Gift Of Prophecy - Q´s and As

Reblogged from Grace Trough Faith / Ask a teacher 

Sunday, March 22nd, 2015

• Spiritual Gifts

Q.  What is prophecy? How do people prophesy, and are there still prophets today? I ask this because I think I have the gift of prophecy but I’m not sure.  I’ve asked God about it, and I think He’s told me yes.  It’s just that sometimes, I know things that are going to happen and that they are true. I have no idea how to explain it except for that. Please help!


A. Simply put, prophecy is history, told in advance. In Old Testament times God chose prophets to speak for Him so His people could know what He was doing. Also, since He often told them things that hadn’t happened yet, when those things came to pass it proved that He was who He claimed to be, since only God can accurately predict the future all the time.

Since the New Testament He has spoken to us through His Son, (Hebrews 1:1-2) who inspired the New Testament writers to give us the Scriptures.  Even so, some believers receive the gift of prophecy as Paul taught in 1 Cor. 12:7-11. The purpose of this gift is to “fill in the blanks” in God’s revealed word by giving supporting information as to how God’s plan will be fulfilled in various situations. Accordingly all prophecy given today has to be consistent with and validated by God’s Word. This is what makes the New Testament gift of prophecy different than the Old Testament office of Prophet.

I believe someone with the gift of prophecy would know by testing his or her prophecies against actual events. In Old Testament times Prophets were required to be 100% accurate.  Check yourself and see how you do.

Was there a Pre-Adamite race? Biblical Qs & As

Reblogged from gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/was-there-a-pre-adamite-race

Thursday, February 5th, 2015

• Bible Accuracy
• Creation

Q.  I have a friend who believes and teaches about preadamites. It isn’t that theory itself bothers me, as much as the idea that comes from it. The bible clearly says that Adam was the first man, and that through him (Adam) was sin and death brought into the world. If a race was already here and God destroyed it, wouldn’t that make these verses in the bible untrue? He teaches that this race happened between Gen 1:1, and Gen1:2 during the Gap Theory. Any biblical thoughts would be more than appreciated, thank you.

A. The only pre-Adamite beings were the angels, who Job identifies as being present when God laid the foundations of Earth (Job 38:2-7).
The notion of a pre-Adamite race of human like beings on Earth who were judged and destroyed cannot be reconciled with the Bible and was not originally part of the Gap Theory. This theory, also known as the Ruin-Reconstruction Theory, places an undetermined period of time between Genesis 1:1 & 1:2 where Earth sat in the dark, an uninhabitable ruin, as a result of the fall and judgment of Lucifer.
It’s been around since at least the 1600’s but the first one to popularize the idea of a pre-Adamite race, at least among believers, was probably Dr. Finis Dake, editor of Dake’s Annotated Reference Bible, early in the 20th Century. While the original Gap Theory is consistent with the Creation account, the unfortunate inclusion of a pre-Adamite race destroys it’s compatibility.
The pre-Adamite idea relies on a highly speculative interpretation of the phrase “after its own kind” found in several places in the Creation account, and the incorrect translation of the Hebrew word “male”, which is translated “replenish” in the King James Version of Genesis 1:28. It actually means “to fill.”
As you’ve pointed out it attacks the veracity of the Biblical account. Both cannot be true, since Paul, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, plainly stated that Adam was “the first man” (1 Corinthians 15:45), and that through Adam’s sin death entered the world (Romans 5:12; 8:20-22; 1 Corinthians 15:21).

Related posts:

1. Gap Theory Questions
2. Was There A Pre-Adamite Civilization?
3. More On The Gap Theory
4. A Non-Human Race Before Adam?

One New Man - Qs and As

Reblogged from: http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/one-new-man/
Saturday, October 25th, 2014

 

Q.  I am of the understanding that when we become a Christian we are baptized into Jesus Christ, yet there is a ‘Messianic’ Jewish teacher on television who teaches that when we accept Jesus Christ we are grafted in and become that “one new man”as a Jew.  I think he says ‘a spiritual Jew’.  

While reading Romans 2:29 it says “He is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter;  whose praise is not of men, but of God.”  I understand the circumcision of the heart part, but I am not understanding the connection between the Jew inwardly.   As Christians we don’t keep the law, so I don’t understand how this applies.

A.  I believe this teaching is intended to be a rebuttal to another false teaching called replacement theology.  For generations now some Christians have been teaching that Jews can only find spiritual fulfillment through the Church.  Now some Messianic teachers, especially those who relate to the Hebrew Roots movement, are saying Gentiles can only find  spiritual fulfillment through Israel.  Neither position is correct.

If you read Ephesians 2:11-22 carefully you can see that in his “one new man” teaching Paul was saying that God has taken some who were formerly called Jews and some who were formerly called Gentiles and made them into a new group called the Church.  It was an expansion of Paul’s comment in Galatians 3:28. If God had taken some who were Jews and some who were Gentiles and made them all into Jews He wouldn’t have one new man. He would simply have more Jews and fewer Gentiles.

As for Romans 2:28-29, Paul was saying that people would no longer be considered Jewish in God’s eyes simply because they had been circumcised in the flesh. His phrase “circumcision of the heart” is another way of saying “born again”.  The point is that whether they are circumcised in the flesh or not, Jews who are not born again are considered to be unbelievers just like Gentiles who are not born again.

Can The Elect Be Deceived?

Reblogged from Grace Thru Faith  

A. Let’s clarify that Matt. 24:24 describes the time of the Great Tribulation after the Church is gone, so the”very elect” the Lord was referring to are Tribulation believers, not the Church.

But since you asked, I believe the history of the Church reveals a pretty dismal record of falling for the various false doctrines that come along.  Right from the beginning the heresy called Gnosticism threatened the Church’s very existence.  Then came the Roman Church with its post-millennial and a-millennial eschatology, its grace plus works plan of salvation, the sale of indulgences, purgatory, etc.  After that we had the mainline denominations who bought into the Documentary Hypothesis, the Theory of Evolution, and Modern Rationalism.  Now there’s Replacement Theology, Dominion Theology, the Prosperity Gospel, the Emerging Church and the heresy filled circuses we call revival. And don’t get me started on Christian TV.

I could go on and on but you get the idea. These were all introduced by the church’s leaders, the men entrusted with the care of the flock.  So I’d say large components of the Church have been and are being deceived on a pretty regular basis.

I think the Lord was saying that the purveyors of religion during Daniel’s 70th week will be so slick they’ll put all who came before them to shame, and if the Church was still on Earth, many of us would be deceived.  The reason it’s not possible is that we won’t be here.

Receiving The Holy Spirit

Reblogged from:  gracethrufaith.com

The Holy Spirit

Q.  With Phillip preaching the word and crowds hearing and seeing miracles that he did, why do you think that Phillip did not pray for them to receive the Holy Spirit. And that the original disciples Peter and John were sent?  Were the original disciples, now apostles, the only ones to pray for this.  And at what point was there a transition from them to others.  And are there qualifications for this, like pastors, elders, evangelists, prophets?


A. There was a disciple named Philip (John 1:43), but the Philip in Acts 8:4-17 was one of the original deacons (Acts 6:5) and as such was not an apostle. This explains why Peter and John came to lay hands on the new believers (Acts 8:14-17).
By the time Paul wrote his 2nd letter to the Corinthians (about 55 AD) believers were automatically receiving the Holy Spirit directly from the Lord at the time they received Him (2 Cor. 1:21-22), so the laying on of hands by an apostle was no longer necessary.

Was It a Command?

Interpreting Verses
Reblogged from:gracethrufaith.com

 

Q.  I am little bit confused regarding the word “GO” in Matt.28:19. because one of our pastors keeps on insisting that the word “GO” is not a word of command.  We have been arguing on this matter because I beleive that the word “GO” in that particular verse is a word of command.  Please make it clear for us.


A.  I can see why there’s been discussion regarding this.  The Greek word translated “go” in Matt. 28:18 is not a clear command.  It’s a passive verb that means “to continue” as on a journey.  It can also imply a transfer, in which case the Lord would have been transferring His ministry to His disciples, telling them to continue doing what they had seen Him doing.

Historically speaking, it’s clear that all of the disciples did accept responsibility for bringing the gospel to the world and devoted the rest of their lives to this task. This would appear to mean that they saw His instructions to them as more than just a suggestion.

What does Faith without Works Mean?

Reblogged from Grace thru Faith

Friday, May 2nd, 2014 

Q. Please explain the meaning of this biblical verse: “Faith without works is dead”

A. This quote comes from James 2:17 which says, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. “
One of my early mentors used to say, “If what you say you believe does not result in action, you probably don’t really believe it.”

One of the results of our faith in the Lord Jesus is a changed life. We’re no longer slaves to sin, no longer held captive to the things of this world, and we want to express our gratitude for being given the gift of salvation that set us free. This creates a desire to do nice things for others, showing our love for them as a reflection of the love the Lord showed for us. We don’t have to force this, it just happens.  It’s faith in action.

Some people use this idea in the wrong way.  They want to see evidence of our salvation in the things we do that proves we’re really saved. This defeats the whole purpose.  If I have to do good things to prove to you that I’ve been saved, then I’m not doing these things voluntarily as an expression of my gratitude for what Jesus did for me.  I’m doing them out of fear that you’ll think I’m not saved.  Instead of being free, I’m right back in slavery.
We don’t have to prove we’ve been saved to anyone.  Our voluntary acts of kindness prove it to us, and the Lord who knows what’s in our heart doesn’t need any proof.  No one else matters.