Spiritual Gifts, Spiritual People, and Spiritual Things Part 3

This is the final of a 3 part series. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here.Why does God give grace endowments, ministries and activities?For the common good: to serve others.

Examples Do Not Equal Comprehensive Lists

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul gives some examples of God’s endowments, but this list of examples is clearly not comprehensive. Not every possible unearned endowment, ministry or activity is listed.Throughout the New Testament, specific charismata - grace endowments from God - are listed just a few times.This chart demonstrates how dramatically far off the rails modern charismatics and non-charismatics have gone when considering God’s “spiritual” gifts, mainly because we tend to read and study the Bible through the veneer of English. Well, let’s get to the wood.All of these are empowered by God, who apportions to each one individually as God wills. Clearly, Paul “flattens distinctions between “charismatic” gifts and “noncharismatic” gifts in the modern sense of those terms”.[ref]Carson, 34[/ref]Unmerited endowments, ministries and activities are appointed by God as God chooses. Do some really think God has stopped this? If some do, where were they when God laid the foundations of the earth?The Enemy has used the modern sense of those terms to divide. It’s time to take back the biblical understanding of charismata. Biblically speaking, if you are in Christ, you are a charismatic.

Does the Body need Eyes?

Starting in 1 Corinthians 12:12, Paul explains that the body has many “members”, and all members make up the Body of Christ, thanks to the Holy Spirit. But the individual members of the Body are not all the same. Some have different endowments, ministries and activities, but together they make up the complete body, and one part of the body must not reject another part of the body.For instance, the foot does not say to the eye, “I have no need of you”, because then the body could not see where to go.The hand does not say to the eye, “I have no need of you,” because then the body could not see to strike at the demon it sees.The mouth does not say to the eye, “I have no need of you,” because then the mouth wouldn’t know how to pray against the demon the body sees in the room.

And yet that is exactly what happens to seers.

God is composing the Body, which includes spiritually gifted people who possess abilities or qualities that they may have inherited or were granted sometime in their lives.People such as seers.But some members of the Body have determined that other members like seers are disposable, not needed, unpresentable, and even dishonorable. God is composing a Body to work together, but members of the Body are divided, having rejected the Body’s eyes - spiritual people who can see spiritual things.God has appointed the unearned endowments, ministries and activities, so why do members reject what God is doing in the Body?

Find Your Role

Paul makes it clear that not everyone is going to be a seer. If you cannot see spiritual things, then God has not appointed that endowment to you.But guess what: you are a member of the Body, and that means he has appointed some other endowment, ministry or activity to you.1 Corinthians 7:7 says, "But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another." Each has his own gift!1 Peter 4:10 encourages: “As each of us has received a gift (charisma - a grace endowment), use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace… in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 4:10)Varied Grace. See how it all comes together?  If not, go back to the “Varieties of Grace” section in Part 2.

The Kingdom Way: Putting Others First

Back to 1 Corinthians 12:31, when Paul criticizes the competition between certain spiritual activities and concludes with “But earnestly desire the higher gifts.” I think he’s gently mocking the Corinthians, who were competing for “higher” gifts, when it’s God who distributes them all according to his varied grace.Paul says instead to follow his example as he shows us the more excellent way: to love others as God has loved us, putting others first, to not boast or envy, to not be arrogant or rude or insist on getting your own way, to not be irritable or resentful or to rejoice in wrongdoing. God’s puts others first, and so should we.In Chapter 14:1, Paul explains it really is fine to desire spiritual things: unearned endowments, ministries and activities, but God is the giver of all these spiritual things to spiritual people. (Again, despite most English translations, no Greek word for “gifts” is in this text).Desire whatever gifts you want, especially prophecy. But trust the Holy Spirit to put you where God wants you.

Fan the Flames

If you’ve been given an endowment, as an ability you’ve inherited upon your birth or perhaps sometime during your life, but you haven’t used it in service to King Jesus, then fan the dying embers of the gift.2 Timothy 1:6: “For this reason, I remind you to fan into flame the gift (charisma) of God, which is in you through the laying on my hands, for God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power and love and self control.”The gift is not for you. It's to advance God's rule and reign on the earth, as it is in heaven.

Grow through Serving

Many people desire abilities like seeing spirits: first volunteer to clean the bathrooms at your church.  Many people desire ministries like prophecy: first donate your time at the homeless shelter.  Many people desire activities like preaching: first volunteer in the Sunday school preschool class.Advance from being a follower of Jesus to a disciple of Jesus. More is required of disciples.As you learn discipleship, begin serving others as God would serve them. Then watch as God promotes you downward to becoming a servant of Jesus: much more is required to being a servant.Promotion in the Kingdom is exactly opposite of promotion in the world.

Gifts are Irrevocable

Remember that these abilities and callings are irrevocable (Romans 11:29).As Paul continues in Romans 12:3-6:

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgement, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.For as in one body we have many members, and the member do not all have the same function, so we though many, are one body in Christ and individually members one of another, having gifts (charismata - unmerited endowments) that differ according to the grace given to us (variable grace!), let us use them!

Earlier, I mentioned I would avoid criticizing the misuse or nonuse of the “charismatic” gifts (so-called, as we have seen) in Christiandom. The reason is because I want “outdo one another in showing honor” (Romans 12:10).Even those among those who use God’s endowments for their personal glory rather than God’s, or for the exalting of the gift rather than the Giver, or those who deny God's grace endowments, many still bow before their God and submit their knee to the Lord Jesus.Let us strive towards unity and a more correct understanding of God unfailing love in our treatment towards each other and into the world, as we bring more of our lives and land under God's perfect rule.