Are ALL the Gifts for Every Believer?

Some Christians cite 1 Corinthians 12 to support the claim that the gifts of the Spirit (prophecy, healing, tongues, etc.) are not for all believers. Specifically, note the following verses:

²⁷ Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. ²⁸ And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. ²⁹ Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? ³⁰ Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 

1 Corinthians 12:27-29 (NIV)

The answer to these rhetorical questions is naturally, “No.” So, many Christians determine that, therefore, all Christians won’t have every gift that the Spirit offers, and neither should they expect to receive every gift that the Spirit offers. Besides, the Spirit “distributes [the gifts] to each one, just as He determines.” (1 Corinthians 12:11).

Healing Close to Home

This past weekend, my family came to visit us. On the Friday night they arrived, my sister expressed much physical discomfort, including a stomach ache, hurting back, and many other things. Now, you must realize that my sister ALWAYS tells me that something is hurting her whenever I see her. I must admit, it can be taxing to carry the emotional burden of her being sick all the time. Thus, when she expressed her discomfort on Friday night, I was tempted to become disheartened. But, realizing this, I took my thoughts captive to Christ and gave my heart over to His desires for my sister instead.

I felt "electricity" concentrated in my forearms and palms, which from past experience indicated to me a special presence (or, "readiness") of the Holy Spirit, so I decided to do an experiment. I went over to my sister Sarah, who was sprawled out on the floor on her belly, and said, "Sarah, put out your hand palm-up."

Instantaneous Transformation?

Many Christians (mainly, Protestants) believe that when Jesus comes back, we will experience an instantaneous transformation that will make us immortal, incorruptible, morally perfect, and spiritually mature--qualities that make us fit to enter the Kingdom of Heaven into God's presence. I think that this idea is based upon the following three passages, primarily:

"51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet." (1 Corinthians 15:51-52a, NIV)

Freely As You Have Received, Freely Give

When Jesus used this phrase with his disciples, he was specifically instructing them to freely dispense the benefits of the Holy Spirit to the world (see Matthew 10:8). However, I think that the principle can be more broadly applied to all categories of life. Whether it be money, possessions, forgiveness, time, or healing from the Holy Spirit, I think that we have a precedent for generosity. Jesus told the rich man to give all his possessions to the poor (Matthew 19:21), and Jesus told Peter to forgive his brother every time he asks for forgiveness (Matthew 18:22). God desires for us to share the blessings He gave us.

I was reminded of this principle yesterday when a friend of ours unexpectedly gifted us with some money. We did nothing to deserve the money. In other words, we freely received it. Now, I don't know about you, but my first instinct when I get a free gift is often something like, "Great! Now I can go buy/do _X_!" Unfortunately, the _X_ isn't usually very others-centered. However, yesterday my instinct was different. I immediately felt utter amazement at the generosity of God, and my whole being swelled with the desire to bless others. Perhaps now I can get those gifts for the neighbor kids I've been eyeing, for instance.

My hope is that if I mirror the heart of God by being generous with my material wealth, perhaps I will grow in my ability to be generous with the benefits of His Spirit as well. I also know that practicing generosity with what I know I have can give an opportunity for me to learn how to be even more generous. I hope that someday I will recognize the depth of generosity that the Father has bestowed on me so that I can fully display His goodness to others. God has given us so many blessings--let's freely share those blessings freely!

Spiritual Gifts

Today’s verse:

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
I Corinthians 12:4-11 (NIV)

I was so intrigued by the topic of spiritual gifts that I couldn’t help but return to the subject for today’s study. As I read the above passage, I gleaned three points that were new to me:
(1) Paul says that the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one,
(2) the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good, and
(3) the Spirit gives gifts to each one as he determines.
Now you must understand, I grew up under the teaching of cessationalism (that spiritual gifts such as prophesy, speaking in tongues, and miraculous healing ceased after the authenticity of the Gospel message was established across the Roman world during the time of first-century church, after the scripture had been written in its entirety). I always had the impression that the Spirit of God didn’t manifest himself in Christians in miraculous ways anymore, and that people claiming to have had such experiences either had been subject to a hyper-emotional psychological phenomenon, demonic influence, or a bad case of self-deception or straight-out lying. I never had any reason to think otherwise, given my background beliefs and the interpretation of scripture that I had been taught, and I never encountered anyone with a testimony that caused me to question my belief that supernatural spiritual gifts were ancient news. Maybe some of you can relate to my position! Anyway, I believe that God in his providence has started to open my eyes to his power and the reality of his presence in the lives of his dedicated, obedient followers. Let me explain: over the past month or so, God has been providing me examples of testimonies where God used his Spirit to accomplish miraculous wonders to draw people into his kingdom. My husband Josh recently told me of a time when he saw someone stand up and speak in tongues, and as skeptical thoughts began to enter his mind concerning the authenticity of the event, someone else across the sanctuary stood up and began interpreting the words of the one speaking in tongues. That sounds biblical to me! Out of curiosity, I started to question God, “Why hasn’t your Spirit manifested itself in me like that?” He started to reveal many things to me that are relevant not only to the topic of spiritual gifts, but also to what it means to be obedient to God in every aspect of life.

As I was praying with the question “What do I need to do to be used in a miraculous way by your Spirit,” God whispered to me something fairly obvious but that many of us overlook. He said, “You must read and meditate on My Word.” I was surprised and convicted at the same time. I go to church every Sunday, I discuss theological issues with my husband or other academic colleagues pretty much every day, and I’m even part of a prayer group… surely I’m a good Christian! So I thought. I realized, though, that although my mind was constantly entertaining issues presented in the scriptures, and even though I had been presenting requests before God, I was lacking in my relationship with God. It was all one-sided. I hadn’t taken enough time to listen to him. How can you have a relationship with someone if you are constantly talking and rarely allow the other person to interject thoughts of their own? I felt ashamed and foolish. Why would I expect God to grant me with spiritual gifts if I only let him talk to me for about an hour or two on Sunday morning, promptly drifting away into my own little world of thoughts and experiences for the rest of the week, leaving God behind as only a spectator? After God brought my erroneous ways to light, I felt convicted to seek after him. In fact, that is exactly what prompted this daily bible study blog. As I read and meditate upon the Words God has spoken to us, I gain new insight into God that I previously lacked.

Now, back to the topic of spiritual gifts. Paul says that the Spirit manifests himself in each one for the common good (or encouragement, perhaps) of believers. Perhaps he was referring only to the church of Corinth—or maybe to the church of that day—but it is not clear to me that his vision is so restrictive. My instinct is to assume that he is speaking to all believers, so unless I find another reason to doubt this assumption, that’s what I’ll go with. Anyway, he goes on to list several ways in which the Spirit chooses to manifest himself, even ordering them by their greatness. As I read the entire passage of I Corinthians 12, I notice that Paul makes an analogy between the community of believers and the parts of a human body. There are parts that are common, but their work is essential. There are parts that are considered less honorable, but they are treated with special honor. It seems that the point of this analogy is to convey that every part of the body of Christ has a purpose and is essential to the function of the body, so we should value every member regardless of their function. However, at the end of the section, it appears as though he encourages them to desire the greater gifts! Is this contradictory? I don’t think so. My impression is that God gives greater responsibility to those who are responsible with what he has already given; thus, it is an honor to have greater gifts, since it shows that we are very responsible people! I am convinced that responsibility is not the only factor, though, but obedience, depth of relationship with God, and God’s sovereign plan determine whether a believer receives supernatural gifts from the Spirit (and to what degree they receive them).

In conclusion, I see no harm in seeking to deepen my relationship with God in order to prepare my heart for the possibility of receiving a supernatural gift from the Holy Spirit. Perhaps spiritual gifts of this sort are no longer given to believers in this day and age, but if there is even the slightest chance that they are (or can be), then I want to be in a position to receive such gifts for the common good. Thus, I will continue to seek the presence of the Lord and empty my heart of worldly or selfish desires so that the Spirit of God will have a pure and spacious temple to live in and minister from, if he so wishes.

Dear Lord, I invite your presence into my dwelling place and into my heart. I am waiting in silence. Speak, Lord, and I will hear your voice. Guide me in your truth, and draw me close to you. Amen.

Why not me?

Today’s verse:

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Romans 12:4-5 (NIV)

Josh and I have been watching a show called “It’s Supernatural,” hosted by Sid Roth (sidroth.org). The show consists of a weekly interview with someone through whom God has worked in miraculous ways (or who has witnessed the supernatural acts of God). A supernatural gift that comes up frequently is that of healing. For instance, someone with a failing kidney, after being surrounded by the prayer of righteous people and the presence of God, not only experiences a healed kidney, but also received an entirely new kidney where one was previously missing! There are many other documented miraculous examples. This got me thinking, “Why doesn’t God use me like all these people on Sid Roth’s show to heal someone miraculously?” Interestingly, the next day, I came across the above verses under “verse of the day” on the home page of biblegateway.com. Paul points out that God has given us different natural abilities, and we should use these abilities to edify one another. We shouldn’t become jealous of someone who has a different set of gifts than we do! He makes the analogy of a body. The eyes, hands, and feet all have different essential roles. I wouldn’t want my eyes to do the tasks set out for my feet! In the same way, we all work together in different ways for a single purpose—to spread the news of the kingdom of God to the world.

It seems to me that there are also supernatural gifts that God gives to people over and above their natural gifts. For example, it seems that things like miraculous healing, seeing the future, and having insight into people you’ve never met are not ordinary things that people are just born with. Also, it seems that gifts from the Spirit, like those talked about in I Corinthians 12, are imparted directly by the Spirit of God and are not related to our natural gifts in any way. However, Paul also says that there are many gifts of the Spirit and that not everyone will have the same gifts given to them. I will have to do a further study of this passage in I Corinthians in order to fully appreciate all that Paul was instructing regarding spiritual gifts, but for now, the message I am getting is that we should be content with what God has given us because he’s given it to us to benefit everyone around us.

My conclusion for today is perhaps more of a segue to future study: God has given us each different gifts so that we can function effectively together with unity of purpose. We fill specific, important roles within the group that others cannot fill, and we should not be jealous of others who operate under different roles. As far as what gifts he has given to us—whether they be solely our natural talents or also Spirit-imparted (even supernatural) talents—I have heard many dissenting opinions, so I must do further study of my own to come to a conclusion. Whatever the truth may be about spiritual gifts, I know this much: we are uniquely designed by God to carry out specific purposes in life, and he loves us all in a very special and personal way.

God of many wonders, thank you for interacting with your creation throughout the course of history. In ages past you displayed your glorious presence with supernatural signs and wonders through your prophets and through nature itself. Even with the visible evidence of your presence, though, your people were fickle of heart, betraying you for gods made by their own hands. How foolish we are, oh Lord! Please forgive us for lacking wisdom and understanding. In this age, you have chosen to make your presence hidden to the eye, and only those who seek you are given eyes to see! We are looking forward to the day when your presence will be visible to all people once again! A wave is coming: at first it appears small, but its tremendous power is revealed as it draws near to the shore. The abiding of your presence with us is near, and as it draws closer your miraculous works will be made known! I desire your presence, Lord. Too long have your people been separated from you. Use me as a tool for your coming glory, so that I may reveal the good news of your kingdom to all who will hear. We look forward to the revelation of your glory, and we worship you now as you reign over all the earth. Amen.