New Covenant Prophetic Ministry
TEACHER
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Lesson 12
BASIC BIBLICAL TEXT
Acts 11:27,28
Acts 15:32
Acts 21:8-14
BASIC BIBLE TEXT
Acts 11
27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.
�28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius).
Acts 15
32 Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers.
BASIC BIBLE TEXT
Acts 21
8 Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven.
9 He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.
�10 After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.
�11 Coming over to us, he took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, "The Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’”
BASIC BIBLE TEXT
Acts 21
12 When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem.
�13 Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart?
I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.“
�14 When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, "The Lord's will be done."
GOLDEN TEXT
Acts 13:1
Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul.
AIMS
Understand that the Holy Spirit in the New Testament started to act in a much more free and comprehensive way;
Be aware that in the early Church there were prophets, this proves that the gift of prophecy was not exclusive to the prophets of the Old Covenant;
Understand that, although gifts and ministries are interconnected, there are differences between them, pinpointed by the Word of God.
INTRODUCTION
From Jesus, a new way for men to relate to God and his message emerges. Jesus did not want to invalidate the ordinances contained in the law of Moses; However, He was showing the excellence of the New Covenant over the Old Covenant.
Christ's purpose is that the spiritual requirements of God's law be fulfilled in his followers’ lives
(Rom 3:31; 8:4).
1.THE ACTION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE
NEW TESTAMENT
There are relevant differences between the way the Eternal Comforter acts in the Old and New Testaments, as we will see next.
1.1. Permanent dwelling
In the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit visited people, and, through these visits, they were driven to say something, or they were caught up and led somewhere, or they were taken by a supernatural force (2 Kings 3.15; Ezek 11.5; Ex 37.1) .
In the New Testament, however, the Spirit came to dwell in believers, as Christ prayed to the Father (John 14:16,17). And, from Acts, chapter 2, every believer in Jesus became the permanent dwelling place of the person of the Holy Spirit, according to the promise made by Jesus (John 7:37-39).
1.2. The democratization of the anointing
In the Old Testament, the Spirit came only on certain types of people. This changed significantly with the arrival of the New Covenant, which introduced a true democratization of the anointing of the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 1.21,22).
1.3. The filling of the Holy Spirit
In the Old Testament, some people received portions of the Holy Spirit (Num 11:16-17), (2 Kings 2.9), but in no text of the Old Covenant is there any commandment commanding an Israelite to seek a life filled with the Holy Spirit.
In the New Testament, however, we can observe Paul exhorting the Church: Be filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18). The believer in Jesus must not only have the presence of the Holy Spirit in his life, but must also be filled with it.
Be filled (present passive imperative) has the meaning, in Greek, of being filled over and over again for God's worship, service, and witness (Acts 4:31-33). Repeated fillings of the Holy Spirit are experienced when keeping a living faith in Jesus Christ (Gal 3:5-7); one is filled with the Word of God (Col 3:16); there is prayer, thanksgiving, and singing to the Lord (1Cor 14:15); Eph 5:19.20); serves others (Eph 5:21); and what the Holy Spirit desires is done (Rom 8:1-14; Gal 5:16; Eph 4:30;
1 Thess 5:19).
2. THE GIFT OF PROPHECY
Unlike the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit began to be poured out abundantly on believers. They were anointed, clothed and called for a mission.
So the gift of prophecy did not disappear in the New Testament; on the contrary, there was an extravagance of this gift, with the outpouring of the Spirit on the servants of God.
2.1. Everyone can prophesy
In 1 Corinthians 14:1 the apostle Paul encourages all believers to earnestly seek spiritual gifts, but especially to prophesy. And, in verse 31, he states that all (could) prophesy. Paul would not give such advice if this goal were not legitimate and available.
2.2. A gift for specific purposes
The gift of prophecy has multiple purposes:
*through it, the members of the local church could be edified, exhorted and comforted (1Cor 14,3,4);
*an evangelistic purpose could be involved in this gift (1 Cor 14:24,25);
*this gift could also confirm other gifts and ministries (1 Tim 4:14);
*in addition, future events could be revealed, as they did in the Old Testament (Acts 21:11).
Generally speaking, the gift of prophecy in the New Testament does not have the same degree of drama and intensity as that of the Old Testament.
Note the parallels:
■Agabus' prophecy, contained in the basic biblical text of this lesson, did not have the same intensity as the prophecies given by men of God, such as Elijah, Elisha and the other prophets of the Old Covenant.
2.3. Limitations on the gift of prophesy
■ In the New Testament, the prophet can misinterpret inspiration and misplace the message. In the Old Testament, the prophet was killed when such an event happened.
■ In the New Testament, prophecy must be judged, and everyone must stay with what is good and with the confirmation of the Spirit within each believer (Col. 1.9; 3.15).
2.3. Limitations on the gift of prophesy
3. THE PROPHETIC MINISTRY IN THE CHURCH
From the New Testament on, the fact that someone eventually prophesies by the Holy Spirit does not necessarily make him a prophet. It is one thing to exercise the gift of prophecy, quite another to exercise the prophetic ministry. Paul declared: Now there are diversities of gifts, but the Spirit is the same. And there are different ministries, but the Lord is the same (1 Cor 12:4,5). These verses seem to indicate that the gifts and ministries are connected, yet they are different.
3.1 The importance of distinct gifts
The New Testament presents a scale of gradation among spiritual gifts. As they fulfilled specific functions, the more needed they became, the more important they would be to the daily life of the Church. Therefore, the apostle Paul declared that whoever prophesies is greater than whoever speaks only in tongues (1 Cor 14:4,5).
In Corinthians 12:28, talking about ministry gifts, Paul clearly speaks about this order of importance. Gifts are given according to the service each person is called to perform (1Cor 12:29). Therefore, everyone can prophesy, but not everyone is a prophet. Everyone should zealously seek the best gifts (1 Cor 12:29-31).
3.2. Habituality in the ministry of gifts
The master seems to be that person most attached to the correct interpretation of the written and revealed Word. The Prophet, in turn, is the one who applies the Word to specific situations, edifying, exhorting and comforting. Both styles are absolutely necessary and used in the life of the Church.
3.3. Recognition of the people and leadership
The expression "in the church that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers" (Acts 13:1) shows that the people recognized certain men as having prophetic gifts and gifts in the area of teaching. In verse 2 of this same chapter, Luke declares: "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.“ In this verse, it is clear the recognition of the leadership that, under the direction of the Eternal Spirit, separates them for a specific work.
These two elements make up a ministry: the recognition of the people and the recognition of the leadership. Both are fundamental and seal a ministry as legitimate.
3.4. The Prophetic Ministry arises
The three previous sub points led to the prophetic ministry in the New Testament (Eph 4.11,12).
While some prophesied locally, others were recognized by all the prophets in a scope greater than the local church (Acts 11:27,28).
CONCLUSION
Paul is categorical when he says: Do not despise the prophecies (1 Thes 5:20). It is interesting to note that he spoke to believers. Sometimes he spoke like that because of indifference; others, due to abuses practiced within these churches by workers and members. This causes the gift of prophecy to be thrown into the common pit of ridicule, or seen as a means of manipulation.
CONCLUSION
The teachings of the Bible bring about the desired balance. The fact that there are false prophets, or prophecies of the flesh, does not change the value that the prophecies have for success in the spiritual life and for the desirable triumph of the church.
God bless you!
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