Spiritual Gifts
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good (1 Corinthians 12:4-7).
There is perhaps no area of greater controversy in the Church than the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Some Churches claim to be Spirit-filled, exercising all of the gifts mentioned in the New Testament, while other Churches teach that there are only some of the gifts available to believers today, the miraculous gifts having ceased. Most of the controversy is over the gift of tongues. But if these spiritual gifts are being given by the Holy Spirit to the Body of Christ, then how should they be utilized? When writing to the Corinthian Church, which was torn apart by divisions, Paul addresses this very issue. Paul does not discourage the use of spiritual gifts. The problem at Corinth was in how these gifts were being used. If the gifts of the Spirit are not exercised in a way that benefits the whole Body, then nothing of value is accomplished. For example, if the gift of tongues is actually given and someone speaks in a tongue, but there is no one who can interpret the meaning so that everyone can benefit, then it would be better for the speaker to keep silent. So while we can argue about which gifts are given today, the whole point is the edification of the Church and not just a miraculous display of the gifts. No gift should be operating unless it is being used for the edification of the whole Body. Otherwise, we are just making noise.
The giving of spiritual gifts is according to the will of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Distributor of the gifts that are needed to edify the Body. If the members of the Body are in-tune with the Spirit then the gifts can flow freely. It seems that the Church at Corinth had plenty of spiritual gifts, but there were other things hindering the use of these gifts for the edification of the Body. For example, if the gathering of believers was disorderly, then the gifts that were given by the Spirit could not be used properly. If many people were all speaking at the same time and not yielding to one another, then there was just a lot of noise. Now this seems strange to modern Christians because our Church gatherings usually only have a single speaker, or preacher, and everyone simply listens to him. In most Church services today there is no format or place given for the operation of spiritual gifts except what is given to the preacher or pastor and maybe the worship leader. Corinth had all the gifts going at the same time, which was disorderly. The modern Church does not provide a format for the gifts at all. Modern Church services are not designed with the Body in mind, but are more like a spectator sport where a professional performs and others watch. It is difficult to see how the Holy Spirit can distribute gifts in these environments.
There is no single person in the Body of Christ who has every gift. If the main purpose of the gathering of the Church is for edification, or the building up of the faith of believers, then it must be understood that a single person cannot accomplish this work. The Body is only edified when all of the members are utilizing the gifts that the Holy Spirit distributes. There is no set formula or pattern for how this is to be accomplished. There is not a single way to accomplish this goal of edifying the Body and that is why there is no pattern in the New Testament for how a Church meeting or worship service should be constructed. We should not get sidetracked by such trivial matters as the order of worship! Paul’s instruction to the Corinthians was that everything should be done in an orderly manner, for the edification of everyone in the Body, so that all of the gifts the Spirit gives might be utilized. That being said, it is not realistic to expect a single person, like a pastor, to be able to do everything by just preaching a sermon. Sermons must be preached, but that is just one of the gifts of the Spirit.
Every gift is given for the benefit of the whole Body. The gifts are not given just to edify the individual. The very idea of a private spiritual gift that is only for the individual to use to edify himself goes against the design of the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit simply does not give these kinds of gifts. If a gift is given, it is for the edification of the Body. The individual to whom the gift is given must use that gift for the Body and not keep it to himself. For example, if a person receives some kind of encouraging word for the Body, it is the responsibility of that person to share what the Holy Spirit has given. Of course, there must be a format for this kind of sharing to take place. Unfortunately, most Church services do not provide this format. It is time for the Church to reevaluate the purpose of the gathering of believers together. Most Churches think of their services only as a place for preaching, and that for preaching to the unsaved. These kinds of services are not designed with the edification of the Body of Christ in mind at all and the exercise of spiritual gifts is next to impossible.
The gifts are given to promote unity and mutual edification in the Body of Christ. Leaders in the Body should give some serious consideration as to how this can best be accomplished when the Body is gathered together. The goal of the gathering of the Body is not to evangelize the lost, but to edify the believers. It is unfortunate the most Christians think of Church services only as a kind of evangelistic crusade designed to get lost people saved. There is nothing wrong with evangelistic crusades. But the gathering of believers is not for this purpose. Of course, it is possible that an unbeliever will attend a gathering of the Body of Christ. This is all the more reason for the assembly to be done in an orderly fashion so that the Spirit can move freely and the gifts can function. If an unbeliever sees the Spirit of the Lord at work in the Body of Christ, it is possible that he or she will be convicted of sin, perceiving that the presence of the Lord is there. This has happened, no doubt, on more than one occasion. There is no more powerful witness to the world than a unified, strong, spiritual Church.
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