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7th February 2024
FridayReflection
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'SPIRIT & TRUTH'
'We provide sound, biblically-based teaching'
A message of wisdom
'An Explanation of 1 Corinthians 12:8-10'
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1 Corinthians 12:8-10 seems to say that each Christian is given only one of the manifestations, and this has confused and weakened the Church.
It is important that we properly translate and understand these verses.
The Spirit gives one person a message full of wisdom, while to another person the same Spirit gives a message full of knowledge.
Each Christian can manifest, or bring into evidence, the gift of holy spirit in the nine different ways.
Each Christian can hear from God (a message of wisdom or knowledge), speak in tongues, interpret tongues, prophesy, have faith, and do miracles, healings and cast out demons.)
In spite of that, there has been great confusion in the Church about how many of the manifestations an individual is able to operate.
At first glance, 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 does appear to say that any one person will be given only one of the manifestations.
This contradicts the evidence we gain from other scriptures, so what do these verses mean?
The Church in Corinth was deeply divided.
This is apparent from the very first chapter of Corinthians, when Jesus, via Paul, appeals to them so that there would be "no divisions" among the people
There was jealousy and quarrelling among the believers.
They were even suing one another in the Roman courts.
They would not share their food with each other, and when they came together to eat, one got drunk while another stayed hungry.
They were even trying to use the divisions between them to determine who had the approval of God.
The great lesson that was essential for the Corinthians (and us) to understand is that spiritual things may be different, but it is the same God, same Lord, and same gift of the holy spirit, that produces them.
No man is spiritually gifted in and of himself.
The gifts, the power, and the manifestations all come from God and the Lord.
Based on that, we can all be thankful for who we are, what we have, and that we can work together.
1 Corinthians Chapter 12 opens by saying we should not be ignorant of spiritual things.
This should be obvious, but in their pride the Corinthians believed they knew more than they actually did.
This is why they needed so much teaching, reproof, and correction about spiritual things.
The focus here is not on what a person has, but rather that there has been a "distribution" to the person by the Lord Jesus.
Had the Corinthians understood that, it would have gone a long way toward unifying them.
Instead of being proud of their differences, they would have been proud that the Lord cared for the entire Body and equipped people differently so that everyone in the Church would have all their needs met.
A good way to think about the fact that the holy spirit is singular but has nine manifestations is to think of a beautiful diamond set in a diamond ring.
The diamond is a singular stone, but it has many facets.
It is impossible to have the diamond without having all the facets, as they are part of the diamond itself.
That is quite a good metaphor for the holy spirit.
It is impossible to have the holy spirit without having the capacity to manifest the gifts, because the manifestations are an inherent part of it.
In fact, God placed the holy spirit on believers in the Old Testament so they would manifest it, walk in its power, and thus do the work God wanted them to do.
Of course, Christians need to be aware that a person can have the holy spirit and not walk in the power it gives.
He can quench the spirit by not speaking in tongues, not walking in faith, etc.
Each one is challenged to push himself in the faith so that he can help other people.
There is only so much we can do of our own ability.
Sooner or later, to really help someone we have to use spiritual power.
Remember, every Christian is filled with the holy spirit.
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This is an edited version.
The full article and Bible references are avaiable on request
'SPIRIT & TRUTH'
We provide sound, biblically-based teaching, transformative learning experiences and support to self-organizing communities to give people throughout the world the opportunity to be saved and come into a knowledge of the truth.
We inspire people to enter into transforming relationships with Jesus Christ, their Father God, themselves and their Families, so that they are able to fulfill their functions and edify the body of Christ in love to the praise of God's glory.
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