Charismatic Bible Studies - 1 Peter 3:1-7

[Hidden In Him]

The wife has the same calling as the husband, to be "soldiers" in God's war, as you suggest. We resist carnal impulses, apologize when we get rude, and display a loving relationship in the family and elsewhere. This "testimony" in the world is what God seeks.

I need to catch up on your answers again, Randy. As usual I got behind in a hurry and haven't responded to most of it yet. I will try to respond tomorrow.

Blessings in Christ,
Hidden

 

[RandyK]

Yep, and very well put again, Randy.

I think there are multiple reasons as well. One of them I think is their carnality has not been brought under enough. Sad to say, but I think the flesh reigns more than it should, and there are many who simply couldn't be trusted with greater gifts cuz they would stick out the hand and say, "Thus saith the Lord, Pay the man of God." This happened during the great healing revival of the 1950s. One by one they kept falling into sin, and several of their lives ended miserably because they forgot to walk in humility. We get to thinking WE are someone great now just because we can heal the sick or prophesy or even raise the dead, when in we are not the ones doing anything. We have simply been chosen by God to manifest His Power.

I think that may be the biggest problem although there are others. But it has also been prophesied (and this is widely known of course) that are living in the Laodicean Church Age, and that church believed they were "rich" and were in need of nothing, when in reality they were wretched and blind spiritually, and so materialistic that they couldn't even see it.

Thanks again for the post.

I agree. We need to acknowledge Him as the source of all of the glory--we are empty without Him. We need to humbly serve Him and obey His Word, as often as we can. And we need to appreciate Him, and love Him, in the same way He loves us.

Then we may do things that make Him proud.

 

[JLB]

I am not a wife nor have I ever been a wife so I don't have anything to offer here except perhaps, as a single women of God, I follow the word of God as my basis of belief and the leading of the Holy Spirit, since I have no responsibilty in regards to a husband. However, when I am part of a church, ministry or outreach, I submit to whoever the leader is of that ministry....

Beautiful.

There is no better husband than Jesus.

He is called the Desire of the nations for a reason.

He is the Desire of my heart. He is my exceedingly great reward.

“For thus says the LORD of hosts: Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the LORD of hosts. Haggai 2:6-8

We are entering this time of shaking before He returns.

To those who have given themselves completely to Him, He will fill them with His glory and they will be unshakable.



Be blessed woman of God. Let Him use you for His glory!




JLB

 

[Br4nd0n]

What a great study, I've been trying to highlight women in my own Bible to be able to bring it up in conversation, and you beat me to it, praise God

Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. (1 Peter 3:1-7)

People don't understand. That God is hardcore. If you dont honor your wife, then He may not listen to your prayers.... Christianity is not misogynistic, it sounds more like equality the more you look into it. As a parrallel with the Trinity, they are equal, but they choose deference, regardless. Its a display of humility in the Godhead, abd that can be reflected in the family unit.

1. Do you think the role of the prophetess was intended to be rare or more common? Keep in mind what was promised in Joel 2:28, and what Paul said to the Corinthians, telling them that the wives were to prophesy with their heads covered, and adding, "For you may all prophesy one by one" in 1 Corinthians 14:31

It seems very common, more so than i can tell in todays age.

2. What is it that you believe helps develop the prophetic gifts?

Being in Gods will.
Repentance, I have personal experience in this.
Fasting and prayer.
Having mentors to teach you.

3. If you are a husband and have an example, name a time when your wife spoke to you about a dream she had that protected you or guided you on the right path to take from God. If you are a wife and have an example, describe an instance when God used you to do something similar for your husband.

My wife is not a Christian. But maybe ten years ago. I lost my wallet for about a week. And then my wife had a dream that it was in the heating vent. She woke up. Told me the dream. Then went to the air vent and pulled off the cover, reached down and pulled out my wallet. She held it up to me and we both looked at each other with wide eyes and gaping mouths. my daughter who was maybe 2 at the time, had to have put my wallet in there. I would NEVER have found it otherwise 🕊

 

[RandyK]

2 things I would comment on.

1) In saying we should seek "greater gifts" Paul was not advocating for the pursuit of miracles as a "pride thing." King Herod wanted Jesus to perform tricks for their entertainment value. Others may have wanted healing without repentance from sin.

But Paul was calling for prioritization, to make speaking in the language of others more important than private prayer to God in a foreign tongue. This is what he meant, I think, by "greater gifts."

It was not an encouragement to be the "top dog" with the "greatest gifts." It was not an encouragement for all to seek either tongues or prophecy--just an encouragement to expect to have gifts in order to prioritize serving God in the most effective way we can, serving others.

2nd, when Paul encouraged remaining single, he was doing so with the full understanding that the Jews considered marriage the preeminent gift. The idea of remaining single seemed anachronistic, but Paul noted that in some periods in history, having a family would be traumatic and undesirable, assuming one has that gift.

Paul seems to make having a compulsion to marry is a "weakness." But that does not appear to be his real intent.

He is suggesting that most *all* have this compulsion to marriage and to have children, fulfilling God's original mandate for mankind. He is only encouraging those, not under compulsion, to feel free to pursue ministry alone, as equal to having a family.

The whole idea is not to diminish the importance of having a family, but rather, to emphasize the importance of prioritizing the Gospel ministry, whether single or married. The "greater gifts" are those who minister to others, and not merely to ourselves. The single person is not being single for selfish purposes, but to enjoy greater freedom to serve God and others.

God is not calling us to be hermits, but to testify to the whole world of God's grace. I'm not saying that being a hermit is necessarily evil. But the "greater gift" God is wanting us to seek would be to serve Him as best we can--to love Him with all our strength, and not simply as an afterthought.

 

[JLB]

People dont understand. That God is hardcore. If you dont honor your wife, then He may not listen to your prayers.... Christianity is not misogynistic, it sounds more like equality the more you look into it. As a parrallel with the Trinity, they are equal, but they choose deference, regardless. Its a display of humility in the Godhead, abd that can be reflected in the family unit.

 

[Hidden In Him]

People don't understand. That God is hardcore. If you dont honor your wife, then He may not listen to your prayers.... Christianity is not misogynistic, it sounds more like equality the more you look into it.

Yes, and thanks for responding. Christianity actually WAS a step towards greater equality in New Testament times, and I believe the influence of Christianity is what has led to wives and women having greater freedoms and greater protection under law.

The thing is, I think Satan got behind that bandwagon and pushed it so hard going in the same direction that we went too far, and all sense of male headship in the home starting flying out the window. I think it was the beginning of what we have now, a society that no longer recognizes that men have to be men; that men can be women, or act like women, or at the very least knuckle under in marriages to stronger women as if they were the woman in the relationship. Those things are so ungodly to me. They represent weakness. I am all for the empowerment of woman, and I'm also especially fond of strong women. They attract me rather than repel me. But what needed to happen was that as women got stronger, men needed to get even more strong, so that both were growing ever greater. That's not how the Devil has wanted it, and he has arranged something different that no surprise utter defies the divine order of things...

So yes, it actually is about equality in many respects; about two people who are both immensely strong in the supernatural power of God together. But that requires setting aside the Devil's nonsense. The stronger the woman, the stronger the man needs to be, and the stronger the man is, the stronger the woman will become if he truly know what he is doing.

 

[Hidden In Him]

My wife is not a Christian. But maybe ten years ago. I lost my wallet for about a week. And then my wife had a dream that it was in the heating vent. She woke up. Told me the dream. Then went to the air vent and pulled off the cover, reached down and pulled out my wallet. She held it up to me and we both looked at each other with wide eyes and gaping mouths. my daughter who was maybe 2 at the time, had to have put my wallet in there. I would NEVER have found it otherwise 🕊

Takes faith to trust God sometimes, LoL!

Note to self: When looking for wallet, always check heating vent first. Don't argue, just do it, LoL.

 

[Hidden In Him]

But Paul was calling for prioritization, to make speaking in the language of others more important than private prayer to God in a foreign tongue. This is what he meant, I think, by "greater gifts."

It was not an encouragement to be the "top dog" with the "greatest gifts." It was not an encouragement for all to seek either tongues or prophecy--just an encouragement to expect to have gifts in order to prioritize serving God in the most effective way we can, serving others.

Hmm... well I definitely agree that it was never about seeking to become "top dog," cuz as the scripture says, "Let Him who boasts boast in the Lord," meaning we would never have anything to boast in in and of ourselves.

But when he was talking about seeking greater gifts, he specifically said, "rather than you may prophesy," and the whole tenor of 1st Corinthians 14 seems to be in showing the greater value of prophecy, such as when someone comes in from the world and falls on his face and says "Surely God is among you" as a result of prophecy, whereas if he just heard tongues he might think everyone was nuts.

But we at least agree that tongues which are intelligible are greater than those which are not.

 

[Hidden In Him]

2nd, when Paul encouraged remaining single, he was doing so with the full understanding that the Jews considered marriage the preeminent gift. The idea of remaining single seemed anachronistic, but Paul noted that in some periods in history, having a family would be traumatic and undesirable, assuming one has that gift.

Yes. Well it is clear from 1st Corinthians 7 that Paul believed the end of things was at hand, so he urged that they stop worrying about this life and focus on the one that was coming, saying, "For the rest, let those who are married be as though not married, for the mode of this life is passing away (present tense)."

Again, I think this is an instance where we have thrown the baby out with the bathwater. Did He come in their time? No. Do I think He will come in my time? No. But that doesn't mean we discard the teaching altogether. Those who are single are still able to serve the Lord without hinderance as opposed to those committed to a marriage partner, so the teaching still holds IMO.

 

[RandyK]

Any believer who has a desire to move in the prophetic gifts can do so in a safe and non judgemental environment that allows them the freedom to exercise those gifts without the fear of reppraisals or consciences of being incorrect. As an example, it takes a lot of determination and help from the holy spirit to stop functioning in our old self (old man) because we had practised those things before we became believers. The same goes for practising in the prophetic gifts. You become sharper and more accurate as you spend time exercising them. I doubt any believer who is like a stone would really be interested. I spoke to you Hidden In Him about my old pastor having prophetic gifts and teaching us who were interested in that area within a safe environment but I have also been trained in various prophetic schools that do the same thing. It just gives you more confidence surrounded by a group of other believers who are also learning and hones in those gifts and gives you an understanding of how Holy Spirit speaks and moves through others with similar gifts but sometimes, different callings.

Quite a few years ago my brother was a pastor who led his church in "experimenting" with prophesying. I'm not sure how it worked out because I'm not sure he ever told me.

But I'm not really comfortable with saying all can learn to prophesy when Paul quite explicitly said that God gives different gifts to different people, determined by the Holy Spirit. If we can "manufacture" a gift, why would we need the Holy Spirit?

At any rate, when my brother learned that healing did not come "on demand," as he had been told, I think he somewhat withdrew from some of the then-current charismatic trends. His denomination is Christian and Missionary Alliance, which focuses on Healing. At any rate, he is still Charismatic--just a little more leery, I think? Currently, he attends an AoG church.

When the Shepherding Movement took control over some parts of the Charismatic Movement, people used their "gifts" to "prophesy" whatever they believed was God's order and guidance. The result was not good, in my estimation, and I avoided that Movement. So there's that.

But I do think the Scriptures encourage us to *pursue* the Gifts, and to practice them, as we begin to recognize them in our lives. Since we "see thru a glass darkly," it may require that we unload some of the distractions, and carefully examine what is "good, right, and proper?"

 

[RandyK]

Anyone who has a desire to move in those gifts is what I had written in the post above. That does not nessesarily mean those believers have those gifts, it just means that there are safe ways where believers are able to practice the prophetic gifts without the stress and worry about getting it right. They may find that they do not have those gifts after all but what an awesome way to find out.

I hear ya. I do think many Bible Studies are too oriented towards one leader and just teaching. Prayer get togethers may become too limited to "just praying," or even become a little too "gossipy."

I think some of the most influential Christian meetings I've had in my life were early on, when we had small get togethers, open to just about anything, guided by a couple of "old hands," and yet structured for some praise singing, sharing, etc.

I think "teaching on the Gifts" would be more practical if there was given opportunity for some to exercise their Gifts. I did this with my pastor years ago when I urged him to open the service up to not just "testimonials," but more, to encourage people to deliver teachings, prophecies, and special words, if they felt so led.

The pastor may have been somewhat reserved, but he tried it. Amazingly, people got up and admitted that though they had never shared like this before, they felt led to share some things they were learning. It worked good until the pastor began to maneuver this time to be "testimony time" again. Then, the "words" ceased, and the practice ended altogether.

 

[Hidden In Him]

Any believer who has a desire to move in the prophetic gifts can do so in a safe and non judgemental environment that allows them the freedom to exercise those gifts without the fear of reppraisals or making mistakes. As an example, it takes a lot of determination and help from the holy spirit to stop functioning in our old self (old man) because we had practised those things before we became believers.

Yes. There is a... I suppose I would call it a confidence involved, given that you are out on a limb having no idea whether what you are saying is truly from God or not. And this is true of even seasoned prophets. Case in point: I was in a Hispanic church service and there was a visiting prophet there, and he was the type who could name names supernaturally, and then prophesy over people's lives after he had identified them by name without knowing who they were and they confirmed it. But he was calling out names from the pulpit and I wanted a word. I was way in the back of the congregation, and I saw him struggle for a moment, like he was having trouble hearing what the Spirit was saying. Then he said the name, "Costas." No one answered or raised their hand. He struggled for another moment or two, and when no one answered he moved on like maybe he had missed God or something.

When the service ended, a brother who knew my name came up to me and said, "I wonder if he was trying to call your name." I was the only non-Hispanic there that night, and my name is "Coultes." It's an English name, and a derivation of the name "Coulter." Then it dawned on me, "THAT is what was going on. He was about to give me my word, but he tried to reinterpret what the Spirit was speaking to him as the closest-sounding Hispanic name he could think of, because he assumed everyone there was Hispanic and he had never heard a name like that before.

I was amazed. Disappointed I didn't get my darn word from the Lord, but amazed, LoL. But trusting in what He is saying takes time to develop, and sometimes years of experience can still not be enough to keep the best of us from still goofing it up.

 

[Hidden In Him]

When the service ended, a brother who knew my name came up to me and said, "I wonder if he was trying to call your name." I was the only non-Hispanic there that night, and my name is "Coultes." It's an English name, and a derivation of the name "Coulter." Then it dawned on me, "THAT is what was going on. He was about to give me my word, but he tried to reinterpret what the Spirit was speaking to him as the closest-sounding Hispanic name he could think of, because he assumed everyone there was Hispanic and he had never heard a name like that before.

I should also note that I felt a little sorry for him after the service, because my wife said he mentioned toward the end for the congregation to pray for him because he had been working too hard and needed a vacation. I think he was feeling that way in part because he thought he had missing God. Kinda sad, but I'm sure he recovered just fine. Just so interesting the lessons we have to learn in training ourselves to trust the Lord's voice.

 

[RandyK]

Yes. There is a... I suppose I would call it a confidence involved, given that you are out on a limb having no idea whether what you are saying is truly from God or not. And this is true of even seasoned prophets. Case in point: I was in a Hispanic church service and there was a visiting prophet there, and he was the type who could name names supernaturally, and then prophesy over people's lives after he had identified them by name without knowing who they were and they confirmed it. But he was calling out names from the pulpit and I wanted a word. I was way in the back of the congregation, and I saw him struggle for a moment, like he was having trouble hearing what the Spirit was saying. Then he said the name, "Costas." No one answered or raised their hand. He struggled for another moment or two, and when no one answered he moved on like maybe he had missed God or something.

When the service ended, a brother who knew my name came up to me and said, "I wonder if he was trying to call your name." I was the only non-Hispanic there that night, and my name is "Coultes." It's an English name, and a derivation of the name "Coulter." Then it dawned on me, "THAT is what was going on. He was about to give me my word, but he tried to reinterpret what the Spirit was speaking to him as the closest-sounding Hispanic name he could think of, because he assumed everyone there was Hispanic and he had never heard a name like that before.

I was amazed. Disappointed I didn't get my darn word from the Lord, but amazed, LoL. But trusting in what He is saying takes time to develop, and sometimes years of experience can still not be enough to keep the best of us from still goofing it up.

It's not just the person delivering the word. He or she may suffer self-doubt when some do not respond to his or her word for one reason or another.

I remember, many years ago, when in a service a minister was calling out health conditions for healing. The minister very specifically mentioned a case, but the person wouldn't respond that they had the identified problem.

After the service I was near the person who had been called out, and she confessed she didn't want to divulge that the message was accurate. She indeed had that condition.

On another occasion, also many years ago, I was in Europe and visited a Pentecostal service open to all Pentecostal churches in the area. I had been going through the worst time in my life, and the minister said there was an area of the church where someone was having a difficult time. He even identified my row of seats, but I would not divulge my condition out of embarrassment.

So the minister just had everybody pray for that area of the church. I feel sorry for those who go out on a limb with special gifts. But God certainly must give them some serious confidence in what they're doing?

 

[Hidden In Him]

I think "teaching on the Gifts" would be more practical if there was given opportunity for some to exercise their Gifts. I did this with my pastor years ago when I urged him to open the service up to not just "testimonials," but more, to encourage people to deliver teachings, prophecies, and special words, if they felt so led.

Man this is so true. New Testament services involved participation, not spectating. Congregations just LIGHT UP when you allow them to participate. The problem comes when they don't keep order. You will have some who will go on and on at length and none of it is anointed. You will have some who start teaching off base doctrines. But the answer is not to just shut it all back down. The answer was for the leadership to bring it back into order. But it takes a strong enough leader who can sit some sister back down if she is just spouting forever and everyone can tell it's not God. Same with sound doctrine. Sit the guy back down. They tested the spirits. They didn't just let a false or evil spirit run off at the mouth forever and not be silenced.

It takes strong and wise leadership, but not allowing a congregation to participate in a service is NOT New Testament Christianity, and the sooner that mistake gets corrected the better. He was supposed to operate through the entire congregation, not just one man. The church is a body, not just a head.

 

[Hidden In Him]

I remember, many years ago, when in a service a minister was calling out health conditions for healing. The minister very specifically mentioned a case, but the person wouldn't respond that they had the identified problem.

After the service I was near the person who had been called out, and she confessed she didn't want to divulge that the message was accurate. She indeed had that condition.

Isn't that something? The Spirit of God Himself was calling her out but she didn't wanna own it... My guess would be that people in those circumstances may also have sin working in their lives that they don't want getting exposed either if it might be connected to their illness, so they just clam up and refuse to receive healing.

It's astounding. But this is why humility is absolutely essential in the things of God. So you sinned, so what? Who hasn't, and in a godly congregation nobody is gonna be looking down on you. They're just gonna be happy you are finally getting delivered.

 

[RandyK]

Man this is so true. New Testament services involved participation, not spectating. Congregations just LIGHT UP when you allow them to participate. The problem comes when they don't keep order. You will have some who will go on and on at length and none of it is anointed. You will have some who start teaching off base doctrines. But the answer is not to just shut it all back down. The answer was for the leadership to bring it back into order. But it takes a strong enough leader who can sit some sister back down if she is just spouting forever and everyone can tell it's not God. Same with sound doctrine. Sit the guy back down. They tested the spirits. They didn't just let a false or evil spirit run off at the mouth forever and not be silenced.

It takes strong and wide leadership, but not allowing a congregation to participate in a service is NOT New Testament Christianity, and the sooner that mistake gets corrected the better. He was supposed to operate through the entire congregation, not just one man. The church is a body, not just a head.

We had a strong pastor and a weak pastor, as you suggested. The strong one opened up the service to other gifts. One lady was an incredibly gifted singer--won a contest on the 700 Club! But she had a tendency to "take over."

But our strong pastor corralled her, and kept her in order. The result was wonderful! Unfortunately, it was his "strength" that did him in, because a few of the deacons and elders were incensed by some of his independent choices, and the church fell into division until the pastor left.

Then we had a weak pastor, who could not control this "out-of-control" worship singer. So he openly humiliated her, and the pastor's wife, a prophetess, utilized "prophecy" to condemn the lady and her friends on the worship team. Again, the result was division until the pastor had to leave.

Yes, we have problems in our church. But if we respond to the Devil by backing down we will always be forced to quit, and silence the voice of the Spirit. As you say, we need to not surrender to problems, but to persevere in allowing the Spirit to speak. We just need to be strong and self-controlled!

 

[Hidden In Him]

On another occasion, also many years ago, I was in Europe and visited a Pentecostal service open to all Pentecostal churches in the area. I had been going through the worst time in my life, and the minister said there was an area of the church where someone was having a difficult time. He even identified my row of seats, but I would not divulge my condition out of embarrassment.

So the minister just had everybody pray for that area of the church. I feel sorry for those who go out on a limb with special gifts. But God certainly must give them some serious confidence in what they're doing?

Yeah, and this is humility in action to admit this.

I felt led to divulge some secret stuff to a sister a few months ago that was NOT good. Secrets I hadn't shared with anyone, and not something I think most people could handle. But we made it through it, and it has opened the door up to some things now. It's not always easy fully confessing things, cuz some stuff can be really dark, but the question becomes do we truly trust Him or not? I think the trouble for many is, they have to trust His people. But it still comes down to are you trusting Him when all is said and done, because in the operation of things He uses His people.

 

[Hidden In Him]

We had a strong pastor and a weak pastor, as you suggested. The strong one opened up the service to other gifts. One lady was an incredibly gifted singer--won a contest on the 700 Club! But she had a tendency to "take over."

But our strong pastor corralled her, and kept her in order. The result was wonderful! Unfortunately, it was his "strength" that did him in, because a few of the deacons and elders were incensed by some of his independent choices, and the church fell into division until the pastor left.

Then we had a weak pastor, who could not control this "out-of-control" worship singer. So he openly humiliated her, and the pastor's wife, a prophetess, utilized "prophecy" to condemn the lady and her friends on the worship team. Again, the result was division until the pastor had to leave.

Man your posts are good sometimes, LoL.

There can be so much going on, and again it takes the gifts to navigate situations like this. As a leader you have to be able to monitor those around you. Where are they spiritually? Are they susceptible to the enemy right now? Could they be manipulated into opposing something the Spirit of God is telling you needs to be done? It's a delicate balance, and even very strong leaders can be done in if they are not ever watchful of what is going on around them spiritually.

But the weak leader has no chance. He will refuse to lead and then get resentful and bitter when things mysteriously get out of hand, and eventually just be conquered by the enemy himself and used, and then everyone picks up on it and just starts heading for the exits if he is not forced to leave.

So many things go on. It's why you see the apostle Paul constantly struggling to hold the churches together in his letters, and why he mentioned amongst his sufferings "the anxiety over all the churches." The enemy was coming in behind him everywhere he went and just cutting them to ribbons in various ways. But the reason the Lord allows it is because believers have to come to the place where THEY themselves can be governed by the Holy Spirit. They were supposed to let the SPIRIT arbitrate in their hearts, not an apostle or a pastor or a teacher or a prophet. Ultimately we must all learn to be governed by the Holy Spirit ourselves, or there will always be weaknesses. The pastor or leader is simply there to guide things when a congregation can NOT follow His leading properly. They should not be a permanent crutch the congregation relies on to keep from screwing things up.