1 Corinthians 12:4-11 states: "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills."
Read MoreSome have attempted to "wrestle the Scriptures" (2 Peter 3:16) by citing Philippians 3:15 as proof that Christians receive direct revelations from God today.
Read MoreNo. There are several reasons why "tongues" in the New Testament were real, human languages (such as Hebrew, Aramaic, Koine Greek, Latin, etc.). The miraculous ability to speak in another language one has never studied is special because it was only given to a few Christians in the first century A.D. until the infant church of the first century came to maturity in order to confirm that the partial revelations were from God (Mark 16:20; 1 Corinthians 13; Ephesians 4:7-16).
Read More1 Corinthians 12:4-11 states: "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills."
Read MoreThere are a number of differences between what the Bible teaches and what denominations claim constitutes "speaking in tongues". In studying Acts 2:1-4, 6-11, 43; 10:44-47; 11:15-17; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, 29-30; 13:8; 14:5, 22, 26-28, 33, 40 - a person concludes that the New Testament indicates that speaking in tongues...
Read More1 Corinthians 12:4-11 states: "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills."
Read MoreIt may come as a surprise, but the answer to this question is “Yes”!
Some of the miracles to come:
Read MoreThis miraculous gift was used by an apostle (2 Corinthians 12:12; Acts 5:1-11 - Peter was able to discern by the Holy Spirit that Ananias and Sapphira were lying; Acts 8:20-23 - Peter could look into the motives of Simon the Sorcerer). It was imparted to other 1st century Christians by the laying on of the apostles' hands (Acts 8:14-18; 2 Timothy 1:6) to help the infant church mature in the faith (Ephesians 4:7-16) since the 1st century church did not have the fully revealed New Testament in its written form disseminated among all the congregations (as we have it today).
Read MoreSeveral denominations (such as the Mormons) claim in order to have a true church there must be living apostles and prophets today. They try to justify their position by twisting Ephesians 2:19-22. Their flawed argumentation is as follows: the foundation of the Lord's church is the apostles and prophets and if they are removed, then we remove and destroy the foundation upon which the Lord's church was built. It is true that the Lord's church is built upon the work and teachings of the Lord's original apostles and prophets, but to be built upon new and living apostles and prophets is simply not true! This passage is referencing the original apostles and prophets that the Lord had chosen in the 1st century A.D.
Read More1 Corinthians 12:4-11 mentions nine miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed among the early church for edification and maturity. Yet 1 Corinthians 13:8-13 mentions only three miraculous gifts as ceasing: prophecies, tongues, and knowledge. Why?
Read MoreThere are many denominations who will make the claim that if a person is not healed miraculously from some terminal illness, he/she is at fault because he/she did not have enough faith. This is fallacious reasoning.
Read MoreThis question arose from a study among some young Latter-Day Saint missionaries who hold to a belief system in modern-day revelation and miracles as described in their Articles of Faith. In this study, one of them claimed that we were like the Pharisees in that we were testing to see if the Latter-Day Saint religion was true because they claim they can perform miracles as found in the New Testament. One of the points of evidence that can show whether a person is a true messenger of God is whether or not he can perform true miracles (John 3:2; 20:30,31; Mark 16:17-20).
Read MoreWe need to define the terms “parameter” and “revelation.” “Parameter” is described as “a limit or boundary that defines the scope of a particular process or activity.” “Revelation” is described as “the means through which God imparts facts and truths previously” (that is, from God to man, 1 Corinthians 2:10-12).
Read MoreDoes Jesus’ statement to the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 12:39, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah” contradict John’s statement in John 20:30, “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book”?
Read MoreWhen it comes to rightly dividing God’s word (2 Timothy 2:15), a worker must distinguish between the temporary and the permanent when applicable. In the first century A.D. there were evil spirits called demons who inhabited the physical bodies of human beings. God allowed Satan (and his “angels”, Matthew 25:41) to have this type of power during that temporary period of time. One purpose of demon exorcism was to demonstrate that Jesus, as the Son of God, had power in the spiritual realm as well as the other realms (Matthew 12:25–29). This was not to remain permanent (thus indicates the principal of Mark 16:20; 1 Corinthians 13:8-10).
Read MoreOld Testament prophets prophesied of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So, what is it?
- It was not the Holy Spirit Himself being outpoured (the literal outpouring of a Person is absurd). Instead, “outpouring” is a “metonymy” (“a figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for that of another of which it is an attribute or with which it is associated…” Merriam-Webster). The outpouring “of” the Spirit is the outpouring “from” the Source – not the Source Himself. It is representative of the Holy Spirit.