Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

The nine gifts of the Spirit in 1 Cor. 12 are
1. Tongues
2. Interpetation of tongues
3. Prophecy
4. Word of knowledge
5. Word of Wisdom
6. Discerning of spirits
7. Healings
8. Workings of Miracles
9. Faith

Does your church allow the manifestation of the gifts. Why or Why not?

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

It's a terrible thing to say but many many churches now while not on RECORD as banning them, have ministry that has never been used themselves in these gifts, and because of many who are given over to the control freak nature, actually do everything ithin their power to prevent any atmosphere which might allow these manifestations to oocur.

As a preacher I am profoundly troubled by the various conversations I have had with other prechers who behind closed doors express their discomfort with the gifts operating, or their disbelief that the gifts still DO operate or even worse, who express their determaination to stop them dead in their tracks!!!!! The old division into two camps of Sadducees (Professional priesthood who dont believe in anything supernatural...not angels, not healing, not miracles, and now many not even the resurrection(!!!!) and the Pharisees who BELIEVE yet who have become so eaten up with their own self righteousness and feeling of spiritual superiority due to their close adherence to standards feel they now have the right to judge all men against THEMSELVES and how well THEY keep the law, appear to be stringer than ever!. Oh I forgot the third group, the Essenes who are so spiritual they don't even go to the bathroom.

I do know one thing, until recently I was more than depressed, feeling like I was one of a dying breed of believers who SAW the guidelines of God in such mundane things as dress and conversation and behaviour, and yet still believed in GRACE, The SECURITY of the believer as a SON of God NOT a SLAVE of God, but Praise God I see a whole new generation of men and women of God who are not throwing EVERYTHING to the wind and yet who are going much farther into the truths of the word of God than either I or my peers have dared to go.

i KNOW ONE THING AS LONG AS THERE IS BREATH IN MY BODY, I will actively pursue and foster as much of a supernatural move ogf God inmy life, in the churches I have started and in the lives of all those I can impact in any positive way at all. the verse that says "Where there is no vision the people perish" is better translated "Where there is no supernatural communication from God the people wither and die."

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

If decent and in order, then great. But alas there is too much garbage going on in the name of the gifts that make me shudder.

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

Motivation for my question.
I was raised trinitarian pentecostal. When I went to college I went to non-denom charismatic. Finally, came into the truth of Jesus Christ. I have only went to two Oneness churches, both non denom. But I have visited UCP and a few others. It seems like the oneness churches almost shun the gifts. Sure, they allow members to speak in tongues, but when it comes to prophecy, word of knowledge etc. it is like ice cold water, people seem to fear the supernatural.

Am I off base or is my impression true?

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

I think it's true for the most part. The "mystical" gifts have been abused over the years, and many are gun shy.

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

I believe in them with all my heart however as already stated some have misused them and has brought great damage in the lives of many people...
We cannot discard them for they are needed in the church.

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

When we were in UPC, we basically only saw Tongues & Interpretation. I NEVER saw prophecy, word of knowledge, etc. The gifts are very active in our church and I love it when God uses people like that.

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

I've never been in a church that did not want the gifts to operate. I think the problem is many fear the misuse of the gifts or the fakery that goes on with Televangelists

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

How would we even know if someone really has one of these gifts? I believe this is the question many people ask themselves. There's been so much faking of this that and the other going on that people don't know who to believe really has the goods.

Re: Does your church allow gifts of the Spirit
 

Or how do we know the gift is not being used? Like the word of knowledge. It seems many of us are accustomed to the "evangelist" model of calling people out in public, but the word of knowledge or wisdom don't have to be major theatrical events featuring one person in the limelight