tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post113993278772857363..comments2024-03-15T07:24:22.608+00:00Comments on Life on Wings - A Tribute to Dr Ern Baxter: Dan Bowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140413084535390712006-02-20T05:24:00.000+00:002006-02-20T05:24:00.000+00:00Hmm ... cutting out chunks of Scripture ... didn't...Hmm ... cutting out chunks of Scripture ... didn't you tell me that a similar elder once told you that Corinthians was meant for the Corinthians!?!?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140412093455856362006-02-20T05:08:00.000+00:002006-02-20T05:08:00.000+00:00It's interesting ... has anyone noticed the FIEC P...It's interesting ... has anyone noticed the FIEC Pastor's Association website? There's a breathtaking bit of deliberate quoting of Scripture there! - "It was he (Christ) who gave some to be ... pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service"<BR/><BR/>Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV)<BR/><BR/>Ref: http://www.fiec.org.uk/cgi-bin/website.pl?ss=pa&cs=&ctx=portal&act=viewContentSectionsDan Bowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140221181535452402006-02-18T00:06:00.000+00:002006-02-18T00:06:00.000+00:00Amen!! Something to pray for, believe for, hope f...Amen!! Something to pray for, believe for, hope for, dream for and work for!!Dan Bowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140106153188395752006-02-16T16:09:00.000+00:002006-02-16T16:09:00.000+00:00Acts testifies to the important role of the prophe...Acts testifies to the important role of the prophet in the early Church by describing the ministry of Agabus, as well as the statement that the evangelist Philip had five daughters who were all prophetesses (am I remembering this correctly?)<BR/><BR/>Both Moses and Paul wanted as many believers as possible to have and exercise the prophetic gift -- they were more concerned with hearing the voice of God for instruction and edification, than concerned about its misuse. (You know the old saw, "The remedy for misuse is not disuse, but proper use.")<BR/><BR/>That said, most prophetic words will be delivered at the personal level by fellow believers -- many of whom may not even realize they're delivering such while talking over a cup of coffee. <BR/><BR/>Very few people, IMO, have a strong gift that would qualify them for the "office" of prophet -- yet many will never know the level of their gift if they -- like teachers or evangelists -- aren't encouraged to get out and use the gift in practice (with lots of mistakes, teaching and learning needed!). Those people should be recognized and trained by fellow prophets or other leaders with experience in working with the prophetic ministry. Sadly, there aren't yet enough of those leaders to go around. Something to pray about, right?Donhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09436503359863046095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140083164790645352006-02-16T09:46:00.000+00:002006-02-16T09:46:00.000+00:00Yes I do accept that there is a danger. But surel...Yes I do accept that there is a danger. But surely there is always a danger in holding the tension of truth? Why else would the apostle Paul warn us to "Prove all things"? <BR/><BR/>Why would we be warned against FALSE apostles and prophets if the roles and offices of the apostle and prophet ended with the closing of the canon? Surely if they really did end, then any apostle or prophet around today would be false by default and we wouldnt need to be warned to prove them and their fruit?Dan Bowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140069329065518412006-02-16T05:55:00.000+00:002006-02-16T05:55:00.000+00:00My concern is that this blog is advocating a view ...My concern is that this blog is advocating a view of prophecy higher than it should be and setting it up and against that of preaching. I realise the writer isn't advocating adding to the canon but surely he must accept that is a danger in looking for such potential powerful prophets to come forth?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1140039926646905132006-02-15T21:45:00.000+00:002006-02-15T21:45:00.000+00:00Thanks so much for this ... I love reading from yo...Thanks so much for this ... I love reading from your wealth and experience Don. Particularly the point about hearing a word then "waiting". I think so often there were occasions (and maybe these are the "bad" prophecies that the cessationists hate) when prophecies are given and we just get so so SOOO excited that we blurt it out!! But of course throughout the Old Testament there are times and occasions when God shut His prophets mouths. And if we desire this gift (as we are commanded to do) then part of our training surely is to learn when to speak and when to SHUT UP!!<BR/><BR/>I know that God never wants or expects full maturity and perfection before He trusts someone with ministry, but surely the closer we walk in the Spirit and learning from Him and learning about Him, then the less and less these blunders will come out. Look at Peter for example!! The difference between him at the fire in the Priest's court - and in the Temple post-Pentecost. Fear - boldness. The difference the Spirit can make!Dan Bowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1139959342449199152006-02-14T23:22:00.000+00:002006-02-14T23:22:00.000+00:00I think there are prophetically gifted people who ...I think there are prophetically gifted people who lean toward "exhortation" and some toward "encouragement." The teaching I've heard has usually stressed the latter, as the prophetic gift is for the edification of the church. Usually the prophetically gifted person who functions as a layperson is used to speak words of encouragement, insight and *gentle* correction to fellow believers.<BR/><BR/>However, the personality of the person involved is always expressed in the gift, right? Mahaney' personality is more the exhortative, and people who I've met with the prophetic "office" within a congregation or movement often have this exhortative angle -- they are seeing/hearing God's direction, plus God's boundaries and warnings.<BR/><BR/>Above all they want to please and obey God -- and the more clearly God has revealed certain truths to their own spirits, the more difficult it is for them to deal patiently with people who don't see or understand what God has so clearly revealed to themselves.<BR/><BR/>The training of someone with a powerful prophetic gift involves the most time, pain and humiliation of any leadership gift, IMHO, because God desires to impart secrets of His own heart within the context of an intimate relationship. The problem for God is that the prophetic vessel must be a broken one -- acquainted with the suffering of himself and others, and acquainted most with the ongoing sufferings of Christ for mankind. "I desire mercy rather than sacrifice."<BR/><BR/>Only when the prophet's independent-leaning spirit is broken by God, and he is a true, loyal yokefellow of Jesus, can God really trust him (or her) with real secrets for others. The prophet often must hear a word and then *not* reveal it -- just pray over it and/or wait for the proper timing. Such humility and patience in a strongly prophetic person is not easily developed. I'm reminded of Moses spending 40 years as a nobody-shepherd, before God *revived* his desire to free the Hebrew people....<BR/><BR/>I heard a South African prophet describe how God gave him a powerful prophetic gift over 20 years ago. When he went to his pastor to discuss how he was to use this very visible gift, the pastor handed him a scrub brush and told him to clean the church's bathrooms. Turned out, the prophet admitted, that his was a very wise pastor. God had already shown the pastor the immaturity in the prophet's heart, and that servanthood would be the most important training vehicle for his prophetic gift.Donhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09436503359863046095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1139957450999242622006-02-14T22:50:00.000+00:002006-02-14T22:50:00.000+00:00It would be more for Don to comment on this than m...It would be more for Don to comment on this than me, as I don't know Mahaney at all (I've only met him twice). Why are they like that? I think it is because they have a sole, single passion (with Mahaney it is presumably Cross-centred living) and they see anything else as secondary to that passion and call. This would be confirmed by Don's comment about him having a blunt prophet's personality - I certainly found this when I met him, but that suits me, because I can be quite blunt too!<BR/><BR/>Is it biblical? Well some of the Old Testament prophets would certainly match this kind of personality, but I don't think it's what you would find in the Lord Jesus. So I don't know - to me, the important thing is to strive to be like Him, rather like them!Dan Bowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15661120561123767936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1139944305753396192006-02-14T19:11:00.000+00:002006-02-14T19:11:00.000+00:00I was kinda hoping that you were going to unpack C...I was kinda hoping that you were going to unpack C J Mahaney's character a little bit more, as it seems like you've been considering him and thinking about him quite a bit. This comment from Don was particularly interesting:<BR/><BR/>"He really doesn't care whether or not you like him personally. I don't think he's reaching out for more friends, or desperate to please anybody except God, and secondarily his family and tight circle of fellow leaders (that's what he conveyed over 20+ years in my hearing). He's not "touchy-feely," and has a prophet's blunt personality more than a pastor/shepherd's one. He's much more likely to tell you to straighten up, pursue the spiritual disciplines, get accountability and obey the clear teaching of God than to put his arm around your shoulder and commiserate with your situation".<BR/><BR/>That sounds like a prophet's mannerism to me! But what I want to know is, WHY are they like that - and secondly is that BIBLICAL?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13792024.post-1139938618810459832006-02-14T17:36:00.000+00:002006-02-14T17:36:00.000+00:00Wow ... a powerful piece indeed. I get the feelin...Wow ... a powerful piece indeed. I get the feeling that "Prophet" excites the writer somewhat! There's a lot to consider and reflect on there. But I am particularly challenged by the lack of importance that we have attributed to prophecy and the role of prophet. Maybe due to the fear of excess? Maybe due to the desire not to offend cessationist brethren?<BR/><BR/>But however we cannot escape the fact that Paul says that we must desire prophecy more than anything else in 1 Corinthians 14. And I have heard Dr Sam Storms pick up on this, and say that therefore if we DONT desire prophecy - then we are disobeying Scripture.<BR/><BR/>Serious business!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com