Posted on 08/06/2017 1:27:26 AM PDT by metmom
"If I have the gift of prophecy . . . but do not have love, I am nothing" (1 Cor. 13:2).
Love motivated God to communicate with fallen humanity. That must be your motivation too.
The word prophecy as used in 1 Corinthians 13:2 is the ability to publicly proclaim God's truth accurately and authoritatively. It's a greater gift than tongues because tongues were given as a sign to unbelieving Israel in the first century (1 Cor. 14:21-22), whereas prophecy instructs and edifies believers throughout the centuries. Paul said, "one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation [and] edifies the church (1 Cor. 14:3-4).
Prophecy has two aspects: revelation and reiteration. When an Old or New Testament prophet received new information directly from God, that was revelation. Whenever that information was repeated through preaching or teaching, it was reiteration. For example, the sermons of Peter and Paul combine new revelation with a reiteration of Old Testament truth. That's a common element in New Testament preaching.
With the close of the New Testament canon, direct revelation from God ceased. All preaching and teaching today is reiteration. New Testament prophets policed one another to ensure that every prophecy was truly from God (1 Cor. 14:32). Today, Scripture itself is the standard by which we test someone's message. As the prophet Isaiah said, "To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no [light]" (Isa. 8:20).
Paul is saying 1 Corinthians 13:2, "If I have the ability to speak direct revelation from God, or to reiterate divine truth forcefully and dramatically, but lack love, my ministry is meaningless." In its broadest sense, that principle applies to every believer because we all are proclaimers of God's Word. You might not teach a class or preach a sermon, but whenever you tell someone about Christ or share a biblical principle, you're reiterating divine truth. That's why you must always speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). Then the Holy Spirit can empower your words to minister to others.
Suggestions for Prayer
Ask God to help you guard your words so that everything you say will be clothed in His love.
For Further Study
Read Deuteronomy 13:1-5 and 18:20-22.
What tests did Moses give for determining false prophets? What punishment did false prophets receive?
Studying God’s Word ping
bookmark
If I were attending a church where the minister says he cannot and does not hear directly from God, I would move to a church where the minister can and does hear directly from God.
Prophecy has two aspects: revelation and reiteration... With the close of the New Testament canon, direct revelation from God ceased. All preaching and teaching today is reiteration.
That's what happened when the aspects became viewed as two separate channels of information. They are one. They operate together, like a lock and a key.
the sermons of Peter and Paul combine new revelation with a reiteration of Old Testament truth. That's a common element in New Testament preaching.
Daniel explained exactly how he understood the writing (with a history lesson), while everyone else was caught off-guard, clueless. What appeared as sudden direct revelation was a reiteration of history. Daniel's amazing insight was that he "saw the writing on the wall". Ironic how the idiom has come down in history with the proper understanding, because it means to recognize obvious signs of trouble and make an escape before the inevitable strikes.
And Joseph could interpret the dreams of the baker and the butler because he had already watched these guys for a year or so. It's right in the text, that he was put in charge of the prisoners. The dreams simply matched their work ethics and characters that he already knew.
Ditto for sizing up the Pharaoh. Even if Joseph knew the prisoners' characters, how would he know what the Pharaoh would do? Simple, Joseph was put in charge of all the prisoners. He observed who deserved his fate, and who did not, IOW what was Pharaoh's accuracy rate. Also, what where Pharaoh's triggers... what types of people and offences tripped off the Pharaoh. Was he throwing his personal hairdressers down there, or was he more rigid about those who served the guests.
All of that observation. Pharaoh wasn't going to tolerate the slacker baker. The butler, OTOH, was a dutiful servant. That information was in the dreams, what Joseph had already observed. That he had Pharaoh's ability of discernment pegged is seen in Pharaoh's reaction to Joseph's interpretation of his own dreams. Prisoner? So what, there was no one so wise and perceptive as this fellow Joseph.
It's like that.
Prophets can know stuff with 100% accuracy because they already watched it happen. All they have to do is restate what they saw, what has already occurred.
The prophetic perfect tense is a literary technique used in the Bible that describes future events that are so certain to happen that they are referred to in the past tense as if they already happened.
With the close of the New Testament canon, direct revelation from God ceased.
People who don't learn from history are destined to repeat it. That's a direct revelation right there.
God said everything He needed to say in the Bible and He’s given us His Holy Spirit to interpret what is in the Bible-with careful and prayerful study. There isn’t anything more left to say. And, quite frankly, we should be thankful He told us what He did. People have an arrogant way of thinking God should respond to them.
If you feel you need more, you might want to become a Mormon or Jehovah Witness.
Or possibly Roman Catholic.
R
Well, there’s hearing from God in revelation of Scripture and then there are claims of hearing from God in new revelation.
But if it’s *new* revelation that matches up to Scripture, then it’s not really new and could have got by God’s leading.
If it’s new revelation that does not line up with Scripture, then it’s not from God and can be tossed.
What I’ve noticed recently is that *prophecy* has become the new popular gift du jour, and everyone has a *prophetic word* for someone else. And very often, they either are unverifiable or simply wrong.
So it depends some on what you mean by hearing from God.
Is it the pastor following the Spirit’s leading as we all do, or receiving *new* revelation not previously found in Scripture? I would be very wary of the second one.
Nice snark.
Nope, w. the mormons and j-dubs, the thinking has already been done.
I am more interested in the Holy Spirit "guiding us into all truth", as it says in John 16. I notice that happening whenever I am puzzled about what to do next, or how to respond to someone who thinks they know everything already, in my prayers, I get answers to those specific kinds of questions. And when I get such guidance, I am always impressed with how intensely personal God can be.
The reason I regard this as new revelation is because it is so personally and situationally specific. And yes, such revelations must always comport perfectly with Scripture. And no, such personal revelations are not even akin to the actual Scriptures themselves. I am simply saying that it is an error to state that all revelation from God ceased when the Scriptures were compiled. There is not an ounce of Scripture to support that position,.
Many of our most treasured hymns and compositions ("When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder", "It is Well with My Soul", Handel's "Messiah", etc.), came into being in times of great need in the lives of the composers, who testify that the words and the tunes came to them, almost instantly. They were attentive to the Lord, and He gifted them the wonderful expressions of Scriptural truths in new and inspiring ways.
Please see my post #9, responding to post #6.
I see where you are coming from.
I think MacArthur’s point is NEW revelation, not the normal God speaking to you in day to day life that we all experience.
Sorry but this is a most dangerous position to maintain. Please remember that Balaam and Caiaphas both prophesied revelation. And, yes, there is scripture to tell us prophesy is closed. Please note:
2Pe 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
You may also remember the warning from John:
To me that is rather clear. Some may say that John's warning only refers to Revelation but combined with what Peter states, the message is rather clear-God is very serious about adding to or deleting from the Word of God.
As far as "treasured hymns", I don't place this in the same genre as prophetic utterance. They don't include new revelations or additions to scripture. People may be inspired or moved by God to give glory to Him, but there won't be an 11th commandment.
If you will read my posts, there was no place where I made any reference to prophecy. I know that a lot of the dialogue here was about prophecy. I, however, addressed only the “all direct revelation ceased” portion of Macarthur’s devotional.
And never did I say that anything going on today is on par with scripture. Nothing is.
Specific, personal guidance, however, is an awesome thing. I never want to leave home without it. And, if that’s not hearing from God (i.e., direct revelation), then I don’t know what is.
I took what you stated to mean that God presently gives people divine revelations apart from the scriptures and the working of the Holy Spirit. Based upon what you stated, I don't think that is an unreasonable assumption. Perhaps I was incorrect?
You were incorrect. I took Macarthur’s “no direct revelation” to mean that a man cannot hear directly, specific instruction and guidance from God, regarding specific directions for what to do or say on a particular day concerning particular circumstances.
Also, it is definitely unreasonable for you to have inferred, from what I wrote, that I had implied revelation “apart from the scriptures and the working of the Holy Spirit”. For me, there is no worthwhile knowledge, wisdom or understanding apart from the scriptures and the working of the Holy Spirit.
quote-Yea, and that careful prayerful study has yielded 2000 years of wars, bloodshed, and burning people at the stake. And thousands of denominations and fighting over who’s right which lasts till this very day.
Stormprepper, there was ‘about 2,000 cubits’ of distance that Israel had to keep away from the ark of the covenant when they passed over the Jordan- into the Promised Land.
And there was also ‘about 2,000 swine’ that had the demons enter them and traveled into the sea and drowned.
It seems these past ‘about 2,000’ years were predicted in His Word- just not in a way most can see.
He did say everything He needed in His Word.
But some of it won’t be understood without eyes to see or ears to hear.
Some may be blessed to read His Word with new eyes or hear His Word with new ears.
Santify in truth. Your Word is Truth.
And all those denominations begin with one false premise:
the false premise that Rome begins with Truth. They do not.
When one gets eyes to see that or ears to hear that, they will start to see what has been hidden in His Word.
Just been blinded to it.
And it will be like reading His Word with new eyes or hearing His Word, which is Truth, with new ears.
Genesis to Revelation is all one needs.
If they have eyes to see and ears to hear.
All for His Glory!
It is definitely unreasonable for you to have inferred... that I had implied revelation “apart from the scriptures and the working of the Holy Spirit”.
Your statement appears to be a contradiction. Either you receive specific instructions from God or you don't except for what is in scripture guided by the Holy Spirit.
When you say God can't speak to man or bring about new scripture, you are in fact, denying the power of God.
On the contrary. You may wish to do a careful study of the book of Jeremiah.
Jer 23:12 Therefore their way shall be to them like slippery paths in the darkness, into which they shall be driven and fall, for I will bring disaster upon them in the year of their punishment, declares the LORD.
Jer 23:13 In the prophets of Samaria I saw an unsavory thing: they prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray.
Jer 23:14 But in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his evil; all of them have become like Sodom to me, and its inhabitants like Gomorrah."
It is not arrogant at all to wish for God to respond. He promised He would. I'm a little shocked at the conclusion you've come to as to the nature of God.
It isn't the nature of God that I have wrong. I would suggest you're incorrect about the nature of man. Man is simply evil, wicked and corrupt. And even after God comes into our hearts, we need to be submissive and responsive to God. God is good. Man is corrupt. We better be careful of our attitude towards a holy and gracious God.
God went for many years, sometimes hundreds of years, before speaking to a prophet. It is silly to think that God speaks to people whenever they have a whim to talk to God. This 1) is a form of Gnostic behavior on our part-thinking we have special revelation, and 2) believing that God is communicating with us when He is not is strongly condemned in Jeremiah. By saying that God talking to them a person is making people believe a lie and God does not look favorably on that (Jer 28:13-17). It corrupts God's teaching found in scripture which Peter warns us about.
When the prophets of Revelation appear, I sure they will reveal to people what is in scripture.
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