Gifts of the Spirit: Prophecy

Sermon: 1 Corinthians 14:1-29; 1 Corinthians 12. We are to pursue love, which is the power of God, and earnestly desire the gifts of the Spirit to minister to others. God watches over His Word to perform it. We want to see the work of Christ on the cross to come to pass. When people were baptized in the Holy Spirit, they received tongues. There are tongues and interpretation of tongues and there is a “sign tongue,” to show a miracle of the Holy Spirit, such as when the hearer hears the tongue in their own language. All gifts will glorify God. Prophecy is a supernatural gift all believers can receive by yielding to the Holy Spirit. We are to desire to prophesy. Prophecy builds up the church. It should edify, exhort, and comfort men. We should walk in a way that helps build up others. This gift does not foresee into the future. The office of a prophet may do that. Prophecy is for believers; tongues are a sign to unbelievers. All gifts are for edification. We are to judge or evaluate what the prophet speaks. It is your choice to yield to the Holy Spirit. We are not to quench the Spirit or despise prophecies (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21). Test all things; hold fast to what is good. There are two tests to receiving a prophetic word: 1) Does it line up with the Word of God? 2) Does it bear witness with my spirit? Some prophetic words that are given, you will need to shelve or discard. We are called to judge and evaluate prophecies, if they are from God. Revelation 19:10 says the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Examples of prophetic words: Luke 1:39-55 (Mary and Elizabeth) and 1:67-79 (Zacharias). Prophecy is speaking edification, exhortation, and comfort. It is divinely inspired. Speaking Scriptures can be prophecy. Offering message: Psalm 60:1-5. Sow for the wealth of the nations to come to us as the Body of Christ. Do not think of just your personal needs. God cares about all of our needs. Pastor Syd told of how the Holy Spirit divinely gave him the sim card numbers that were needed for him to access his phone in Ephesus, Turkey, so he could take pictures. Keep a big picture of what God is doing. Increase your vision, expand your heart for the world. Do according to His Word. May everyone in CWI be blessed with abundance to share.