… in keeping with the prophecies once made about you …
Summary: Paul’s reference to the “prophecies once made about you” leads us to wonder what they might have been and how they came about.
To understand what Paul is saying in this passage, we really need to talk about personal prophecies.
In Old Testament times, prophets were people who were selected by God to speak to the people of Israel. Some of the big names included:
- Moses — Deuteronomy 34:10, Numbers 12:6–8
- Aaron — Exodus 7:1
- Miriam — Exodus 15:20
- Deborah — Judges 4:4
- Samuel — 1 Samuel 3:20, Acts 3:24
- Nathan — 2 Samuel 7:2, 1 Kings 1:8
- Elijah — 1 Kings 18:36, 2 Kings 1:8
- Elisha — 2 Kings 3:11, 2 Kings 5:8
While there were sometimes hundreds of false prophets (1 Kings 22:6) the Lord would choose one person to speak for him at a time. When the prophet spoke, whether to one person or many, it was generally about something that affected the whole of Israel.
After Jesus lived, died, rose, and went up to heaven, something very important changed. The prophet Joel, speaking for God, says:
“And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.” (Joel 2:28-29)
Jesus speaks to this directly when he says:
“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul writes about the “manifestations of the Spirit” and how they are given for the “common good.” Then Paul describes what these look like. Some he calls a “message of wisdom,” while others are a “message of knowledge.” He also explains that one of the manifestations of the Spirit is “prophecy.” (1 Corinthians 12:7-11)
Before Jesus, God used Israel as a “light for the Gentiles” (Isaiah 49:6). After Jesus fulfilled the law (Romans 13:8), God changed tactics. He pours out his Spirit on “all people.” First to convict (John 16:8), and then for those who acknowledge Jesus as Lord, to “teach you all things” (John 14:26).
It would appear that “all things” includes the prophecies made about Timothy.
Application: Learn to listen to the Holy Spirit’s teaching.
Food for Thought: Where would Christianity be without the Holy Spirit?
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Where would Christianity be without the Holy Spirit?
The question is less speculative than it comes across. There are some followers of Christ who diminish the role of the Holy Spirit in their walk with Christ. They view Him more as “behind the scenes” than actively and directly guiding them. I believed this in my younger days. What I can testify to is that when we do not invite and walk with the Holy Spirit, our awareness of God’s presence diminishes and doubts begin to take hold.
Our mindset focuses on our physical lives.
Romans 8:6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
We begin to question our salvation and rely on our works as evidence of our guarantee of Heaven.
Ephesians 1:13-14
13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
We cannot comprehend the love of God and find difficulty in living in it and expressing it.
Romans 5:5
5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Christianity is the body of Christ, and Christ is the head. The Holy Spirit unites all followers under Christ through individual relationships with Christ, and then unites us together in fellowship. The fellowship brought about by the Holy Spirit is to equip us, and to make us effective for spreading the Gospel of Christ.
Ephesians 4
1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
Chris,
Thank you for your well thought out answer.
I think we would be in the same boat the Jews were before Jesus was born.
Thank You, CV
Very interesting point.
Where would Christianity be without the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the source of all good seen in our lives, the power from God to be light in the darkness.
Intercession For Us: ROMANS 8:27, And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Conviction Of Sin: JOHN 16:8, When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment.
Transformation Of Hearts: EZEKIEL 36:26, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
Comfort And Peace: 2 CORINTHIANS 1:4, Who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble, with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
Assurance Of Salvation: ROMANS 8:16, The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
Empowerment For Service: 2 TIMOTHY 1:7, For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Guidance In Truth: JOHN 16:13, But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
Spiritual Gifts: 1 PETER 4:10, Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
Thank you, Ron.
I really like your list of things the Holy Spirit does.
Jeff, Thanks for sharing. It hit the spot today.
🙂