Special Message
Why Do the Gifts of the Spirit Sometimes Operate Through People Who Are Hypocrites? BY PERRY STONE
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or those raised in a traditional Full Gospel congregation, the teaching emphasized a life of sanctification, holiness, and the operation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These nine spiritual gifts are listed by Paul in I Corinthians 12:710: “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” I Corinthians 12:7-11 (NKJV) I will not use space trying to convince you that these spiritual charismata are still relevant and possible for a believer to receive today. Being raised in a full gospel minister’s home, and during my 18 years living in parsonages with my father, I can confirm being an eyewitness that these gifts continue to manifest through believers. During dad’s ministry I observed all nine gifts of the Spirit operating in his ministry bringing edification, exhortation
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and comfort for believers in the congregation (I Cor. 14:3). I also knew that my father was a praying man in his private life. In northern Virginia, we lived in a neighborhood where the homes were very close to one another. To save electricity, we opened the windows when the weather was nice. At times dad would begin praying and get so lost in prayer that his voice would almost shake the entire house. I just knew at any moment, the neighbors would call the police demanding a visit to our house for dad disturbing the peace! During my upbringing, ministers preached on the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8), the anointing of the Holy Spirit (I John 2:27), the nine fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23), and nine gifts of the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 12:7-10). I understood that the blessings from the Holy Spirit began at conversion, since believers were born of the Spirit through the Holy Spirit convicting us of our sins (John 3:6-8; 16:7-8). We also were aware of the operation of the Holy Spirit through the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5), and the gift of the prayer language that accompanied a Spirit-filled life (Acts 2:1-4; 10:45; 19:1-7). During church services in those days, it was common for a manifestation of the Spirit to operate through a person. It may
have come in the form of a word of knowledge, word of wisdom, prophetic utterance, or a message of tongues and interpretation (I Cor. 14). Following these manifestations, many unsaved people came to Christ, those who were spiritually cold fell upon their faces repenting, and instant healings would often occur as believers turned their hearts towards God. The purpose of the gifts was to confirm God’s word that was preached and to authenticate that Christ was alive and God still answered prayer (Mark 16:20; Heb. 2:4).
Those “Hypocrites” in the Church With the operation of spiritual gifts, the vast majority of the time the person operating a spiritual gift was a godly, praying saint. However, at times someone who was the biggest trouble maker in the church would appear to operate in a vocal gift. I can remember thinking, “How can God use this person when they are not only a trouble maker, but are mean spirited towards their wife and children, and run off every minister sent to the church?” We were being taught that the Holy Spirit only works through a clean, sanctified vessel (Acts 20:32; Rom. 15:16), and there stood “Brother
Hypocrite” appearing to exercise a gift from the blessed Holy Spirit. When this happened, it caused some to question any operation of the Spirit as they were unsure who was real and who was not. We could not understand how God could or would use a “two-faced hypocrite” to speak to the body of Christ. I am sure you have heard people talk about “those hypocrites in the church,” using that comment to avoid attending church or even serving the Lord because there were “too many hypocrites in the church.” The word hypocrite comes from the Greek word hupokrites, which has the general meaning of a “play actor.” According to W.E. Vines, “It was a custom for Greek and Roman actors to speak in large masks with mechanical devices for augmenting the force of the voice; hence the word became used metaphorically of a dissembler, a hypocrite.” (W.E. Vines Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words). A hypocrite is a person behind a mask. The modern word means a person who professes one thing, but in secret lives the opposite of what they profess. The politician who preaches a family values platform but is cheating on his wife would be an example. A minister who emphasizes freedom from addictions but is a “closet alcoholic” would be another example. In the church, it would be a person who outwardly appears to live a godly and pure life, yet outside church they live opposite of what they teach to others. These types of people often do more to hinder others from coming to Christ than outright sinners who pull them away from the truth (Luke 11:52). It seems like more people leave church because someone they trusted failed them, than because they fell into sin.
People God Uses for His Purposes In a church setting, we expect our leaders to live an exemplary Christian life.
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Yet in the Bible, we see so many times when God would use someone to perform his work who battled a weakness or personal struggle. For example, Sampson was a Nazarite, set apart by a Nazarite vow to refrain from wine and strong drink, from touching a dead carcass, and from cutting his hair (Num. 6:1-8). His gift was supernatural strength to deliver Israel from her enemies. But he was continually hanging out with Philistine women and once even touched the carcass of a dead lion and picked up the jawbone of a donkey, both forbidden by the Nazarite vow (Judg. 14:9; 15:15). Yet, the Spirit of the Lord continued to come upon him until he broke the third part of the vow, which was when the Philistine harlot Delilah cut his hair. Sampson assumed the Spirit of the Lord could come upon him again, but the Lord departed from him (Judg. 16:1620). Sampson was living a dual life, claiming to be in covenant with God yet visiting harlots in Gaza. The Lord continued with his Spirit coming upon Sampson, but only for a season. Eventually Sampson went too far and ended up blind, bound, and in a Philistine grinding house going round and round (Judg. 16:21). God extended his grace as Samson began breaking the vow, but when the third part of the vow (cutting the hair) was broken, God lifted his blessing. Sampson thought he would “shake himself as in times past” but God had departed from him (Judg. 16:20). Sampson is only one example of a man separated for ministry and anointed who thought he could publicly operate a gift and privately live as he chose. The book of Numbers tells a story of a man named Balaam, a true prophet with the ability to speak words that would come to pass. The King of Moab told Balaam that, if he would stand on a mountain look into the valley and curse the Hebrew nation,
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the king would greatly reward this prophet for using his gift. But Balaam was actually abusing the gift as he journeyed to a high mountain to curse God’s chosen people (Num. 22 – 23). On three occasions, Balaam tried to pronounce a curse, but he only spoke a blessing. However, this man’s name became a curse among the Hebrews due to what he later did. Balaam confessed that he could not curse what God had blessed (Num. 23:8). Thus he conspired with the king and told him to send the most beautiful women from his kingdom to the tents of the young Hebrew men to seduce them. Afterwards, the Hebrew God would be angry and bring a judgment upon his own people. Balaam knew he could not curse Israel but God would become angry if Israel sinned (Num 25:12; 31:16). Thus a prophet with a true gift corrupted himself, abused his spiritual authority, and throughout Biblical history carries a negative name (Josh. 24:10; Jude 11; Rev. 2:14). The lives of Sampson and Balaam expose how anointed and gifted men can sometimes compromise their convictions for the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, which cost them their anointing, gift, and relationship with God. For a season God is merciful and continues to use the person as the “gifts and calling of God are irrevocable” (Rom. 11:29 - NKJV). However, the Bible is clear that if a person continues in their iniquity without repenting and turning from it, they will experience the Lord’s chastisement in some manner (Heb. 12:6).
God Used Pagan Kings, Donkeys, and Roosters Two of the greatest prophetic dreams found in the Bible are the dream of the seven year famine given to Pharaoh and interpreted by Joseph (Gen 41) and the famous metallic image dream seen by King
Nebuchadnezzar and interpreted by Daniel in Daniel 2:31-35. Pharaoh was king of Egypt and the Egyptians worshiped many gods in the form of animals and the cosmos. Yet, the Almighty chose to speak to this pagan king and reveal his will for Egypt. The ulterior motive was to bring Joseph out of prison and save the Hebrew nation during the seven years of famine. Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon and worshiped the god Murdock, a false deity whose temple was one of the major centerpieces in Babylon. Yet, when God chose to reveal the prophetic order of future world empires, he gave the dream of the metallic image to a king who worshiped false gods. The interpretation of the dream came from the Hebrew captive Daniel, who was then exalted to a high position in Babylon (Dan. 2:48-49). Neither of these two kings had a covenant with God, yet God spoke through them, demonstrating that God is sovereign and uses whoever he wills, whoever is available at that season and does whatever is necessary to bring his words, warnings, and messages to mankind. The first time Balaam was headed in the direction of the mountain to see if he could curse Israel, God opened the mouth of the prophet’s donkey and the animal began speaking (Num. 23-31). I have often said that the Lord spoke through a donkey and he has used a few “human donkeys” since that time! In the New Testament, Peter denied he knew Christ and even cursed to impress the folks around him that he meant business. Jesus warned that when the rooster crowed twice, Peter would deny him. When Peter heard the rooster crowing, he immediately was struck with conviction, ran from the chamber and wept (Mark 15:71-72). The talking donkey and the crowing rooster illustrate the verse, “God uses foolish things to confound the wise” (I Cor. 1:27).
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The Gifts Are Perfect but the Vessels are Flawed I once asked a great man of God why God uses people who sometimes seem to struggle continually with weakness of the flesh. He answered, “The gifts come from the Lord and they are perfect, but the vessels are flawed.” In history there were men who lived a near perfect life in obedience to God. It is written that Joshua “left nothing undone of what the Lord commanded him to do” (Josh 11:15). Daniel had no blemish when he was before the king (Dan. 1:4), Noah was just and perfect in his wicked generation (Gen. 6:9), and Job was “upright, feared God, and shunned evil” (Job 1:1). However, God used many others who struggled with pride, were contentious, or had some type of weakness they dealt with. Think for a moment about Simon Peter. On one occasion, Peter announced that Christ was the “Son of the living God”
(Matt. 16:16). Jesus then revealed that Peter had received this revelation directly from the heavenly Father (Matt. 16:17). Christ then began warning his disciples that he would one day suffer in Jerusalem, be killed, and raised on the third day (Matt. 16:21). Peter began rebuking Christ saying, “Be it far from you oh Lord: this shall not be done unto you!” Jesus stopped the conversation cold when he said, “Get behind me Satan” (Matt. 16:22-23). Peter was not “Satan.” In fact the word satan is both the name of the fallen angel Satan (Luke 10:18) and can also simply mean “an adversary.” Christ knew his purpose for coming to earth was his death and resurrection to introduce the redemptive covenant for all mankind. Peter was rebuking Christ for predicting his death in Jerusalem, and Christ knew this word was not from the Lord, but was the enemy plating a mental seed to block God’s will. Peter was a disciple, anointed to heal
and expel spirits (Matt. 10:1). Peter was certainly chosen for ministry, but at times he did not discern the correct voice! A second example is when a married couple in the early church, Ananias and Sapphira, sold property with the original intent of giving the proceeds to the church. Instead, they withheld a portion of the income. When the offering was being received, Peter asked Ananias why has “Satan filled your heart to lie against the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:3). This couple were believers but made a terrible choice to lie, and their deception cost them their lives. These examples of Satan interrupting God’s plan serve to illustrate how good people can actually open the door to the enemy. Peter later denied the Lord, but over 40 days later on the Day of Pentecost, he was the keynote speaker who led 3,000 souls to salvation in Jerusalem (Acts II). I’m glad the other disciples didn’t say, “How can he
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preach to this bunch, that old hypocrite!” Once Peter repented and was restored, no one brought up his past failure again.
The Hypocrite and the Gifts How can a Christian go from being pure and operating in a gift to being a hypocrite and still appearing to operate in that gift? Years ago, a noted minister who preached heavily against sin was caught with a prostitute. When the story hit the news, the church was disappointed, new converts were disappointed, and sinners were disillusioned. The unsaved would comment, “The old hypocrite. He was
preaching against what we do and doing it himself.” Yet, here is the part of that minister’s life that only a few knew. After this man would commit an immoral and sinful act, he would return home and pray for hours for forgiveness. Before his large meetings he would pray for hours in his hotel room. God, being merciful, forgave this man and continued to anoint him. However, he did not get victory over this fleshly sin and the Bible says, “Be sure your sins will find you out” (Num. 32:23). The gift operated through the grace given him. His continual repentance and desire for help is why the grace of God was extended for
him. Individuals in the body of Christ with any sin are given a “space to repent” (Rev. 2:21) which is a time frame designated only by the Lord himself. If true repentance and turning from sin does not occur, then God lifts his hand of favor and blessing, which can initiate chastisement or judgment. It is possible that the “hypocrite” you think is in the pew next to you struggling with anger, fleshly temptations, or even pride, may spend private time seeking God and asking for his help, and this is the part you cannot see or do not know. Thus, after spending time with the Lord, they are moved upon in a church service and the gifting within them begins to manifest. You know their public weaknesses but God sees their private humility.
Operating out of Habit and Not Inspiration However, what about those living in total spiritual rebellion who could write book on “My Life as a Hypocrite.” I am convinced that some people learn how to manipulate what appears to be a gift, or operate out of a learned habit and not out of inspiration. Years ago my father pastored a church in which one of the main members, a very mean looking fellow who always made sure he was on the front row, was causing severe trouble in the church. Once, Dad preached against racism and after the service this man approached dad threatening violence if he ever preached another message against racism! Dad later found out that this disgruntled man was a proud member of the local Ku Klux Klan. Dad rebuked this man and could not beleive that years ago some pastor allowed him to join the local church. Prior to dad leaving this church, I preached a Sunday service. This man would sit on the front row and begin making noises, just loud enough for me to hear, that sounded like he was speaking in other
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tongues. This grieved my spirit and I asked the Lord how this was even possible. The Holy Spirit revealed to me that this man was speaking words by habit and not by inspiration. He was like an unlearned infant who heard the words “momma” and “daddy” over and over until the child repeated what he heard. The man was like a parrot who had heard others operating in a prayer language and had learned the words in his flesh and not his spirit. A person who did not have any discernment would think this hypocrite was actually “praying in the sprit.” However, Paul wrote that if anyone speaks in other tongues and doesn’t have love, they are like a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal, or just a bunch of useless noise (I Cor. 13). This is why a person must be judged by the amount of love they have and not the number of gifts they claim.
Operating with a Familiar Spirit and not the Holy Spirit Among the ancients, there were so called seers, wise men, prophets, and prophetesses who gave oracles from the gods. It was common for leaders in the government, military generals, and those seeking guidance to seek out those claiming a prophetic gift. Obviously, these idol worshippers were not receiving a message from the Holy Spirit, but from a familiar spirit, which is a demonic entity that reveals known or planned information. On one occasion a woman with a spirit of divination followed Paul and Silas in the city of Philippi announcing, “These men are servants of the most high God” (Acts 16:17). Paul did not want his ministry to be linked with a fortune telling demon, and Paul cast the spirit out of the woman and she completely lost her power of prediction (Acts 16:18-19). Many in the full gospel churches would rather not even think about this possibility. However, I believe it is possible that
through sin, the spirit of the Lord can depart from a person and they can be troubled by a familiar spirit or an evil spirit, just as Saul was when his jealousy drove him to slay David (I Sam. 16:14). It is possible for a person to begin in the spirit and end up in the flesh. Paul said to the believers in Galatia, “Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?” (Gal. 3:3 - NJKV). In Christ’s time, the Jews and Samaritans were at odds and had no fellowship with one another. When the inhabitants did not receive Christ, James and John requested Christ to call fire down from heaven and burn up the Samaritans. Christ told them, “You don’t know what manner of spirit you are of ” (Luke 9:55). For any person who claims to be a Christian to move from the true anointing of the Holy Spirit to operating with a familiar spirit, they would have fallen into continual disobedience, and grieved the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30). I believe it is rare for a person to sit in a congregation having grieved God’s presence, as Saul did, and continue the routine of church activities week after week. However, it is possible. Discerning Christians can detect when something is from the Lord and when it is not.
Faking the Gifts Years ago, a friend of mine attended an evangelistic meeting in which the speaker was noted for giving out detailed information unknown to him, allegedly through the gift of word of knowledge (I Cor. 12:8). He called out a woman revealing her name and the last four digits of her social security number. The information was completely wrong, to the embarrassment of the preacher. However, it was the name of her boss and the digits of his social security number. She had driven her boss’s car to the meeting because hers was being repaired. It was later learned that this minister assigned a man in
a golf cart marked “security” to oversee the parking lot and watch people coming into the meeting. Using a computer program that helps repossess cars using a license number, the man was recording the license plate numbers and looking up the information, which was sent to a small ear piece in the minister’s ear. Thus it appeared that he was anointed by the Lord, but in reality he was faking the gifts to an undiscerning crowd. If this is not blasphemy, it certainly borders on it! Secular journalists have conducted exposés that revealed how certain men have manipulated or were outright frauds in their ministry approach. There are about 600,000 churches in America and about 300,000 licensed and ordained ministers. When the media reports the failures of some, people tend to cry “hypocrite.” However, consider the number of men and women in active ministry that are doing their best to serve and follow the Lord in humility and sincerity. The positive ones certainly outweigh the negative.
Willing, Not Perfect, Vessels God does not use perfect vessels, but he does use willing vessels. If he waited until each believer was completely and totally mature before using them, then most of the men God used to see and perform miracles in the Bible would never have experienced God’s blessings. We must never judge God’s gifts by the vessels being used, but realize that without the vessels the work of God would be null and void. God uses ministers to preach, teachers to teach, belivers to lay hands on the sick and minister to the community. We must assist one another in spiritual growth and maturity, and when someone is a hindrance in the church, then confront them face to face with elders and the leadership. This will help keep confusion out of the congregation. ARTICLE BY PERRY STONE
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