Archive for February, 2012
Spiritual Gifts – Marti Wiegman
1 Corinthians 14 is the third and final chapter in Paul’s discussion of spiritual gifts. Let’s review where we’ve been and see where we’re going.
Chapter 12 tells us that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to every believer for the common good. We put out the challenge for you to prayerfully discover just how the Spirit has gifted you. Paul gave us this powerful picture of a body joined together with each part being important. If one part says, “I’m not important,” we all suffer. If one part says, “I’m all important,” we all suffer.
Chapter 13 tell us that the most excellent way to use spiritual gifts is love. If I do all these things – if I speak in tongues, or have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries, and have all knowledge and all faith – but have not love… I’m nothing.
Chapter 14 tells us that the most important goal of spiritual gifts is edification and building up of the Church.
In chapter 14 Paul tells us to “excel in building up the church” (vs. 12). Four times in this chapter Paul uses the Greek word “oikodome”, which refers to the building up of a house from foundation up and keeping it in constant repair.
During these difficult days as a church family, the reality that we are continually being edified and built up in Christian love is so evident. The highlight of Judy’s last days was mail call. On Thursday when I was there she received 10 cards filled with encouragement. There was an abundance of food from the choir and WOW friends. The outpouring of love on the Ramirez family was just amazing. The waiting room in the ICU was packed almost around the clock with dear friends. Someone who lives just a few miles away from the hospital transformed a detached room of their home from a play room into a guest house for Tammy’s husband and children in a matter of hours.
It has been so very sweet to be part of the staff and be able to look out and see how the body of Northpoint has embraced being the body of Christ to these two families. Thank you!
Love – Liz Bonnville
The Corinthians’ selfishness blinded them to what their real motivation was supposed to be. At the end of Chapter 12, Paul says, “… let me show you a still more excellent way.”
If we don’t start with this last phrase from Chapter 12 when we begin to read Chapter 13, we will misunderstand the entire chapter. It is not a formula for how to have wedded bliss, or a great family reunion, or even a happy home. In fact, it’s not a formula at all, even though it has been used for that purpose for centuries. 1 Corinthians 13, “The Love Chapter”; engraved on plaques, read at countless weddings, quoted in poetry and song, reprinted in greeting cards by the thousands. Part of our problem is the word “love” itself. In English we use the same word to describe our love for our spouse, our children, our parents, and even diet Pepsi. This is not the case in the original language of the New Testament.
Classic Greek has four words for love:
Eros describes an intimate and passionate love. Storge is the love of family. Phileo is the love of friendship or loyalty. Agape is a selfless, sacrificial and unconditional love. It is the highest of all four types. Only Phileo and Agape are used in the New Testament.
Agape is, of course, descriptive of God’s love for humanity, but also our love for our fellow man, and it is the Greek word used throughout the chapter. Leon Morris says this about God’s love: “This love of God is a love for the utterly unworthy. It is a love which proceeds from a God who is Himself Love. It is a love lavished on others without a thought of whether they are worthy to receive it or not. It proceeds rather from the nature of the lover than from any merit in the beloved.”
Romans 5:8 says it like this: “… but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
When Paul was discussing Christian liberty in his letter to the Romans, he used the word “agape” to describe one believer’s action toward another: “For if a brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died” (Romans 14:15).
To Each Is Given A Manifestation… Marti Wiegman
So… how many of you have Christmas presents or birthday presents or any presents laying around the house that you haven’t bothered to open yet? Not likely!! Because most of us LOVE presents. Especially those presents that come from someone very dear who knows you the very best and always gets you the PERFECT gift.
As believers God has given each of us the perfect gift. We are probably using that gift, even if we don’t realize it. But we will never use our gifts to their fullest if we don’t understand their purpose and know what they are.
We are entering this whole realm of spiritual gifts. We will be on this topic for several weeks so if all your questions don’t get addressed today (which they won’t), we will be coming back to the concept of spiritual gifts throughout the month. Notice I said we would hopefully “address” the key questions, not necessarily “answer” them.
While Paul is writing to the Corinthians 2,000 years ago, we find a lot hasn’t changed in the Church today. In chapters 12-14 it becomes clear that the issue of spiritual gifts was clouded by some confusion and controversy in the church at Corinth. It is much the same now.
John MacArthur said, “Perhaps no area of biblical doctrine has been more misunderstood and abused, even within evangelicalism, than that of spiritual gifts. Yet no area of doctrine is more important to the spiritual health and effectiveness of the church.
Alistair Begg said, “The Evil One, knowing how vital the correct use of spiritual gifts is both to the health and effectiveness of the church, seeks to sew dissension, confusion, and uncertainty, in order to foster ignorance and unbelief in the Church.”
In all this controversy and confusion, we neglect and ignore spiritual gifts. We each leave our own gift undiscovered and underutilized.
Join us at WOW the next three weeks as we unpack spiritual gifts.
