FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP
THE GIFTS
OF THE SPIRIT – VI
1
Corinthians 12:4 Now there are diversities of
gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 And there are differences of
administrations, but the same Master.
6 And there are diversities of
operations, but it is the same Elohim which worketh all in all.
Last week, we concluded with this thought:
The distribution of the gifts of the Holy
Spirit is made on the basis of each member’s role
in the Body of Messiah; such that each
member providing to the Body what he/she has
been given causes increase and benefit to
the Body…We cannot afford to get bogged
down
in jealousy of others
who have more glamorous giftings…There would be no glamour without
the functioning of
the unglamorous. What does it matter who
does what as long as the will of
IAUE is obeyed and
His kingdom is advanced?
There is not a single topic or book we can
study in the Scriptures that should be studied apart from its application to the
fundamental purpose of man…to do the will of IAUE. Until we establish that purpose upon our
heart and mind, until it functions as our morning alarm clock, our dinner bell,
our reason for social gatherings, our short-term and our long-term goals in
life, we will fail in our every endeavor to be a genuine disciple. In our 4th lesson of this blog (posted
on 5/19/13), we discussed “The First Lesson in Discipleship;” and that was to
take our yoke upon us and learn of the Master, for he is meek and lowly in
heart. That is the description of a
servant who is in humble submission to the authority who is over him…one who is
quick to listen and quicker to obey his Master.
It is one who has relegated his entire life over to do the will of
another. Genuine discipleship does not
even begin until we recognize and embrace this truth. Thus the very purpose of our existence is
obedience to the will of IAUE. This is
our principle function, our objective in living each day; and the source of our
chiefest joy.
When we begin to consider what WE want, the
lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life take over and
corrupt and contaminate absolutely everything we think and/or do. This even includes our study of Scripture and
how we understand the Scriptures. Consider
the contemporary TV ministers who continuously twist the Scriptures to create a
world in which “God has a wonderful plan for your life,” in which “He wants you
to prosper in everything you do.” They
virtually make personal prosperity an evidence of how faithful you are to IAUE. IAUE does NOT have a wonderful plan for your
life. No, instead, IAUE has a wonderful
plan. Our life is to fit into it and to participate
in its fulfilment. That does not mean we
will end up with better jobs, better clothes, better cars, or a personal jet to
fly us anywhere we want to go. It does
mean, however, that we will be honored of the Master Yahushua Messiah and of his
(and our) Father, IAUE Elohim with the privilege of receiving and manifesting the
Spirit of IAUE in the earth unto the benefit of everyone around us.
If the false prosperity gospel ceased being
preached and was replaced with the command to repent and be converted from
living for yourself to begin living in obedience to the will of IAUE, the
church would not be so filled with selfish and immature men and women reveling in
the satisfaction of their own flesh.
Instead, they would be reveling in the glory of IAUE; and their hearts
would be full of love and gratitude for the Master Yahushua who made this life
possible. They would also be able more clearly to see they are members of a
body; and they have their own role and purpose within that body; a role and
purpose defined by the will of IAUE.
1
Corinthians 12:7 But the manifestation of
the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
The manifestation of the Spirit is NOT given
to every man in order for him to make a profit. This English word “profit” is
an unfortunate translation of the Greek word “symphero.” This word means “to bear together,” or “to
share in carrying a burden.” It exactly
expresses that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are given to each of us for the
purpose of enabling us to do our part in the overall function of the Body of
Messiah. If we are a foot, the
manifestation of the Spirit enables us to function as a foot. If we are a hand; it enables us to function
as a hand. “If we are a mouth; it
enables us to function as a mouth. When
we are each enabled to fulfil our designated role, the whole Body is able to
move and function and do the will of IAUE.
1 Corinthians
12:12 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 Messiah.
It is critical for a proper understanding and
appreciation of our study of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that we first
understand the elements we have laid as a foundation.
- The
gifts of the Holy Spirit are manifestations of the Holy Spirit. They manifest Him. They aren’t super powers to make you
look good or impressive, or to help you climb the ladder of spiritual
recognition. They are not for
us. They are for fulfilling the
will of IAUE in the earth.
- The
“Holy Spirit” is not a name. “Holy”
is an adjective describing the most important attribute of the spirit of
IAUE. IAUE’s spirit is pure, chaste
and righteous like a cauterizing fire that obliterates every impure and
sinful thing in its path. For Him
to manifest Himself in our lives, we must not put impurity and sin in His
path.
- For
the gifts of the spirit of IAUE to have their proper benefit both to the
Body of Messiah and to others who are intended to be affected by them, the
disciple must express them through love and not with any selfish
intention.
- The
holy Spirit is a GIFT from IAUE.
The entire plan of redemption, the sending and the sacrificing of
His own son, the resurrection of Messiah from the dead, was largely for
the purpose of being able to qualify man to become recipients of the
indwelling presence of IAUE’s own spirit. It is imperative that we try to
grasp the enormity of this overwhelming gift…to try to comprehend WHO it
is that resides in our body, now.
Most of Christendom takes the Holy Spirit for granted, a doctrinal
reality. It is IAUE’s spirit placed
within man.
- The manifestation of the spirit of IAUE is given to each of us in order to precisely carry out and obey the will of IAUE, and thereby to carry our own weight in the Body of Messiah. We must be focused on our obedience to IAUE and not upon the attention others are receiving from man because of the gloriousness of the way the spirit has chosen to manifest through the lives of our brothers and sisters in the Body.
This brings us to the real beginning of our
study of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 12:4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
The first thing, and this is
almost always overlooked or misrepresented by those who teach on the gifts of
the Spirit, is this word “gifts.” The Greek word is “charisma.” It is
where the term “charismatic” is derived.
Literally, this word means, “enablement of grace.” Contemporary teachers would have you believe
this means that they are unmerited gifts, freely given to us by the
Father. Though they be unmerited and
freely given, that is not what this word means.
Grace is the power IAUE gives to man that enables man to do His will. Without grace, man is incapable of doing the
will of IAUE. He may go through the motions. He may actually accomplish the actual tasks;
but it will be a work of man’s flesh; and the Scripture clearly teaches that
nothing of the flesh pleases IAUE for it is at enmity with IAUE. The flesh cannot do IAUE’s will. Only grace
working upon and through man can enable man to do the will of IAUE untainted by
the flesh. Thus, when we look at these
manifestations of IAUE’s spirit in our lives; we must understand that they are
specific and special enablements of IAUE’s grace having as their sole
objective, the performance of His will.
There are “diversities” of
gifts (different enablements); but the same Spirit. Though they be quite different from each
other, they are just different aspects of the same Spirit. It is not unlike the story of the six blind
men trying to describe an elephant. The
one touching his tail said it was like a rope.
The one touching its leg said it was like a pillar. The one touching its ear said it was like a
fan. The one touching its trunk said it
was like a tree branch. The one touching its tusk said it was like a pipe; and
the one touching its side said it was like a wall. All six were correct; but not one person’s
perspective captured the totality of the elephant. So it is with the spirit of IAUE. There are
at least nine different ways in which IAUE’s spirit is manifested; and each one
is given for one purpose: to do the will of IAUE.
1 Corinthians 12:5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Master.
Within the scope of the manifestation of the spirit of
IAUE in at least these nine different ways, there are different ways in which our
Master, Yahushua Messiah, will engage them in our lives for the roles we are
designated to fulfil in His body. In the
physical body, we have a digestive system, a skeletal system, a cardiovascular
system, a muscular system, an endocrine system, a nervous system, a respiratory
system, an immune system and a reproductive system. Our muscles are found
throughout the body in many shapes and sizes, strengths and purposes. They work
together to protect and give motion to the skeletal system as well as protect
and enable many of the body’s organs to function properly. Our blood travels through and touches many
parts of our body. It picks up oxygen
through our respiratory system and delivers oxygen to the whole body and works
in tandem with our immune system to ward off sickness and disease. Each of our body’s systems has their own
designated function; but they also each work to help the function of every
other system in the body. The muscles that lift the arm are different in their “ministry”
to the muscles that move the toes in the foot.
Same gift. Different ministry.
A single gift of the Spirit may be found to be used in
many different capacities throughout the Body of Messiah. It may be exercised by a prophet as well as a
janitor; a pastor as well as a cook.
Just because one has the gift of faith does not mean he/she will emerge
in a public ministry. That gift may
function undetected by many within the general ranks of the Body. We are given enablements of grace to do the
Father’s will; and our Master Yahushua orchestrates how and where they are to
function within his Body.
Everyone in the church is racing around trying to find
out what their ministry is. The answer
to that driving question is: humble
obedience to the will of IAUE. You are
in a yoke. Behave accordingly.
1 Corinthians 12:6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same Elohim
which worketh all in all.
The gifts have different “operations.” This is an interesting term. It is “energeo,” and it means “effects,” or “workings.” In other words, the gifts work in different
ways. They manifest in different ways.
For example, Yahushua healed people by laying his hands on them, spitting on
the ground and making mud to place on blind eyes, speaking commands to be
healed, etc. With Peter, people needed
only to be on the street and allow his shadow to move across them when he
walked by. All of these produced healings
but they were accomplished in quite a variety of different ways. IAUE is the one who decides HOW the effect is
to be rendered; and this requires the disciple to listen to His voice and be
obedient to Him.
As we take up each of the nine gifts listed in
1 Corinthians 12, we will also see different ways these gifts are placed within
the Body and how the Father causes them to work within His children. It is going to be a fascinating adventure;
but please do not lose sight of the fact we are ultimately studying a subject
to learn how better we may accomplish the will of IAUE.
Kingdom
heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the
performance of the will of IAUE.
