The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today (Paperback)

~ Wayne Grudem (Author) "WHAT IS THE GIFT OF PROPHECY?..." (more)
Key Phrases: congregational prophets, ordinary congregational prophecy, absolute divine authority, New Testament, Holy Spirit, Old Testament (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

What does the New Testament teach about the spiritual gift of prophecy? What is it? How does it function? Can evangelical Christians use it in their churches today?

This updated, comprehensive work answers such questions and points the way to a renewed understanding of the gift of prophecy--an understanding that suggests how the body of Christ may enjoy one of the Holy Spirit's most edifying gifts without compromising the supremacy of Scripture.

"This conservative evangelical scholarly work gives a solid theological basis for further development of a practical theology of spiritual gifts." --John Wimber, Vineyard Christian Fellowship

"Careful, thorough, wise, and to my mind, convincing." --J.I. Packer

"...a fresh, biblically sound, readable contribution...its depth of scholarship, pastoral solidity, and cautions against abuses are special strengths. Highly recommended." --Vern S. Poythress, Professor of New Testament Interpretation, Westminster Theological Seminary

"If Grudem's convincing thesis could be heard, a new path of dialog could perhaps be opened up in the Christian community. The research, clarity, and typical Grudem candor continue to make this the finest book on the subject to date." --L. Russ Bush, Professor of Philosophy of Religion, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

"...thorough, biblical, and practical. It deserves the attention of all who are concerned about the spiritual development of the church today." --Stanley Horton, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Bible and Theology, Assemblies of God Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Crossway Books; Revised edition (November 7, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581342438
• ISBN-13: 978-1581342437
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #38,375 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #22 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Theology > Prophecy
  #23 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Reference > Prophecies
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reformers, Read This Book, October 28, 2002

By	Randy Given (Manchester, CT USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I believe that Reformers should read this book. It is accurate and informative. It will help destroy some of the myths surrounding the gift of prophecy and will bring you closer to God's desire. Being Reformed (CRC), I have had many questions about the gift of prophecy (gathered over many years and many book). Almost all of them have been answered here. As J.I. Packer wrote, this book is "Careful, thorough, wise, and to my mind, convincing." I agree. You will find scripturally-based answers to what the gift is, who can have it, how it is used, and how it can benefit the Church. I highly recommend it, as well as they CRC Acts of Synod 1973 (nearly 30 years old!). This book is much newer, but covers much of the same ground. Read it and pray for God's illumination on the matter.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars In Search of Unity, June 19, 2001

By	Alan Hartung "[e-mail]" (Venice, CA) - See all my reviews

Having once served as a Pentecostal pastor, this book was of immeasurable value. It helped me to better see how the gift of prophecy could be manifested in the church in a way less likely to be divisive towards my non-Charismatic and non-Pentecostal brothers and sisters in Christ. Because of Grudem's background, he was able to give me a perspective on the practicing of the gifts that was outside of my own tradition.

The Holy Spirit is birthing love for one another regardless of our traditions and methods of Christian practice. This book offers a perspective on prophecy (and indirectly the other gifts) that can bring together those who practice the charismatic gifts and those who do not. We may not agree in form or practice, but we can shed anything that is not needed in the functioning of the gifts in order to promote the unity of the Church and the love of the brethren.

19 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Significant Study Probes the NT Gift of Prophecy, July 15, 2003

By	Edward J Vasicek (Kokomo, IN USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Wayne Grudem is a scholar, and his approach to the New Testament gift of prophecy is refreshing in that he appeals to the thinking Christian.

Grudem correlates the Old Testament prophet to the New Testament Apostle, while arguing that the New Testament gift of prophecy is not infallible, verbally inspired speech; it is simply God bringing a thought to the mind of a believer. Grudem's argument here is pretty strong, if incomplete, I think.

On the other hand, he quotes many Charismatic authors (in a positive light, mostly) who state that the flesh affects almost all prophecy. Although prophecies need not deal with predicting the future, those prophecies which do attempt to predict the future, according to the charismatic source quoted, are wrong about 80% of the time. If we (and Grudem does not do this)project the same rate of return for non-futuristic prophecy, what we end up with is perhaps 20% of all prophecies being acutally true. If 20% of verifiable prophecies are true, then we should logically project that number to non-verifiable prophecies.

Prophecy then is God (perhaps) bringing something to the mind of a believer -- about 20% of the time believers sense a prophecy. Of course, our sinful natures may corrupt even some genuine prophecies, and no prophet is infallible. His/her prophecies must each be evaluated, not necessarily by church leaders, but by individual Christians (so there is no official word as to what we should bank on, except if heresy is involved and the elders must step in). And this gift, with all this uncertainty and potential falliblity attached, is supposed to edify the church.

Incredible as this seems, Grudem does make a good argument for the above (although he does not correlate the 80% of future-oriented prophcies with non-future). Some of his points seem valid, espeically his distinction between the Old Testament gift and the New, between God bringing something to mind in a general way (while the prophet uses his own words to express what he senses) and inspired speech.

Perhaps a better position would be that some of the early church prophets were somewhat closer in authority to Old Testament prophets, and did, in fact, prophesy with "Thus says the Lord," but that others (the majority) were given a thought regarding what God was doing or wanted done (God bringing something to mind, an experience many Christians with various stances on spiritual gifts have sensed). Perhaps that first initial aspect of the gift is no longer with us (and thus no new infallible revelation), while the second form (God bringing something to mind)is. Of course this seems to be the case with the Apostles (specially empowered founders of the church) in contrast to modern missionaries (apostes in the sense of sent ones) who are sent to regions beyond but do not bear the authority of the founding apostles.

Whether Grudem's conclusions are correct in totality, in partiality (my view), or not at all, this is the type of work we need to read for intelligent study of these difficult and divisive issues. A nice break from mindless assertions or studies with pre-existing agendas. We need to be open to the Scriptures, but must avoid playing spiritual "pretend" games.

I recommend this work to parties on all sides of the issue.