Tag: propheteia

Romans 12:6 – Benevolent or Malignant

Posted on by Will

But having different gifts according to the grace that is given to us, if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;

Truth to Learn

Each Christian is gifted for the benefit of the body of Christ.

 

Behind the Words

Paul begins the verse with a coordinating conjunction de, which can be translated as “and” or as “but” or several other English words. In each case, however, the purpose is to show the direct connection between the previous phrase and the following one.

The word translated as “gifts” is the Greek word charismata, which refers to “that which has been bestowed gratuitously.” In other words, it wasn’t earned and isn’t deserved; it was simply imparted out of benevolence.

“Prophecy” is translated from the Greek word prophēteia, which is the noun form of prophēteuō. According to The Word Study Dictionary, this word means “to foretell things to come; to declare truths through the inspiration of God's Holy Spirit whether by prediction or otherwise.” In other words, it includes both the “foretelling” of events before they happen and the “forth-telling” of the truths of God’s Word. The primary gift of the prophet in the early church involved both of these.

This list of spiritual gifts is clearly punctuated as a coordinated list as can be seen by the Greek grammatical construction. Each of the gifts in this and the two following verses is preceded with the Greek word eite, which is another kind of coordinating conjunction. It is as if these had been listed as “bullet points” with each occurrence of eite being a bullet. There is no apparent order of importance or hierarchy in this list, it is simply a list.

 

Meaning Explained

Now that Paul has explained to us that the church is like a body made up of many differing parts, he begins to describe some of the functions that these various parts perform and the special enabling that we have to perform these functions. We, the members of the body of Christ, have gifts. These gifts were given to us according to, or with respect to, or as part of, the grace that was given to us. Paul is telling us that these gifts were given to us at the point in time that the grace of God was bestowed upon us, when we were given the righteousness of Christ. In other words, these gifts were given to us when we were saved. They are not part of a “second blessing” nor are they gifts that we earn as we become mature Christians. They were given to us once, for all time, just as our salvation was given to us once, for all time and eternity.

Remember, as you read through this list of gifts, they were given to us as members of a body and they are to be used to make the body healthy. They are not given for personal profit (not even to the prophet J), but for the good of the body.

 

Application

Do you know what spiritual gift(s) God has blessed you with? Are you using it (them) for the good of the body?

Keep in mind that there is a kind of cell within the human body that has no regard for the cells around it. Its only purpose is to feed itself so it can grow. It’s called cancer!

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2018 Will Krause. All rights reserved

1 Thessalonians 5:20 – Foretelling or Forth-telling?

Posted on by Will

Do not despise prophecies.

Truth to Learn

Christians should only believe a preacher or teacher if their message is completely supported by what the Bible says.

 

Behind the Words

The word “despise” is translated from the Greek verb exoutheneō. It is made up of ek, used as an intensifier and the verb outheneō, meaning “to treat as nothing.” In general usage exoutheneō means “to despise” or “to treat something as if it has no value.” As in the previous verse, in the Greek text the word mē (not) precedes the verb which is in the present tense and the imperative mood. Therefore, the text means “stop despising prophecies” or “stop treating prophecies as if they have no value.”

“Prophecies” is transliterated (brought straight over from Greek to English) from the noun prophēteia. It is made up of pro, meaning “before, in time or position” and a form of the verb phēmi, meaning “to tell.” The verb form of this word can refer either to foretelling (telling something before it happens) or forth-telling (declaring a message to others). In Hebrew, the word translated prophecy is based on the word stem nābā, which simply means “to speak by divine inspiration, either in prediction or simple discourse.” Likewise, the word transliterated “prophecy” in the New Testament means “to speak by divine inspiration.”

 

Meaning Explained

There is much confusion in the Church today regarding the gift of prophecy. Many people believe that prophecy only refers to telling something before it happens. However, even in the Old Testament, the messages of the prophets contained as much, if not more, about the present than they did about the future.

The Old Testament prophets were delivering messages that came from God to the people. Similarly, in the New Testament church the value of a prophetic message is that it is inspired by God. In the Old Testament, many of the messages of the prophets became part of the written word of God. Today, however, we have a completed Word of God (the Bible) and do not need any new revelation by prophets (such as predicting the future). For that reason, a New Testament prophet today is not a foreteller, only a forth-teller.

In the Old Testament, the messages of the prophets had to always be true. If their forth-telling was contrary to the written Word of God or if their foretelling was not 100% accurate 100% of the time, they were declared to be a false prophet and they were to be stoned to death. Likewise, in the church age, if the message of a prophet does not agree completely with the Bible, that prophet is a false prophet and none of his messages are to be believed.

In today’s verse Paul declares that we are to stop considering prophecies to be of no value. Certainly, if someone claiming to have the gift of prophecy contradicts the Bible, he is not to be believed. But someone who truly has the gift of prophecy today is declaring God’s word and should be listened to, not ignored.

 

Application

Whenever we are listening to a message from a preacher or learning something from a Bible teacher, we need to search the Scriptures to validate whether what they are saying is true or not. Don’t believe any message from a preacher or teacher unless it is fully supported by the Bible. Be like the Christians of Berea of whom it was said:

These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. (Acts 17:11)

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Romans 12:6 – Benevolent or Malignant

Posted on by Will

Romans 12:6 – Benevolent or Malignant

Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;

Truth to Learn

Each Christian is gifted for the benefit of the body of Christ.

Behind the Words

Paul begins the verse with a coordinating conjunction de, which can be translated as “and” or as “but” or several other English words. In each case, however, the purpose is to show the direct connection between the previous phrase and the following one.

The word translated as “gifts” is the Greek word charismata, which refers to “that which has been bestowed gratuitously.” In other words, it wasn’t earned and isn’t deserved; it was simply imparted out of benevolence.

“Prophecy” is translated from the Greek word prophēteia, which is the noun form of prophēteuō. According to The Word Study Dictionary, this word means “to foretell things to come; to declare truths through the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit whether by prediction or otherwise.” In other words, it includes both the “foretelling” of events before they happen and the “forth-telling” of the truths of God’s Word. The primary gift of the prophet in the early church involved both of these.

This list of spiritual gifts is clearly punctuated as a coordinated list as can be seen by the Greek grammatical construction. Each of the gifts in this and the two following verses is preceded with the Greek word eite, which is another kind of coordinating conjunction. It is as if these had been listed as “bullet points” with each occurrence of eite being a bullet. There is no apparent order of importance or hierarchy in this list, it is simply a list.

Meaning Explained

Now that Paul has explained to us that the church is like a body made up of many differing parts, he begins to describe some of the functions that these various parts perform and the special enabling that we have to perform these functions. We, the members of the body of Christ, have gifts. These gifts were given to us according to, or with respect to, or as part of, the grace that was given to us. Paul is telling us that these gifts were given to us at the point in time that the grace of God was bestowed upon us, when we were given the righteousness of Christ. In other words, these gifts were given to us when we were saved. They are not part of a “second blessing” nor are they gifts that we earn as we become mature Christians. They were given to us once, for all time, just as our salvation was given to us once, for all time and eternity.

Remember, as you read through this list of gifts, they were given to us as members of a body and they are to be used to make the body healthy. They are not given for personal profit (not even to the phophet J), but for the good of the body.

Application

Do you know what spiritual gift(s) God has blessed you with? Are you using it (them) for the good of the body?

Keep in mind that there is a kind of cell within the human body that has no regard for the cells around it. Its only purpose is to feed itself so it can grow. It’s called cancer!

In God’s service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2011 Will Krause. All rights reserved.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

If this message or this link was forwarded to you by a friend and you wish to receive future verses directly to your inbox, send an e-mail to: