There are three categories of gifts, first received and divided up by revelation, by the late Howard Carter, a British WW II conscientious objectioner, while in prison. Brother Carter was a mentor to the late Lester Sumrall, whom I followed closely in life and ministry, and who became as a spiritual father to me, albeit from a distance. I had three glorious days in Liberia with him when I was a young missionary and was never quite the same. If you’re hungry and you possess a sensitivity and receptivity to the Lord, being around a man of such spiritual stature always has a profound effect on your spirit.
Anyway, back to these gifts of the Spirit. There are nine of them (1 Corinthians 12:7-11). Three gifts are gifts of revelation and they flow through, and mainly affect, your human spirit. Then there are three gifts of power, and they mainly affect your physical body or circumstances of nature or divine protection in danger. The last three are gifts of utterance and they manifest by inspiration and flow through your mouth.
Almost always when people were filled with the Holy Spirit in the New Covenant they spoke (Luke 1:39-55; Acts 2:4, 4:31, 10:46, 19:6; Ephesians 5:18-19, Col. 3:16, James 5:13, Rev. 5:9, Rev. 7:9-11, Rev. 14:3, Rev. 15:2-4). These scriptures provide a separate study all in itself that is very enlightening.
UTTERANCE
For example, did you know that when the Spirit of God comes on you most of the time it’s for utterance to speak, not to just shake, and shout, and manifest outwardly? Personally, because of the fire of God in my belly, that is a constant manifestation in my life. I’ll admit, I’m a shouter and a bit of a screamer sometimes, and I had to learn to temper that and yield more to the utterances that were pressing against my lips. I found out that you don’t need to shout and holler to necessarily be anointed.
Now don’t misunderstand me, there is a time to shout, and holler, and shake, and dance, and run. I can do that with the best of them, but what often happens, especially when people are receiving the Holy Spirit baptism they short circuit the power of God by hollering or shaking when that power is meant to be released through their mouth in tongues, in praise, and/or in prophecy.
“For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.” (Acts 10:46)
“And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.” (Acts 19:6)
Over the course of my lifetime I’ve laid hands and ministered individually and in masse to perhaps thousands of people. It is a pretty regular occurrence that some of them will scream, jump, and jerk, but still do not receive their prayer language. It was a little frustrating for me at times, so I had to give them more instructions on how to release that power they were sensing out of their mouths. The Lord taught me that. They were short circuiting the power by yelling, and jerking, and screaming when they just needed to speak in tongues.
In old time Pentecost earlier in the last century there was an abundance of the utterance gifts, and much more tongues and interpretation. Now you hardly see it. In our Holy Ghost Forums we put emphasis on them, because that is what you see in 1 Corinthians 14. I don’t know if you realize it, or thought of this before, but tongues and interpretation are the only gifts of the nine that were distinctly given to the New Testament Church. The others are all prevalent in the Old Testament through the prophets except tongues and interpretation. Therefore, we should have more manifestations of these two than the others.
Paul gives emphasis to these utterance gifts in 1 Corinthians 14, but highlights the importance of interpretation. In the flow of the Spirit interpreting the way God is moving is critical for maximum edification. And that’s the whole purpose of Paul’s teaching and instruction in this chapter — for maximum edification.
“Let all things be done for edification.” (v.26b)
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INTERPRETING A TONGUE and AN INTERPRETER
Paul didn’t say, “if there is no one present who can interpret a tongue,” but “If there is no INTERPRETER…” There is a big difference. Just because you may be used in interpreting a message in tongues does not mean you are an interpreter. We have learned that in our Holy Ghost Forums. Most of our ministry panel can either give a message in tongues and/or interpret, but there are only one or two who are interpreters. What’s the difference? An interpreter knows which way the Spirit is moving and they interpret the flow.
For example, my wife and I usually moderate these Forums, meaning we interpret the flow of each session. It’s not always perfect and we are ever learning, but we usually know when it’s swerving off the main path, or the theme the Holy Ghost wants emphasized. It’s important that our guest ministers flow with us. If not, there will not be maximum fruit and edification.
I try to instruct new guest ministers to not come with pre-arranged sermon notes, but to just be prayed up and filled up and to flow with the Spirit. Believe it or not, most ministers do not know how to do that. They are so used to preaching and teaching a one hour sermon, that they have a difficult time flowing with a team of ministers. Notice Paul’s instructions to the prophets:
“Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. “ (1 Corinthians 24:28-32)
The prophets spoke, judged, shared revelation, and prophesied. They didn’t teach long sermons. It was a collaborative effort of sharing, judging, and moving together in the Spirit, and it either caused learning and/or encouragement and strengthening in those in attendance. Do you see that? Revelation or something you didn’t yet know, would cause learning, but something shared that you already knew, would strengthen and encourage you.
WE NEED LOCAL PASTORS AND ELDERS TO Be EQUIPPED IN INTERPRETATION
Most local churches today don’t have local prophets of this caliber in their midst. Most of them are out ministering nationally and internationally, and/or the church just doesn’t make room for their particular gifts and anointing. Without prophets or any other ministry gift who move in revelation and are fit to judge or interpret the way the Spirit is moving, the potential for confusion and unholy chaos is exponentially multiplied. In other words, if there are no interpreters and seasoned ministers to direct, interpret, and oversee these types of meetings you won’t see the order and edification that God intended. Novices and unseasoned ministers have made a mess in such meetings. We have yet so much to learn, but most don’t listen. Pride of knowledge has puffed them up. We need local pastors and elders to step up and be equipped for interpreting the flow of their corporate gatherings.
My wife and I sat under the ministry of the late Kenneth E. Hagin, who was a great prophet and world class interpreter. I learned so much from just watching how he conducted Holy Ghost services. Carolyn and I were then further equipped with actual hands-on training by Dr. Ron Smith and brother Joe Jordan in their Holy Ghost Forums. They both were part of Mom and Dad Goodwin’s church in the 1950s and 60s, which Howard Carter said was the most Spirit-filled and orderly church he’d ever ministered in. Ron and Joe started conducting these Forums out in Kansas City in 2008-2009, and asked me to sit and be a part of their panel of ministers. I learned so much and made more advances in the Spirit.
This is why we keep encouraging ministers, pastors, and local church elders to attend our own Holy Ghost Forums led by our seasoned panel. When Dr. Ron Smith and Joe Jordan went to be with the Lord in 2013 and 2015 respectably, we felt led of the Lord to continue this Forum format that these men had started. Leaders must learn these things for the move of the Spirit to increase in our local churches, and be passed on to the next generation. The abundance of the false and counterfeit will not be exposed without seasoned ministers demonstrating the real and genuine.
Well, I’ve run out of time. If you’ve read this far, you must be hungry.
These short teachings are copied and pasted unto our personal Blog on our Holy Fire Ministries website. Subscribe now to receive these via email, so you don’t miss any.
RESOURCES TO HELP
Also, to continue to feed your hunger for these things, you can Subscribe to our Holy Fire Ministries YouTube ministry channel where these Forums are archived. There is also a School Of The Spirit, and examples of inspired psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs for your learning and edification.
Be blessed and share and pass it on, especially to local pastors and leaders. Feel free to contact us if you need help in this area.