Holy Spirit Diversity
Notes
Transcript
Diversity Yet Unity
Diversity Yet Unity
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant:
As we start I want you to notice that most if not all of your bibles will have “gifts” in italics.
The reason this is the case is because it was not in the manuscripts. It was added to help us in english.
We can read this:
I find it very interesting that Paul does not want us to be ignorant of these
The reason this is the case is because it was not in the manuscripts. It was added to help us in english.
“Now concerning spiritual...”
This was not about the gifts,
It is not about the the things we can gain from the Spirit
We will also find that there is no real emphasis on any of these gifts.
It is as if Paul just throws them out there for us to allow the Spirit to work in us
His focus is the work of the Spirit
In the body of Christ
In us
And a reminder of His diversity
I find it very interesting that Paul does not want us to be ignorant of these things
The reason this is important is
1 Corinthians 1. Introduction to the Topic of Spiritual Gifts (1–3)
i. Paul, in his letters, names three things he does not want Christians to be ignorant of:
• Don’t be ignorant of God’s plan for Israel (Romans 11:25)
• Don’t be ignorant of spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1)
• Don’t be ignorant about the Second Coming of Jesus and the eternal state (1 Thessalonians 4:13)
Yet many of us are very ignorant of these things
I find it very interesting that Paul does not want us to be ignorant of these
We only know what we have been told
We make no steps to learn them for ourselves
We do not take the time to learn the Spirit enough to grow in Spiritual things
Let me remind:
If you we live a life that is in the physical only
Your life will be weak
But we battle against the Spiritual:
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
This is where our real fight is
Yet if we are not prepared to battle with the Spiritual,
If we are ignorant of the Spiritual
We may get to heaven
But we will lose so much life in the process.
Paul wants us to be able to withstand the evil one
Paul wants us to know about Spiritual things
Here is were many struggle in regards to spirirtual gifts
They also land often in these categories. when it comes to spiritual things
I have seem them lived out it is weird
If you do not believe in them and practice them you are not really saved
They are not for us today
They are not for us today and ended with the era of the Apostles
These are things we may think but we need to stay away from our thoughts
We need to see what the word of God says
Lets look at these before we move on
First I want to say I believe that the gifts are for us today in thier fullest
I do not think you can intelligently search the scriptures and deny the gifts or the work of the Spirit
Too often we fear what we do not understand.
This is not new
The Scribes did not like the work of Jesus
It was new
It was work that was contrary to their thinking
They wanted it stopped.
That is not how our God works
We are physical
Without the power of God and the filling of the Spirit we will never understand the things of God
But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
1 Corinthians 2:
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”
The natural man cannot see Spiritual things
This is why it is foolishness to them
This is why it is foolishness to them
They only know the natural things
So for us to understand Spiritual things we must start with the Spirit in us
That is what happens at salvation
Then we are filled with the Spirit
baptism of the Spirit
So why would a believer think that the work of the Spirit is wired
A few reasons
They are not spiritually minded
What they saw was actually not a work of the Spirit and it was weird
This does happen
There are many things that people blame the Holy Spirit on
Unfortunately this gives people a bad thought in their minds about the work of the Spirit
Please use the word of God as our guide for the work of the Spirit.
If we cannot find it in scripture it is not real
We must find our backing for all our actions in His word.
I want you to seek the Spirit of God knowing He will not do anything out of our nature.
God created us the way we are, He knows us
He will never make us do anything that is outside who He created us to be
People make us think the the Spirit over takes us and makes us do things we do not want to do
That is just not true
The Spirit never forces us to go beyond who we are created to be
Let me also be clear
He will do a work in us so when He wants to do the miraculous we will be ready to be used in that way
He will never bring attention to us
This is what many do, the bring attention to self and say the Spirit did it
The Spirit only points to Jesus
All this leads people to not want to have anything to do with the Spirit of God and His work
This is the wrong extreme
To stay away from the power of the Spirit because of a human experience will keep us from God’s greatest power for us.
Next If you are not practicing the gifts you are not saved
This too is the wrong extreme
To say because I do not see a work externally you must not be saved
The gifts are not for the body
But to force this on anyone in order to prove salvations will allow them to do a work and not live out in faith
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
This is why some speak in tounges
Ephisains 2:8-9
First God never forces us to do any harm
They feel they must in order to show they are saved
This is not proof of salvation
1 Corinthians 13:30
Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?
This tells me that all will not have every gift
For He says this:
But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.
The gifts also did not die with the with the Apostles
I know that some want to lead us this way but again it is not biblical
The gifts are for the edifying of the body
Is that not still needed today
Is there not a need for the power of the Spirit of God in us in the world today
Also Jesus says this:
And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
Mark
Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.
For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.
1Corinthians 14:
To say the gifts are not for today is to deny the word of God.
To say they died with the apostles because their work is done is wrong
Some say the gifts of miraculous was just to confirm scripture.
Yet that is only part of it.
We have many books that do not have the miraculous in them to confirm them,
Song of Soloman
Ruth
and others
But Jesus says this to those woh are seeking a sign:
A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed.
Let me read this whole seciton:
Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed.
They wanted Jesus to prove who He was with a sign
The only sign give was the resurrection
The gifts are for the body of Christ to edify them
it is so we may be effective in the work of the ministry
What of the gifts:
There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
This to me is so important
I want us to see this
Different is good
Change is good
Redirection by God is good
Just because it is not in our plan does not mean that is a bad thing
People want to say that because you do not experience the things I do the way I do you are wrong
No that is not the case at all
So there are chruches that are
emotional...
Liturgic...
Yet they love God
They are loved by God
God knows them enough to meet them where they are
We do not and should not try and change a people or a church to fit out way
We need to grow and live in our charachter
The danger is to be someone else
Thinking that is the only way to do things
God created each of us to be who we are to minister in that way
We will be most free when we embrace who God created us to be
I will also say
Each gift will not be lived out the same way
Each ministry shouldn’t look the same
I think of my daughter’s church, it is perfect for her and her fiancé
Calvary Vineland
Cedarville Baptist
Newport Baptist
They are all distinct and they need to be
I think of how I was brought here for a reason - to minister just as I am been called
The reason this is so important is because we need the diversity
We need to live the way we were created to live
We need to let God work in us they way He has choosen
That is when we will find the most abundance and most joy