Dynamic Power

4.22 Check everything

There is a lot that has gone wrong in the past ages concerning the expressions of the Spirit. There is no denying of this fact but we can certainly acknowledge it. But,…we can learn from this!
God has really given all ‘means’ for the development of his Church. So this can not be the reason. Too little has been tested, examined, if everything that entered the Church concerning dogma’s and expressions was really from God. In this way the devil managed to let many wrong (false) and terrible dogma’s slip in. The cruelties that, as a consequence of this and in relation to this are executed by people that call themselves Christians, can hardly be described. Anyone who has followed the history classes even a little, has often only learned a small part of this. Without doubt: demonic!

Therefore this counts also especially with the expressions of the Spirit: check everything and examine the (expressions of the) human spirits if they are from God.
Don’t put out the Spirit’s fire (because you might be scared to loose control), don’t treat the prophecies with disregard (because there were prophecies that weren’t fulfilled or that were very strange), but test everything (for example through the gift of distinction of spirits → see further ahead) and hold on to the good (which can only come from God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21).

This verse says ‘test everything’. Therefore we will have to test every prophetic expression and revelation to God’s Word. Testing means: to examine, to check, to research, to verify, to be capable.

How do we put an expression to the test?
There are a number of criteria (measuring staffs) in any way:

1. the Word of God.
This doesn’t mean, that the contents of a prophecy in itself have to be found in the Bible. Then this expression would have no essential meaning.
Check in the Bible, if a prophecy is not in contrast with God’s Plan. More has been said about this already in this study;

2. the Spirit of God in our own heart.
The Spirit of God, that lives in you, searches the depths of God; you really ‘go for the depths’ in learning to get to know God! Spoken in a respectful way.
The Holy Spirit in us, will agree or warn, only if we have a continuous and deep communication with the Lord. This is possible, namely by ‘regularly’ speaking spiritual languages.

3. the person that speaks out the prophecy.
Also take a look at who speaks (..)out a prophecy. Is this brother or sister living ‘holy for the Lord’ or is he or she not taking it all too serious and/or does he or she have conspicuous strange ideas, especially concerning matters of faith?
Is the prophet a familiar person, is he or she a positive member of the Church, or is it a ‘vague’ type of person, that prophecies anywhere, without ever being corrected?  Pay close attention to this!

In this way we as Church will be able to be alert concerning seduction.
In Revelation 19:10 we read an especially beautiful statement about prophecy.- “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” This verse can be explained in different ways, but it is clear, that which Jesus has brought (the Gospel of the Kingdom of the heavens, with miracles, powers and signs) has been made possible by the same Spirit, by which we are able and allowed to prophecy.
Just take time to think about this for a while (praying)!

John writes in his Gospel (16:14), that the Holy Spirit will glorify Jesus. As first human being of creation Jesus lived up to the expectations  in all aspects, which God had when He said: “Let Us make man in our image, in Our likeness.”
To reach this was only possible by the dwelling of the Holy Spirit in Jesus, through whom he could show who God really was, through whom He could do miracles and signs, when he shared the rejoicing news of the Kingdom of God.

In this way this expression of the Spirit also becomes one of the lovely and constructing manifestations of the risen and exalted Lord Jesus Christ, in the midst of his Church!


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