ (Eph.3:20). Oral Roberts, 1995. pp 352,353. We must give the message and stay anointed while we give it. I discovered that secret the hard way. There were times when I felt my message so strongly in me that I got cocky and didn’t spend enough time seeking God to anoint me as the messenger to help deliver those who were suffering. . . Oral Roberts. 1995. p. 353 What the Bible says about the Anointing In the Old Testament God required a special anointing oil to be made. Everything used in the tabernacle or temple had to be anointed; all the utensils, offerings, the tabernacle itself, and the priests who ministered in it. The anointing oil sanctified or set apart the priests or items for service. The anointing oil was considered, precious, holy, and was not to be copied. Ex 30:22-33 “ Moreover the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: “Also take for yourself quality spices—five hundred shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much sweetsmelling cinnamon (two hundred and fifty shekels), two hundred and fifty shekels of sweet-smelling cane, five hundred shekels of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hin of olive oil. And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil. With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony; the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base. You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them must be holy. And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to Me as priests. 38 And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. It shall not be poured on man’s flesh; nor shall you make any other like it, according to its composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. Whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on an outsider, shall be cut off from his people.” In the Old Testament the anointing was so powerful that Elisha received a double portion of Elijah’s anointing upon request and the very bones of Elisha raised a dead man back to life (2 Kings 13:21). The anointing came upon Bezaleel and Aholiab and they crafted artistic works for the tabernacle (Ex 31:16). The anointing came upon the Judges Othniel (Judges 3:7-10), Gideon (Judges 6:34), Samson (Judges 14:6,19,28) who wrought miracles and deliverance for God’s people. Priests, prophets and kings had to be anointed (Lev 6:20, 1 Sam 16:13, 2 Sam 2:4,7, 5:3; 1 Kin 1:39, 19:15,16). Saul was anointed to be king over Israel (Sam 10:1) but disobedience lost him his position (1 Sam 15) and David was anointed in his place (1 Sam 16). David respected Saul as the Lord’s anointed and refused to harm him even though he was provoked and He had opportunity to do so (1 Sam 24:6,10, 26:9,11, 16, 23). David ordered the execution of the man who claimed to have killed Saul because he did not fear to slay the Lord’s anointed (2 Sam 1:14-16). The Spirit of God, or the anointing, came upon various people and they prophesied; Baalam (Num 24:2-4), Moses’ seventy elders (Num 11:25,26) Saul (1 Sam 10:5-12) and even Saul in his fallen state (1 Sam 19:20, 24). The Spirit came upon Simeon and led him to the temple and revealed Christ to him (Lk 2:25-35). The anointing was not to be poured upon the flesh. In the New Testament believers are commanded to walk in the Spirit not the flesh (Gal 5:16), and that which is born of spirit is spirit and what is born of flesh is flesh (Jn 3:6). The believers are to live a holy life and their efforts are to be birthed and empowered by God. The anointing was so powerful that Peter’s shadow healed the sick (Acts 5:14,15). Paul wrought unusual miracles by praying over handkerchiefs and aprons, the anointing was imparted and remained on the garments and then when placed on people the anointing on the garments healed the sick and cast out evil spirits (Acts 19:11-12). Jesus became the Christ (The Anointed One, Messiah) when He was baptized in water and spirit at the River (Luke 3:21,22). Jesus claimed that He never did anything which He did not see His heavenly Father do (Jn 5:19) and that He was anointed to preach and minister. Luke 4:18-19 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the 39 acceptable year of the Lord.” Acts 10:38 “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with him.” The disciples were anointed when they were baptized in the Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2). They began to perform signs and wonders, including healing the sick, casting out demons, and raising the dead (Acts 2:40, 3:6, 4:29-31, 5:1-11, 32, 6:8, 9:17, 32-35, 36-43, 10:10-17, 11:12, 12:5-11, 13:9-12 ). Atmospheres Help or Hinder the Spirit God’s Spirit has dwelt in various places, tents, temples, and mountains. His presence is like an atmosphere. Just as there is an earthly atmosphere, so is there a spiritual atmosphere. What is true of the earthly atmosphere is also true spiritually. Spiritual atmospheres of holiness, prayer, faith, and worship can build an atmosphere for His Spirit to dwell in. We can enter a room where an argument has taken place and say “you can cut the atmosphere with a knife” because the atmosphere is so heavy. Atmospheres are where the spirit dwells - either holy or unholy, good or bad. What Atmosphere Does  Sustains life Without a proper atmosphere it is impossible for mankind to live. People cannot live on the moon unless they bring earth’s atmosphere with them. Without it they will die. There is a spiritual atmosphere that believers need to sustain life on earth. Without this atmosphere we die. The Holy Spirit provides this atmosphere. It is an atmosphere of the presence of God, praise, worship, righteousness, love, joy, peace, faith and perseverance etc. When we minister in the Spirit we need to become aware of atmospheres. We must be aware of distinct atmospheres. It will be these atmospheres that will provide life to a believer’s ministry or even a church service. There can be an atmosphere of worship that brings life to a congregation. If we fail to discern the atmosphere of worship we miss the life of the Spirit that can come to the congregation that day. There can be an atmosphere of prophecy that, if a congregation becomes aware of it, can bring numerous prophetic words that can become life to individuals or the congregation. We see this in the Old Testament when King Saul entered into a company of prophets and he too was caught up into this atmosphere and began to prophesy. 1 Sam 19:20-24 “Then Saul sent messengers to take David. And when they saw the group of prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as leader over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. And when Saul was told, he sent other messengers, and 40 they prophesied likewise. Then Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they prophesied also. Then he also went to Ramah, and came to the great well that is at Sechu. So he asked, and said, "Where are Samuel and David?" And someone said, "Indeed they are at Naioth in Ramah." So he went there to Naioth in Ramah. Then the Spirit of God was upon him also, and he went on and prophesied until he came to Naioth in Ramah. And he also stripped off his clothes and prophesied before Samuel in like manner, and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Therefore they say, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" The Holy Spirit brings an atmosphere around a person’s life and over a meeting. These “God moments” are effective means of personal and congregational growth.  Applies pressure The earth has an invisible atmosphere round about it called gravity. It is the force of this gravity that holds us to this planet. There is an atmosphere of the Spirit that holds the Christian firmly to the Christian lifestyle that keeps him centred upon God and living a sanctified life. There is an invisible atmosphere of conviction, comfort, direction, and encouragement that if a Christian learns to live in it, will keep him living effectively in the will of God. It is a pressure that holds him/her self to Christ as Lord.  Reflects and Transmits Different atmospheres reflect different signals on earth. On a good day it would be possible to get a clearer reception or picture from a radio or TV than it would be on a stormy day. A good atmosphere reflects the invisible sound waves of voice and picture across this planet. The right spiritual atmosphere reflects the glory of God. When Christians are living in the right atmosphere they can hear from God, see God more clearly, and know Him better. It is important to cultivate and be aware of the right atmospheres, to reflect the right things. Moses was on the Mount and reflected the glory of God to such an extent that his face had to be covered, because the people of Israel could not stand the reflection of God’s glory. Moses was living in the presence of God. However, at the same time, Israel had created their own atmosphere and began to worship the image of a molten calf. They began to reflect the image of a beast and even began to do animalistic instincts rather than godly instincts (Ex 32:1-24 cf. Ps 106:19-20). Ps 106:19-20 “They made a calf in Horeb, and worshiped the moulded image. Thus they changed their glory into the image of an ox that eats grass.” Rom 1:21-24 “because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools and 41 changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man-- and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, …” We reflect the atmosphere we live in. It is important for Christians to develop a godly and holy atmosphere in order to live like God. Atmospheres can be created in homes, by playing praise and worship tapes, by encouraging one another with the promises of God, and living a positive, Christian lifestyle. Without this reflection the very life and nature of God cannot be communicated to the world, and we are neither the salt nor light of the world, as God has created us to be.  Protects The atmosphere around planet earth protects us from falling meteorites, or even new phenomena today, space junk. Whenever an object falls from outer space, wherever it hits earth’s atmosphere, it immediately burns up before it hits the earth. It is rare to find a meteorite on earth, because we are protected by the atmosphere. The earth’s atmosphere protects us from the sun’s powerful rays, which would scorch the earth as effectively as any nuclear fallout. When Christians are living in the right atmosphere, they are protected from the spiritual forces that try to attack us. Christians are exhorted to put on the armour of God as an atmosphere that protects us from the enemy (Eph 6:10-18). The shield of faith is a good example of how an atmosphere protects us. Paul says that the shield of faith will quench the fiery darts of the wicked one (Eph 6:18). Just as earth’s atmosphere quenches the fallout from outer space, so an atmosphere of faith in a believer quenches the fiery darts of criticism, negativity, doubt, fear and temptation with which the enemy would try to attack the heart of the believer.  Revives and Refreshes It is earth’s atmosphere that produces the seasons of life. For survival and reproduction, both winter and summer are needed. It is through these seasons that the earth is revived and refreshed again. Our spiritual life is in need of constant revival and refreshing. It is only as a Christian spends times in the refreshing seasons of God that he/she and the congregation are revived. For ministry to be effective they need to be aware of the spiritual seasons of life, in order to be refreshed. Acts 3:19-21 “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.” Eccl 3:1-8 “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a 42 time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace “ How to Build the Anointing 1. Know That You Are Anointed And That It Abides Within You 2 Cor 1:21 “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God.” 1 John 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him” 2. Memorize Scriptures on the Anointing 2 Cor 1:21 “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God...” 1 John 2:20 “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things.” 1 John 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.” 3. Meditate on the Scriptures Josh 1:8 "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” See also Psalm 1; 2 Peter 1; Matthew 15:18-23 4. Confess the Scriptures Rom 10:8-10 “But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” 43 Confessions Need to Be:     Word of God (truth). Personal, present tense, descriptive. Faith filled, positive not negative. Spoken from your heart and with all your heart. 5. Catch the Anointing The anointing can be caught as well as taught; Moses and Joshua Deut 34:9 Elijah and Elisha 2 Kings 2:12-15 Moses and the Elders Num 11:25 Jesus and Disciples Mk 11:13-15 Catchable qualities:  Be teachable  Be submissive  Be humble  Be aware  Be faithful  Be persistent  Be disciplined Spiritual covering and authority is always essential to moving in the realm of the Spirit. It is our safety net. 6. Yield and Surrender to the Anointing Rom 6:16 “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” 7. Be Constantly Aware of the Realm of the Spirit 1 Cor 3:16 “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” Make the Holy Spirit your friend, rather than an influence. Cultivate a relationship with Him and give your mind back to the Holy Spirit for Him to use. 8. Practise Moving in the Spirit Heb 5:14 “But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” Rom 6:16 “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to 44 death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” Hindrances to Flowing in the Anointing 2 Cor 4:7 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us”         Doubt Carnal personality (abrasive) Fear/timidity Shyness/inferiority/self-esteem Pride/arrogance/self justification Having an unteachable spirit Insecurity Guilt/condemnation How to Release the Anointing 1. Be Aware of the Realm of the Spirit It is ‘within’ you. It abides within. It surrounds you (external) e.g. tune in like a radio, different voices. 2. Cast Down Imagination and Thoughts Contrary to the Word of God Rom 8:5-7 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be”. 2 Cor10:5 “...casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ...” 3. Learn to Release the Anointing from Within It’s not predominantly the words you say but the release of the anointing that counts when you minister. Know you are the minister of the Holy Spirit. You must minister the anointing. 4. Be Aware of Different Anointings for Each Situation Learn to change from anointing to anointing.  Begin to look in the spirit for the specific anointing. Where you look you will walk. 45  Begin small and release more of the anointing allowing it to build in the meeting. Move out on smallest thought.  Walk in faith. Faith believes to see, not sees to believe.  Be bold and confident. Speak it as the oracles of God. Major Points of this Topic  There is an anointing within and without.  The anointing is “caught” as much as it is taught.  There are different types of anointing.  The anointing can be aided or hindered by atmosphere.  An anointing can be “built” around the believer’s life.  The anointing can be released from within the believer. Revision or Discussion Questions 1. What is the “anointing”? 2. How does a believer become anointed? 3. Have you ever attempted to build the anointing around your life? If so what were your successes and failures. 4. What difference does the anointing make in the believer’s life? 5. How can you become “more” anointed? Optional Readings for this Topic  Wilke, Lori. 1991. The Costly Anointing. Shippensburg: Destiny Image Pub.  Hagin, Kenneth E. 1997. The Fresh Anointing. Tulsa: Faith Library Pub. 46 Topic 4 – The Ways of the Spirit Introduction Psalm 103:7 “He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.” Rom 8:1“ There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” God made us to be perfect recipients of His Spirit, and perfect conveyors of His Spirit. It is one thing to know that there is a spiritual dimension, but there must come a realisation that the life the Spirit offers is far better than the current life being lived. It may take some time before someone is comfortable with the spirit world. However, once a person becomes addicted to the presence of Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit, he/she will not want to return to the old ways and old life. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. How to walk in the Spirit. 2. How to work with, and learn the ways of the Spirit of God. 3. The difference between your “natural” man and your “spirit” man. 4. How to sharpen your gift. 5. How to use the anointing for preaching Topic Notes Walking in the Spirit Gal 5:16-17 “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.” We either walk in the realm of the flesh or the spirit. These realms are totally different, you are either in one or the other. It is just like being inside or outside. If we are inside we are in one realm, and if we are outside we are in a totally different realm. There is a doorway in between, by which we pass from one realm to another, so it is with the Spirit and the flesh. Many believers mistakenly think of the Christian life as merely a life of right and wrong, however, this is not totally true and is in fact deceptive. The spiritual life is a life of the Spirit, and the nature of the Spirit is righteousness. If we have the right spirit, then we have the right nature. When Adam sinned he fell into the realm of the flesh or sin. When he fell, he ate from the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil”. Many Christians are trying to walk in their Christian life by the knowledge of good and evil, which is impossible. God pointed this out to Israel by giving them a true knowledge of 47 good and evil through the Law. However, Israel could not fulfil the Law because of the weakness of their nature, the flesh. Israel had to be “born again” with a new nature and then filled with this new nature through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, so they could walk in power. When they had this new nature they could walk in the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy peace, goodness, etc. (Gal 5:16-25). 2 Cor 4:16 “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” The spirit is being renewed daily as we seek the presence of God. Whatever you do in the natural you can also do in the spirit world because mankind was designed to inhabit both worlds, since he was formed in the “image” of God Himself. Keys to Walking in the Spirit 1. Be Filled with the Spirit Acts 11:24 “For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord.” Acts 13:9 “Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him” Eph. 5:18 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit” 2. Be Spiritually Minded The mind can sometimes try to shut down, or contain, the spirit man within. Your mind is the “bottleneck” of your spirit – you have to take authority over it. 2 Cor 10:3-5 “and bring every thought into captivity into the law of Christ” Eph 4:17 “This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind….” Rom 8:6 “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” To bring your thoughts into captivity you have to become greater than your thoughts; you have to order your natural mind to be controlled by your spirit. This can be done by:  Positive confession  Meditation on God’s Word .  Visualisation It is best when the Word of God lodges in your life, when you get the Word, the living Word that will continue to produce fruit for the rest of your life. The word of knowledge is a simple gift of the Spirit – it is simply hearing God talk to you. Anybody can do it. We make God difficult but God didn’t make Himself 48 difficult. You are a child of God and you can listen to God’s voice, and walk in the ways of the Spirit. Fundamentals to Ministering in the Spirit 1. Understand Yourself – “You are a Spirit Being” 1 Cor 2:14 “but the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” The natural man is not just the unsaved person. We are both natural and spiritual. We are made natural by God – we didn’t make ourselves natural. God made us natural to live in this natural world. He made us in His image, after His likeness (Gen 1:26,28). John 4:24 tells us God is a Spirit, so if He made you in His image, after His likeness, who does God look like, you or me? You are made in the image of God and after God’s likeness. God is a Spirit and you are a spirit too. You are a spirit being – God is a spirit being, but He gave us a natural being as well, because He put us in a natural world. Never forget that a Spirit made this natural world. The natural world didn’t make the spirit. A Spirit made the oceans, a Spirit being made the mountains. He made the ground and all the things in the ground. A Spirit made us, He made us natural and He designed and created this natural world, we didn’t. He created mankind to be natural and spiritual, so we can relate to both realms. The Church traditionally has tried to annihilate the naturalness of man – e.g. monks. They became monks to deny all their natural desires, so they could become more spiritual, and they took vows of chastity and poverty. The things that would fulfil the naturalness of man, they said “no” to, believing they would be more spiritual. Don’t Try to Be Spiritual – You are Spiritual Most people would like to be more spiritual – how do we do it? Longer prayer time, reading the Bible, trying to obey the Word, just worshipping – it doesn’t work! Our problem in the Church is we try to be what God has already made us! I am a spirit, you are a spirit. How do you get more spiritual than spirit? Very difficult. How do you get more human than human? I am a man. I have never tried to put on my wife’s lipstick! I am man, I do man kind of things, automatically. I am a spirit, just as much as I’m a man, so are you. Why don’t we then walk in the Spirit? Because we are not trained that we are spirit. In our education system we are trained in our mind. We come from the Greek culture, not the Hebrew culture. We are not made aware that we are spirit beings and because we are spirit beings, we do spirit things all the time automatically, just as we do human things automatically. Women do woman things, men do man things, and the spirit does spirit things! It is fundamental to understand that I am a spirit. I don’t become a spirit, I am a spirit. I am made in the image of God after 49 His likeness. The Hebrew word “likeness” means after His “kind”. Everything reproduces after its own kind - a cow reproduces a cow after its own kind. If I am a spirit – who am I? How do I get to know my spirit? We are very familiar with the natural man but not so familiar with the spirit man. Most people who want to be spiritual try to bring the natural man “under”, so that they get spiritual. That’s not how you get spiritual at all. How do you step from the natural into the spirit? It only takes a matter of seconds to step into the natural man. It is perfectly spiritual to be natural, and its perfectly natural to be spiritual. God made us both. He didn’t make me something that He says is evil. He made me natural. He made me a spirit who can operate in the natural realm. I can operate out of the flesh in this natural realm, or out of the spirit, in this natural realm. That is my choice, but you cannot get more spiritual than spirit. Reading the Bible for two hours a day will not make you more spiritual, nor will praying for five hours a day, make you more spiritual. I need to pray because I am spiritual. Because I am a spirit being made in the image of God I need this Word inside of me. This affects the reason I read the Word, and from what motivation I pray. If I’m praying to be spiritual, I’ll never get there, but if I’m praying because I am a spirit, and I want to develop the spirit being that I am, that is altogether different. Prayer affects me far more than it affects God. God doesn’t need to be affected, He’s okay. I don’t have to change God, it’s me – I have to come into alignment with God. Prayer brings your life into alignment with God. Think about this until your mind is renewed that you are a spirit. Will you always feel spiritual? No, you’ll feel a million things – you’ll feel hungry, full, young, old, energetic, tired. But you are a spirit. 2 Cor 4:16-18 “Though the outward man is perishing, yet the inward man (spirit) is being renewed day by day." So, you are no older inside today than you were yesterday. You got renewed at the end of yesterday. The clock was turned back. You will never grow old in the spirit, you’ll only grow old physically. You will always feel young in the spirit. Matt 11:30 “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Praying two hours a day is hard work. God’s ways are easy. The spirit man can do in the spirit, the equivalent to what the natural man does in the natural. So, the natural man can build this building; the spirit man can build things in the spirit. It is totally natural for the spirit man to build whatever he decides to build in the spirit, and it’s just as powerful in that realm as in the natural realm. How long did it take you to become the person you are – a long time? How long did it take you to do anything – eat? How did you do it? You put your hand in the pumpkin and slapped it over your face! You did it! Finally, you learned. The natural person didn’t learn in one moment! You’re a spirit being, it’s not a mystery. It’s something you learn – the ways of God. All that the natural person can become, trying to be spiritual, the very highest he can achieve – is to become a Pharisee. All religiousness comes from the natural man/woman trying to be 50 spiritual. That is the heart of all religion and churches are full of it. Dump it, be normal. It’s natural to be spiritual. When some people prophesy, you hear them go up six falsettos. No, God gave me this voice, I can prophesy naturally. I can be natural while I am spiritual. I don’t have to be weird to be spiritual, I can be normal. I am a spirit. I live inside this body, this is the body God gave me. It saves us from this incredible effort of trying to be what we already are. All my striving endeavours were to be what God had already made me. Ministering the Spirit of God 2 Cor 6:4 “But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God….” As ministers of God we must minister the Spirit of God to others. Most of us do not even realise how much God has put at our disposal – He delights to see us moving in His power and anointing, stepping out, stretching ourselves, stretching our capacities. We are born of the Spirit of God, baptised in the Spirit, led by the spirit, to be people of the Spirit – that is our function. No one person is more anointed than another because the Bible says “We have an anointing from the Holy One” (1 Jn 2:20). How we minister in that anointing depends on how much we have learned to tap into it and work with it. Jesus is with us all the time if we are born again of His Spirit. The realm of the Spirit is not a geographical distance away – we are always with the Almighty Son of God, because he said He would never leave us nor forsake us. The Holy Spirit abides in you, the Father watches over you, you are never alone. Listen for God’s Voice T. L. Osborne said “Listen for the friendly voice” i.e. the voice of the Holy Spirit, speaking to you, guiding you. Be obedient to that voice and step out in faith. The Holy Spirit loves to encourage you. As you get to know the Holy Spirit better, you will be able to know the direction He wants to take in a meeting, in your life. Getting to know God’s voice is like recognising a person’s voice on the phone. The more time you spend with them the more familiar you are with their voice. Wait on, or Yield to the Spirit Rom 12:7 “He that ministers, let him wait on his ministry….” Isa 40:30-31 “Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Rom 6:16 “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves 51 to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” The Hebrew meaning of this word “wait” means to bind together by twisting, to tie yourself around, like ivy twining itself around a brick wall. The ivy vine itself has no strength, but when it is planted into that brick wall it is impossible to uproot without pulling down the wall and dismantling the bricks. If you will entwine your life around God you will be renewed. “Renewed” means “to exchange or change.” As you entwine yourself around Him, you will exchange your weakness for His strength. You will exchange your natural ability for His spiritual ability. Those who entwine themselves around the gift of healing will exchange their limited ability to heal the sick, for the Spirit’s ability to heal the sick. The same rule applies for such things as prophecy, words of knowledge, and discernment. If you will take the time, the energy to love Him enough to twine your life around Him, to entwine yourself around the gifts of His Spirit, your ministry will rise and become prominent and He will use you. Expect Help from Angels Heb 1:14 “Are they (angels) not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? Ps 91:11 “ For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.” Ps 103:20-21 “Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word. Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, you ministers of His, who do His pleasure”. Acts 5:19 “But at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out….” Be aware of angels. They are God’s “ministering spirits” around you as you walk in the power of the Spirit. The Patriarchs were visited regularly by angels; it made their job much easier (e.g. Gen 22:11, 15; 31:11; Ex 3:2). Each of the churches in the Book of Revelation had its own angel (Rev2:1,8, 12, 18; 3:1,7,14). The Bible speaks regularly of angels at work in the midst of mankind. Expect them to help you as you minister, to create a spirit atmosphere so that you can worship and preach under that atmosphere. Sharpening Your Ability to Hear the Spirit 1 Tim 4:14 “Do not neglect the gift that is in you ….” God has deposited the gifts of His Holy Spirit within us so that we can minister to others in need. Because we are anointed by God, His anointing rests upon us and we can minister in that anointing. If you are born again you are a new creation, with new creation consciousness instead of sin or failure consciousness, and so are an able minister of the Spirit of God. 52 There are several, simple ways of sharpening your hearing ability to hear the voice of God’s Spirit: When you drive towards traffic lights, ask the Spirit what colour they will be.  When the telephone rings, ask the Holy Spirit who it is.  When you knock on someone’s door, ask the Spirit how they will react.  In the supermarket, bank or post office, ask the Spirit about the shortest queue. God doesn’t mind us practising. He is our Father and wants to see us grow in the same way that a natural father would. Our natural mind will want to highlight the times we fail over the times we win, to point out our inadequacies, to bring condemnation and depression. Instead we must discipline our mind to listen to the Spirit of God, and hear the good things He says to us about us. Hindrances to Operating in the Spirit  Condemnation: It will keep you a person of the flesh rather than a person of the spirit, i.e. seeing yourself less than how God sees you. Rom 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”  Being too “devil” conscious: rather than God conscious.  Being too “religious”: putting things in religious frameworks, believing there is only one way to do something.  Separating your natural man from your spirit man: you are just as much a minister of the Spirit at home or at work, dirty and dishevelled, as you are in a meeting, wearing a suit and tie. You are a child of God no matter what function you are in.  Lacking faith: in the power of the Spirit to work through you. Your belief factor will determine your future, and your destiny. Heb 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”  Relying on head knowledge: rather than listening to what the Spirit says and what your heart believes to be true. 53 Seeing in the Spirit – Using Your Visual Capacity This is the reason the Holy Spirit comes to cooperate with us - to create, by helping young men to see visions and old men dream dreams. Through envisioning and dreaming dreams we can kick away the wall of limitations, and can stretch out to the universe. That is the reason that God’s Word says, “Where there is no vision the people perish.” If you have no vision, you are not being creative; and if you stop being creative, then you are going to perish. Visions and dreams are the language of the fourth dimension, and the Holy Spirit communicates through them. Only through a vision and a dream can you visualize and dream bigger churches. You can visualize a new mission field; you can visualize the increase of your church. Through visualizing and dreaming you can incubate your future and hatch the results. Paul Yonggi Cho, 1979. p.4 How do you “see” in the spirit? By operating out of your spirit man. For example, if you hear the word “car”, or “house” you will immediately picture your house or car in your mind’s eye. Using that same faculty by giving it to the Holy Spirit you can ask a question of Him and expect Him to give you a vision in response. If you are seeking direction in your life you can ask God “What are you going to do with my life?” and expect Him to answer. Wait and allow Him to form a picture within your mind. God often speaks to us in a type of parable – you may see the sea, a ship – this may mean you will travel overseas, but it could also mean someone from overseas will have influence on your life. As you continue to speak to the Holy Spirit and wait on Him, the vision will be increased and He will reveal more things to you, e.g. if you see a tree, it may begin to grow and spread out – you may be going to experience growth in your life, or it may mean that your foundations are going to be strengthened as the tree’s roots support the growth. Some may see a ship sailing on calm waters and may sense that towards the horizon the waters are very, very rough. It may seem that as the ship goes along so the rough waters keep receding. God may impress upon you that He is going to take you through the rough waters. Your spirit can feed on that. When you have developed your relationship with the Holy Spirit you can trust what He shows you. If you are pastoring a church, ask Him to show you your church – what He is going to do there. Visualise an altar call, ask Him to show you how many people are going to be saved. What problems might these people have? 54 As you visualise the people, look up – is there a cloud there above them? That cloud is the anointing of God. Wherever it moves, that is where the anointing will be the most powerful, and the direction in which it will flow. “I want you to build My university” In those words, the Lord revealed to me the most astonishing knowledge and showed me the broad outline of how to build Him a university. He didn’t give me all the details, but it was a great breakthrough into the knowledge and the ability of how to do what He had commanded me to do. One thing I’ve learned over the years is not to jump the first time you feel like you’ve heard something from the Lord. What you hear in your spirit from the Lord must be tested by the Word of God and by the Spirit and by practicality. So as I continued to seek the Lord over the next few weeks and months, the revelation He gave me was confirmed to my heart over and over again. I stepped out in faith with these words from God ringing in my soul: “I want you to build My university out of the same ingredient I used when I formed the world, when I created the earth - nothing.” All at once Scripture from the book of Job flashed through my mind – “He (God) stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing” (Job 26:7). The Lord hung this earth upon empty space, upon nothing. And God reminded me of another Scripture in Hebrews 11:3, which says God framed the worlds by His word and used the things which we cannot see to make this visible world around us. That tells me that if you’ve ever felt like you had so little that you couldn’t possibly make it for God, you can stop your worrying! With God, you can do it, because the Bible says He calls the things that are not as though they were! (See Rom. 4:17). I’ll never forget how I looked out across those empty acres, much as the Lord Himself must have cast his eyes upon the empty spaces when He declared, “I have stretched My hand over the empty spaces and hung the world on nothing’. And, in my mind’s eye, when I looked at those bare grounds, I caught a glimpse of a university which was nothing yet, but I could see it by faith. I knew this truly was going to be a university, but wholly different in its calling to “educate the whole man!” But the battle was just begun. Oral Roberts. Expect a Miracle: My Life and Ministry. Nashville: Thomas Nelson. 1995. p.174 55 Live a Spiritual Lifestyle God’s Spirit must be over your life. You must have a lifestyle of Spirit activity. You should be continually stirring up the Spirit, being sensitive to the Spirit, waiting on the Spirit, looking for the things of the Spirit. Rom 8:5 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. Don’t look at people from your natural thinking but link your mind to the Spirit. Think from the Spirit, gather from the Spirit, so that even your hand motions as you preach are led by the Spirit. Allow the Spirit to Use You Allow the Spirit to take over your physical body, your brain, your eyes, your mouth, etc., and begin to use you. Give your whole self over to Him. People who worship demons give themselves over to them and go into a trance of some kind, but rarely do Holy Spirit Christians give themselves over to the Holy Spirit. How to Minister the Spirit in Preaching Whenever someone preaches under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, people will sit up and listen – even if he waffles in his natural man - simply because of the power of the anointing. People who sit under that anointing for long enough and often enough will feed upon it and thus their spirits will be satisfied. They may not even remember everything that was preached, but will go home satisfied, knowing that the preaching was good and that it fed their inner man, their spirit. Unless a man’s spirit as well as his mind is satisfied, he will become dissatisfied within himself, and become jittery. Each preacher will minister the Spirit differently, according to their personality. The Spirit can be ministered via: human nature  learned preaching techniques  eye control of people  the charisma of the preacher himself  hand motions  the preacher’s appearance  acknowledging people in the congregation, making them feel they are important etc. If you remain in the same spot throughout the preaching, never taking your eyes off your notes or your Bible, you will only impart information and probably bore your congregation to tears. 56 Use Your Eyes Prov 4:25 “Let your eyes look straight ahead, And your eyelids look right before you.” If your eyes are linked to your spirit they will have great power in the spirit realm:  talk with your eyes  keep your eyes on the move  look at individuals but don’t stare  let your eyes linger  look behind the eye in the face, then move on. It must not be so long that it becomes embarrassing to someone, but you must pin down that person and take authority in the spirit realm, to hold their attention. Handling Disturbances If someone is creating a disturbance as you preach:  don’t get aggressive  fasten your eyes upon him  hold his attention until he gets fidgety  release the anointing through your eyes After a while he will either settle down or leave. You must take authority over the spirit that is controlling him. There is more power in the eye than most people realise. You can make people feel secure or insecure merely by the way you look at them. Matt 6:22 “The lamp of the body is the eye.” Preaching is communication – you must keep people’s attention with your eyes. You must make the spirits bow to Jesus, the Jesus in you, because you are His witness for that moment. Know how to let the Holy Spirit work through you, your voice, your hands, your eyes etc., because you are His minister in that meeting. You are not there to perform but to save people from hell – it’s a serious business. Be Positive Spirit power is great power. Be positive when you make the altar call. Say “You must be born again” rather than asking them if they would like to be born again. Then allow the Spirit of God to have His way. Once the Holy Spirit is released over the congregation people will start to feel a “yes” response. They may not necessarily know why, but simply know that they must respond. Major Points of this Topic  You are a Spirit being – you cannot make yourself more spiritual. 57  Listen to God’s voice and become familiar with Him.  Expect the spiritual help of angels.  Practise hearing God’s voice.  Expect to hear from God by using your visualisation faculties.  Cultivate a lifestyle of spiritual activity around your life.  Minister the Spirit in preaching – don’t block Him off.  Use your eyes in preaching to minister the power and authority of the spirit realm.  Be positive in your words during the altar call. Revision or Discussion Questions 1. How can you sharpen the gifts of the Holy Spirit within you? 2. How do you “wait” on the Holy Spirit? 3. Are there any specific conditions necessary for operating in the anointing of the Holy Spirit? 4. In your personal life, have you ever “seen” anything in the Holy Spirit? 5. What more can you do, than you are doing at present, to assist you to walk in the Spirit? Optional Reading for this Topic  Heidler, Robert. 1998. Experiencing the Spirit. Ventura: Renew Books.  Kendall, R.T. 1998. The Anointing. London: Hodder & Stoughton  Oral Roberts. Expect a Miracle: My Life and Ministry. Nashville: Thomas Nelson. 1995. p.174 58 Topic 5 – Building in the Spirit Introduction In the same way that the natural person can erect a building, the spirit person can build things in the Spirit. Just as a natural building cannot be erected overnight – neither can something be built in the Spirit overnight – it takes time and effort to learn the ways of God. 1 Cor 3:9 “For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.” From this Topic You Will Learn 1. How to be a successful builder in the Spirit realm. 2. What tools are required to build in the Spirit. 3. What materials are required to build in the Spirit. 4. How human abilities and frailties can affect the building process. Topic Notes If you pray to become spiritual it will never happen. However, if you pray because you are spiritual and want to develop the spirit being within you, then you are correct. Prayer brings your life into alignment with God and your spirit will be refreshed and renewed. 2 Cor 4;16-18 “Though the outward man is perishing, yet the inward man (spirit) is being renewed day by day” Being a Master Builder Rom 15:20 “And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man's foundation” Paul the Apostle was a wise master-builder. He spent his life building churches across the world, because that was what he had been called to do. He would not build on anyone else’s foundation, but built in new areas to which God called Him. You too must build in the area to which you are called. A wise man can build his family in the spirit. A preacher can build the right atmosphere in his church. If you don’t prepare and build for the future, in the spirit or the natural, then you will just accept whatever comes across your path, good or bad. Someone designed the building you are in right now, designed the shape, the height, which direction it would face, how many windows it would have etc. It did not just happen. Someone thought about and designed every aspect of it. What have you thought about and designed in the Spirit? Or do you expect God to do it all? The Building Materials 59 1. Vision – The Building Blueprint Before building there must be a vision of what to build. The vision must come from the pastor of the church. Leadership should bring the vision, but all must labour to see the vision come to pass. What to Build Matt 28:19-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” Mark 16:15-18 And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." God has already commanded us to preach the gospel and save the lost so we don’t need to ask Him if these are things He wants us to build – it is already His will. It’s His will that all should come to repentance, so we can build an atmosphere of repentance in our churches so that people will want to be saved. You can build the anointing for souls over your life, to cause people to get saved. 1 Cor 2:16 “For who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.” A student could build an atmosphere conducive to studying in a more powerful way. To have the mind of Christ is to have the omniscience of God. God knows everything that ever was, is, or could be. He knows every bird that falls (Matt 10:29), how many hairs there are on your head (Matt 10:30, Lk 12:17), the name of every star in the heavens (Ps 147:4). He knows the decisions you will make before you are even aware of the question. That is a powerful mind, and yet it is available to us through Christ. 2. Faith Heb 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Substance is the raw material out of which something is made e.g. concrete is made from sand and gravel. When you look at the substance you do not necessarily always see the finished product. You may look at a pile of bricks and see nothing but bricks – but if you have vision you will see a splendid home, a mansion, a building. The bricks are the substance that bring the vision to completion. Paul built churches in the Spirit. He had a word from God to go to a specific area. As he went, having faith that God’s Spirit would bring people in, he would probably have envisioned in his mind what the place and people would be like, 60 how he would gain their interest, he would see them turning to God in repentance and being established. He probably would have already built the people into the church in his spirit before ever he saw it in the natural. 1 Cor 6:17 “He that is joined to the Lord, is one spirit with the Lord” God, in His totality, is joined in you, and you are in Him. If you are joined with Him and you have the “mind of Christ” then your plans will be His plans. If He lives in you, then you can never be any closer to Him than you are right now. That thought must be built into your consciousness – it is essential to walking in the Spirit. Having faith that you are in God’s will and plan will help you build. 3. God’s Word If you haven’t had the vision of what God is calling you to you can still follow God’s vision, found in His Word – the Bible. If God is not speaking to you specifically and planting a vision within you, spend time in His Word, building His Word into your spirit. As you spend time in His Word God may show you His plan for your life and you can begin to build in the Spirit to see it come to pass. It is important to remember that you cannot choose to be a prophet, preacher etc. It is the Holy Spirit who calls you and equips you. 1 Cor 12:11 “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” 1 Cor 12:28 “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. Heb 2:4 “God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?” We can all operate in more than one area of gifting, but God chooses the specialists. This does not make anyone more special than another, it just means that the Holy Spirit has called different people to different areas. 4. Prayer Have times of prayer, worshipping God, because He has made you holy. Thank Him for it. In your spirit build a new man, a new creation and then clothe yourself with him. Do that over and over until it becomes as natural to you as breathing. Practice makes perfect. A bank robber doesn’t merely go out and rob a bank. He ponders on it, meditates on it, plans it and does it over and over again in his mind. To be a good bank robber he has to work hard at it. You have to work hard to be good at sinning or good at holiness. God has already built certain things in your life over the years. Of your own self you cannot build what God has not built, or has not said you can build. When you were born again God built you holy, righteous, forgiven, justified, and sanctified. The Bible says that Christ is our sanctification (1 Cor 1:30) and Christ dwells in you. 61 You cannot have more of Christ in you than you already have, but you can realise more. Don’t rely on the way you feel – you may not feel that the Holy Spirit fills you, but God’s Word says He does. Praying for more will not produce more of the Holy Spirit, but the awareness of the Spirit as you pray will help you to rely on faith rather than feelings, and make you more aware of His presence within you. 5. The Power of God Within If you have the Spirit of God within you, you have power, because God is power. If God has you, you have power. Do you wish you could love more? God is love and He lives in you, so you have love, you only have to learn how to let it flow out of you. Do you desire peace? He is the Prince of Peace and He reigns in you, therefore peace is available to you. Do you desire courage? Courage Himself lives in you. That will not suddenly make you courageous, but once you realise the power of the One who dwells within you, that will make you courageous, it will make you tender and soft rather than arrogant and bold. He has come to you and made His home within you. Meditate on these attributes. Build them around your home, your family, your church. See your church coming alive in the Spirit of God. 6. Your Words Prov 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.” Prov 25:15 “By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded, And a gentle tongue breaks a bone.” Mat 12:37 "For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." Words are one of the great faculties of the Spirit – words that come from your spirit have power. The Holy Spirit lives within your spirit, your inward man, so if you speak out of the Holy Spirit, you have Spirit power flowing through your words. If you are believing for 500 people to come to your church, then as you pray them in, see them coming. Consider how full your church would look, how many rows they would fill, what kind of people would they be, what would it sound like with 500 people singing praises to God, 500 people filled with the Spirit of God. Feel it, see it, sense it and be aware of it and so you build it, you draw them in by the Spirit. Speak of it constantly until it becomes a reality to you. Speak not “if” but “when” they come. Build it in your imagination and in your speaking. Do this for about 15 minutes every day and it won’t be too long before you have your 500 people if you are consistent and don’t give up easily. 62 Every time a new person comes into your church, build them in, in the Spirit as well as in the natural. Invite them to cell group, make sure they feel at home. Love people, because God surely does, and, as you do, you will be building His kingdom on earth. You must be about your Father’s business. Build the anointing in the atmosphere, the presence of God, the glory cloud of God, the atmosphere of the Spirit, the life of God, so that people will feel it. Speak it into being, be confident, be positive. Own it. 7. Abide in the Anointing The anointing of the Holy Spirit gives you the ability to do the job God requires of you. In the Old Testament people were anointed to do many things, build the tabernacle, lead the people of God, do miracles etc. There is an anointing for every task and function that there is for a human being to do and that anointing “abides” within. 1 Jn 2:20 “But you have an anointing from the Holy One and you know all things” 1 Jn 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received abides in you” Often we feel that the anointing has left and gone somewhere else, we do not always “feel” anointed. This occurs because we have taken our eyes off the One who abides within and have instead focused on the problem or difficulty of the task before us. We look at our natural ability rather than the supernatural ability of God. The truth is that we are anointed and we need to remind ourselves of this truth daily. 8. Beware of Soulish “Feelings” Ps 42:5 “Why are you cast down, O my soul” disquieted within me? Hope in God ….” And why are you David had to speak to his soul, his emotions, and command them to be turned over to God. Don’t revel in self-pity and insecurity – whatever you focus your attention on that is how you will become. Instead, focus on God’s anointing abiding within. If you could convince people there was a lion outside the door who hadn’t eaten for a few days, and they had to go outside to get home, they would feel fear. If you could somehow manufacture a lion’s roar outside the door they would be even more fearful, yet the truth would be that there was no lion. People are influenced deeply by how they feel. Have you ever awakened from a horrific dream? How did you feel? How long did it take you to realise it was only a dream? We need to think deeply about God, His greatness, His power, His attributes etc. and then you will “feel” God, “feel” His anointing, His power etc. We need to 63 meditate on God and His anointing. Feelings are an important part of your faculty. If you ‘feel’ that God’s presence has left you, reflect on how it felt when His presence was with you, and re-live it. 9. Think Truth and Not Lies Ps 34:8 “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” When you think deeply about God and His power and anointing that abides within you, you can prepare for a meeting before it happens, by thinking about how He will move, what He will do through you. Live the meeting over and over before it even happens, before the pressure of having to “perform” at that meeting begins to kill your faith, and doubt and fear come into the equation. By running it over beforehand you are building the atmosphere in the spirit realm for the meeting, so that when it actually happens you know what God is going to do. 10. Remember the Miracles Deut 5:15 “And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm….” The Israelites were often reminded in the wilderness to remember the past miracles of God when they complained of their present situation. The Passover celebration was instituted as a remembrance to them of how God saved them in Egypt. When David brought the ark of the covenant into Jerusalem he exhorted the people to “make known His deeds among the people …. Talk of all His wondrous works …. Remember His marvellous works which He has done, His wonders ….” (1 Chron16:8,9,12). What do you do as you journey through the wilderness? Do you worry and complain about lack of finances, not hearing from God etc. or do you remember what He has done for you in the past and know that He can do it again, that you can trust Him? Remember that the Spirit of God “abides” within you, and His Spirit is no different today than it was when He performed miracles on your behalf before, and that that power is still available to you. When you are alone, invite Him to be manifest in you in the same way. Let Him use your body, your mind, your emotions etc. so that you are anointed to heal, speak, teach etc. As you do that you will discover that you have re-turned the tap on, and as you turn on the tap so the water flows. The only thing that stops the flow of the Holy Spirit are the things of the world around you, that you allow your mind to succumb to. You can step into the anointing any time, day or night. Do it regularly, so that it becomes a part of your spiritual life. 64 10. Meditation Biblical meditation is an important thing. The word “meditate” is sometimes translated “to think”, or “ponder”. Phil 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things.” Josh 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.” See also Ps 1:2; 19:14;48:9;77:12; 104:34; 119:15,23,27, 48,78,97,148; 143:5, 145:5 The Greek and Hebrew words translated “meditate, meditation” mean to roll the thing around, over and over inside yourself, to view it from every possible angle. For example, take the truth that Jesus Christ Himself lives inside you. View it from every possible angle: What will this mean to you if He fully owns you, if you’re walking in the truth of it?  How will you feel?  What will your countenance be like?  How will you walk?  How will you respond to situations, to those around you?  How will it affect what you do, what you say? This is meditation. Meditation will automatically carry you from relationship into fellowship. Fellowship is the best part of relationship. You can meditate on the fact that the same Spirit who lived in Jesus, who lived in Paul, Peter, and all the great men of God like Smith Wigglesworth, John G. Lake etc. now lives in you. The One who rose from the dead lives in you. The life of God abides in you. We are told to meditate on God’s law “day and night” (Ps 1:2) – that does not leave much time for anything else. When the angel of God visited Mary to announce that she would give birth to the saviour of the world the Bible says that she “Pondered these things in her heart” (Lk 2:19). She meditated upon the angels’ words. She had never been with a man, yet she was about to become pregnant with the Son of God – that was a 65 heavy burden for a teenage girl in a third wold country. How would her betrothed react, what would her family say, would anyone believe it was a supernatural birth? Ps 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.” David was praying here for a change of character, that his words and thoughts would be acceptable to God, therefore there must be thoughts etc. that are not acceptable to God. There must be ungodly forms of meditation. We can often learn something about the positive from the shadow of the negative. What are the things we turn over and over in our mind? Have you ever spent time worrying? And after you’ve worried and worried it has never happened – you wasted all that time on something that didn’t happen! If you practise long enough and often enough you can become a really good worrier. What about fear? If you meditate all the time on the things that you are afraid of – snakes, spiders, crowds, poverty etc. you will never have time to meditate on the truth. We all meditate on something. We all produce home videos in our mind, where we play the starring role. Some of our favourite re-runs can be “I’ll never amount to anything”, or “I’m God’s gift to women!” You watch these home movies again and again in case you missed anything the first time, but you leave the good movies (the godly ones) on the shelves of your mind, collecting dust. Some preachers watch movies like “It’s hard to build a church”, or “There’s never enough money.” What made you what you are today? All the “movies” in your mind on which you meditated over the years. How many of these ‘bad’ movies have you discarded and replaced with new, better ones? Jas 1:8 “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways” The imagination is a faculty of the spirit. It allows you to see things as you walk with the Holy spirit. It allows you to see the power of God flowing through you, healing people. It allows you to walk beyond your present experience. That is meditation. What you meditate on will change your life for the better or for the worse. 66 Major Points of this Topic  It is possible to build in the natural and build in the Spirit.  There are tools and materials available for building in the Spirit.  Biblical meditation is an important tool for building in the Spirit.  To be successful you must build where God ordains.  Knowing how and where to build will come as a result of you building a strong relationship with the Holy Spirit. Revision or Discussion Questions 1. Do you have a vision to build something in the Spirit? 2. What are you going to build? 3. How are you preparing to build, e.g. tools, materials? 4. What will stop you building? 5. How will you prepare for these obstacles/hindrances to building? Optional Readings for this Topic  Rankin, Peg. 1998. Step into the Water. Ventura: Renew Books.  Hagin, Kenneth E. 1979. How You can be Led by the Spirit of God. Tulsa: Faith Library Pub.  Cho, Dr. Paul Yonggi. 1979. The Fourth Dimension. Plainfield: Logos Int. 67 68 Topic 6 – Listening to the Spirit At any given moment in time we are being bombarded by messages over the airwaves, through radios, television, smartphones, etc., but we can only actually hear them when we tune in our transmitters to receive them. It is the same in the spirit realm. God is speaking to us all the time, but unless we are tuned in correctly, we may receive signals from other sources. From this Topic You will Learn 1. The different ways God speaks to us. 2. How to commune with God. 3. How to recognise God’s voice. 4. Receptivity and discernment of vision. 5. The necessity for guidance. Topic Notes God Wants To Speak To Us And they heard the sound of the Lord . . . Gen.3:8 Now the Lord said to Abraham . . . Gen.12:1 And God said to Moses . . . Exo.4:13 Now it shall be, if you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God . . . Deut. 28. . . . The Lord spoke to Joshua . . . Josh. 1:1 Then the Lord said to Isaiah . . . Isa.8:1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord saying . . . Jer. :1 The word of the Lord came . . . to Ezekiel Eze.1:3 I (Jesus) can do nothing on my own initiative. As I hear I judge John 5:30 And the Spirit told me (Peter) to . . . Acts 11:12 (Paul) having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to . . . Acts 16:6 I (John) was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet saying ‘Write in a book what you see . . .’ Rev.1:10,11 But (we) have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God . . . and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant . . . SEE TO IT THAT YOU DO NOT REFUSE HIM WHO IS SPEAKING. Heb.12:22,24,25. TheseWay scriptures clearly demonstrate, from Genesis to Revelation, that God’s The God Speaks unchanging desire has been to have communion with His children. Mark & Patti Virkler, Dialoguing with God. (rev.ed) Orchard Park N.Y. Buffalo School of the Bible. 1988. There are many ways that God speaks to us, but remember that it is ultimately God’s prerogative to make the choice about which way He will speak! 69 General Revelation  Through the Word of God 2 Tim 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, Psa. 119:9-11, 105.  Through the advice and counsel of men and women of God 15. Prov 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is wise.  By circumstances: letting mere circumstances run our lives is opening the door to Satan, but be wise with regard to your circumstances and expect God to speak to you through them. Psa 37:5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. Psa 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.  By the desires of your heart Psa 37:4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Specific Revelation  By dreams Mat 1:20-21 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. {21} "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."  By visions Same as dreams but these occur while you are awake (Acts 10:9-18)  By Angels Luke 1:26-38 Lk 1:30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God.  By the audible voice of God Acts 9:4-5 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" {5} And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads."  By the gifts of the Spirit E.g., words of wisdom, words of knowledge, prophecy, tongues and interpretation (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). 70  By interpretation of your own tongue 1 Cor 14:13 Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. “I not only speak in tongues by the Spirit,” I told him, “but I also pray to interpret what God is saying back to me. This is what the Apostle Paul tells us to do in 1 Cor.1:14-13, ‘Wherefore let him that speaketh in an unknown tongue pray that he may interpret.’ I’m not saying that Paul is necessarily saying that every time we pray or praise in tongues, we are to follow it by praying that He will enable us to interpret. But if we can grasp what the Apostle is saying, tongues are not only to edify (or strengthen our spirit, our inner man), but they are to lead us to ask God to speak back to us - - either telling us in our own language what we SAID to Him in tongues or telling us His RESPONSE to what we said to him in tongues. The fact that God says if we pray in tongues we are to pray for God to interpret back to us what we said, or His response to what we said, means to me that when we pray in tongues, we should condition our spirit to ask God to speak back to us through interpretation. Oral Roberts. Unleashing The Power Of Praying In The Spirit. Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1993. pp.37,38 My personal experience, and that of others I know that do it, is this: when I finish praying in tongues - - a few seconds or minutes - - I pray for interpretation. That’s right, I ask God for it just as the Apostle Paul says in 1 Cor.14:13. Then I pause, get quiet, and listen. I’m waiting on God to speak back to my mind to give me understanding of the tongues which, Paul says, is ‘a mystery’ (1 Cor.14:2). I don’t understand a thing I say in tongues; it bypasses my mind and goes straight to God. Therefore, in asking for interpretation I’m asking God to reveal the mystery, to open it up to my understanding, which is to my mind, my intellect. I can always get edified by tongues alone, but I can’t get understanding back in my mind unless God answers my prayer for the interpretation. For me, when I’m waiting on the interpretation and I’m listening with my spirit, sometimes nothing -- not a word -- comes back at that moment. At other times, I’m able to see the words as if they were written on a page and which I can say out loud to myself. Then, at times, God’s full response comes and my mind receives it. I begin to say it and I feel my mind being illuminated, like a light is turned on, and I hear God saying specific things to me concerning my life, or about doing certain things, or telling me just to rest in Him. When it comes in my mind like this, my understanding is increased greatly. It seems in that instance that my mind is sharper and I am able to grasp spiritual things much better than before I prayed in tongues and received God’s interpretation back. I can’t say I do every time. Here’s where faith comes in. As I speak in tongues, then follow it by praying for the interpretation, I must believe that God is a talking God, as I am a talking person, and that by tongues I have initiated a conversation with Him, and eventually -- if I focus my spirit on Him -- I am sure I will get the interpretation. If not at that moment, then perhaps later that day or a week or two later. It’s uncanny how you can learn to know and recognize it is an interpretation from the Lord. You’ve just got to get into it with your spirit totally open to God, hungry to hear Him speak to you, and start believing that He will. It is an act of your faith to speak to God in tongues, also an act of your faith to receive His interpretation.  By the inner person Oral Roberts, 1993, pp 39-41 Inner Witness - a conviction or ‘hunch’. This is almost indefinable but you will know it when you feel it! Rom 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of 71 God. Rom 8:16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, John 16:13; Acts 27: 9-25. Acts 27:9-10 Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, {10} saying, "Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives." Here is an area in which we can use praying in other tongues to great advantage. “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful” (I Cor.14:14) While praying, has your mind ever wandered to other things? It used to take me an hour sometimes to get my mind quiet. Now I have found that the best way is to pray with other tongues. When you pray in other tongues, your mind grows quiet. Once it is quiet, you become more conscious of your own spirit and of spiritual things. When praying in other tongues and worshipping God, your spirit is in direct contact with God, who is a Spirit and the Father of spirits. Because your mind is not active, it doesn’t come out of your head but out of your heart. If we would train our spirits, we would know inside with a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ just what to do in every area of life, even in the minor incidents. We spend practically our entire lifetime in the mental and physical realms. We’ve developed our heads, a lot of times, at the expense of our hearts. The knowledge of our intellects has taken the throne in our lives, and our spirits which should guide us are kept locked away in prison, so to speak, and are not permitted to function. That inward witness is seeking to give guidance to our minds. We all know that there are a thousand and one things we would never have done if we had listened to that inward witness. . . . To define this inward witness in simple terms, as you are thinking along a certain line and contemplating what to do, as you pray about it if there is a check in your spirit, a “something on the inside” that tells you not to do that, that is an inward witness. Sometimes you have to wait a little while to get quiet enough to recognize it. Kenneth E. Hagin, How You Can Know The Will Of God. 1977, pp.11-12  By the Inner Voice - Through the inner still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. Acts 13:1-2 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and 72 Saul. {2} As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, "Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." See 1 Sam 3. The Holy Spirit also leads us through what is known as the inward voice. When the Holy Spirit within you speaks, it will be a little more authoritative than the inward witness. When the voice of the Holy Spirit speaks, it is still an inward voice, but it is so real that you almost look around to see who spoke. At times when I have been praying and the Holy Spirit has spoken to me, I’ve looked behind me to see if someone was there. In my own mind I knew that no one was there, but it seemed so real. He speaks to us in what seems to be an audible voice, though it may not be audible to anyone around us. Actually, we are not hearing it with the physical ear. Kenneth E. Hagin, 1977, p.15 How To Commune With God Rev 1:10-11 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, {11} saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last," and, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea." 73 1. Achieving Inner Stillness Ps 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! Remove Outer Noise 1. Get away from phones, children, etc. (Mark 9:2) 2. Remove physical tension by sitting comfortably. (1 Chron.17:16) 3. Tap into the quietness of the early morning. Remove Inner Noise (Voices, Thoughts, Pressures) 1. Thoughts of things to do. Write them down so you don’t forget them. 2. Thoughts of sin-consciousness. Confess your sin and clothe yourself with the robe of righteousness. 3. Mind flitting about? Focus on a vision of Jesus with you. 4. Need to get in touch with your heart. Begin singing and listening to the spontaneous song bubbling up from your heart. 5. Need for additional time to commune when your mind is poised and still. Realize that the times when you are doing automatic activities (i.e., driving, bathing, exercising, etc.) are ideal times for hearing from God. What is Centering Down? 1. It is described as ‘being still’, ‘ceasing striving,’ ‘letting go,’ and ‘relaxing’ 2. It is not DOING, but BEING IN TOUCH WITH 3. It is living in the present tense 4. It is experiencing Him in this moment (I AM) 5. It is sharing this moment in love 6. It cannot be forced or hurried. It must be allowed to happen 7. It is called “Being in Spirit” (Rev.1:10) IN YOUR STILLNESS GOD TAKES OVER AND YOU SENSE HIS ACTIVE FLOW WITHIN. Mark & Patti Virkler, 1988, 2006. How to Hear God’s Voice. p.3 74 2. Hearing God’s Voice Isa 30:2 Who walk to go down to Egypt, And have not asked My advice, To strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt! God’s voice is sensed as a spontaneous thought, idea, word, feeling or vision. Mark & Patti Virkler, 1988. p.4 God’s thoughts, interjected into your heart, will be characterized by the following: 1. They are like your own thoughts and musings, except that you sense them as coming from the heart, not the brain, in that they are spontaneous, not meditated or premeditated. 2. They can easily come as God speaking in the first person. 3. They are often light, gentle, and easily cut off by any exertion of self (own thoughts, will, etc.) 4. They will have an unusual content to them, better and often somewhat different than your own thoughts. 5. They will cause a special reaction within your being (i.e., a sense of excitement, conviction, 6. Faith, life, awe, peace. 7. When embraced, they carry with them a fullness of strength to carry them out, as well as a joy in I doing so. Mark & Patti Virkler, 1988, 2006. p.4. 3. See God’s vision with the eye of your heart Rev 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, "Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this." Dan 4:5 I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts on my bed and the visions of my head troubled me. 75 4. Purifying the Flow Suggestions For Increasing Your Openness to Vision 1. One must ‘be still’ outwardly and inwardly so the Holy Spirit can issue forth with a flow of living power. 2. Enter a biblical story in imagination. Simply allow yourself to see what you are reading. Do more than just picture the scenes yourself. After picturing the scene, ask God to show you what He wants to show you, and a flow of inner images directed by God can take over. 3. Open the eyes of your heart during your quiet times, allowing God to show you things. I have found that focusing intently upon Jesus until He begins moving or speaking prompts the flow of the Holy Spirit’s images. 4. In intercession for others, picture the person for whom you are praying. Then picture Jesus meeting that person. Watch what He does, then pray that into existence. 5. Listen to your dreams, which are a natural expression of the inner world. Ask God to speak to you during the night (Psalm 127:2). When you awaken, immediately record your dreams and ask God for the interpretation. He will give it. 6. Visualize what you are singing in praise and worship, allowing the Holy Spirit to carry the vision where He wants. Mark & Patti Virkler, 1988, 2006. p.6 5. Testing the Sources SELF SATAN GOD Finding its Origin Born in mind A painting or a picture Test the Spirit - 1 Jn.4:1. A flashing image. Was empty, idle? Does image seem obstructive? Examining its Content A painting of things I have learned. Test the Ideas - 1 Jn.4:5 Negative, destructive, pushy, fearful, accusative. Violates the nature of God. Violates Word of God. Image is afraid to be tested. Ego appeal. Seeing its Fruit Variable Test the fruit - Mat. 7:15 Fear, compulsion, bondage, anxiety, confusion, inflated ego. 76 A living flow of pictures coming from the innermost being. Was your inner being quietly focused on Jesus? Instructive Upbuilding Comforting Image accepts testing. Quickened faith, power, peace, good fruit, enlightenment, knowledge, humility. 6. Journaling - A means of discerning God’s Voice. Hab 2:2-3 “Then the LORD answered me and said: "Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. {3} For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry.” Journaling is a biblical method that can be used to help one grow in discernment of the voice of God in his heart. Journaling is simply keeping a notebook of one’s prayers and what one senses to be God’s answers. The book of Psalms, the books of the prophets and the book of Revelation were written this way. Clearly it is a common biblical experience. Practical Suggestions 1. Journal at a time when you are alert physically and spiritually. 2. A simple spiral-bound notebook is sufficient. 3. Keep your journal secluded and use codes when necessary. 4. Date all entries. Include in your journal your communication with God, your dreams and their interpretations, visions and images the Lord gives you, and personal feelings and events that mattered to you (i.e., angers, fears, hurts, anxieties, disappointments, joys and thanksgivings). Mark & Patti Virkler, 1988, 2006. p.8 7. Friendship - Key to Recognising God’s Voice John 15:15; John 10:1-3 God makes it easy for us to reject him because he wants us to choose him for himself alone. It is perhaps one of the universe’s greatest mysteries that the Son of God wants a friendship with us. He will not force himself on us. We must choose him for our friend and then pursue him for the rest of our lives if we want that friendship to grow. Jack Deere, Surprised by the Voice of God. Zondervan. 1996. p.333 Friendship with God has always been the key to recognizing his voice. Abraham was God’s friend. Therefore when God was about to destroy Sodom where Abraham’s nephew, Lot, lived, he asked, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (Gen.18:17). God told his friend Abraham about the destruction of Sodom so Abraham could plead for Lot’s rescue. Moses was God’s friend, and God revealed things to Moses he kept hidden from others. (Ex.33:11ff). Other Considerations In friends. Guidance To The Spirit We recognize the voices of our I don’t- Listening have a set of complicated rules 1.for recognizing Fleecesmy and Lots wife’s voice. Why should we think God would allow our friendship with him to beOld anyCovenant less personal than ourGideon most intimate Fleeces and Lots were practices. put a friendships? fleece out to He won’t allow his friendships to be reduced to a set of formulas or ascertain if it truly was God calling him. mechanical rules for discerning his voice. Jack Deere. 1996. p.338 77 Other Considerations In Guidance - Listening To The Spirit 1. Fleeces and Lots Fleeces and Lots were Old Covenant practices. Gideon put a fleece out to ascertain if it truly was God calling him. Drawing lots was used to find God’s will in a situation. This was used once in the New Testament also (Act. 1:26) to find a replacement disciple for Judas. Matthias was elected. He is never heard of again and some believe that Paul was God’s chosen one. After Pentecost there is no recorded usage of lots by the disciples. Since we have the witness of the spirit, fleeces and lots are not recommended for guidance. Often they are a sign of doubt, which does not please God. Back there in 1941 I said, as I drove along, “Lord, I am going to put out a fleece. I am just going to turn it over to You. (I didn’t realize that I didn’t turn it over to the Lord.) If they elect me 100 percent, I am going to accept that as being the will of God, and I am going to accept that church.” I got every vote. That was my fleece. They elected me 100 percent. They missed God. I missed God. They got fleeced. I got fleeced. I got out of the perfect will of God - and God just let me do it. Kenneth Hagin. How You Can Be Led By The Spirit Of God. Tulsa. Hagin Ministries. 1979. p.41. 2. Patience, Prayer, Light and Darkness Listening to God often involves patience. Sometimes we are unsure. If we lift up darkness to light it disappears. Desire and thoughts not from God will lose their conviction if they are lifted to the light. Hearing from God often takes time and patience. One thing I’ve learned over the years is not to jump the first time you feel like you’ve heard something from the Lord. What you hear in your spirit from the Lord must be tested by the Word of God and by the Spirit and by practicality. So as I continued to seek the Lord over the next few weeks and months, the revelation He gave me was confirmed to my heart over and over again. I stepped out in faith with these words from God ringing in my soul: “I want you to build My university out of the same ingredient I used when I formed the world, when I created the earth - nothing.” Oral Roberts. Expect a Miracle: My Life and Ministry. Nashville: Thomas Nelson. 1995. p.174 78 3. Spiritual Authority We can have a safety net by checking things over with those above us in the church. God does not always speak to us directly but through our spiritual authority. Moses heard his call from God through the burning bush, but Joshua heard his call from Moses. God spoke to Moses to speak to Joshua. 4. Sacrifice, Renewal of the Mind and Proving the Will of God. Rom 12:1-3 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Heb 5:14 “But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is,those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” Unless we are prepared to be a living sacrifice, especially to our own desires, it becomes difficult to hear from God. We have to renew our mind then by reason of use or elimination we prove the will of God. Ezek 14:4 “Therefore speak to them and say to them ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Everyone of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, and then comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him who comes, according to the multitude of his idols ….” We hear what we want to hear if we have an idol. We must be a living sacrifice. 5. Faith and Guidance Rom 1:17 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written ‘The just shall live by faith’.” Heb 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” The Christian life is a faith in God life (Rom. 1:17). Without faith we cannot please Him (Heb.11:6). We must believe God will guide us. It is by faith we obtain a good testimony. Heb 11:2 “For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.” The enemies of faith are doubt and fear. 79 6. The Screen of God’s Revelation What you give God will often be like a projector screen for Him to speak to you. You Give Him He Will Speak Through Mind Thoughts Imagination Pictures Body Feelings Word of God Scriptures The Necessity of Guidance Eph 5:17 “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is” Josh 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Ps 37:23 “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way.” In the Garden of Eden man tried to find wisdom independently from God. Redeemed man is to turn back to God and seek Him for wisdom and guidance. God’s Promises to Guide us See Ps 32:8; 48:14; Isa 48:17;58:11; John 16:13 80 Major Points of this Topic  God wants to speak to us.  God speaks through general and specific revelation.  How to commune with God, hear His voice and achieve inner stillness.  Visions and voices must be tested and discerned.  How to fine tune your listening abilities and detect the source.  Journaling as a means of discerning the voice of God.  Other considerations for guidance. Revision or Discussion Questions 1. Do you have a time where you can still yourself so that the Holy Spirit can direct you in areas of your personal life, family life, ministry or career life. 2. Submit a diary for a period of five days where you (journal) write out what God has been saying to you. To be handed in next lesson 3. What two ways does God primarily speak to you through? 4. Who can you and would you submit to, to ensure that you are not being lead into deception by either your own human spirit or seducing spirits. Optional Reading for this Topic  Deere, Jack. 1993. Surprised by the Power of the Spirit. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. 81 *** 82 MODULE 2 Gifts of the Holy Spirit – Part One Topic 7: The Speaking Gifts Topic 8: The Ministry of the Prophetic Topic 9: The Revelation Gifts Topic 10: Power, Faith & Spiritual Authority 83 *** Your Spiritual Gifts To serve in love See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 84 Topic 7 – The Speaking Gifts Introduction While there a variety of ways in which the nine gifts of the Spirit can be categorised, these gifts are traditionally divided into three main groups: The speaking gifts (to say), the revelation gifts (to know), and the power gifts (to do). The speaking gifts are: tongues, interpretation of tongues, and prophecy. The revelation gifts are: discerning of spirits, word of knowledge and word of wisdom. Finally, the power gifts are: the gift of faith, the gifts of healing, and working of miracles. This study looks at the three speaking gifts. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. Definitions of the speaking gifts. 2. Evidence of the speaking gifts in Scripture. 3. The benefits and purpose of these gifts. 5. Instructions for their use. Topic Notes A. SPEAKING IN TONGUES 1 Cor 14:22 “Therefore tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers …” Mark 16:17 “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues…” Acts 2:4 “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” 1 Cor 14:5 “I wish you all spoke with tongues...” Definition This is spontaneous, inspired utterance by the Holy Spirit, where the normal voice organs are used, but the conscious mind plays no part. The languages spoken or sung are entirely unlearned by the speaker. David Pytches, Come Holy Spirit. 1985. Hodder & Stoughton, p.53 85 It is a Supernatural Sign and is for all Believers Mk. 16:17 “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues…” 1 Cor.12:7 “ But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all” The gift of tongues and the interpretation of tongues is for all believers, although all believers who speak in tongues will not be automatically endowed with it. See also 1 Cor 12:9,11,30;14:5,31; Mk 16:1; 1 Cor 10:1. It is the Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit There are five recorded cases of people being baptised in the Holy Spirit. Four of them state that they spoke in tongues. The other case of the Samaritans highly implies it.  Day of Pentecost – all spoke with tongues Acts 2:1-4  Samaritan converts – What did Simon see? Acts 8:18-19 The Apostle Paul spoke in tongues  The Gentiles spoke with tongues Acts 9:17-19, 1 Cor 14:18 Acts 10:44-48  The Ephesians all spoke with tongues Acts 19:1-7  The Corinthians spoke with tongues Acts 18:1-11; 1 Cor.12,13,14 Paul preached at Corinth for one and a half years. Later in 1 Corinthians, we are told they spoke in tongues. Difference between Sign of Tongues and Gift of Tongues There is a difference between the sign of tongues and the gift of tongues. The sign of tongues is man speaking to God, but the gift of tongues is God speaking to man. 1 Cor 14:2 “For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” 1 Cor 14:27-28 “If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God.” We do not Understand the Language of Tongues The language of tongues is not understood by ourselves, but God understands it. 1 Cor 14:2 “For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” 86 The Sign of Tongues is a Prayer Language It is a prayer language to God, understood by Him but not ourselves. It is our spirit praying to God, and a way for the Spirit to intercede for us, according to the will of God. 1 Cor 14:2, Eph 6:18; 1 Cor 14:14; Rom 8:25-27 Praying or Singing in Tongues Praying or singing in tongues should be accompanied by prayer or singing in English, so people can understand or distinguish between the gift of tongues and prayer and singing in tongues. Speaking in tongues as prayer or praise to God does not need the gift of interpretation. 1 Cor 14:14-18; 14:2; Acts 2:4; 10:46; 19:6 Tongues and Interpretation of Tongues The gift of tongues must be accompanied by the gift of interpretation. Speaking in Tongues is not to be Forbidden 1 Cor 14:39 “Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues.” Tongues will Remain until Jesus Returns Speaking in tongues will not pass away till Jesus Christ returns. 1 Cor 13:8-10 “Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.” Acts 2:38-39 “Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. “For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” Paul believed in Tongues Paul believed that speaking in tongues was very important in his life. 1 Cor 14:18 “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all” 87 The Benefits Of Speaking In Tongues  Builds up or edifies the believer- 1 Cor 14:4  A good way to magnify God and to praise Him -1 Cor. 14:16,17;Acts 10:46; Jn. 16:13,14  Refills the believer continually with the Holy Spirit –Eph 5:18-19;1 Cor 14:14-17  Builds up the believer’s faith – Jude 1:20; 1 Cor 14:14  Intercedes for the believer according to the will of God, when he doesn’t know how to pray – Rom 8:26-27 ; 1 Cor 14:14  Refreshes the believer – Isa 28:11-12 B. INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES 1 Cor 12:10 “ to another the interpretation of tongues.” Definition This gift is a supernatural revelation through the Holy Spirit which enables the Christian believer to communicate in the language of the listeners the dynamic equivalent of that which was spoken ‘in tongues’ …. It is also a gift for understanding dreams and visions (cf Genesis 40:8,9) and explaining riddles and difficult problems (Dan.5:12) David Pytches. Come Holy Spirit: Learning How to Minister in Power. Hodder & Stoughton, 1985. p.65 Purpose of The Gift of Interpretation It is to enable the church to understand the manifestation of the gift of tongues when it has been exercised in public through a solo utterance in speech or song and is used to edify and build up the church. When used with tongues it is equivalent to prophecy in the church. 1 Cor 14:4 “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.” The interpretation of tongues is not a translation, but is an interpretation or essence, of a tongue. It is not the operation of the mind; although the Spirit operates through the mind. The mind is inspired by the Spirit. The gift of tongues requires a measure of faith to operate. It requires more faith than speaking out in tongues. The interpreter most likely will receive only one or two words and must move out in faith. 88 Modern Example A tremendous illustration of the fruit of this gift took place when I preached in Washington, D.C. After my sermon, one brother gave a message and another interpreted. When they had finished, a young man walked to the front and spoke in a foreign language to the one who had given the message. The brother answered, “I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t understand any other language.” The man replied, “But you spoke my language beautifully. I am Persian. You spoke my language and told me that I must get right with God, that I must find God right now.” The brother answered, “No, it was the Spirit who spoke to you. It was God talking to you, not me. Much to that young man’s surprise, neither of the two men - the one who gave the message in tongues and the one who interpreted it spoke or understood his language. He stood there, trembling, then knelt down and gave his heart to the Lord Jesus Christ. Dr. Lester Sumrall. The Gifts & Ministries of the Holy Spirit. Whitaker House. 1993. pp 126,127 C. THE GIFT OF PROPHECY Prophecy is speaking for God (Ex 4:16;Ex 7:1). Prophecy is a divine utterance of God. Its primary purpose is to edify, comfort and exhort the church. (1 Cor 14:3) Definition The gift of prophecy (1 Cor 12:10,14:1) is the special ability that God gives to members of the Body of Christ to receive and communicate an immediate message of God to His gathered people, a group among them or any one of His people individually, through a divinely anointed utterance. David Pytches, Come Holy Spirit. 1985. Hodder & Stoughton, p.71 (adapted from C.P. Wagner) 89 What Is A Prophet? Eph 4:11-12 “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…” Every believer has the privilege of operating the gift of prophecy, but not every believer has the calling of a prophet. A prophet is one called by God, appointed and recognised by the body of Christ to speak on behalf of God. Key Words that Indicate the Nature of Prophecy There are five different Hebrew and Aramaic words for prophecy in the Old Testament, and one New Testament word, that indicate the nature of prophecy.  Naba - “to prophesy”, “to bubble up” or “pour forth abundantly”. This word occurs 324 times in the Old Testament. The word has the connotations of speaking by divine power, to cause to bubble up and to pour forth abundantly. Jn 7:38 “Out of your belly shall flow rivers of living water.”  Nataf - “to drop” “to fall as drops of rain”. This word occurs 21 times in the Old Testament and reflects the prophetic message as the direct result of divine activity. This Hebrew word was regularly used to describe the falling of rain drops from the heavens. (Judges 5:4; Job 36:27), yet it is used as a descriptive term for prophecy. (Micah 2:6,11). Prophecy is, therefore, the result of divine activity like rain falling from heaven.  Massa - “a burden” This word occurs 70 times in the Old Testament. The root word “masah” refers to a burden or weight, as a heavy load which is carried, or it may indicate the lifting up of the human soul (e.g. Ezk 24:25). Prophecy can be a burden as in judgement but even this purpose was meant to be restorative.  Chozeh - a “seer” (SC2374) This word occurs 16 times in the Old Testament. It comes from the root word “chozah” (2372) meaning “to gaze at”, i.e. mentally to perceive, or to have a vision of. “Chozeh” and “Ro’eh” are interchangeable words. However, “chozeh” is a broader word which includes mental vision as well as vision with our eyes.  Ro’eh - a “seer” (SC7200). This word occurs 12 times in the Old Testament. The root word means “to look at” or “behold”. This word describes the prophetic revelation of the prophet through vision.  Propheteuo - “to prophesy” This Greek word occurs 200 times in the New Testament in its derivative form. It is a compound word from the Greek verb, “phe”, “to say or to speak” and the prefix, “pro”, meaning “fore” or “forth”. Prophecy in the New Testament, therefore, is “fore-telling” i.e. the telling of something before it happens, and “forth telling”, i.e. the telling or bringing forth of a revelation or message received from God. 90 What Prophecy Is Not  Prophecy is not Preaching Preaching and prophecy are entirely different words in the original Greek, and these are defined differently in the Scriptures. These two Greek words translated “preaching” are “euaggelizo”, i.e. “to preach the gospel” and “kerusso”, i.e. “to preach” or “proclaim”.  Prophecy is Not to be Confused with the Prophetic Office Eph 4:8 “Therefore He says, ‘When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” Example – Philip’s daughters compared to Agabus (Act 21:9-10; 11:27:30; 21:10,11).  It is Not to be Confused with Prediction Example – Lk 1:46-55, Mary. Revelation of the future is always the work of the word of wisdom.  It is Not intended for Guidance 1 Cor 14:3 “But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.”  It is Not for Condemnation and Rebuke Scriptural Purposes of the Gift 1. For Speaking Supernaturally 1 Cor 14:23 “Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind?” 1 Cor 14:2 “For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” 2. To Edify the Church. 1 Cor 14:3 “But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.” 1 Cor 14:24 “But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all.” 3. To Exhort, Comfort and Teach the Church 1 Cor 14:3 “ But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation 91 and comfort to men.” 1 Cor 14:31 “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged.” 4. To Convict the Unbeliever To convict the unbeliever and make manifest the secrets of his heart. 1 Cor 14:25 “ And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you.” Examples of the Gift Mary Zacharias Simeon Much of the Psalms Lk 1:46-55 Lk 1:67-79 Lk 2:28-34 Essentials for the Operation of the Gift 1. It Must be Judged Pro 14:15 “The simple believes every word, but the prudent considers well his steps.” 1 Cor 14:29 “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge.” Prophecy must be judged for two reasons: 1. To preserve the church from error (1 Jn 4:1-4; 2 Pet 2:1-3). 2. To preserve the church from extremes. 2. It Must be Shared 1 Cor 14:26 “How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.” See 1 Cor 11:5, Num 11:24-29. 3. It Must Operate in the Church 1 Cor 14:24 “But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all.” 2 Pet 1:20-21 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” 92 See 1 Cor 14:44. 4. We Must Seek to Excel in the Gift 1 Cor 14:12 “Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.” 5. The Possessor of the Gift is Responsible for the Use, Misuse, Suppression or Control of the Gift 1 Cor 4:32-33 “And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” Prophecy must be regulated. A sermon may include prophecy. 6. It Must not be Despised 1 Thess 5:20 “ Do not despise prophecies.” 7. We Must Pursue Prophecy 1 Cor 14:1 “Pursue love and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” See 1 Cor 14:39. Paul desired all to prophesy and be zealous so as to edify the church. 1 Cor 14:4 “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies, edifies the church.” 1 Cor 14:16 “Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say?” 8. Prophecy Profits the Church 1 Cor 14:6 “But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching?” 93 Degrees of The Prophetic  The Spirit of Prophecy. 1 Cor 14:13  The gift of Prophecy 1 Cor 12:10  The office of a prophet Eph 4:11 Comparison of Tongues and Prophecy Below is a chart depicting nineteen points of comparison and emphasis between tongues and prophecy:- Tongues Comparison Chart of 1 Cor 14 Prophecy God- directed, personal, spiritual language, mainly for devotional prayer Speak to God (v.2) Speak “mysteries in the Spirit” (v.2) People-directed, corporate language to edify all with divine communication Speak to men (v.2) Speak understandable message of edification, exhortation, consolation (v.3) Edify church (v.4) Preferred’ “greater” (v.5) More valuable (v.5) Profitable to church (v.6) Distinct sounds are significant (v.7-9) Words easily understood (v.9) Edifying to church (v.12) Spirit and mind pray (v.15) Mind sings too (v.15) Others blessed (v.16) Five understandable words (v.19) In understanding, men (v.20) Sign to believer (v.22) “God is among you” (v.25) “One by one, so that all may learn” (v.31) Speak to all when inspired (v.31) “Covet to prophesy” (v.39 KJV) Edify self (v.4) Desired for all (v.5) Important, esp. with interpretation (v.5) Not profitable to church (v.6) Indistinct sounds bring confusion (v.7-9) “How will it be known?” (v.6) Interpretation needed (v.13) Spirit prays, mind unfruitful (v.14) Spirit sings (v.15) Others not blessed (v.16-17) 10,000 meaningless words (v.19) In understanding, children (v.20) Sign to unbeliever (v.22) “You are mad” (v.23) 2 or 3 with interpreter (v.27) Be silent when no interpreter (v.28) “Forbid not tongues” (v.39 KJV) 94 Ministry Issues in Tongues and Prophecy 1. Is tongues a known, foreign language/dialect, or unknown ecstatic utterance? Or did they speak in both actual languages and ecstatic utterances? “Glossalalia” comes from the Greek verb “glossa”, relating to tongue, and “laleo”, to speak. “Glossa” is used 15 times in the New Testament of the physical organ in the mouth, 7 times to describe people of different ethnic groups speaking, 25 times to describe the phenomenon of speaking in tongues. 2. Is tongues the initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit? Pentecostals say “yes” because they use the Book of Acts to set a biblical precedent, but did Luke really intend the function of tongues in his book to be a continuing, mandated paradigm for this experience i.e. was Luke merely narrating, or theologising? 3. What, if any, is the difference between the sign of tongues and the gift of tongues? 4. Do all need to speak in tongues, and if so what about those who do not? 5. Pentecostals believe that tongues, plus interpretation, equals prophecy yet at the same time believe that tongues are a language used for speaking to God. If this is so, how can the words be prophetic, or is the word prophetically for God (who is omniscient)? How does this connect to the fact that Paul stated that the purpose of prophecy was to convict unbelievers (1 Cor 14:22-25) i.e. its function was man-ward rather than God-ward? 6. The phenomenon of speaking in tongues is mentioned only in the New Testament. Why do you think this is so? Are there any incidences in the Old Testament which could be likened to tongues? 95 Major Points of this Topic  The gift of tongues and prophecy are available to all who believe.  Tongues is the initial evidence of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life.  Tongues is a method of communication with, and intercession before God, whereas prophecy is speaking for God.  Unlike speaking in tongues singing and praising in tongues does not require interpretation.  Tongues and prophecy will not pass away until Jesus returns.  Tongues and prophecy edify and build up believers.  When used with tongues, interpretation of tongues is equivalent to prophecy in the church.  Every believer is given the ability to prophesy, but not every believer can be a prophet. Review or Discussion Questions 1. Do you have a regular daily time in which you pray in tongues? 2. Do you continually pray in tongues under your breath while doing other activities such as walking down the street, driving the car, or washing the dishes? 3. Are you conscious that when you pray in tongues that you are either at that time developing your inner life or faith, or you are interceding for another person or situation? 4. Do you take steps of faith to speak in different kinds of tongues rather than always using the same kind of tongues? 5. Do you practise the gift of prophecy? 6. Practise prophecy by asking God to give you a word for yourself about your life, your ministry, your job, or your family. Record it and set aside a future time to look over it and see how accurate you were. Optional Readings or Research  Edgar, Thomas R. 1996. Satisfied by the Promise of the Spirit. Grand Rapids: Kregel Resources  Lim, David. 1991. Spiritual Gifts, a Fresh Look. Springfield: Gospel Pub. House 96 Topic 8 – The Ministry of the Prophetic Introduction God wants to speak to His people, but so do other spirits in the heavenly realms, therefore care must be taken when moving on a received word to discern from which realm the word is coming. This lesson deals with the different types of prophecy, the ways they can come, and how they operate. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. The different realms of prophecy. 2. The differences between the gift of prophecy, spirit of prophecy and office of a prophet. 3. The essential ingredients of the prophetic office. 4. The Prophetic Song. 5. How to move in the prophetic. 6. How to receive and test a prophetic word Topic Notes Amos 3:8 “A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The LORD GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy?” We live in a time when prophecy is becoming more and more recognised throughout the Body of Christ. The argument that God does not speak outside of the Bible may well belong on some “endangered doctrine” list. The best I can calculate, the resurgence of biblical prophecy and the prophetic movement began around 1980 and has been picking up speed ever since. C. Peter Wagner, cited in Ernest B. Gentile’s Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy. 1999. Baker Book House In both the church and the world, there is a new hunger for the prophetic. This hunger stems from an increasing desire for guidance in order to survive the rampant confusion of our times …. Another reason …. Is because prophetic ministries and gifts of true biblical stature are being restored to the church today. Rick Joyner, cited in Ernest B. Gentile’s Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy. 1999. Baker Books. 97 We live in a time when people desire – and desperately need – to hear from God. Bible-believing Christians are looking seriously at the gift of prophecy and the ministry of prophets, asking if this ministry is still valid. Most Christians experience such guidance at one time or another. In Bible days prophecy stood as probably the most usual way of hearing God’s voice. Prophets and prophecy were an important part of God’s Old Testament agenda, as well as of Christ’s agenda for the early church. A refreshing realisation of this ancient biblical practice is now taking place, with many churches discovering that prophecy can be a wonderful and meaningful enhancement of today’s church life. A. THE REALMS OF PROPHECY God desires to talk and to relate to man on an individual and personal basis Rev 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Gen 5:22,24 “After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters.” 24 “And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” See also Rev 6:9; Ex 25:22; Lk 24:15,32 God communicated with Adam in the garden (Gen 1:28,29; 2:16,22) but sin affected man’s communication with God (Gen 3:6-13; Ex 19:11,20). God ordained prophets to speak to us on an individual and personal basis because of sin Heb 1:1-2” God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds” See also Col 2:9; Eph 4:8-11; 1 Cor 12:28 Five Distinct Realms of Prophecy      1. Spirit of Prophecy Gift of Prophecy Office of the Prophet Scripture Jesus Christ Spirit of Prophecy Rev 19:10 “And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren, who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’” Jer. 33:11 ‘the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: 98 “Praise the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His mercy endures forever”; and of those who will bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,’ says the LORD.” The spirit of prophecy is a special anointing or mantle of the Holy Spirit allowing people who do not have the gift or the office of a prophet to prophesy on a particular occasion. These people could not prophesy unless the mantle came upon them. The spirit of prophecy in a church service allows almost anyone to be able to prophesy the mind of the Lord at that time. Examples: Num 11:24:30 1 Sam 10:10 1 Sam 19:20-24 70 elders of Israel Saul & spirit of prophecy Three different groups of people sent but when they came into the spirit of prophecy, they could not all prophesy. 2 Chron 24:20 2 Chron 12:17 2. Gift of Prophecy Rom 12:6 “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith.” 1 Cor 12:10 “to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.” As a gift, the Holy Spirit is resident within each believer. Not all have this, but He distributes to each one individually as He wills. 1 Cor 12:11 “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” The gift of prophecy operates only within the sphere of edification, exhortation and comfort. We are exhorted to desire and be zealous for spiritual gifts especially prophecy 1 Cor 14:3 “But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.” 1 Cor 14:1 “Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” We are told that we may all prophesy and that it must be decent and in order (1 Cor 14:26-40). 1 Cor 14:31 “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged.” 99 The gift of prophecy must be within guidelines of scripture, especially Paul’s comments in 1 Cor 14. 1 Cor 14:38 “But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant.” 3. Office of a Prophet Eph 4:11 “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers…” 1 Cor 12:29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? The office of a prophet has the gift of prophecy, edification, comfort and exhortation but includes more. The office of a prophet must, like all New Testament offices such as apostles, teachers and pastors, proceed through the process of being established in the ministry.  Call.  Confirmation.  Giftings, anointing.  Preparation and development.  An appointment – a setting apart of the ministry into the church. Five Essentials of the Prophetic Office  An appointed spokesman of God Deut 18:19 “And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which he speaks in My name, I will require it of him.” Deut 18:22 “when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.” See also Gen 20:7.  A proved effective word of prophecy E.g. 1 Sam 3:19-20 (“none of his words fell to the ground”).  Commissioned by God Samuel Elisha Isaiah Jeremiah Ezekial Haggai 1 Sam 3:4-14 1 Ki 19:19 Isa 6 Jer 1:4,7 Ez 1:14 Hag 1:12  A Receiver of Revelation. Num 12:6 “Then He said, ‘Hear now My words: If there is a prophet 100 among you, I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream.” See also Hos 12:10. Realm of Revelation Time span Nature of Revelation Illuminative Operative today Enlightens principles based upon God’s written Word and applies them prophetically to people’s situation (Eph1:17; Phil 3:15) Informational Revelation Operative Today Specific information about people’s lives and situations e.g. Agabus (Acts11:27-28; 21:10-11) Inscripturated Revelation Not Operative Today New revelation received by inspiration of the Spirit, to be as authoritative and equated with God’s written revelation. (2 Pet 1:20-21, 2 Tim 3:16)  A predictive element in prophecy Jer 28:9 Ez 33:32-33 1 Pet 1:10, Acts 3:24 Acts 11:27,28, 21:10-11 4. Jeremiah Ezekial all prophets Agabus Prophecy of Scripture 2 Pet 1:20-21 “knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” The Bible is God in written form. It is literally inscribed prophecy. It is the foundation of all truth. (2 Tim 3:16-17), and is the complete revelation of God’s prophecies. Prophecy does not add to or take away from it. N.B. Not all prophecy is placed on the same level as Scripture – (2 Tim 3:16; Jn 16:15; 2 Pet 1:21; Deut 18:15; Judg 6:8; Jer 29:1). 5. Jesus Christ is God’s ultimate Prophet to mankind Heb 1:1-2 “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds.” Acts 3:2-23 “For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. ‘And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the 101 people.’”  He has revealed God’s will and purposes and plans to mankind – 2 Cor 3:14-16; Eph 9:1-11; Rom 8:27.  Jesus has all the hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge of God – Col 2:3  He has the pre-eminence in all things – Col 1:15-18  As the ultimate prophet His word, actions and life were the reflection of God Jn.14:7-11  Jesus did nothing but what He saw His Father do – Jn 5:19-20; 8:38 Distinctions between OT and NT Prophets It is essential to understand the particular difference between the Old Testament and New Testament prophet, for a proper recognition of the prophet’s function in the New Testament church. Christ did not choose any prophet in His earthly ministry – He chose twelve apostles. This immediately shows a break with that which was in the Old Testament times in the powerful and dominant ministry of the prophet. He chose no prophet before the cross, but after His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, He chose apostles to be the foundation of the church and the city of God (Rev 21:14). Old Testament prophets fall into two particular groupings:  Prophets of Guidance Moses, Aaron, Samuel, Elijah and Elisha etc., were especially prophets used in the ministry of guidance. The word of wisdom, word of knowledge, forthtelling, foretelling, miracles etc., confirmed to all that they were prophets of Jehovah, who revealed and declared the mind of God and often His personal will, to the people. They were God’s spokesmen. Guidance was given through the Prophet, Priest, Urim and Thummin, visions, dreams, voices, angelic visitation etc., because the Holy Spirit was not available for “all flesh” under Old Covenant times,. Man did not have direct approach to God through Christ, but through an earthly mediator and priest.  Prophets of Vision and Scripture (a) Vision: Daniel and Zechariah were prophets of vision. They were seers, in which God gave them visions, which they recorded under divine inspiration as “infallible prophecy”, foretelling the future and destiny of the nations of earth. However, Daniel did not utter prophecy as a prophet or spokesman of God to the people, as far as we know. (b) Prophets of Scripture: Ezekiel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Joel, Hosea, Amos and all of the writing prophets, the major and minor prophets, were particularly used in the realm of prophecy, the prophetic Scriptures. In the fullest sense of forthtelling and foretelling they spoke of the destiny of nations, both Israel and Gentile. God spoke and caused them to write “infallible Scripture” yet He overruled the fallibility of these men, using their personalities through it all. In inspiration He overruled their infirmities and imperfections and caused 102 infallible revelation to come through fallible men. Yet most of these prophets were not used in the realm of the miraculous, as were the prophets of guidance, like Moses, Elijah and Elisha. The two essential differences between Old and New Testament prophets are as follows:1. Old Testament prophets were especially used in guidance, direction and enquiry of the mind and will of God, because the Spirit was not available for all flesh. 2. Old Testament prophets were especially used to utter and write infallible Scriptures (2 Pet 1:20). Although there will be variations of the prophetic ministry in the New Testament church, as there was variety in Old Testament prophets as God willed to use them, these differences will always remain. It is therefore important to note these facts and truths: No New Testament prophet was ever used in guidance and control of another person’s life. They were used to confirm the already known and revealed will of God. But for New Testament believers “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Rom 8:14). This is God’s norm. To resort to a prophet for direction, guidance or control is to violate the ministry of New Covenant believers, of having access to God through Christ, by the Spirit, who is available for “all flesh” in this dispensation.  No New Testament prophet was ever used in the utterance of “infallible Scripture”. All prophetic utterances were to be judged by the Word of Scripture (1 Cor 14:29,30,32). Most of the New Testament was written by the Apostles. Thus, for New Covenant believers:  Guidance and direction comes from the infallible Word of God, the Scriptures.  Guidance is also by the indwelling Holy Spirit, always leading in harmony with, never contrary to, the infallible Word He inspired (Rom 8:14).  Guidance may be confirmed through various ministries set in the church, such as prophets. Prophetic Happenings in Acts The Book of Acts is theological, for the history of the church is in itself a revelation of God. It reveals how the church realised life through the Holy Spirit, and it became the prototype for spiritual concepts, designed to work in every generation and society. The religious accoutrements of the church may change as history progresses, but the manifold activities of the Holy Spirit remain consistent with the original principles. Prophetic Happenings in Acts People involved Happening 103 Reference 120 Disciples Spoke in prophetic tongues 1:15; 2:4 120 Disciples A prophetic era dawned 2:17-18 Philip and eunuch Philip sent to eunuch 8:29-39 Ananias and Saul Ananias sent to Paul 9:10-17;22:12-14 Peter Peter sent to Cornelius 10:9-48 Household of Cornelius Gentiles receive the Spirit 10:44-48; 11:1-18 Agabus and Antioch church Agabus predicted famine 11:27-28 Men at Antioch Prophecy for mission 13:1-4 Paul and magistrate Paul blinded a magician 13:8-12 Judas and Silas Prophets selected 15:25-26,32 Paul and associates Forbidden to go 16:6-7 Paul and the Ephesians Tongues and prophecy 19:6 Paul in the churches Warnings given Paul 20:22-23 Disciples at Tyre More warnings given Paul 21:4 Philip’s four daughters Women prophesied 21:9 Agabus and Paul Agabus enacted a prophecy 20:22-23 B. THE DIVERSE WAYS IN WHICH PROPHECY COMES To receive prophecy we give God a “screen” on which He can project His thoughts. If we give Him our imagination, He speaks to us through our imagination. If we give Him our mind, He speaks through thoughts. What we give to Him will often be what He projects His thoughts through. Fluency in personal, devotional “spiritual language” greatly facilitates the ability to experience inspiration and speak with prophetic unction. Tongues and prophecy are closely allied and have an overlapping effect, since both are inspired utterance. 1. Receiving the Actual Words This is often a flow of spontaneous thoughts within us and this form of prophecy is usually a more dynamic, Pentecostal style of prophecy. Old Testament prophets would sometimes prophesy like this. However, the word must be held in check in the local church setting until the right opportunity presents itself. 2. Receiving the Sense of the Message We receive the sense of a message and must put it into words that express that sense. Usually there is a strong, persistent, unshakable thought that one perceives to be from God. If a person actually hears an audible voice or receives a mental 104 impulse from the Holy Spirit, it may mean that he or she is to retell what God has spoken. The empowerment of the Spirit may come on the person and he or she will be saying it exactly as it was given. 3. Receiving the First Word Only We often have to step out in faith and speak out what God has given, believing for more words to be given. 4. Receiving a mental picture God often speaks to us through vision, especially in our imagination. When we get a picture from God we need to ask Him for the interpretation (meaning) then speak it out. John had a prophetic vision on Patmos (Rev 1:11). A divine vision is attended by the special presence and anointing of the Holy Spirit. Often such a vivid visualisation of a spiritual truth is better retained in human memory than words would be. 5. Receiving a Song An example of this is found in 1 Chron 25:1-3 – the prophet sometimes played a musical instrument to facilitate his spiritual sensitivity and cut through mental unbelief and emotional disturbance (2 Kings 3:15). A song begins to develop on the inside. We need to wait for the right moment to sing it. 105 How Prophecy Came to the Prophet Both the call to be a prophet and the performance of that call required divine revelation. Revelation and Communication How God communicated to and through the prophet 1. Audible voice How the message came to the prophet How the prophet communicated the message The style of expression  A spoken word, either internal or external  Related in own words  Reading  Related verbatim  Hymn or song  Given before or at  Repeated under divine  Exhortation the time of the prophecy’s utterance unction  Prediction  Lamentation  Messianic prediction  Enacted prophecy  Denunciation 2. Mental picture  A vision or mental image that is true to life or apocalyptic  Coming while conscious or unconscious  With eyes open or in dream or trance 3. Immediate unction  A bursting forth of words without premeditation  Described in prophet’s own words as it is being seen, or told after it is seen  A simple, understandable, descriptive account  A spontaneous prophetic words as the vision is in progress  An impassioned description and plea  Recorded and read later  Spoken with unction and enthusiasm  Same as #1, except for reading  “As the Spirit gives utterance” 4. Ecstatic Experience  In trance, dream or semi-conscious condition  An afflatus  A sudden overpowering while conscious  Spoken during the experience  Spoken after  Recorded and read later  Deliberately retold  Given under immediate outburst 106  All the above C. GOD’S STEPS TO PROPHECY 1. Present Your Body as a Living Sacrifice Rom 12:1 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. In the Old Testament the altar sanctified, or made holy and acceptable, the gift given to God. Certain vessels were set aside for service and became holy unto the Lord e.g. laver, shovels. 2. Renew Your Mind Rom 12:2 “And be not conformed to this world:” but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Find out what the Word says about prophecy. Learn the nature of the gift by the Word. Don’t be worldly but know the God of the Word. Get to know the Spirit behind the Word and not the letter of the Word. Find out God’s limitations and directions concerning prophecy in the Word, by proving right and wrong. 3. Step Out and Exercise the Gift Be prepared to learn to make mistakes, set out to prove and know the realm. Be humble and teachable (Rom 12:3), and know the limitations of the gift over your life. 4. Be Part of the Body Be a part of a body and know your place (Rom 12:4-5). Spiritual direction and placement is essential – “He who grows alone grows weird” e.g. blood and finger. 5. Prophesy According to Your Faith 16. Rom 12:6 “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith…” 107 D. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF GUIDANCE Church leadership should never have as its primary role the discouragement of oddball prophecies. We are not policemen but shepherds and must encourage the development and maturity of the prophetic gift as much as possible. We must “speak the truth in love” (Eph 4:15). The following points will help maintain a smooth, orderly flow of the prophetic in a public worship service:  Shaming: do not publicly rebuke or harshly criticise a church member who ventures out in prophecy but makes a mistake. Instead show love and concern and encouragement to maintain interest in prophesying.  Imperfection: no one is perfect, people are still learning and there is a great variety in all our gifts and ministry. Patience and tolerance is required.  Edification: search out personal motives when considering whether or not to prophesy. The prophecy must edify the entire congregation and not focus on personal needs or state of mind.  Timing: no one should break into the praise and worship of God with something that could go unsaid or wait until later. Hasty prophecies do not inspire.  Clarity: if a person has only bits and pieces of thoughts from the Lord, the lack of clarity suggests that it is premature to speak them publicly. A public prophecy must make sense to the people – we cannot rely on the leadership to clarify something that confuses even us.  Confirmation: God never minds confirming His word to us (Matt 18:16)- if you are unsure whether something is from God, ask Him for further confirmation.  Direction: there are two types of directive prophecy – one positive, the other negative. A prophecy that gives direction and flows with the mood and frame of mind of the congregation and leadership will be received in a positive way and even acted on in faith. In contrast, a directive prophecy that leads the congregation or individual to do or say something strange, bizarre or in obvious conflict with the policies of the church is inappropriate and should be adjusted by the pastoral leadership.  Kindness: the privilege of prophetic ministry should not be abused through negative statements or personal concerns. Avoid bringing a rebuke or harsh word – this is reserved for the proven ministry of the prophet or pastoral leadership. The main purpose of the prophetic is positive affirmation.  Patience: there are occasions when time does not permit a prophetic word, or the leadership may feel compelled to move the service in another direction. If this happens offense should not be taken, but patience and tolerance practised.  Humility: Be willing to have your words tested (Ecc 11:1, Isa 55:11). No one is infallible, guard against high mindedness and coming across as superspiritual. 108  Faith: never fear failure; if you aim for nothing you will achieve nothing. But avoid prophesying beyond your faith (Rom 12:6). Having someone screen candidates, listen and judge helps us all perfect our skills in this.  Announcements: Visitors and new people should be informed of the church’s procedures through the bulletin and platform announcements. If a new person comes to the microphone it is best that he/she be instructed to return to his/her seat and be talked to after the service. Every church moving in the prophetic needs to have its teaching on prophecy available to the local church body.  Titles: the more secure a person is in a ministry, the less necessary for him/her to have recognition, or a title. By simply being what God has called you to be, the church will recognise your prophetic office and respond to it – if you have to convince people you are a prophet, you most likely are not.  Judgment: The possibility of a margin of error is always present – there are no infallible prophets, but there are sincere, Spirit filled people trying to do the will of God. Prophecy must be submitted to leadership for judgement. Prophecies to Avoid  Obvious trouble spots such as church disputes or situations where you are involved emotionally, or about which you have strong opinions.  Date setting (Matt 24:36), unless you are a prophet and even then there should be confirmation from reliable sources.  Discipline – let leadership handle disciplinary problems.  Fantasy – beware of words, dreams, visions about oneself which involve things such as finding a treasure, marrying a film star, taking a leadership role in the church, or giving up a job you don’t like.  Sin – do not drag up past sins – this is not edification.  Marriage and divorce – never prophecy marriage or divorce between two people.  Money – one of the key characteristics of a false prophet is obsession with taking people’s money for himself.  Sacrifice – do not order others to give up their earthly possessions. Although people need to be challenged, leave the amount of sacrifice to God. Qualifications for Those who Prophesy in Church         A Spirit filled believer. A committed worshiper. A faith-filled person. A person of prayer. A church member of good standing and reputation. A student of God’s Word. Cooperative and gracious . Exemplary character, of clear conscience. 109 Five Basic Bible Safeguards 1. The Word of God must be elevated above all other written words. 2. Jesus must be elevated above all other personalities, including ministers and prophets 3. The local church leadership must be respected as the primary place for ministering prophecy, not conferences or seminars where there is no oversight. 4. Bible principles must be elevated for church problem-solving above prophecy or the word of a prophet. 5. “In the multitude of counsellors there is safety” (Prov 11:14) – we must not allow prophecy or prophets to solely guide our lives. Who Judges Prophecy? 1 Cor 14:29 “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgement” 1 Thess 5:19-21 “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything …” 1 Jn 4:1 “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” The identification of “others” (1 Cor 14:29) is not clear but there are four possibilities:- other prophets present, those with the gift of distinguishing spirits (1 Cor 12:10), other church members present, listening to the prophecy, or the resident leadership. The last choice is the most workable, practical and scriptural. It allows for the input of others, but does not destroy the inspiration and integrity of the meeting. How to Test Prophecy “The final answer to erroneous prophetical movements wherever they arise in the church, is not only to expose the false, but to provide a proper place for the true. The inspirational element must be allowed legitimate expression and honour.” Donald Gee “Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy” by Ernest B. Gentile 1999: Chosen Books Grand Rapids, Michigan There are seven broad categories which must be tested: The source – is it from the Holy Spirit, the flesh, or an evil spirit?  The objective – does it glorify Christ and edify the church?  The message – is it in accordance with the letter and spirit of Scripture? Is it theologically or doctrinally correct? Does it have substance? Does it have value within specific limits of time and space? Do predictions come to pass and lead people to God? Does it give hope to the people? 110  The person – Is Jesus Lord of this person’s life? Is this person filled with the Holy Spirit? Is there a reasonable measure of true godliness about this person? Is the fruit of the Holy Spirit evidence in his/her life? Does this person submit to the Word of God and the government of the local church? How well is this person known? What kind of fruit comes from his/her ministry?  The delivery – Can it be understood? Does it fit in with the flow and order of service? What is the speaker’s state of mind i.e. not insecure or troubled? Is this person out of control or orderly? Is the prophecy manipulative or controlling? Is the message given in love?  The recipient – Does your spirit witness that this is the Holy Spirit? Is your spirit at peace? Do you feel inspired, motivated to follow through with the challenge of the message? Does it have an upgrading effect on your character and conduct?  The response – Is the response good or does it bring condemnation? E. SUMMARY OF PROPHECY Prophecy has nine essential aspects: Divinely originated: The spokesperson is a mouthpiece for God, declaring in human language a divine communique or message.  Immediate: Usually the prophecy is a “now” word that comes suddenly, abruptly, instantly, on the spot.  Spontaneous: The message is humanly unprompted, unpremeditated, unplanned, unstudied, unrehearsed. unbidden,  Spirit-inspired: The words originate with God and are empowered in their inception and delivery by the Holy Spirit.  Intelligible: Prophecy is (or should be) a clearly spoken, concisely related message in the contemporary language of the people.  Orally delivered: The voice of God is expressed through human voices, a divinely anointed utterance spoken loudly enough to be heard by those assembled.  Addressed to a gathered church: The message is for God’s people, usually delivered to a gathered assembly of Christians, although possibly to an individual.  Relevant: Prophecy is intended for the edification or encouragement of the people in their present situation.  Hearer-friendly: The words of prophecy should ideally be brought in an attractive, sensitive, spiritual, non-distracting style. Prophecy can be considered the most significant spiritual gift for eight reasons: It is the most mentioned of the gifts, the most explained gift, the most edifying to the church, the most revealing of God’s will, the most available to all, the most used (with tongues) by the Spirit, the most promoted of the gifts and the most connected with Jesus. Prophecy builds up, stirs up and cheers up the believer 111 F. PROPHECY AND THE TIMES AND SEASONS OF GOD Ecc 3:1”To everything there is an appointed time, and a time for every event under heaven.” Farmers understand times and seasons:  Planting & sowing  Harvesting  Mating season Businessmen have cycles and seasons, stock market has seasons and also in church we notice times and seasons. Our prophetic consciousness needs to be aware of the times and seasons. 1. Accumulation And Distribution Accumulation is necessary before distribution takes place, e.g. personal feelings build up (accumulate) till I have enough emotion to blow my top (distribution). Before distribution takes place, there must be accumulation.  Noah – was 500 years when God spoke. God prepared him for the task. He was 600 years old when the task was fulfilled -120 years had to accumulate, then suddenly God distributed His judgement.  Moses – spent 40 years in the desert, saw the burning bush, 2 years under Pharoah. Rejected 10 kings and work, 2 years progressed (accumulation) – then suddenly in one day, distribution took place.  David – was anointed king as a youth, early in Saul’s reign, but did not actually become king until many years later. Was firstly king in Hebron for 7 years, before being accepted as king in Jerusalem for 33 years more. Time must accumulate and be fulfilled before God moves. Christ could not come till the time was fulfilled: Gal 4:4 “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son.” 1 Tim 2:6 “Jesus Christ gave Himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time.” Rom 5:6 “In due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Acts 3:21 “whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. See also Gen 13,19,16. Four hundred years had to accumulate before God would move. The sins of the Amorites had to accumulate before God moved. 112 G. THE PROPHETIC SONG There are four types of inspired songs sung in the congregation. Many confuse the Song of the Lord with the Song to the Lord. 1. The Song of The Lord Zep 3:17 “The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” Ps 149:6 “Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand…” This is the song of the Lord, it is prophetic. It is to comfort, edify and encourage believers (1 Cor 14:3). It can be divided into three distinct categories: The song of the Father. He sings to His children, rejoicing and joying over them. It is the Father’s heart responding and encouraging His children. (Zeph 3:17; Ps 149:6)  The song of the Bridegroom. This is the voice of the bridegroom wooing his bride (Isa 62:5; Rev 19:10). N.B Rebellion against God – lose his voice (Jer 7:34; Jer. 16:9)  The song of the Son (Heb 2:12). This is the voice of the Son joining in worship of the congregation and singing to the Father. A person in the church sings the Son’s song unto the Father. The Spirit realm and the natural realm begin to join together in worship. 2. The Song to The Lord Ps 149:1 “Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, and His praise in the assembly of saints.” Psa 96:1 “Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD all the earth.” This is often called the “new” song. It is the song of the congregation singing a new song of love and worship to God. It is often inspired by the Holy Spirit with fresh revelation of who God is and how much He loves and cares for His church. Summary of Prophetic Songs 1. The Song of the Father to His children 2. The Song of the Bridegroom to the Bride 3. The Song of the Son to the Father The new song to God 113 H. WHAT TO DO WITH A PROPHECY FROM ANOTHER PERSON  Record the prophecy (Hab 2:1-3; Dan 7:1)  Judge the prophecy and hold fast to that is good (1 Cor 14:29; 1 Thess 5:21). Prophecy is judged by content, witness of the spirit, and by the elders of the church  Clarify the prophecy (1 Cor 14:7,8,11). Language often varies from one person to another. It is often important to define what the person themselves meant rather than putting our own language on it.  Meditate on the prophecy (1 Tim 4:13-14). Prophecy needs to quicken our spirit and build our faith  Wage a good warfare according to the prophecy (1 Tim 1:18). Prophecy needs to be built in the realm of the spirit and fought against contrary circumstances, feelings, fears, and doubts  Exercise your faith. Believe for the prophecy to come to pass (1 Tim 1:18; 2 Tim 1:13)  Fulfil any conditions (Matt 4:4). Only two people fulfilled the prophetic promise to enter into the promise land under Moses. Two out of six hundred thousand!  If the prophecy is confusing treat it like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle. Leave it on the shelf till the picture comes into view and you can clearly see where the piece of the prophecy comes in. to force the piece is to distort the picture. If the prophecy is incorrect then it will never fit the picture. 114 I. INSTITUTIONALISATION Gal 3:3 “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” This is a process often repeated in church history – the sheer weight of structure maintenance and development seems to stifle the vitality of the Spirit that was once the driving force of the church. The Cycle of Deterioration Step 1. An Aggressive Sect Step 2. An Evangelistic Movement Step 4. Step 3. A Recognised Denominatio n A Spiritless Monument Over the first three centuries after the establishment of Christ’s church, there was a gradual elimination of the prophetic and the accompanying ecclesiastical strengthening of the church hierarchy. The following table shows the process that increased ecclesiastical authority and diminished Holy Spirit power. 115 Becoming an Institution The Church felt the need to … With the following results … 1. Withstand heresies A canon was established a dogma was  To preserve the purity of faith. assented to and church office was strengthened. 2. Develop teachers and theologians  To bring accurate and uniform interpretation of Scripture and creeds. A shift took place from the prophetic to the rational. 3. Install ecclesiarchal authority  To safeguard the church against fanaticism, exclusivism and schism. Spiritual gifts became identified with office. 4. Ordain minister-priests A distinction was made between clergy and laity.  To allow recognition of and spiritual endowment on certain pre-qualified, prescribed priests. 5. Perpetuate apostolic authority  To keep the connection with the church founders Priest-bishops inherited the apostolic authority. 6. Unify and formalise worship The church subtly became more “sophisticated.”  To lift the responsibility from the congregation and shift the focus of worship to the minister and sacramental objects and actions. A tragic loss of expectant faith took place. 7. Establish tradition and practice  To assure continuity and longevity and to forestall any excesses or extremes that might alienate the church. Staying Spiritually Alive The stifling of the prophetic move of the Spirit in the first three centuries is too tragic to be ignored – we must learn from their mistakes. In natural bodies and church bodies alike, life and health require vigilance and diligence to form and structure, and care and maintenance. Things we can do are: Insist on Spirit-filled leadership.  Incorporate the ministries of apostle and prophet.  Promote an active Holy Spirit.  Seek balance between structure and prophecy.  Maintain a strong church prayer life.  Provide a flexible worship structure.  Encourage a harvest mentality.  Develop an “every-person” ministry concept.  Define and repeat the mission statement. 116 Major Points of this Topic  There is a new hunger for the prophetic in the world today.  There are five distinct realms of prophecy.  There are five essentials of the prophetic office.  Jesus Christ is God’s ultimate Prophet for mankind.  There is a distinct difference between Old and New Testament Prophets.  There were many prophetic happenings related in the Book of Acts.  There are various ways in which prophecy comes to the prophet and several general principles of guidance with regard to prophecy.  Qualifications for prophesying in a church.  Testing and judging prophecy.  The times and seasons of God. Review or Discussion Questions 1. What prophecies have you had over your life and how are you building them in the Spirit? 2. Ask God to give you a prophetic word for your home group week. 3. Check with your home group leader afterwards for their evaluation. 4. Ask God to give you a prophetic word for someone so that you can pray for him or her. Optional Readings or Research  Gentile, Ernest B. 1999. Your Sons and Daughters shall Prophesy. Grand Rapids: Chosen Books.  Liardon, Roberts. 1990. Spiritual Timing. Tulsa: Harrison House Inc. 117 *** A Preface to The Acts of the Apostles See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 118 Topic 9 – Revelation Gifts Introduction The three gifts of revelation are: Word of Knowledge, Word of Wisdom, and Discerning of Spirits. This lesson will explain what these gifts are not, what they are and how they operate in the believer’s life so that he/she can be set free to walk in his/her full potential in Christ, through the Holy Spirit. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. The definitions of the three revelation gifts. 2. What they are not, and what they are. 3. How to test the spirits. 4. How demons can come within people, and how deliverance can be effected. 5. How to recognise cults, the occult and forms of bondage. 6. How to minister deliverance. 7. How to keep your deliverance. Topic Notes A. THE WORD OF KNOWLEDGE Definition This is the supernatural revelation of facts about a person or situation, which is not learned through the efforts of the natural mind, but it is a fragment of knowledge freely given by God, disclosing the truth which the Spirit wishes to be made known concerning a particular person or situation. David Pytches, Come Holy Spirit. 1985. p.93 What the Word of Knowledge is not:     It’s not a gift of knowledge but a word of knowledge. Natural ability or learning. Knowledge of Bible or theology. Knowledge of God’s ways, thoughts, experience. 119 What the Word of Knowledge is: 1. A Gift 1 Cor 12:8 “ for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,” Natural knowledge is learned, e.g. Gamaliel (Acts 5:34-39). Supernatural knowledge comes by revelation, e.g. Apostle John and the state of 7 churches (Rev 1:11). 2. Supernatural Revelation 1 Cor 2:12, 14 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 2 Kings 6:9 “And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, ‘Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there’.” Natural revelation comes by observation, learning, conversation or reflection e.g Sam 4:16,17 – the Benjamite rivalry, death of Eli’s sons to Eli. 3. Comes as a Revelation without Effort Acts 9:11-12 So the Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.” 4. Depends on Fellowship with God Matt 16:16 “Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’” 5. Comes as a Revelation with Experience of Learning 1 Sam 3:7 “ (Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.)” 1 Sam 3:11-14 “Then the LORD said to Samuel: ‘Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.’” 120 N.B. Eli had experience. Biblical Examples Of Use Of The Gift          To warn a King of an enemy plan of destruction – 2 Kings 6:9-12. To help and encourage a servant of God - Kings 9:11-18 (Elijah). To expose a hypocrite – 2 Kings 5:20-27, (Gehazi). To convince a sinner of the need of a Saviour – Jn 4:18,19,29. To discover a man in hiding – 1 Sam 10:22, (Saul). To indicate a man in need – Acts 9:11, (Saul). To reveal corruption – Acts 5:3, (Ananias). To indicate a suitable place of God’s people – Mark 14:13-15. To know man’s thoughts – Jn 2:24; 1 Sam 9:19. How To Move In The Word Of Knowledge       Find the promise - 1 Jn 2:20,27. Believe the promise - Rom 10:9,10,17. Believe and confess. Receive the promise - Acts 11:23, 24. Release the promise (James.). Act on the impression, thoughts, visions or voice. B. THE WORD OF WISDOM Definition The word (message or utterance) of wisdom is the gift of speaking or communicating a few or many words of wisdom. This inspired sagacity is a key to unlock a situation; it is more for application to the problems of life itself and much less for insights involving academic studies. The wisdom may also concern the application of a previously given “word of knowledge”. The “word of wisdom” operates to bring us into a true relationship with God’s eternal purposes whose focus is a proper fear of the Lord. David Pytches, Come Holy Spirit. 1985. p.84. 121 What the Word of Wisdom is Not:     It is not the gift of wisdom but a word. It is not the development or endowment of earthly or natural, human wisdom. It is not a high degree of intellectual ability. It is not to be confused with cleverness, prudence or discretion in words or action. Biblical Purpose for the Use of the Word Of Wisdom 1. To Warn or Guide People Concerning Future Judgement and Perils Gen 19:12-13 “And God said: ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.’” Matt 2:20 “ saying, ‘Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.’” See also Gen 6:13-22 – Noah and the preparation of ark. 2. To Reveal God’s Plans and Purposes Gen 40:16 “ When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, ‘I also was in my dream, and there were three white baskets on my head.’” Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams by a word of wisdom, the mystery of the church was revealed to Paul, revelation was given to John on Patmos, and Paul was given information about the Rapture. 3. To Confirm a Believer’s Divine Commission Moses was given a word of wisdom at the burning bush, and told to deliver Israel (Ex 3:6-12). 4. To Change the Believer’s Attitudes and Prejudices Peter was told not to call anything unclean regarding the Gentiles (Acts 10;9-16). 5. To Assure Deliverance and Safety in the Midst of Adversity Acts 27:23-24 “For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ ‘ 122 6. To Reveal Future Blessings and Any Conditions or Instructions Regarding Them Gen 28:13-15 “ And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: ‘I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.’” See also Gen 12:1-7 - the Abrahamic Covenant. 7. Impart Special Ability Ex 31:2-3 “ “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship …” 8. To Reveal Truth 1 Kings 3:16-18 “Now two women who were harlots came to the king, and stood before him. And one woman said ‘O my lord, this woman and I dwell in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. Then it happened, the third day after I had given birth, that this woman also gave birth. And we were together; no one was with us in the house, except the two of us in the house.’ “ 9. To Confound Critics Matt 21:25 “The baptism of John; where was it from? From heaven or from men?” And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’” Matt 22:20-21 “And He said to them, ‘Whose image and inscription is this?’ They said to Him, ‘Caesar’s.’ And He said to them, ‘Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’” Jn 8:17 “It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.” 10. To Solve a Problem in Church Acts 6:1-5 “Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the 123 Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, ‘It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’ And the saying pleased the whole multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch “ Acts 15:28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things..” The Word of Wisdom in the Life of Christ 1. The Temptation in the Wilderness Matt 4:1 “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” 2. Is it Lawful to Pay Tribute to Caesar? Matt 22:17 “Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” 3. The Question of the Sadducees on the Resurrection Lk 20:27 “Then some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is a resurrection, came to Him and asked Him ….” 4. Who is My Neighbour Lk 10:29 “But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’” 5. The Woman taken in Adultery John 8:3-4 “Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act….’” Examples of the Disciples Acts 2:36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Acts 3:13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.” Acts 15:28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon 124 you no greater burden than these necessary things…” How It Comes 1. Angelic Visitation Gen 19:12-13 “Then the men said to Lot, ‘Have you anyone else here? Son-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in the city; take them out of this place! For we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before the face of the LORD, and the LORD has sent us to destroy it.’” 2. Audible Voice Ex 3:6-12 “Moreover He said, ‘I am the God of your father; the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. And the LORD said: ‘I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.’ But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?’ So He said, ‘I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.’” See also Gen. 6:13-22. 3. Dream Matt 2:20 “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.” 4. Vision Acts 10:9-16 “The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour. Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth. In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. And a voice came to him, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ But Peter said, ‘Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.’ And a voice spoke to him again the 125 second time, ‘What God has cleansed you must not call common.’ This was done three times. And the object was taken up into heaven again. 5. Impression or Inner Voice 1Ki 19:12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. Release The Word Of Wisdom  The Promise James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”  Believe the Promise  Act on the Promise  Build the promise C. THE DISCERNING OF SPIRITS 1 Cor 12:10 “ . . . to another discerning of spirits,. . .” Definition This is a supernatural gift of perception given sovereignly by God to enable individuals in the church to distinguish the motivating spirit behind certain words or deeds. David Pytches Come Holy Spirit 1985 p. 79 What the Gift is Not  It is not the power to discover the faults in others.  It is not the mental ability to understand the personality and character of another.  It is not psychological insight.  It is not spiritual thought reading. 126 What the Discerning of Spirits Does 1. It is the foundation to deliver the oppressed, afflicted and tormented Mark 5:5 “And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.” Lk 9:39 “And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.” Acts 5:6 “And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.” Matt 12:22 “Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.” See also Mk 9:17-25 (spirits of infirmity) and Lk 13:11-16. 2. It Exposes a Servant of the Devil Acts 13:9-10 “Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, ‘O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?’” 3. It Releases a Possessed Woman Acts 16:16 “ Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.” 4. It Exposes Error 2 Pet 2:21 “For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.” 1 Tim 4:1-2 “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron…” It exposes seducing spirits, doctrine of devils, damnable heresies. 127 5. It Exposes Demonic Miracle Works  Signs and lying wonders 2 Th 2:9 “The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders ”  Spirits of devils, working miracles Rev 16:14 “For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”  It Allows us To Know the Name, Nature and Number of Evil Spirits in a Person’s Life Acts 16:16 “Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.” See also Mk 9:17-25.  It Enables us to Differentiate Between Holy Spirit, Evil Spirits and Human Spirit Ezek 13:3 “Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!’”  It is Used To Determine Between Natural and Demonic Causes of Sickness See Lk 13:10-16. Old Testament Example 2 Kings 6:17 “And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” Example in Life of Christ  Jesus healed a man of deafness – Mk 7:32-36  Jesus cast deaf & dumb spirit out of a boy – Mk 19:17-25  Jesus cast out a demon spirit – Lk 11:14 Examples of the Disciples  Spirit of divination - Acts 16:18 (spirit of python v.16)  Samuel called divination a sin – 1 Sam 15:23 Lev 19:31 “Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them to be defiled by them, I am the Lord your God.” The Hebrew word translated “wizard” means “one who knows, i.e. one who, male or female magician or sorcerer, they are related to the Soothsayer, who in 128 turn claims to possess the power to foresee the future events, interpret dreams and reveal secrets.” 1 Tim 4:1-2”Now the spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrine of devils. Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” See also Deut 18:11, 1 Sam 28:3, Josh 13:22, Dan 4:7,27. It is only by declaring the knowledge of God that will protect us from seducing spirits. Three Tests, or Means of “Trying the Spirits” 1. Look at the fruit Matt 7:15-18 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.” 2. Is the Lordship of Christ acknowledged? 1 Cor 12:3 “Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.” 3. Test the doctrine with the Word of God 1 Jn 4:1-6 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” The Spirit and the Word always agree. We must know the difference between the spirits. 129 How To Recognise And Expel Demons Jas 4:7 “ Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” Eph 4:27 “ nor give place to the devil.” Mk 16:17 “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons…” “Demon” is equivalent to “evil spirit” or “unclean spirit.” “Possession” is a misleading word. Three phrases are used interchangeably: “to have a demon” (evil spirit); “to be in a demon” (i.e. under the influence of); and “ to be demonized.” Six Main Forms of Demon Activity       Entice Enslave Torment Drive or Compel Defile Harass The “City Within”  Main Areas and Occupants Prov 16:32 “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.” Prov 25:28 “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls.  Emotions, attitudes, relationships e.g. fear, resentment, hatred, rebellion  Thoughts, the realm of the mind e.g. doubt, unbelief, indecision, procrastination, compromise.  The Tongue e.g. lying, unclean talk, gossip, blasphemy.  Sex e.g. perversion, homosexuality, masturbation. (NOTE: Sex is basically good, not evil. It is not a sin to be tempted. It is a sin to meditate on it and yield to it)  Addictions e.g. gluttony, alcohol. (NOTE: These are “branches” growing from a “trunk” of frustration).  Physical infirmities, e.g. allergies, tumours, fits, cramps, heart attacks, arthritis, etc. 130 Four Steps To Deliverance 1. Confess your sins. 2. Renounce all evil. 3. Forgive others. 4. Call on the Name of the Lord. Cult and Occult: Satan’s Snares Disclosed – Three Main Forms of Satan’s Bondage 1. Domination of One Person by Another “Witchcraft” – the attempt to control another person by the use of any spirit. 2. Heresies These are departures from the Christian faith. 1 Tim 4:1-2 “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron …” At this time “seducing spirits” will draw away believers into error. Example of “food fads” (comp. Acts 15:28-29). 2 Pet 2:1 “But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.” False teachers by underhand means will introduce “damnable heresies”. How to recognize such heresies. 1 John 2:18-22 “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many Antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.” See also Jn 2:18-22; 4:1-3. Antichrist.” Increased activity of “Antichrists” and “spirit of 3. False Religions John 10:9 “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” Eph 2:18 “For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.” 131 See Jn 14:6 – access to God the Father is only through Christ crucified. N.B there is only one spirit (i.e. the Holy Spirit) who gives access to the realm of God’s presence. Ex 20:3-5 “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me..” To seek spiritual help from other sources is to “have other gods,” and brings judgements on succeeding generations. (comp. Ex 22:18-20). Forbidden Spiritual Contacts See Deut 18:9-14 (comp. Isa 47:12-13). Explanation of Words Used in K.J.V. “Divination” “Observer of times”, “Monthly prognosticator” “Astrologer”, “Stargazer” “Having a familiar spirit” “Necromancy” “Enchanter” = = = = = = = Fortune telling, clairvoyance Horoscopes Astrology A medium Consulting the dead One who uses incan-tation (music, etc.) “Wizard” is male, “Witch” is female. “Divination” operates by revelation, prediction, E.S.P., etc. “Sorcery” operates by charms, music, dancing, drugs. For New Testament examples, see: Acts 8:9-11; 13:6-12, Gal 3:1; 4:9-11, 2 Tim 3:13, Rev 9:20-21; 18:23. Modern Forms Ouija board, fortune telling, drugs, mediums, clairvoyants, “meditation”, Oriental Cults and philosophies (e.g. yoga), reincarnation, astrology, horoscopes, hypnosis, automatic writing, graph-analysis. Ps 139:21-22 “Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.” We must decide to hate these enemies of God and their influence in our lives. Acts 19:17-19 “This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practised magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totalled fifty thousand pieces of silver.” 132 New Testament pattern showing how believers must renounce these forbidden practices and sever all contact. Ministering Deliverance  Ask yourself if it is a condition of demonization you can handle.  Prepare yourself through prayer.  Ask the demonized person to prepare for ministry with prayer and fasting.  Minister deliverance privately whenever possible.  In the name of Jesus command the evil spirit, by name if necessary, to leave.  Invite the Holy Spirit to come and fill the void, so that the evil spirit can’t take up residence again so easily.  Two common questions: 1.”How do I know if I am completely free?” No “certificates” issued! You must know how to recognise and deal with demons for yourself. 2.”Where do demons go?” Jesus did not cast demons into “the pit,” or any other such place. He warned plainly that they will seek to return. Leave no area “vacant.” See Matt 12:43-45. Four Common Reasons Why Full Deliverance is not Obtained: 1. Lack of true repentance 2 Cor 7:10 “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” Acts 26:20 “but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.” 2. Failure to confess certain sins Particularly adultery and abortion. James 5:16 “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” 3. Failure to forgive others. Mk 11:25-26 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything 133 against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” 4. Failure to break with the occult. See Acts 19:13-19 Six Ways To Keep Your Deliverance  Yield to the Lordship of Jesus in every area.  Be continuously filled with the Holy Spirit. Eph 5:18 “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit…”  Live by the Word of God. Luke 11:13 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Acts 2:4 “ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Matt 4:4,7,11” “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” 7 “ Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’” 11 “ Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.”  Put on the whole armour of God.  See Eph 6:10-18, especially the “helmet of hope.” See 1 Thess 5:8, 1 Cor 13:13, Rom 8:28, Heb 6:18-20, and also the “garment of praise.” See Isa 61:3; 60:18, Lk 4:18.  Cultivate right relationships.  Both faith and unbelief come through what we hear. Rom 10:17 “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” See also Mk 4:24, Lk 8:18, Prov 19:27.  Make Jesus central. See Jn 12:31-32 . Major Points of this Topic  These are supernatural gifts, given by God Himself to disclose or perceive truths not otherwise known.  Biblical use in the Old and New Testament.  How to operate in these gifts. 134  How the gifts were used by Christ and His disciples.  Methods of testing the spirits behind the power.  How to recognise and expel demons.  Main forms of demonic activity and bondage.  Steps leading to deliverance from demons.  The main forms of demonic activity.  Modern forms of the occult.  How to minister and maintain deliverance. Review or Discussion Questions 1. How do you know that the word you received is a Word of Knowledge from God, or just something you are thinking of your own volition? 2. If you are not sure it is of God, what should you do? 3. How do you operate in the gift of the Word of Wisdom? 4. How can this gift help the body of Christ? 5. How do you discern spirits? 6. What purpose does this gift serve in the Body of Christ? 7. How would you know if you were “oppressed” by a spirit? Optional Readings or Research  Annacondia, Carlos. 1998. Listen to Me, Satan! Orlando: Creation House  Kinnaman, Gary D. 1992. Overcoming the Dominion of Darkness. Cambridge: Crossway Books *** 135 Jesus the Model for Short Term Supernatural Mission See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 136 Topic 10 – Power, Faith & Spiritual Authority Introduction When we are born again of the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit comes and dwells within us. All the attributes of the Godhead are now present within the believer, to draw upon – the power of God, spiritual authority in the heavenly realms, and faith. How little or how much we activate the power that resides within us will determine to what proportion these will be evidenced in our own lives. Topic Notes A. POWER God Himself is all power. God’s power through mankind always brings responsibility, is always conditional, comes in answer to prayer and is usually accompanied by God’s special ability coming with striking results. God’s power gives us a purpose and causes us to become productive Christians. Different Kinds of Power                    The power of God The power of the tongue The power given to the weak The power of the Word The power to become sons The power to be witnesses The power of the Gospel The power to establish you The power of the Holy Spirit The power of the Name of Jesus The power to heal the sick The power of darkness The power of light The power of the kingdom The power given to the church The power given to the disciples The power over the enemy The power promised The power received 1 Cor 1:18 Prov 18:21 Isa 40:29 Lk 4:32 Jn 1:12 Acts 4:33 Rom 1:16 Rom 16:25 Acts 10:38 Acts 3:16 Mk 3:15 Col 1:13 Jn 1:4 1 Cor 4:20 Matt 28:18-20 Lk 9:1 Lk 10:19 Acts 1:8 Acts 2:4 137 Things we have Power over - Gal 5:1  Sin (Rom 6:14)  Bondage (Lk 13:12)  Fear (Matt 14:29-33) (Rom 8:12)  Sickness (Matt 10:1)  Depression (Mk 5:5)  Flesh  Disease (Lk 9:1)  Oppression (Acts 10:38)  Unclean spirits (Mk 5:8)  Demons (Lk 9:1)  Possession (Mk 5:15)  Works of satan (Lk 10:19)  Captivity (Lk 4:18)  Defeat (Judg 16:30) The Power of Prayer Jas 5:17 “Elijah… prayed earnestly …he prayed again...” Miracles took place when he prayed because his prayers were energised by the mighty power of the Holy Spirit. The laws of the natural did not bother Elijah because he expected the supernatural to take place. When he prayed for fire – fire fell; when he prayed for rain – rain came; when he prayed for the dead – the dead were raised. He knew how to pray the prayer of faith. The Power of Praise When we praise God we see a manifestation of His power. Praise is a weapon which, when used, will bring results. Praise brings deliverance from slavery . Ps 81:6-7; Ps 50:23; 100:4; Acts 16:25 When Jehoshaphat and the people praised God, the enemy armies destroyed one another. 2 Chr 20:22. Kinds of praise: uplifted hands (Ps 63:4), clapping (Ps 47:1), with dance (Ps 30:11-12), with tongues (Acts 10:46), with music (Ps 150:3-5), and with singing (Ps 47:6). The Power of the Word The Word of God is so powerful that by it God spoke the whole world into existence and created mankind. The Word of God is like God Himself – eternal. Matt 24:35; Jn 15:7; Isa 55:11 “ So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” Isa 45:23 “I have sworn by Myself; The word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, And shall not return, That to Me every knee shall bow, Every tongue shall take an oath.” 138 The Power of the Name of Jesus Phil 2:9-10 The name of Jesus is so powerful it rules entire kingdoms, and the right to use His Name has been given to the church, His body. We use His Name: In Prayer: Jn 14:13-14; Jn 16:24; 1 Jn 5:14-15. Believers have the right to bring their petitions to God, in the Name of Jesus, with an expectancy that He not only hears their prayers, but answers them.  To cast out demons: Mk 16:17; Acts 16:18. When Paul exercised his right to the Name of Jesus he was fulfilling Christ’s commission. You have that same right. Demons obeyed the command then and have to obey it now.  To heal the sick: Acts 3:11; 5:16. When Peter used the Name of Jesus the cripple was instantly made whole. This not only caused a stir, but added thousands to the church.  To anoint the sick: Jas 5:14-15; Eph 5:20; Col 3:17 The Power of the Blood We are washed by the blood (Rev 1:5), cleansed by the blood (1 Jn 1:7), covered by the blood (Ex 12:23), protected by the blood (Ex 12:13), overcomers by the blood (Rev 12:11), redeemed by the blood (Col 1:14), and brought near by the blood (Eph 2:13). B. FAITH Matt 9:29; Heb 11:6; Rom 14:23 Definition According to the Oxford Dictionary: “faith” is reliance, trust in; belief founded on authority.” “Faith” is also defined as the “absolute trustworthiness of another.” Have Faith In God Prov 3:5; Mk 11:22; Prov 4:20-22. In English, we have a number of synonyms for the word “faith”:-confidence, trust, reliance, conviction, persuasion. We also use two different words; a noun “faith” and a verb “to believe”. . Greek English Noun Noun Adjective Adverb Verb Pistis Apisita Pistos Apistos Pisteou Faith Unbelief Faithful, believing Unfaithful, unbelieving I believe It is easy to see in the Greek that all are visibly linked by the stem “pist.” All five Greek words occur almost 600 times in the New Testament alone. It is clear that 139 these words are not only central to the Bible’s theme, but that Faith is believing and the opposite to faith is unbelief. What is Faith? Heb 11:1 This verse gives us the Bible definition of faith. It contains two key elements: 1. Substance, 2. Evidence 1. Faith is the Substance of Things Hoped for Faith is so real that it is actually called substance. The Greek word is “hupostatus.” It literally means “that which stands under something else” or “provides the basis for something else.” Faith stands in the place of what you ask for until it is visibly manifested. It is used in Hebrews 1:3, where Jesus is described as the “express image of the Father’s Person.” The word translated “person” is “hupostatus”. The meaning being that “God the Father is the underlying reality of which Jesus is the visible expression.” Another way of saying this is “that Jesus is the express image of God the Father, and God the Father is the underlying reality of Jesus.” Your faith is the exact image of that which you ask for and as the image it is but a reflection of the actuality. Faith is as real in the sight of God as the thing you asked for. 2. The Evidence of Things Not Seen Faith is also evidence – the evidence of things not seen. Evidence is the absolute proof of its reality and existence. Our faith is the evidence of what we cannot yet see. We totally believe in and are convinced of what we do not yet see. Elements of Faith Rom 10:8-10 .There are two important elements of faith:- 1. Believing with your Heart Faith is not mental agreement. Faith is not believing with your mind, but with your heart. Hope is of the mind – faith is of the heart. Rom 10:10 “With the heart man believeth unto righteousness.” True faith is expressed by the verb, “to believe” and is followed by the proposition “unto”. Unto implies motion. Faith is never static. It is always expressed in change, action, motion. A person who believes from the heart will always be changed by what he believes. However, a person who merely accepts truth by his mind will never be changed by it. 1 Thess 5:8; Prov 4:23 “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” 140 2. Confessing with your Mouth Faith must be spoken out. If faith is in our heart, it is expressed through our mouth. 2 Cor 4:13 “We, having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written ’I believed and, therefore, have I spoken; we also believe and, therefore, speak.’” Faith is Based on the Word Rom 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.       Mary’s faith was based on the Word – Lk 1:45 The Centurion’s faith was based on the Word – Mat 8:5 The Apostle Peter’s faith was based on the Word - Lk 5:1-8, Matt 14:22-33 The Servants at the Wedding Feast based their faith on the Word - Jn 2:1-10 Abraham’s faith was based on the Word – Rom 4:18 Five thousand men based their faith on the Word of God - Acts 4:4 Faith Sees Heb 11:1, 27, 28; Prov 4:20-22 e.g. Abraham and Sarah. Faith visualises. It sees the things that are unseen! Faith Speaks God created through the word of faith. He created the universe with words spoken in faith! Gen 1:3,24; Heb 11:3. Our salvation is sealed through our confession of faith. If we really believe in Jesus we will confess our faith (Rom 10:9). The command of faith is powerful. Jesus taught that true faith speaks! (Mk 11:22). Faith in God’s Word, speaks God’s Word! Faith is From the Heart Our mouth and heart are linked throughout all the Bible. Ps 19:14; Prov 16:23; Ezek 33:31; Josh 14:7; Jam 1:26; Matt 15:18. Faith Acts Faith has corresponding actions (Jam 2:14, 22). It is acting on His Word. God rebuked Moses for praying when he should have been acting in faith. There is a time to ask and a time to act (Ex 14:13) . Joshua won a victory over Jericho by acting on God’s Word (Josh 6:16; 6:20). Naaman was healed by acting on the Word (2 Ki 5:1-14). Restrictions of Faith God is restricted by what we believe and say e.g. Joshua and Caleb. (Num. 13:20). The majority spoke unbelief. Blessings come where there is unity. Words are powerful (Mk 11:23, Isa 33;24; Heb 3;1, 10:23; Matt 12:37. 141 Examples: Peter – Matt 16:16,18. What was the rock? Peter’s confession! (Josh 1:8). Israel was commanded not only to love God with all their heart but talk about it while they were standing and sitting, etc. Dr Lillian Yeomans made a lady with tuberculosis, confess she was redeemed from the curse of the law. Within three days, she was well. Faith and Presumption To presume is to take something for granted (Ps 19;13). Example: Israel at Kadesh Barnea. Deut 18:20 “But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, I will require it of him.” If we do not keep the conditions of God’s word, we cannot expect an answer. We Live by Faith Faith is the principle by which we live the Christian life. Heb 10:38; Rom 1:17. Gal 2:20 There is: A walk of faith  A work of faith  A fight of faith  A stand of faith  A confession of faith 2 Cor 5:7 1 Th 1:3 1 Tim 6:12 2 Cor 1:24 Heb 4:14 We are Exhorted to Faith Christians are exhorted to: Continue in faith.  Follow faith.  Hold fast to our confession of faith.  Build up our faith.  Keep the faith.  Show our faith.  Be established in faith.  Be rich in faith.  Be steadfast in faith.  Ask in faith.  Add to our faith. Acts 14:22 2 Tim 2:22 Heb 10:23 Jude 1:20 Rev 14:12 James 2:18 Col 2:7 James 2:5 1 Pet 5:9 James 1:6 2 Pet 1:5 We are Kept by Faith 1 Pet 1:5 “Who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” God’s protecting power is ours through faith. Faith is Powerful- We overcome by Faith The Christian life is a life of overcoming. We overcome: The temptations of the world by faith (1 John 5:4). 142  Satan’s attacks by faith (Eph 6:16). Notice that the shield of faith does not just deflect the missiles of Satan, but it actually extinguishes them! (1 Pet 5 :8-9). We are to resist Satan, not in fear but firm in faith. When we believe that he is defeated and that we have authority over him, then we can be firm in faith (Heb 2:14; Lk 10:19). We Receive God’s Promises by Faith Heb. 6:12; See also 2 Cor 1:20. Note that often there is a “time lapse” between receiving God’s promises by faith and experiencing them as realities in our lives. It is during this period of waiting that we need patience. This time lapse is the “trial of our faith.” (1 Pet 1:7). We Receive the Answers to our Prayers by Faith Matt 21:22 “And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” God Answers Believing Prayer Mk 11:24 “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” True faith is believing you have the answer to your prayer before you actually see it (Jas 1: 5,6). The condition for answered prayer is faith. We Receive Healing by faith Jas 5:14-15 “...the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick.” Jesus taught that those who were healed in His ministry were healed because of their faith: The woman who suffered with a haemorrhage (Matt 9:22).  Two blind men (Matt 9: 29,30).  The Centurian’s servant (Matt 8:5-10).  The Syro-Phoenician woman’s daughter was healed because of her mother’s faith (Matt 15:21-28).  Blind Bartimaeus (Mk 10:46-52).  We can do exploits by faith (Matt 21:21,see also John 14:12, Heb 11:32-34) We are Saved by Faith Eph 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” We Live by Faith Heb 2:4 “God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?” We are Kept by Faith 1 Pet 1:5 “who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to 143 be revealed in the last time.” We Rejoice Because of Our Faith 1 Pet 1:8 “though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” Protect Your Faith Lk 22:31, 32; 1 Tim. 4:1; Lk 18:8 “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh shall He find faith on the earth?” Faith Killers – Don’t Allow These Things In Your Thinking And Imagination: 1. Contradictory Circumstances – Trust God in Spite of Them 2 Cor 5:7”For we walk by faith, not by sight.” Note the contradictory circumstances. Jesus calmed the storm (Lk. 8:22-25). Jesus rebuked His disciples for believing in the circumstances; the storm, wind and raging water, rather than His Words “Let us go unto the other side”. Peter walked on water (Matt 14:22-33). Peter walked on the water till he saw the wind was boisterous. He walked when he had his eyes on Jesus but when he took them off Him and looked at the circumstances, his faith failed and he sank. Jairus’ daughter (Lk. 5:21-43). The servant said the daughter was dead; the circumstances were against Jesus, but Jesus said, “Be not afraid, but believe”. Jesus declared she was not dead – the people ‘laughed Him to scorn’. However, He spoke to the child and she arose healed. 2. Our Understanding – Rely on God’s Word Instead Prov 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding Thomas would not believe Jesus rose from the dead till he saw and felt the nail prints (Jn. 20:24-31). Jesus said, “Blessed are they who have not seen yet have believed”. 1 Cor 2:5 “Your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but the power of God.” God’s Word is always greater than our understanding. We trust in Him, not ourselves. 3. Doubt - Doubt your Doubts not God Matt. 21:21-22”So Jesus answered and said to them ‘Assuredly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig 144 tree, but also if you say to this mountain ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.’” Peter walked on water till he doubted (Mt. 14:31). Heb 10:23 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” 4. Fear – We Can Trust God – He is Faithful Matt. 8:26. The disciples feared the storm, rather than believed God’s Word. Jairus was told not to fear bad news, but believe in the power of Christ to heal (Lk. 8:50). 5. Unbelief – Believe God’s Word – It is the Truth Matt 13:58; 17:19-20; Rom 4:20; Heb 3:19. 6. Lack of Patience – Don’t Give Up, Keep Believing Heb 6:12, 15; 10:36; Lk 8:15. 7. Lack of Diligence, Laziness – Don’t Quit Heb 6: 12; 10:23; 1 Tim 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith.” 8. Wrong or Negative Confession – I’ll Only Speak What God Says Matt 12:37; Jas 3:2; Prov 18:21. C. SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY Matt 28:18; Lk 9:2; 10:19 Greek Words translated “authority”  Dunamis: This occurs 118 times in the New Testament and means “power, might, strength, or force” and is often used in the plural to refer to miracles or wonders as in Acts 2:22, 2 Cor 12:12, Heb 2:4, or to “supernatural beings/powers” as in Rom 8:38, 1 Cor 15:24, Eph 1:21 and 1 Pet 3:22.  Exousia: Focuses on the right to use power, rather than the power itself. It occurs 108 times in the New Testament, almost always related to people. It is a personal right, either because of status or delegation, to assert power, whether in legal, political, social or moral ways in the human or spiritual realm. Both types of power flow from the work of Christ within believers. 145 What Our Authority is Not  Our authority is not dependent upon how we feel.  Our authority is not a kind of gifting or personality type – it is given to all believers, as members of God’s family.  It is not a privilege given for misuse: It is not something that belongs to us, but it is entrusted to us for faithful use.  It must be used for the purpose for which it was given and not to show off or enhance our own reputations.  Our authority never gives us the right to command God to do our will.  Our relationship to the giver of the authority must always take priority over the results. Accountability of the Authority Those who exercise spiritual authority must be accountable to God to discover and follow His will, rather than their own desires. It must be exercised in obedience to God and other mature, dedicated people to whom they are accountable. It must be exercised in love. “A leader does not seek spiritual authority; a leader seeks to know God.” Robert Clinton The Making of a Leader 1988: Navpress The Ten Commandments of Spiritual Authority 1. The ultimate source of authority is God. It is He who provides this “power base” to undergird ministry. 2. This authority is delegated by God. We are only channels for it, not owners of it. 3. We are responsible to God for how we exercise the authority He gives us. 4. True Christian leaders will recognise God’s authority whenever it is manifested in life situations, whether through themselves or through others. 5. Persons in authority are subject directly to God, not indirectly through other authority figures. 6. Refusal to obey others in authority over us is actually rebellion against God, not just against the human instruments of that authority (Rom 13:2). 7. If we are rightly subject to God’s authority, we will seek and recognise other spiritual authority and be willing to be subject to it. 146 8. We are never to exercise spiritual authority merely for our own benefit. 9. If we are truly working in spiritual authority, we do not need to insist that others obey us. That is their responsibility before God. 10.God Himself can be depended on to defend our spiritual authority. We do not need to assert it in such a way that we are defending ourselves. Using Authority Responsibly With our authority comes the responsibility to use it for God’s purposes. If we don’t rebuke the devil, he will not be rebuked. If we don’t drive him back, he will not leave. It is up to us. Satan knows of our authority, but hopes we will stay ignorant. We must be as convinced of our authority as the devil is. Dean Sherman Spiritual Warfare for Every Christian. 1990. Seattle: Frontline Communications (YWAM) p.123 Six Ways Spiritual Authority can be Misused:       When the person given authority is exalted. When those without power are hurt. When Scripture is mis-handled. When people are led from God. When God’s work is opposed. When authority is counterfeited. What Paul said about Spiritual Authority (1 Cor 10:8-13:10)  Spiritual authority has a territorial dimension (1 Cor 10:12-18)  Spiritual authority flows from a burden to see a love relationship between those served and Christ (1 Cor 11:1-6)  Spiritual authority is grounded in a substantial knowledge of God and His activities in the human sphere (1 Cor 11:6).  Spiritual authority must operate without being tied to payment (1 Cor 11:7-12).  Spiritual authority involves an uncompromising opposition to charlatans – those who masquerade a s true Christian leaders but who teach lies (1 Cor 11:13-15).  Spiritual authority serves even to the extent of readily sacrificing and suffering (1 Cor 11:16-33).  Spiritual authority involves direct revelation from God (1Cor 12:1-6).  Spiritual authority is exercised in weakness and ordinariness, even with Godallowed satanic reminders to keep us humble (1 Cor 12:6-10).  Spiritual authority is authenticated through the operation of spiritual gifts (1Cor 12:12). 147  Spiritual authority is ready and able to rebuke and discipline those who persist in disobedience (1 Cor 13:1-2).  Spiritual authority can be tested by checking the presence and activity of Christ in those who have responded to the message presented by the one who claims that authority (1 Cor 13:5-6).  Implied in the passage is the fact that spiritual authority is not contingent on a given personality type.  Neither is spiritual authority contingent on one’s ability to preach or communicate in other ways. Spiritual authority precedes these abilities, acting as a life-giver to these means but not restricted by whether or not one is a gifted communicator.  True spiritual authority affirms rather than puts down others, encouraging them to operate in all the gifting and authority God has given them.  Spiritual authority can be exercised in a multitude of unique ways. Rather than being a mere “doing” thing, it is to be grounded in and exercised out of a person’s very being. More Prerequisites to Authority      Ask for the release of the Holy Spirit. Tend to your spiritual condition. Know that authority is ours. Garner prayer support. Find a spiritual mentor Authority in Families Listed below are some of the areas of authority within the family:  The authority of the husband/father.  The authority of the wife/mother.  Male/female authority relationships.  Horizontal and vertical authority.  Authority of parents.  Authority of children. Authority in Ministering to Others        Authority to invite the Holy Spirit. Authority to bless. Authority to break bondages. Authority to heal. Authority for deliverance. Authority to forgive. Authority to raise from the dead. 148  Authority over higher-level spirits. Authority in Churches The scriptures are clear that people in authority within the church, such as pastors and teachers, are responsible to God for what they do with that authority. Church leaders must be “without fault” (1 Tim 3:2). Teachers will be “judged with greater strictness than others” (Jas 3;1) and must “give to God an account of their service” (Heb 13:17). Functions of a Church’s authority  To prevent and protect.  To stop enemy attacks  To mount spiritual attacks against the enemy. The Pastor’s Commitment to the Church There is a direct relationship between the commitment of a pastor or leader, and the authority he/she wields in the spirit world. Pastors committed not to the church they serve, but to advancement, money, power, prestige etc. cannot expect the spirit world to take them seriously. The pastor and church leaders are responsible to assert their authority in the spirit world to prevent or stop whatever the enemy is doing in the lives of their members. Major Components of Spiritual Authority 1. Staying close to Jesus Jesus stayed close to the Father (see Jn 5:19; 7:16-18). Spiritually mature Christians love God and His people passionately, and they hate anything that takes them away from God. Only in the context of such love will Bible knowledge and the gifts of the Spirit ever achieve their divine purposes. The power of the Spirit can flow unhindered through passionate love for God, and His children. Jack Deere 1993. Surprised by the Power of the Spirit. Zondervan, p.206 2. Knowing Who we are We must know who we are and the authority that entails. We are children of the King! Royal blood flows in our veins. We have the authority to come boldly and confidently into His presence (Heb 4:16) and call Him “Abba.” We are His children (1 Jn 3:1). When Jesus left the earth He entrusted us with the Holy Spirit and the authority that goes along with his presence in us, saying that we would do “even greater things” than He had done (Jn 14:12). 149 3. Knowing we are at War 2 Cor 10:4-5; Eph. 6:13-18. We must put on the armour of God and join the armies of God, fighting on His behalf against the enemy. According to 1 Jn 5:19 “The whole world is under the rule of the evil one.” We should not be running or hiding, trying to avoid the war, but must enter it actively. In warfare we risk the possibility of defeat – not all battles are won, although ultimate victory is sure. Normal, biblical Christianity demands that we live and work at the supernatural level because it is only at this level that we can effectively fight our enemy, who lives and works at that level. Putting it into Practice 1. Be aware of the invisible world and the enemy’s schemes. 2. Claim what is rightfully yours. 3. Assert your authority to change things. 150 Major Points of this Topic  God Himself is Power.  God gives power for His Kingdom purposes.  There is power in prayer, praise, the Word, the Name of Jesus, and the blood of Jesus.  The elements and base of faith – believing, and confessing the Word.  Faith sees, speaks, is from the heart, and acts.  The power of faith for healing, salvation, etc.  What kills faith.  The definition of spiritual authority.  What authority we have and do not have.  The Ten Commandments of spiritual authority.  What Paul said about spiritual authority (1 Cor 10:8-13:10).  Authority in various areas and its major components.  How to put it all into practice. Review or Discussion Questions 1. How important is the element of faith with regard to spiritual authority and power? 2 Is it possible to have any one ingredient without the other? 3. How can we increase our faith, spiritual authority or power? 4. What are the outworkings of power and spiritual authority in a ministry and/or family context? 5. What areas of our lives could hinder the works of faith, power and spiritual authority ? Optional Readings or Research  Ekman, Ulf. 1992. Faith that Overcomes the World. Reading: Word of Life Pub.  Law, Terry. 1987. Praise Releases Faith. Tulsa: Victory House Pub. 151 *** 152 MODULE 3 Power, Faith and Healing Topic 11: The Power Gifts Topic 12: Healing and Miracles “Jesus said: You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you shall be my witnesses ... to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8 153 *** Flashpoints of Revival History’s Mighty Revivals See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 154 Topic 11 – The Power Gifts Introduction There are three power gifts – the gift of faith, the gifts of healing, and the working of miracles. The gift of faith is a supernatural faith for a specific time and purpose, whereas faith itself is something all believers are given a measure of (Rom 12:3). The gift often operates with the word of wisdom and/or knowledge. A word of wisdom or knowledge tells us what task is to be done and the gift of faith will enable the task to be supernaturally accomplished. The gift of faith can also operate in conjunction with the gifts of healing and miracles – since God gives the gift of faith to believe that the miracles and healings will take place. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. The composition of the power gifts. 2. Definitions of each of the power gifts. 3. The purpose and operation of each of these gifts. Topic Notes A. THE GIFT OF FAITH 1 Cor 12:9 “ to another faith by the same Spirit...” Definition This gift is a supernatural surge of confidence from the Spirit of God, which arises within a person faced with a specific situation or need whereby that person receives a transrational certainty and assurance that God is about to act through a word or action. This miracle utterance covers creation or destruction, blessing or cursing, removal or alteration. “It is both the irresistible knowledge of God’s intervention at a certain point and the authority to effect His intervention through the power of the Holy Spirit” (Grossman). (David Pytches Come Holy Spirit. 1985 p.105) The gift of faith is a supernatural faith for a specific time and purpose. The gift often operates with the Word of Wisdom and/or knowledge. A word of wisdom or knowledge tells us what the task is to be done and the gift of faith will enable the task to be supernaturally accomplished. Kinds of Faith 1. Saving Faith Eph 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God…” 155 The faith which God gives to us through His grace to enable a believer to believe the Word of God and be saved. 2. Fruit of Faith Gal 5:22-23”But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” It is the faith or faithfulness which grows in the life of the believer to establish him in Christlikeness. 3. General Faith Mk 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” This is simple trust, relying on God and His word. It is believing that we have received and our confession, acknowledgment and thankfulness, that we have received the result, until we see the results manifested. Faith in the Life of Christ 1. Resurrection Faith  Woman – Son  Lazarus  His own life Luke 7:12-15 John 11:43-44 John 11:25-26 2. Miracles   Calming the storm Walking on water Mark 4:37-38 Matt 14:25-32 Faith in the Old Testament  David and Goliath  Daniel  Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego 1 Sam 17:32 Dan 6:16-22 Dan 3:16-18; 3:20-26 156 The Gift of Faith in the New Testament 1. Judgement  Jesus and the fig tree  Peter and Ananias and Sapphira  Paul and Elymas the Sorcerer Matt 21:19 Acts 5:9-11 Acts 13:8-12 2. Salvation  Paul and shipwreck Acts 27:22-26 3. Witness before kings Brought before kings and rulers Luke 21:12-15 Modern Example A most probable example in modern church history is the example of George Mueller of Bristol. This man time and time again believed God for provision for his orphanages and for the needs of Christians all over the world. In answer to prayer to God over $7,000,000 was given to the Lord’s work under George Mueller. Here are Mueller’s words. “I myself have for twenty-nine years been waiting for an answer to prayer concerning a certain spiritual blessing. Day by day I have been enabled to continue in prayer for this blessing. At home and abroad, in this country and in foreign lands, in health and sickness, however much occupied I have been enabled, day by day, by God’s help to bring this matter before Him; and still I have not the full answer yet. Nevertheless, I look for it. I expect it confidently. The very fact that day after day, and year after year, for twenty-nine years, the Lord has enabled me to continue, patiently, believingly, to wait on Him for the blessing, still further encourages me to wait on; and so fully am I assured that God hears me about this matter, that I have often been enabled to praise Him beforehand for the full answer, which I shall ultimately receive to my prayers on this subject. Thus, you see, dear reader, that while I have hundreds, yea, thousands of answers, year by year, I have also, like yourself and other believers, the trial of faith concerning certain matters. Bobby Clinton. Spiritual Gifts: A Self-Study or Group-Study Manual.Alberta Canada: Horizon House. 1985. p.70. Rom 1:17 “The just shall live by faith.” 157 B. GIFTS OF HEALINGS 1 Cor 12:9 . . . to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,. . Definition These gifts are channelled through human agents for the supernatural healing of diseases and infirmities to the glory of God (Pytches, 1985, p.113). The gifts of healing are supernatural impartations of God’s healing power into people who need healing. It is manifested in the response to laying on of hands, or praying, or a command to be healed, or the use of anointed prayer cloths. They are described as ‘gifts’ (plural) because there are many ways to minister healing to the sick. Gifts of healing are supernatural, and are not effected by any natural process or by the use of medicine. Purpose of the gifts  To confirm the word of God (Acts 3; 2 Cor 12:14; Heb 2:4).  To have compassion for people 1. In the Old Testament 2 Ki 5:10 “And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, ‘Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean’." The gift of wisdom and faith were in operation in this healing. 2. In the New Testament     Jesus and Peter’s mother-in-law Paul and Publius Paul and the cripple at Lystra Peter, John and the lame man at the temple Mark 1:30-31 Acts 28:8 Acts 14:8 Acts 3:6-16 The gift of faith and the use of the Name of Jesus were in operation in these examples. How to Operate the Gift       Have a passion to see the sick healed. Desire the gift. Be sensitive to the Spirit. Exercise your faith. Build the healing promise over your life. Act on your faith with perseverance and unlimited confidence. 158 C. THE WORKING OF MIRACLES 1 Cor 12:10 “ to another the working of miracles.” Jn 14:12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also: and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” Definition A miracle is a less common kind of God’s activity in which He arouses people’s awe and wonder and bears witness to Himself – Wayne Grudem. David Pytches Come Holy Spirit 1985 p.110 The gift of the working of miracles is a supernatural intervention in the ordinary course of nature. Purpose of Miracles        Deliverance from danger. Protection. Providing for those in want. Carrying our judgment. Confirming the calling of a person. Confirming the word that has been preached. A sign of God at work. Miracles in the Life of Christ  Water to wine  Feeding the 4,000  Jesus walking on water John 2:7-11 Matt 15:33-38 Matt 14:27-29 Miracles in the Old Testament     Moses and Pharaoh in Egypt Elijah parting the Jordan Elisha and axehead swims Samson and the breaking of the cords Ex.7 2 Ki 2:8 2 Ki 6:4-7 Judg 15:14-15 Miracles in the New Testament  Philip at Samaria  Transportation of Philip  Paul and the cloths Acts 8:5-6 Acts 8:39-40 Acts 19:11-12 How the Gift Operates In the first power gift – the gift of faith – God is working on our behalf, but 159 independent of us. We do nothing. In the gift of faith God does something sovereignly, dramatically, gloriously, while we just watch and marvel. God does the work for us, not through us. In the gift of the working of miracles the exact opposite is true. God is entrusting us with a strength, with an energy that we do not normally have. It is through our hands, our feet, our minds – causing us to do or be something that is not normal or natural to our behaviour. We call this the gift of the working of miracles. Lester Sumrall The Gifts and Ministries of the Holy Spirit. Whitaker House. 1993. p.105 The working of miracles begins with knowledge which has been received either naturally or supernaturally by the operation of the spiritual gift of the word of knowledge. Next, the spiritual gift of the word of wisdom is in operation. As this happens, we often see ourselves working a miracle before it happens. This word of wisdom releases the gift of faith. When that happens, we boldly begin to do what we saw ourselves doing by the word of wisdom. It is called the working of miracles because we are an active participant in the miracle. What we see by a word of wisdom in the Spirit, we begin to boldly work out when the gift of faith is released. A.L. & Joyce Gill. Supernatural Living: Through the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Fawnskin C.A. Powerhouse Publishing 1995.p.93 160 Major Points of this Topic  There are three power gifts: the gift of faith, the gifts of healing and the working of miracles.  These gifts often work in conjunction with one another and/or with other gifts of the Spirit.  There is a saving faith, a fruit of faith, and general faith.  The gift of faith was evidenced in the life of Christ, in the Old and New Testament, and still operates today.  The purpose of the gifts of healing are to confirm the word of God and show compassion for people and they can operate by a variety of means.  The gifts of healing operated in both the Old and New Testament.  There are several requirements essential for the use of these gifts.  The working of miracles is not as commonly seen in operation as the other power gifts.  The gift of miracles operate for specific purposes.  The working of miracles operated in both the Old and New Testament, and in the life of Christ.  There are several ways in which the working of miracles can operate. Review or Discussion Questions 1. How much or how little involvement from ourselves is required for the operation of any of these power gifts? 2. In what type of situation would (a) the gift of faith, (b) the gifts of healing, and (c) the working of miracles be required? 3. Give examples of what (if any) other gifts of the Spirit might work in conjunction with each of these power gifts. 4. What is the difference between faith and the gift of faith? 5. Why is healing described in the plural, e.g. “gifts?” 6. How can you build up your spirit man so that you can open 7. yourself up to the operation of these gifts in your life? 7. For what purpose has God given these gifts to believers? Optional Readings or Research  Barnett, Tommy. 1993. There’s a Miracle in Your House. Orlando: Creation House. 161 *** Signs and Wonders Study Guide See www.renewaljournal.com for details Companion to this Study Guide 162 Topic 12 – Healing and Miracles Introduction The coming of Christ has meant the outpouring of the Spirit on the church, and on the world. Miracles and healing should be seen as “normal” and as part of the church’s wider ministry of prayer. It is important because it was part of the gospel message, a sign of the Kingdom, proclaimed to an unbelieving world. From this Topic You Will Learn 1. Why and how God heals and performs miracles through others. 2. What divine healing is and what it is not. 3. Examples of healing and miracles in the Old and New Testament. 4. Myths about healing. 5. The evidence of healing and miracles in the early church until today. 6. How to pass on the power. 7. The relationship between miracles and healing, and the prophetic ministry. Topic Notes Jesus brought the gift of healing and miracles into prominence while He was on the earth – 90% of His recorded ministry on earth was spent healing the sick (Dennis & Rita Bennett. 1971. The Holy Spirit and You. Sth. Plainfield: Bridge Pub. p.111) His first instruction to His disciples was “Heal the sick” (Matt 10:8). Yet after His resurrection and before His ascension, there is no record of His healing anyone. During this forty day period He spent much time teaching and preparing His disciples to carry on the ministry he had begun. Immediately after Pentecost the first believers continued Jesus’ ministry of healing the sick, raising the dead, and casting out evil spirits. Jesus Himself promised: Jn 14:12 “He that believes in Me, the words that I do he shall do also; and greater works than these shall he do: because I go unto My Father.” Such things are manifestations of the Holy Spirit, working through compassionate human channels to the person in need. Mk 16:17-18 “these signs shall follow them that believe … they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Any believer can pray for the sick and see them healed by the power of Jesus, but generally speaking it is after the baptism of the Holy Spirit that increased faith for healing comes. Jesus Himself was never merely a worker of healings and miracles, these things were to point the way to God, since each event is the work of God. Jesus was primarily a Saviour. The Holy Spirit is God, working on earth in human lives. 163 His manifestations are diverse because, in the work of salvation, all manner of wonders are needed. Important Points to Remember: 1. God wants to heal the sick today just as He always has. 2. Corporate ministry is important. 3. Trust in God is demonstrated in action. 4. All Christians can be empowered by the Holy Spirit. 5. Loving relationships are important. 6. God wants to heal the whole person, not just specific conditions. A. HEALING - Why Does God Heal? 1. God Heals out of Compassion and Mercy The healing ministry of Jesus was motivated by compassion. Matt 14:13-14 When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities. And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick. Compassion motivated Jesus to heal lepers (Mk 1:41-42), the demonized youth (Mk 9:22), the blind man (Matt 20:34), and to raise the dead (Lk 7:11-17). In compassion He fed the multitude (Matt 15:32). Even the healing of the most severely demon-possessed person in the NT is attributed ultimately to God’s mercy (Mk 5:19). As Jesus walked the dusty roads of Palestine, He was touched by the pains and the sicknesses of people all around him. He did not shrink back in disgust from the leprous, He actually put His hands on their infected bodies to heal them. He could be moved in His spirit as He watched a funeral procession; He was not aloof from the pain of the blind and the maimed. 2. God heals to Glorify Himself and His Son  Jesus and Lazarus Jn 11:4,40 When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." 40 Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"  Peter and the lame man at the Gate Beautiful Acts 3:12-13 So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.” 164 Acts 4:21 So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done.  Jesus and the multitudes Matt 15:30-31 Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus' feet, and He healed them. So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.  Jesus and the paralytic lowered through the roof Luke 5:24-26 "But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"; He said to the man who was paralyzed, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen strange things today!"  Jesus and the son of the widow of Nain Luke 7:16 Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and, "God has visited His people."  Jesus and the deformed woman Luke 13:13,17 And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. {17} And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.  Jesus and the blind man Luke 18:42-43 Then Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has made you well." And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. 165  The ten lepers Luke 17:17-18 So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?" 3. God heals to Encourage Faith in Christ Jn 10:37-38 “Do not believe me unless I do the miraculous work of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the miraculous works that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Jn 14:11 “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me, or at least believe on the evidence of the miraculous works themselves.” Mk 2:10 “But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins ….” He said to the paralytic “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Matt 11:21 “Woe to you Korazin! Woe to you Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.” 1 Cor 2:4-5 “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” Rom 15:17 “I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done – by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit.” 2 Cor 12:12 “The things that mark an apostle – sings, wonders and miracles – were done among you with great perseverance.” It is clear that the power of God is meant to accompany the gospel, and to find expression through its messengers and in the lives of those to whom the message comes. 4. God Heals in Response to Faith  Woman with the issue of blood Matt 9:22 But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, "Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well." And the woman was made well from that hour.  The Canaanite woman and her demonized daughter Matt 15:28 Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that very hour. 166  The paralytic lowered through the roof at Capernaum Matt 9: 2 Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you."  Paul and the lame man at Lystra Acts 14:8-10 And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother's womb, who had never walked. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet!" And he leaped and walked.  Two blind men Matt 9:28 And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." 5. God Heals in Response to His Own Promise God commissioned the whole church to heal. Jas 5:14-16 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 6. God Heals in Response to a Request for Healing  The deaf man Mk 7:32 Then they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on him.  The blind man at Bethsaida Mk 8:22 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him. 7. God Heals to Remove Hindrances to Ministry  Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law so that she could serve them Mk 1:31 So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them. 8. God Heals to Attest to His Divinity and Validate the Gospel Lk 7:20-23 When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for 167 another?'” And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight. Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. "And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." 9. God heals for Sovereign Purposes  The miracles on the Sabbath Day Matt 12:9-13 Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue. And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"; that they might accuse Him. Then He said to them, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? "Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." Then He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other. See also Mk 3:1-5, Lk 6:6-10 Lk 14:1-4 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely. And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy. And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go. Jn 5:1-9 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had. Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?" The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me." Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.  The healing of Malchus’ ear Luke 22:50-51 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this." And He touched his ear and healed him. 168 He also heals to lead people to repentance, to open doors for the gospel, to teach us about Himself and His Kingdom, and to demonstrate the presence of His kingdom, What Divine Healing Is Not: 1. It is not healing by remedies. 2. It is not imaginary healing. 3. It is not the exercise of willpower. 4. It is not the power of magnetism. 5. It is not mind cure or metaphysics. 6. It is not spiritualism. 7. It is not faith cure or prayer cure – faith and prayer are simply avenues leading to healing. 8. It is not immunity from death, but strength for life. 9. It is not presumption and insubordination to God’s will. What Divine Healing Is: 1. It is the direct, supernatural power of God upon the body. 2. It is in accordance with the Holy Scriptures and founded upon them. 3. It is founded on Christ’s sacrifice and the work of redemption. 4. It is through the resurrection life of Jesus Christ. 5. It is through the personal indwelling of Jesus Christ in the 6. It is through and by the Holy Spirit. 7. It is through the personal faith of the sufferer, or his faith united with the faith of others. 8. It is submission to the divine will, requiring our repentance of any disobedience and consecration to God. 9. It is for the service and glory of God. 10. It is a fact of church history from the apostolic age to our age and is confirmed by innumerable testimonies in our own day. 11. It is a sign of Christ’s approaching return. 12. It is a testimony to the Word of God and the truth of Christianity in these days of unbelief. body. (Adapted from C.G. Bevington. 1992. Remarkable Miracles. Sth. Plainfield: Bridge Publishing Inc. p.117-118). 169 Various Healings in the Bible  Hands were laid on people, at times on their eyes or ears Mk 5:23 and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live." Mk 7:33 And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue.  The word of God was spoken and they were healed Matt 8:8-10 The centurion answered and said, "Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!  They were commanded to do something as an act of faith Acts 3:6 Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." Acts 14:8-10 And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother's womb, who had never walked. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet!" And he leaped and walked.  Jesus spat upon the eyes of a blind man Mk 8:23-25 So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything. And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking." Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up. And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Mud was placed on a blind man’s eyes and the man was told to go wash it off Jn 9:6-7 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Lepers were told to show themselves to the priests (obedience) Lk 17:14 So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.  People were anointed with oil 170 Jas 5:14-15 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Mk 6:13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.  Through the prayer of faith Jas 5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. The Ministry of Healing Some Christians are given a ministry of healing. It is not unusual for the ministry to be stronger in praying successfully for one type of ailment than another, though no-one in the Scriptures specialised in one type of healing. Jesus healed “all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people” (Matt 4:23-24). People brought to Peter “the sick and those who were tormented by unclean spirits and they were all healed.”(Acts 5:16).  A person can be healed through another’s faith when he is too ill and weak to exercise his own faith (Mk 2:3-5) though he may be unconscious or in a coma.  Healing can come through faith in Jesus, by the sick person alone (Matt 9:22,29).  Healing can take place with a combination of the two (Mk 5:25-34).  Sometimes healing can come by a touch, a word, or any other action of faith (Gal 3:5)  Some people have been healed by touching the TV or radio when a preacher is praying for healing, people far away have been healed by the prayer of their friends (Matt 8:8), even though they did not know their friends were praying.  Healing can come through the laying on of hands (Mk 16:18).  Some people can be prayed with over the telephone and receive healing.  It should also be noted that Jesus healed people whether they believed He was the Messiah or not – they were not always people of faith, and they did not always respond with thanks (as in the case of nine of the ten lepers).  Jesus came to seek the lost, and it was mainly to those people that He ministered. One day a group of Episcopalians in Van Nuys, California, was praying for a friend who had a terribly abscessed tooth. As they prayed the telephone rang. “What’s going on over there?” the woman asked. “My jaw was just instantly healed!” Dennis & Rita Bennett, The Holy Spirit and You. 1971. Bridge Publishing, p.119 171 I was one of the first students in God’s Bible School in Cincinatti. About a month before the first term closed, I was taken down with acute neuralgia. It was very painful and kept getting worse. I was getting to bed quite late in the evenings as I was working downtown for my board and going up to the school in the afternoons for recitations, Bible review and other lessons. That was before I had stepped out entirely on healing, but I was not taking any remedies. After about a week of suffering, I woke up one night at midnight in terrible misery. I tried to pray, but I was just in too much agony. So I began to cry out to God to make someone else pray for me. I was pleading for about 10 minutes “Oh, God, wake someone up who will pray for me.” I began to get better and in 30 minutes the suffering was all gone. I was soon sound asleep, knowing God had answered. In about 10 days I received a letter from California. It stated that on such a date, shortly after midnight, the writer was awakened and a voice said, “Get up and pray for Bevington.” She did not know where I was, only that my last address had been Cincinnati, Ohio. She said “I am too sleepy, and I don’t even know where he is” and tried to go back to sleep. But that voice kept calling her. She finally woke her husband who said, “You are just dreaming. Bevington can do his own praying. I think you ate too much supper last night. Now go to sleep and don’t bother about him - he will pull through all right.” Well, she tried to go to sleep, but could not for that voice kept ringing in her ears. Her husband said, “I guess you had better do it. It doesn’t matter where he is, go ahead and get up and pray.” She did so and the moment her knees struck the floor, she was engulfed with great misery in her head. She called her husband to get up and go to praying with her. He, being a blessedly saved man, got up and it was the same with him – he was taken with severe shooting pains in his head. So they clasped hands across the bed, he on one side – she on the other, and began to pray for me. In about 7 minutes their pain stopped and so did mine. They knew that they had reached the throne on my behalf. C. G. Bevington, Remarkable Miracles. 1992. Bridge Publishing, pp. 252-254. 172 When John Alexander Dowie was having considerable success in his ministry of praying for the sick in Australia before the turn of the century, American newspapers published accounts of some of the healings which had taken place. Therefore, when word got out he was coming to San Francisco and would be staying in a certain hotel, sick people came from all over the United States to be prayed for. Upon his arrival at the hotel, the manager said to him “You have to do something. Sick people are lined up for two blocks in every direction from this hotel, wanting you to pray for them.” Dowie said, “All right, just let them into my room one at a time and I will talk to them.” Two hundred people passed through his room and he didn’t pray for one of them. He sent them out without prayer or without ministry to them because he knew they weren’t ready. The two hundred and first one to come was a dear old crippled lady She was not financially able to buy crutches so she hobbled on some sticks. Her limbs were swollen. She had no shoes on, nor could she have worn them, for her feet were swollen and burst open. She had wrapped burlap sacks around her feet. But she went into the room sick and came out perfectly healed and walking normally because Dowie perceived that she had the faith to be healed. She was the only one he laid hands on and prayed for out of several hundred. He had 100% success because the only one he prayed for got healed. Kenneth E. Hagin, Healing Belongs to Us. 1976. Tulsa: Faith Library Publications, pp. 20-21.  People have been healed by the passing of a person’s shadow over the sick (Acts 5:15), or by handkerchiefs or aprons being brought to the sick, that had been touched by the person God was using in a ministry of healing (Acts 19:11-12).  Many times when the inner man is touched by God in salvation, there is a chain reaction in which God’s wholeness touches the soul and body with health.  Rom 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved” The Greek word translated “saved” is “sozo” which means “to be healed, saved from danger, kept in safety, or saved from eternal death.” It is an all encompassing word, that applied not only to the spirit, but to the soul and body also.  Sickness, like death, came as a result of the fall of man, but Jesus made it very clear that not all sickness is the direct result of sin in the individual’s life (Jn 9:3).  However, unrepented sin, a deep-held resentment, or a seriously wrong attitude, can prevent healing.  Healing can either be immediate or progressive.  While sin and suffering are linked, innocent people also suffer from sickness. 173  It is possible to receive healing, without having any spiritual change in the person’s life whatsoever, as in the following example:One evening, a young lady, a relative by marriage of our verger, came forward for prayer. She told me, and my praying partner, that she was suffering from a serious cancer. Both of us felt a surge of faith that gave us an expectation that God was going to do something special. Nothing particular seemed to happen, but about two weeks later she awoke with a tremendous sensation of fire and light in her body. She felt much better, and her next visit to a doctor confirmed a dramatic change in her condition. She is still well, about eight years later. She, too, has apparently been untouched spiritually by the dramatic physical change. John Woolmer, Healing and Deliverance. 1999. London: Monarch Books, p.328-329.  Others can receive prayer for healing, and not receive it, but be transformed spiritually. One old lady, who seldom came, but often seemed critical of the modern church, came to one of our healing services. Some months later, I met her. She fixed me with a beady eye and said “Vicar, I came to one of your healing services.” I waited for the inevitable criticism! Her next words astonished me. “Vicar, I felt a presence that I’d never felt before.” It was a transforming experience. She wasn’t healed of her illness, but she knew God’s love for the first time. When she faced a terminal illness a few years later, she faced it with great bravery, humour and faith. One brief moment at a village church healing service seemed to give her spiritual hope and comfort. John Woolmer, Healing and Deliverance. 1999. London: Monarch Books, p.329. 174 Mrs. Jean Neil of Rugby, England had suffered 25 years from a physical ailment, sometimes getting better, but then being thrown back again as when she was in a car crash and her spine was damaged. One day she had a dream so vivid she could remember every detail. She saw herself in a very large building and a man coming first to another woman in a wheelchair and then over to her. For nearly 2 years she had more or less lived in a wheelchair. She might hobble a few steps by twisting from side to side, one limb dislocated at the hip. She had worn a special medical corset to accommodate the distortion. Drugs had affected colour-coordination in her eyes; she had had heart attacks which left her with angina; and her spine had already been surgically fused and the coccyx removed. She suffered excruciating pain and sometimes screamed as she moved. Various specialists had treated her in hospitals. At that time she was having to decide whether to undergo another critical and expensive operation on her spine. The surgeon said it could leave her worse or bring her not more than a degree of relief. Jean also had bronchitis, asthma and a hiatus hernia. One day, shortly after her dream, she was taken with her husband to a rally in the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre. She looked around and recognised the place of her dream. Some 11,000 people were present and heard my salvation message. Afterwards I went to minister to the sick, and laid my hands first upon a wheelchair patient. Then God spoke to me and directed me right across this vast hall to minister to a woman at the side aisle – Mrs. Neil. I prayed, told her to stand, which uncertainly she did, and then suddenly, as described later, a great force went through her system. Within 2 minutes she had abandoned the confinement of her chair forever and was literally running round the place, jumping as if she’d never had anything wrong with her. Every ailment in her body had instantly vanished. Mrs Neil has since travelled thousands of miles, testifying to God’s goodness. She took up jogging and swimming, and today, some 6 years later, is a fit woman who never feels a single spasm of pain. The greatness of this miracle is seen in that although part of the spine had been surgically fused, and the work still shows on X-ray, the specialist under whose care she was could find no impairment whatever of her movements. Total function has been restored. Reinhard Bonnke, Mighty Manifestations. 1994. Eastbourne: Kingsway Pub. pp.127-128. Greek words translated “healing, heal” etc.  “Iama/iaomai” – used 17 times, meaning physical cures (1 Cor 12:9)  “Sozo/diasozo” which occurs 97 times, translated “to heal” 14 times, means “to make whole, either spiritually or physically as in Mk 6:56 “As many as touched Him were made whole.”  “Kalos exousin” – translated “will recover” means “to get well” i.e. a process of recuperation.  Four different words are used in Lk 17:11-19 for the healing of the 10 lepers: mercy, cleansing, cure and healing (Greek eleeson, - have pity; ekatharistesan 175 – was cleaned; iasthe –was cured; sesoken – has healed). These are also salvation words, but used also for physical deliverance.  The most frequent term for “healing” in the NT is “therapy” (Greek therapeia, therapeuo) occurring 45 times. It relates to the process or means of cure.  Not one of these words suggest instant recovery, though instant healings did occur. Myths about Why Healing is no longer for Today  Myth #1: “God sends sickness to people” – quoting Ex 15:26; Isa 45:7; Micah 1:12. Answer: According to Dr. RobertYoung, Hebrew scholar and author of Young’s Analytical Concordance, the verb used in Ex 15:26 is “causative” and the passage should read “I will permit to put upon you ….” God permits sickness etc. (as in Job) but it is satan who brings it.  Myth #2: “My healing may not be God’s will.” Answer: Jesus took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses, by His stripes we are healed (Matt 8:17; Isa 53:5).  Myth #3: “Hezekiah used a poultice” – quoting Isa 38:1-5,20-21. Answer: According to the Hebrew, Hezekiah had a carbuncle on his neck, which can be very serious. God had already told Hezekiah that he would not die, but would live for 15 more years, therefore the poultice of figs was not necessary as a medicinal aid. It had no curative powers and served no medical purpose. Instead it may have been used as a cleansing agent.  Myth #4: “Paul left Trophimus at Miletum sick” – quoting 2 Tim 4:20. Answer: As an apostle, Paul did not carry healing power around with him. Healing is primarily a faith proposition on the part of the individual who receives; Trophimus may not have had the faith to be healed at that time. Healing was not always immediate and sometimes progressive, perhaps Trophimus’ healing was gradual and though he may have had the symptoms when Paul left, the healing process had begun. Often we see in the Bible certain people being healed, such as the man at the pool – there would have been others there who needed healing but we are only told this one man was healed. God is sovereign.  Myth #5: “Paul had a thorn in the flesh” – quoting 2 Cor 12:7-10. Answer: The thought is widespread that Paul had a sickness God refused to heal, possibly a disease of the eyes since others often acted as his scribes when he wrote his epistles. However, we are told that Paul’s eyesight was healed when Jesus told Ananias to lay hands on him (Acts 9:12-17). To believe Paul had eye problems later would belittle the work of God. God permitted some kind of thorn in the flesh, but it was not from God, but from another source. Scripture says that “a messenger of satan was permitted to buffet him.” (2 Cor 12:7). The expression “thorn in the flesh” was used in Num 33:55 in relation to the Canaanites. God 176 told Israel to destroy them or they would be a thorn in their side – there is no reference here to sickness. Likewise Paul’s may not have been sickness, but we see from Scripture that everywhere he went satan stirred up strife against Paul and his work.  Myth #6: “I am suffering for the glory of God” – quoting Jn 9:3 and Jn 11:4. Answer: The healings were for the glory of God, not the sickness. God gets no glory through our sickness.  Myth #7: “Sickness is God’s chastening” – quoting Heb 12:6. Answer: It is true that whom God loves He chastens, but it doesn’t say He makes them sick. The word “chasten” literally means “child train”, “educate”, or “teach”. (Adapted from Kenneth E. Hagin “The Key to Scriptural Healing” 1979 Tulsa: Faith Library Pub.) Healing in the Early Church (AD100-1900) Despite the fact that many today believe that the power to heal died with the Apostles, there is much evidence within the early church to show that healings and miracles were still taking place after the death of the apostles. 1. The Early Fathers (c100-500)  Quadratus wrote in c.125 “But the works of our Saviour were always present, for they were true, those who were cured, those who rose from the dead, who not merely appeared as cured and risen, but were constantly present, not only while the Saviour was living, but even for some time after he had gone, so that some of them survived even to our own time.”  Justin Martyr (c100-165) “For numberless demoniacs throughout the whole world and in your city, many of our Christian men, exorcising them in the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, have healed, and do heal, rendering helpless and driving the possessing devils out of the men, though they could not be cured by all the other exorcists and those who used incantations and drugs.”  Clement of Alexandria (c150-215) “Let them, therefore, with fasting and prayer, make their intercessions, and not with the well arranged and fitly ordered words of learning, but as men who have received the gift of healing confidently, to the glory of God.”  Martin, Bishop of Tours (336-397) “Moreover, the gift of accomplishing cures was so largely possessed by 177 Martin, that scarcely any sick person came to him for assistance without being at once restored to health.”  St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) “…once I realised how many miracles were occurring in our own day … and also how wrong it would be to allow the memory of these marvels of divine power to perish from among our people. It is only two years ago that the keeping of records was begun here in Hippo, and already, at this writing, we have nearly seventy attested miracles.” 2. The Reformation  Richard Baxter (1615-1691) “In obedience to my conscience, I said: ‘How many times have I known the prayer of faith to save the sick when all physicians have given them up for dead. It has been my own case more than once or twice, or ten times, when means have all failed, and the highest art of reason has sentenced me hopeless, yet have I been relieved by the prevalence of prevailing prayer.’ When I went to church that morning I had my tumour as before (for I frequently saw it in the glasse, and felt it constantly). As soon as I had done preaching, I felt it was gone, and hastening to the glasse, I saw that there was not the least vestigium or cicatrix, or mark wherever it had been: nor did I at all discover what had become of it.”  St. Vincent de Paul (1580-1660) Although known for his great charitable works among the poor, was also known for 4 healings. One man was healed of blindness, the healing of a lady who had been dumb from birth, the healing of a malignant ulcer on the leg of one of the Sisters, and the sudden cure of a man from a long-standing paralysis.  There were also many healings noted among the Moravian and the Wesleyans in the 1700s.  The Church of the Nazarene, the Quakers, and the Mennonites all stressed healing in their early years. (Adapted from John Woolmer. 1999. Healing and Deliverance. London: Monarch Books, p.158-189) 178 B. MIRACLES: Definition Miracles are events that seem to override or contradict the so-called laws of nature. (Bennett p.124) It is not easy to draw a line between the gift of miracles and the gift of healing. Healing should include those acts of power that involve the curing of a condition in the living human body – other events would come under the heading of miracles. The word in the Bible translated “miracles” is more correctly translated “powerful deeds” (energemat dunameon). It is a key word, occurring some 120 times or so in the New Testament. Generally speaking, mighty deeds were healings and deliverance from demons (Acts 8:6,13). The phrase “the working of miracles” in 1 Cor 12:10 is literally the “operations of powers” (energemata dunameon). It covers all varieties of signs and wonders, and is plural for multiple miracles, and does not specify one particular type of miracle. Peter reminded the Jews that Christ had been “attested by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs” (Acts 2:22). The New Testament is a miracle book and Christianity is a miracle faith. The great miracles of the Old and New Testament were done to meet the needs of people, and to show them that God is real, and in full control of the situation. Miracles in the OT :  The dividing of the Red Sea (Ex 14:21-31).  Sun and moon stand still (Josh 10:12-14)  Widow’s oil and meal did not run out during the famine (1 Kgs 17:8-16)  Consuming fire on Mt. Carmel (1 Kgs 18:17-39)  Sun going back 10 degrees on Hezekiah’s sundial in response to Isaiah’s prayer (2 Kgs 20:8-11)  Plagues of Egypt (Ex 7-12)  Pot of poisonous soup made harmless by Elisha’s act of faith (2 Kgs 4:38-41) The greatest number of miracles in the OT are recorded in the lives of Moses, Elijah and Elisha. The gift of miracles brings glory to God. Miracles of Jesus in the NT: Jesus performed more miracles than anyone else in the Bible, and apparently not all of them were recorded (Jn 21:25):  Water into wine (Jn 2:1-11)  Walking on water (Matt 14:25-33)  Feeding the multitude (Mk 6:38-44; Matt 16:8-10)  Causing the storm to cease (Mk 6:45-52) 179  Directing the disciples to catch fish where there had been none before (Jn 21:512)  Sending Peter to find money in the fish’s mouth (Matt 17:27). Miracles Recorded in the Early Church Age and Reformation era  Patrick of Ireland worked many miracles.  Germanus of Auzerre stilled a storm on the English Channel.  Martin of Tours while evangelising France, cut down a sacred spirit tree, standing where it was expected to fall, but was unharmed.  Columbanus controlled wild beasts through divine power.  Benedict and Barbatus evanglised southern Italy by challenging satan head on and destroying sacred groves.  Wulfram raised a boy from the dead in Holland.  Boniface dared to topple the sacred Thunderer’s Oak in Germany.  Bernard prevented fire from burning him.  King Olaf of Norway, on the challenge of a pagan leader, saw God answer specific prayer concerning the weather.  Martin Luther prayed for his dying associate, Phillip Melanchthon and his condition was reversed instantly.  John Welsh, son-in-law of John Knox, reportedly knelt and prayed for 36 hours beside the corpse of a young count who was one of his strong supporters, until he came back to life.  In 1885 General William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, reported “remarkable signs and wonders” done in their midst. (Quoted from C.Peter Wagner, How to Have a Healing Ministry in Any Church. 1988. Ventura: Regal Books p.140-141). The Reason for Miracles 1. To Teach about the Kingdom The miracles of Jesus were signs teaching us about His nature and ministry:  Turning water into wine (Jn 2:1-10) – the nature of His power and His kingdom.  Cursing the fig tree (Matt 21:18-22) – to teach about faith and the power of believing prayer. 2. So the Disciples would Believe Jn 2:11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. 180 It was commonplace in the ancient world to expect prophetic figures to be legitimated (at least in part) by ‘miracles.’ (Mk 8:27-29 cf Isa 61:1). Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead after four days in the tomb Jn 11:45 3. To Bring People to Salvation  The miraculous catch of fish brought Peter to salvation (Lk 5:8). See also Matt 11:20-24; Jn 15:24.  When the crowd saw the miracles of Philip (Acts 8:6)  The healing of paralytic Aneas brought the people of Lydda and Sharon to the Lord (Acts 9:35).  When Peter raised Dorcas from the dead the people of Joppa believed (Acts 9:42)  When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, many Jews came to Christ (Jn 11:45; 12:11) Miracles draw a crowd. They do not guarantee faith, but they will get an audience to hear the gospel preached. Miracles also authenticate Jesus Christ and the gospel message. 4. To Manifest the Kingdom of God  OT prophecy said that the Messiah would usher in a kingdom that would have both spiritual and physical healings (Isa 35:6-7; 61:1)  The Spirit of God would be poured out on all flesh (Joel 2:28-29)  Jesus had authority over satan and his demons (Mk 1:27; Matt 10:1, 7-8;12:28; Lk 9:1-2)  The 70 sent out by Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of God and healed the sick (Lk 10:9,17).  Philip proclaimed the kingdom of God to the Samaritans and worked miracles (Acts 8:6-7,12).  The kingdom of God meant the rule of God. Miracles and the kingdom of God are inseparably linked. Counterfeit Miracles For every gift of God there will be a demonic counterfeit. A mushroom and toadstool look almost identical, but one is delicious and the other poisonous. Only the Scriptures can teach us how to detect spiritual toadstools. God’s true miracles come only through those who have received Christ as their Saviour.  Jack MacDonald of TEAM reported that “those who heal by witchcraft in France outnumber medical doctors, and there is one spirit medium for every 120 Frenchmen.” (Wagner 1988: p.149) 181  A Baptist Pastor from Romania said “Belief in Communism is not our problem. No one believes in communism anymore. Our problem is witchcraft, Eastern religions and mysticism, and the occult.” (Wagner 1988: p.149)  In the doctrine of reincarnation, which is a view held by most spiritists and spiritual healers, every soul is an amalgam of many human lives. This would seem to be impossible, considering the comparison of present-day population of the world compared with even the number of people living only one thousand years ago. Principles of Miracles and Healing  Divine sovereignty governs their distribution (1 Cor 12:11; Heb 2:4).  The human recipient must want to receive the gift (1 Cor 12:31, 14:1).  Neither divine sovereignty nor human responsibility operates independently of the other (1 Cor 1:6-7) – the desire is our responsibility; the distribution the Spirit’s.  They are given on a strictly personal basis (Rom 12:5-6; 1 Cor 12:29-30; 1 Cor 7:7).  The Spirit avoids all force and compulsion (Rom 8:14).  They are given to fill specific needs and to edify the church (1 Cor 14:12).  The gift stays while it is being used and not being neglected (1 Tim 4:14).  Christian leaders may encourage others to receive the gifts (1 Tim 4:14; 2 Tim 1:6; Rom 1:1).  The gifts are to serve the church rather than the individuals (1 Cor 12:21-27).  The gifts are under the direction of God (1 Cor 12:7; Judg 14:6,19; 15:14; 16:20).  Believers are obligated to exercise the gifts responsibly (1 Cor 14:23). Passing on the Power One of Jesus’ most astounding statements to His apostles was in Jn 14:2 Jn 14:2 Most assuredly I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” What greater works could be done than healing, miracles, raising people from the dead? He also said: Jn 16:7 “If I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” Lk 24:49 “But tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.” 182 The inference here is that it is the “Helper” who will “help” the disciples to work these signs and wonders i.e. the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was the source of all Jesus’ power during His earthly ministry (Acts 10:38; Lk 11:20; Jn 5:30; 12:50), so we today can expect to do the same, and even greater things, because we have been given access to the same power source. However, because we have no divinity inherent within us and are susceptible to sin, we will never match Jesus in the effectiveness of His works of the miraculous. What we can do is develop our prayer lives, improve the quality of our faith by being open to the filling of the Holy Spirit, learn to be more obedient to the voice of God, and live holy and godly lives according to biblical standards so that our prayers will be heard all the more. In Jn 15 Jesus tells His disciples that He is the vine, and if they “abide “ in Him they will bear “much fruit.” Jn 15:5-9 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. Acts 1:8 “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Power from God is for world evangelism beginning locally (Jerusalem), nationally (Judea) and internationally (Samaria). Jesus commanded His disciples to go into the world to preach the gospel, and that miraculous signs would follow them. Mk 16:15 “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, and these signs shall accompany you (17)And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;(18) they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." Matt 28:18-19 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. They were to preach, teach and heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons (Matt 10:7-8) as they went out. Matt 10:7-8 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at 183 hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. The word “authority” here is the Greek word exousia, translated “power” in Matt 10:1 “He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.” They were also commanded to “teach” – teach others about the use of this power and authority. The Book of Acts covers 30 years after the ascension of Christ and virtually every chapter, except that covering Paul’s arrest and imprisonment, describes the signs and wonders that accompanied first-century evangelism. The Relationships between Miracles and Healing to the Prophetic Ministry The Old Testament contains evidence that God has always intended to establish a relationship between the prophetic ministry and miracles, including divine healing. Signs and wonders are a well-documented part of what it meant to be a prophet – one who was called to speak and act on God’s behalf. The word “prophet” for example, first occurs in the OT in the context of a healing – God had closed the wombs of King Abimelech’s wife and slave girls because he had taken Sarah, having been mistakenly led to believe she was Abraham’s sister, instead of his wife (Gen 20:18). God told Abimelech to return the man’s (Abraham) wife to him, because “he is a prophet” (Gen 20:7). God told him that if he did so, then Abraham would pray for him and he would live, making a clear connection between Abraham’s prophetic call and the power to heal. Both prophets, Elijah and Elisha did healings and other miracles in their ministry. The first “healing” done through Elijah was the resurrection of the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kgs 17:19-24). Elisha raised the son of a Shunammite woman from the dead (2 Kgs 4:32-37). In each case the prophet lay upon the dead body and prayed, and the child came back to life. (Paul did the same to Eutychus in Acts 10:10). Both Elijah (1 Kgs 17:7-16) and Elisha (2 Kgs 4:1-7, 42-44) miraculously reproduced scant supplies of food, just as Jesus did with the loaves and fishes. And Elisha healed Naaman of leprosy by commanding him to go and wash in the Jordan seven times (2 Kgs 5:1-19), just as Jesus healed the blind man by telling him to go and wash in the pool of Siloam (Jn 9:1-7). The parallels between the miracles of these OT prophets and the miracles of Jesus and Paul are remarkable. God performed miracles through His prophets so that non-Israelites could know Him as the true God e.g. Elijah on Mt. Carmel (1 Kgs 18:16-39). A sign or wonder always brings glory to God. The widow whose son Elijah raised from the dead said “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is truth.” (1 Kgs 17:24). When Naaman was healed he said to Elisha “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel ….” (2 Kgs 5:15). God has always wanted to reach people of all nations and bring them to salvation. Through prophets such as Abraham, Elijah and 184 Elisha, He showed Himself by healing those who were not Hebrews – not only because of His mercy, but for salvation. Similarly, in the New Testament Paul could state that God had confirmed his ministry through the “power of signs and wonders through the power of the Spirit” (Rom 15:18-19). His mission was to take Christ to the nations, where no others had gone before him (Rom 15:20). God uses prophetic people to advance His Kingdom by signs and wonders, like the prophets of old. After all, the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Rev 19:10). Signs and wonders are simply some of the tools God makes available for the work of evangelism, discipleship, service and encouragement. Conclusion  Supernatural gifts should be brought into prominence to raise Christian’s expectations with regard to it.  All Christians should aspire to use their God-given gifts in powerful and useful ministry.  Christians should desire to be channels of divine power into other people’s lives at their points of need.  Christians should desire to see God’s power manifested in a way that has a significant evangelistic effect.  Christians should seek to be divinely empowered for righteousness, for moral victories, for deliverance from bad habits and for pleasing God 185 Major Points of this Topic  The ministry of miracles and healing are still available for Christians today.  The ministry of miracles and healing is necessary for evangelism.  God heals because of His compassion and mercy, to glorify Himself, for evangelism, in response to His own Word, in response to faith, to attest to His divinity, and for His own sovereign purposes.  Definitions of what divine healing is and is not.  Exposure of myths about why healing is not valid for today.  Instances of healing and miracles in the past and today.  Some of the reasons for miracles in the Bible are: to teach about and manifest the Kingdom, to instil belief in Christ in His disciples, and to bring people to salvation.  The various principles involved in miracles and healing.  How the power to heal and perform miracles can be passed on.  The relationship between miracles and healing to the prophetic ministry in the Old and New Testament.  All Christians today should aspire to move in the gifts of healing and miracles, to advance the Kingdom of God. Review or Discussion Questions 1. Why does God give gifts of healings and miracles to His people? 2. How do these operate in the lives of believers? 3. Can a believer ask for the gift of healings and/or miracles? 4. What would hinder a believer from receiving either of these gifts? 5. What are the purposes of these gifts? 6. Under what principles do these gifts operate? Optional Readings or Research  Grudem, Wayne A. 1996. Are Miraculous Gifts for Today? Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. 186 Appendix 1: Unit Outline (adapted) TITLE OF UNIT: HOLY SPIRIT IN MINISTRY Rationale Ministry in the Pentecostal and Charismatic traditions requires an understanding of and experience in the person and work of the Holy Spirit in ministry. Ministry in both the Old and New Testament expresses that dynamic, especially in God’s intervention in human affairs through the activity of the Spirit of God. The ministry of Jesus and of the early church demonstrated profound reliance upon and expression of the Holy Spirit in ministry. The Pentecostal/charismatic ethos emphasises salvation through faith in God's grace, baptism in the Spirit as a significant impact in a believer's life especially for empowering for witness and ministry, the importance of spiritual gifts, and the anointing of the Holy Spirit in ministry. This involves active evangelism, church growth, and discipling of believers through the ministry of the whole Body of Christ. Students preparing to minister in the church today need to be aware of these aspects of the person and work of the Holy Spirit in ministry, and need to be involved in the biblical practice of ministry with the anointing and empowering of the Holy Spirit. This unit is strategic, as it relates to all ministry and mission subjects. It applies the theological and historical developments studied in more detail in the theology and history units. It undergirds other ministry and mission units, particularly in terms of understanding and exercising ministry in the anointing and empowering of the Holy Spirit. Objectives On completion of this unit students should be able to:  Apply the concept of the doctrines of the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit to their lives and ministry.  Identify and apply ways in which God speaks to believers in ministry.  Define, discuss and build the anointing in their lives.  Discuss the definition, distinctives, purposes and use of the Gifts of the Spirit in the Church today.  Distinguish, activate and develop their personal gifts of the Holy Spirit.  Assess the significance of current practices in Pentecostal and Charismatic ministry. 187 Content 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Knowing the Spirit. The ministry of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Guidance and listening to the Spirit. The speaking gifts and the ministry of the prophetic. The revelation gifts and the ministry of the revelation gifts. Power, faith and spiritual authority. The power gifts and power ministry. Approach This unit is taught through lectures, seminars and tutorials. Assessment Short paper Reflection Paper Major Essay 30% 30% 40% Workload Total class contact Preparation for class and tutorials Wider reading Assignment preparations TOTAL 42 hours 42 hours 28 hours 28 hours 140 hours Prescribed Texts  Pytches, David. 1985. Come Holy Spirit. London: Hodder & Stoughton,  Wimber, John, and Springer, Kevin. 1986. Hodder & Stoughton. Power Evangelism. London:  Jacobs, Cindy. The Voice of God. Regal. Major References  DeArteaga, William. 1992. Quenching the Spirit. Altamonte Springs: Creation House.  Gentile, Ernest B. 1999. Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.  Grudem, Wayne A. 1996. Are Miraculous Gifts for Today? Four Views. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.  Keener, Craig S. 1996. 3 Crucial Questions about the Holy Spirit. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. 188  Rea, John. 1998. Charisma’s Bible Handbook on the Holy Spirit. Lake Mary: Creation House.  Turner, Max . 1996. The Holy Spirit and Spiritual Gifts Then and Now. Carlisle: Paternoster Press.  Warrington, Keith (Ed.) 1998. Pentecostal Perspectives”. Carlisle: Paternoster Press.  Woolmer, John. 1999. Healing and Deliverance. Crowborough: Monarch Books. Unit Outline Summary: The Holy Spirit In Ministry This unit examines the biblical foundations for the practice of ministry in the anointing and empowering of the Holy Spirit. Biblical and theological issues and their application in ministry are studied in the context of the current developments in the Pentecostal and Charismatic expressions of ministry in individual, church and community life. 189 Appendix 2: Renewal Journal Publications Appendix: Books Renewal Journal Publications See www.renewaljournal.com for Blogs on each book 190 Renewal Journal Publications https://renewaljournal.com All books both Paperback and eBook Most Paperbacks in both Basic Edition and Gift Edition (colour) Revival Books Flashpoints of Revival Revival Fires South Pacific Revivals Pentecost on Pentecost & in the South Pacific Great Revival Stories, comprising: Best Revival Stories and Transforming Revivals Renewal and Revival, comprising: Renewal: I make all things new, and Revival: I will pour out my Spirit Anointed for Revival Church on Fire 191 Renewal Books Body Ministry, comprising: The Body of Christ, Part 1: Body Ministry, and The Body of Christ, Part 2: Ministry Education, with Learning Together in Ministry Great Commission Mission comprising: Teaching Them to Obey in Love, and Jesus the Model for Short Term Supernatural Mission Living in the Spirit Your Spiritual Gifts Fruit & Gifts of the Spirit Keeping Faith Alive Today The Leader's Goldmine Word and Spirit by Alison Sherrington Study Guides Signs and Wonders: Study Guide The Holy Spirit in Ministry Revival History Holy Spirit Movements through History Renewal Theology 1 Renewal Theology 2 Ministry Practicum 192 Devotional Books Inspiration Jesus on Dying Regrets The Christmas Message – The Queen Crucified and Risen Holy Week, Christian Passover & Resurrection comprising: Holy Week, and Christian Passover Service, and Risen: 12 Resurrection Appearances Risen: Short Version Mysterious Month – expanded version of Risen Kingdom Life series Kingdom Life: The Gospels – comprising: Kingdom Life in Matthew Kingdom Life in Mark Kingdom Life in Luke Kingdom Life in John A Preface to the Acts of the Apostles 193 The Lion of Judah series The Titles of Jesus The Reign of Jesus The Life of Jesus The Death of Jesus The Resurrection of Jesus The Spirit of Jesus The Lion of Judah – all in one volume Discovering Aslan - comprising: Discovering Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Discovering Aslan in Prince Caspian Discovering Aslan in the Voyage of the ‘Dawn Treader’ Discovering Aslan in the Silver Chair Discovering Aslan in the Horse and his Boy Discovering Aslan in the Magician’s Nephew Discovering Aslan in the Last Battle 194 General Books Bible Story Pictures & Models You Can Publish for Free My First Stories by Ethan Waugh An Incredible Journey by Faith by Elisha Chowtapalli Biographical: Looking to Jesus: Journey into Renewal & Revival - Geoff’s autobiography Journey into Mission – Geoff’s mission trips Journey into Ministry and Mission – autobiography Pentecost on Pentecost & in the South Pacific – Geoff in Vanuatu Light on the Mountains – Geoff in PNG Exploring Israel – Geoff’s family’s trip King of the Granny Flat by Dante Waugh – biography of Geoff Travelling with Geoff by Don Hill By All Means by Elaine Olley 195 Study Guides Signs and Wonders The Holy Spirit in Ministry Revival History Holy Spirit Movements through History Renewal Theology 1 Renewal Theology 2 Ministry Practicum  196 Signs and Wonders: Study Guide Studies on the miraculous (2015) Biblical Foundations Old Testament Jesus’ Ministry The Epistles The Cross Theological Foundations The Supernatural Worldview The Kingdom of God Spiritual Gifts Ministry Foundations Church History Case Studies Practices & Pitfalls Integrated Ministry The Holy Spirit in Ministry Study Guide 1 Knowing the Spirit 2 The ministry of the Holy Spirit 3 The anointing 4 The ways of the Spirit 5 Building in the Spirit 6 Listening to the Holy Spirit 7 The speaking gifts 8 The ministry of the prophetic 9 The revelation gifts 10 Power, faith and spiritual authority 11 The power gifts 12 Healing and miracles 197 Revival History Study Guide Module 1: Revivals to 1700 Topic 1: What is revival? Topic 2: Revival principles Topic 3: Revivals in the Bible Topic 4: Church history to 1700 Module 2: Revivals 1700-1900 Topic 5: The Great Awakening Topic 6: Second Awakening Topic 7: Third Awakening Topic 8: Worldwide Revival Module 3: Revivals in the 20th Century Topic 9: Early 20th Century Topic 10: Mid 20th Century Topic11: Late 20th Century Topic12: Current Revivals Text: Flashpoints of Revival Holy Spirit Movements through History Study Guide 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Introduction Movements of the Spirit in the Old Testament Movements of the Spirit and Renewal in the New Testament The Ante-Nicene Church and early charismatic renewal Monasticism and renewal in the Middle Ages The Reformation, Pietism and the Moravian revival The Great Awakening and eighteenth century evangelical revivals The Second Great Awakening in America and England The Third Great Awakening - mid-Nineteenth Century The Pentecostal Revivals and Healing Evangelism early mid-Twentieth Century Revivals Charismatic Renewal in the Churches Late twentieth century revival movements Revival movements in Australia Twenty-first century Spirit movements 198 Ministry Practicum Study Guide Topic 1 Learning Agreement Topic 2 Weekly Reports Topic 3 Core Group Topic 4 Supervision (Mentor) Topic 5 Journals 199 Renewal Theology 1 Study Guide Module 1: Theology and Biblical Hermeneutics 1. 2 3. 4. What is Theology? Why Theology? How to Begin - Prolegomena (I) How to Begin - Prolegomena (II) Methods in Theology. Module 2: Revelation and the Knowledge of God 5. God’s Existence and Being 6. The Trinity and Nature of God 7. Creation and Providence Module 3: The Centrality of Christ 8. The Person of Christ 9. The Problem of Evil 10. The Kingdom of God 11. The Concept of Covenant Module 4: Theology of Mission and Ministry 12. Mission : “The Mother of Theology” 13. Contemporary Theologies : Western and Non-Western 14. Doing Theology : Its Application Renewal Theology 2 Study Guide Module 1: Christology 1. Revelation and Navigation. A Transforming Hermeneutic 2. Christ: God and Perfect Man. Two Natures. One Person 3. Christ: Birth, Life, Death, Resurrection, Exaltation 4. Christ: His Rule and Authority Module 2: Anthropology 5. A Biblical Anthropology: Humanity 6. The Human Fall: Consequences. 7. The New Humanity : Grace and Spirit-Filled Module 3: Pneumatology 8. Holy Spirit as Person 9. Holy Spirit : Fruit and Gifts 10. Holy Spirit and the World 17. Module 4: Soteriology 11. 12. 13. 14. Soteriology : Evil and Sin New Covenant Atonement Being Competent In Doing Theology 200 Renewal Journals www.renewaljournal.com 1: Revival 2: Church Growth 3: Community 4: Healing 5: Signs and Wonders 6: Worship 7: Blessing 8: Awakening 9: Mission 10: Evangelism 11: Discipleship 12: Harvest 13: Ministry 14: Anointing 15: Wineskins 16: Vision 17: Unity 18: Servant Leadership 19: Church 20: Life Bound Volumes Vol. 1 (1-5) Revival, Church Growth, Community, Signs & Wonders Vol. 2 (6-10) Worship, Blessing, Awakening, Mission, Evangelism Vol. 3 (11-15) Discipleship, Harvest, Ministry, Anointing, Wineskins Vol. 4 (16-20) Vision, Unity, Servant Leadership, Church, Life 201 Flashpoints of Revival: History’s Mighty Revivals Foreword: by C Peter Wagner Preface and Introduction 1. Eighteenth Century 1727 – Herrnhut, Germany (Zinzendorf) 1735 – New England, America (Edwards) 1739 – London, England (Whitefield, Wesley) 1745 – Crossweeksung, America (Brainerd) 1781 – Cornwall, England 2. Nineteenth Century 1800 – America (McGready) 1801 – Cane Ridge, America (Stone) 1821 – Adams, America (Finney) 1858 – New York, America (Lanphier) 1859 – Ulster, Ireland (McQuilkin) 1859 – Natal, South Africa (Zulus) 1871 – New York, America (Moody) 3. Early Twentieth Century 1904 – Loughor, Wales (Roberts) 1905 – Mukti, India (Ramabai) 1906 – Los Angeles (Seymour) 1907 – Pyongyang, Korea 1909 – Valparaiso, Chile (Hoover) 1921 – Lowestroft, England (Brown) 1936 – Gahini, Rwanda (East African Revival) 4. Mid-twentieth Century 1947 – North America (Healing Evangelism) 1948 – Canada (Sharon Bible School) 1949 – Hebrides Islands, Scotland (Campbell) 1951 – City Bell, Argentina (Miller) 1962 – Santo, Vanuatu (Grant) 1965 – Soe, Timor (Tari) 1970 – Wilmore, Kentucky (Asbury College) 1970 – Solomon Islands (Thompson) 1971 – Saskatoon, Canada (McCleod) 1973 – Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Burke) 5. Late Twentieth Century 1975 – Gaberone, Botswana (Bonnke) 1979 – Elcho Island, Australia (Gondarra) 1979 – Anaheim, America (Wimber) 1979 – South Africa (Howard-Browne) 1988 – Papua New Guinea (van Bruggen) 202 1988 – Madruga, Cuba 1989 – Henan and Anhul, China 6. Final Decade, Twentieth Century 1992 – Argentina (Freidson) 1993 – Brisbane, Australia (Miers) 1994 – Toronto, Canada (Arnott, Clark) 1994 – Brompton, London (Mumford) 1994 – Sunderland, England (Gott) 1995 – Melbourne, Florida (Clark) 1995 – Modesto, California (Berteau) 1995 – Brownwood, Texas (College Revivals) 1995 – Pensacola, Florida (Hill) 1995 – Mexico (Hogan) 1996 – Houston, Texas (Heard) Conclusion Addendum: Revival in the 21st Century Revival in the South Pacific: Vanuatu, Solomon Islands Transforming Revival: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu South Pacific Revivals A brief survey of historical and current revivals in the South Pacific islands, 182 pages, with over 30 photographs (2nd edition 2010). Preface: Brief History of South Pacific Revivals by Robert Evans Introduction: Timor, Australian Aborigines 1 Solomon Islands 2 Papua New Guinea, Bougainville 3 Vanuatu 4 Fiji Conclusion Appendix 1: Revival Examples Appendix 2: Books 203 Great Revival Stories Introduction Part 1: Best Revival Stories Stirring Renewal Journal articles on revival Preface: Best Revival Stories 1 Power from on High, by John Greenfield 2 The Spirit told us what to do, by Carl Lawrence 3 Pentecost in Arnhem Land, by Djiniyini Gondarra 4 Speaking God’s Word, by David Yonggi Cho 5 Worldwide Awakening, by Richard Riss 6 The River of God, by David Hogan Part 2: Transforming Revivals Community and ecological transformation, adapted from South Pacific Revivals and Flashpoints of Revival (30 photographs) Preface: Transforming Revivals 7 Solomon Islands 8 Papua New Guinea 9 Vanuatu 10 Fiji 11 Snapshots of Glory, by George Otis Jr 12 The Transformation of Algodoa de Jandaira Conclusion 204 Anointed for Revival: Histories of Revival Pioneers Articles edited by Geoff Waugh, 132 pages (2nd ed., 2011) Introduction 1 Revival Fire, by Geoff Waugh 2 Jesus, the Ultimate Ministry Leader, by Jessica Harrison 3 Smith Wigglesworth, by Melanie Malengret 4 John G. Lake, by Liz Godshalk 5 Aimee Semple McPherson, by Geoff Thurling 6 T. L. Osborne, by Grant Lea 7 David Yonggi Cho, by Peter Allen 8 The Birth of Christian Outreach Centre, by Anne Taylor 9 The Beginnings of Christian Outreach Centre, by John Thorburn 10 Community Transformation, by Geoff Waugh Appendix: Revival Books 205 Renewal and Revival Chapter 1, Renewal Ministry, explores how renewal applies to our lives as we love God and love others. (Issue 7: Blessing) Chapter 2, Revival Worship, notes current developments in renewal worship and ministry. (Issue 6: Worship) Chapter 3, New Wineskins, tackles issues about emerging churches and networks. (Issue 15: Wineskins) Chapter 4, Vision for Ministry, dreams big and explores some implications of renewal in ministry and service. (Issue 16: Vision) Chapter 5, Community Transformation, touches on the amazing current renewal transformation in communities and ecology. (Issue 20:Life) Chapter 6, Astounding Church Growth briefly surveys church growth and revivals, especially in the last century. (Issue 2: Church Growth). Chapter 7, Revivals to 1900, from “Revival Fire” (Issue 1: Revival) Chapter 8, Twentieth Century Revivals, from “Spirit Impacts in Revival” (Issue 13: Ministry). Chapter 9, 1990s – Decade of Revivals, from “Revivals into 2000” (Issue 14: Anointing) Chapter 10, 21st Century Revivals, from :Revivals in the 21st Century” 206 Living in the Spirit Personal and group studies, 2nd ed., revised and enlarged, 126 pages (2009). 1. Father, Son and Holy Spirit God is One The Father’s heart shows God’s love Jesus reveals God’s love The Spirit imparts God’s love 2. Born of the Spirit The Spirit creates The Spirit re-creates God acts We respond 3. Filled with the Spirit The Spirit in God’s people The Spirit in Jesus The Spirit in the early church The Spirit in us 4. Fruit of the Spirit The fruit of the Spirit in us personally The fruit of the Spirit in us together Growth in the Spirit personally Growth in the Spirit together 5. Gifts of the Spirit Power for mission Gifts for mission Unity for mission Love for mission 6. Ministry in the Spirit Body ministry Mutual ministry Wholeness ministry Freedom ministry 7. Led by the Spirit The Spirit leads us The Spirit leads gently The Spirit leads personally The Spirit leads corporately 207 8. The Spirit of the Lord The Spirit of the Lord in Israel The Spirit of the Lord in Jesus The kingdom of God The king: Jesus Christ is Lord Appendix 1: Voices from history Appendix 2: Spiritual gifts questionnaire 208 Your Spiritual Gifts: to serve in love Personal and group studies, 47 pages. ( 2011) Introduction 1 Your spiritual gifts 2 The manifold grace of God 3 Motivational Gifts from God our Father 4 Ministry Gifts from Christ Jesus 5 Manifestation Gifts from the Holy Spirit 6 Make love your aim 7 Spiritual gifts questionnaire Fruit and Gifts of the Spirit Personal and group studies, 63 pages. (1992, 2010) Foreword Part I: Fruit of the Spirit 1. The Spirit of Jesus 2. Fruit of the Spirit 3. Fruit of the vine 4. Fruit and growth 5. Fruit and gifts 6. The way of love Part II: Gifts of the Spirit 1. God gives – we receive 2. Gifts to serve in power 3. Gifts to motivate us 4. Gifts to minister in unity 5. Gifts to manifest the Spirit 6. Gifts to use in love Appendix: Gifts checklist 209 A Preface to The Acts of the Apostles Introduction - Luke's Preface 1 The Title of The Acts 2 The Aim of The Acts 3 The Author of The Acts 4 The Date of The Acts 5 The Sources of The Acts The historical sections The biographical sections 6 The Setting of The Acts The Greeks The Romans The Jews 7 The Contents of The Acts Historical and Biographical Preparation for the witness (1:1-26) The witness in Jerusalem (2:1 – 8:3) The witness in Judea and Samaria (8:4 – 12:25) The witness to Jews and Gentiles (13:1 – 28:31) A Comparison and General Summary An accurate history Conclusion Appendix - Translations of Acts 1:1-9 210 Great Commission Mission Comprising two books 1. Teaching them to Obey in Love 1. Love God Faith in God – God our Father Follow Me – Jesus our Lord Filled with the Spirit – God’s Spirit our Helper 2. Love Others Love one another Serve one another Encourage one another 2. Jesus the Model for Supernatural Mission 1. Jesus’ Mission and Ministry 2. The Disciples’ Mission and Ministry 3. Peter and Paul on Mission 4. My Mission Adventures 5. How to Minister like Jesus, by Bart Doornweerd 6. Power Evangelism in Short Term Missions, by Randy Clark 7. China Miracle: The Spirit told us what to do, by Carl Lawrence 211 Body Ministry: The Body of Christ Alive in His Spirit Foreword: James Haire Prologue: Change Changed Part 1: Body Ministry Preface to Part 1, Body Ministry: Colin Warren Section I. Body Ministry: from few to many Chapter 1. Kingdom Authority Chapter 2. Obedient Mission Chapter 3. Mutual Ministry Chapter 4. Spiritual Gifts Chapter 5. Body Evangelism Section II. Body Organization from some to all Chapter 6. Divine Headship Chapter 7. Body Membership Chapter 8. Servant Leadership Chapter 9. Body Life Chapter 10. Expanding Networks Part 2: Ministry Education Preface to Part 2, Ministry Education: Lewis Born Chapter 11. Open Education Chapter 12. Unlimited Education Chapter 13. Continuing Education Chapter 14. Adult Education Chapter 15. Mutual Education Chapter 16. Theological Education Chapter 17. Contextual Education Chapter 18. Ministry Education Epilogue: The Unchanging Christ 212 Renewal Journal Logo: basin & towel, lamp & parchment, in the light of the cross https://renewaljournal.com The Renewal Journal website gives links to Renewal Journals Books (with PDFs) Blogs 213