The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, lesson 40 cont.

Lesson 40, right? Lesson 40. Lesson 40. Okay, so first question actually picks up on page 232. I'm sorry, 222. The numbers at the top of the notes are wrong. So if you have your book, it's in 222, about middle of the page, and it answers the question, why is 1 Corinthians 9, 10, through 14, so critical to us as believers.

So maybe we start with reading the verse. Yeah, we went through that last week, but I think we struggled on the verses. Weren't those the verses we did last week? Yeah, and it's brought up again in Lesson 40 here. But the question is, why is it so critical to us as believers? Yeah. Then we move on to the second question, how does the author define the contemporary use of prophecy, which is really where we start to transition into the topic of Lesson 40, I believe. Yeah, that's right.

But just as it is written, things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him. For to us God revealed them through the scripture, and the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. Okay. Fourteen says, But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

How does the author define the contemporary use of prophecy? Okay. But the verse applies to the first question. Why is that passage that someone just read so critical to us as believers? Yeah. Okay. So that we talked about last week how critical it was to us. We've spent all that time. So Let's go to question two because we need to move on. So ask the question again. How does the author define the contemporary use of prophecy? Okay. Anybody can find that? The contemporary use of prophecy? What is prophecy? Predicting a future? 4th dwelling or 4th dwelling, telling, I can't say. Okay. Yeah. What is 4th telling? Future things that will happen in the future. Well, let's make it...

Is prophecy something that is in use today. Let's say I'm having a discussion with Courtney and we're talking back and forth biblically or we're in a Bible study somewhere. Is prophecy between us ever relevant? Only in the sense that you enjoy the benefits of it, but not in the sense that you produce it.

Okay. Could could Courtney prophesy to me? He could try, but it would be prophecy. Rats. So let's talk a little more about the forth telling idea. Maybe I'll ask it this way. Could you say that prophecy, if Courtney was to prophesy to me contemporarily, he would be able to explain to me a doctrine that I didn't understand more clearly than I knew or maybe I didn't know that the doctrine was applicable or relevant.

Would that fit under the heading of prophecy? What do you think? No. You don't think so? So what does the author say about contemporary prophecy? Obviously you didn't do your homework. So if you have the page, Somebody tell me what it said. Is it on 222?

Yeah. I don't, I don't think so. I think we're, aren't we kicking off 224 spirit led prophecy? Yeah. So you're on 224 show. Oh, what's the author say about it? We're trying to locate it. Yeah, I was still on 211 to 214. That's what it said on it. That was my fault. I didn't... I couldn't find anything. I apologize for this being so difficult. Well, let's see.

He who prophesies speaks unto men to edification and exhortation and comfort. Okay. So, Rite Out, I think Rite Out tries to make the point that foretelling is exhortation and comfort. I think he's trying to make a point that contemporary prophecy doesn't have anything to do with new revelation about anything or new information about anything. And that's what I think foretelling means. It means that one person can educate another person about a doctrine or about an issue that comforts them. that they didn't really know.

I'll give an example. I was talking to a guy a week or so ago, and after we, you know, the initial back and forth, back and forth, and he knows, he's on the same page where we are at Holly Hills with the doctrine, but he says to me, I have a real problem in my wife, he said, I can't stop cussing.

Okay. So what do I tell him? And if I tell him, if I give him correct information that he didn't know before, am I prophesying to him? No, you're exhorting. Okay. I'm exhorting. Would I be making a case if I, how do I say this? I strongly said to him, this is it. This is the answer to your issue. It's not dealing with the individual shortcomings you have. It's living in the resurrected life of Christ. See that?

Would that be considered from Rideout's viewpoint a prophecy based on what J.D. read or whoever read it? Somebody's got to say something. Yes, if that's what he's... Exhortation is what the definition of prophecy is. That's what he says. Yeah. I'll add to it, and I think this is one of the references, is 1 Corinthians 14 verse 3. The one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. There we go. what I think he references again, that it's not new revelation, that was specific to the inspiration of scripture and the prophesying there, but this is now, I think the contemporary one is one who speaks to men for edification, exhortation and consolation, that is just taking the word and edifying, exhorting and consoling people using the established word.

Okay, what do you think about that, Courtney? I'm not arguing with scripture. How about Rideout's take on it? I don't know, and I unfortunately only have his, I don't have page numbers, because I have just his PDF, so he has it in there. I think the same thing, he had looked it up, Yeah, but this brings to our last subject which I have called prophecy. You'll understand that I do not refer here to what is ordinarily termed that, whether prediction or any divine oracle. I use the term now as we find it in the 14th chapter of 1 Corinthians.

You may all prophesize one by one, and all may learn and all be comforted. He that prophesied speaketh unto men to edification, exhortation, and comfort. This is a special application by the Spirit of God of truth suited to the special needs of the saints. This principle is evident and we can apply it to the entire body of Scripture.

I think that's what he's saying is that it's not, and it goes on I think about no new revelation, but it's taking the Word of God and using it in these specific functions of edification, exhortation, and consolations. Okay, so just so it's clear, it's different than being a teacher or someone who can open up God's Word. It's a one-on-one, I think what Rite Out's trying to say is that it's really almost a one-on-one relationship between two believers or just maybe three, where a truth or a doctrine that's known by one is so clearly stated and encouraged to the other one that the other one gets it. And that the Spirit of God is in the middle of that. And he's informing the ignorant person through the one who is doing the exhorting slash prophesying for their comfort.

Yeah, I like this statement. Courtney read it, but I want to maybe say it one more time. It says, this is the special application by the Spirit of God of truth suited to the special need of the saints. From there to say, applied to the mind and heart and life. And then I really like this part.

The word in season is the word of prophecy. So there's a special application, a special need to the saints by the Spirit of God, and it's done in season, and that's what he is referring to as prophecy. And I think that's right. And we haven't talked much about that, but I think that's an applicable doctrine that the Spirit does. And it's right output puts it under the heading of prophecy. So. Which is a little confusing, right? I mean, the word is a little confusing. For the contemporary use of it.

Because it instantly brings to mind, I'm going to prophesy over you and you're not going to need to cuss anymore because I'm prophesying over you and you should hear things like that. So. to think of it as a way to edify and to exhort and comfort is not the common thought when you think about prophecy in our current part of the dispensation of the church. But that's what the scripture says. Well, I think we've probably all known people that can come up to us and say just the right thing at the right time. And it isn't information that's new to us. It's just applied in a way that it makes sense based on either the issue that the hearer has in terms of lack of understanding.

One of the ways this comes out a lot is you have believers, oftentimes in prayer, like speaking over another believer. This happened to my daughter, Imran, even at camp. And it was speaking over Imran in terms of her leadership capabilities and where the Lord, where that person saw the Lord taking her as she continues to mature in her Christian life. Maybe you guys can talk to me a little bit about speaking into another person's life, because that's the way the terminology comes across when it comes to edification, especially in certain circles. Have you guys ever been spoken into? Oh, a lot. And done a lot. Ask Courtney, we know. You know, I guess going back for one thing, Mike, you said, I don't know if I agree with it or whether that's Rideout or something.

Why does prophecy only have to be one-on-one? Why couldn't it be in a teaching situation? I guess it could be. The thing I like about what Rideout talks about is that it satisfies a specific need to a believer. you know, we all recognize like we have a somewhat of a command of the identification truths and we know the application of that, of those truths, are just incredibly edifying to a believer once he knows them and understands them.

But what I find is that lots of believers who can give you chapter and verse on identification, don't apply it in their own lives. I mean they don't, I don't know what it is, I guess it's a doctrine they speak but it isn't applicable for them. And so the edifier or the prophesier may say, no wait a minute, you already know this is what what you know and you believe, it needs to be part of who you are, maybe. Mike, in that last comment, I think that's one of the biggest problems we have, is we learn it in our mind, but it takes 20 to 40 years to get it down to your heart.

Yeah, I think that's right. And I think there are people around in Christian circles who can say things to you and they seem to know and if you counsel with them, they can say things that either points you on the right road or they edify you in such a way that it changes the way that you function. In other words, they in some manner increase your faith. Maybe is the way to say it. What do you think about that? We're still in the context of tongues, though, here. Yeah. How do you mean? Well, we're talking about 1 Corinthians 14, verse 1.

Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries. But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. Is that out of 1 Corinthians? 1 Corinthians 14. I'm just trying to make sure I have the... because there is a but there in verse 3. So you have the gift of tongues and the revealing of mysteries, but one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation.

And then it goes on in verse 4, one who speaks in a tongue edifies himself. Yeah. Who prophesies edifies the church. Then would you say prophecy is a sign gift? Like tongues are, because there's a... No, because in verse 5 he goes on to say, Now I wish that you all spoke in tongues, but even more, that you would prophesy. Yeah. Yeah.

You know, look at the definition of that word, prophesy, for that verse. It's to declare truths through the inspiration of God's Holy Spirit, whether prediction or otherwise. So, again, I think it's declaring truths we know in God's Word what those truths are, and we declare it, you know, either by guidance from the Holy Spirit to exhort, console, and whatever the other...

Comfort. Yeah, you know, those are the... I lost it here. Yeah. You know, that's why we do it, for edification, exhortation, and consolation. And again, I think it's from the word prophecy in the Greek is that it's to declare truths, you know, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. So, even though this is in the signs, you know, department here, you know, in this section where Paul is trying to guide them away from tongues and the gift of tongues, I think he's trying to declare that prophecy is also, you know, declaring God's Word. You use that to console, exhort, and edify. Yeah, from a practical standpoint, let's apply something that would make sense. A person, young or old, comes to Christ and understands that he is saved by grace, by faith in the personal work of Christ, right? And that's wonderful news. And he's really, he or she is really excited about that.

But fast forward now a few years and the believer is beginning to worry that he can't or she can't overcome a certain sin or sins in their life. And they begin to wonder, is there, does God do more than just forgive me my sins? Anybody have ever had that kind of an experience? Or you think that, well, it's one thing to sin and confess, sin and confess, and I'm getting tired of doing that because I can't, I'm always doing it. Is there something else within Christianity, Christian doctrine, that might lead me to understand that maybe Christ did more on the cross than just pay for the the penalty for my sins? And the answer is, yes, he did. But I don't know what it is, you know.

And so here you are sitting with someone and we're talking, we're having this conversation and because you understand identification, you understand the application of it, you begin to instruct them through Romans 6 and other things and show them how not only were their sins forgiven, But there's a principle of sin and that there's talk about the two men, new life, old man, new man, new life. And that you were crucified with Christ, buried with him and resurrected.

And from a positional standpoint, you don't have to sin anymore. You don't have to. It doesn't have control over you. because of the identification truths. I would say that that fits under the heading or the definition of prophecy. Because really what you've done is you've taken biblical truth, which helps set a person free from the dominion of sin, because we all know, especially as young believers, that they can't through their own self-effort and their own grit their teeth and go forward or give them a set of rules to put on their refrigerator that they are not going to be satisfied by failing all the time when it comes to sin. And a person can come along and say to them and educate them and exhort them based on identification truths which does set them free. I don't have to go do that. I don't have to go cuss anymore because I'm not that person.

And they begin to enter in to their position in Christ. Well, I think a person who does that is an exhorter. One of the huge benefits of understanding what we teach at Holly Hills is the fact that you're equipped to exhort somebody. Because most Christians don't understand what we're talking about. You agree with that? And I'm not putting us on a pedestal. What I'm saying is that we walk around with some incredible information about freedom for a believer. And it isn't just for us to have, it's to be given to others so that they can be free too. See that?

But like J.D. was talking about, we learn those truths and, you know, we can't wait to tell everybody about them. So we're over talking everybody and we're, you know, we actually make it legal rather than someone who's serious about the fact that sin has, as a believer, sin has controlled them.

And there's got to be an answer to that because they ran out of gas trying as hard as they could. What do you think? Yeah, I think you're right. There's a couple of statements that maybe we can look into here. Right out says, but we need to have the word brought home to our need. There you go.

And that's where he's really kind of getting down to the street level view of prophecy. And he's comparing it to, yeah, I wish he all spoke in tongues, but even more, greater is the one who prophesies. And the way that Rideout is wanting us to understand that is that those believers were taking the Word of God, the truths of God's Word, and delivering it to other believers, and the Spirit of God was applying it to their practical needs. So it was this process of the Word being brought home to our needs through the Spirit. He also goes on and says, then the Spirit of God would apply to our conscience the truth He had made us see, and the result would be our practical deliverance. There you go.

So we're talking about more than salvation. Do you have a need that's beyond salvation? Does the Bible have anything to say about that? Have you heard it? Does the process, does the Holy Spirit process it in your life specific to your very need? That's that process that he's trying to help us understand in this passage, I believe.

Yeah. I think that we probably don't talk enough about that the Spirit of God creates a need in our life, whatever that might be, and he does it so that someone else can come along and show us in the scripture how God has met that need. Yeah. Now, I'm not discounting the fact that there are smug believers that don't have needs or don't think they have needs or delude themselves in the fact that they think they've got it all.

But the more mature believer that I find is the one that's more dependent and who recognizes he's just scratched the surface, you know, even though the Spirit of God has been very gracious to him in teaching him. beyond just the birth truths, still, the more you know about the Word of God, the more humble you become, because it's just, oh, what God did through Christ on the cross is such a magnificent event that we'll be learning about it, I think, through all eternity.

And I think that the application, you know, Courtney, I'll give you a great example. And you brought it up. You have the missionaries in your house, right? And the guy mentions none but the hungry heart. Did that exhort you? Absolutely. Yeah, just coming together knowing the They are very much in with identification truths and that they are very much of the same thoughts. It was extremely encouraging. Sure. Exhorted by that. Yeah.

And Ingrid, you've known that you grew up across the street or something from that girl to have her understand. Because you can't read the hungry heart and If you don't have an understanding of identification and position and those things, it doesn't mean anything to you in a lot of cases. And to find out that somebody else, oh my goodness, my friend here not only reads it but understands it, that's pretty exciting stuff, you know.

Yeah, that was pretty cool. I mean, we just started speaking the same language. We hadn't seen each other for a long time, but you know, once we got kind of on a roll, it was just, you know, both Courtney and I were just so excited all day. It just really lifted our spirits. That's cool. That is really cool.

So I think that's an example of what we're talking about. That the Spirit of God just let you know, you know, and I'm sure that when he mentioned none but to Hungry Hardy, he just was mentioning, you know, I don't think he was putting some bait out there for you to grab a hold of. You just mentioned it, you know. Oh, I was just thinking that video that they sent us to look at.

I mean, that just showed them both talking and, you know, we all could see their hearts that they get it and we're all speaking the same language. Yeah, that's cool. That's so cool. J.D. Yeah, I was going to say, Mark, the first day that we walked into Holly Hills, having, you know, been at Good Seed in Canada for five years, rallying around a certain type of way of studying the salvation truths from creation to Christ.

And we dropped the kids off and we get told that, hey, we just want you to know we're going to be studying this book. It's called The Lamb. And, you know, that's the resources that we had been working on for five years. And it was like instantaneously, And it wasn't the fact that it was the lamb or that it was the hungry heart or that it was Miles Stanford or John Cross.

It was the fact that it represented a collection of truths taught in a certain way that was handling the, handling of the scripture properly that all of a sudden dropped a guard and then we could get into the scriptures together. Then we could actually start to talk about the things of the Lord in the same way because we were operating from the same foundation. And that really is the reason why we're at Holly Hills, because of that very moment. It just opened us to everything else that we didn't understand about identification truths, because we knew that you had the gospel down, right? And that is definitely one of the ways that I think the Holy Spirit works in this exhortation and edification and comfort. He brings us to a place of, we see the same things, but now, what does it mean?

How does it apply? What does it mean to you? Rideout talks about, we're not to be merely students of the word, but obedient to it. This is affected by allowing the spirit to apply that word. So we study, but then we get to apply it together, and we get to see each other struggle through those things, right? I know kind of what you struggle with, and you know what I struggle with, and we encourage one another in the body of God's Word, and the Holy Spirit processes it into an obedience in our lives.

So those one talks, as I've called them before, where you just instantaneously get on the same page with someone, not so much about where you went to school or what the resource was exactly, but that it represents God's Word taught in a way that you believe is the right way, and that just opens up all kinds of edification. Yeah. One last story and then we'll close.

Dennis Roxer, who was a pastor at the Bible Church, after 40 some years, retired from there and went to a small town in Georgia and a church plant and took over that church. And over the weekend, he's really great at conferences, right? So he has a one day conference and I happen to be talking to Brian White last week and I mentioned that to him and he said, Oh, I didn't know that. He said, That's only two hours for me. I think I'll go.

So he gets up on Saturday morning, yesterday morning at five o'clock and he drives to this town and he goes, he sits and listens to Dennis Roxler and John Clark both had things to say and he meets both of these guys. And he called me on the way home. He was so edified. It was like, you know, he wanted to turn around and stay there, but he had to get home. But he drove four or five hours yesterday just to go and listen to a guy, a couple of guys for two hours because of the importance of what they had to say. And he was so edified. You know, he called and we talked for 10, 15 minutes on the phone while he was driving home.

So that's how it happens, I think. And I can tell that he thought the trip was way worth it, you know, for him to get up early and go up and just check it out, you know. You know, the last thing, Mike, before we close is, you know, this is all correct and true.

I think it's versus the opposite, which some take today of prophecy as being new revelation. Right. It is by no means New revelation we'll get also to in the end of the third question about do we need prophets today, right? I think that'll be the next question on Monday or next Sunday But yeah, it's it's very much what we've talked about is different than what some people take prophecy to be today Which is new revelation a new vision that knew whatever now the revelation is in God's Word.

That's complete. Yeah All right, let's close to father how we thank you again. Thank you for saving us us, especially me, because they didn't have my notes. It was a great discussion. Thank you for, again, the fact that as believers we're dependent on one another and dependent on your spirit to teach us, to keep us moving. So thank you for that. And we pray in your son's precious name. Amen.