Tag Archives: Manifestation of the Spirit

The Healthy Church Vs. The Unhealthy Church: Prophecy

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The healthy church knows that prophecy is a manifestation of the Spirit of God. She knows to expect warning, caution, or rebuke through God’s prophets as was always modeled in the Scriptures. However, the unhealthy church mocks God’s messengers and neglects that God has spoken. They refuse to humble themselves and to take the message delivered through God’s prophet directly to God and seek Him for the change needed.

God called the prophets. They didn’t earn their ‘title’ of prophet through attending seminary or being born into a royal family. They had no tangible proof that they heard God call them as a prophet or that they were relaying a message from God. In other words, there was no certificate or specific eligibility requirement. God did the choosing and that was all there was to it.

“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21 NIV)

The prophets carry a message from God through hearing His voice. The unhealthy church wrongly classifies prophecy as speaking wants into the air or through speaking Scriptures. That’s not prophecy. The ancient prophets (and even prophets today) were PERSECUTED for bringing hard words of warning, caution, and rebuke.

* “Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him—” (Acts 7:52 NIV)

* “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12 NIV)

* “Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.” (Matthew 23:34 NIV)

While there is a service gift of prophecy (described in Romans 12:4-8) that is an innate analytical ability to see strengths versus weaknesses, the prophecy found in the miraculous gifts (outlined in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11) is a manifestation of the Spirit of God. In the miraculous gifts, God specifically and deliberately spiritually manifests to speak to and empower the prophet. Often there are stated severe consequences for refusing God.

* “Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them.” (Jeremiah 1:17 NIV)

If you study the Scriptures, particularly in the books of the prophets, you will see that God always anointed His prophets with a message of caution, warning, rebuke and even impending judgment. He frequently delivered words about an adulterous people who bowed down to false gods and ignored their Creator God. The unhealthy church wants prophets to speak encouragement while they ignore God’s voice. But because the prophet’s life and the prophet’s family line are at stake, the prophet will refuse to be silent and will speak unfiltered as God directs.

* “For these are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. They say to the seers, ‘See no more visions!’ and to the prophets, ‘Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions. Leave this way, get off this path, and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!’” (Isaiah 30:9-11 NIV)
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GOD IS SPIRIT: Day 5 of 5

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“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” (1 Corinthians 12:7 NIV)

Have you ever thought about the idea that the manifest presence of God is working through us as we display the miraculous gifts of the Spirit? God, the Creator, is present and demonstrating His power and authority, as we speak in tongues, perform miraculous gifts of healing, bring a prophetic word or word of knowledge, discern between spirits, and more. If you have experienced that power and presence of God, you have no doubt that He is real. Even if the rest of the world doesn’t believe you, you have no other explanation for that power except that God is absolutely present. You can feel Him take over when you yield yourself to Him.

Let’s look at the Scripture passage about the manifestation of the Spirit in the miraculous gifts (which differs from the service gifts).

“Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, ‘Jesus be cursed,’ and no one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit. There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.” (1 Corinthians 12:1-11 NIV)

That passage has much to unpack. “The same Spirit distributes them”; “the same Lord”; “The same God”; “by means of the same Spirit”; and “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit … just as he determines”. Is there ANY mention of more than one Spirit?

Do you believe, with the evidence and proof texts that I provided this week, that God is Spirit and that there is only one Spirit of God? What questions do you have about this topic? Are you willing to study this to please God?

God is Spirit: Study: John 4:23-24; Genesis 1:2; Isaiah 11:2; Isaiah 61:1; 1 Colossians 1:15; Acts 7:48-49; Acts 17:24-28; 1 Corinthians 2:10-11, 6:11; 1 Timothy 1:17.