THE VOCAL GIFTS
The most common
and the most prominent gifts manifested in the body of Christ are the vocal
gifts. Notwithstanding, vocal gifts are also one of the most easily abused
and misunderstood gifts. Of all the vocal gifts, the gift of prophecy is the
greatest. However, the gift of tongues working together with the gift of
prophecy equals the gift of prophecy (1 Cor. 14:5).
The Gift of Prophecy
The gift of
prophecy is the supernatural utterance given by God to man in a known language.
The anointing to operate the gift of prophecy is similar to the anointing of a
prophet except that the anointing of a prophet feels a million times stronger
than just the anointing to prophesy. It is a necessity for all prophets to
operate this gift but not all those who operate this gift stand in the office
of a prophet.
There are three
basic operations of this gift: to edify, to exhort, and to comfort. Each of
these operations performs a different work in the recipients of the prophecy.
All prophecy is only to confirm and not to lead. In the New Testament, the gift
of prophecy functions merely as confirmation whereas in the Old Testament, the
gift of prophecy was consulted every time
God’s people need guidance. The difference is because in
the New Testament, all believers have the Holy Spirit dwelling in their hearts
while on the contrary in the Old Testament, only the prophets, priests and
kings have the Holy Spirit. New Testament Christians are to be led by the Holy
Spirit and the Word of God and not by any self-proclaimed prophet (Rom. 8:14;
Heb. 1:1, 2).
The first
operation of the gift of prophecy is to edify the body of Christ. The word
‘edify’ is from the Greek word ‘oikomone’ which is the same word used in
referring to the building of a house. The word ‘house’ comes from the same
Greek word (oikos). The building of a house is achieved by bringing
together of various materials and assembling them according to an architectural
blueprint. The gift of prophecy edifies us by supplying part of the details to
the architectural blueprint in our lives.
Paul said that we
know in part and we prophesy in part (1 Cor. 13:9). The Holy Spirit bore
witness with Paul that imprisonments await him in Jerusalem (Acts 20:22, 23).
Paul said that he did not know all the things that were going to happen to him
there (Acts 21:22). Paul knew generally what was going to happen but he did not
know the specific details. Later when Agabus was prophesying to Paul, more
details were supplied as to what was going to happen. Agabus added the detail
that Paul will be delivered to the Gentiles (Acts 20:11). The prophecy edified
Paul. It confirmed to Paul what he had already received and prepared him for
what was to come.
The second
operation of the gift of prophecy is in exhortation. The word ‘exhortation’
comes from the Greek word ‘paralysis which means ‘to be called alongside.’
Sometimes in obeying the Will of God, Christians feel that they are walking
alone. In such times, a word of prophecy may come to their lives to exhort them
- to encourage them with the fact that God is walking alongside them. When the
gift of prophecy operates in exhortation, it brings a stronger presence of God
into the life of the recipient of the prophecy. It imparts a blessing - an
additional boost - to the one prophesied to.
The third
operation of the gift of prophecy is in bringing comfort to the body of Christ.
The word ‘comfort,’ in reference to the gift of prophecy, comes from the Greek
word ‘paramuthia’ which means ‘to come alongside and console’ (1 Cor. 14:3).
Sometimes as a person walks along the path of God’s Will for his life, he turns
aside or stumbles along the way. It is at this point that the gift of prophecy
comes in its third operation to comfort a person. The purpose of this comfort
is to soothe the pain of missing the mark and encouraging the person to go on
with God. Most people who stumble and became grieved are tempted to give up.
The Spiritual Growth of Exhortation
The gift of
prophecy manifests as the Spirit wills but the ability to give exhortation is
inherent in all believers. If we are filled with the Word of God, we will be
able to teach and admonish one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs
(Col. 3:16). This is quite a similar work to the gift of prophecy except that
this ability is gradually developed rather than an instant manifestation of a
gift. It is the outworking of the anointing within rather than the anointing
upon.
Through spiritual
development, we are to learn to use our words for edification so that the body
of Christ will be built up by our lives (Eph. 4:29). As each member of the body
of Christ speaks the truth in love, every joint supplying its part to the whole
body, the church of Jesus Christ will edify itself in love (Eph. 4:15,16). It
is important for us to understand the difference between the gift of prophecy
and the spiritual ability to exhort. One is a gift of the Holy Spirit while the
other is a growth.
The Gift of Tongues
The Bible calls
this the gift of various kinds of tongues (1 Cor. 12:10). There is a vast
difference between the gift of various tongues and the gift of praying in
tongues. The gift of various kinds of tongues is a supernatural utterance given
by God through human vessels in an unknown language. Because it is in unknown
tongues, it needs to be interpreted for the edification of the hearers.
Note that the gift
of tongues is a message from God to men while prayer in tongues is spoken by
men to God. As God understands every language, there is no necessity for any
interpretation. However, when it is a message in tongues from God to us, we
need the interpretation because we do not understand all languages spoken. When
Paul said that there was a need to interpret the gift of tongues, he was
referring to this gift of tongues and not prayer in tongues (1 Cor. 14:5, 27,
28).
Paul instructed
that when the gift of tongues is exercised, there must be an interpretation
after every three messages in tongues (1 Cor. 14:27). Some people misinterpret
this verse to mean that there must be no more than three messages of tongues
per meeting. But a close examination of this scripture shows that Paul was not
referring to three messages per meeting. He was emphasizing on the need for
interpretation. He was explaining the necessity of not allowing too many
messages in tongues to go without interpretation.
Praying in Tongues
Whilst the gift of
tongues is the result of a manifestation of the Holy Spirit, praying in tongues
is the spiritual development of the spirit man. When we pray in tongues, it is
our spirit man who prays (1 Cor. 14:14). Many people cannot differentiate
between the gift of tongues and praying in tongues. As a result they thought
that when Paul said that not all speak with tongues, he was referring to
praying in tongues (1 Cor. 12:30). Paul was talking about the gift of tongues
and not praying in tongues, which is the right and privilege of the newborn
spirit man. When the newborn spirit prays, it will be tongues (1 Cor. 14:14).
Paul said that he
prayed more in tongues than all the Corinthians put together (1 Cor. 14:18).
Can you imagine how much he must have prayed in tongues to surpass all the
Corinthians? The major key in moving into the operation of the gifts of the
Holy Spirit lies here. It is as we pray much in the spirit that we are
spiritually ‘charged’ to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Praying in
tongues is the starting place for all who desire the manifestations of the Holy
Spirit.
The Interpretation of Tongues
The interpretation
of tongues is the supernatural ability given by God to interpret a message in
an unknown tongue. The person who interprets the tongues does not understand
the tongue but he receives the interpretation as a message from the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes he may receive just the first part of the interpretation but at other
times he may receive it as a whole message. At other times the interpretation
may be accompanied by a vision.
It is important
for us to understand that it is an interpretation of tongues and not a
translation. As such the amount of time required to interpret a message in
tongues may sometimes be longer than the message in tongues. Sometimes only the
gist of the message in tongues is given which would make it shorter than the
message in tongues. Different people receiving the same interpretation may
sometimes convey it using different words.
For example, the
interpretation of a tongue may be "Fear not, I am with you." Another
highly educated person may interpret it as "God says do not hold to any
phobias for His presence is with us." A young person who receives the same
interpretation may give it as "Don’t be scared for He is near us."
The gist of the message is given.
Daniel interpreted
the four words ‘Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin’ in three long sentences (Dan.
5:25-28). A strict translation would have been ‘Number, Number, Weigh, Divide.’
The interpretation of tongues brings forth an application of the message of
God.
Private Interpretation
We can pray for
the ability to interpret our tongues (1 Cor. 14:13). God would not require us
to understand everything that we pray in tongues about but as we develop and
grow in the things of the Spirit, we can receive an understanding of the gist
of what we are praying about. This spiritual sensitiveness can be nurtured and
developed. It is an out working of the anointing within whereas the
interpretation of tongues is an outworking of the anointing upon.
We can also learn
to sing in the spirit in our private lives and then sing the interpretation.
This is a very powerful way of edifying oneself. Sometimes, as we yield
ourselves to the Holy Spirit, we can speak to ourselves in tongues and then
interpret it as a message for ourselves. Such times have always been very
edifying.
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