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Our Scripture lesson comes from 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 and 1 Corinthians 12:28-31:
May God add His blessing to this the reading of His holy and infallible Word.
This morning we are turning our attention to the gift of teaching.
Before I get too far into this message, I want make clear that preaching is a form of teaching.
In Ephesians 4, Paul calls the office of pastor, “pastor-teacher” and in 1 Timothy 5:17 he writes, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor tin preaching and teaching.”
It is from this verse that the titles of Ruling Elder and Teaching Elder come.
I make this point not only for clarification, but also as a lead in to my first point, which is:
Every Christian Should Earnestly Desire the Gift of Teaching
In our Scripture lesson this morning Paul tells us to “earnestly desire the higher gifts”.
Within the context of this commandment Paul makes it clear what the higher gifts are, “God has appointed to the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers”.
As I made plain from Scripture several weeks ago, the only one of these higher gifts that is still being given to the church is the gift of teaching.
The gift of apostle ceased with the death of the last apostle and the gift of prophecy ceased with the completion of the New Testament canon.
Consequently, when Paul says, “earnestly desire the higher gifts”, he is saying, “earnestly desire the gift of teaching”.
Perhaps you do not see yourself as a teacher or ever having to teach another person.
If this is true of you, I want to suggest that you are thinking too narrowly about teaching.
I would agree with you that most Christians are not called to hold formal teaching positions, such as Teaching Elders or Sunday School teacher, however God does call all believers to teach in informal settings.
This morning our Call to Confession was taken from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, where God call parents to “teach [Scripture] diligently to [their] children”.
This commandment was repeated in the New Covenant, when Paul command father (and by implication mothers) to “bring their children up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph 6:4).
One of the qualifications for Ruling Elders is that they be “able to teach” (2 Tim 3:2).
Older women are to be able to “teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children” (Titus 2:3-4).
Finally, all Christians are called to “always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Pet 3:15).
I hope that you can see from this brief list that all Christians will be called to teach another person at some point in their life.
The only open question is whether we will teach by our own natural powers or by the power of the Holy Spirit.
This brings us to the second point:
The Imparting of Divine Wisdom and Knowledge
1 Corinthians 12:8 is a bit of a puzzle.
There are several lists of spiritual gifts in the New Testament and this is the only one that does not directly mention the gift of teaching.
This is very odd considering how important Paul thinks this gift is.
In addition, it is not at all clear what Paul means by the “utterance of wisdom” and the “utterance of knowledge”.
The best explanation is that Paul is referring to the gift of teaching.
There are three reasons for thinking this is the case: the first is the fact that in the OT, wisdom, knowledge and teaching are frequently conjoined.
If you have ever read the book of Proverbs, you have seen this.
Let me provide you with one example; the opening verses of Proverbs read as follows:
As I read, did you notice how frequently, even with the span of just six verses, wisdom, knowledge and teaching are conjoined?
The whole point of teaching is to impart wisdom and knowledge to another person.
This brings us to the second reason to think Paul is referring to teaching when he speaks of the “utterance of wisdom” and the “utterance of knowledge”—the context of 1 Corinthians itself.
If you recall the first two chapters of 1 Corinthians is devoted to combating divisions in the church caused by the Corinthians love for worldly wisdom and knowledge, rather than heavenly wisdom and knowledge.
Paul writes:
1 Cor 12:8 is a reminder to the Corinthians (and to us) of where true wisdom and true knowledge comes from—the Holy Spirit!
The third, and final, reason to think Paul is referring to the gift of teaching, so something we have already spoken about—the great importance Paul places upon this gift.
It would be odd for Paul not to mention the gift of teaching.
The reason I have belabored this point, is because 1 Cor 12:8 is much more important than it may seem at first glance.
In this verse, we are reminded about the purpose and the source of our teaching.
When we teach we must never forget that we are to be imparting divine wisdom and knowledge by the power of the Holy Spirit.
This brings us to the final point:
How to Teach by the Power of the Spirit
In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul lays out for us his method for teaching and preaching.
This is lengthy passage, but it is important they we hear all of it.
As I read this passage I want you to ask yourself two questions: Who is the source of Paul’s message and what is the power behind Paul’s message?
Who is the source?
It is the Holy Spirit!
Who is the power?
It is the Holy Spirit!
Where do we find the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and knowledge?
Is it not in the Word of God?
How do we unleash the power of the Holy Spirit when we teach or preach?
Is it not by prayer?
Brothers and sisters, my purpose in preaching this message is to encourage you to obey God’s commandment to teach others of the “hope that is within you”.
If we look to our natural gifts at teaching we will be discouraged, because we can always find someone else more naturally gifted than ourselves.
I think of the husband, for example, who is hesitant to be the spiritual head of his home because his wife is more spiritually mature, knows her Bible better and is more gifted in teaching.
Such a man may despair at the thought of teaching and leading his wife and children, but such a man should not despair, but rather look in faith to the Holy Spirit we can empower his feeble efforts.
The gifts of the Spirit are not static, but rather dynamic, and where there is a need and a person willing to obey, the gifts are given generously!
Be encouraged and obey God boldly!
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