All Scripture text will be presented in normal cased lettering, and all notes within the text will be in TRUE TYPE FONT, as shown. This (I hope) will allow you to avoid confusion between God's Word and my notes. As I update this web site, I will continue to embellish the text so that anyone using NETSCAPE 3.0 or MICROSOFT 3.0 will be able to read the document easier. Greek tenses are abbreviated as follows:
Through Christ, Who taught us the way to Love: David Buffaloe, Didaskalos Ministries
Romans 12:1 "I beseech you therefore,
brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice,
holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. "
Having come thus far in Romans, let's stop for a minute and note that
there are three major divisions in the epistle. In chapters
1-8 we saw the foundation of the Christian life, studying the doctrines
of :
(2) HOLINESS AND SANCTIFICATION: Because of that justification by Grace in Christ, the christian is set apart from the world . This sanctification is both positional (in God's eyes we are different from the unsaved) as well as progressive (because His Spirit indwells us, we are more separate in our practical Christian walk) .
(3) ULTIMATE SANCTIFICATION/ GLORIFICATION: Because of the resurrection of Christ we are assured that we will remain in our salvation . Because we have this surety , we also have the promise that one day we will be completely purged of sin, and will stand before our Maker ultimately sanctified, glorified and without sin in the sight of God. This is where positional and progressive sanctification meet in the Heavenly courts.
Having established the foundational doctrines of the Christian life, Paul now refers back to these truths, exhorting the Christian to live in that which he knows is true.
In the first part of verse 1 Paul exhorts all believers to present your bodies a living sacrifice. All Christians are responsible to walk circumspectly as believers, not to imitate unbelievers in their daily lives. It is imperative that each believer in the local Church follow the will of the Spirit in holiness. Note that Paul did not say to present your bodies as living sacrifice(s), plural sacrifices, but instead used the singular in referring to the sacrifice. The Church, though composed of many members, in actually just one Body. What each member does effects the others in the Body just as surely as what the husband does effects the wife in marriage. The immediate goal of Christianity is that we each, individually, seek a closer walk with our Heavenly Father. The ultimate goal of God's Plan is that the Church stand pure before Him, that the Church be a shining example of Christ in this filthy and godless world.
Ephesians 4:11-13 "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: "
Again we see that, by edifying the individual, the Body itself is built up. Many Christians do not understand that the purity of the Body rests with the purity of each individual member. If one of the members of the Body is in sin, then the rest of the Body suffers. Though this teaching in our text is subtle, and perhaps abstract (for it rests upon the sentence structure), it is nonetheless true, and is reflected elsewhere in the Scripture.
We are also commanded to present your bodies a living sacrifice. The word for present is the Greek PARISTEMI, which means "to offer, to yield as in Levitical sacrifice". We see this same technical word used of Jesus in:
Luke 2:21-23 "And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) "
Jesus was presented as a technical living sacrifice based upon the law of Moses. The male child should be reckoned as one dedicated to God. Yet Christ, in his later life, was truly a living sacrifice in the Christian sense, in that His life was separated unto the service of God. In the same way the Christian is obligated to present himself wholly to the service of God. His obligation stems not from the law of Moses, but the law written in the heart, based upon that which Christ did for us. We are to be living sacrifices in two senses:
(2) In the super-sense, our sacrifices are vibrantly in service to God daily. We do not deny ourselves out of obedience to the Law, but because we love the One who saved us. Our sacrifices are not grudging, nor by rote, but are renewed daily in our commitment to God.
Philippians 3:7-11 "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead."
Holiness is not a religious order, whereby we seek to live in a certain righteous fashion after our own self established law. It is an act of faith, recognizing that though we have no righteousness within ourselves, we willingly set ourselves apart from the world out of gratitude serving Him who first served us. The Christian should be wary of serving God out of a faithless commitment to the Law. We should serve God willingly, understanding the therefore of salvation. Since God saved us, therefore we should separate ourselves from the power of evil. We should always remember that the service that we perform must not be performed from the self, but committed through the power of God the Spirit.
Reasonable is the greek LOGIKOS, meaning "rational, possible in the light of". We are encouraged to separate ourselves unto God as a living sacrifice. This is not only possible, but is "possible in the light of " our new nature, that nature made possible by the atonement of Christ and the created by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This text looks back at Paul's previous teaching:
Romans 6:13-14 "Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."
As we are not under the Law, nor under the domination of sin, we should offer ourselves as a living sacrifice, separated in service to God. This service that we should perform is not impossible, but is entirely reasonable. We are freed from sin in order to serve!
Romans 12:2 "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. "
Conformed is the Greek SUNSCHEMATIZO, which means "to improperly pattern self after, to mimic the wrong actions of ". The undercover Christian, the Christian who acts differently in Church and entirely different elsewhere, is the SUNSCHEMATIZO Christian. The Christian should not mimic the ways of the world, for these ways are contrary to the change which has occurred in us all at the point of salvation.
2 Timothy 2:3-4 "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. "
If we are conformed to the wrong image of this world, then we are the walking wounded, ineffective to serve God in the spiritual battle at hand. If we separate ourselves from the world then we can please our Heavenly Father in our Christian lives.
Transformed is the Greek METAMORPHOOMAI, which means "to change so as to be outwardly seen".
2 Corinthians 11:14-15 "And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. "
Matthew 17:1-2 "And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. "
Mark 9:2-3 "And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. "
Jesus when He walked the earth in ministry, fulfilled His ministry as a normal, howbeit sinless, man. In two Gospels Jesus was transfigured (METAMORPHOOMAI) so we could all see His inward Divine Being. His transformation revealed to us all the He was indeed God. Satan, on the other hand, has changed the outward appearance of both himself and his ministers to where they are seen as ministers of light and truth. METAMORPHOOMAI routinely occur in Churches: there are some who are still dead in their sins who, pretend to be Christian. There are also Christians who go away from the Church, appearing to be angels of darkness when they have foolishly ignored that light within. All Christians should seek to emulate Christ. Their outward expression should show evidence of their inward salvation. Our goal is to be like Christ, not like Satan.
In the phrase renewing of your mind Paul looks at the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life:
Titus 3:4-7 "But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. "
As we have been renewed in our spiritual lives by the regenerating ministry of the Holy Spirit, we should, through that same indwelling Holy Spirit, seek to reflect this renewing of your mind in our outward bodies.
Romans 12:3-5 "For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. "
These verses speak a richness of Biblical truth. Though Paul begins a new sub context here, a context dealing with the Church, in the phrase for I say he ties the truth of this text into the truths of the previous context. We are to change our outward expression of godliness so that it mimics or reflects the inward salvation we have experienced. Yet we do not accomplish this in our own power. We should seek this change through the power of the Holy Spirit and through the unified power of the Church of Jesus Christ. We see this taught in:
Hebrews 10:23-25 "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. "
The Church is not an established clubhouse for the saints, but
is vitally necessary if we are to carry out God's mission hear on
earth. We are never told to do anything on our own power. God has
offered us two means to help us purify our daily walk with Him:
The Christian should not be high minded or prideful. None of us
is able to make it on our own, but should recognize that, if anything,
we desperately need the fellowship and strength of our fellow brothers
and sisters in Christ.
.
When we feel that we are a power unto ourselves we fail to understand God's construction of the Body of Christ. I may have the gift of teaching, but I do not have all the Gifts given unto the Body. The Spiritual Gifts were not given to build up any one individual, but were given to build up the entire Body of Christ. For a complete study on the Spiritual Gifts and the Body please refer to our Tongues of Fire series. The spiritual life of each individual member of the Body needs a random sampling of each of the Spiritual Gifts available. In our human body, if we eat only starch while choosing to the exclude all other food groups, our bodies will not be healthy. If our bodies are not nourished properly the body itself will seek the nutrients it needs. If it does not find it, it will turn upon itself, causing the spread of disease. To be physically healthy we need nutrients from all food groups. To be healthy in our spiritual self we need Spiritual nutrients from all of the Gifts present in the Church. Without the Gifts only available from the collected Saints in the Church we will never reach our maximum potential as Christians.
1 Corinthians 12:24-27 "For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. "
The spiritual life of each individual member is directly related to
the spiritual life of the Body. The life of the Body, in turn,
is related to each individual member. If we are high minded, feeling
that we do not need God's provision of the Church, then we hurt not
only ourselves but also hurt the Body of Christ by depriving it of
our own Spiritual Gift. If we are sober minded or humble, attending
to the Body of Christ, then we cause the whole Body to be blessed when
we exercise our Spiritual Gifts. It is important that we exercise our Gifts
in the Body of Christ. This is further emphasized in the latter part of
verse 5:
.
We are responsible to one another, not just to ourselves. We must encourage and build one another up in Christ, and are under an obligation to do so because of the Spiritual Gifts that God so blessed us with.
Romans 12:6-8 "Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. "
1 Corinthians 12:4-11 "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. "
Ephesians 4:11-13 "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: "
There are three Spiritual Gift lists in the Bible which we have shown above. We will now study the various Spiritual Gifts, their divisions, definitions, and their impact upon the Body of Christ.
In our 1 Corinthians text we see that the Spiritual Gifts are broken
down into two categories: the Gifts of Administration, and
the Gifts of Operation. The Gifts of Administration (DIAKONIA)
are the Gifts necessary for the leadership of the Body. Though
the supernatural Body falls under the headship of Christ, it must follow
the leadership of physical leaders, otherwise the Body will have only anarchy.
The Gifts of Operation (ENERGEMA, from which we get our word energy),
are the working Gifts necessary for the continuing sustenance of the Body.
The Gifts can be represented, by their categories, as we see below:
The Operation Gifts can be further broken down into two categories:
the Characteristic and Non-Characteristic Gifts. The Characteristic
Gifts are those gifts which are spiritual amplifications of some
traits seen in human nature. The spiritual body of Christ uses these
amplified traits to build up the whole Body. The Non-Characteristic
Gifts have no counterpart in the secular world, but are purely supernatural
Divine expressions of power.
There are sixteen Spiritual Gifts available to the Body of Christ. Many of the Gifts often "overlap" in their usage. For instance, the one who possesses the Administrative Gift of the Bishop must also possess the Gift of Teaching:
1 Timothy 3:2 "A bishop then must
be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour,
given to hospitality, apt to teach; "
We can see from our Timothy passage that one with the gift of leadership
also must first be apt to teach,
to possess the gift of the pastor/teacher, for what good would be a leader
who was unable to teach his flock? The leader would probably also possess
the characteristic Operation gifts of giving, mercifulness, faith,
and the non-characteristic Operation gifts of wisdom and knowledge.
This is in keeping with:
1 Corinthians 12:11 "But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. "
I am not willing to second guess God, but what follows is a hypothetical
situation. The Gifts could be paired up in the following combinations:
Before discussing the individual Gifts in detail, there are several points that need to be made about the nature of the Gifts. First note that no one Gift is more important than another Gift. All are extremely important to the Body of Christ. We see this reflected in:
1 Corinthians 12:14-18 "For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. "
Each member of the Body, within the scope of it's Spiritual Gifts, are important to the smooth operation of that Body. No one Gift is to be placed above another Gift in hierarchy, as, in Paul's illustration, If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? With no eyes, we cannot see. With no ears, we cannot hear. So each member, with his or her Gift, is important to the comfort and growth of the whole body.
Second, the Spiritual Gifts are not to be confused with talents, though some of the Gifts (such as faith or knowledge), seem to be amplified human attributes. A talent is defined as a "genetically predisposed attribute within the human race". A Spiritual Gift (CHARISMA) is "an extraordinary or amplified power" given to believers by God, given for the service of God in the body of Christ." We see this again reflected in:
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 "But the manifestation
of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given
by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the
same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts
of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another
prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of
tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh
that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he
will."
We can see three other things about the Spiritual Gifts: in verse seven
we see that the Gifts are given to every man
to profit withal, that is, the Gifts profit or edify
everyone, not just one person. The Gifts are not given
for selfish purposes, just to edify me, but are given to build up the entire
Body of Christ. The Charismatic concept of a personal prayer Tongue
is not Scriptural. Again , refer to the Tongues
of Fire series. If the individual exercising a
Spiritual Gift is edified, his building up is a matter of course
as the entire Body is built up. In verse 11 we see that the Spirit of God
divides these Gifts to every man severally
as he will. In the first part of the clause we see
that all Christians are members of the Body of Christ, and have
or possess the ability to have a Spiritual Gift. The Gifts are
given to to every man.
There are no people within the Body that are Giftless, unless they are
in carnality. In the second part of the statement we note that the
Gifts are not given according to merit, but are given according
according to the will of God (severally as
he will). The Christian who is given the Gift
of leadership or of teaching is not a "super-Christian" who is one of God's
elite. His Gift is just as important as the Gift of one who,
possessing the Gift of helps, tends the children's department. All Gifts
are vital in the Body.
.
Looking back on our Romans study we see that the Spiritual Gifts given to the individual are without repentance, or not taken away once they are given. This does not mean that the Christian may not cease to exercise his Gift: the Gifts are only exercised when the believer is in fellowship with God. If a believer backslides into sin he is not able to exercise the Gift because he has separated himself from the Spirit, who powers the Gift. Once the believer repents and returns to fellowship with God, the Gift will once more become operational.
1 Corinthians 14:27-32 "If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret. But if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God. Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge. If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace. For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. "
Note also that the Spiritual Gift is under the power of the
person who possesses the Gift. In other words, we can and should
control the exercise of our Spiritual Gifts. The Corinthian Church
was historically very misguided and sensual. This Church was
partaking of the Lord's Supper in gluttony rather than in the spirit of
Godliness, a memorial of Christ. There were several members in the
Corinthian Church who possessed and abused the Gift of Tongues.
Tongues is unique in that it is a Gift which, when exercised, is not understood
by the person exercising it. Tongues are only understood when either
(1) a person who has the native language which the tongue addresses is
present, or, (2) when one who possesses the Gift of Interpretation
of Tongues is present and interprets what is said. The
Corinthians were not controlling their Spiritual Gift of Tongues, and because
of this were causing confusion in the local Church. Paul encourages
the Corinthian Christians to control their Gifts, speaking in turn (If
any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his
peace) only when one possessing the Gift of Interpretation
is present. This is the essence of the statement:
.
One of the final and most important observations to be made is that the Spiritual Gifts must be utilized in Love:
1 Corinthians 13:1-2 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. "
Though the exercise of Spiritual Gifts is very necessary to the Life of the Body, if they are exercised without Love, the Gift is useless. The end aim of all Spiritual Gifts is to build up the Body of Christ. Though the Gift exercised without Love will build up the Body, the Gift exercised with Love builds it up quicker and better. This is important to understand, and to apply to our hearts as we go deeper into our study.
Having noted the seven major points related to the Spiritual Gifts, we are now free to examine each Gift in greater detail:
Prophecy: In the Old Testament era the one who had the Gift of Prophecy had the ability to foresee or foretell the future. In the new Testament era the Book of Prophecy has been closed:
Revelation 22:18-19 "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book."
As the Book of Prophecy is closed (our Bible is complete, the claims of the cultic notwithstanding), the the Gift of Prophecy now refers to the Gift to Preach. As Vincent states:
"Prophecy in the New Testament, as in the Old, the prominent idea it is not prediction, but the inspired delivery of warning, exhortation, instruction, judging, and making manifest the secrets of the heart."
Ministry: The Greek DIAKONIA, which means "serving, service, helps". One who possesses the Gift of Ministry would be able to serve or aid others in the Body where needed. This Gift, by it's very definition, is general in nature.
Exhortation/ evangelism: The Greek PARAKLESIS, meaning "to call alongside", this word is defined as the "ability to implore, speak in oration to, challenge to, entreat, or bring comfort to". This Gift has many faces, and though not solely restricted to the Evangelist, it is most often seen used in this office. One with the Gift of Exhortation has the power to effectively challenge the Spiritual Body toward righteousness, to encourage the members of the Body to lay down their sins, to be the medium by which God call souls into the Body through salvation, or to console the individual or corporeal Body in grief.
Pastor/ teacher: Though the King James version lists this Gift as two, Pastors and Teachers, the Greek construction shows this as one Gift. Pastor is the Greek POIMEN, which means "Shepherd, Pastor of the flock". Teachers is the Greek DIDASKALOS, which means "instructor, teacher". The Pastor/ teacher is the one who Shepherds or guides the flock of God through instruction.
Healing: This Gift is self explanatory. The gift of healing is usually exercised through the elders of the Church:
James 5:14-15 "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. "
Working of Miracles: Working is the Greek ENERGEMA, and is the same word used for operations in the first part of 1 Corinthians 12 (we read this earlier). Miracles is the Greek DUNAMIS, from which we get our English word dynamite. The Gift of the Working of Miracles is "an inherent dynamic and miraculous power to change, modify, redirect the forces of nature so as to exhibit the awesome power of God". We see this Gift best represented in Jesus' earthly ministry when He raised the dead:
John 11:43-44 "And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. "
and when He multiplied a handful of bread into enough to feed 500:
John 6:11-13 "And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. "
Jesus, though God in the flesh, walked the earth using only the resources available to man, the resources of the Holy Spirit and the Gift of Miracles:
Luke 11:18-20 "If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub. And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges. But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you. "
Matthew 12:26-28 "And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. "
The Gift of Miracles, operated under the power of God, were used by Jesus when He walked on water, commanded the sea to give up it's fish to the overflowing of the disciples nets, and in many other instances. The Gift of Miracles was also exhibited in the early Church:
Acts 5:3-9 "But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him. And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much. Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. "
The Gift of Miracles could, if God so willed, cause death, though it usually corrected birth defects:
Acts 3:1-8 "Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. "
Such as when causing the lame from birth to walk. The Gift of Healing corrects sickness through the elders of the Church, whereas Miracles resolves more complex issues in the Body.
Discerning of Spirits: Discerning is the Greek DIAKRISIS, which means "to make a judicial examination of". This Gift can be seen in two ways: First, the Gift empowers the believer to determine or make a determination between individuals as to their spiritual status. We see the Gift exercised in this light by Peter, again referring to the Ananias and Saphira account of Acts 5. Peter was able to determine that Satan had filled Ananias' heart to lie about that which he was giving to God. The second way, The Gift enables the believer to determined whether another individual is demon possessed:
Acts 16:16-18 "And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. "
In either case we can say that Discernment of Spirits enables the believer to determine whether an individual or group of individuals is within the bounds of Godliness or if they are under service to Satan.
Giving: The Greek METADIDOMAI, this word means "to impart of one's earthly possessions". One possessing this spiritual Gift would be characterized with a supernatural degree of self sacrifice and giving.
Mercifulness: The Greek ELEEO, this word means "one with mercy, one with compassion". A believer with this Gift would not just forgive an enemy from vengeance, but would be extraordinarily compassionate in his dealings with the individual. It must be remembered that though this Gift is a characteristic one, it is not a trait or a talent.
Wisdom: Defined as the "ability to effectively use knowledge". This Gift is usually accompanied with the Gift of Knowledge.
Knowledge: The Greek GNOSIS means "to learn, to know by science". This is the Gift of learning given to the Body. It is useless without exercising the Gift of Wisdom, for knowledge improperly applied does not edify the Body.
Faith: The Greek PISTIS, this word means "persuasion, moral conviction, reliance in or constancy in profession, assurance". Though all Christians have the faith necessary to be saved (John 11.25-26, 40; 3.16-18), and though the Christian is supposed to exercise faith in his daily walk (1 John 5.4-14), the Gift of Faith is an extraordinary ability to believe. The Spiritual Gift of Faith is, as with knowledge and wisdom, an amplification of what is normal.
Tongues/ Interpretation of Tongues: Refer to the Tongues of Fire series to see what the Bible says about these Gifts. This is a nine part study, so you may want to bookmark it and return here.
Ruling/ Eldership/ Bishoprick: The Greek EPISKOPE, it means "The inspector, superintendent, ruler". This Gift of leadership is usually granted to one person in the local Church. As the Body of Christ has one spiritual head, Jesus, the local Church has one physical head who we call "Pastor". There is no teaching in the Scripture that supports the Deacons as co-rulers with the Pastor, as the Deacon was established in the local Church to serve the people (Acts 6). All Pastors must also possess the Gift of Teaching (1 Timothy 3.2).
Apostles: The Greek APOSTOLOS, meaning "the messenger or ambassador of God". As with Prophecy, the Gift of Apostleship has been modified with the closing of the Prophetic Book, and with the establishment of the Church.
Ephesians 2:19-21 "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: "
The Apostles, along with the Prophets were the foundation of the Church. The Prophets and the Apostles established Churches, nourished them, and guiding them in the faith. Historically those who were called Apostle were commissioned by Jesus Christ as His ambassador. They saw the resurrected Christ. Historically the Gift has been modified so that it is not the same as the original Gift was when Paul, Peter, or John walked the earth.
We must consider that the Gift is still available to the Church but in modified form. As APOSTOLOS means "the messenger or ambassador of God", we can assume that the Gift closely relates to the missionary field. We know that some are called by God to be His missionaries in other lands. This is the closest example to the APOSTOLOS in our present Church age.
Going back to our Romans text (12.6-8), we see another interesting point about the Gifts. In verse 6 Paul repeats each Gift in a peculiar way:
".. whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity .."
The verbs are all in a Greek tense that is locative of Sphere. This construction is consistent throughout the entire text. In other words, the text could be translated:
(Wuess translation): "Having therefore Gifts differing according to the grace given us, whether that of prophecy, prophesy according to the proportion of faith, or serving, exercise that Gift within the sphere of service, or teaching, within the sphere of teaching, or he that exhorts, within the sphere of exhortation."
In other words, the believer should exercise his God given Gift within the realm of that Gift. An evangelist should stay within the goal of his gift, not seek to Pastor a Church. The teacher should stay within the goal of his Gift, not try to overrule the Pastor so as to do his job. If you have not acquired a certain Gift from God, then do not attempt to use that Gift. Stick to your calling!
No one can tell you what your Gift is, but armed with this study seek God and discover your Gift. You do have one, this is a promise from God. It is important to your growth as a believer and to the Church itself that you find and start using your Gifts.
We will take a short break, and resume our study in the Romans12.9.
God Bless you all!
.
Please feel free to E-mail me your questions, comments, and any difficulties you experienced accessing this study at DIDASKALOS Ministries
Return
to the beginning of this study!
Return
to DIDASKALOS MAIN MENU