The Gifts of the Spirit
1 Corinthians 12 & 14 part 1
Introduction to the work and gifts of the Spirit
PowerPoint Slide 1 1 Cor 12:1-=11
One of the greatest ignorance’s today is in the area of spiritual gifts, and their operation within the church
The power of the Church is the Holy Spirit
Slide 2:1
Is it any wonder that Satan distorts this teaching of the Word more than anything else?
If he can render us weak in that which should be our strength, he has gained his mission
Not many Christians go and study in depth the scriptures relating to the gifts
They listen or read what others tell them (some good and bad stuff around) care needed
Within some Pentecostal churches there is a lot of abuse of the gifts of the Spirit, because people are ignorant of their true operation
On the other side of the fence, in some of the fundamental churches there is a lot of ignorance of the gifts of the Spirit because they dismiss them, not seeing any use for them today (died out with the 1st church)
So where Paul says, "I would not have you to be ignorant," sad but true, there is a great deal of ignorance today
The Corinthians knew well what the power of Satan was, for they had come out of paganism
They had been under the influence and control of evil spirits and idolatrous worship
Satan came into the Church with counterfeits of the manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Spirit
This is still true today
Satan transforms himself into an angel of light and produces manifestations, but remember that Satan never professes that Jesus is Lord
Evidently there was a rumor in Paul’s day that someone speaking in tongues was overheard by someone who understood the language that he was speaking in, and he was actually blaspheming God. Paul said, "Impossible. No man by the Spirit calls Jesus accursed." Now that rumor probably started in Corinth
Slide 2:2
The work of the Holy Spirit is to exalt Jesus Christ
Paul’s writing to the Corinthians suggests the abuse that was going on there with the gifts
It would be blasphemous to say that God would ever allow a false or evil spirit to come in and take control of my life!
Slide 3
There are many different gifts. This is a partial listing here:
• the word of wisdom
• the word of knowledge
• faith
• the gift of healing
• the working of miracles
• prophecy
• discerning of spirits
• tongues
• interpretations of tongues
• In verse 28 helps and governments
Not self-choosing
Paul gives us another list in Romans 12, in which he adds some that are not here
Sometimes our hearts become so set on manifestations that we forget the greatest manifestation is the work of the Holy Spirit in the birth of souls and adding to the body of believers
Don’t lose sight of God’s working in the hearts of unbelievers
Slide 4:1
There are many different types of gifts, but there is just one Spirit, the same Spirit
Slide 4:2
Even with the diversities of gifts, there are diversities of operations
Slide 5:1 & 2
Ministry in the body of Christ is to exercise of the gifts of the Spirit
Slide 5:3 & 4
They are supernatural
I may hold a certain gift of the Spirit and you may hold the same gift, but it may operate in my life differently to yours
He allows Himself the liberty of working as He wills and as He desires
The way it works in me is different to the way it works in you
Faith should never be in the feelings or ‘sensual’ that I have, because I may not have any feelings at all that I can describe
The same is with salvation. Some people describe some marvelous feelings when they received Jesus Christ
This causes other people to look for some kind of feeling rather than taking the Word of God at face value
God said it, He has promised it; I put my faith in the Word and the promise of God
It is important that our faith be established in the Word, because it doesn’t change, my feelings do
My feelings can change radically from today to tomorrow morning, but the Word of God doesn’t change
If God does give me a gift, it isn’t for my own personal gratification
It isn’t a toy for me to play with; it is to benefit of the whole body
There is only one gift spoken of that is to be used in one’s own personal devotion and it is for personal benefit, that is the gift of tongues
The gifts are given for the profit of the whole body of Christ
In the early church there was a dispute between the Hellenist, the Grecians, and the Hebrews
Some of the Jews were following the Hellenistic culture. Some were following the Hebrew culture. Those that were following the Hellenist culture felt that their widows were getting a second-rate treatment from the church’s welfare program. So they went to the apostles with their complaint, "Our widows are getting second-class treatment over there at the welfare tables."
The apostles got together, and here briefly are a few of the gifts:
The word of wisdom, "Let us appoint seven men of good reputation, filled with the Holy Spirit, that they might take the duty of administering the church’s welfare in order that we might continue to give ourselves to fasting and to prayer and to the Word of God. For it isn’t right that we should leave our ministries to take care of distributing of the church’s welfare program
Further wisdom is shown in the fact that of the seven men, five of them have Grecian names, which mean they probably came from the Hellenistic culture
When there are differences and disagreements, there is the possibility of people using the word of wisdom
It can often come in by someone speaking up and saying, "I think we ought to do that." And everybody says, "Hey, that’s a good idea. How did you ever think of that?"
It is the word of wisdom coming forward
God just gifts some people this way; it isn’t the reservoir of wisdom that I can just tap in to at anytime
But in a certain situation the Lord just gives that word of wisdom to satisfy everyone
The word of knowledge (1Cr 12:8),
This is how you instinctively somehow inwardly just have knowledge of something that is going on, and you can’t tell how you know it. You just do. . .
The Spirit has just revealed it and you have from Him knowledge of a situation or a person’s circumstance
I have looked at people sometimes and the Lord has just given me understanding of the problems the person
The supernatural often operates so naturally that we fail to recognize it
There is an awful lot of supernatural happening around us that we are totally oblivious to
We are not even aware of it. Because it happens so naturally
An inner awareness, a sudden thought or an inspiration, a sudden desire as God speaks to our heart and plants His truth within it
I have learned not to look for the fire, not to look for the earthquake, not to look for the rushing wind, but to listen to that still, small voice as God speaks to my heart, the word of knowledge by the same Spirit
To another faith
The gift of faith is a special faith in a special situation
You may not have faith in every situation
God gives to you, in certain situations
Faith is, He is going to work, and you just have the confidence and trust; resting in God
A beautiful experience; it doesn’t happen in every case, but it is great when it does
The gifts of healing by the same Spirit (1Cr 12:9)
Operates much in the same way as the gift of faith
To another the working of miracles
Prophesy which is speaking forth the truth of God through the anointing of the Spirit based on the word
One can prophecy without the office of Prophet
But the Prophet weighs the prophecies in line with the word
E.g. false prophecies concerning what will happen at Christ’s return
If it doesn’t happen = false prophet
A danger in saying ‘God said’ when He hasn’t
Slide 6:1 & 2
I cannot demand that I want a particular gift to be operating in my life
The Spirit is sovereign in the dispensing of these gifts
Slide 7: 1 1 Cor 14:1a
Follow after love and desire spiritual gifts
Slide 7:2 1 Cor 14:26-33
This scripture is often misquoted in some churches
Look again at verse 26 there is a question mark
Paul was saying, “Hey, this is how I see it”
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Paul wasn’t saying this is great stuff church, it was a rebuke
The church was making a mockery out of the gifts and Paul needed to put it right
He wasn’t telling them all to ramble on and cause as much noise as you can
But slide 7:3 verse 40
Let all things be done decently and in order
Paul earlier addresses the interruptions of some women occurring during the teaching period of the church service
(IVP Commentary on NT)
Unless Paul changes the subject from women’s universal silence (v. 34) to asking questions (v. 35a) and back to universal silence again (v. 35b), his general statement about women’s silence in church addresses only the specific issue of their challenges in verse 34a. The issue here is thus their weakness in Scripture, not their gender.
Also: Informed listeners customarily asked questions during lectures, but it was considered rude for the ignorant to do so. Although by modern standards literacy was generally low in antiquity (less so in the cities), women were far less trained in the Scriptures and public reasoning than men were. Paul does not expect these uneducated women to refrain from learning (indeed, that most of their culture had kept them from learning was the problem). Instead he provides the most progressive model of his day: their husbands are to respect their intellectual capabilities and give them private instruction. He wants them to stop interrupting the teaching period of the church service, however, because until they know more, they are distracting everyone and disrupting church order.
Finish with this quote: Slide 8
Hide not thy talent in the earth,
However small it be;
Its faithful use, its utmost worth,
God will require of thee.
His own, which He hath lent on trust,
He asks of thee again;
Little or much, the claim is just,
And thine excuses vain.
Go, then, and strive to do thy part,
Though humble it may be;
The ready hand, the willing heart,
Are all heaven asks of thee.
—William Cutler
