Spiritual Gift: Ability to distinguish between spirits

This spiritual gift is designed to distinguish demons from the Holy Spirit. I sat here for a while this morning thinking through this. I believe this is a gift that needs to be used and WOULD encourage the Church. So many times, myself included, have felt led towards a conclusion about a certain situation. If not well disciplined in waiting for conformation from the Holy Spirit, I think we can be misled into the plans of Satan and his demons.

The Greek words for distinguish and spirits are diakriseis and pneumaton. Some scholars believe that this means to interpret revelation, like prophecy. However, more bible students would conclude that it means to distinguish between the Holy Spirit and demons.

Remember in Exodus 7:10-12 when Moses was doing miraculous signs by the Spirit, then Pharaoh's wisemen and magicians would do the same tricks. Moses was able to distinguish between spirits here. Pharaoh was hard hearted and was being led by powers of evil. Again, in Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus says that many peeps would come performing miracles and casting out demons in his name...but Jesus says he never knew them. How scary is this? How many people say daily that they feel God is doing something huge? How do we know it is Him? I am not trying to scare you, but am hoping I lead you more into a discipline of Scripture reading and prayer, to help discern between spirits.

Let's pray that God would show people in the Church who has this gift, or develop it in someone who doesn't know they have it...for the encouragement of the body and above all, the glory of God!! Peace and grace.

Spiritual Gift: Utterance of wisdom

The only place in Scripture that the spiritual gift of wisdom is located is 1 Corinthians 12:8. It says this: For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit.

Like the other spiritual gifts, wisdom is given by the Holy Spirit. It is not a natural wisdom, but an imparted gift from the Spirit for the encouragement of the Church. According to Frank Thielman, Ph.D. of Divinity at Duke University (ESV Study Bible), this is the only place in Scripture Paul uses these specific Greek words together: logos sophias and logos gnoseos. These mean the speaking or words of divine or mysterious things and the speaking or words of more advanced knowledge.

Since we know Paul uses a separate term for prophecy (propheteia), we could believe that Paul is explaining the gift as an ability to speak wisely or with knowledge into a hard to understand or discerning situation.

D.A. Carson says in his commentary on 1 Cor. 12:8 "In the Old Testament, wisdom was split into two approaches: 1) A practical way of telling believers how to live their lives under the fear of God 2) Wisdom was more theoretical and doctrinal explained through teaching."

We must realize the verse in context and how it is grouped with other spiritual gifts, with the purpose of encouraging the Church. If you have this gift, which is a temporary gift that comes and goes, feel free to comment and encourage myself and others. Peace and grace!

Spiritual Gift: Teaching

I decided to add an extra day to the spiritual gifts series. I will only do teaching today and add shepherding to August 4th.

In the American church, a lot of "pastors" have limited themselves by fulfilling the role of pastor and teacher. Some might view these as the same spiritual gift, but scripture would say different. Now, people can have both gifts but the problem arises when a person only has one gift and tries to fulfill both.

The spiritual gift of teaching is the God-given ability and desire to study and explain the truths of Scripture. The person with this gift is usually very passionate about the scriptures but has an ability to make them clear and understandable to others. One of the clearest examples of this is Acts 7, please read this chapter. Also, read Matthew 5-7; 24-25; Acts 18:11; 19:8-10; and 18:24-28.

I would like to look at one verse specifically from above, Acts 18:11. It says Paul stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. Key point: Paul made sure that the people knew the scriptures. Teaching God's word is not for the encouragement of the teacher (although it should bring tremendous joy to study it), and should not be a tool to draw attention to himself. Teaching is to be used for the encouragement of the Church! Teaching should not be limited to a man standing on stage, it should be an investment of those in the Church.

Caution: Teaching can cause pride (1 Corinthians 8:1; 13:1-3). It can also cause the teacher an over-emphasis on their importance in the Church. If you have the gift of teaching, seek opportunities to teach in youth ministry, small groups, be a student of other teachers, go to seminary, do what is necessary to maximize your gift.

Spiritual Gift: Serving

The spiritual gift of serving is another much-needed gift in the church. I am not talking about those who serve and do what they can until they get burned out, but those who truly have the gift of service. One thing I have not mentioned throughout this series is the effect a spiritual gift will have on you when exercised properly. It should give you maximum effectiveness and minimum fatigue. The same applies with serving, it should encourage the body and get you all hyped up like a 5 year old drinking Monster energy drinks and watching Transformers.

The Greek word for serving is diakanon (Romans 12:7). This means to serve or minister, especially of those who execute the commands of others. Service can be displayed as those serving by using other spiritual gifts i.e. teacher, pastor, evangelist, prophet, elder, deacon, etc. Serving can also be seen as meeting the needs of others in the Church; like contributing help to the meeting of needs like collecting and distributing charity for believers or meeting individual needs of the Church.

A great example of service for us believers should be first and foremost Philippians 2:5-11. That is the mind of humility we should all have when serving one another, but especially those with the gift of serving. A good example of this played out is in 1 Corinthians 16:15-18, read it. The last thing I would like to address is more of a warning. I have seen a lot of "serving" in the church plant I have been involved in and have seen a scary effect come from serving, even within myself sometimes. Serving can ultimately lead to bitterness when your serving is not recognized. If this is the case, check yourself and make sure you know what your spiritual gift is. If serving is not bringing effectiveness and is wearing you out, meet with your church leaders and start serving where you are spiritually gifted.

Spiritual Gift: Exhortation

The spiritual gift of exhortation is a much-needed gift in the church, especially among the men. Women have the natural gift of encouragement and I believe the Lord uses those more accepting of it to give the gift of exhortation. In the Greek, exhortation means “a calling of someone alongside to help. Tyndale dictionary says that the same Greek word may include the idea of consoling and comforting, depending on the context.

In Luke 3:7-18, we see exhortation in the context of inciting or spurring someone on. John the Baptist is exhorting them to repent and be baptized, to bear fruit, share their food and clothes with the poor, and to be happy and content with their current wages. John was exhorting them to be more Christ-like which probably was encouraging to all present further populating the Kingdom of Heaven.

As I have reiterated throughout this series, spiritual gifts are for the encouragement of the Church, exhortation is no different (Romans 12:8). Exhortation can be one of the results of the gift of prophecy being used right )1 Corinthians 14:3;31). In 1 Timothy 4:13 we can also see the gift of teaching, if used properly, can bring exhortation.

As far as the consoling and comforting context. we should look to  2 Corinthians 1:3-7. In this passage it is clear that God comforts his kids in times of suffering, and those with the gift of exhortation should be doing the same to suffering believers. Also, Acts 15:31 demonstrates the clear exhortation that took place at the council in Jerusalem.

So, we see that exhortation can take place through different spiritual gifts. The gift of exhortation can be used to too incite somebody on to do something that will produce spiritual maturity, or exhortation can be seen through the consoling or comforting of someone in the Church that needs it.

Spiritual Gift: Miracles

The spiritual gift of miracles is similar to healing but not limited to healing. Soon after Jesus ascended to heaven, miracles were performed by the apostles as credentials of whom the served and where they got their power from (Acts 8:13; 14:8-10; 19:11-12; Romans 15:19; Hebrews 2:4). Most scholars today would call healings, tongues and miracles "infancy gifts" professing that they were only for the early church, I and many others disagree.

The spiritual gift of miracles can also be used for exercising demons (Acts 19:12), inducing physical ability (Acts 13:11), or even death (Acts 5:5;9). It is easy to understand how the miracles in the first paragraph would be encouraging to the church, but what about the ones like death and potential blindness? In Acts 13:1-11, Paul temporarily blinds a demonic magician trying to divert a high ranking Roman officer from hearing the gospel, so Paul straight blinded this magic man and the Roman officer was saved. What's not encouraging about that!!!

Like I said in yesterday's post about healing, these type of gifts must be sought out, expected from the Father and not doubted. If we want to see God do big things, let's allow Him to do them!!!

Spiritual Gift: Healing

The spiritual gift of healing was a hard one for me to study, but by the grace of God I believe I can explain it well. I know a couple of people who have the gift of healing and have seen some amazing things take place. In 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 "healings" is plural, just like in 1 Corinthians 12:28. After doing a word study on these passages, we see that Paul does not have in mind that the gift of healing is drawn by some "general power" within themselves, but the healings take place with faith and mostly charisma through the Holy Spirit.

People who have the gift of healing usually would have a natural ability to sympathize or empathize along with the ability to know what to do in certain situations. When these people are yielded to the Holy Spirit, miraculous healings can take place. Through reading, Paul seems to make these healings as miraculous as the ones done by Christ himself.

The American church has institutionalized spiritual gifts. What I mean is that we have taught that each person has certain gifts and that's it. However, scripture often makes clear that we should pray for gifts. So, if someone prays for the gift of healing and is able to heal someone in the Church of a disease, we must be careful not to label that person or assign them to a "healing ministry." The Spirit does give gifts at certain times to those with enough faith and charisma to heal.

Look at some of these examples of healings, and please read the surrounding verses to understand the context: Acts 2:43; 5:12; 2 Corinthians 12:12. When one reads through the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) we see Jesus constantly healing (Matthew 8:16-17). These healings were just a foretaste, or appetizer, to the healing that would take place through the atonement.

Here is the thing friends: The gift of healing is real and we must not limit it to charismatic churches. We all pray that God would move in our churches but then the second a "charismatic" man or woman comes in, we disregard them as crazy or something. We are limiting God ourselves when we do this. Let's start having faith and expecting to see healings happen. Let's see God move!

Spiritual Gift: Leading/Administrating

The first thing we see in Romans 12:8 about leadership is it is aided by zeal. Zeal in the Greek is the word "spoude" and means to have haste and earnestness. This means that one who has the gift of leadership gets things done with a quickness and with a sincere and intense conviction. The spiritual gift of leadership can be defined as the God-given desire and ability to give vision and direction to projects and people, like Nehemiah.

Some other good examples we see of sinners being good leaders are Joseph (Genesis 37-50) and Titus (1:5) just to name a few. There are a lot of people who WANT to be leaders, but are not. This usually stems from a sense of pride (1 Peter 5:5) and should be addressed by church elders or leadership. WARNING: If you have this spiritual gift, guard yourself against lust for power and the abuse of power (Mark 10:42-52). The spiritual gift of leadership usually presents itself as an encouragement to the Church because God's plans are clearly seen and directed and the leader is a SERVANT-LEADER, not an observer spouting direction.

If you have the spiritual gift of leadership, use it humbly for the encouragement of the Church and glorifying God!

Spiritual Gift: Interpreting Tongues

Guest blog by Adriel Sanchez

The gift of interpretation of tongues is extremely important in the body of Christ. This is because without interpretation, the gift of tongues has no edificational value for the corporate body of Christ (it solely benefits the speaker). When Paul was writing to the Corinthians, he was encouraging them to pursue the greater gifts, i.e. the gifts that would edify the body as a whole. He makes this clear in ICor 14:1-2, "Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men, but to God; for no one understands him, but in the Spirit he speaks mysteries." and then in verses 3-4 Paul explains why prophesy is to be a more coveted gift, "But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but one who prophesies edifies the church." In other words, Paul is saying, "Listen Corinthians, seek the gifts that are going to edify the body as a whole! Dont just get involved in self edification." Without the gift of interpretation - tongues will not corporately edify the body of Christ! Paul writes in 14:5, "Now I wish that you all spoke in tongues, but even more that you would prophesy; and greater is the one who prophesies than one who speaks in tongues, UNLESS he interprets, so that the church may receive edifying." (emphasis mine)

The gift of interpretation is a supernatural gift bestowed by the Holy Spirit which allows someone in the congregation (and often times the tongues speaker himself) to interpret the unknown utterance that was given. When someone speaks in tongues, they don't understand what they are saying. Paul affirms this in ICor 14:14, "If I pray in a tongue my Spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful." In order for the congregation to understand what the Spirit has said through the tongues speaker, an interpreter must be present. It is also important to note that Paul says in 14:13 that the one who prays in tongues, should also pray that he may interpret (this is especially important to note when you're speaking in tongues in the assembly) This seems to indicate that the tongue's speaker can himself have the gift of interpretation, and should pray that he has the ability to do so in order that he might edify the body. The gift of interpretation is not when someone simply understand the tongues that are being spoken (such was the case during the day of pentecost, with the Jews who were present during the Holy Spirits outpouring) but rather when someone is granted supernatural understanding by God, in order to be able to articulate the unknown tongue being spoken.

I want to also make it clear the the gift of tongues has a personal edificational value. Some people argue that tongues should never be spoken if there is no interpreter, however this is simply not true due to the fact that all tongues speaking serves to edify the speaker. However tongues should not be spoken out loud in the midst of the assembly, if there is no interpreter. Paul makes this clear in 1Cor 14:19. Tongues then aught to be used in the privacy of ones prayer closet (self edification) and in the midst of the body of Christ when accompanied by an interpreter (corporate edification). The question remains, will you take Paul's commandment in 1Corinthians 14 seriously to "desire the greater gifts," and to "seek to abound for the edification of the church." (14:12) That's a mandate that is often overlooked by many Christians, but was an imperative from Paul for the Corinthians, and for the present day saints as well!

Spiritual Gift: Speaking in Tongues

Speaking in tongues is a highly debated topic, mostly whether or not this spiritual gift is for today. Some would say speaking in tongues has ceased. I want to make clear that my belief is that speaking in tongues IS still a if used today. I think the gift must meet at least 3 criteria for it to be valid.

1. It must be for the overall purpose of encouraging the Church and glorifying to God.

2. It must be in an orderly fashion that is not distracting or overwhelming in a negative way.

3. There must be an interpreter present (I will address this more tomorrow).

The best place that describes this gift is 1 Corinthians 14. This chapter would say that there does not have to be an interpreter present, but then the man or woman speaking in tongues only encourages themselves, which can be seen as a direct prayer to God out of an overflowing of his/her spirit.

Speaking in tongues should have some sort of revelation, encouragement, or teaching for the Church, not just reckless blabber. Some would say that speaking in tongues is a heavenly language, while others have said it is the ability to speak foreign languages. A reputable author once told a story of a conference going on and all of a sudden this dude got up and started speaking in tongues. After a couple minutes, a dishwasher came running into the conference asking where this man learned to speak his language. The man then explains that he is from a small village where only they speak that language. The dishwasher interpreted and ended up trusting in Christ.

I am hoping my friend Adriel will be kind enough to comment on this and maybe guest blog tomorrow, he has done far more studying on this spiritual gift than I have. Love you all!!

Spiritual Gift: Giving

The spiritual gift of giving is a very necessary one in today's Church. We are raised and trained in a culture where it is normal to have an excess of pride. It is supposed to be "all about me." Even in the Church, pride is running rampant among pastors, elders, deacons, and volunteers. Some churches are filled with people who give to get attention.

We must recognize the true givers, the ones with the spiritual gift of giving who give for the purpose of encouraging the Church. The spiritual gift of giving can be defined as a God-given ability and desire to impart one's substance to meet the material needs of others (Acts:9:36-39 and Romans 12:13).

The Greek word for giving is haplotes and is defined as simplicity, liberality, bountifulness. This is not a self-seeking generosity but an openness of heart that manifests itself through generosity. It can be seen as someone who gives their clothes, time, or money to someone in need in the Church. If you have the spiritual gift of giving, use this blessing as much as the Lord directs because the Church needs it!

Spiritual Gift: Mercy

The gift of mercy is found in Romans 12:8. Again, before I explain this spiritual gift, remember that it is to be used for the edification and encouragement of the Church. If you read Romans 12:8 you will notice that the gift of mercy is sandwiched between two verbs: acts and cheerfulness. It is someone who does acts of "mercy" with cheerfulness. Before I define the spiritual gift of mercy, let me contrast the description in Romans 12:8 so we know what it is NOT. 

The gift of mercy is NOT someone who volunteers at the church, serves the homeless, or helps a friend out in need out of a bitter heart. It is NOT someone who serves with a negative attitude or expects something in return, especially respect.

The spiritual gift of mercy IS a God-given desire and ability to SHOW concern and DO what is necessary for needy others (Read Luke 11:30-37). You probably have the gift of mercy if you gravitate towards the less fortunate, the ill, the down and depressed. You do this because it is not only glorifying to the Lord, but shows them His love towards them (Read Matthew 25:31-46).

Here is the key: In Greek , the word mercy is eleeo. Every time it is used in the Bible, it is an action. It is not something to be stored up, but something to be expended...like all the other gifts. Also, in the Greek, it is connected , or grouped, with "who does acts of." That is clear evidence that if you have the gift of mercy, you should be wearing yourself out showing mercy for God's glory! 

Spiritual Gift: Faith

The gift of faith is probably one of the most misunderstood spiritual gifts. It is found in 1 Corinthians 12:9. The gift of faith is not the same faith that every Christian should have, faith in the risen Christ. Remember: ALL Spiritual gifts are given by God and ARE TO BE USED for the edification and encouragement of the Church, or body of believers. The gift of faith is NOT a lack of worrying. It does not mean that you are not worried about bills being paid, not worried about a living situation, etc. Again...the gift of faith is for the encouragement and edification of the Church.

The spiritual gift of faith has to do with believing God for what He wants to accomplish in the church’s ministry, that He will lead and provide. Read that again, that is the definition. The context of the gift of faith in 1 Corinthians 12:9 is miracles (another spiritual gift). The gift of faith allows people to believe that not only will God lead and provide, but will perform miracles. So, if you have the gift of faith, you SHOULD be using it in a Church context, for the encouragement of believers. EX: You will be used by the Lord to encourage those to have faith and by you having the gift of Faith, the Church will be encouraged and have faith at the needed time.

*Any time I use the word Church (capital C) over the next 15-16 days, I am describing a body of believers who have trusted in Christ's death on the cross for their sins and his resurrection so they could have life. This Church is not just inside a building, and your spiritual gift(s) can be used at work, school, etc.

16 Days of Spiritual Gifts

The topic of spiritual gifts is something I sometimes get frustrated with, due to the lack of understanding most people have. Although the responsibility of teaching people and equipping them lies in the hands of the church leaders (Ephesians 4:11-12).

So here is my plan: Over the next 16 days, starting tomorrow (7/19/09), I will address what each spiritual gift is, where we can find it in scripture, and what they look like when utilized in the Church. Today will count as Day 0 and I will explain how and when we get spiritual gifts, what they are for, and the difference between spiritual gifts and natural talents.

How and when do we get spiritual gifts?

When we trust in Jesus Christ that he died for our sins and arose 3 days later we are saved. We are then sealed w/ the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13).

What are spiritual gifts for?

Spiritual Gifts are for the edification of the body (the Church)! They are not positions in a church (although those are layed out in scripture), they are not to be used for our glory, and they are not to be kept caged up inside. They are for God's glory and the encouragement of the church (1 Cor. 12:7, 11; Eph. 4:12).

What is the difference between spiritual gifts and natural talents?

Natural Talents Spiritual Gifts

1. Source: From God, through parents From God, independent of parents

2. Possessed: From birth From conversion

3. Purpose: To benefit mankind on natural level To benefit mankind on spiritual level

4. Process: Must be recognized, developed, Must be recognized, developed, exercised

exercised

5. Function: Should be dedicated by believers Should be used to God's glory

to God for His use and glory

Hopefully that is clear. Remember these things, especially that gifts should be used as encouragement to the body, as I describe each gift over the next couple weeks. I love you all and here is the days I will go over each gift. Please feel free to ask questions if things are confusing.

Date Gift

7/19 Faith

7/20 Mercy

7/21 Giving

7/22 Speaking in Tongues

7/23 Interpretation of Tongus

7/24 Leading/Administrating

7/25 Healing

7/26 Miracles

7/27 Exhorting

7/28 Serving

7/29 Teaching/ Shepherding

7/30 Utterance of Wisdom

7/31 Ability to distinguish between spirits (Holy Spirit and demons).

8/1 Prophecy

8/2 Apostleship

8/3 Evangelism