Gifts of the Holy Spirit
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11. As you know, some Evangelicals say that all those people who today
speak in tongues, cast out demons, and heal the sick in the name of Jesus
Christ, do all these things by Satan or by the power of evil spiritual
forces. By saying these things, therefore, they accuse the Pentecostals of
having something to do with the devil and his evil spirits. What do you think
of these Evangelicals? Can we say that they speak against the Holy Spirit? |
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Yes, we can say with all boldness that they speak against the Holy
Spirit. Why do I affirm this? Because speaking in an unknown tongue, whether
the believer speaks in only one foreign tongue or he speaks in more than one
foreign tongue, is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit; the expulsion of
demons performed in the name of Jesus Christ is a manifestation of the Holy
Spirit as well; just as the healing and miracles wrought in the name of Jesus
Christ are a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Here are the biblical passages
which confirm this. |
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On the day of Pentecost, when the about one hundred and twenty were
filled with the Spirit, they began to speak in other tongues by the Spirit, as
it is written: “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to
speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). When
the apostle Paul speaks about the gifts of the Spirit (which he calls ‘the
manifestation of the Spirit’) he puts among them the gift of divers kinds of
tongues (1 Corinthians 12.10), and since Paul says that to each one the manifestation
of the Spirit is given for the common good (1 Corinthians 12:7), speaking in
tongues cannot come from evil spirits because evil spirits don’t seek the
good of the body of Christ, that is to say, they do not manifest themselves
for our good, rather they seek to destroy the Church. Furthermore, I say this:
‘If he who speaks in another tongue edifies himself, as Paul says (1
Corinthians 14:4), how can one claim that speaking in other tongues is a work
of the devil?’ |
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Jesus cast out demons by the Spirit of God, who was upon and in Him, for
one day He said to those who thought that He cast out demons by the devil: “But
if I cast out devils [demons] by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God
is come unto you” (Matthew 12:28). And when some of His disciples told Jesus
that they had seen a man casting out demons in His name and they had told him
to stop because he did not follow them, Jesus did not say that that man cast
out demons by Satan for it is written that Jesus told them not to forbid him
to cast out demons (Mark 9:38-40). On the other hand, we cannot think that a
man who rebukes and cast out evil spirits in the name of Christ Jesus, does
these things by the help of Satan because Satan cannot help a disciple of
Christ to cast out demons: “How can Satan cast out Satan?” (Mark |
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As far as healings and miracles are concerned, they are done through
the gifts of healings and the gift of working of miracles which are both
gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:9-10). |
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Therefore, what these Evangelicals say and think about speaking in
other tongues and deliverances of the demon-possessed and healings and
miracles, is foolishness. |
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In order to support their thesis, they say also these things. They
have seen that among the Pentecostals, who state that they do these things by
the Holy Spirit, are many scandals and some false doctrines are taught. Now I
don’t deny this, that is, I acknowledge that among Pentecostals there are
scandals and in some cases false doctrines are taught. However, I myself denounce
and expose all these things. Nevertheless, I want to point out that even
among those Evangelicals who are not Pentecostals there are scandals and some
false doctrines are taught: shall we say then that those Evangelicals have demons
in their body? Or shall we say that they sing and pray in their own tongue by
Satan? Certainly not. |
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As far as I know, when Paul heard that among the saints in Corinth
were scandals and unseemly behaviours, when he heard that among those saints
were some false apostles, and when he heard that among those saints were some
who said that there was no resurrection of the dead, Paul did not begin to
say that tongues and the other spiritual manifestations (which were in that
Church) were the work of the devil and of evil spirits!! Yet there were false
tongues, false wonders and false signs (that were all wrought by Satan) even
in the days of the apostles!! Can you say that at the time the devil did not
counterfeit tongues, miracles and healings? So Paul in his epistles did not
say that the |
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Please, do not misunderstand my words. I am not saying that today
there are no false tongues, no false healings and no false miracles worked by
the devil even among the Churches, because I am convinced that there are such
things and thus I warn the saints of all these things. But what I am saying
is that the fact that there are such things must not induce anyone to say
that ALL tongues, ALL healings and miracles are of the devil. Remember that
the fact that there are false tongues, false healings and false miracles
worked by Satan through his ministers shows that there are still true
tongues, true healings and true miracles. For Satan counterfeits only the
true things of God. Just as Satan counterfeits the servants of God by
creating his false apostles, his false prophets, his false evangelists, his
false pastors and false teachers who deceive many people; so he counterfeits
the manifestation of the Spirit of God by creating his tongues, his healings,
his miracles etc. which are false and very dangerous. Satan would not counterfeit
something that today does not exist any longer or that God does not do any
longer, be sure of that. I will give you an illustration. Here in |
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So I say it again, the fact that there are tongues, healings and
miracles which are of the devil, clearly shows that on the earth there are
still tongues, healings and miracles which are of God. |
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Let no one deceive you with empty words. God has not changed. He is
the same. |