CONFIRMED IN THE MOUTH OF WITNESSES
I was drawn to this thread by a link on a parallel 1 claiming to disprove that miraculous, supernatural gifts are for today
Has God ceased to be miraculous & supernatural?
No
Has the work of the gospel got easier or harder as our Lord's return draws ever nearer?
Clearly harder, yes?
The age-old war of God v Satan, good v evil has never been fiercer!
There were more martyrs in the 20th century than in all the 1st 19 put together!
& since 9/11, born-again, Bible-believing, Spirit-led Christians are more persecuted than ever!
Yet, as Isaiah 60:1-2 promised, the darker the darkness in the enemies of the gospel, the brighter shines the glory of God in all who truly love Him, trust Him & take Him at His Word!
Isaiah 60
The Glory of Zion
1 "Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the LORD rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
We see the promised Later Rain of Holy Spirit outpouring on all flesh, just as promised in Joel 2
Rend Your Heart
12 "Even now," declares the LORD,
"return to me with all your heart,
with fasting and weeping and mourning."
13 Rend your heart
and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding in love,
and he relents from sending calamity.
14 Who knows? He may turn and have pity
and leave behind a blessingâ€â€
grain offerings and drink offerings
for the LORD your God.
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion,
declare a holy fast,
call a sacred assembly.
16 Gather the people,
consecrate the assembly;
bring together the elders,
gather the children,
those nursing at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his room
and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister before the LORD,
weep between the temple porch and the altar.
Let them say, "Spare your people, O LORD.
Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
'Where is their God?' "
The LORD's Answer
18 Then the LORD will be jealous for his land
and take pity on his people.
19 The LORD will reply [a] to them:
"I am sending you grain, new wine and oil,
enough to satisfy you fully;
never again will I make you
an object of scorn to the nations.
20 "I will drive the northern army far from you,
pushing it into a parched and barren land,
with its front columns going into the eastern sea
and those in the rear into the western sea. [c]
And its stench will go up;
its smell will rise."
Surely he has done great things. [d]
21 Be not afraid, O land;
be glad and rejoice.
Surely the LORD has done great things.
22 Be not afraid, O wild animals,
for the open pastures are becoming green.
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23 Be glad, O people of Zion,
rejoice in the LORD your God,
for he has given you
the autumn rains in righteousness. [e]
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 "I will repay you for the years the locusts have eatenâ€â€
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm [f]â€â€
my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.
The Day of the LORD
28 "And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
29 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
30 I will show wonders in the heavens
and on the earth,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
31 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.
32 And everyone who calls
on the name of the LORD will be saved;
for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance,
as the LORD has said,
among the survivors
whom the LORD calls.
The Acts 2 outpouring was like Israel's spring rains - as the church 1st sprang to life
Israel's Later Rain is in autumn/fall, to prepare the Final Harvest of souls - convincing & convicting folk of sin, righteousness & judgement as well as speaking in dreams & visions when folks' resistance is nil - as they sleep
That's why so many Muslims have had dreams & visions of Jesus & responded to Him: just as Daniel, in captivity in Babylon for nearly 70 years, read how God promised to free the Jews from there after 70 years, Dan knew that God wants us to believe Him so much that we claim His promises by faith
As Jesus said, "Whatever you ask in My name - (=according to My character & My revealed will) - I will do it: I will do anything that you ask in My name"
The Bible says, "God puts His Word even above His name"
So take Him seriously
At His Word
Doubt the doubters & believe the believers in Christ!
"Wake up, O sleeper & rise from death & the glory of the Lord shall shine upon you!"
We need to 'equip all the saints for the work of ministry 'more than ever!
Google AoG HQ & Elim HQ & see
http://www.elim.org.uk
General council of the Assemblies of God, offering news and official statements of beliefs.
Category: Christian Denominations > Assemblies of God
RSS: View as XML - Add to My Yahoo!
http://www.ag.org - More pages from this site
It's years since I read those sites, but I know that they both have some fascinating features
Meanwhile, see how the gifts were promised 'to you, your children...& to as many as are afar off...to all who believe thru their word'
See also, in Mark 16 - 'these signs shall accompany them who believe...'
14Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
15He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
17And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
18they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
19After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.
20Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
The height of the age-old war between God & Satan is when God's people need the spiritual gifts most - see 1 Corinthians 12-14 again
1 Corinthians 12 (New International Version)
1 Corinthians 12
Spiritual Gifts
1Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.
2You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols.
3Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.
4There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.
6There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
7Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
10to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
11All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
12The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body.
So it is with Christ.
13For we were all baptized by[c] one Spirit into one bodyâ€â€whether Jews or Greeks, slave or freeâ€â€and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
15If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
16And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
17If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
18But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.
19If they were all one part, where would the body be?
20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
22On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
23and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,
24while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,
25so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.
26If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.
29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues[d]? Do all interpret?
31But eagerly desire the greater gifts. - to edify/build up the Body of Christ
Especially as Jesus, in Matt 24 predicted that, 'thru the increase in wickedness, the love of most will grow cold'
4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,[a]' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
8All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9"Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
This is a most callous generation, inflicting the most brutal tortures on even babies & the very old & very ill
We need - more than ever - to know how 'Christ's love constrains us'
& 'equips us for works of service'
It ain't over till it's over
The perfect ain't come yet - Jesus hasn't returned yet
We need to 'earnestly seek the higher gifts to edify/build up the Body of Christ'
"Give us the tools & we'll do the job"
As James said, "You have not because you do not ask"
"Or, if you DO ask, you ask for wrong motives"
But if you sincerely want to glorify God & help folk, "If you, being evil, would not give your child a stone if he asks you for bread, or a snake if he asks you for meat, how much more gladly will your Heavenly Father give you the good gifts of the Holy Spirit if you ask Him?"
God bless!
Ian