—1 CORINTHIANS 12:28, KJV
This is by far the most important and highest level of the prophetic dimension. This is the mighty office of the prophet. Without this office there would be no solid foundation in the church (Eph. 2:19–20). The office of the prophet is one of the most important offices in the body of Christ. The office of the prophet carries the strongest and most authoritative prophetic utterances because they speak using the spirit of prophecy, the gift of prophecy, the prophecy anointing, and also from the prophetic ministry office in which they stand.
Before we go into the attributes of this office, let us understand what a prophet is. A prophet, simply put, is the ambassadorial mouthpiece of God. There are women prophets in the Bible who were called prophetesses. A prophetess is simply a female spokeswoman and prophet of the Lord. Male or female, without the prophet, the church will miss out on a lot of what God is saying and doing in the earth.
A prophet prophesies with greater authority, capacity and depth than other Holy Spirit–filled believers who have not been sovereignly called to the office of the prophet. Moreover, when a prophet prophesies, they prophesy with greater precision, accuracy, insight, wisdom, knowledge, and scope of heaven’s view for the earth. The office of the prophet ministers and administers the prophetic in the breadth, length, depth, and height of the prophetic dimension.
Now, there are many attributes to the office of the prophet:
• Prophets have the ability to set up that which is upset.
• Prophets place things that are out of line into line (order).
• Prophets declare and decree what God is speaking in every situation, circumstance, and arena of society.
• Prophets do rebuke, reproof, and pass godly judgment in love and wisdom.
• Prophets edify (to build up), exhort (to stir up), and comfort (to cheer up).
• Prophets bring into open view God’s view, perceptive, heartbeat, and mind-set for His people, nation, or territory.
• Prophets give clear godly guidance, direction, and understanding.
• Prophets explain and expound on things in all facets of time, seasons, and elements for getting people to understand the spiritual side of them.
• Prophets keep leaders accountable to God and those under their leadership.
• Prophets stand in the gap as intercessors, seers, and watchmen (shamar prophets) for the people.
Prophets have a very unique place within the body of Christ. Their ministry is very important and cannot be neglected or despised. The prophet’s ministry is the interpretation of everything from a spiritual standpoint. This ministry is used to bring spiritual implications of things past, present, and in the future before the people of God. This ministry also gets people to understand the significance of happenings in their spiritual walk and help them understand their value. There are three functions of the prophet’s ministry:
• To hold things to the full thought of God, usually a reactionary thing
• To call back, redeclare, and repronounce of God’s mind, therefore bringing into clear view again the thoughts of God
• To relate to the full, original, and ultimate purpose of God in and through His people
There are three gifts that naturally flow through the prophet:
• The word of knowledge or wisdom: a supernaturally inspired utterance of facts and knowledge, past, present, and future
• The gift of prophecy: a supernaturally inspired utterance from God
• The discerning of spirits: a supernatural ability to discern a person’s spiritual character and the source of his actions and messages, such as from the Holy Spirit, demonic spirits, the human spirit, or from the flesh
In addition, prophets can flow and operate in most of the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit, which I will outline in the next chapter. The prophetic administration of a prophet is that they supervise the execution of, use of, conduct of, and manage the prophetic function. In retrospect to prophecy, there are different ways to administer and minister prophecy. Prophets have the power, authority, and grace by God to go beyond the first three dimensions of the prophetic or prophecy and administer the prophetic anointing through confirmation, affirmation, correction, rebuke, alignment, impartation, direction, counsel, activation, revelation, and birthing.
Prophets can walk in the supernatural like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and Jesus, who operated in deliverance, miracles, healing, and helps. As there are different administrations to the office of the prophet, there are different types of prophets who had various assignments and callings. John the Baptist did not operate in miracles but was governmental. Jeremiah was a weeping prophet who was called to nations and kingdoms. Ezekiel and Zechariah were visionary prophets. Moses was a deliverer, judge, and shepherd. Samuel was Israel’s last judge, priest, dean, and prophet of the school of prophets. Regardless of the dimension of the prophetic that a person will operate in, it is done through the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit or the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
33 Blue Letter Bible, “propheteia,” www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G4394 (accessed June 5, 2013).
34 Blue Letter Bible, s.v. “chazah,” www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=H2372 (accessed June 4, 2013). See also http://www.thefreedictionary.com/prophecy.
35 Blue Letter Bible, s.v. “propheteuo,” www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G4395 (accessed June 5, 2013). See also http://www.thefreedictionary.com/prophesy.
Chapter Ten
SUPERNATURAL GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
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.
—ROMANS 12:6, NKJV
WHEN OPERATING BEYOND one’s fullness in the Holy Ghost it is necessary to comprehend the impact of the Spirit’s full function of gifts in and through the life and witness of the believers, called the body of Christ. The Spirit-filled encounter is more than just speaking in tongues, shouting, and dancing in church; in reality it is entering into the fullness of the gifts and fruits of the Spirit, which is detailed in the New Testament. (See 1 Corinthians 12:7–11; Galatians 5:22–23.) Moreover, it has a broader dimension of exercising and demonstrating God’s gifts of spiritual enablement, empowerment, and endowment, which is described in Romans 12:3–8 and Ephesians 4:7–12.
Romans 12:3–8 (NKJV) 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. 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.
We can see that we must serve the Lord in the spiritual gifts that He has given to us. The Lord wants us to use them according to the proportion or measure of faith that comes with that spiritual gift and call. If it’s teaching, then use it by teaching. If it’s ministry, then use it in ministering. If it’s to exhortation, then use it by exhorting. And if it’s prophecy, then use it by prophesying. In the passage above the apostle Paul was using himself as an example in his own apostolic function in the body as an authoritative apostle through the grace given to him.
THE MEASURE OF FAITH TO OPERATE
With any gift or calling there is a measure of faith that is given to an individual at birth to operate in that future call and gifting. The measure of faith is not talking about saving faith but the faith to receive and to exercise the gifts of God apportioned to the believer. When we hear the term measure of faith it is best understood a
s a synonym for spiritual gift (charisma). With any spiritual gift there is a measure of faith to operate, but there is also a measure of rule or influence as well. We cannot operate outside of the measuring line or boundaries that are established within the spiritual gift. There is a grace to operate within the sphere or limitation of the gift and call. This faith is not also talking about the gift of faith, but there is a measure of faith that is bestowed upon the person that possesses a particular calling and gifting.
Moreover, our unique and different gifts and abilities should cause a believer to love and depend more on one another. This should make us more united as one body in Christ Jesus. There should be a strong synergy and connectivity within the body of Christ, all working together in love. There is no gift greater or better than another, but love is to be pursued when operating in concert with the gifts of the Spirit.
Prophecy, especially as in Romans 12:6, refers either to those creative and creation gifts from the Lord that empower and enable the believer to view all aspects of life with special, continual prophetic insight, knowledge, understanding, and discernment. The discernment is independent of the public prophetic office or special use by the Spirit in giving public prophecy and of the manifestation of public prophecy in uttering a prophetic word that the Lord brought to a believer’s mind spontaneously. (See 1 Corinthians 12:10.)
When the Scriptures say to prophesy in proportion to our faith, more likely it means that prophecy or the prophetic gift is to be exercised in accordance with the biblical integrity and maturity God has granted the oracle in recognizing that God is the originator of the gift. There are people who want the gift for the purpose of self-glorification but not for the Giver of that gift, which is the Lord, who should get all the glory. There should be a hunger as new covenant believers not just to want to prophesy or operate in the gift of prophecy (or any gifts of the Holy Spirit) but rather to want to operate and to hear God speaking, therefore declaring what the Father is saying, that He may be glorified as a result.
THE GRACE OF GOD
When we talk about the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit, what I am referring to is the Greek word charisma (singular) or charismata (plural), which are used to designate spiritual gifts in the most simple, practical, and technical sense of the word. They are graces of the Holy Spirit.”36 The gift of God on your life is the “holy grace” and “holy call” as well.
Have you met anyone who was very gifted or talented? It is because they are graced and called to a specific area. It doesn’t have to be ministry per se, but whatever they are operating in causes them to be very charismatic. For a person to be charismatic basically means that the person is gifted. Usually prophetic and spiritual people are the most charismatic individuals. In the Book of Ephesians 4:1–13, there are words such as doma and dorea that are also used to designate gifts, referring to these gifts as “enablers” or “equippers” for personal service and as facilitators in the kingdom of God. The doma or dorea gifts that the Lord Jesus gave to the church today are the fivefold ascension gifts of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.37
In The Message Bible, Ephesians 4:11–13 says:
He handed out gifts above and below, filled heaven with his gifts, filled earth with his gifts. He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christ’s followers in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ.
These are the doma or dorea gifts within God’s body. We cannot mix them up with the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. These are given by Christ to the church for the purpose of equipping the saints for the work of ministry. If one is called to the five-fold ministry, that person must know which one of these doma offices (gifts) they are called to and born to operate in.
In Corinthians 12:1 the word pneumatikos is used to also describe the gifts as “things belonging to the Spirit.”38 The point I am trying to make is that each of these words gives a contemporary meaning to the supernatural work of the Spirit in our lives as He prepares us for kingdom service and expansion in grace.
WHAT ARE THE SUPERNATURAL GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT?
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
—1 CORINTHIANS 12:1, KJV
The apostle was addressing the church at Corinth in regards to the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit. It was his heart and motivation to upgrade that church in the things of the Spirit. He stated that he would not have them be ignorant. As prophetic people we must understand the working of the Holy Spirit and must possess the spirit of love to flow effectively in the gifts of the Spirit. The Bible says that God gives severally as He sees fit, and that all the different gifts of the Spirit work in tandem by the same Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:11). Paul didn’t want this gifted church to be misinformed on the different gifts, their operation, and also how to operate in them in love. The Corinthians’ misunderstanding of the expression and operation in which the Holy Spirit works through them caused them to abuse the public usage of the spiritual gifts. This caused confusion within the congregation in regards to the gifts of tongues and prophecy. Paul responds with fatherly wisdom to the problem in the church by bringing clarity on the necessity of spiritual gifts operating in unity, love, and in order to alleviate disorder, dissension, confusion, and pride outlined throughout chapter 12 of 1 Corinthians.
In verse 1, we read that Paul did not want these gifted individuals to be ignorant of what they were operating in. There is nothing like operating in something that you have no knowledge of. The apostle Paul wanted to bring understanding and order in the Corinthian church.
In the Old Testament prophets operated in these gifts of the Spirit, and the difference in the New Covenant is that the same thing can happen potentially through every believer and not just through a few. Ephesians 4:12 tells us these gifts are given to prepare, train, educate, and equip God’s people for holy service and for building up the body of Christ.
In Mary Fairchild’s article on “What are Spiritual Gifts?” she states that the term “spiritual gifts” comes from the Greek words charismata (gifts) and pneumatika (spirits). They are the plural forms of charisma, meaning “expression of grace,” and pneumatikon, meaning “expression of Spirit.”39
We can see that spiritual gifts are expressions of the divine personality of the Holy Spirit through the Christian believer. In other words, there are various and multiple kinds of spiritual gifts, ministries, operations, administrations, services, and graces sov-ereignly given by God according to 1 Corinthians chapter 12. The supernatural gifts (charismata) are endowments distributed by the Holy Spirit. In the New Testament the purpose and mission of spiritual gifts was the edification (building up), exhortation (encouragement), and comforting (strengthening) the body of Christ, which is a dynamic of the prophetic function. Moreover, the dual Greek term that Mary Fairchild talks about in her article is translated in Scripture as “spiritual gifts,” referring to spirituals or things of the spirit, according to 1 Corinthians 12:1.
Furthermore, in verse 4 of 1 Corinthians 12 it states that there are diversities of gifts—charisma, which is of the root word charis, meaning “grace,” which we commonly use when we refer to a gifted person as being “charismatic.” But in verse 5, we see that there are differences of administration, ministries, or services (diakonia), while in verse 6 it talks about the diversities of operation, activities, or in-workings (energemata), which reflects the innate nature of the supernatural gifts of the Spirit that God works in a believer. Furthermore, in verse 7 it reveals the term manifestation (phanerosis) of the Spirit that is endowed and delegated to each one individually for the overall benefit of all corporately in the church.
Generally speaking, the gifts of the Spirit are God-given abilities, ministry offices, and manifestations that empower the
Spirit-filled believer to bless, assist, and strengthen others while the fruit of the Spirit and the nine gifts of the Spirit assist the believer personally with his or her Christian walk. These gifts, offices, and manifestations of the Holy Spirit are diverse and should promote unity, joy, peace, and order within the body of Christ. To learn more on spiritual gifts, ascension ministry gifts (offices) and their function, read the following passages of Scripture: Romans 12:6–8; 1 Corinthians 12:4–11, 28–31; 1 Peter 4:10.
EPHESIANS 4:11–13; 1 CORINTHIANS 12:28 —THE ASCENSION GIFTS OF THE SON
(Fivefold Officials Given to the Church to Facilitate and Equip the Body of Christ)
Ephesians 4:8, 11–13 (ESV) says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives and he gave gifts to men . . . .And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up of the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
This passage of Scripture involves Jesus setting the captives free, and in doing so, giving gifts to men. In other words, Jesus gifted the church with headship ministries, and began to reveal the names and titles of those gifted headship ministries. What are those ascension headship gifts that Jesus gave? The Bible says that He gave the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors (shepherds), and teachers. Simply, the gifts that Jesus presented were actually gifted people who had a sovereign calling from birth to be an apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor (shepherd), or teacher. We must understand that the Holy Spirit is God’s gift through Christ to the Christian believers both personally and collectively. The Holy Spirit works together with the Father and the Son to fulfill God’s eternal purposes. God is the giver of the gifts, not man. Some people may identify and call these headship ministries ministry gifts, post-ascension-gift ministries, the fivefold ministry offices, or the five-folders of the church. We must understand that they are the extension of Jesus Christ’s ministry. They are the five headship ministries of Christ, who is the Head of His church.
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