Spiritual gifts 1 Corinthians 14:27-33

 

We finish this study of spiritual gifts with a reminder that God is not the author of confusion but of peace and one more encouragement to pursue the gifts. As Tertullian encouraged the newly baptized, “Ask from the Father, ask from the Lord, that His own specialties of grace and distributions of gifts may be supplied you.”

1 Corinthians 14:27-33 Guidelines for tongues and prophecy

27 If any man speak in a tongue, let it be by two, or at the most three, and by course; and let one interpret.

That is, one interpreter for each utterance in tongues.

28 But if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God.

We’re told two things here: (1) if there is no interpreter, then no public speaking in tongues. (If someone speaks in tongues, pray and wait for interpretation; no interpretation? no more tongues in that meeting.) (2) in which case, you may continue speaking in tongues, but silently to God. This is praying in tongues, or tongues as a prayer language. You can pray in tongues this way every church service.

29 Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.

Same restrictions for prophets. Who are the others who judge? Other prophets. We are to “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thess 5:21)

30 If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace.

Ah, it seems we ought to stand up when we speak. And sometimes we go beyond what was given us; in that case we need to shut up and sit down.

31 For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.

Interesting, he had just said two or three, Ye may all prophesy, one by one.

32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.

The Spirit doesn’t grab us and force us to speak, we have control.

33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

This is important. Confusion doesn’t mean everybody always understands what’s going on, it means we are all talking at once. It would be like having 2,3,4 men preaching at the same time, to the same church. Confusion.

14:34-40 Let your women keep silence in the churches I’m not sure what this is about, but I don’t think this is related to the gifts.

39  Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.

40  Let all things be done decently and in order.

Covet to prophesy – This is the fourth time that word is used! God is serious – we are to “desire earnestly, pursue, seek, ask” for spiritual gifts.

Forbid not to speak in tongues – We should have tongues in our church. We should have people with a prayer language, and we should have public utterances. We should have a welcoming, expectant atmosphere.

Decently and in order – Some believers are afraid that if we allow the Holy Spirit to move, it will result in a free for all; and conversely, there are those who think if we are decent and in order the Holy Spirit can’t be working. Read the book of Acts. There were mighty things happening: people being saved, being baptized with the Holy Spirit; miracles, healings, tongues, prophecy; but no chaos. Well, gatherings of those who opposed the Gospel were often chaotic.

This brings us back to 1 Corinthians 12:2 Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. The demons would grip them and throw them every which way, utterly out of control, nor would they remember what they said or did. The Holy Spirit does not work this way. Decently and in order. The spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. God is not the author of confusion, but of peace. It is true that manifestations of the Spirit are startling, they are supernatural and can rattle us; spiritual gifts shake us out of our routine and lethargy, but they are not chaotic.

The Spirit and the gifts are ours

Through him who with us sideth 

(Martin Luther)

Come Holy Spirit, breathe on us, fill us anew, rekindle the fire of your love, and manifest your presence.

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 14:12-26

We could sum up this section with one phrase, Seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church.

12 Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual [gifts], seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church.

Zealous of spiritual gifts – zealous, same word as in 12:31, 14:1; it is a good thing, a commendable thing, to seek, desire, pray for, expect gifts!

Seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church – Let your motive for gifts not be selfish, but the profit of the church. Sadly, any gift and any ministry can be misused and abused. Walk in love; seek to edify the church, not glorify yourself.

13 Wherefore let him that speaketh in an unknown tongue pray that he may interpret.

Can’t be any plainer – we can ask to receive gifts. We don’t “get it all” when we are saved, or even baptized with the Spirit. Seek, pursue, ask, expect.

14 For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.

15 What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.

Pray with Spirit / sing with the Spirit - This is why it is often called “a prayer language.” What happens when I pray in tongues? My spirit, with the help of the Holy Spirit, is praying, bypassing my understanding. I often don’t know how to pray as I ought, so I pray with the Spirit, or in the Spirit.

And notice, I will pray…I will sing. This is how a prayer language works. You can do it any time you want to; you can stop any time you wish. Even if I’m in a group setting and I’m sure the Spirit has given me an utterance in tongues or a word of knowledge, I don’t have to speak it; it’s everybody’s loss, but I’m in control.

16 Else when thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest?

17 For thou verily givest thanks well, but the other is not edified.

He continues to make his point – aim at the profit of all. If you often feel led to speak in tongues in church, pray for the gift of interpretation.

18 I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all:

19 Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue.

Is Paul against speaking in tongues? Ha! No!! He spoke in tongues more than all of them, and it was through his ministry that they spoke in tongues; but he had rather speak with his understanding, in their language, so he could teach them.

20 Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.

21 In the law it is written, With men of other tongues and other lips will I speak unto this people; and yet for all that will they not hear me, saith the Lord.

22 Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not: but prophesying is not for them that believe not, but for them which believe.

I confess, I don’t fully grasp what he is saying here, especially in light of 23-25

23 If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad?

24 But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all:

25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.

At the very least he is giving another example of how prophecy is better than tongues without interpretation, because more people are edified.

26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Another wonderful verse! We had what I called Believers Meeting every 5th Sunday night based on this verse. I wouldn’t prepare anything; everyone would contribute something to the meeting - song, testimony, prayer request, Scripture, and we would trust the Lord to lead us. Wonderful meetings!

NEXT: 1 Corinthians 14:27-33 Guidelines for tongues and prophecy

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 14:1-11

Today we begin going through chapter 14, a very practical chapter in which Paul compares speaking in tongues and prophecy. I call this, "Let the fun begin!” Many people are afraid of spiritual gifts, either because they are unfamiliar with them, or because they’ve seen abuses and misuse; but I can honestly say, I want everything the Lord has provided and promised. I want my experience to line up with the Word, but I don’t want to miss out on any blessings he has promised in His Word. Did I say practical? Yes! Let's be doers of the Word.

1 Corinthians 14:1-11

1 Follow after love, and desire spiritual gifts

This is a really neat verse! Here is a translation that captures what he is saying:

Run swiftly in order to catch the love [described in ch 13], and desire earnestly and seek the spirituals [mentioned in ch 12].

1 but rather that ye may prophesy.

We are to desire earnestly and seek that we might prophesy. Have you ever prophesied? The Holy Spirit is telling you may seek it, and pray for it. You are authorized to ask God to give you a gift you don’t yet have.

Now comes the “more later” about tongues and prophecy. In verse 2-5 Paul compares tongues and prophecy as to:

(1) Who is spoken to?

2 For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.

3 But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort.

When someone speaks in tongues he is speaking to God; when someone prophesies he is speaking to men. Speaking in tongues is speaking mysteries in the Spirit; this is a good thing, but no one understands what was said. Prophesying is speaking in the language of the speaker and hearer, for edification, exhortation, and comfort.

(2) Who is edified?

4 He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.

Speaking in tongues edifies the speaker, even though he doesn’t understand what he just said. This is a good thing, we each need to be built up on our most holy faith. The one who prophesies edifies the whole gathering, because it’s in their language. Both are good, but prophecy is better.

5 I would that ye all spoke with tongues, but rather that ye prophesied: for greater is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues, except he interpret, that the church may receive edifying.

This is a really interesting and exciting verse!

(1) I would that ye all spoke with tongues – I would like for all of you to speak with tongues. This is Paul speaking; but it is also the voice and will of the Spirit. He is not opposed to tongues, he would like to see us all speak with tongues. This tells me that if you do not speak in tongues, you can begin praying for this gift, and praying with confidence.

(2) but rather that ye prophesied – “I have an even stronger desire that you prophesy.” Desire earnestly, seek, pray that you might prophesy.

(3) for greater is he that prophesieth…. – Greater is he who prophesies than he who speaks in tongues. Greater? Has a bigger and better impact.

(4) except he interpret – This confirms that when Paul says tongues, he is speaking of tongues without interpretation. Tongues, by itself, edifies the speaker, which is good, but tongues plus interpretation edifies everyone, which is better. Seems tongues + interpretation = prophecy.

6 Now, brethren, if I come unto you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you, except I shall speak to you either by revelation, or by knowledge, or by prophesying, or by doctrine?

Tongues here means speaking in the meeting without interpretation. He is repeating himself, tongues is good, but without interpretation it is limited.

Here’s another interesting verse! It’s like this is inspired!! Revelation, knowledge, prophesying, doctrine. Wow! I would like opportunities to preach at church, and when I have them I want to preach this way!

Revelation – God has revealed something to me, dream, vision, or a word.

Knowledge – A word of knowledge. The Lord has revealed something to me, has given me insight into the Scriptures, the Faith.

Prophesying – The Spirit has given me something to say to the brethren. These differ somehow, but I’m afraid I can’t explain how.

Doctrine – He means teaching from the Word and/or on the Faith.

What do all these have in common? They are all in the language of the hearers.

7-11 Examples of the importance of knowing the meaning of what is said.

9 So likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken?

 

Next: 1 Corinthians 14:12-25 It just keeps getting better and better!

1 Corinthians 13 A more excellent way

 

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 13 is a very well known chapter, but it’s not a stand-a-lone chapter, it’s right in the middle of Paul’s discussion of the gifts of the Spirit. This is a great chapter, one worthy of a study all its own, but I’m only going to emphasize the portions that relate to spiritual gifts. I’m not trying to diminish its importance, I’m simply focusing on spiritual gifts.

1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing.
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing.

This is the more excellent way he mentioned at the close of ch 12. I’ve heard plenty of people teach that Paul is saying here that we need to choose between the gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit, and of course the more excellent way is the fruit, so the gifts gotta go.

But Paul is not describing an either or situation. What he is saying, astonishing enough as it is, is that it is possible to posses and exercise spiritual gifts while at the same time not walking in love! That is the poor choice. It is not, “Choose gifts or fruit” it is rather, “Exercise the gifts in love.” And what does this walking in love look like?

4 Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Amen! Lord, fill my heart with your love!!

8 Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

This is why walking in love in the more excellent way, love never fails. All the gifts are temporary and only part of the full picture. They shall all cease. But when? We all agree on this, When that which is perfect is come. Ah, but when is that? Some say when the canon of Scripture is complete, which would mean all the gifts have ceased, including prophecy, tongues, knowledge. Others say it is when the Lord returns. This is how I understand it, so I believe we can expect and experience spiritual gifts until He comes.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

13 And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

This would be why I believe when that which is perfect is come refers to the second coming - we still see through a glass darkly. If you see face to face, then I need to hang out with you! Faith and hope are also temporary, but we still need them. There is coming a day! Maranatha!!

NEXT: 1 Corinthians 14 Let the fun begin!!

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

 

I was all last week looking at the first 11 verses of 1 Corinthians 12, it’s just so good! This week I plan finish chapter 12, look at 13, then start 14. Chapter 12 ends with an exhortation, "seek the best gifts" - we aren't passive in this, we are to pursue them. 

The water’s deep, let’s jump in!!

12:12-27 One body, many members

Verses 12-27 are part of chapter 12 and part of Paul’s corrective teaching on spiritual gifts. It is a very good section, however I’m not doing a study on 1 Corinthians as a whole, I’m only looking at spiritual gifts, so I will simply summarize this section. At the beginning of the chapter he said, there are many gifts, but one Spirit. Here he is saying the same thing from a different angle. He compares the church to a body and uses the same principle of many yet one, “There are many members, but one body; there is one body, but many members.” 27 Now ye are a body of Christ, and members in particular.

12:28-31 Another list

28 And God hath set some in the church

God has set some in the church. Again, God is in control of who gets what gift and who has what ministry. This list is different than earlier in the chapter, both as to content and intent. This seems to refer more to ministries than manifestations. There are 8 gifts listed, arranged in 5 categories, in order of importance:

first apostles – apostle means sent forth. An apostle is someone who leaves home to bring the gospel to a people who have never heard, make converts, organize them into churches, and maintain oversight of these brethren. 

second prophets – this is related to but slightly different than prophecy. The gift of prophecy is a manifestation, a word that the Spirit gives as he sees fit. Prophet is what I call a take home gift, a ministry. A prophet would no doubt exercise the gift of prophecy from time to time, but this refers to him speaking forth for the Lord. He sees what ought to be as well as what is, and urges the people to rise up or go forth. It is a strong ministry. Not loud, critical, or harsh (although prophets are often unpopular), but insightful, penetrating, and challenging.

third teachers – these are the ones raised up by the Lord and gifted by the Spirit with the ability to understand and explain the Faith and the Word of God. If a prophet is uncomfortable, a teacher can be irritating or annoying, “What this really means is…. You’re not saying that correctly…” The prophet seeks to stir us up to right living; the teacher is concerned with right belief and correct interpretation of a passage.

after that [fourth] miracles – seems to me while there is a manifestation of working of miracles, there is also a ministry of miracles. These saints have a ministry marked by miracles. We need people whose ministry is filled with signs and wonders.

then [fifth] gifts of healings, helps, governments, kinds of tongues

In the fifth category he places 4 gifts. They are all gifts of the Holy Spirit, which means they are all good; they are all ministries raised up by the Lord for his church, which means they are all helpful, valuable, positive.

Gifts of healings – we may experience this manifestation, but some have a ministry of healing

Helps – we can all set up tables, put chairs away etc. and that’s helpful, but this refers to those who help or assist a ministry. Chuck Smith was raised up by God to teach the Word, reach the hippies of the 60s and 70s, and oversee the Calvary Chapels birthed through him, but his right hand man, the one who “helped” keep it all together and functioning was Pastor Romaine. I think he had the gift of helps.

Governments – this is the gift of administration. Helps and administration is not confined to deacons and elders, but it sure helps if they have them. This is a very helpful gift in all ministries.

Kinds of tongues – Any believer can have the manifestation of tongues, but some move in this gift quite often. This is the public speaking in tongues. There is a place for speaking in tongues in our gatherings, as we will see in ch 14.

29  Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?

30  Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?

The expected answer to each question is, No. Are all apostles? No. Are all teachers? No. Do all speak with tongues (the context here is, publicly)? No. His point is, there are diversities of gifts, but one Spirit, there are a variety of ministries, but one Lord and one church.

What’s interesting is while he listed 8 gifts in the previous verse, here he only mentions 7; but one is an addition to the 8 in v 28! He’s not listing every gift in every list, no list is exhaustive.

People with these ministries can also move in the manifestations mentioned earlier in the chapter. An apostle can also have words of wisdom, knowledge, prophecy, discerning of spirits et al. A teacher should expect words of knowledge, and can have gifts of healings, and kinds of tongues. The manifestations are open to all, while the Lord raises up some for ministries.

31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet show I unto you a more excellent way.

Covet earnestly the best gifts. Covet earnestly is a translation of a single word, a strong word, which means “desire earnestly or pursue.” Another word is seek. The denomination I was affiliated with in my years of ministry developed an approach to the gifts in the 1960s, especially tongues, “Seek not, forbid not” (which sort of spiraled down to, “Seek not, forbid not, hope not, better not”). We see here that seek not is not Scriptural. “Pursue” is an imperative. This is a command, “desire earnestly", "pursue” the gifts. Pray about it; ask God to give you gifts; be open to the gifts; be filled with the Spirit and let Him give you gifts!

I show unto you a more excellent way. This is the set up for ch 13

NEXT: Chapter 13

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:10-11

 

tongues, interpretation of tongues

This is the final group. Again, I don’t know why Paul has grouped these manifestations of the Spirit this way. We’ll see this again at the end of the chapter.

10 kinds of tongues – speaking in tongues is when the Holy Spirit gives you the ability to speak in a language that neither you nor those you are with know. There have been occasions when someone spoke in a language they didn’t know and there was someone there who knew it, but that is not the norm.

There is public tongues and private tongues. What? Tongues here is public, that is, speaking in tongues out loud in a group setting. Speaking in tongues in private is often called a prayer language. When you receive this gift, you can use it anytime, anywhere. We’ll see that in ch 14. But here in ch 12 he is referring to public tongues, and that calls for the prompting of the Spirit. We’ll see more about that in ch 14 as well.

kinds of tongues - “One morning I woke up with this phrase in my mind, as clear and distinct as anything: “Kinds of tongues: praise, intercession, rebuke, and exhortation.” I feel the Holy Spirit was showing me at least a part of the meaning of kinds of tongues—different kinds of prayer given in tongues that suit the types of prayer. It also refers to exhortation or instruction. I am in no way suggesting these four types exhaust the possibilities. In many ways, although the gift of kinds of tongues is one of the hardest to understand and enter into, it is also one of fullest and most effective when it is correctly operated.” (DP)

10 interpretation of tongues – tongues is the ability to speak in a language that neither you nor your listeners understand; interpretation of tongues is when the Holy Spirit gives the explanation of what was said in your language. We will see a lot more about tongues and interpretation ch 14.

11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. 

One and the selfsame Spirit – This is the repeated and stressed theme in this chapter: all the gifts come from one Spirit, the same Spirit. It seems the Corinthians overemphasized speaking in tongues, perhaps those who didn’t speak in tongues felt less, “but all these [gifts] worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit.” The same Source – the Holy Spirit; the same goal – the profit of all. Therefore, all the gifts are valuable, all are good, all are a blessing.

Dividing to every man severally as he will – The Spirit distributes the gifts as he will. I believe 7-11 is referring primarily to a group gathering, church, Bible study, prayer meeting, and the Spirit works by giving different ones these manifestations. These aren’t ministries or take home gifts, no, one has a prophecy, another has a tongue, another an interpretation, another a word of knowledge. In other words, any believer could manifest any of these gifts as the Holy Spirit moves in our midst. I’ve personally experienced many of these, and some I have never experienced. For example, I have never had an interpretation of tongues, but I could if the Spirit wanted me to. It’s also probably true that we will tend to move in certain gifts most often, but we need to expect the Spirit to move among us and be open and willing to be the one through whom he moves.

One of the questions I hoped to answer was, When are spiritual gifts received? It seems pretty plain to me: You don’t receive these when you are saved; you receive and experience them after you are born again. What is the doorway that leads to experiencing the gifts? I believe an essential step is the baptism with the Holy Spirit. I admit this is not stated in chapters 12-14, this comes from another study in the Book of Acts.

 

 

NEXT WEEK: The rest of chapter 12, chapter 13, and begin chapter 14

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:10

 

prophecy, discerning of spirits

prophecy – “Prophecy is the ability to speak words given by the Holy Spirit in a language understood by the speaker.” (DP) Often this is a word about something God is going to do (foretelling). Agabus prophesied the great famine (Acts 11) and how Paul would be mistreated in Jerusalem (Acts 21). The elders prophesied over Timothy concerning his ministry and a spiritual gift God wanted to give him (1 Tim 4:14). Other times this is a word from the Lord to encourage, exhort, comfort.

How does this differ from a word of knowledge or a word of wisdom? I’m not sure, I think of them all as “a word from the Lord.” Have I ever prophesied? I’m not sure of that either. As I said before, I’m more familiar with the general expression, “a word from the Lord”, which sort of covers them all. Besides, as I said earlier, they don’t come with labels.

When Covid first became a thing, Mary was working in the hospital and was concerned that she would catch it. God gave me “a word” for her, “You will never get Covid.” And she didn’t. It wasn’t positive thinking, I was absolutely certain. I don’t know how to label this.

Another time I was returning from a Bible study I was leading and as I neared the church building of that little church I mentioned before, the Lord gave me a very clear and strong word regarding a situation we were facing. I shared it with the pastor, he acted on it and it was solved. Was that a word of wisdom or a prophecy? I don’t know and I don’t really care! Just glad to flow in the Spirit! We will see more about prophecy in ch 14.

discerning of spirits – Every Christian should walk and grow in discernment, but this is different. This is like the other gifts, a word from the Lord that is revealed to you, where you suddenly see behind the scenes.

Examples of this in Scripture:

Peter to Simon in Acts 8, thy heart is not right in the sight of God … for I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and the bond of iniquity.

Paul in Acts 13 to Elymas the sorcerer, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, child of the devil, enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season (discernment + prophecy).

Paul in Philippi, Acts 16; a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us . . . The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.

This is especially necessary or helpful when the church is open to and experiencing the gifts of the Spirit. There are evil spirits out there who love to masquerade as the Holy Spirit and deceive the brethren. We need this supernatural insight. I once read about a young church which was open to the Spirit moving among them. One night, a man walked in off the street, asked if he could address the church, and they let him (things were a little different in the 60s and 70s!!). Suddenly, a normally quiet brother stood up, pointed to the man, and said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ!” Everyone was shocked! The man left and the brethren began chastising the brother. But it turned out that the man off the street had come in with the intention of leading them astray. It doesn’t always, or even usually, work that way, but that’s discerning of spirits, a seeing behind the scenes.

 

NEXT: tongues, interpretation of tongues

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:9 & 10

 

faith, gifts of healings, workings of miracles

You can tell the next five are grouped together because Paul uses a different word for to another, but we're only looking at three of them today

9 faith – There are different kinds of faith. First, everyday faith: faith to be saved, to be filled with the Spirit, to be healed, to live the Christian life etc. This faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God; this faith can be cultivated; we can grow in this faith; we can be blamed when we fail to exercise faith.

Second, there is the faith that is the fruit of the Spirit, which is really faithfulness.

Third is the gift of the Spirit faith. This is a special faith for a specific situation. This “is miraculous faith. God has all wisdom, but He doesn’t give us all that wisdom at once. In a moment of need, He imparts to us a word of His wisdom by the Holy Spirit. Similarly, although God has all knowledge, He does not impart to us all that knowledge because we would stagger under the load. Again, in the moment of need, He imparts to us a word of His knowledge by the Holy Spirit. He imparts the gift of faith in a very similar way. Paul did not say God gives “a word” of faith, but this is essentially what it is. This is faith that comes instantly, supernaturally, as a gift directly from God by the Holy Spirit, very frequently in the form of a word. This gift, like the others we have examined so far, is operated only under God’s control. No one has a word of knowledge or a word of wisdom at will. No one discerns spirits at will. Likewise, no one has the gift of faith at will. These gifts remain under God’s control, but we make ourselves available to Him so He may operate them through us as He desires.” (DP)

This is faith for someone else. One Wednesday night prayer meeting we were praying for a sister (in another town) with a serious physical condition. I was praying she would receive grace to live with this blah blah – I just couldn’t see beyond that. Someone else prayed, without fanfare, but with confidence and boldness, that God would fully heal her. At first I was shocked, but agreed as best I could. The sister was completely healed!

9 gifts of healings – yes, both gifts and healings are plural. I don’t really know why. Some have suggested that every time someone is healed in response to prayer that is a gift of healing. Others have suggested that people are sometimes gifted with the ability to heal certain conditions. I believe Jesus still heals in answer to prayer and I have known people who are especially gifted in praying for the sick and seeing them healed. I am persuaded that a word of knowledge and faith flow together with gifts of healings. I have prayed for people with my elders, anointing them with oil, and they were healed (including cancer), which is one way to minister healing, but I’m not sure that was the gift of healing. One day, at a little church we were attending, the pastor’s wife came to church having great pain and difficulty with her knee. The whole church gathered around her, laid our hands on her (I said it was little!), and prayed as we felt led. I felt the Lord gave me a word, a verse, for her concerning this. I prayed it. She was healed. Praise God! Word of knowledge or faith? I don’t know.

10 workings of miracles – Again with the plural. And again, I’m not sure why. I believe Jesus still performs miracles, but I am pretty sure I have never prayed for someone and seen a miracle before my eyes. What’s the difference between a miracle and a healing? A healing may take place over time instead of all at once. I was in the hospital for 58 days because covid tried to kill me. They thought I was going to die. I almost died, but people prayed for me and God healed me, raised me out of that bed, strengthened me, restored me. But it took time. A miracle is more like Peter and the lame man in Acts 3, Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.  And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. That’s a miracle! I think it may also require faith and a word of knowledge. Peter and John no doubt saw the lame man several times until that one day when Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. I admit the Bible doesn’t say this, but I believe Peter had a prompting of the Spirit, a word of knowledge and the gift of faith and so he spoke to the man.

 

NEXT: Prophecy, discerning of spirits

Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:8

 

word of wisdom, word of knowledge

Yesterday we saw that “Spiritual gifts are spiritual, supernatural abilities, freely given and bestowed by the Holy Spirit as a manifestation of His presence.” Today I will begin to look at the manifestations themselves. I’m striving to be brief while at the same time explaining and illustrating each gift. It’s a challenge keeping each post short!

7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.

8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another [divers] kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:

11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

There are 9 manifestations of the Spirit listed here. Paul seems to arrange them into three groups (the colors show the grouping).

I don’t know why he does this, but it’s clear in Greek. Now just a brief word about each manifestation or gift, beginning with word of wisdom and knowledge.

Wisdom and knowledge. Many Bibles have “the word of”, but there is no “the” in the Greek, so it is more accurately a word of wisdom…a word of knowledge. Wisdom is how to apply what you know; knowledge is information. These are revelatory gifts, God reveals something to you:

a word of wisdom “What is the gift of a word of wisdom? It is a tiny portion of God’s total wisdom directly and supernaturally imparted by the Holy Spirit. God has all wisdom. But, fortunately for you and me, He does not give it to us all at once because it would completely submerge us. This gift is given by supernatural means because the results would not be available by natural means. It is imparted by the Holy Spirit.” (DP)

A couple of examples from Scripture of when the Holy Spirit gave a revelation, an insight into the way to solve this problem

Acts 6:1-4 This was when there was a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. So the apostles gathered the disciples and instructed them to choose seven men to oversee this ministry.

Acts 15 The Jerusalem Council. This was a huge issue: Do Gentiles need to be circumcised to be saved? There was much discussion, argument, discord, until James said, “Here’s my decision.”

a word of knowledge “I defined a word of wisdom as a tiny portion of God’s total wisdom imparted by the Holy Spirit. A word of knowledge has a parallel definition. It is a tiny portion of God’s total knowledge supernaturally imparted by the Holy Spirit.” (DP) A few examples from Scripture:

John 4 Jesus and the woman at the well - You have had five husbands…

Acts 5 Ananias and Saphira – They had sold some property and given the money to the apostles, pretending they had given all the money. Why have you lied to the Holy Spirit? He only knew it by revelation.

Acts 14 Paul with the lame man at Lystra - perceiving that he had faith to be healed.

This can be a revelation about a person, a situation, or an insight into something in Scripture. I am familiar with the expression, “I have a word from the Lord” and I confess I don’t often separate them, “This is wisdom, this is knowledge” etc. I mean, they don’t come with a tag! It’s just a word from the Lord. As I will repeat, all the revelatory gifts are (for me) hard to distinguish.

NEXT: faith, gifts of healings, workings of miracles

(DP) - Derek Prince, from his book, The Gifts of the Spirit: Understanding and Receiving God’s Supernatural Power in Your Life.

Spiritual Gifts

 

Spiritual Gifts in 1 Corinthians 12-14

My plan is to go through these chapters focusing on what they say specifically about spiritual gifts. This means there will be sections I will not cover, not because they are not important, but because I am only focusing on the gifts. All of the quotes noted DP are from Derek Prince and his book, The Gifts of the Spirit: Understanding and Receiving God’s Supernatural Power in Your Life. Some questions I will be asking and answering:

+ What are these things we call spiritual gifts?

+ When do we receive spiritual gifts?

+ What are the spiritual gifts?

1 Corinthians 12:1-7
1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
2 Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.

3 Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and [that] no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.
4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.

5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.

7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.

(Let’s begin with a parenthesis! While verses 2-3 are important in this matter of spiritual gifts, I’m skipping them now, but will return to them in my last post.)

Please notice that the first thing Paul says is, Brethren I would not have you ignorant concerning spiritual gifts. He wants us to know what they are, how they are received, and how to experience them.

Second, right away, in the first 7 verses, we find 3 words for spiritual gifts: spiritual, gifts, manifestations. This helps us answer the question: What are spiritual gifts?

1 Spiritual This first verse is very interesting, it should read, Now concerning the spirituals. The Greek has the article “the” and so should we because it is important here, he is talking about something specific. It is plural because there is more than one. The KJV has the word gifts in italics, which tells us there is no word for gifts in the Greek; it was supplied by the translators because in this case “the spirituals” does refer to the gifts of the Spirit. But when we understand that he is calling them spirituals or spiritual things, this gives us our first definition:

They are spiritual. These are not natural talents or abilities; you are not born with them; you do not develop them; or learn them in school; you don’t need to take a personality test to see which one you have. They are spiritual in nature; they are supernatural abilities. They are spiritual because they are linked to, associated with, given by the Holy Spirit. This tells us what they are, but not when we receive them.

4 Gifts - Now there are diversities of gifts

Diversities - There are many different gifts. Like when you go to the grocery store, there are a variety of fruits in produce, but they are all fruit. Even so, there many gifts. But the most important thing for us is the word, gifts.

Gifts is the word charismata; we get our word charismatic from this. It comes from the word for grace. These are gifts of grace; gracelets; freely given; not related to merit or worth; no relation to spiritual maturity. Receiving these or possessing these says nothing about how spiritual you are, how deserving you are, how mature you are – they are freely given by the Holy Spirit. And again, this tells us what they are, but not when we receive them.

7 the manifestation of the Spirit. Isn’t this cool? Spiritual gifts is a way that the Holy Spirit makes his presence known. This refers to times when we are gathered together, such as church, a prayer mtg, a Bible study, and other times when such manifestations are needed, basically any kind of ministry situation. As we will see in 8-11, gifts are given by the Holy Spirit when he wills, thus received at different times, or as Paul says it, manifested at different times.

He goes on in v 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. Profit withal? That all may profit or benefit; the manifestation is given to one for the good of all.

To sum up: Spiritual gifts are spiritual, supernatural abilities, freely given and bestowed by the Holy Spirit as a manifestation of His presence.

NEXT: 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 The Manifestation of the Spirit