Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Part Three

We have been considering spiritual gifts–the charismata, the pneumatika, the gifts of grace–which the Spirit of God gives to each Spirit-baptized believer. These gifts are given to help the church in her unique task of evangelizing the world and also for the edification of the members within the church. In our last study we considered four of the nine gifts listed in this portion of Scripture. In this study we will consider two more–the gift of working miracles and the gift of prophecy.

The Gift of Working Miracles

Whenever we speak about miracles, we encounter problems with definitions, so we want to use the definition that is given by Dr. Wayne Grudem in his systematic theology (Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, jointly published by Inter-Varsity Press, Leicester, Great Britain, and Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1994). Dr. Grudem, in turn, depends on his definition on Professor John Frame of Westminster Seminary.

Dr. Grudem says, “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” (Grudem, p. 355). I would say the first miracle in history was when God the Father created the universe through his Son. Genesis 1 tells us God spoke and the universe sprang into existence out of nothing. Thus, this is God’s world, and God is always acting in it.

What does God do in his world? It is God who sends the rain on all sorts of people–the wicked people as well as his own people–as Jesus said in Matthew 5:45. It is God who causes grass to grow, as we read in Psalm 104:14, “He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate–bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face to shine, and bread that sustains his heart.”

In Hebrews 1:3 we are told that it is God the Son–the eternal second Person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ–who upholds and sustains all things by his powerful word. Thus, God is acting in his universe all the time.

When we speak of miracles, however, we are speaking of the less common kind of God’s activities in the world. The Bible uses three words in reference to miracles. The first word is sêmiôn, which means “a sign.” A sign always points to something else. When John wrote in his gospel about the signs Jesus performed, he said these signs were done to show people that Jesus was the Son of God, meaning God himself.

Another word used to refer to miracles is teras or wonder. The idea here is of an activity of God that causes man to be amazed. People’s mouths will drop open in astonishment when they see or hear of such wonders.

The third word used for miracle is dunamis, which means power. We find this word used in 1 Corinthians 12:10: energêmata dunameôn, or operations of powers. In other words, a miracle is an act that displays the great power of God.

The Age of Miracles

Miracles are especially characteristic of the age of the gospel, the age of the Holy Spirit. First, we find miracles throughout the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. In Acts 2:22, Peter told the crowd on the day of Pentecost, “Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.” Notice the use of all three words for miracles in this passage.

What were some of the miracles Jesus performed? He fed the crowds by multiplying bread and fish. He walked on water. He made wine out of water. He caused Lazarus, who had died and was buried for four days, to come back to life. “Lazarus, come forth!” Jesus commanded, and the dead man came out of the tomb. These were some of the miracles, wonders, and signs in the life of Jesus that Peter was referring to.

Not only did Jesus perform miracles, but his apostles did also. In Acts 9 we read of Peter raising up a dead girl, Tabitha. In Acts 20 we find Paul at Troas, speaking to a group of believers in a room on the third floor. A young man named Eutychus fell asleep, fell out the window and died. Paul went downstairs, threw himself upon Eutychus, and Eutychus became alive again.

Additionally, not only did the apostles work miracles, but others in the church did likewise. Stephen, for instance, was not an apostle, but in Acts 6:8 we read, “Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.” In Acts 8:6-7 we read that Philip performed miracles in Samaria: “When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city.”

When we look at the New Testament church, we notice that many miracles occurred in the church even when the apostles and other leaders were not there. We read a reference to this in Galatians 3:5, “Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?” You see, Paul wasn’t there, but God was still giving the Holy Spirit and working miracles in the Galatian churches. This was also true in the Corinthian church. Paul writes in 1 Corinthian 12:7, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good” and one of these manifestations of the Spirit is energêmata dunameôn–operations of powers, miracles. In fact, a great Princeton theologian said the apostolic church was characterized as a miracle-working church.

The Purpose of the Gift of Miracles

Thus, Jesus performed miracles, the apostles performed miracles, non-apostles like Philip and Stephen performed miracles, and miracles took place in the churches even when the apostles were not present. So the next question we must ask is: What is the purpose of this gift of working miracles?

1. Authentication of the gospel. The first purpose for the gift of miracles is to authenticate the gospel, to show that God is truly at work. In Hebrews 2:4 we read, “God also testified to it” – meaning the gospel – “by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” In other words, God gives proof that his gospel truly saves through the miracles performed by his apostles and by the distribution of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
2. Confirmation that the kingdom of God has come. The second purpose for the gift of miracles is found in Matthew 12:27-28, where Jesus said, “And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So, then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, the kingdom of God has come upon you.”When we see a manifestation of the Holy Spirit, especially in the area of miraculous works, we must conclude that the kingdom of God has come. When Jesus told his disciples, “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor,” what was the conclusion they were supposed to draw? That the kingdom of God and the Messiah had come.
3. A demonstration of God’s mercy. The third purpose of miracles is that God in compassion shows mercy on his people through them. In Matthew 20 we find two blind men crying out to Jesus, saying, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” (v. 30). And in verse 34 we read what happened: “Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.” God is interested, according to his own sovereign will, in meeting our physical needs. He sometimes chooses to do so through the working of miracles.
4. A way to glorify God. The fourth purpose of miracles is revealed in John 9. When Jesus and his disciples encountered a man who was blind from birth, the disciples asked Jesus, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (v. 2). You see, the disciples were trying to pin the blame for the man’s blindness on someone. But Jesus replied, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned.” That doesn’t mean that these people were not sinners. But here Jesus is refuting the direct correlation the disciples were trying to make between the man’s blindness and the sins of the man and his parents. “‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life'” (v. 3). In other words, this man’s blindness and his subsequent miraculous healing at the hands of Jesus was all for the purpose of bringing glory to God.This is the opposite of a situation we have in modern times. Today there are many fraudulent televangelists who pretend to heal people, but what is their purpose? To bring glory to themselves. Not only are people not healed, but all the glory for the fraudulent healings is directed to the televangelists, not to God. These people are receiving all the glory for nothing.

In God’s Will for God’s Purpose

Can we work miracles any time we want? No. The gift of working miracles is subject to God’s sovereign will. A person with this gift cannot go around healing everyone and performing miracles whenever he or she wants to. It just does not work that way. Jesus Christ himself did not heal everyone he saw or work many of the miracles he could have worked. For example, he did not cause everyone who died in Jerusalem or Galilee to rise from the dead. We only read of three instances–Lazarus, the widow of Nain’s son, and Jairus’s daughter.

This gift is exercised in accordance with God’s sovereign will. In his will he may perform a miracle and in his will he may not, and we must always keep that in our minds. It is all according to his pleasure and his good will. We noted this also when we dealt with healings. Even the apostles failed to heal certain people.

We must also realize that miracles by themselves will not cause people to believe in Jesus Christ. If we think that if only we performed some miracles, people will believe in Christ, we are mistaken. Remember how the Jewish people kept asking Jesus for signs so they could believe? They saw many miracles, but they never believed. In the same way, we should not presume that seeing miracles in modern times will cause people to believe in Jesus Christ. The entire Bible is a record of God’s miracles, and yet many people who read it refuse to believe in God.

The Gift of Prophecy

The second gift we want to consider in this study is prophecy. Prophecy is sixth in the list of nine gifts we find in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11. Prophecy means speaking forth what God has spontaneously brought to mind.

We find the gift of prophecy illustrated in Exodus 4. The Lord wanted to send Moses to Pharaoh to deliver his people from slavery, but Moses refused to go. In Exodus 4:10 he said, “O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” In other words, Moses was telling God, “Because you have not done a miracle in my life, I am not eloquent. I cannot do what you are asking me to do.” And in verse 13 Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.”

How did God respond? In verse 14 we read, “Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses, and he said, ‘What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth.” In verse 16 God continued, “He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him.” This is an example of prophecy.

Prophecy means God reveals certain things to you and you speak them. New Testament prophecy means you speak forth what God has put in your mind.

New Testament Prophecy

The spiritual gift of prophecy is especially a gift of the New Testament era after God poured out his Spirit upon all flesh. In his great Pentecostal sermon, Peter spoke of this as he quoted Joel 2, “In the last days,” God says, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. . . .” (Acts 2:17). Notice, Joel was saying that not only men but also women would prophesy in the eschatological age, in the gospel age, in the age of the Spirit. And this idea of prophecy in the New Testament involves both foretelling–telling what will happen ahead of time–and forthtelling–telling forth the gospel.

Men and women are empowered by the Holy Spirit to prophesy. In Acts 21, we read about four daughters of Philip in Caesarea who prophesied. This was also the practice of the New Testament times, that men and women would prophesy. In 1 Corinthians 11:5 we read, “And every woman who prays and prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head.” We are not going to discuss the head/covering issue here right now, but we find here that a woman in the New Testament church could pray as well as prophesy. This idea is an embarrassment to many Protestant denominations, but it is what the Bible teaches.

Christian believers are encouraged to prophesy in the church. In 1 Corinthians 14:26 we read, “What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation. . . .” and in verse 29 we read, “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop.” If someone is standing up and prophesying and God puts something in another person’s mind to speak, the first speaker should stop so that the other person can stand up and give the revelation he or she received from God.

New Testament prophecy, then, means that God puts a revelation into your mind and then you speak forth what he has given to you.

Problems with Prophecy

s human beings, we have two problems with the gift of prophecy. First, we can prophesy more than what God has revealed to us; second, we can prophesy less than what God has revealed to us.

In Romans 12:6 we find a rule as to how we should prophesy. There Paul writes, “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.” That is a difficult phrase, but the meaning seems to be that he should not go beyond what God has put into his mind.

In other words, our prophecy should never be governed by our emotion or because we love to speak in front of others. There are some people who have a great love for speaking, but when they speak, what they are saying is, “See how great I am.” Some people do the same thing when they sing in front of others. They are not singing for the glory of God; they are calling attention to themselves. But prophets or prophetesses should never be governed by emotion, love of public speaking, or self-promotion. They should not speak more than what God has given to speak, nor shrink back from speaking all that God has given them to speak for the edification of the church.

There are other rules we also have to understand when we exercise the gift of prophecy in the church. First, our prophecy should never be in violation of any revelation God has given in his word. When the New Testament prophets spoke, their prophecies had to conform both to the Old Testament as well as to the apostolic doctrine that governed their church life.

Second, whenever someone prophesies, those listening must judge and weigh what the person is saying. We read about this in 1 Corinthians 14:29 and 1 Thessalonians 5:21. There may be an assumption in those verses that a person may speak something that is contrary to apostolic doctrine. It may be that what is prophesied is in conformity with the apostolic doctrine but the rest of the people, particularly the elders, must weigh it. After all, what if someone stands up and says that Jesus Christ is going to come Tuesday morning? You must say, “That is false,” because it is not in conformity with the canon of Scriptures, both Old and New Testament. No one knows the day and hour of Christ’s second coming, and to pretend to know it is false prophecy.

The Purpose of Prophecy

What is the purpose of the gift of prophecy? First, it is given for evangelism. This is clearly stated in Acts 2:17, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters shall prophesy,” meaning they will speak about the wonderful works of God. The content of prophecy is Jesus Christ and his work. And in verse 21 we read, “And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” That demonstrates especially the idea of forthtelling under the inspiration of the Spirit of God. What is the purpose? That people may call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.

This purpose is also found in 1 Corinthians 14:24-25, “But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!'”

What is the second purpose? To aid in the growth and edification of the church. We read about this in 1 Corinthians 14:3, “But everyone who prophesies speaks to men”–that is, to the believers–“for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.” May God help us to pay attention to what our brothers and sisters are telling us when they exercise this gift. Their words are to bring us strength, comfort, hope, and encouragement.

Order in the Church

We find in the Bible a propensity for greater and greater order, and this order should also be practiced in the church. Why? Because when we come to worship, we are worshiping the triune God–the great, awesome, holy, almighty, infinite God. “Rejoice with trembling,” we read in Psalm 2. We must have a sense of awe and reverence in our worship.

Where do we get this sense of awe? Many people learn it in the home. There the wife and children should look upon the husband and father with great respect and reverence. If this is practiced in our families, it will carry over into the church, where we recognize that we have come into the very presence of God himself. And although we certainly should rejoice when we are in God’s presence, we must do so with trembling, being ever-conscious that our awesome God is in our midst.

Now, we must be careful not to press this too far and end up with a joyless funeral-home atmosphere in the worship service. We want reverence but we should never stifle the Holy Spirit. There must be balance. We want the reverence and elevation that comes from the idea that we are entering into the very presence of God when we come to worship. We desire the joy that comes from true fellowship with God. But we must never come into the church in a lighthearted, joking way, as is done in many churches today. When you read the book of Revelation, which gives us so many examples of heavenly worship, I don’t think you find any joking going on there. There you see the saints all rejoicing, but they are doing so with great reverence. Casting their crowns at the feet of our Lord, they proclaim, “You are worthy! You are worthy! You are worthy!” God is the focal point and object of their worship.

In their quest for order, some churches have gone to the extreme of saying, “We no longer want any spontaneity and Holy Spirit activity in the church. We are sophisticated now.” But the Bible warns us not to quench the Spirit. We must not stifle any manifestations of the Spirit during worship. We must not put out the fire of the Holy Spirit by imposing on him our own ideas of decorum and order. “Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings,” we are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:19-20 (KJV).

The Greatest Gift

In Luke 10 we read something that is very important to our consideration of spiritual gifts. Jesus sent out seventy disciples to preach the gospel. When they came back, they were excited because their mission had been extremely successful. In Luke 10:17 we read, “The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.'” In other words, they were saying, “Lord, this was an amazing mission! We saw demons submit to your name and come out of people.” What did Jesus tell them? “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” But then he added, “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

People get all excited about spiritual gifts–miracles, wonders, and healings–but they don’t understand that the greatest gift God can give us is salvation through his Son, Jesus Christ. It is amazing to see people get excited about this spiritual gift, or that spiritual gift, and the other spiritual gift, all of which are intended for this age alone. But salvation through faith in Christ Jesus is the gift that will last for eternity.

If you have read this far I would surmise that you are interested in spiritual gifts. But have you ever thought about your own immortal soul and its destiny? Jesus asked, what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his soul? Have you given thought to your soul?

I don’t know if many of us even know what “soul” is. I was reading a book that asked, “Do you want to know about the soul? Go to a dying man, one who is stripped of all pretensions. He may be able to tell you something about soul.” Then the author said, “You may even want to go to a dead man and see what he says. I’m sure he will tell you something about soul.”

In Luke 16 we read about a rich man who died and went to hell. Ask him! I am sure he would have something to say about your soul. In fact, we read that he pleaded with Abraham to let him go and warn his brothers of the dangers of hell, but Abraham said they should believe the warnings they had already received from Moses and the prophets.

The Soul’s Eternal Destiny

Do you want to know something about soul? Look at Jesus Christ on the cross. Do you know why he had to die on the cross? Because that was the only way our souls could be redeemed from hell. Jesus Christ came so that our names may be written in heaven, in the book of life, that we might experience eternal life with him.

In Daniel 12:1,2 we read, “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people–everyone whose name is found written in the book–will be delivered. Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.” Every person whose name is found written in the book will be saved.

In Revelation 20:12, 15 we read, “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. . . .If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” And in Revelation 21:27 we read, “Nothing impure will ever enter it,” meaning heaven, the presence of God, “nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”

Are You Saved?

In Matthew 7 we read that people will come to Jesus at the end of time and say they should be admitted to heaven because they performed miracles, cast out demons, and prophesied. What will Jesus tell them? “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”

We all get excited about miracles and other phenomena–spiritual gifts–but we pay little attention to the state of our souls. But I beseech you this day by the mercies of God to seek the salvation of your soul. Strive to enter into the kingdom of God! Make great effort, that you may repent of your sin and trust in Jesus Christ alone. Let me tell you, the Bible assures us that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). And in John 11:25-26 he promised, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and he whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”

I pray that you will consider seriously your soul, believe in Jesus Christ, and be saved. Why should you trust in Christ? Because there is no other Savior. You will find that out on the day you are about to die, and if you do not believe in him, you will find it out in hell.

Look again at the cross. God didn’t give gold or silver or even an angel to redeem us, but his own Son. That speaks about the value of human soul. Therefore, may God have mercy on us all, that our names may be found in the book of the Lamb’s book of life, that we may live with God forever. Amen.