Matthew 12:38-39 “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." (39) But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”
Unfortunately, because some churches and ministers encourage the saints to seek after signs and wonders, they draw them into a practice that our Lord Jesus called evil. In the above passage of scripture, our Lord Jesus clearly stated that an evil and adulterous generation seeks after signs and wonders. Someone might say, "But I thought the apostle Paul taught us to desire spiritual gifts" (1 Corinthians 14:1). That is entirely correct, but if you continue reading the passage, you will see that Paul advises believers to desire spiritual gifts so they can be used by God to edify the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 14:12). People who seek after signs, however, seek only their own experiences. The Holy Spirit is also selective in whom He imparts gifts to, and in most instances imparts only one gift to each saint. If some of these ministries and meetings were truly the work of the Holy Spirit, He would be imparting multiple gifts on multiple occasions to the same people, since it is invariably the same people who go to these ministries and meetings to have supernatural encounters. Clearly, this is not the work of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 14:29-40 “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. (30) But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. (31) For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. (32) And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. (33) For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. (34) Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. (35) And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church. (36) Or did the word of God come originally from you? Or was it you only that it reached? (37) If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. (38) But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant. (39) Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. (40) Let all things be done decently and in order.”
The first epistle to the Corinthians is very enlightening because in it the apostle Paul gives the church guidance on how to conduct meetings, and the above passage forms part of those instructions. Paul states that these instructions are, in fact, the commandments of the Lord; therefore, we should not deviate from them. Notice the emphasis Paul places on the word of God in our meetings, for he does not sanction any disruptions when it is being spoken. Regarding prophecies, he says each prophet must speak in turn and not interrupt one another. This same principle applies to the teaching of God's word—there should be no interruptions. Paul even addresses women speaking out loud in the church that might disrupt the word of God being spoken. He then states that God is not the author of disorder, but rather our meetings should be conducted in decency and order. In other words, there is a place and time for every aspect of our church meetings, and one aspect should not disrupt another, particularly the preaching of the word.
Some churches have taken Paul's admonition of decency and order to the extreme by quenching the Spirit and not allowing any move of God in their midst; consequently, they lose the anointing and their meetings are reduced to a series of religious practices. However, there are churches and ministers at the other extreme who sanction practices completely contrary to scripture—they allow congregation members to mimic drunken behaviour and laugh uncontrollably while the word of God is being taught. Some churches and ministers even abandon the preaching of the word of God when these manifestations occur, giving the meeting over to them completely because they do not want to "hinder the spirit" from having his way in their meetings.
Amazingly, the leaders of these meetings attribute the disruption to the very person Who has instructed us not to allow such practices—the Holy Spirit—for it is He Who inspired the apostle Paul to write these instructions to the church. Clearly, in these instances, it is not the Holy Spirit but rather demonic spirits that are given free rein in their meetings, for no matter how powerful the manifestations are, if they are contrary to the word of God, then they are not from God. Therefore, ministers and churches that encourage such behaviour contrary to scripture have become deceived and are being used by our adversary to bring that deception into the church.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; (4) and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”
There is one last comment I need to make regarding this evidence, specifically in the area of doctrine. In the above passage of scripture, the apostle Paul warns us about a time when the saints will no longer endure sound doctrine but will instead follow after fables. Ministers who get caught up in signs and wonders that contradict sound doctrine become increasingly unsound in the doctrines they teach, as the devil exerts more influence on their thinking. Obviously, the saints who follow these ministries are themselves led into increasing error. A leading minister of the gospel once commented along these lines, saying he had no theology for the way he ministered in the supernatural, and all he had in his favour was that God kept showing up in his meetings with a display of power. This is a very dangerous position for a minister to operate from, and for those aligned with his ministry, because God confirms His word, not our practices.
Michael E.B. Maher
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