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“Pursue love, and eagerly desire the spiritual gifts,

especially that you may prophesy.” (1 Cor. 14:1)

“For you can all prophesy, one by one,

that all may learn and all be encouraged.” (1 Cor. 14:31)

“So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy,

and do not forbid speaking in tongues.” (1 Cor. 14:39)

Do you eagerly desire spiritual gifts in your walk with Christ? In your church? Is prophecy at the top of that list? Scripture says it’s for each believer indwelt by the Holy Spirit, something we can learn, and something we can be encouraged by. It’s my passion to see leaders and believers in the local church learn this ministry and be encouraged to obey God in its use.

There will be no effort to defend these Scriptures. There is no need. Each pastor who has the Spirit knows by his spirit what these verses are saying.

Do you hear the voice of God in your life, and do you share what you hear with others?

You may call it what you want, an impression, a prodding or a quickening, but the Holy Spirit, by the hand of Paul, calls this manifestation “prophecy.” If we claim to want all God has for us and our church—what His Scripture commands—then we simply must eagerly desire to prophesy.

When we get comfortable with the idea that the Spirit no longer manifests the gift of prophecy, He sends someone to us speaking about things in our life and church they could never know, which quietly leaves us stunned and yearning for more of what we don’t really understand.

Or, we have a dream so vivid in clarity and scope, we awaken with an imprinted memory so real, it’s as if we were actually there. Though we may have no idea what it means, we know only the Spirit could have drawn so great a picture and we want more.

Or, our prayer and study is suddenly interrupted by a powerful rush of voice and vision from within us so that we are reduced to sobbing tears. The peace is so deep we can find no words, only a wrenching longing to know the Spirit drawing us closer.

Heaven invades our intellect in these moments. Like a wrecking ball through an old building, our simple grasp of God is literally shattered to dust. We are ruined, yet so deeply in love with Him. We are broken, yet so captivated by His grace. The God who flung the stars and spread out the universe, the Ancient One, Faithful and True, the Delight of all Heaven and the human heart, has spoken. And we heard it; somehow, we know it.

There is no cessationism, no critique, and no argument in that moment with the Spirit. Like Paul, we can only say, “Who are you, Lord?” Some even may experience conviction, as Paul did, to consider how we may be persecuting the Holy Spirit in our hearts, teaching, and critique or avoidance of His work.

We could realize in these solemn moments that we are at risk of being like John in Mark 9:38, who tried to stop anyone who walked with Jesus who wasn’t exactly like the disciples.

John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us.” (Mark 9:38-40)

The ones who do mighty works in Jesus’ name, including what we don’t fully grasp, are with us, even if we aren’t with them or their way of doing it. We must plead with the Spirit to extract from our heart the Pharisee of Luke 18:10-11 that says, “I’m glad I’m not like the extortioners, unjust, and adulterers who exploit the Holy Spirit for personal gain” (paraphrased). We must ask Him to restore the publican’s posture in Luke 18:13, of standing far off, not lifting our eyes to heaven, and crying out for mercy for our prejudiced and uncharitable hearts.

May He grant us all the humility that will exalt Him and build our understanding of His Spirit’s work, while He humbles our exalted critique of what He can and cannot do, will and will not do, in the midst of the Church. A Church He purchased at unfathomable expense by the precious blood of Heaven’s dearest, the Savior of our hearts, Jesus Christ.

Pastors recognize their responsibility to God and to their congregation, but often their preached view of God can come across in a manner that invites the Spirit to work, but not in every way Scripture reveals as viable. The Spirit works through people by granting them “gifts,” among them prophecy, an overlooked and possibly even disturbing manifestation of the Spirit.

Like train tracks parallel to one another, this book’s first track aims to restore a vision for the spiritual gifts, especially the prophetic, in the heart of the pastor. At the same time, we will explore a very practical parallel track, hints from Scripture and personal experience pertaining to the manifestation of the Spirit prophetically in our everyday lives.

Gifts will flourish in God’s Church if leadership is intentional and full of faith to see them manifested by the Spirit.

Loving one another, living honestly before God, and studying our Bibles are pastoral messages that will not arrest passivity in building the Church. There must be a demonstration of power; the Holy Spirit’s transforming, releasing, risk-producing, boldness-building power through the gifts.

Pastors must provide a biblical Direction for the spiritual gifts, their place in the Church, and our planned pursuit so faith can grow. They must continue building faith by defining, or Distinguishing, the nuanced differences in the ways the gifts manifest, to encourage individuals to see how the Holy Spirit uses them specifically.

They must Discern the current level of faith in the church and Disciple to equip and build the church to maturity in the administration of the gifts. Finally, they must Develop it through training and use.

If we can see the process of Direction, Distinction, Discernment, Discipleship, and Development play out in our churches, we would see lives quickly change, revival burst forth, and the gospel usher out in power. It’s not dependent on our performance, but on our willingness to draw near in faith to what the Spirit of God has already promised He would do. Then, and only then, will He do what He wants to do in and through us.