“But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or(one) unlearned, he is convinced of all( all that he hears), he is judged of all(all that he hears):
And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest(to him only); and so falling down on (his) face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.” 1 Corinthians 14:24, 25.
This is Spiritual Evangelism in operation.
Are you seeing this happen in your Church on a regular basis? Have you ever seen this happen in your Church? Sadly, for most of you that read this sharing, the answer is no!
The main reason that these scenes are not manifested in our churches today is because many pastors do not encourage the usage of: speaking in tongues with their interpretation and the speaking forth of new testament prophecy, and even when these demonstrations of the Spirit are encouraged, they are not operated as the scriptures dictate.
By the Father’s grace, I received salvation in October 1979. I was blessed to be in a church that was spiritually fervent. We were encouraged to pray much in tongues and to meditate upon the Father’s Holy scriptures. I say meditate: musing,
pondering over them, always asking our Comforter to teach us, to guide us and lead us into all their glorious truth.
John 14:26.
“But the Comforter,(which is) the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name,(He) shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”
John16:13
“Howbeit when(He) the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth:for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear,(that) shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come.”
Speaking in tongues/praying in tongues and constant study and meditation of the scriptures is sacrosanct in building your confidence and trust so that when our Heavenly Father prompts you, by way of the Holy Spirit, to bring forth a message in tongues and it’s interpretation, or by new testament prophecy, in the Church, for the edification, exhortation and comfort of the Church: you will, with love as your motivation, confidently do so.
The 14th chapter of 1 Corinthians is almost entirely devoted to the usage of speaking in tongues with their interpretation and the speaking forth of new testament prophecy in the Church. Can I encourage those of you, who “follow after charity and desire spiritual gifts (gifts is in italics in the KJV, and therefore not in the original Greek text – it must be discarded to avoid confusion.
1 Corinthians 14:1) to read and reread and reread again this chapter to fully understand these 3 demonstrations of the Spirit: their purpose, their correct usage, the motivation behind their usage and the benefits that will be manifested as we correctly utilise them as the Father wills.
Can I also encourage you to read again previous “Thought for today” sharings on Tongues and its interpretation and New Testament prophecy.
I am not going to study this chapter verse by verse; I leave that to you. I want to focus on verse 5 of chapter 14. I believe that the whole chapter is hinged upon this verse, and that the spiritual truths it contains dispels the wrong teaching and untruths concerning the operation of tongues, the interpretation of tongues and new testament prophecy in the Church.
1 Corinthians 14 v 5
“I would(wish) that ye all spake with tongues, but rather that ye prophesied: for greater is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues, except he interpret, that the church may receive edifying.”
As we prayerfully consider this verse, 4 principles stand out.
1.– it is apparent that it is the Father’s desire that all those that have been blessed with the gift of the holy spirit should speak in tongues and interpret and prophesy as they are moved by the Holy Spirit.
2.— The person who speaks in tongues is the one who interprets those tongues, as moved by the Holy Spirit. Please examine verse 13 of this chapter.
3.– New testament prophecy is greater than tongues except where the speaker in tongues interprets, where they are equal to each other because the interpretation and the new testament prophecy both edify the church. As you read chapter 14 it is biblically sound to assume that where new testament prophecy is mentioned, the same applies to the interpretation of tongues.
4.—The purpose of tongues and the interpretation of tongues and new testament prophecy is to edify the church.
If these principles are acted upon we will see the power of the Holy Spirit in manifestation.
Verse 22.
“Wherefore tongues(and by implication it’s interpretation)are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not: but prophesying(serveth– in italics– not in the original text) not( a sign) for them that believe not, but for them that believe.”
Tongues and it’s interpretation are a sign of the energized power of the Holy Spirit to those without faith if operated correctly, whereas prophecy is a sign to those who believe. This is Spiritual Evangelism in operation.
We have already covered verses 24 and 25 in some detail. I have personally witnessed those without faith crying out to the Lord for salvation having heard a message in tongues and it’s interpretation or a message by way of New testament prophecy.
This is Spiritual Evangelism in action.
If you are in a small house fellowship or church and you desire to know more about these spiritual truths and spiritual evangelism, please contact me through our website. I will travel to any part of Ireland to impart my knowledge and experience of spiritual truths.
Having been invited to Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa, I intend to travel to Africa next year to share this knowledge with those who seek the things of the Spirit. Again please contact me for details.
In the meantime,
“Have a glorious day!”