Charismatic gifts such as prophecies and tongues

[TheBlade]

22 hours ago, Not of the World said:

I know what prophecies are and I have a vague understanding of speaking in tongues, but I have NO IDEA if those things are legimately happening in our modern era.  I like to persuse Tik Tok for content on Christianity and cooking (great stuff!) and I've seen a LOT of people prophecizing about things to come and I'll check out a few of their videos to see if they pass the muster but in EVERY case I have blocked them because I have discerned that they can prophecize about as well as I can forecast the winning Powerball numbers (which is ZERO).  

Speaking in tongues is both weird and fascinating to me and I have no other opinion on it except that it's very strange to me and my instinct is to AVOID it.  

Thoughts?  

I can still see the video of this nice kinda well known preacher saying "that does not happen any more". My post to him was "here I am". Well short is bible study when I was 15 (61 now) they asked if I wanted the holy spirit. To that I said one night sure. I said yes to what? I don't know the love of Jesus was all over these people. They always said "if we say anything that is not in this bible do not believe us". So he reads only what the bible said about the holy Spirit then asked me again I said yes. He prays this very short prayer then stops says you got it. Well I felt nothing and nothing right then happened. No one said a word. I get up and go back to where I was sitting and bam tongues just came out. 

I was saved before that moment yet...oh PRAISE GOD GLORY TO JESUS CHRIST. It was like night and day. JSUT Like Christ said.. you shall receive power! I read John 3 16-17 and I did  it I believe. So me I read Luke 11:13 as as they did if I asked then they knew God can not lie and said "you got it". They did nothing but believe that God said ask and you will receive. And  prophesizing something we all should desire and do.

So its not what any of us say but what did He say and ..well up to you now. I don't look around at others and then thats where I put my faith. My faith is if GOD said it He will do it. That is not what man says.. Gods word says that. No one but God taught me this. And every time I stand on His word trust in Him He does it EVERY TIME! No matter what the prayer is (based on inline with His word) He answers.. that means as in YES!

[Not of the World]

2 minutes ago, TheBlade said:

I can still see the video of this nice kinda well known preacher saying "that does not happen any more". My post to him was "here I am". Well short is bible study when I was 15 (61 now) they asked if I wanted the holy spirit. To that I said one night sure. I said yes to what? I don't know the love of Jesus was all over these people. They always said "if we say anything that is not in this bible do not believe us". So he reads only what the bible said about the holy Spirit then asked me again I said yes. He prays this very short prayer then stops says you got it. Well I felt nothing and nothing right then happened. No one said a word. I get up and go back to where I was sitting and bam tongues just came out. 

I was saved before that moment yet...oh PRAISE GOD GLORY TO JESUS CHRIST. It was like night and day. JSUT Like Christ said.. you shall receive power! I read John 3 16-17 and I did  it I believe. So me I read Luke 11:13 as as they did if I asked then they knew God can not lie and said "you got it". They did nothing but believe that God said ask and you will receive. And  prophesizing something we all should desire and do.

So its not what any of us say but what did He say and ..well up to you now. I don't look around at others and then thats where I put my faith. My faith is if GOD said it He will do it. That is not what man says.. Gods word says that. No one but God taught me this. And every time I stand on His word trust in Him He does it EVERY TIME! No matter what the prayer is (based on inline with His word) He answers.. that means as in YES!

Amazing!  Thank you for sharing!

[Starise]

4 hours ago, Jedi4Yahweh said:

I would be very cautious in making that assumption.

The only grounds I give to make such an assumption are based wholly on the word of God. Many will claim to have the Spirit of God but deny the power thereof. These are false prophets using false signs and miracles.

Please do not lump anyone who questions some of these things to be in with the Pharisees. I WANT to see God work in these kinds of ways. I KNOW HE is capable of it and I KNOW HE still works. 

God knew the Pharisees hearts. He knew their motives were coming from jealousy and the need to control the people and be seen as authoritative. They did not bother to investigate, the passed a judgement without knowing. Their hearts were cold and callous. They did not want to know God.

God knows my heart. If confronted with these things my ONLY motive is to know what is true and right. 

Maybe tongues should not be lumped into the rest of the charismatic movement, but they are a by product in many of these kinds of movements, and like it or not, I think we have to admit that sometimes it isn't real. Only God knows a man's heart.

We are instructed to test the spirits in the bible.

1 John 4:1

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

[Marathoner]

On 10/23/2022 at 2:54 PM, Not of the World said:

I know what prophecies are and I have a vague understanding of speaking in tongues, but I have NO IDEA if those things are legimately happening in our modern era.  I like to persuse Tik Tok for content on Christianity and cooking (great stuff!) and I've seen a LOT of people prophecizing about things to come and I'll check out a few of their videos to see if they pass the muster but in EVERY case I have blocked them because I have discerned that they can prophecize about as well as I can forecast the winning Powerball numbers (which is ZERO).  

Speaking in tongues is both weird and fascinating to me and I have no other opinion on it except that it's very strange to me and my instinct is to AVOID it.  

Thoughts?  

You have received testimony regarding prophecy, my friend. If you received it, and thus believed it, why the uncertainty?

If you received it, but don't believe it, then why behave as if you did in fact believe the report? That reveals a certain double-mindedness on your part.

I'm familiar with the plethora of prophets that saturate YouTube and other venues, and all I shall say about that is this:

Many claim to speak the words of the Lord but do not. They have their prophecies, and these don't come to pass. As the scripture teaches us, if any prophecy doesn't come to pass, then the prophet is not speaking the words of the Lord.

@Starise started a topic about this very thing some time ago. I advised our brother to pay these "YouTube prophets" no mind. The Lord God doesn't need YouTube to speak for Him but on the other hand, men need such a venue to spread their own words.  

[Marathoner]

Doubt and scorn announce themselves loudly, seeking to drown out wisdom at the gate. Why are some driven to heap doubt and scorn upon their fellows? I'm not about to question the testimony of another, for what I have seen and heard convinces me otherwise. A long time ago on my way to where the Lord was sending me to go, I stopped to visit with a charismatic fellowship on the side of the highway. They met in a shack with a little parking lot.

These were precious brothers and sisters. They were kind, joyful, and received me warmly into their midst. This was the first time we met, but there were some in the assembly who knew the Lord's purpose and will where I was concerned. I didn't speak a word of this to anyone. 

They came to me all at once weeping and praying. These brothers and sisters in Christ knew things that only He reveals as it pleases Him, and it pleased the Lord to reveal certain things to them when I arrived. I will never forget these brothers and sisters, and I cannot fathom speaking an evil word against a single one. 

There's enough evil and curse in this world of men as it is, my friends. Why add to it?

Edited October 25, 2022 by Marathoner
typo

[Not of the World]

6 hours ago, Marathoner said:

You have received testimony regarding prophecy, my friend. If you received it, and thus believed it, why the uncertainty?

If you received it, but don't believe it, then why behave as if you did in fact believe the report? That reveals a certain double-mindedness on your part.

I'm sorry but I am not understanding you.  I have heard various "prophecies" from all sorts of folks.  I'm not inclined to believe them.  

As for speaking in tongues, some here have shared their own experiences with us and I take them for their word and find them to be fascinating and amazing.  Do I believe them?  Yes.  

So where am I going wrong, please?

[existential mabel]

On 10/24/2022 at 2:09 AM, Jayne said:

How about Acts 2:5-12

It says Jews were gathered from every nation to celebrate the Passover.  When they heard preaching in their own languages - and it lists the foreign nation represented - they were amazed.

here it only mentions Jews.. i do have difficulty with tongues and leave well alone unless and until the Holy Spirit makes it clearer, but it doesnt help when i have seen tongues being used in church incorrectly in fact that is twice now i have experienced this and why i no longer go to church.

Edited October 25, 2022 by existential mabel

[existential mabel]

21 hours ago, Not of the World said:

Several posters here have posted about their own experiences and I am inclined to believe them.  But let me ask this.  Is it possible for dark spirits to involve themselves in such things?  In other words, how do we know that someone speaking in tongues is inspired by God?  

and there you nail it on the head and this is why i steer clear of it. especially when all i have seen as yet has been un-scriptural to begin with.

also when Christian's have a longing above anything to speak in tongues that they 'forget' about Jesus is the other experience i had so that was me done with the charismatic/Pentecostal church.

[Dave-regenerated]

2 minutes ago, existential mabel said:

and there you nail it on the head and this is why i steer clear of it. especially when all i have seen as yet has been un-scriptural to begin with.

also when Christian's have a longing above anything to speak in tongues that they 'forget' about Jesus is the other experience i had so that was me done with the charismatic/Pentecostal church.

They erroneously believe you cannot be saved unless you speak in tongues.  There is absolutely nothing in the entire Bible that validates that viewpoint.  It derives from the year 1900 in some sect in the USA.  No tongues since the 4th century (at the most) and it takes 1500 years and all of a sudden it reappears?  Nonsense.

[existential mabel]

21 hours ago, Starise said:

There was a poster here that posted a connection to the kundalini spirit which is often associated with yoga. Said to be a feminine entity , connecting to some apostate charismatic activity. This is really just a demon called the kundalini spirit that can possess non believers. I believe he was onto something with these ideas. I have seen some of the outward signs of this possession. They resemble the same things we see in some of these charismatic services. I not only think it's possible. I believe it happens on a regular basis. When the man of sin arrives he will duplicate miracles through "lying signs and wonders". We see many of these fake signs even now.

The main way we can know if the things we see are legit or not are if they go by the tee to everything in the bible. No deviation from it at all. 

- Is the leader teaching everything the bible says without adding to or omitting any of it?

-Is God getting the glory in the service, or are these things a distraction FROM God?

- Does it make the service go better, easier to understand, strengthen the message, confirm, or does it create chaos and confusion?

It would be very easy to stage a service where a person has a vision or speaks in an unknown tongue with an accompanying 'confirmation'. This is why I think we look at the teaching end of it first to determine if the foundations are solid.

When Jesus fed the 5000 most of them left after the food ran out. When you have a "miracle" service, MANY people could care less about following God. They just want to be healed. In these kinds of settings people go looking for some kind of  manifestation, something that looks supernatural, so Satan gives them what they are looking for.

In my opinion, churches and meetings which are more circumspect and don't have these occurrences on a regular basis are the better choices since you can tell they aren't FOCUSED on these kinds of things. I don't believe this is to be our FOCUS. If it happens according to the bible, then who can argue against it? This is seldom the case. It is truly sad that the most exposure the world has to many things Christian will be from an apostate televangelist on TV.

the focus becomes the 'experience' which btw i used to go to a Spiritualist Church, many years back and that was why people went to hear a message for them personally, at these Spiritualist Churches they  even used to sing church hymns! oh and have a picture of Jesus