It is sad but true: there is a lot of controversy concerning spiritual gifts.
My parents raised me in a traditional church that I loved very much. In my church, I learned a lot about the Bible. Every Sunday, for years, I faithfully attended Sunday school. In these Sunday morning classes, I learned Bible stories about David, Noah, Jonah and Jesus. My Sunday school teacher faithfully taught me the word of God.
During the main church service, my pastor preached from the Bible. There was a continual emphasis on salvation. Near the end of the service was an altar call. We would all stand and sing the hymn “Just as I Am.”
I believed then, and I still do, that church was a holy place.
Despite all the beautiful things about my church, we did not speak about certain verses. We did not talk about Acts 8 when the apostles laid hands on believers baptized by Phillip, and they received the Holy Spirit. We skipped Acts 19 when Paul laid hands on believers from Ephesus, and they began to speak in tongues and prophesy.
The point is if we are going to believe the Bible, we need to believe the entire Bible. Sadly, some people will take the Scriptures out of context to support a preconception. It is a natural tendency, so there is no condemnation.
In 1 Corinthians 14:1, the Lord commands us to do three things: Pursue love, desire spiritual gifts, but especially desire the gift of prophecy.
Why would our loving heavenly Father ever ask us to do something impossible? The gift of prophecy, when operating correctly, is the Lord speaking to us. Nothing is more important than hearing what God has to say.
Be sure to tune into this episode of Self Talk on the Charisma Podcast Network, where Dr. Self discusses the controversy about this commandment and the beauty of this gift. {eoa}
Curt Landry 
Michael L. Brown 
Rabbi Eric Tokajer 
