Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

I thought this short article on prophetic gifts was interesting, so I'm sharing it for anyone else who might find it interesting:

11 Types of Prophetic Ministries: Which do you Relate to?
http://www.enlivenpublishing.com/blo...you-relate-to/

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

I found it too heavily reliant on the OT examples of prophets. The covenant has changed, the ministry has changed, the priesthood has changed, all for the better.

There are several different examples of prophets in the NT and what they did, how they operated, and etc. I think it would be better to base our understanding of NT prophets on the text of the NT.

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

Great point.

When it comes to the NT church, it appears that more specific and more powerful gifts are in operation. According to my studies so far, NT believers operated in the following giftings:

In Luke 10:19, we read that the disciples demonstrated the following:

- Power to tread on serpents and scorpions (evil spirits)
- Power to break curses, hexes, generational curses, evil constructs, deceptions, etc. of the enemy
- Powerful protection from all spiritual attack and opposition.

In Mark 16:17-18 we read that these signs shall follow them that believe (the NT church):

- Casting out devils.
- Speaking in new tongues.
- Uprooting spiritual strongholds (taking up serpents, treading on scorpions).
- Having divine protection from harm.
- Provide supernatural healing for the sick.

We shouldn't question if we have the power and authority to do that which is expected of us by God. It is my opinion that every Spirit filled believer should be able to destroy the spiritual workings of Satan, cast out devils, and pray for healing. But Paul describes additional spiritual gifts that will operate through individuals as the Spirit wills. These gifts are:

Speaking Gifts:
- Prophesy
- Tongues
- Interpretation of tongues

Revelatory Gifts:
- Word of Knowledge
- Word of Wisdom
- Discernment of Spirits

Power Gifts:
- Gift of Faith
- Gifts of Healing
- Miracles

Based on my studies these gifts can be defined as follows:

Speaking Gifts:

1.) Gift of Prophesy - The impartation of the ability to speak and/or deliver a message directly from God concerning a spiritual reality or situation in the past, present, or future ("Thus saith the LORD..."). It is also the ability to declare a thing using authority from God, and it come to pass ("I prophesy healing into the lives of God's people, in the name of Jesus!").
2.) Gift of Tongues - The impartation of the ability to speak a message directly from God "in the Spirit" or to supernaturally "pray in the Spirit".
3.) Gift of Interpretation of Tongues - The impartation of the ability to "interpret" (not translate) unknown tongues spoken through the "Gift of Tongues".

Revelatory Gifts:

1.) Word of Knowledge - The impartation of knowledge pertaining to a person, situation, or chain of events that the gift holder could not have known by any natural means.
2.) Word of Wisdom - Divine wisdom or insight about a situation that is delivered straight from God.
3.) Discernment of Spirits - The ability to supernaturally know the motive of a human spirit or the presence and nature of spiritual beings (human, angel, demon).

Power Gifts:

1.) Gift of Faith - The impartation of supernatural faith that defies all logic in a given, seemingly hopeless, situation or circumstance.
2.) Gifts of Healing - The impartation of the power to heal various maladies in the body, soul, or spirit.
3.) Gift of Miracles - The impartation of the power to pray and have prayers answered, even if the outcome requires supernatural means that defy the laws of nature.

When operating in the prophetic, we have to consider another provision of the Holy Spirit, "visions". I believe visions can reveal what has, is, or will transpire. A vision might also reveal a previously unseen or misunderstood spiritual truth or reality. Based on my studies of the Scriptures, visions can come in at least five different ways. These five ways one might experience a vision are:

Visionary Dreams - A visionary experience while asleep or unconscious.

Inner Vision - A visionary experience while awake. It might seem like a daydream, or it might be of such an intensity that it commands one's full attention.

Open Heavens Vision - A visionary experience wherein the individual having who is having the vision experiences the vision as one looking into a what has, is, or will transpire as the vision plays out before them. It can be very real, like watching a movie that appears to be playing in thin air.

Panoramic Vision - A visionary experience wherein the individual who is having the vision experiences the vision as though they are a part of it as it transpires all around them.

Spiritual Vision In Translation - A visionary experience wherein the one who is having the vision is caught up out of their body and is spiritually translated to Heaven (or perhaps the "realm of spirit") to experience the vision and even interact with angels or the Lord Himself.

I believe that those who walk in the prophetic will have some rather deep experiences of these things.

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

Prophesying is perhaps one of the most distinctive identifications of the real New Covenant people.

16But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: Acts 2:16-18

In my early walk among the Jesus People and Charismatic movement it was not unusual for prophetic dreams and visions to be occuring.

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

Otherwise you’d be getting a reading from a doll.

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

What I'm about to say is limited to my personal experience and observations. It appears that in today's church, "prophets", "seers", or those who "walk in the prophetic" (whatever one might wish to call them) are more or less the "celebrity" preachers, teachers, and evangelists. The gift of prophesy, visions, etc. doesn't seem to flow like water through the entire body. Instead, it's like the majority are observers seeking to receive... not conduits seeking to affect their brethren, friends, family, and the world around them.

It's almost like we've been duped into become spectators. And in many fellowships, "if" anyone begins to wade out into the deeper waters concerning these things, they become suspect of "dabbling" in things they ought not.

If this isn't your experience where you're serving the body, I praise the Lord with you. But if it is, why do you think this is? How do you think this has happened? What do you believe we can do to awaken our spiritual senses, so to speak, and begin to operate in the prophetic as individuals?

As I was finishing this post, this verse came to mind. The spirit of Moses on the matter is quite moving. Oh that ALL the Lord's people walked in the prophetic...

Numbers 11:29
And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

The truth for me was I was not so much seeking these things. I was a new convert not even attending Church yet. Just believing in Jesus and the Bible. About 6 weeks in I started having prophetic dreams. I was truly stunned. I would dream certain things and they would come to pass usually in a day or so.

As this began to unfold in my life it made me take my new found faith very seriously. I purged things out of my life that were questionable. I spent much time in the word and prayer. After I began meeting Pentecostal/Charismatic people and saw examples about fasting I began practicing that also.

I often thought also acknowledging Jesus in all our ways seemed to bring down his anointing. So for me it was never really about seeking gifts they just seemed to happen as I diligently sought the Lord.

I have been RICHLY blessed in that early on the Lord allowed me to meet people I could fellowship and learn from. It was so exciting and glorious in those early days.

When I see what passes for "the gifts" many times nowadays it grieves my Spirit.

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

In examining this subject I've done some reading and watched some teaching on YouTube (Jonathan Welton, James Goll, Jerame Nelson, and a few lesser known). Some of the things they appear to be rediscovering in the Word are rather powerful in their application. One thing that keep hearing them reference are the believer's "spiritual senses". I've not gone too deep on this, but it's my understanding that they believe that just as we have five physical senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell), our inner man has five "spiritual senses", a type of spiritual sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. It appears they believe that it is through the awakening of these "spiritual senses" that the Holy Spirit becomes more discernable and the Gifts are received.

Please understand, these are not meant to be understood in a categorical sense. The reference to "senses" appears to be metaphorical and has more to do with an awakened spirit, with an awakened "awareness" to the spiritual. They mention how the Bible refers to spiritual senses being dull, or opened. For example,

Matthew 13:15
For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Clearly, Jesus isn't speaking about their physical "eyes" and "ears". The Jewish leadership of the people, and the people who followed them, were not physically blind or deaf. It was their spiritual "eyes" that were closed to seeing the truth, and their spiritual ears that were closed to hearing the truth. And this prevented them from "understanding with their hearts", their inner most self, their inner man, their spirits. Scripture also speaks of the sweet "aroma" of worship, "tasting" the good Word of God. Individuals for decades have talked about "feeling" the Lord, being "impressed" of the Lord, or having "felt" the Spirit.

It appears that spiritual experiences in the Lord are often described through language that points to the senses. Some might see these as specific faculties of spirit, but they might very well be metaphors. Either way, it is only the awakened spirit that experiences spiritual realities and is a ready vessel to be used in the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

I've tossed this around to find a manner of lose categorization to help in conceptualizing this understanding. And certainly not everyone would classify them as I'm doing here. I'm feeling as though it is the Gift of Discernment that flows through these spiritual senses to perhaps unlock one's ability to receive other gifts as the Spirit wills. But others might disagree and have a better conceptualization. The point is to be aware of these spiritual senses that we might awaken them and "open" to the Spirit of God that we might be used supernaturally.

Spiritual Sight - Sensing the hand of God in the world around us.
Spiritual Hearing - Sensing the promptings of God.
Spiritual Touch - Sensing the presence and leading of God.
Spiritual Taste - Sensing the truth and blessings of God.
Spiritual Smell - Sensing the purity of worship and the resulting presence and anointing of God.

And so, those whose spiritual eyes, hears, hearts, etc. are open to the fullness of experiencing and sensing all God desires to open to us are the seers and prophets of our day.

Thoughts?

Re: Article on Prophetic Gifts:
 

Amen. Since He is the source of all spiritual giftings, awakened senses, and power, seeking Him with the whole heart with an open disposition is all that would be necessary.

I've seen this kind of zeal and power in new converts. But something seems to happen to a lot of people as the years go by. We are often told, "stop that", or, "that's not your office", or we grow self-conscious and afraid that we've gone too far, or we hear teachings that begin to limit what was once flowing through us and the possibilities that it would bring. Our spiritual eyes begin closing, our spiritual ears, while never completely deaf, can grow dull of hearing to the point where only if something is worded and presented the way it's always been worded and presented, we can't hear what is truly being said and all that stirs us is the same ol' songs, the same ol' vernacular. And so, when one begins to sense something more, and the mold is broken, we often great it with swift condemnation born of a fear of what we actually once had... but has since become unknown among us.

I knew a man who was mightily used of God in tongues and interpretation in the church he attended. Upon moving due to his job he had to change churches. One night the Holy Ghost moved on him so powerfully he gave an utterance and an interpretation as he had been accustomed to.

He was torn to pieces that week.

"Who does he think he is?", "Did the pastor sanction him to do that?", "Oh, he thinks he's called to preach.", "Brother, I'm the pastor, and I appoint those to be used in the gifts. What you did was flesh and full of pride.", "Did you see that he and his wife wear wedding bands? God wouldn't use a man who lacked holiness."

He was beat down and taught to be quiet. To quench the Spirit and the spiritual gifts he had been used in for years prior. His church had a play last year and I was invited. Spiritually speaking, he looked hollow. Like something had burned up the inside of him as it had tried to get out, leaving a hollow shell of the joyous, gifted, and spiritual man he used to be.

How do we revive such people to hear and see again? I feel like it would be necessary to help revive that passion and intimacy they once had with God. To get the gifts flowing again that they might walk in the fullness of all God desires for them in accordance to His plan.

Another interesting, but disturbing, thing I've discovered is... many Apostolic Pentecostals are not into delving deep into the nature and operation of the gifts or power of God. The moment one begins to dig into these things, it isn't uncommon for false accusations of being "Charismatic" or "New Age" surface. It's almost as though the very people who should welcome wading out into these waters are the very people who have closed the beach. Maybe I'm not explaining it well. But sometimes I feel the greatest opposition to growth in this area aren't those who don't believe in the gifts... it is those who profess to believe in the gifts... but only their narrow interpretation of these gifts that permits quenching the operation of said gifts.

I visited an Apostolic church this past weekend. It used to be on fire. Tongues, interpretations, prophecies, devils cast out, healings, words of knowledge, etc. were flowing like a mighty river.

It's dead today.

I had invited a friend because I was so wanting to show them the "power of Pentecost". I was so glad my friend couldn't make it. Because the saints seemed tired, dazed, frozen in time, the music labored, the worship "eh". Very little emotion, weeping, running, dancing, etc. And there were those same old faces sitting in the same old pews they always sat in, just a little grayer. Very few new faces. In fact, it seemed the membership had dropped. At one time, they had filled a downstairs sanctuary and nearly half the upstairs balcony. Now you could fit the entire church on the first floor of the sanctuary, and perhaps if you had them scoot in close, they all might have fit in just one half of that first floor of pews.

I was really in shock. This wasn't the church I remembered. It was dead. D-E-A-D. Dead. So, I returned last night. It was even "deader". And as the preacher preached, it seemed over half of the people were preoccupied. It was bad. You know that slight "ring" in the air when a room that big is far too quiet? It was almost louder than the preaching and worship. I plan on going perhaps two more times. Why? I'm praying that it is just a dry spell. But they were talking about how, "This is wear it's at." That, "This church is alive and filled with power." When the minister leading worship said that, it was almost like his tone revealed not even he really believed it. I expected to hear that one solitary "Amen", followed by the popping of bubble gum.

It used to be red hot. On fire. It almost made me cry. I don't know what happened. There wasn't a church split. No salacious gossip of sin was flying around. No misconduct that I could see on anyone's part. Honestly, I can't say there is anything wrong with this church. I just don't know what happened. :(

Awesome! :thumbsup

Could you elaborate? In my neck of the woods the churches just seem tired and spiritually dead. I'm not even seeing any gifts to grieve my spirit. :(

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P.S.

I want to try to balance my post. There is one church that I know personally in my vicinity that is on fire and red hot. There used to be more "on fire" churches around my community. I just don't know what happened.