Part 10 of 10 of the theme 'The Holy Spirit in the NT ' by Gijs van den Brink
Since the context in the epistles is that of the Christian congregation, it is not surprising that we encounter this aspect less there.
But in the book of Acts, this is different. In Acts, we regularly read about "signs" and "miracles" (Acts 2:43; 5:12; 6:8; 8:6,13; 14:3; 15:12). The healings and other charismata serve to legitimize the preacher and his message.
Miracles and signs support and confirm the apostles' message.
In the same vein, Mark also speaks of healings: "And they went out to make the news known everywhere. The Lord helped them to do this and strengthened their proclamation with the signs that accompanied it. (Mar. 16:20).
Luke writes of Paul and Barnabas that they "spoke boldly of God's word, confident in the Lord, who strengthened the proclamation of his grace by having them perform signs and wonders. (Acts 14:3).
We see in the book of Acts that by seeing healings and miracles people come to faith. This happens, for example, in the healing of Eneas (Acts 9:32-35) and in the raising from the dead of Dorcas (Acts 9:37-43).
The gifts of the Spirit are given for the edification or foundation of the congregation on the one hand (1 Cor. 12:4-11), but also as a legitimation of the preacher and his message (2 Cor. 12:2).
Author: Gijs van den Brink
From: Study Bible Magazine
This is part 10 of 10 concise blog on the topic of "The Holy Spirit in the NT" from Study Bible Magazine, Some of which we will be posting online in the near future. We hope this will help you understand the Bible better!
