The gift of speaking in unknown tongues has been one of the most controversial of all the spiritual gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12. It is not my desire to stir or spread controversy, so as I answer the question of what is speaking in tongues, I am reminded, so I remind you, of Paul's admonition in 1 Corinthians 13 where He says that even if he spoke with the tongues of men and angels but had not love, he would just be a clanging cymbal.  So as I try to approach the question of what is speaking in tongues, please hear my heart. This is not a subject or an issue that should bring division or cause us to loose focus on the mission we all have been given. We are called to witnesses to this world by loving one another. What is speaking in tongues? The gift of speaking in tongues is a gift that is unique to the New Testament church. You do not find this gift in operation at all in the Old Testament. The gift of speaking in tongues is the ability to speak in a language that was previousl… [more]

There is a lot of buzz in Charismatic and Pentecostal circles today concerning the gift of prophecy. There is a whole movement that has sprung up called the Prophetic Movement. We have men and women running around calling themselves prophets. When I was just a few years old in the Lord, I got involved with a "movement". I thought it was the latest and greatest thing that God was doing. It was only after a couple of years getting banged around and swallowing some pretty bad doctrine did I realize that there is only 1 movement that God is calling us to. That is to run your own race towards the high calling that is in Christ Jesus. Since that time I have seen at least 4 movements come and go. All of them brought an issue or an understanding of our faith to the conversation table, but they also brought a lot of baggage because of extremes that went along with the movement. In today's lesson on the gift of prophecy, I am going to try to remove the baggage, maybe bring some correction, but m… [more]

Today we are going to talk about what is commonly called the gift of discernment. The Bible actually calls it the gift of discerning of spirits. There is a big difference between what many people think is the gift of discernment and what is the gift of discerning of spirits. There have been a lot of people who have been taught that the gift of discernment is talking about discerning between right and wrong, sin and righteousness, and whether people are right with God or unsaved or backslidden. This is not the gift of discerning of spirits but more than likely stems from a critical or judgmental spirit. Rarely have I seen a person who claims to have the gift of discernment and using it in this way come from a motive of love but rather they seem to have a hidden emotional need to look better than others. The real definition of the gift of discernment. The gift of discernment, is not about discerning the hearts of people but about discerning the source of something. When you are operati… [more]

Today we are going to look at the spiritual gift of working of miracles. The gift of miracles is a unique gift because it really has no boundaries. What I mean by that, is that the very nature of this gift, supersedes natural laws and thinking. It is truly the gift that can be explained in no other way than it was a miracle. Now their are other gifts that are miraculous like extraordinary faith and the gift of healing, but the gift of working of miracles goes beyond these other two gifts and changes impossibilities into possibilities. This gift is probably the least seen gift in the modern church. I am not sure why this is other than it is probably the least expected of all the gifts. I think that we are so used to working things out, looking to science or reason for our solutions that we forget to look to God for miraculous solutions at time. I also believe that this is why there are more reports of miracles happening in nations and cultures that are not based on western civilization… [more]

Today in our series on spiritual gifts we are going to look at the gift of healing. Now the scripture actually does not say the gift of healing but says "gifts of healings". This is important because some people are under the impression that the gift of healing is just given to a select few that can heal the sick. This is not what the scriptures meant nor does it conform to the biblical text in 1 Corinthians. Remember that these are gifts of the Holy Spirit, not our gifts. They are given as He wills, not according to our ability or merit. Paul said that the manifestation of spiritual gifts are given to each of us for the common good, or to meet the needs as they arise. Thus, there is not one gift given to one person to the exclusion of all the other gifts or all the other people. It is based on the needs present and the will of God. That is why Paul used a plural form of the word for gifts and for healings. There are many times where more than one healing is needed and more than one ty… [more]

Today we are going to look at the gift of extraordinary faith. The reason I call it extraordinary faith is because every believer is given what Paul called a "measure of faith". This was the faith to believe that Jesus would save us. It was the faith that sparked being born again. In 1st Corinthians 12, Paul is not talking about saving faith, but about a spiritual gift given by the Holy Spirit. It is mountain moving faith. It is the type of faith that produces the miraculous. This gift is one of 3 gifts that are sometimes called power gifts because they demonstrate the power of God. The other two being the working of miracles and gifts of healings. The best way I have learned to discern when the gift of extraordinary faith is in operation is the profound absence of fear. Fear is the opposite of faith. It is at the polar end of the spectrum spiritually. So when you see something miraculous happen, coupled with the absence of fear, then you know it is the gift of extraordinary faith at w… [more]

This morning let's take a look at what is the word of knowledge. This spiritual gift is probably one of the most exercised gifts in the body of Christ today. When used properly it can be a powerful tool to demonstrate that God really is alive and well and living inside the lives of ordinary people like you and I. When used improperly it can look like charlatanry and fortune telling. I sometimes cringe at the notion of people running around seeking after "words from God". Trust me! God is a big boy. If He has a word for you, He is more than capable of sending somebody to you to give you that word. You don't have to go "seeking" after a word. About a year and a half after I went through the pain of divorce, I had an instance where I couldn't get away from some "words from God". I had been struggling with the issue if I would ever go back into ministry. I was truly wrestling with the biblical text of whether or not I was disqualified to be in ministry anymore. Well God had an opinion on… [more]

As we continue on with our study of spiritual gifts, I’m going to go in the same order as the Apostle Paul. So today we are going to be looking at what is the word of wisdom? The gifts of the Spirit can be broken down into three main categories. These categories are speaking gifts, revealing gifts, and power gifts. The word of wisdom is a revealing gift. The word wisdom in its most simplified form means knowledge applied. So a word of wisdom is a small snippet of the knowledge of God applied. This is not human wisdom or natural wisdom but this is wisdom that comes from no other source than God revealing it supernaturally. Now there are some that teach that the word of wisdom reveals the future, but they are confusing the gift of prophecy with a word of wisdom. So in this lesson I’m going to show you both where Jesus operated this gift and where the early church operated this gift. Hopefully, when we’re done we will both have a better understanding of what is the word of wisdom an… [more]

As I sit down this morning to share with you my thoughts on what is the baptism of the Holy Spirit I am reminded by the still small voice of Jesus to once again make sure that everyone understands that this subject is not a subject that we want to allow the enemy of our souls to cause division or strife about. That although I believe that this subject is important for every believer, it is not something that is important enough to break fellowship with one another. It is not an issue pertaining to salvation thus it is not an essential, it is in nonessential. Because it is not essential it falls under the category of giving one another liberty. So with that in mind, I will do my best to explain to you to the best of my knowledge what is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. What is the baptism of the Holy Spirit? The baptism of the Holy Spirit has been something that has brought a lot of confusion to many people. I believe that this confusion, at least in part, is due to the fact of mixed u… [more]

In today’s world, there’s been much talk, much confusion and in all honesty, considerable abuse of spiritual gifts.  Because of that, I’ve decided to do this series on spiritual gifts.  As most of you know, I am on a quest for the radical middle.  I am not interested in hype or show.  I’m also not interested in Christianity as a mere intellectual exercise.  I am interested in that type of Christianity that Jesus modeled.     Because of this, I’m sure that there will be those in both the charismatic/Pentecostal camps and the more traditional fundamentalist/cessationist camps that will disagree with me, perhaps even strongly disagree.  That is OK!  I’ve always believed that in essentials we should have unity, and  in nonessentials we should have liberty and in all things we should practice a love.  So as you’re reading this series on spiritual gifts, please keep that in mind.  This is not an issue that should become divisive or problematic. What are spiritual… [more]

In 32 years of walking with Jesus, I have seen fads come and go many times. One of the fads that is currently making it's rounds across the church is Christian dream interpretation. As with most fads, Christian dream interpretation takes a biblical principle or teaching and runs with it and stretches it way beyond what the Bible or God intended. Because it is my job as a pastor to lead people to a place of maturity in their Christian walk, I feel I must address this issue. Joel 2:28 28 “ And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. A balanced approach to Christian Dream Interpretation Let me first off state, that I am the type of person that does his best to be balanced and only speak where the Bible speaks and be silent or at least be honest enough to tell people it is an opinion, when the Bible is silent or not clear on … [more]

Today is Pentecost Sunday, the Sunday when the Holy Spirit fell on the day of Pentecost. Because of that and because of my own passion to see the church once again empowered with the Holy Spirit as in the book of Acts, and yet without the hype and nonsense that is sometimes associated with the Holy Spirit, I have decided to post on Pentecost Sunday.  Regardless of denominations, we all need a Pentecost Sunday experience. Regardless of your denominational affiliation, I think we can all agree upon one basic premise. Without the enabling and empowering of the Holy Spirit, we cannot accomplish the work in front of us. Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they received power. (Acts 1:4-8) That empowerment happened on Pentecost Sunday. It only makes sense that if the guys that spent 3 years with Jesus needed power in order to accomplish their task, then we, who did not have that privilege, are even more dependent on needing the power they received on Pentecost Sund… [more]

Everyday thousands of people get up, have a cup of coffee or tea, and do what is called a daily devotional. They set aside a certain amount of time to have a quiet time before the Lord. I am not sure when this tradition started, but I would think that it has it's roots all the way back to the 1st century church in the book of Acts and the upper room. Today I had my own upper room devotional This morning as I was spending some time seeking the Lord, I started meditating on what actually happened in that upper room, and how it may have been a whole lot different than what we do today in our devotional times. I thought I would share some of my thoughts on this subject with you. Years ago, I remember reading an article put out by Keith Green in his Last Days Newsletter.  It was titled Devotion vs. Devotions. I actually found a video of him teaching on this subject. If you have time, it would be worth your while to watch it, but it is over an hour long. So what was the devotio… [more]