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During 2020 in Louisville, Ky. we experienced several weeks of rioting throughout the city because of generations of unjust treatment of minorities. Many of the downtown stores were boarded up and closed for weeks. Untold thousands of dollars of property were destroyed. Some of the businesses have not yet reopened.

We are a country that was founded on Judeo-Christian principles to a large degree. However, through the years some of the laws have been changed or ignored and applied differently based on race, social status, or financial advantages. And as a result, frustration, anger, and resentment have reached the point of boiling over. But is that a good reason to invade another’s personal property and destroy it?

Let’s look at two scenarios.

Suppose you come from a background of moderate-income, neither wealthy nor poor, worked hard, saved your money, and were able to purchase a home or business. But someone comes to destroy it, do you have a legal right to defend it and yourself?

Or, you are a minority that has also done the best you could possibly do in your situation. But seemingly things always seem to work against you regardless of what you do. The frustration builds over decades and finally, something happens that is the ‘straw that broke the camel’s back.’ Is it right for you to respond against someone and/or their property?

I see these scenarios as being about more than property and perhaps even more than whether injustices have been done. Perhaps, the discussion should also include not just what is right or wrong by the laws of a country but what does the Bible say about these type of things.

Micah 6:8 says, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

What is the standard to determine what is good or justice? Or what is merciful? What is humility? I suggest that defining these by human ideas alone is insufficient. We need a higher source of insight and truth. Only the Scriptures – the Bible – are able to give us the best insight.

It appears to me that financial inequity will always exist on this side of eternity! Then what can we do?

Let’s look at some Scripture absolutes.

Gender – when God created Adam & Eve, He determined their gender, and there are only two of them. Genesis 1:27

Race or Nationality – God placed them in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 2:8 After the fall, He scattered them across the earth. Genesis 11:1-9 Yet, the Cross and Pentecost solve that problem as any person can now hear the Gospel and make Jesus their personal Lord and Savior! Acts 2:1-4, Galatians 3:28-29, Revelation 22:17

I suggest the place to start overcoming the problems alluded to in this short article is to NOT discriminate based on Gender, Race, Nationality, or Economic place in life! I suggest that we become so Word oriented, and in love with Jesus we love who and what He loves more than anything else in the world. If we can do that, these types of problems may still exist but they will not control our life nor the way we see other people or situations!

Calling himself a “wretch” who was lost and blind, John Newton recalled leaving school at the age of 11 to begin life as a rough, debauched seaman. He was a heavy drinker and eventually engaged in the practice of capturing natives of West Africa to be sold as slaves to markets around the world. But one day in a terrible storm, in fear for his life, Newton began to read THE IMITATION OF CHRIST by Thomas a Kempis. God used the book to lead him into a dramatic change in his life through a relationship with Jesus as Lord of his life. Feeling a call on his life for ministry, he began to study and prepare for it. He was greatly influenced by John and Charles Wesley and George Whitfield. He later became an ordained minister in the Church of England.

During his life, he wrote many hymns. Perhaps the one he is most noted for is AMAZING GRACE. It is a story about God’s grace that was revealed in his life.

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me, I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see.

“Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved, how precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed.

“Thru many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come, ’tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.

“The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures, He will my shield and portion be as long as life endures.

“When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, we’ve no less days to sing God’s praise than when we’d first begun.”

Each one of us is here on earth because of the grace of God. The fact that we exist is because of His wondrous grace. It says a lot about God’s character and very little if anything about us.

WHAT IS GRACE?

There are two ways the grace of God is seen toward man. The first is through what Jesus did for us on the Cross. The second is His divine ability in us continually that allows us to be and do what He wants.

Grace as Unmerited Favor

Grace is most often thought of as the unmerited favor and mercy of God revealed to mankind through what Jesus did for us on the Cross. The forgiveness of sin, regeneration, and the work of God in the heart and life of the sinner is a good example of God’s grace. Without this manifestation of grace, all of life would be futile and hopeless. But God in eternity past knew that man would reject Him so He provided a way to forgiveness and restoration.

The first mention of grace is found in Genesis 6:8 which says, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” Noah found mercy, compassion, and unmerited favor. Not because of any character on his part, but because of God’s great love, compassion, and plan that He had for the human race.

In my Bible, I find that the word “grace” is used 191 times with most of them being in the New Testament.

We find that the Bible is very explicit that no one can receive forgiveness, justification, or any other thing from God except through His grace. Notice the following passages:

Romans 3:24 “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

Romans 5:15 “But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many.”

Romans 5:17 “For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ.”

Romans 5:20-21 “Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so, grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

So, what are these verses saying? They are revealing that even though sin abounds, the grace of God revealed in Jesus provides a way of forgiveness and restoration back to God to everyone who will accept it and make Jesus the Lord of their life.

Grace As Divine Ability

But there is another manifestation of God’s grace that we need to see. This area of grace is often overlooked by many evangelicals. This area is what Paul mentioned in Romans 5:17 when he said, “For if by one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ.” Paul shows us that it is the will of God that believers in Jesus Christ should reign in life. This reigning is possible because of God’s grace – His divine ability that He has put in us. Too many Christian seem to think that after they got saved God leaves them to live their life on their own. While they may not say this outright, but by the way they live it seems apparent that down in their spirit this is what they believe.

But God has not left us alone. He gives us His grace so that we can accomplish what He has planned for us to do. He promised us in Matthew 28:20 “…I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Notice the following:

Romans 1:5 ” Through Him, we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name.”

Ephesians 3:7 “Of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power.”

Ephesians 4:7 “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”

In these verses, Paul is showing us that he was an apostle by the mercy and favor of God and because of God’s ability in him to be one. He further states that each of us has the grace to be whatever the gift of God in us requires. Now think about that last statement. If you are called to be an apostle like Paul, then God’s grace will give you the strength, power, and faith to do it successfully. Whatever your station in life, God’s grace is sufficient for you in that position.

The Apostle Paul knew what he was talking about. There was a time in his life when everything seemed to be again him. He went to God about it and God said in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” God was telling Paul that His grace – ability – was sufficient to take him through the difficulties victoriously. He was not telling him to grin and bear it but to depend upon God’s ability in him to do what was necessary to come through it. When we are weak God’s strength is more easily seen. When we depend on Him then He gets the glory when we are victorious.

The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” We have a job to do and as we are doing it we find that the grace of God is present to enable us to do so!

Examples of God’s Grace

In addition to Noah and Paul, the Scripture mentions Moses as a recipient of God’s grace. Moses was called by God to be the leader of the nation of Israel. He knew he faced a formidable task (Exodus 33). He asked God to reveal Himself to him. God replied that He would go with Moses and that He knew his name. God told him that His grace would be with him. And God further revealed Himself to Moses in a way that no one since has known. In his forty years of leading Israel, God did many fantastic things with and through Moses.

There are many others who lived a life of faith and dependence on God in whom the grace of God was revealed. Hebrews 11:32-40 says, “And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still, others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented – of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.” These individuals could do what they did because of the ability of God that was in them. There are many other passages that tell us more about God’s grace.

Modern Examples

Horatio Spafford was a successful attorney in Chicago. He was the father of four daughters, an active member of the Presbyterian Church, and a loyal friend and supporter of D. L. Moody. Through a series of calamities, including the fire of 1871, much of his extensive real estate holdings were wiped out. He decided to take his family to Great Britain for a time of refreshing while he helped with the Moody-Sankey meetings there. His family went on ahead by boat. Their ship was hit by an English vessel and sank in twelve minutes. All four daughters died but his wife was one of the very few who escaped. Later when Spafford came to the approximate spot where his four daughters died, he received great comfort from God that enabled him to write the hymn It Is Well With My Soul. Great grace enables one to deal with great problems successfully!
Fanny Crosby, blinded by a medical accident at six weeks of age, overcame her handicap and wrote over 8000 hymns during her ninety-five years. She was known as the “queen of gospel music.” Among her best-known hymns is Blessed Assurance. She was determined to obey what she believed to be God’s direction in her life writing hymns out of the overflow of His grace.
You have probably known individuals who accomplished great things in spite of handicaps or hardships. Or perhaps looking back on your own life you can see where the hand of God has been upon you and enabled you to do what otherwise would have been impossible. The grace of God is not only unmerited favor, it is also the ability of God to be the person we should be, and to do what we should be doing. The fact that God’s grace has been given to us does not mean that we automatically see its potential manifested.
There are some things we need to do to cooperate with God as He brings His will to pass. John 1:16 says, “And of His fullness, we have all received, and grace for grace.” God’s fullness which is manifested in Jesus Christ has been given to each of us. As a result of that, it is expected that we will reign in this life. Everyone, saved or lost, is a recipient of God’s grace. But only those who have made Jesus their Lord and Savior will know the fullest expression of that grace. That grace is experienced as we walk with God in obedience.

Abusing God’s Grace

In studying the Scripture, I found six things that show how we often fall short in cooperating with God’s grace. In doing so, we are abusing God’s grace. We are not letting it become productive as He means for it to be. We are resisting the grace of God when we do these things.

Receiving His Grace in Vain. 2 Corinthians 6:1, “We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain.” We receive God’s grace in vain when we let it sit idle and do not use it for its intended purpose. If God gives you the grace to do a particular job and you do not do it, you have received the grace of God in vain. The Corinthians believers were very gifted with a lot of opportunities to serve God in their city. But they were falling far short of what God expected from them. They had received the grace of God in vain and His grace was not as productive as it could have been. All who receive God’s grace in vain will give an account of that when they stand before God.

Set Aside the Grace of God. Galatians 2:21 says, “I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.” In the region of Galatia there were many who were genuine Christians but later wanted to go back into Judaism. By doing so they were setting aside the grace that God had given them. They were taking advantage of His ability to continue living the Christian life and chose to go back under the requirements of the Mosaic law. This is done today when believers try to live under the ceremonial laws of the Old Testament that have been fulfilled in Christ.

Fallen From Grace. Galatians 5:4 says, “You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” The traditional belief about this verse is that because they wanted to go back under the Mosiac law that meant they lost their salvation. But if we understand that grace, as it is used here, refers to their moving out of God’s ability to them to continue living the Christian life and to choose an easier way to live back under the law, it makes it easier to understand. Many Christians do the same thing when they choose to quit living the Christian lifestyle because of peer pressure. They move out of grace and try living on their own in the flesh.

Insult Grace. Hebrews 10:19 says, “Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace.” To insult or offend the Spirit is to cut oneself off from the avenue of approaching God. One cannot come to God unless the Spirit draws him (John 12:32). The writer of Hebrews is trying to encourage the believers to continue living their life under the terms of the New Covenant and not go back to Judaism. They had endured a lot of persecution already. God had been faithful to them and brought them through it. Now was not the time to give up and quit. To do so would offend the Spirit of God.

Fall Short of the Grace of God. Hebrews 12:15 says, “Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.” We fall short of the grace of God when we try handling life situations in the flesh instead of the Spirit. The example given in the following verse is Esau whom the Bible calls a profane person. He tried handling a difficult situation by the flesh and did not depend on the grace of God. When people or life, in general, mistreats us we much forgive. To do otherwise is to fall short of the grace of God. If we do not forgive, the root of bitterness is sure to grow in our life. God gives us His grace to handle all situations that we will face. His grace is sufficient for us as it was for Paul (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Turn Grace into Lewdness. Jude 4 says, “For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.” The grace of God is free. It is freely given to all without charge. It is totally unmerited by anyone. But it is not cheap. It cost God His only begotten Son to die for us on the Cross (John 3:16). But because it is free some have abused it by thinking that they could do as they pleased. They misused their freedom in Christ for an occasion for the flesh (Galatian 5:13).

The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” Four things stand out to me from this verse. They are: (1) grace makes us what we are (2) His grace is not in vain (3) we continue to do what we should (4) the face of God in us is what actually does the work. If we do these things we will not abuse the grace of God. But grace will have its complete work in us. What God has called us to be and do will be accomplished. And God will be honored in our life.

Cooperating with God’s Grace

The fact that God’s grace has been given to us does not mean that we automatically see its potential manifested. There are some things we need to do to cooperate with God as He brings His will to pass.

John 1:16 says, “And of His fullness, we have all received, and grace for grace.” God’s fullness which is manifested in Jesus Christ has been given to each of us. As a result of that, it is expected that we will reign in this life. Romans 5:17 says, “…much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ.” Everyone, saved or lost, is a recipient of God’s grace. But only those who have made Jesus their Savior and Lord will know the fullest expression of that grace. That grace is experienced as we walk with God in obedience. 2 Corinthians 9:8 says, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance of grace for every good work.” There is an abundance of grace for every believer to do what God wants him to do!

To see the grace of God flourish in our life requires us to be humble. Proverbs 3:34 says, “Surely He scorns the scornful, but gives grace to the humble.” God resists the proud but gives a greater measure of His grace to those who humble themselves before Him. We humble ourselves by recognizing Him as Lord. We choose to do His will instead of our own. We see ourselves as He sees us. To declare something about yourself that God has not said is arrogance and pride. But to say about yourself what He says is an act of humility.

2 Peter 3:18 says, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” What does that mean? I see this to mean that while the grace of God has been poured out on us abundantly, it is necessary for us to yield to that grace in everyday life situations. The more yielding to God we do, the more His grace becomes evident and the more successful we are in life. Growth in grace is seen as we look back in our life. Things that at one time were difficult for us now may be easier. We may see that things we use to do in the flesh we are not doing in the Spirit. We may find that we are now relying more on God and less on ourselves. If that is true, then we have in fact grown in grace!

Before we get into the discussion about the ministry or leadership gifts, I want us to see a couple of things that will be necessary for our understanding of them. 

First, we need to understand about Calling. There are two words that are translated call in the New Testament. Kaleo – means to call, to summons, to invite and it suggests either vocation or destination. Kletos – means an appointment or called to certain privileges and functions. Divine calling can be seen in two areas: a general call to salvation and a specific call to some area of service. Every believer has been called to salvation through Jesus Christ. If he had not been called he would not have experienced it. Every believer has also been called to some area of ministry. He may not be one of the leadership or ministry gifts mentioned in Ephesians 4, but he is called to minister is some capacity that will advance the Kingdom of God. Below are a few scriptures that will reveal this.

1 Corinthians 1:1 “Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,”

Ephesians 1:18 “the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,”

Ephesians 4:1 “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,”

Ephesians 4:4 “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;”

Hebrews 3:1 “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus,”

2 Peter 1:10 “Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;”

1 Corinthians 7:20 “Let each one remain in the same calling in which he was called.”

Second, we need to grasp what is meant by ministry. Traditionally, we have thought that ministry was only that which occurred in church by a designated few. But in the following Scriptures we will see that every believer is a minister and can have some type of ministry. 

The word “minister” is used four ways in Scripture (1) Jesus (2) Magistrates 3) Angels (4) Those in Gospel work. We are mainly interested with those in Gospel work. There are three Greek words that will help us see this more clearly. They are:

• Diakonos – deacon, to serve, or labor – Matthew 20:26
• Leitourgos – public worker, or servant – Romans 13:6
• Huperetes – under rower, or assistant – 1 Corinthians 4:1

Every believer is called to salvation and to the work of advancing the Kingdom of God. Some may be called also to a leadership position in the church while others will serve God in helps ministry or other avenues in the church. The position of ministry does not equal value. For example, a person who is recognized as an elder is not more valuable than a deacon or usher. He is just serving in a different position. Each position has its own requirements and job descriptions, but all are valuable in advancing the Kingdom of God.

Apostle

Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,” As we begin this section, I want us to look at the five-fold ministry or leadership giftings. These are not just religious positions but job descriptions. God has placed them into the Church for the purpose of equipping the saints so they, the saints, can do their ministry. Where these gifts are rejected, or not accepted because a given group of people does not believe in him, does harm to the Body of Christ because what God wanted to do through them for the sake of His Body will not be done. For that reason, it is important that we know what these gifts are and how they are to function in the church.

The word in Greek for apostle means a sent one or messenger. There are two basic “classes” of apostles referred to in the New Testament. There is a group known as the Apostles of the Lamb – the original twelve – and there are the other apostles mentioned. 

First, let us look at the original twelve.

Matthew 10:2-4 “Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.” It is obvious that these men held a special place in the foundation of the church. They are the ones referred to as the twelve apostles of the Lamb. Revelation 21:14 “Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” 

To be a member of the original twelve one had to meet specific requirements. They are given for us in Acts 1:21-22 which says, “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.” Notice the person had to have been a disciple of Jesus during His earthly ministry, been there at the time of John’s baptism; he must have seen Jesus after His resurrection and must have seen the Lord when He ascended back into Heaven. When those apostles died there were no more that could join their ranks. 

However, there are other apostles referred to in the New Testament. They include:

• Barnabas and Paul – Acts 14:14
• Andronicus and Junia – Romans 16:7
• James – Galatians 1:19
• Unnamed brethren – 2 Corinthians8:23
• Epaphroditus – Philippians 2:25
• Jesus – Hebrews 3:1
• Apollos – 1 Corinthians 4:4-9
• Silvanus and Timothy – 1 Thessalonians 1:1, 2:6

These were individuals that God send on specific ministry assignments, some were better known than others, yet all were apostles of the Lord. 

Apostles have a unique place in the foundation and operation of the church.

• They are foundation layers – 1 Corinthians 3:10, Romans 15:20
• Go about establishing churches – Acts 18:8-11
• Confirm believers – means to cause them to rest, or lean on, to strengthen – Acts 14:22, 15:41, 18:23
• They had particular signs that followed their ministry – 1 Corinthians 9:2, 2 Corinthians 12:12
• Often had special emphasis in their ministry; such as Paul to the Gentiles – Romans 11:23; and Peter to the Jews – Galatians 2:8

The marks of a true apostle appear to be:

• Burden for the whole Body of Christ
• Supernatural ministry
• Power and ability to establish churches
• Ability to provide adequate leadership – like Paul who spent eighteen months at Corinth and three years at Ephesus.
• Humility

So, do we have apostles today? In my humble opinion I believe we do. They were placed in the church and as long as it exists, I believe they will be in operation in it. 1 Corinthians 12:28 says, “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles….” We do not have any apostles of the Lamb as the original twelve, but I believe we do have others who are doing the work of an apostle although many are not nationally known because they are not headline seekers but are busy just doing what the Father has assigned them to do.

Prophets

The Greek word for prophet means a spokesman or seer. We have examples of prophets in both the Old and New Testament. The ministry of the prophet in the New Testament does not have the standing it had under the Old Testament because all believers are priests today, that is, they can approach God for themselves. However, it is important and needed today just as it was in the First Century.

The difference between the gift of prophecy and the ministry of a prophet seems to be that the simple gift of prophecy can be exercised by any believer who is yielded to the Holy Spirit. The purpose for the gift of prophecy seems to be to edify, exhort and comfort (1 Corinthians 14:1-3). The ministry of the prophet is one of the five-fold leadership ministries. It is a calling and placement from the Lord for this specific ministry. Included in it are other revelation gifts (Numbers 12:6, 1 Samuel 9:9, 15-16). Prophecy is both foretelling and forth-telling. The ministry of the prophet would contain more foretelling than the simple gift of prophecy.

In both Testaments we are given instruction on judging the prophesies that we hear (Deuteronomy 18-20-22, 13:15, 1 Corinthians 14:29-32, 37). They must:

• Line up with the written Word of God
• Spirit must give witness to it
• If circumstances are not presently in agreement with the word, then they will have to be changed by God to allow it to happen.

There are several examples of New Testament prophets. They include:

• Jesus – Matthew 21:11
• Agabus – Acts 21:10
• Judas and Silas – Acts 15:32
• Antioch – Acts 13:1
• John – Luke 1:76
• Anna – Luke 2:36
• Jezebel – Revelation 2:20

A few clarifications need to be made related to the ministry of a prophet. One misconception is that all they do is see visions and prophesy. Jesus taught, preached, healed the sick, and delivered the demonized. Another misconception is that prophets know everything. This is proven false with Elijah and the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4:27, “Now when she came to the man of God at the hill, she caught him by the feet, but Gehazi came near to push her away. But the man of God said, “Let her alone; for her soul is in deep distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me, and has not told me.” The prophet knows what God has revealed to him, nothing more or less.

To anyone who thinks that the prophetic ministry would be interesting, you need to know that many of those who were prophets suffered for their ministry (James 5:10). However, if God has called and anointed you, He will sustain you in obeying His calling on your life!

Evangelist

The definition of the word evangelist means an announcer of good news, one who brings glad tidings. Two men are spoken of in the New Testament as being evangelists. They are Timothy (2 Timothy 4:5) and Philip (Acts 21:8). We will look at some things in Philip’s life to see what the indicators might be for one who is called an evangelist.

The first thing that stands out is that he preached Christ to the people (Acts 8:5). This will be the primary message of an evangelist. There was an attraction from the people to what Philip preached when they heard and saw the miracles that were performed (Acts 8:6-7). There was great joy in the city (Acts 8:8).  The miracles and signs even convinced Simon the sorcerer to confess Christ (Acts 8:13) Philip was sensitive to the voice of the Spirit of God when he was told to go toward the south in the direction of Gaza (Acts 8:26-27).  After he finished his ministry there he moved on to other cities still preaching Jesus to all who would hear. 

The ministry of the evangelist is necessary (Romans 10:14-15). Someone must preach Jesus to the people. They must hear about what He has done for them. While every believer can do the work of an evangelist, in the sense that they can share Jesus with others, those who are called to the ministry of evangelist are specifically anointed for this work. All ministries need each other. After the evangelist wins people to the Lord, they then need the fellowship of a church body and a Pastor. Evangelists often worked with an apostle (Acts 19:22). Timothy, who was evangelist at the time, worked in Paul’s ministry and was often send on trips from that ministry.

There are four characteristics that stand out to me from Philip’s experience as an evangelist. They are:

• Evangelist are bold
• Have a strong anointing
• Freedom to travel
• Sensitive to the Spirit

Our prayer should be, God give us more evangelists like Philip!

Pastor

The word for pastor means shepherd. The perfect example for a pastor is Jesus. He is known as the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4). He is known also as the Great Shepherd (Heb. 13:20).

The term pastor is seen in four ways. They are:

• Pastor – shepherd – refers to his relationship to the sheep
• Overseer – nature of his work
• Bishop – his office
• Elder – his spiritual maturity

An important part of Jesus’ ministry was teaching His disciples. His ministry was four fold: teaching, preaching, healing and delivering the demonized. But His teaching ministry was in-depth to His disciples. His purpose in teaching His disciples was to show them how to live a better life (2Timothy 3:16-17). Their lives were to reflect His ideals (Matthew 5-7). Their lives were to demonstrate the effects of the Gospel (Matthew 5:14-16). He also prepared them for the Holy Spirit’s coming to them after He returned to the Father (John 14-16). As their pastor He was preparing them to carry on His work after He was gone. 

Pastors are under shepherds over a local congregation. Biblical instructions have been given to show us what this looks like. 1 Timothy 3:1-7 says, “This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.”

More instructions are given in the following passages:

Acts 20:28 says, “Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” This instruction was given to the elders or pastors of the church in Ephesus. The Apostle Peter also instructed elders he wrote to with the following: 1 Peter 5:1-4 “The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.” The writer of Hebrews instructs the believers how to relate to their pastors in Hebrews 13:17 which says, “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” We can summarize these verses into three basic requirements for pastors. They are:

• Feed the Flock of God
• Love the Flock of God
• Lead the Flock of God

Our prayer should be for more pastors who have a shepherds heart (John 10:11-14).

Teacher

The word teacher had four basic meanings in Greek. They are: to tell thoroughly (Acts 16:21), to instruct orally (Gal.6:6), to train (Matt.28:19), to teach or instruct. The perfect example of this ministry gift is Jesus Christ. We have some examples of how He taught His disciples and others.

• Toward the multitudes – often shocked them
• Toward individuals – example: paralyzed man – Matthew 9
• Toward the outcast – ate with them – Zacchaeus – Luke 19
• Toward the Pharisees – rebuked them – Matthew 23
• Toward the disciples – revealed Himself – Matthew 13

Other examples of teachers in the New Testament are:

• Unnamed at Antioch – Acts 13:1
• Paul – 1 Timothy 2:7, 2 Timothy 1:11
• Apollos – Acts 18:27

There are some things that all teachers need to do to fulfill their ministry. They need to study the Word of God consistently, spend much time in meditating in the Word, and have regular, consistent prayer lives. They must also be on guard against various heresies getting into the church (2 Timothy 4:3, 2 Peter 2:1). It is absolutely imperative to have a strong teaching ministry in the church so that it may be grounded and grow into spiritual maturity (Ephesians 3:17-19, 4:11-16).

A very simple way to remember the five ministry gifts is to think of your hand. The thumb represents the apostle- without it you cannot grasp and hold things very well. The index finger is the prophet – one who points the way. The middle finger is the longest – the evangelist, who has the longest outreach. The ring finger is the pastor – one who loves the flock. The little finger is the teacher – who can dig out things or scratch your ear.

I want us to see some important things about gifts of the Spirit. We will look at three classifications of the gifts. They are: Motivational gifts, Charismatic gifts, and Ministry gifts. We will look at them in that order. 

A few things need to be understood about spiritual gifts before we begin. First, the gifts, regardless of their type, all belong to God. They are abilities and anointings from God whereby He enables us to do things that we otherwise would not be able to do. At no time should we think that the gifts belong to us! Second, the gifts operate according to the faith and obedience of the recipient. They do not operate independent of human cooperation. They flow through yielded vessels. Third, they are given to bring profit to others. They are not sent for the benefit of the person through whom they flow, but for other people.

MOTIVATIONAL GIFTS

Romans 12:3-5 says, “For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” The Apostle Paul is telling the church in Rome and us that we should not be proud of spiritual gifts that God uses in our life. He reminds us that God has given to each one a measure of faith sufficient for whatever work He has called them. He is also stressing unity in the Body of Christ as well as the individuality of each member. No person has a corner on God or His gifts. We need each other and the gifts that each person brings into the Body for it to be healthy and productive.

Romans 12:6-8 says, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” For the purpose of identification and explanation we call these motivational gifts. I hesitate to say personality traits, although others have done so, because I see these gifts as being supernatural not just natural, human traits.

In this passage, Paul says that we each have gifts differing according to the grace given. That means that with each gift there is a purpose for its existence and there will be grace required for that person to exercise the gift. Paul also says that whatever motivational gift may be in us, we must use it or cooperate with it to see its fulfillment in the purpose of God. 

There are several things that affect our motivations in life. Not the least of which is being born with a fallen nature. Home environment, education, life experiences and the call and anointing of God in our life are also great influences. Sometimes we may see a person whose normal temperament may appear to be soft spoken, yet who in some circumstances can be very bold and forceful. And that unusual expression of boldness could be there because that is their motivational gift.

Prophecy

The person whose motivation is prophecy is not necessarily a prophet or one who flows in giving prophecies to others but one who has insight into situations that others may miss. This person is hard to fool often seeing through exterior circumstances to see motives and character issues in others or situations. When you see a person with this type of motivation, it may be viewed as harshness because this person is usually a very frank and plain spoken individual who sees things in black and white with very little gray in their life. Their focus on right and wrong may be viewed by others as intolerance. They are often only interested in an immediate decision to change and to do what is right, as they perceive it.

A good example of this type person would be John the Baptist. John was a prophet and one who gave prophecies, but it is easily seen that he also had the motivation of prophecy (Luke 3:2-18). He was very single minded. He was sent on a mission by God to prepare the way for Messiah to come. He was very frank and plain spoken. He was not easily deterred by the opposition of others. Under pressure by King Herod, he refused to change his mind and eventually was beheaded because he rebuked the king for his immorality.     (Matthew 14:1-12). 

We notice in Romans 12:6 that the Scripture says that the person whose motivation is prophecy should exercise it with faith. This says to me that to be true to the motivation that God has put within will require the exercise of faith for its expression, showing it is not entirely controlled by natural traits but has a component of the divine in it.

Minister

The word in Greek for minister is defined as one who serves, deacon, minister or one who attends to the needs of others. Some of the characteristics of this motivation would be one who has the ability to detect and meet practical needs in others. They want to meet the need quickly even to the point of using their own resources to do so. They get extremely involved and have difficulty saying no when asked about meeting the need of someone.

Their desire and quickness to meet practical needs could be looked on by others as being pushy; this is because their whole focus and motivation is helping others. However, other people may see this as being done for the express purpose of being seen by others, being a glory-grabber. 

A good example of this motivation is Martha. She was always hospitable, meeting the practical needs of others. She became irritated that her sister Mary didn’t help her with meal preparation. She seemed to be anxious, distracted, worried and hurried because she was so diligent to get everything done. It is necessary for servers to spend time in the Word and prayer to have the stamina to perform their ministry (Luke 10:38-42).

A modern day example for this motivation would be Mother Theresa in India. She was one who spent most of her life in service to others. She served the poorest of the poor in that country and around the world.

Teaching

This involves one whose motivation is giving instruction or information. They have a tendency to put emphasis on accuracy of words. They also have a tendency to be critical of others who teach. They often present truth in an orderly sequence because of their delight in research. They detest using Scripture or Scripture illustrations out of context.

The danger they face is because of their emphasis on accuracy of words they may neglect the actual truth present in the lessons given because they are so focused on specific words. They also face the danger of getting out of the Spirit and more into intellect than necessary. Others may perceive them as being cold and analytical.  Scripture tells us that “…we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up but love edifies” (1 Corinthians 8:1).

A good example of this type of person would be Paul. He is listed among those who were teachers in Antioch (Acts 13:1, 1 Tim.2:7). He later became an Apostle. He often quoted the Old Testament in presenting truths. He was trained at the feet of Gamaliel. He always wanted his books (2 Timothy 4:13).

This motivation is necessary in the Church. The Pastoral calling needs this operation – “…apt to teach” (1 Timothy 3:2). God has set this motivation in the Church (1 Corinthians 12:28). It is a balancing factor by keeping the church on course and error out.

Exhortation

This motivation is one who encourages others. They want to see people experience the Word in practical ways, and are concerned with experiences to develop maturity. They are action people – step one, step two and then step three… They look for ways to turn bad experiences into growing opportunities. They seem to be on the side of those who are down and out.

They may be misunderstood because of their over-simplification in their step by step encouragement given to others. They have a tendency to take Scripture out of context when only applying it to experiences.

A good example of this is Barnabas who was known as the son of consolation or encouragement. Barnabas stood up for Paul when he wanted to be part of the Jerusalem church (Acts 9:27). He encouraged the Antioch Christians to continue to trust in God (Acts 11:23). Later he had a difference of opinion with Paul about John Mark, who had left Paul’s ministry. Rather than discarding him, Barnabas took him and started ministering in another area (Acts 15:39). 

Giving

This type of person has the ability to make money. They look for genuine needs to give to. They want to see the Kingdom advanced by their giving. They believe that what they have really belongs to God and they are stewards of it. Other people may look at this person and think that their whole life is tied up with money or that they are trying to control the church by the use of their money. 

Some examples of this motivation would be God Himself. He loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten son (John 3:16). Jesus motivated by love gave Himself on the Cross for us. Abraham was a tither and gave to his nephew Lot. He was very honest and paid for a plot of ground to bury his wife Sarah even though the land was offered to him free.

There are several passages in Scripture that tell us how we should relate to finances & giving. Deuteronomy 8:18 tells us, “And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” Notice God is establishing His covenant by blessing us with finances. This lets us know that money in and of itself is not bad but how it is used and the motivation behind it could be.

Romans 12:8 says, “… he who gives, with liberality…” The churches in Macedonia were commended for their use of finances in the midst of lack. 2 Corinthians 8:2 “…that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality.” They did not allow the famine to control their giving. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 8:12 “For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.” Once can be generous even with a little! And Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” The modern church needs to grasp what is being said here.

Leader

This is a person who has leadership abilities, like an administrator, Pastor or organizer. He is one who stands before others, out in front not only instructing but leading by example. This person sees the overall picture and can set goals. He has the ability to get others involved to help do the job and get the most out of available resources.

Other people may think that this person is avoiding work when they see him delegating tasks to others. His desire to complete a project may appear to be callous to other needs.

A good example of this is Nehemiah. He was the cupbearer to the king in the Persian palace. He had seen how Jerusalem had been destroyed and wanted to rebuild it. With the king’s permission, he returned and organized help to rebuild the city walls and gates. 

Mercy

This motivation is somewhat similar to the one who serves or ministers to others. This motivation allows the person to see a need for mercy in someone else. The person wants to remove the hurt and provide healing by ministering forgiveness and assistance. Usually this person is an easy going, calm person. 

Because of their gentleness, they may appear to be weak or indecisive which is usually not the case. Others may take offence at their desire to extend mercy to those they think are unworthy of it. 

A good example of this is the Good Samaritan. Jesus told the story of a man who was overtaken by thieves, who robbed and beat him leaving him for dead. A priest and a Levite came and passed by on the other side of the street without doing anything to help him. Then Luke 10:33-37 says, “But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” A mercy motivation demands helping someone in need regardless of what others expect.

CHARISMATIC GIFTS

The Apostle Paul begins his instructions about the gifts by saying in 1 Corinthians 12:1, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant.” The very thing that he does not want the church to be ignorant of is the thing that we are most ignorant about! The modern church, as a whole, has ignored these gifts and as a result the Body of Christ has suffered immensely.

We are told in 1 Corinthians 12:7 that, “… the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all.” They are not toys or trophies but tools to meet human need and advance God’s Kingdom. We need each of them in the church to do the job assigned to us. We are told in 2 Corinthians 10:4 “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” 

The gifts of the Spirit are given as He wills. 1 Corinthians 12:11 says, “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” They are manifestations of God’s power and ability to achieve a particular thing. Usually they are for someone’s benefit other than the individual through whom they flow.

We are instructed further in 1 Corinthians 14:12 “Even so you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.”

We should be aware that gifts do not indicate character; they speak more about the giver than the receiver of the gift. The receiver only has to receive the gift and yield to its working through him. 

Let’s look at the Scripture to see what is said about each of these gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 says, “for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.”

The first thing I notice is that there are three groupings with three gifts in each group. For example: Knowledge gifts – Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge & Discerning of Spirits. Power gifts – Working of Miracles, Gifts of Healings, & Faith. Vocal gifts – Prophecy, Tongues & Interpretation of Tongues.

Knowledge Gifts

WORD OF WISDOM – This gift is a segment of God’s overall wisdom. It is insight into the mind of God about a particular situation. It often gives understanding about the right use of knowledge. While divine wisdom can come through natural means, the gift of the word of wisdom is given supernaturally. Sometimes prophecy contains a word of wisdom or a word of knowledge.

There are several examples in Scripture of individuals who were used in the expression of this gift. Here are four of them:

Elisha exercised this gift as seen in 2 Kings 3:15-18, “Then it happened, when the musician played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. And he said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’ For thus says the LORD: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ And this is a simple matter in the sight of the LORD; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.”  The Lord spoke to him about what Israel should do in handling the surrounding armies. Generally speaking the word of wisdom is about future events.

Joseph exercised this gift also. Genesis 50:24-25 says, “And Joseph said to his brethren, “I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.”

Jesus was speaking to Peter through this gift  in John 21:18-19, “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

We see Agabus expressing this gift coupled with the gift of prophecy in Acts 21:10-11, “And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'”

WORD OF KNOWLEDGE – it is supernatural knowledge given by the Spirit of God. It is a fragment of God’s overall knowledge and has nothing to do with I.Q., education, or natural abilities. It deals primarily with past and present events. If future events are involved then it is coupled with the gift of prophecy. It operates by the anointing of the Spirit and God’s revelation.

Elisha exercised this gift by revealing to the king of Israel where the Syrian army would be and thereby allowing them to escape slaughter. 2 Kings 6:8-12 “Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, “My camp will be in such and such a place.” And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, “Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there.” Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice. Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?” And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.”

On another occasion Elisha’s servant Gehazi acted deceptively by taking a gift from Naaman. He took some silver and two changes of garments. When he returned back home Elisha asked where he had gone and he said that he did not go anywhere. Then Elisha said, “Did not my heart go with you when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants? Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow” (2 Kings 5:26-27).

A short time after Pentecost several people in the Jerusalem Church were bringing money to take care of those in poverty. Ananias and his wife sold a piece of property and said they were giving all the proceeds to the church for this purpose. But they kept back part of the money for themselves. When Ananias came before Peter with his portion of the money, Peter knew that Ananias had lied. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?” Divine judgment fell on Ananias and Sapphira and both died.

Paul exercised this gift in Lystra. Acts 14:8-10 says, “And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother’s womb, who had never walked. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice,” Stand up straight on your feet!” And he leaped and walked.” In addition to the word of knowledge, it seems apparent that there was also a miracle healing that occurred.

DISCERNING OF SPIRITS – the gift of discerning of spirits is not suspicion, fault finding, criticism, looking on the dark side of things, not for the uncovering of human failings or discerning people. It is discerning or seeing into the spirit realm to see which one of the following is in operation at a specific point in time:

• Demon spirits
• Angels
• Holy Spirit
• Human spirit

Isaiah the prophet told of a time when he saw into the Heavenlies and saw the Lord sitting on a throne. At the same time, he also saw angelic beings and heard the Lord speaking to him about his life and ministry (Isaiah 6:1-13). He knew who these beings were by the revelation that came through the gift of discerning of spirits.

John was exiled on the Isle of Patmos because of his testimony about Jesus. He also began to see and hear into the spirit realm and was given the information that we now have in the book of Revelation. He saw many heaven scenes as well as many tragic situations through this gift.

Paul and Silas were in Philippi and during a time of prayer a young girl who was demonized began to harass them for many days. God gave Paul insight into what was controlling the young girl and he cast it out thereby ruining her livelihood and those of her master’s (Acts 16:16-24).

Peter and John were sent by the leadership of the Jerusalem Church down to Samaria to check on some who had come to the Lord. When they arrived they laid hands on the new disciples and they received the Holy Spirit. Simon, the sorcerer, saw them and wanted the same power for himself. Peter responded, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God” (Acts 8:20-21).

We can see from these, as well as several others in the Scripture, that this gift has an important place in the life of the Church. We desperately need it in operation today.

Power Gifts

GIFT OF FAITH – Faith is referred to in Scripture as a fruit (Galatians 5:23), as a walk (Romans 1:27), and as a gift (1 Corinthians 12:9) As a gift, it is an instantaneous operation, a heightening of the faith present in the person. Every believer has a measure of faith that is released from within the human spirit (Romans 12:3). This measure of faith can grow (2 Thessalonians 1:3). But when this faith is released as a gift, it goes beyond the normal operation of faith and is empowered by a sudden work of the Holy Spirit. It works suddenly and then is gone. It is as if faith bubbles up, bubbles out and then bubbles back down to its normal level of operation. 

Here are some Biblical examples of its operation.

As Jesus and His disciples were walking on the road a woman with an issue of blood approached Him. She had said to her, ‘if I can touch the helm of His garment I will be well.’ She touched Him and Jesus felt a release of power go out from Him. After finding who touched Him, He said. “Daughter, be of good cheer, your faith has made you well, go in peace” (Luke 8:48). 

On another occasion Jesus was approached by two blind men who desired healing. Jesus asked if they believed that He could heal them and they responded, ‘yes, Lord.’ “Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.” And their eyes were opened” (Matthew 9:29-30)

Jesus was in Cana of Galilee when He was approached by a Nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. He asked Jesus to come with Him and heal his son. He did not go with him, but said “Go your way, your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way” (John. 6:50). When he arrived home he discovered that his son had been healed at the exact time when Jesus spoke. 

As Peter and John were going up to the Temple to pray, they encountered a forty year old lame man at the gate. He asked them for money, which they did not have with them. But Peter told the man to rise and walk and he was instantly healed (Acts 3:6-9). Later, Peter explained to those who had seen the miracle, “And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all” (Acts 3:16).

GIFTS OF HEALINGS

Physical healing is found in both the Old and New Testaments (Exodus 15:26, Isaiah 53:5, Matthew 8:17, Mark 16:17-18, James 5:14-15) these are just a few of the places where it is promised. 

We notice in 1 Corinthians 12:9 that both words ‘gifts’ and ‘healings’ are plural. This says to me that there are several types of gifts of healing and there are several types of methods of healing.

Methods of Healing

• Laying on of hands – Mark 16:17-18
• Anointing with oil – James 5:14-15
• Word of God – Psalm 107:20, Matthew 8:5-13
• Command of faith – Acts 3:1-5
• Confession of Scripture – Mark 11:22-24
• Act of obedience – 2 Kings 5:10-14
• Gifts of the Spirit – 1 Corinthians 12:9

In the ministry of Jesus there are nineteen recorded instances where He ministered physical healing to someone. In twelve of those instances faith is mentioned as being used at the time. In the remaining seven there is no mention of faith. 

There also are instances when two or more of the methods of healing will be used at the same event. For example, one might anoint with oil, lay hands on the sick person and give a command of faith for the person to be healed. 

We often see that some people are anointed to minister healing in one area or disease and be very successful, yet not be as successful in other areas. This is where the anointing of the Spirit regularly releases an anointing for healing through them for a particular condition. They cannot turn it on or off by their will, but it is as the Spirit of God releases healing anointing. 

GIFT OF MIRACLES – is an operation or working of supernatural power and ability. There are many different types of miracles mentioned in Scripture.

• Miracle healings – Matthew 8:2-3, Matthew 9:2-7, Acts 3:6, 9:34,40
• Protection miracles – Daniel 3:16-25, 2 Kings 3:16-22
• Provision miracles – 2 Kings 4, Psalms 78
• Satanic miracles – 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12
• Special miracles – Acts 19:11-12, 17-18, 20

In the working of any type of miracle, it all starts with God. He is the one who does the miracle. There is no such thing as a miracle that humans can do. God desires to do miracles. The things that we consider as miraculous are really just God being God. He does what He does and it is all for our benefit and the extension of His Kingdom. 

However, miracles generally do require our participation. With most of the promises of God there are conditions attached. When we obey or meet the conditions then He is free to perform what was promised. For example: He has promised to meet our financial needs. But one of the conditions related to that promise is that we tithe and give offerings (Malachi 3:8-10, Philippians 4:15-19). If we do our part then He can do the miracle of divine provision. This same principle holds true in all the areas where He does miracles.

In modern times there have been many individuals who experienced miracles flowing through their ministry. Some of them were: Alexander Dowie, John G. Lake, Smith Wigglesworth, William Branham, Oral Roberts, T.L. Osborn, Kenneth Hagin, Katherine Kuhlman, A. A. Allen, and many, many others. Some of these were controversial people, yet there is no doubt that miracles happened in their ministry.

God wants to do miracles today. History records that where ever there is a move of God, miracles happen!

Vocal Gifts

These gifts are one of the ways that the Spirit uses to speak to us. Prophecy, tongues and interpretation of tongues, in addition to His written word, are ways He used in the first century to speak to His church and He still uses them today in the twenty first century church. 

PROPHECY is the voice of God speaking in the language of the hearer to instruct, encourage, and direct His people. We are told in 1 Corinthians 14:1, “Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” It is a gift that is useful in the church as a whole, as well as individual lives. This gift edifies, exhorts and comforts (1 Corinthians 14:3) and builds up the church (1 Corinthians 14:4).

No place in the Bible are we told that this gift has ceased. There have been individuals with this gift from Abram down to the present time. There have been false as well as true prophets of God. There could be no false ones if there were not true ones. There is no such thing as a false three dollar bill because there is no real one. 

Instructions are given (1 Corinthians 14:26-33) for the exercise of vocal gifts in the church. But all are encouraged to use the gift of prophecy. “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged” (1 Corinthians 14:31). “Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy and do not forbid to speak with tongues” (1 Corinthians 14:39).

This gift operates by the anointing of the Spirit and the yieldedness of the individual, whether it is spoken to one person or to a multitude.

TONGUES are a language of men or of angels (1 Corinthians 13:1). It is a real language that the speaker has not studied and does not know. It expresses the divine presence of God and His ability.

The ability to speak is a learned ability. As a child we learned to speak our native language. The ability to speak in tongues, however, is given to each person when they are filled with the Spirit of God. That ability stays with them the rest of their life. All they have to do is yield to the Holy Spirit. When one is speaking in tongues they are speaking from their spirit (1 Corinthians 14:14). As at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit gives the utterance and the person does the speaking (Acts 2:4).

Twelve Reasons to Speak in Tongues

• Initial outward evidence of the Baptism in the Spirit (Acts 2:4, 10:44-46, 19:6).
• For personal edification (1 Corinthians 14:4).
• Keeps your experience with the Holy Spirit fresh and alive.
• Eliminates selfishness entering into our praying (Romans 8:26-27).
• Helps our truth in God (Jude 20).
• Keeps us free from filthy contamination that is around us.
• Provides a way to pray for things we do not know about.
• Provides us rest (Isaiah 28:11-12).
• Doorway into the supernatural realm.
• Helps us to tame the tongue (James 3:8).
• It is a way for believers to speak directly to God and bypass the mind (1 Corinthians 14:2).
• It is a means to do spiritual warfare (2 Corinthian 10:3-5).

Some, down through the years, have said that tongues ceased when the Bible was compiled in the early fourth century. But the Bible is clear that it did not. 1 Corinthians 13:8 says that tongues along with other spiritual gifts will cease “when that which is perfect is come” meaning when we see Jesus face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12). In the mean time we should use this gift for its stated purposes.

INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES is the bringing forth in the language of the hearers what was said in tongues. It is not a word for word translation but an interpretation of what was said. It gives the message of what was said in an understandable fashion. While tongues speak to God (1 Corinthians 14:2), the interpretation speaks to people. It is similar to prophecy with the exception that tongues go before it. 

The Apostle Paul desires that the gifts be for the edification of the church. 1 Corinthians 14:5 says, “I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.” As long as tongues exist in the church, the gift of interpretation of tongues will operate concurrently with it.

This gift is very limited in its scope. It works by interpreting tongues. It is not a gift that interprets dreams, visions or coffee grounds. It interprets tongues. Some have thought that if this gift worked in their life sometime then they could use it in other ways also. We have no Biblical precedent for that.

Releasing Spiritual Gifts

The gifts of the Spirit are released by the Spirit from within the human spirit. Yet, humans do have a part to play in their release. Paul said to the Church in Rome, “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established” (Romans 1:11). He also told young Timothy, “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership” (1 Timothy 4:14). He told him in a second letter, “Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Timothy 1:6). 

The attitude of some Christians has been to wait on God to come swooping down and making us exercise a spiritual gift. If the Spirit of God is in you then the potential, ability, and anointing is already present. It is then up to the individual to obey the promptings of the Spirit and allow the gift to flow through them.

Furthermore, we are told to desire spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 14:1, “Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” 1 Corinthians 13:31 says, “But earnestly desire the best gifts…” 1 Corinthians 14:12 says, “Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.” In this verse he is not telling them to stop desiring spiritual gifts, but to make sure their motivation is to edify the church through the gifts. 

Another way to activate the gifts is to spend time with and be mentored by someone who is already flowing in the gifts. I remember several years ago at New Life Church, in Louisville, KY we had a guest speaker who was very accurate in the ministry of the word of knowledge and prophecy. At the conclusion of a service he invited all the teenagers to come forward, stand at the front of the sanctuary and face the audience. He said a prayer over them and then asked them to yield to the Spirit and allow the gifts of prophecy and the word of knowledge to flow through them to specific individuals in the crowd. They all did and not a single one of them gave a wrong prophecy or called out something that was not accurate! Why did this happen? They were flowing in his anointing because they had spent some time under his ministry. Remember Elijah and Elisha? The principle still works!

Spiritual Manifestations or Reactions

Before I move on to Ministry Gifts, I think it is necessary to say some things about the difference between spiritual manifestation and reactions to the Spirit. This area has not been emphasized much in recent times. 

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 12:7, “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all.” This was said in the context of spiritual gifts. Each of the spiritual gifts could be said to be a manifestation of the Spirit of God. However, how one responds or reacts to the Spirit is not necessarily a manifestation of the Spirit. The Bible mentions some acceptable reactions or responses to the Spirit such as: praising God (Psalm 149-150), dancing before the Lord (1 Chronicles 15:27-29), shouting praise to God, and clapping hands (Psalm 47:1). It also mentions some other genuine manifestations of the Spirit, in addition to the gifts already mentioned, such as: dreams, and visions (Joel 2:28-29). 

A good way to tell the difference between a reaction and a genuine manifestation is whether or not it is in line with Scripture. Is it honoring the Lord? Does it edify the people present? Does it draw attention to the person doing the reactions? Does it appear to be self-centered? If it is of God it will always honor the Lord and be in agreement with the Word of God!

Taken from my book HOLY SPIRIT & HIS GIFTS available on Amazon.

CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE

In 1992 I, along with 13 others, went on a 3-week mission trip to South Africa and Mozambique. The last 4 days of the trip, I taught in a Bible College in Soweto in the evenings. As I was finishing up on the last night, my driver came rushing in and told me ‘we must leave now. A person killed a policeman about two blocks away and a riot between Zulus and ANC personnel has developed.’ He said, ‘my car is running, and the back door is open. I want you to get in and get down as low as possible, and I will try to get you out of here.’ He also told me, ‘you are the wrong color to be here at this time. If they see you, they will take their anger out on you.’ He opened the back door of the room, I ran and dove headfirst into the back seat. He slammed the door and took off as fast as he could down back alleyways and got me to safety. Praise the Lord!

FIRST TIME EXPERIENCES

Anyone want to drink some chicha? We were in Ecuador in the jungle visiting and taking supplies to villages. Their custom was to serve their guest chicha, a drink made from a plant native to the area. Juice would be extracted from the plant, the lady of the house would spit in it so it would ferment for about 3 days. Then it would be served to you. I tasted it but did not like it. No chicha, how about some capybara! They are a big rat weighing in at 15 -145 pounds! This was meat served to us in a couple places. They roasted it over an open fire and served it cut into pieces. It was pretty good, tasted a little like chicken. To not taste the chicha or eat the capybara would have been an insult to the people, so we silently prayed over it and ate. No one got sick.

IMPACT OF THE WORD OF GOD

In 1989 Some friends and I went to Moscow, and the surrounding area, to minister. I stood on the corner of a major street and hollered out ‘biblia.’ Within about 15 minutes we gave out over 200 Bibles, all we had with us. The ministry was overall a great success. A couple years later we went back to the same area to visit and minister again at the same places as before. At the hotel where we were staying while standing in the lobby waiting for my driver, I saw a man reading a Bible like the ones we had passed out before. I went over to talk with him and asked where he got his Bible. He spoke good English. He said a couple years ago some Americans were standing on a street corner one morning (the same one we were on) and gave him one. As he told me these words, tears were streaming down his face. He was a Christian before he got this Bible but had never had one for himself or his family. He told me how precious it was for him and the family. Only his pastor, in the church he went to, had a Bible. The Word of God is a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path. Let’s read and study it to be feed, led, encouraged and blessed!

FIRST MISSION TRIP

In early 1978 two other men and I went on a mission trip to Mexico. One night after teaching I was praying for people in a prayer line. After I prayed in English, the missionary would interpret it into Spanish. I had never studied Spanish and only knew 3-4 words of it. Suddenly while laying hands on a woman in prayer I began to speak a language I did not know. I noticed the missionary was not saying anything. After the service, I asked him about it. He said that I spoke perfect Spanish, and since he knew the lady, he mentioned that the things I said in prayer to God for her were exactly what she needed! Later in Guatemala on the same trip, it happened again! It has not happened since. When I pray in my prayer language (glossa) I may pray in one of several different languages. Some sound oriental, others American Indian, and others sound different than any language I have ever heard, perhaps a heavenly language (1 Cor.13:1). God can do much more than what we think He can do! Let us not try to put Him in a theological box, He just might jump out and do it anyway!

MINSK, BELARUS

My wife and I were in Minsk to teach in the state university about early church history from the book of Acts. We traveled over on the same plane and stayed in the same hotel as a group of YWAMers from Arkansas. In that group were some of our young people from New Life Church.

One night, we had just gone to bed when there was a loud knock on our door. One of the young men asked if I would come with him. The YWAM group had been praying for a young girl who suddenly began to manifest demonic reactions. I joined in with the prayer, but there seemed to be nothing being accomplished. I backed away to pray alone for a few minutes. Suddenly I knew in my spirit what the problem was. I saw this young girl a short time before she came to YWAM involved with her boyfriend in ungodly activity. I knew when and where it happened. I knew that as a result of that, she had great shame, and she became hardened against God. I knew that she had opened her life up to demonic power. Armed with this information I rejoined the group and in about five minutes she was set free!

The Baptist church I was raised in had a “revival” the second week of August every year. That meant a special speaker, planned visits in the community, services every night with a special emphasis on winning the lost. And usually, one or more people would get born again. We thank God for that! Really it was an opportunity to do evangelism in the community, and hopefully encourage the church members to keep doing it after the meetings were over.

But is that revival? The word “revival” means to restore life. It has roots in the Latin word “revivisco” re and vive meaning to live. To revive something indicates that at one time there was life that has been lost or is no longer viable. We often fashion our beliefs and actions around how we define a word. What I described in the above paragraph was what we believed to be revival. But whatever it was it did not last, we saw no long-term change in the lives of the people. Hence, the need to do it again the next August!

It appears to me the very use of the word revival indicates something that is temporary. To have something that is ongoing I think we need to move our thinking from the framework of revival to Discipleship.

To be Jesus’ disciple indicates a person is following Him to learn to live His lifestyle, know Him, imitate Him, work with Him to advance His Kingdom on the earth. This is far more than a two-week time of excitement then return to life as usual.

Jesus told the crowd that followed Him (and His disciples), “Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” Mark 8:34-37

Notice a few things mentioned in this verse –

1. Desire to come after Jesus. Indicates a life time commitment.
2. Denial of self. A daily activity.
3. Take up his cross. Where his will & Jesus’ will intersects.
4. Follow Jesus. Leaves his will, and plans for the present & future behind.

On another occasion (John 6:60-71) when Jesus was telling His disciples what would be expected from them, ‘some went back and no longer walked with Him.’ verse 66. Then in verse 67, Jesus asked the rest ‘Do you also want to go away?’ In response, Peter said, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” It is imperative that disciples be committed to His Lordship!

This goes far beyond the normal church member who shows up at church when he has nothing else to do! Who complains about the parking lot, the pews, the music, the nursery, the preaching, etc. etc.

A disciple is dependable, committed, teachable, knows how to follow, can recognize spiritual authority, and can be trusted!

The question for us then is: Are we disciples of Jesus or just occasional friends that show up when we have a need?

CALLED INTO MINISTRY

I am the youngest of eight children. Our family were sharecroppers – meaning we lived on someone else’s farm while sharing in the expense and profits of the enterprise but doing all the work! During the summer break between my junior and senior year of high school, I went to Baptist Bible College in Mayfield, Ky. My brother, John, was an instructor there. The school had male students, most of whom were 30 years old and above. They were using me to see if someone out of high school could successfully pass the course. I had no desire to be a preacher. I had my brother John who was a pastor, an uncle who was a pastor, a brother in law who was a pastor and I figured that was enough for one family! Anyway, after about two weeks of classes, I felt that the Spirit of God was dealing with me about becoming one! I talked to my brother, and he suggested I continue to be open to what God might be saying to me.I put a fleece before the Lord. If this particular thing would happen, I would consider it to be a confirmation of what I was hearing in my spirit. It happened exactly as I prayed! That was almost 56 years ago!

HOW IT ALL GO STARTED

My brother, Dr. John T. Parish, preached on a Sunday morning at Our Savior Baptist Church in January 1981. One of the deacons, Joe Hardy, asked if he would be interested in becoming their pastor. He said, ‘no’ but I know someone you might talk to. That person was me. I was pastoring in Paris, Tn. Joe called me to come speak on a weekend. As a result of that weekend, and further conversations on the phone, the church called me as Pastor even though I kept telling Joe I was not interested in pastoring in Louisville. To get him to quit hounding me about it, I told him I would pray about it. A couple of weeks later my wife asked if I had prayed about going to Louisville, and I said no. She said, ‘you told Joe Hardy that you would.’ I asked her if she had prayed about it and she said she had. I asked, ‘what did the Lord say?’ Her response was ‘yes.’ I prayed about it and got the same answer! We moved the last week of May 1981 and I was the Senior Pastor for 21 1/2 years. Since that time I have served as Teaching Pastor and my son, Tim, has been Senior Pastor since January 2003.

WE MOVE TO LOUISVILLE

We came to Louisville in May 1981 to pastor a small church called Our Savior Baptist Church which was composed of Spirit-filled people that had retained the name Baptist. Near the end of 1981, we changed the constitution and by-laws to conform to a charismatic church structure. As we were thinking and praying about the name for it several possible names were suggested. We finally settled on New Life Church. The week following, one of our members Leta Hardy, told me the following story. Before I came the church had an interim Pastor, Dr. Rod Buckson. The church had been struggling to stay together and at the conclusion of a service Dr. Buckson prophesied that ‘out of the ashes of Our Savior new life would come.’ We had heard correctly in choosing the name New Life Church! Since that time the church has grown in number, impact in the community, and around the world seeing the hand of God meet human need! To God be the Glory!

INNER CITY MINISTRY

We had a couple who were members of NLC who felt led to go to Youth With A Mission in Elmsprings, Arkansas. When they finished the course and returned, they, along with some others, felt called to do ministry in the inner city of Louisville. As a result, the inner city ministry was born that continued from 1990-2000. We bused the kids into rented facilities and had children’s church with them one or two nights a week. The seeds of the Gospel were sown and we began to see fruit from it. We believe there will be continuing fruit as the years go by.

BUILDING BUILDINGS

When we came to Louisville in May 1981, the church was meeting in the women’s club in St. Matthew. About 9 months later we rented a house on Browns Lane. We had services there for about a year. At that time we were averaging about 100 people on Sunday mornings. From there we moved to a Seventh Day Adventist Church for a few months before moving to Zachary Taylor Elementary School. While there we purchased the present property on Goose Creek Road. We purchased 8 1/2 acres that had been a small farm.

The local banks were hesitant to lend us money because we had never borrowed money before and had no credit rating. We raised the money to pay off the land and used a church finance company, by selling bonds to church members and others in the community, to build the first three buildings.

As the church continued to grow, we saw the need and felt led by the Holy Spirit to build a new auditorium. It was started in June 2006 and was occupied in August 2007. We also purchased the house on either side of the auditorium which gave us slightly over 11 acres.

RADIO AND TV MINISTRY

While pastoring in Paris, Tn. I began a ministry on 52 cable stations across the USA. I brought that ministry with us when we moved to Louisville. We went on WBNA channel 21 here in Louisville and for many years were on Sky Angel satellite broadcasting The Word program that covered all the contiguous states in the USA.

After getting to know Dr. Lester Sumrall, he invited me to put our program on his short wave radio stations. He had five of them that covered 90% of the earth’s population. We did that for two years.

Some Stories from our Ministry in Paris, to give some more background and context to the Ministry.

When we pastored in Tennessee, there was a young man who was the son of a family in the church who drank alcohol and used drugs that we had been praying for. I had told him that when he was ready to turn to God I would come and pray with him. One night about 2 a.m. he called and asked me to meet him for he was ready. I met him in the parking lot of a grocery store. When I got in his truck I discovered that he was drunk and angry at me for getting his parents involved in our charismatic church. He threatened to shoot me with his 45 caliber revolver which he pulled from under his seat. I talked him out of doing that. Then he took his hunting knife from his belt and threatened to stab me to death. I talked him out of that. Then he threatened to beat me up, again I talked him out of that. I answered a number of his questions about life in general. By that time it was about 4 a.m. I asked him if he was ready now to submit his life to the Lord and he said “yes.” He was born again, delivered from demon spirits, and filled with the Holy Spirit! He asked me to follow him home because he did not think his parents would believe him when he told them what had happened to him! I agreed that they probably would not believe him. He woke them up and told them what had happened and at first they could hardly believe it but I affirmed that everything that he had said was true. They cried, shouted, and praised God! That young man when to Bible school and became a useful disciple of Jesus! To God be the Glory!

While we were pastoring in Paris, Tn. one of the young ladies in the church began to have emotional and mental distress. At a Women’s Aglow meeting she came forward for prayer. The guest speaker, and some of the other ladies present, began to pray for her. They said she had a demon and were trying to cast it out with no success. Several of the ladies went for lunch at the home of one of the members of our church and afterward again tried to cast this spirit out with no success. The lady, in whose house they were, called me to come to help them. After praying and rebuking the spirits for a few minutes, I recognized we were getting nowhere and I backed away to pray alone. After about 5 minutes I had a short vision, it must have lasted about 2 seconds. In the vision, I saw this girl with her boyfriend in a mobile home. It was on a Thursday at 3:30 p.m. and I also saw the house number on the outside. The mobile home was blue and gray on the outside. I saw them in the back bedroom having sex. I immediately joined the group and declared what I saw in the vision. She said, ‘who told you that?’ I answered the Holy Spirit and when I rebuked the spirit, it came out instantly and she was set free! Praise be to God!

In early 1978 two other men and I went on a mission trip to Mexico. One night after teaching I was praying for people in a prayer line. After I prayed in English, the missionary would interpret it into Spanish. I had never studied Spanish and only knew 3-4 words of it. Suddenly while laying hands on a woman in prayer I began to speak a language I did not know. I noticed the missionary was not saying anything. After the service, I asked him about it. He said that I spoke perfect Spanish, and since he knew the lady, he mentioned that the things I said in prayer to God for her were exactly what she needed! Later in Guatemala on the same trip, it happened again! It has not happened since. When I pray in my prayer language (glossa) I may pray in one of several different languages. Some sound oriental, others American Indian, and others sound different than any language I have ever heard, perhaps a heavenly language (1 Cor.13:1). God can do much more than what we think He can do! Let us not try to put Him in a theological box, He just might jump out and do it anyway!

In preparation for our 40th anniversary at NLC, we discovered this from our church bulletin of May 16, 1982.

NEVER AGAIN

1. Never again will I confess “I can’t” for “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Phil.4:13

2. Never again will I confess unmet needs or poverty for “My God shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory.” Phil.4:19

3. Never again will I confess fear for “God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind. ” 2 Tim.1:7

4. Never again will I confess a lack of faith, for “God has given to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3

5. Never again will I confess weakness for “The Lord is the strength of my life.” Ps.27:1 Also “…for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Neh.8:10

6. Never again will I confess the supremacy of Satan over my life for “Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.” 1 Jn. 4:4

7. Never again will I confess defeat for “God always causes me to triumph in Christ Jesus.” 2 Cor.2:14

8. Never again will I confess sickness for “With His stripes, I am healed.” Isa.53:5 “Himself took my infirmities and bore my sickness.” Matt.8:17

9. Never again will I confess lack of wisdom for “But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God.” 1 Cor.1:30

10. Never again will I confess worries and frustrations for I am “Casting all my cares upon Him who cares for me.” 1 Pet. 5:7

11. Never again will I confess bondage for “Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty.” 2 Cor.3:17

12. Never again will I confess condemnation for “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

MISSIONS

Since the church has been in existence it has budgeted and given at least 10% of its income to local, national, and international ministries. Over 40 of our members have gone through training at Youth With A Mission in Elmsprings, Arkansas, Nashville, Tennessee, Orlando, Florida, Kona, Hawaii, and other places.

Because of this, after praying for an avenue to start a YWAM base in Louisville, Andy Landers, who was known by a number of our members who had ministered with him in Arkansas, approached Tim about renting our buildings to them to establish a base in Louisville! They started in 2007 shortly after our new auditorium was finished.

In addition to YWAM outreaches, the church has sent ministry teams to Haiti, Nigeria, Niger, South Africa, Ecuador, and many other nations.

HISPANIC MINISTRY

One of our beliefs is that a church in any setting should be reaching those of various nationalities, and racial people groups. Several years ago, a hispanic group approached us about renting our gym on Sundays to hold services, which they did for several years. Now, the founding pastor of that group is on staff at NLC and is in the process of establishing several hispanic works in Louisville!

CHURCH DISCIPLINE

There have been a few occasions when it was necessary to do church discipline when all other means had been exhausted. Most of them have occurred when relationships went beyond the boundaries.

Once we had a small group leader who was also a counselor on a crisis hotline. He talked several times with a lady who called in and the relationship got out of hand. The leadership of the church confronted him and but he refused to repent. We, therefore, had to relieve him of his position.

On another occasion, we had a Sunday School teacher who had an affair. When his wife found out about it she came to see me. I went to him and he refused to repent so he was no longer allowed to teach the class anymore.

At a night service, we had a visitor stand up at the end of a praise song and began to prophesy judgment upon the church. She said a number of things that were totally erroneous. I stopped her and told her to sit down which she did. After the service, she followed me to my office and proceeded with the curses on the church. I told her to leave and never come back. I reminded her that the curse causeless would not come. I refused it and told it to go back where it came from! I haven’t heard from her since.

Church discipline is the responsibility of the leadership of the local congregation, divine discipline is left up to God Himself.

PASTORAL TRANSITION

Around 1995 I was teaching at Ecclesia College in Elmsprings, Arkansas. One evening before a night class, the director, Oren Paris, and I were having dinner. We were talking about leadership issues when he said, ‘to have long-term success you must have a successor.’ I had previously been thinking about that topic and when he said that it strongly resonated within me. My son, Tim, and his wife, Marlene, were finishing Bible College. After much prayer, we invited them to move to Louisville so that he could be my associate pastor. Initially, he had no interest in being a pastor because he thought he would be a missionary.

He serviced seven years as my associate. Around 2001 I began to sense that I should transition the church to him. We began to get him involved in our Elder meetings and he started preaching more on Sundays. After we made the transition we looked back at the preaching schedule for 2002 and discovered that he had preached 26 out of the 52 Sunday services.

We made the transition the first Sunday in January 2003. The people accepted him with open arms. He has done a tremendous job. I have remained on staff as a Teaching Pastor, as well as an Elder.

The Bible is composed of different types of writings. For example, we have history, poetry, prophecy, and other writings. Yet, the Bible itself claims divine inspiration (2 Timothy 3:16-17). When one begins to examine the available manuscripts, it is found that 99.5 % are in total agreement. Those that disagree have to do with different spelling, and arrangement, and other markings. When compared with other ancient writings none compare with the Bible.

Christians know the truth of the Bible because they have experienced the reality of God as manifested through Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Answered prayer, healings, signs, and miracles also confirmed the veracity of the Bible (Mark 16:20, Galatians 3:17, Hebrews 2:3, 6:17, 2 Peter.1:19).

So, the Bible was given by divine inspiration and confirmed by many witnesses. Now it behooves us to apply it as God intended. And that brings us to realize that the Bible speaks of several different covenants that were in operation at various times for different reasons.

THE COVENANTS

The Noahic covenant preserved the human race during the time of the flood and is for all time as testified by the rainbow.(Genesis 9:14-16)

The Abrahamic covenant was established by God to Abraham and His Seed (Galatians 3:16) to establish a nation through whom Messiah would come. The assurance given is Faith (Genesis 15:6). The New Covenant has its roots in the Abrahamic covenant.

The Mosaic covenant came out of the Abrahamic covenant which was established to reveal Messiah through types and shadows because the people living under this covenant did not have the Spirit of God living in them as we do today under the New Covenant. The Mosaic covenant was time-limited. It was operative until Jesus was revealed (Luke 16:16). The moral law of God revealed in the Mosaic covenant is still true, but the ceremonial law is not – it was given in types and shadows which have now been fulfilled in Christ (Matthew 5:17).

The New Covenant is the one we live under today. It far exceeds the requirements, provisions, and blessings of the Mosaic covenant. Perhaps the greatest advantage is that Jesus lives in the redeemed spirit of believers today. To get a better understanding of this, read Hebrews 7-10 and rejoice that you ARE living under the New Covenant!

SO HOW DOES ALL THIS HELP US?

When reading Scripture we need to see to whom it was addressed and understand what covenant they were living under. Too often we do not do this and misinterpret the meaning of the passage.

Here is a very obvious example: a few years ago I was listening to Christian radio and heard a Pastor say that God had wings with feathers. He was attempting to exegete Psalm 91 where it says, “He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings, you shall take refuge, His truth shall be your shield and buckler,” This was possibly written by Moses who understood God being outside us doing something for us.(Exodus 33:22) Obviously, God is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, immutable, transcendent, imminent, and can do as He pleases, but always keeps His word! He can reveal Himself in ways outside us but the primary way He reveals Himself today is within the spirit of the redeemed.

Another Scripture that is often misused is 2 Chronicles 7:14 which says, “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Numerous times I have heard this quoted at prayer meetings where the ‘my people’ was taken to mean Americans! This was given by God during the Mosiac covenant and has no specific reference to anyone but Israelites at that time. BUT can be used correctly by any person who has made Jesus their Lord by meeting the conditions!

JESUS CHRIST IS LORD! No person nor anything we can create is capable of being Lord in our life! It is as lifeless as the false gods of the heathen nations in the Old Testament.

Jesus’ Lordship will be recognized by all in the future. Philippians 2:9-11 says, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Recognizing Jesus’ Lordship is what gets one born again. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.”

Even though one is born again that does not mean that he is instantly spiritually mature. Growth is needed in many areas. 1 Peter 2:2 says, “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.” Peter further said in 2 Peter 3:18, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” The Apostle Paul indicated the need for believers to grow when he said in Ephesians 4:15, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head – Christ.”

An old cliche says, ‘He is Lord of all or He is not Lord at all.’ I think the previous verses, and many others, prove this to not be true. One is a spiritual infant when he is first born again. He needs to be taught the Word of God, he needs to learn to worship, he needs to be discipled in spiritual realities.

CARNALITY

Paul dealt with carnality in the Corinthian church (1 Corinthians 3:1-3) as well as those in Colosse (Colossians 3:1-17). These were believers that by now should have been much more spiritually mature than their actions showed them to be.

One can be a believer, truly born again, but still need to grow. This should only last for a short period of time. When one is born again he is “translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God” (Colossians 1:13), he has been blessed with “all spiritual blessings in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3), he has been given “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3-4). While all of these are his positionally in Christ he may not have learned how to appropriate them into daily life. This is where the Body comes into operation. This is why the Ministry gifts are useful (Ephesians 4:11-16). Fellowship with other believers in a local church congregation is also very helpful.

BECOMING WHO YOU ARE

All of us need to know who we are in Christ, and who He is in us. The best place to learn these things is in the New Testament – Romans 1 – Revelation 1. There are 168 things that the NT says you are and possess in Christ. Read these books, make a note when you find wording such as “in Him” or “In Whom.” Until we know these things we will never attain the spiritual stature that is needed in all of us.

OBEDIENCE

Part of the great commission in Matthew 28:19-28 requires this. “Go, therefore and make disciples of all the nations (people groups), baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe (obey) all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end (consummation) of the age.” Recognizing Scripture as the final authority and obeying it is something that many of us have not been taught to do! Why? Most of us do not like to be told what to do! We want to be in charge.

About three decades ago we had a couple in the church who had a young son. The parents were training him to obey what they told him to do. One day he responded ‘I just want to do what I want to do’! This is applicable and descriptive of many of us today.

The more obedient we are to Jesus and His Word the greater His Lordship will be seen in us.

Yahweh is a covenant-making and keeping God. He gives His Word and keeps it! But after the Fall the recipients of His covenants have been fallen individuals who have not kept the conditions of His covenants.

In this article, I want to look briefly at Five major covenants so we can get a better understanding of the covenant that we are living in today.

ADAMIC COVENANT

While not specifically called a covenant in Genesis, yet the five-fold mandate given to Adam has the earmarks of a covenant. Genesis 1:28 says, “…be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it, have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

This reveals the will of God for all of mankind. It had a condition that they were to obey. This is a mandate that is still operative today.

NOAHIC COVENANT

Because Adams’s descendants became excessively wicked and disobeyed God, He determined that He would destroy the wicked and start over with Noah who was an upright man. Genesis 6:18, Genesis 9:1-17 gives the basics of this covenant. The promise God made to never destroy the earth again by flood is still in force today.

ABRAHAMIC COVENANT

Through Abraham God established a nation of people, Israel, and a covenant that not only included that nation but anyone else who received Abraham’s seed, Jesus, as their Lord (Galatians 3:16, 29).

To get a better understanding of the Abrahamic Covenant, read the following Scriptures:

Genesis 12:1-3, Genesis 15:1-21, Genesis 17:1-27, Romans 4:1-3, Romans 4:9, 12-13, Romans 4:16, Romans 9:7-8, Galatians 3:6-9, Galatians 3:14,16, 29.

The Abrahamic Covenant is the foundation on which the New Covenant is based.

MOSAIC COVENANT

The Mosaic Covenant was a covenant made with a nation of people that God intended to use to advance His kingdom. Many of the actions required of them were to be types and shadows of Messiah’s coming and the Cross which would provide eternal redemption.

I fear that many today get caught up in the feast days, holy days, and pageantry and fail to realize that these were all pointing in some way to Jesus and the New Covenant. No requirements of the ceremonial law, which were part of the Mosaic Covenant, are in force today. They were fulfilled in Jesus. The moral law given under the Mosaic Covenant, since it emanates from Yahweh Himself, is part of the New Covenant. Promises made to the nation of Israel, which have not been fulfilled, will be kept either under the New Covenant or in eternity future.

NEW COVENANT

Read the following Scriptures and rejoice that you are living under the terms of the New Covenant!

2 Corinthians 3:14, Hebrews 7:22, Hebrews 8:1, Hebrews 8:6-10, Hebrews 8:13, Hebrews 9:6-15, Hebrews 9:18-22, Hebrews10:16-18, 29, Hebrews 12:24, Hebrews 13:20-21.

We, believers in Jesus today, need to familiarize ourselves with the finished work of Jesus on the Cross. We have a better covenant than the Mosaic Covenant established on better promises.

There are a number of things that I am glad about in the New Covenant. Perhaps the greatest one is that God through Christ lives IN us! Colossians 1:27 “…Christ in you, the hope of glory.” “Greater is He that is in you…” 1 John 4:4. We can recognize that God as the creator is greater than His creation but that He not only is with us but lives in us. This should change the way we see everything. Not the least is how we pray. We do not pray to a God who is far off, whose attention we much get by external means, but one who is closer to us than our next breath!

We should study the New Testament from Romans 1 – Revelation 1 and see all the things that have been provided to and for us in the great salvation that Jesus purchased and has given to us. These things are not things we must wait until we get to Heaven to enjoy, but provisions that are for today!

Blessings!