The Temporary Gifts of the Spirit
Lesson 5
INTRODUCTION
Thus far in our study of the Holy Spirit we have noted that the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of a promise made in the Old Testament and culminating on the Day of Pentecost. We have stated that the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person with qualities we can know and understand. We looked at the fruit of the Spirit and how these are developed in our daily lives as we keep in step with the Spirit. In this class we want to talk about the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
When we talk about “gifts” of the Spirit we almost always think of miraculous gifts. Sometimes we think about experiences we may have had. The Bible is clear that there are gifts associated with the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Finley: “One should never interpret the Bible by personal experience, but should interpret personal experience by the Bible.”
Finley: “Each believer has been given at least one gift and encourages those gifts to be implemented within the ministry of the church body.”
Stott: “The gifts of the Spirit are also given to individual believers, but they are given for the healthy growth of the church.”
Ryrie (via Finley): “Although every believer has at least one spiritual gift (1 Peter 4:10), no one has all of them … But because no single believer has all the gifts, we need the ministry each can give the others.”
Four separate lists of spiritual gifts are found in the New Testament: 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 7-11, 27-31; Romans 12:3-8; Ephesians 4:7-12; and 1 Peter 4:10-11
Let’s spend a minute reading each of those.
1 Corinthians 12:4-6 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
Stott observes, “He states this truth three times, each time relating the gifts to a different Person of the Trinity (‘the same Spirit,’ ‘the same Lord,’ ‘the same God’). He also uses three different words to denote the gifts. Charismata - gifts of God’s grace. Diakoniai - forms of service. Energemata - energies, activities, or powers, which the same God energizes or inspire in everyone.’
As a result, Stott defines spiritual gifts as “certain capacities, bestowed by God’s grace and power, which fit people for specific and corresponding service.”
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 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. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.
1 Corinthians 12:27-31 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? 31 Now eagerly desire the greater gifts.
Romans 12:3-8 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
1 Peter 4:10-11 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
How many spiritual gifts are there and are they all for today?
In 1 Corinthians 12 thirteen appear to be mentioned. There is a list of seven in Romans 12, and a list of five in Ephesians 4. Just two gifts are cited in 1 Peter 4. Twenty or more distinct gifts are referred to in the New Testament altogether. We should not suppose that these lists exhaust all spiritual gifts. No single gift occurs in all five lists, and thirteen gifts occur only in one of the five lists. Stott: “The grace of God is like an elaborate tapestry, and the rich diversity of spiritual gifts are the many threads of many colors that are interwoven to make up the beauty of the whole.”
Finley: “...It seems some of the gifts had a special time and purpose for the establishment of the Church, the validation of the Word of God, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Once the Church was established and the Scriptures were written and completed, some of the gifts were no longer essential.”
Walvoord (and others) divide the gifts into categories of Permanent and Temporary gifts.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. - 1 Corinthians 13:8
Cottrell writes, “Paul specifically says certain gifts ‘will cease’ while the church continues … The earliest Christians did not yet have a written New Testament. This created specific needs which the Spirit filled through temporary gifts, one of which was the task of apostleship.”
The Temporary Gifts of the Holy Spirit
1. Apostleship.
Finley notes the special requirements of being an apostle.
It was a prerequisite that they had been chosen by Jesus Christ.
They saw the risen Christ personally.
They were a witness to his resurrection.
Acts 1:21-22 Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”
Responsibilities of the Apostles:
Lay the foundation of the church (Eph 2:20)
Receive, declare, and write God’s Word (Eph 3:5; Acts 11:28, 21:10-11).
Confirm the Word through signs, wonders, and miracles (2 Cor 12;12; Acts 8:6-7)
There has been no one to personally see the risen Christ since Paul on the road to Damascus. Therefore after the death of the Apostle John, there has been no apostle in the technical sense of the word.
2. Prophets/Prophecy
The gift of prophecy was evidently possessed by many during the apostolic age. Barnabas, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen, Paul are mentioned among the “prophets and teachers” at Antioch (Acts 13:1). The four daughters of Philip possessed the gift of prophecy (Acts 21:9), indicating that in the NT as in the OT the prophetic gift was not limited to men. Judas and Silas were evidently prophets (Acts 15:32).
Walvoord: Probably related to the prophetic gift is the ‘word of wisdom’ and the ‘word of knowledge’ given to some by the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:8).
Three elements were essential
The prophet must have received his message from God in the form of some special revelation.
The prophet must have divine guidance in the declaration of this revelation, corresponding to the inspiration of the written Word
The message delivered by the prophet must bear with it the authority of God.
Paul held this gift in high perspective. (1 Corinthians 14;3, 19). With the completion of the New Testament, there is no further need for additional revelation. Walvoord: “There is no more possibility of anyone possessing the prophetic gift in the present dispensation than there is of anyone writing further inspired books to be added to the canon. (1 Corinthians 13:8).”
3. Miracles
1 Corinthians 12:28 “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.”
Here Paul places miracles, healing, and tongues as lesser gifts. Walvoord: “The apostolic age is distinct because in it some men had the power to perform miracles at will in the name of Christ.”
DeWelt observed, “These miraculous powers consisted in exorcizing demons, raising the dead, and other similar works to serve as outward credentials and seals of the divinity of the message preached by the apostles.”
4. Healing
The only reference to the gift of healing is found in 1 Corinthians 12 (vv. 9, 28, 30). Like the gift of miracles, it was designed to be a testimony to the truth proclaimed, and ceased as a gift with the passing of the apostles. The gift gradually diminished in NT times. DeWelt: “Some references in the later epistles written by Paul seem to show that sickness is present where it should not have been if the gift of healing was working in full effect. (2 Tim 4:20; 1 Tim 5:23; Phil 2:26; 2 Cor 12:7).” While the gift of healing is no longer bestowed, God is able to heal in answer to prayer and faith.
5. Tongues
There are three stories in Acts where the gift of tongues plays a role:
Tongues was demonstrated on Pentecost, when those affected spoke in other languages. They were heard and understood in various languages. (Acts 2)
At the conversion of Cornelius and his house, speaking in tongues occurs.
In Acts 19:6, Paul teaches the gospel to some who were John’s disciples, but did not know of the Gospel of Christ. They spoke in tongues and prophesied when Paul laid his hands upon them.
These are the only references to tongues in the NT except for 1 Corinthians 12.
DeWelt noted, “Paul is the only writer of the twenty-one Epistles of the New Testament that mentions the gift of tongues. He wrote not a word on the subject to the churches at Rome, Ephesus, Colossae, Thessalonica, Philippi, or Galatia. … James does not mention it, neither does Peter in his two books, or John in his four books. This omission of reference to tongues seems strange indeed if the gift of tongues were an essential part of the Christian experience or was to be perpetuated in the church.”
Walvoord: The passages in Acts do not explain the gift of tongues, nor is there any evidence in Acts that the act of speaking in tongues was ever repeated by those who had part in these three instances.
In 1 Corinthians 14, some important points are made about tongues, to a church where this exercise had been abused and over-amplified.
Tongues are declared inferior to prophecy as a means of edification, exhortation, and comfort (1 Cor. 14:1-12). No one could understand them. (1 Corinthians 14:19 But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.”)
Tongues should not be used in the assembly unless an interpreter is present (1 Cor. 14:13-20).
Tongues are declared to be a sign to unbelievers, and not intended for the edification of believers (1 Cor. 14:21-22).
Tongues as well as the gift of prophecy should be regulated and used only when it will result in the edification of the church (vv. 26-38). only two or three are permitted to speak in a tongue, and then only if an interpreter is present.
Speaking in tongues must, on the one hand, be not forbidden, but on the other hand, the gift of prophecy was much superior and to be coveted (vs. 39).
6. The Gift of Discerning Spirits
This gift was apparently the ability given by the Holy Spirit to discern the true from the false sources of supernatural revelation given in the oral form. As the NT had not been completed, there was no written Word to appeal to except the OT.
7.Two extremes to avoid (Stott)
A dogmatic no - “miracles don’t happen today” or “miracles can’t happen” is an impossible position for a biblical Christian to hold. Stott: “The God we believe in is the free and sovereign Creator of the universe. he upholds everything by the word of his power. All nature is subservient to him. He not only can work miracles but has done so. Who are we to circumscribe his power and tell him what he may or may not do?
Almost everything God does is a miracle. A miracle by definition is an extraordinary event, a creative deviation from God’s normal and natural ways of working. If miracles were to become commonplace they would cease to be miracles.
Stott: Once we begin to see the living God ceaselessly at work through the processes of history and nature, we shall begin (for example) to recognize that all healing is divine healing, whether without the use of means or through the use of physical, psychological or surgical means.”
Does God intend for miracles to be a regular feature of our life and ministry today? Large tracts of biblical history contain no record of any miracle. There are four main clusters of miracles in the Bible.
Those surrounding Moses.
Those of the prophets, particularly Elija and Elisha.
Those around Jesus.
Those around the Apostles.
These are the four main periods of revelation - the law, the prophets, the Lord, and the apostles. And the major purpose of miracles was to authenticate each fresh stage of revelation. Walvoord: “An unusual display of miracles is, therefore, not an ordinary feature of each generation, to be called down at will even by the godly, but is rather articulated in the purpose of God for its value in promotion of His truth.”
Stott: “I don’t expect miracles as commonplace today, because the special revelation they were given to authenticate is complete; but of course God is sovereign and God is free, and there may well be particular situations in which he pleases to perform them.”
Conclusion:
These temporary gifts were necessary for the beginning of the church, and as the New Testament proceeded on chronologically, the gifts were mentioned less and less. Still, the Holy Spirit does give gifts to Christians.
Stott: “Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift or capacity for service, however dormant and unused his gift may be”
In our next class, we will discuss the permanent gifts of the Holy Spirit.
I had never really thought much about the temporary gifts of the Spirit. Thank you for spotlighting those!