Rediscovering the Church: Spiritual Gifts
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Scripture Reading
Scripture Reading
1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
1 Cor 12:1-
Pray
Pray
One Spirit
One Spirit
Intro
Intro
Warm-up Exercise:
Warm-up Exercise:
If you’re a disciple of Christ, repeat after me:
“Holy Spirit”
“
“The Holy Spirit is present and active in the church”
“I will trust the Holy Spirit to guide me”
“I will not grieve the Holy Spirit by exaggerating or denying his work in my life”
Unfortunately an often misunderstood and divisive topic
Unfortunately an often misunderstood and divisive topic
Cause of many denominational distinctives
God’s purpose for us
God’s purpose for us
Legalism and
To rediscover, embrace, and pursue all that He has determined to do in us through the work of the Holy Spirit!
Discernment
There’s so much deception, so many counterfeits and frauds, so how can we discern/know what of what we see or experience is truly a movement or work of the Holy Spirit?
The Extremes
The Extremes
Those who idolize metaphysical, supernatural experiences that the word of God and discernment take a back seat to their “personal experiences”.
Those who idolize intellectualism and are so uncomfortable with what they can’t explain that they minimize the presence and ministry of the Holy Spirit.
A Legitimate Concern
A Legitimate Concern
:1
1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed.
“gifts” is not in the Greek, but is subject of the passage. Here Paul is concerned about making a clear distinction between the that which is born of the Spirit (Holy Spirit) and that which is born of the flesh.
“Now Concerning”
“Now concerning the matters about which you wrote (i.e. marriage and sexuality)
“Now concerning the betrothed”
“Now concerning food offered to idols”
“Now concerning spiritual gifts”
“Now concerning the collection for the saints”
“Now Concerning our brother Apollos”
Paul/God’s desire for all believer’s
9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,
Key Words:
Spiritual - pneumatikos - from the Spirit
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Identifying the Unspiritual
Identifying the Unspiritual
John 3:6-8
Uninformed - agnoeo (prefix “a” without/not; gnosis = knowledge) - ignorant, not to know, without knowledge (experiential knowledge).
Paul/God is saying that he does not want the Corinthians/Us to misunderstand and miss out on what the Holy Spirit is seeking to do in and through you! Cf. “Therefore I want you to (gnosis) understand”
3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.
1 Cor 12:3
Discerning the Spiritual - or that which is of the Holy Spirit
Discerning the Spiritual - or that which is of the Holy Spirit
Spirituality that is not rooted in knowledge/ truth (God’s word) is an illusion/false
Spirituality that is not rooted in knowledge/ truth (God’s word) is an illusion/false
1. An illusion/false
1. An illusion/false
As a member of the Godhead the Holy Spirit is the source of Truth
An illusion of spirituality, false - Truth is found in the Person of the Holy Spirit
26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.
John 15:26
6 This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
1 John
God’s revealed word
God’s revealed word (scripture) bears witness about Christ and so does the Holy Spirit; therefore, anything the Holy Spirit is saying/doing will be consistent with his word!
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
Spirituality that is not rooted in knowledge/ truth (God’s word) is subjective
Spirituality that is not rooted in knowledge/ truth (God’s word) is subjective
2. Subjective
2. Subjective
subjective- subject to the whims of each individual
3. Dangerous
3. Dangerous
dangerous and destructive
endangers the spiritual health of the individual
to the growth of the indiviual
if spread or development into a movement - like a disease it can infect entire congregations, communities, and societies
4. Is exactly what satan wants
4. Is exactly what satan wants
He is a:
He is a:
He is a:
He is a:
Master of deception!
Master counterfeiter!
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
2 Cor 11:13-15
Of Righteousness
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
Performing Sign & Wonders
24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,
Performing Sign & Wonders
If you are going to minister you must concern yourself with distinguishing that which is born of the Spirit and that which is not.
If you are going to minister you must concern yourself with distinguishing that which is born of the Spirit and that which is not.
“It only takes one bad apple to spoil the barrel”: Our adversary the devil, will allow as little or as much truth as he wants but with just enough lie or deception to steer you away from Christ, or the direction (belief or practice) that God wants you to go.
Identifying
Identifying
That which is Spiritual (of the Holy Spirit) will point to Jesus and be consistent with the truth of God’s written revealed word.
A Profound Distinction
A Profound Distinction
2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led.
“Pagans…led”
The ESV Study Bible Chapter 12
Because of their background in pagan worship services (v. 2), some Corinthians may have had concerns about speech gifts empowered by the Holy Spirit in the church.
MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary
The practice of ecstasy, considered to be the highest expression of religious experience, involved supposed supernatural interaction with a deity, induced through frenzied hypnotic chants and ceremonies. The practice frequently included drunkenness (cf. Eph 5:18) and sexual orgies, to which the devotees willfully yielded themselves to be led into gross sin.
Possibly impostors, but more likely “uninformed” believers were mixing pagan practices into the church
A Living God
A Living God
“Mute Idols” - voiceless, inanimate, dead.
The God of the bible is a living God
29 references to the “living God”
the church was created by the “Spirit of the Living God”
Paul calls on the Corinthians to recall that their conversion from pagans worshipping mute idols to Christ was a spiritual work of the Spirit of the Living God!
A Spiritual Work
A Spiritual Work
1 Cor 12:3-
3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.
16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
To genuinely say/confess Jesus as Lord…Christ, the Son of the living God” can only be accomplished by the regenerative work of the Holy Spirit!
18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Now that Paul has made a clear distinction between the Spiritual and Pagan, he is able to reveal to the Corinthians the great diversity of gifts in the church yet unified by one Spirit
Now that Paul has made a clear distinction between the Spiritual and Pagan, he is able to reveal to the Corinthians the great diversity of gifts in the church yet unified by one Spirit
Diversity within Unity
Diversity within Unity
1 Cor 12:4-
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.
“Same Spirit....Same Lord…Same God” - reference to the trinity.
The Nature of the Gifts
The Nature of the Gifts
Empowered by God
They’re not merely natural talents, skills, or abilities
You can’t take some christian version of a personality profile test
The Purpose of the Gifts
The Purpose of the Gifts
:7
7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Not to bedazzle or impress!
Not self-glorification!
Not status!
What is “ for the common good”?
TRANSFORMATION: for each individual that you impact with your gift to grow closer to the character of Christ - heart, speech, conduct!
The glory of God!
The Gifts
The Gifts
2 Categories - speaking gifts and gifts of service
Speaking Gifts
Speaking Gifts
8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit,
1 Cor 12:8-
Utterance of wisdom
Utterance of wisdom
the spiritual ability to understand God’s word, will, and to skillfully apply that understanding to life- emphasis on telling people what to “do” in any given situation.
Utterance of knowledge
Utterance of knowledge
knowing or grasping of truth. The ability to easily gain insight into the mysteries of God’s word.
Other Speaking Gifts- Prophecy, tongues, knowledge, teaching, exhortation (will elaborate next time)
Gifts of Service
Gifts of Service
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
1 Cor
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
:9-
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
Faith
Faith
not salvific or general perseverance of faith in God’s promises to believer’s, but extraordinary Spirit wrought confidence in God to act in a given situation (e.g. prayer warriors)
20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Healing
Healing
individuals empowered by the Holy Spirit to heal a person by contact or word.
Closing Thoughts
Closing Thoughts
If we seek to glorify God and experience his best for us we must:
Be concerned about discerning that which is Spiritual
Embrace the diversity of gifts in the body, empowered and unified by the triune God
Pursue God’s purpose for the gifts-to edify.
Benediction
Benediction
5 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6 that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.