1 Chronicles 17:1-4 – After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under a tent.”

Nathan replied to David, “Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you.”

That night the word of God came to Nathan, saying: “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in…”

This chapter teaches us important lessons about God’s nature, about our relationship with the Lord, and about how we should pray.

continue

Ephesians 4:11-13 – “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”

PASTORS ARE PART OF THE FIVE FOLD MINISTRY: All the ministries are “pastors” in the general sense in our churches, but many have the characteristic of being good shepherds for the sheep – the Holy Spirit gives them special concern and love for the sheep, and the sheep feel this love and feel secure in the church. The sheep in the church have very healthy spiritual lives, and the pastor –shepherd discerns how best to help them grow, resolve their difficulties and doubts, etc.   continue

Ephesians 4:11-13 - It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

EVANGELISTS ARE PART OF THE FIVE FOLD MINISTRY: Evangelists are pastors whom the Lord uses a lot in bringing unbelievers to salvation. That is their primary function in the Body – to bring conversions and growth in numbers. Because of the need for this in every church, pastor-evangelists are often shared between many churches instead of being responsible for a local congregation. They usually exercise their ministry in conjunction with another (more pastoral or teaching-oriented) ministry so that the new believers receive adequate teaching and substance in their spiritual lives. continue

“…It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” - Ephesians 4:11-13

PROPHETS ARE PART OF THE FIVE FOLD MINSITRY: Prophets are also pastors, like apostles, except they are used extraordinarily often in spiritual gifts, particularly ones that point to the future – either warning of events about to take place, or directing the church about new things to do. continue

“They love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’  But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers.  And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.  Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.  The greatest among you will be your servant.” - Matthew 23:6-11

Our flesh craves prestige and power.  The Holy Spirit does not accommodate this trait of man.  In the Work of the Holy Spirit, there is a constant struggle to keep our flesh from interfering with the Spirit’s Work, from hurting God’s project.  The Spirit wants to give glory to Jesus and none other.  Our flesh wants at least a little glory for ourselves.  Some people feel a need to be someone “special” – as did the Jewish leaders Jesus describes in the passage above.   continue

2 Kings 22:8-10 - Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.”  He gave it to Shaphan, who read it.  Then Shaphan the secretary went to the king and reported to him: “Your officials have paid out the money that was in the temple of the Lord and have entrusted it to the workers and supervisors at the temple.”  Then Shaphan the secretary informed the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.”  And Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king.

Josiah was one of the few righteous kings in the Old Testament.  He ruled in Jerusalem over the Kingdom of Judah new the end of the Old Testament era.  He followed two generations of wicked kings and spiritual backsliding.  Josiah was different – in fact, he is the only person that the Bible describes as turning to God with “all his heart, all his soul, and all his strength” (verse 25), which Jesus later told us all to do (Matthew 22:37).   continue

1 Thessalonians 5:20-21 - “Do not treat prophecies with contempt.  Test everything. Hold on to the good.” 

1 Corinthians 14:29 - “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should test what is said.”

TESTING THE GIFTS – The New Testament says that we should test all prophecies in the church – and this is true whether the prophecy comes as a verbal revelation, a vision, or a dream.  Unfortunately, very few Pentecostal or Charismatic churches today test any prophecies.  They accept everything people say, even though many so-called “prophets” today mix up their own imaginations with true divine revelations.  In the true Work of the Holy Spirit, we must develop a consistent practice of testing the spiritual gifts.  The Bible commands this and the Spirit requires it.  If we allow false prophecies into the church alongside true words from the Spirit, then the Holy Spirit will stop speaking in that place completely, leaving us to our own imaginations.  This happens even with seemingly “harmless” false prophecies that promise people prosperity or victory over their problems. 

continue

Matthew 23:6-11 - “They love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’  But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers.  And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.  Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.  The greatest among you will be your servant.”

Our flesh craves prestige and power.  The Holy Spirit does not accommodate this trait of man.  In the Work of the Holy Spirit, there is a constant struggle to keep our flesh from interfering with the Spirit’s Work, from hurting God’s project.  The Spirit wants to give glory to Jesus and none other.  Our flesh wants at least a little glory for ourselves.  Some people feel a need to be someone “special” – as did the Jewish leaders Jesus describes in the passage above.   continue

2 Kings 5:10-12 -“Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”   But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.  Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.”

“Wash yourself seven times.”  This story begins with a man who was not an Israelite. He was a Syrian, of a high position in his country. He was a general in the army of Syria, a country that Israel feared at the time.  Even so, this man was a leper. continue