A preacher in the South asks: "If the miraculous spiritual gifts of 1 Corinthians 12-14 are still available, has anyone in your congregation received them, and how do we verify whether they are genuinely from God?" * * * As the sovereign of heaven and earth, God bestows grace-gifts and performs miracles as he sees fit (1 Cor. 12:4-11; Gal. 3:5). Has anyone in my home congregation received spiritual gifts? If it is a church of God, they have -- although its worship style is not what people generally refer to as "charismatic." God graces and enriches his people, so that we are "not lacking in … [Read more...]
RECEIVING SPIRITUAL GIFTS
A preacher in the South asks: "If the miraculous spiritual gifts of 1 Corinthians 12-14 are still available, how do we go about receiving them?" * * * Scripture does not distinguish between "miraculous" and "non-miraculous" spiritual gifts, so we must think of the grace-gifts (charismata) in general terms. We receive such gifts today the same way God's people always have. Scripture gives us no formula, but it does provide at least four principles. 1. By maintaining close relationship with the Father (1 Pet. 4:10) through Jesus the Son (Eph. 4:7) in the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:11), since … [Read more...]
IMPARTING SPIRITUAL GIFTS
A brother from a Baptist church in North Carolina writes, "My view has been that only the apostles had authority to bestow spiritual gifts through the laying on of hands, but I've had to rethink that in the light of other passages of Scripture. What do you think, based on your study of Scripture?" * * * New Testament authors tell us that spiritual gifts come from the Father (1 Pet. 4:10-11), from the Son of God (Eph. 4:7-8) and from the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:8-11). Only God gives divine grace (charis) or "grace-gifts" (charismata) -- regardless of the means, medium or intermediary he might … [Read more...]
POWER, LOVE & SPIRITUAL GIFTS
A gracEmail subscriber writes concerning a relative who has "discovered the amazing power of the Spirit," and is now eager to share this miracle-and-wonder power with everyone else. The subscriber admits that she would like to have more direct displays of supernatural power in her own life, but she thinks that this relative is stressing power to the neglect of love. She asks if I have any advice. * * * Like you, I want and need all the power God sees fit to channel through me -- for my own character development (fruit of the Spirit) and for ministry to others (gifts of the Spirit). God is … [Read more...]
WHEN THE PERFECT COMES
Scripture says that supernatural gifts of tongues, prophecy and knowledge will cease when "the perfect" comes (1 Cor. 13:10). "When will that be?" a gracEmail reader asks. "Does this verse refers to the last biblical book being written?" * * * The notion that "the perfect" here refers to the completion of the New Testament is of fairly recent origin. Barton W. Stone, a pioneer father of the Churches of Christ, spoke for Christians throughout most of the last two millennia when he wrote, "That time has never yet come; nor can we expect it in this state of mortality" (Christian Messenger, … [Read more...]
APOSTLES TODAY?
A gracEmail subscriber writes concerning a man who claims to be an apostle, and whom a number of believers regard as such. Are there living apostles today? What makes a person an apostle? * * * The word "apostle" literally means "one sent." "Emissary" or "delegate" are more contemporary synonyms. The greatest Apostle is Jesus of Nazareth, whom God sent into the world with authority to make atonement for sin and to give eternal life to those whom God had given him (Heb. 3:1; John 17:1-3). The New Testament assigns the 12 Apostles a unique role in the Church -- with Matthias replacing Judas … [Read more...]
DOES GOD STILL DO THAT?
A gracEmail subscriber who desires to be open to whatever God might wish to do in her life expresses difficulty with the idea that he still bestows gifts of tongues, prophecy and healing. What is the gift of "tongues" supposed to be, anyway? * * * You could not possibly have more difficulty with the spiritual gifts of healing, tongues and prophecy than I did for many years. You and I both grew up under teaching that all such things ceased long ago. Yet eventually I had to yield my firmly-set mind to the strong evidence that God gives all these gifts to whomever he wishes -- even today. What … [Read more...]
CHARISMATIC?
A friendly but curious subscriber asks, "In view of your book's title (The Sound of His Voice: Discovering the Secrets of God's Guidance) and some recent gracEmails, I wonder whether you have become one of those charismatics." * * * If one defines a "charismatic" Christian as a person who thinks we hold the controls to manipulate God according to our own will, or that every Christian must possess some particular spiritual gift, or that believers who exercise certain grace-gifts are spiritually superior to believers who receive different gifts, then I wholeheartedly reject the label, and … [Read more...]
NEW NATURE REQUIRED (3)
Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus tells us three important truths which we must not allow our opinions, traditions or religiosity to obscure. First, we must all receive a completely new nature, a new kind of life generated by the Spirit of God from above. Without this, we are mere "flesh" that cannot see or enter God's realm of eternal reality. This is a solemn and inescapable truth, twice affirmed by Jesus' double phrase "truly, truly" -- literally "amen, amen" (John 3:3-7). Second, this is a great mystery, for no one can decide to be born. Parents decide to have children, not the … [Read more...]
NEW NATURE REQUIRED (2)
By nature, fallen humans cannot participate in God's eternal kingdom, Jesus says, unless they are born again from above (John 3:3). We must move from religion to relationship, from head to heart, from church to Christ. We must be regenerated with a new nature to become a new life-form. Nicodemus had come to Jesus at night (v.2) and spiritually also he was in the dark. "How can this be?" he asked, thinking in literal, fleshly terms. Jesus explained: "Truly, truly, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (v. 5). What does Jesus mean? Three … [Read more...]
