Word of Salvation – Vol. 22 No. 02 – October 1975
The Tools The Lord Gives The Church
Sermon by Rev. Fred Vanderbom, B.A., Th. Grad. on 1Corinthians 12:1-7
Scripture Readings: John 9:1-18, 35 – end.
Psalter Hymnal: 281:7-10; 392.
Congregation…!
Why is it that the subject of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is usually left alone by us in the Reformed Churches?
Many of us would agree that there seem to be TWO VERY IMPORTANT REASONS for this.
THE FIRST REASON is that we have often been told that the gifts of the Holy Spirit were meant only for the early Church, the Christian Church in its first hundred or so years.
THE SECOND REASON why the subject of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is usually left alone in our churches is that these gifts get some pretty bad treatment these days.
Those of us who have tried will perhaps know how hard it is to study the Bible or to pray with a Pentecostal, who will quite often tell us that we poor people are missing out on what they call the “full Gospel” because we have not had some experience or don’t speak in tongues.
We get the feeling that the gifts of the Holy Spirit must have the effect of creating people who are hard to take, proud, and snobbish.
The fuss that many Pentecostals make over some of the minor gifts, such as tongues, has also put us off. We hear so much about tongue speaking and healing and not as much about some of the important gifts of the Spirit we come across in the Bible, such as preaching, serving, encouraging, evangelising.
There are three major sections in Paul’s letters, which teach us that the Holy Spirit gives us his gifts for two basic reasons
– to build up and help the congregation;
– and to impress and help the ‘outsider’.
The fact that we often hear so much about the thrills people get in different ways from the gifts has also put us in the Reformed churches off. We don’t take much notice of Paul when he talks about this subject, even though he comes to it in three different letters, and parts or all of four chapters; Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and 14, and Ephesians 4, plus some scattered references.
So these are the facts we face today.
In certain circles we hear a lot of talk about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but what we see of these gifts makes us wonder sometimes whether all of them are genuine or not. And they are not always being used in the way and for the purposes Paul writes about.
In our own churches, we are inclined to more-or-less forget about four chapters in three of Paul’s letters.
It is possible to argue that the gifts of the Holy Spirit were supposed to finish when the last apostle died in 90 A.D. But most of that argument is based not on the Bible, but on history. Just like the argument for bishops: it is mostly based on history.
Today, I suggest we listen to what the Lord says to us through the apostle Paul, as he writes to the Corinthian church on the subject of the Holy Spirit’s gifts. This means that we see the need to find A THIRD ROAD, a middle path between ignoring the subject and going overboard on it.
If we are prepared to simply LOOK at what the Bible says about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, then we may find two things happening.
First, we may come to see that the Bible’s teaching about the gifts of the Holy Spirit doesn’t embarrass us anymore. We won’t have to waffle over those difficult and embarrassing parts of Paul’s letters, which we’re not sure what to do with. In fact, they might even help us in our love for God’s Church and our congregation.
Second: looking at what the Bible actually DOES say won’t make us “soft on the Penties”, as they say. As a matter of fact, it will help us to see the difference between fact and fiction, truth and trouble, the Spirit’s work and the Stirrer’s work. It will help us not to go overboard on the work of the Holy Spirit, and not to misuse his gifts.
We all believe that God DOES have things to give us, don’t we? And we know that God’s Spirit is right in the heart of what the Lord wants to give us? Let us look at our text then, and think about the words Paul uses to describe God’s gifts.
Our text consists of the seven verses with which the apostle opens his section on the subject of the gifts of the Spirit.
The interesting thing about these first seven verses on the subject of the gifts, is that each time Paul refers to the gifts of the Holy Spirit here, he uses a different word to describe them. It is hard for us to imagine that Paul didn’t do this deliberately!
In fact, it is very helpful to look carefully at each of these words. When we do so, we find that each of the words Paul uses brings out an important point about the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
* * * * * *
We come across THE FIRST WORD in verse 1. In the RSV, we read, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren….!”
But really, the word for “gifts” is not there in the original Greek. In verse 1, Paul is not bringing the gifts into the picture. Literally, he is talking about “Spiritual matters, spiritual things, the things of the Spirit.”
Paul puts the Holy Spirit of God in the centre. He is going to talk about “the things of the Spirit.” He leaves things deliberately vague and general.
So what, we may ask.
What this means is that there is no simple list of “the gifts of the Spirit.” In the chapter to follow, and in other places, Paul speaks about all sorts of “things of the Spirit.” The important thing is not whether my gift is one out of a list of “THE nine gifts” or “THE nineteen gifts” of the Holy Spirit.
The IMPORTANT thing is: are the gifts God has given me “things of THE SPIRIT”? Is the Holy Spirit the giver?
All the gifts Paul mentions are “things from the Spirit.” [Read verses 8 to 10!] Romans 12 mentions some others: prophecy (or preaching), service, teaching, encouraging, giving, helping, doing acts of mercy. In Ephesians 4 we have some other gifts from God: evangelists, shepherds and teachers. There are passages in Paul’s letters which seem to show that we can also regard celibacy, voluntary poverty, and martyrdom as “things of the Holy Spirit.”
We often forget about some of these gifts because we regard them as natural abilities. When a person is good at administration, or helping, or talking to non- Christians about the Lord Jesus, we tend to ignore that as something from the Holy Spirit.
The Pentecostals have perhaps tricked us into thinking that the Spirit only gives mysterious powers, spectacular feelings or events, or terribly exciting people. It is necessary today to let Paul remind us again and again that ALL these gifts can be “matters concerning the Holy Spirit”, as he does in verse 1. In the Bible, we are reminded that it is THE LORD who gives, through His Holy Spirit whether it is wisdom or tongues, miracle-workers or preachers and Sunday School teachers!
This then is the first important thing about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Not: how spectacular is my gift, or how ordinary is it?
But: is it a thing of the Holy Spirit? Does it come from God? Is it just a power I have, a trick in my brain, or is it REALLY “something of the Holy Spirit”?
* * * * * *
THE SECOND WORD Paul uses for the gifts of the Holy Spirit is in verse 4: “Now there are varieties of GIFTS, but the same Lord.”
Those of us who are way-out enough to be able to read the word here translated as “gifts” in the Greek, would be able to tell us that the word for “grace” is in the same word-family as the word for “gift”.
A gift is something that comes our way BY GRACE, without our having worked for it or deserved it. It’s no wonder that in Greek, the words for “grace” and “gift” come from the same family.
When Paul uses this word for “gifts”, there is in his mind the thought that God’s gifts are GRACE: they are pure gift, they are free and undeserved gifts, they come to us only because of the Lord’s goodness and the cross of the Lord Jesus.
Whether we realise it or not as we read our English Bibles, therefore, the words for “gifts” and “grace” are about as close as two words can get.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit are not the result of our efforts. They are gifts from God, given to us in his way, according to his will, at his time.
We need to remember this next time we see someone working himself or herself up to what is often called the gift of tongues: not by asking for God’s gift but by repeating a word like “Hallelujah” with the help of an emotion-charged meeting.
The Lord doesn’t give us the gift of being able to heal others or ourselves as a reward for lots and lots of prayers.
People don’t get the gift of prophecy or preaching as a kind of reward for some years of study.
We don’t necessarily have to be old and grey after many years of loyal Christian service to be given the gift of evangelism, or to encourage, or what the Bible calls the gift of wisdom.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit, Paul reminds us in verse 4, are gifts of GRACE! It is helpful to look across to Romans 6:23, where Paul uses the same word again, but this time in the singular, “gift”. “The wages of sin is death, but the FREE GIFT of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Notice that: “the free gift of God.” The same word as in verse 4 of the text: “there are varieties of free gifts” – all undeserved, free, not worked for by us!
In Romans 6, Paul is of course referring to the greatest free gift of all, the gift which is the gateway of all the other gifts the Lord gives us. The free gift of becoming accepted by God because of the obedience and death of the Lord Jesus this must always be the most exciting, the most unusual and miraculous gift of all. When God makes us willing to come away from the crowd; when we find that we really WANT to listen to Him, and to obey Him: this is for the follower of the Lord Jesus always THE gift of God, the gift of the Holy Spirit number one.
* * * * * *
THE THIRD WORD Paul uses to describe the gifts of the Holy Spirit is the word “service”. In verse 5: “there are varieties of service, but the same Lord”. It is quite clear that Paul is thinking about the gifts still – compare verses 4, 5 and 6 if you like – and he calls the gifts “service”. They are ways God gives us, or tools, if you like, of SERVING the Lord God, and other people.
Let’s never forget that the Bible talks about the gifts of the Holy Spirit as SERVICE. Some of us may have come across people who look down on other Christians who do not speak in tongues: these people see tongues as a proof or indication that the Holy Spirit’s work in them is more advanced than in people who for some reason don’t speak in tongues.
When Paul talks about the gifts of the Spirit as service, he makes it clear that tongues or miracles or wisdom or teaching gifts have nothing to do with that kind of stage you are at in the Christian life.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit are also misused when the emphasis is on thrills, or Christian status, and when other people get nothing out of the use of the gift we may have.
Paul says in verse 5 that the gifts are for SERVICE, not for spiritual status seekers, or for people who are looking for spiritual thrills to break up the boredom of the life they are living.
This same word, “service” is used in that beautiful verse in Mark chapter 10 which tells us in a nutshell why the Lord Jesus came to live among us. “The Son of Man came not to be served, BUT TO SERVE, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
When we think of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, whether in us or in others, let us always think in terms of service. Think of serving other people in the name of Jesus. And think of how Jesus himself served: by hanging on a cross, for us.
God will never ask us, “How many gifts have you got? And tell Me which gifts you’ve got!” He will never look bored or disappointed as we tell Him which gifts we have been given. But God’s Book does make it very clear that we will be asked, “Have you been willing to USE those gifts? Have you served others, and above all the Lord, with them?”
* * * * * *
Verse 6: “there are varieties of WORKING, but it is the same God who inspires them all in everyone”. “WORKING” IS THE FOURTH WORD for the gifts which Paul uses here.
To change the words in this verse around a bit: God works in us in a variety of ways, but it is ALWAYS GOD who is at work when the Holy Spirit gives us his gifts.
“Working” is then yet another word used by Paul to describe the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and this time the emphasis is on the fact that the gifts of the Spirit really mean: GOD AT WORK. When we use God’s gifts, then the Lord is at work.
When we think of God working, what is it that always stands out? Isn’t it the fact that God works or acts according to His will? We human creatures cannot and dare not tell the Lord God what to do, or how to do things! When God works, HE decides what, how, and when. HE decides when he starts and when He finishes.
The fact that gifts of the Holy Spirit to us are really God at work becomes very clear when we look at people in the Bible.
Think of John the Baptist. He never seems to have trained or studied. Yet Jesus once said that there was no one greater than John the Baptist.
But for how long do we see God at work in John? He seems to have used that gift of prophecy for only a very short period. “He must increase; I must decrease” was how this greatest of God’s prophets saw it.
It was much the same with the apostle Paul. At times, Paul healed somebody, or was able to recognise an evil spirit. But he never writes that he HAS these gifts. They were given to him when God was working in a special way. Quite possibly God stopped working that way after those first years of Paul’s work. When the Lord works, He decides.
This is what this fourth word in our text means. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are God working, and verse 6 tells us that God works in many different ways. “There are varieties of working”
If I find I have not got an open eye for people in trouble, it probably means two things: I should try a bit harder, AND the Lord has not given me the gift of “giving aid”. God is obviously not working through me in that particular way.
The gifts of God’s Spirit are basically NOT TAUGHT or learnt. They are RECOGNISED, in all their rich variety, and then they are used; it is always God who inspires them and is seen to be at work through them.
* * * * * *
THE FINAL WORD which Paul uses in our text to describe the gifts is found in verse 7. It is the word “manifestation”.
“Manifestation” is not an everyday word we use, and the “Good News for Modern Man” translation gets around it very well. Instead of “manifestation of the Spirit” it has a “proof of the Spirit’s presence”. So, what verse 7 really says is, “To each is given a PROOF OF THE SPIRIT’S PRESENCE for the common good.”
The idea is that the gifts of the Holy Spirit will always make the Spirit of God more visible, clearer, better known. These gifts are “manifestations of the Spirit” or “proofs of the Spirit’s presence.”
When God’s people are using the gifts God gives us, the effect will be that the Lord’s Word, and His power will become CLEARER to people, where there may have been unbelief and confusion before.
It is sad that today we sometimes see the opposite happening. Sometimes, when so-called gifts of the Spirit are being used, the result is NOT that God is made clearer, that God’s presence is proved. Sometimes, these so-called gifts produce confusion and division.
Some of us keep hearing stories about healing meetings where headaches and sore backs are said to be healed, while people with visible problems such as wheel- chairs and blindness are ignored. This kind of gift of healing is not a proof of the Spirit’s presence.
Nor is it when somebody says the Apostles’ Creed in German, and somebody else with the so-called gift of interpretation comes out with a totally different message. This kind of thing should not happen. Where the gifts of the Holy Spirit do not make God’s power real and compelling, are they the true gifts Paul mentions? Think of what happened when Jesus healed the man born blind. Only hardened unbelievers could deny this miracle as a proof of God’s presence.
* * * * * *
We have looked at five different words and expressions and what they tell us about the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
They are, all of them, “things of the Holy Spirit.” THE SPIRIT of God gives them, whether the gift is spectacular or what we would call ‘natural’.
They are gifts of GRACE. They come to us by the goodness of God.
They are given to us FOR SERVICE, to honour the Lord and to help His Church.
They are ways of GOD WORKING, and God works according to His way and time.
Finally, they are PROOFS that God is present with His Church.
Isn’t the Word of God simple and yet rich, when it speaks to us about the gifts of the Holy Spirit?
How clear and open and helpful is Paul as he deliberately uses these five expressions! How different from people who prefer not to think about these parts of the Bible, and who so often feel embarrassed when the subject of gifts is discussed.
How different also is Paul from those people who talk mainly and mostly about the personal thrills and the audience excitement of what they call the gifts of the Spirit.
In verses 4, 5 and 6 of our text we can trace the Triune God at work when God’s Church uses the gifts He gives us. You might like to work out the details of that at home in verses 4 to 6.
God’s Word teaches us that when the Church uses the gifts of the Holy Spirit, then the WHOLE TRINITY is at work through us, and NOT just for my own benefit or thrill, BUT for the blessing and health of the Church, God’s people.
Amen.