With regard to Spiritual Gifts...
1 Corinthians 12:1-14 (NET)
With regard to spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans you were often led astray by speechless idols, however you were led. So I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are different ministries, but the same Lord. And there are different results, but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the benefit of all. For one person is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another performance of miracles, to another prophecy, and to another discernment of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. It is one and the same Spirit, distributing as he decides to each person, who produces all these things.
For just as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body – though many – are one body, so too is....
1 Corinthians 12:1-14 (KJV)
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.
Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
For the body is not one member, but many....
Don't Be Ignorant (Uninformed) of Spiritual Gifts
A lot of people in the Church today are ignorant about Spiritual Gifts.Paul said by the Holy Spirit to the Church at Corinth, "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I WOULD NOT HAVE YOU IGNORANT" (1 Cor. 12:1 - KJV).
With regard to spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed (1 Cor. 12:1 - NET)..
The Spirit of God through Paul said that He didn't want the Church at Corinth to be ignorant (Uninformed) concerning spiritual gifts, then certainly the Spirit of God does not wants the Church today to be ignorant concerning spiritual gifts.
However, a gross ignorance does exist in the church today concerning these things. In some assemblies people know nothing at all about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or even that such gifts exist. They think these gifts have ceased to exist. In other places people know something about the gifts of the Spirit, but their knowledge is very limited.
What are Spiritual Gifts
Spiritual Gifts are endowment given to Holy Ghost baptised believers for the furtherance of the Gospel and exaltation of Jesus. It is an endowment. It is not worked for. God gives to every Holy Ghost baptised believer as He wills. 1 Cor 12Spiritual Gifts Will Exalt Jesus Christ
Paul also said to the Church at Corinth, "Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led" (1 Cor. 12:2). These people had previously worshipped idols and in this idol worship, motivated by the wrong spirit, they would say a lot of things that were in error.Church history tells us that some of these people would come into the Christian assembly and when the Spirit of God began to manifest Himself, these people would yield to a wrong spirit and say things under the influence of the wrong spirit.
Some of them would even rise up in the services when the gifts of utterance were in operation and they would say that Jesus was accursed (cursed). And the Scripture says that no one speaking by the Spirit of God would call Jesus accursed.
Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the spirit of God calleth (calls) Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. (1 Cor. 12:3)
In other words, Paul said that when the Holy Spirit is in manifestation, He will make Jesus Lord. If an utterance gift, that is, a vocal gift—prophecy, divers kinds of tongues, or the interpretation of tongues—is in manifestation, then, of course, it will be clear by what is said that Jesus is Lord.
Holy Ghost Inspired Gifts will exalt Jesus
If the other gifts are in manifestation, they will always uplift the Lordship of Jesus, not the lordship of some man. They will not attract attention to some man, preacher, prophet etc but rather to Christ.You can be sure that if someone is operating in what appears to be one of the vocal gifts, and calls Jesus accursed or speaks against Him in any way, then he's not speaking by the Holy Spirit.
Then Paul said in First Corinthians 12:3 that no man can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. In other words, Paul was saying that if someone is speaking by the right spirit—by the Holy Spirit—then what he says will exalt the Name of Jesus.
Personal testimony by Reverend Kenneth E. Hagin (of Blessed Memories)
Once in a meeting while I was praying for people for healing, I sensed that someone in the prayer line had a wrong spirit. I knew within my own spirit who this person was before she ever stood in front of me to be prayed for.When she stepped up in front of me for prayer, I asked her, "Are you a Christian?" She replied that she belonged to a particular church.
I said, "Well, you can belong to any church and still not be a Christian. You have to be born again."
"Oh, I am saved and filled with the Holy Ghost," she said. "Do you want to hear me speak in tongues?" Then she started saying something that sounded like tongues.
I said, "Sister, say this prayer after me from your heart." I prayed a prayer to God the Father and she repeated the words after me. Then I said, "I acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as Your Son, and I acknowledge that He is come in the flesh."
But when I said that, she said, "Jesus Christ is not Your Son and He is not come in the flesh." It was immediately apparent that wasn't the right spirit speaking.
Those tongues she was rattling off—some kind of "gibberish"—weren't given by the Spirit of God. I tried two or three times to get her to repeat that prayer after me. Finally, she said, "Something on the inside of me won't let me say what you said."
"I know it," I said. "Do you want to be free from it?"
"I sure do!" she answered. I cast that spirit out of her in the Name of Jesus. Then I had her pray the sinner's prayer and she was born again. She was then filled with the Holy Spirit and went home speaking in tongues.
This woman was saying, "I am saved, I am born again, and I am filled with the Holy Ghost," but she wasn't at all. People can make a lot of statements, but that doesn't necessarily make them true. When the Spirit of God is in manifestation, He will make Jesus Lord. The wrong spirit won't acknowledge that Jesus is Lord and won't say that Jesus is Lord.
The Nine Gifts Categorized
For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another THE WORD OF KNOWLEDGE by the same Spirit....(1 Cor. 12:8)
Paul goes on to list nine manifestations or gifts of the Spirit. The nine manifestations or gifts of the Holy Spirit are generally divided as follows:
Three revelation gifts—spiritual gifts that reveal something:
- The word of wisdom
- The word of knowledge
- The discerning of spirits
Three power gifts—spiritual gifts that do something
- The gift of faith
- The working of miracles
- The gifts of healings
Three utterance or inspirational gifts—spiritual gifts that say something:
- Prophecy
- Divers (different) kinds of tongues
- Interpretation of tongues
Very often these gifts work together, as tongues and interpretation work together. But we divide them as they are divided here in 1 Corinthians 12 in order to distinguish them and to talk about them...
