I Corinthians 12
The Spiritual Gifts: Individual And As A Body
As you look around today, the world is getting darker and
darker. I wonder what the future holds for America? In Hawaii the normal
definition of the heterosexual family is being turned upside down. The legal
rights of the family and Judeo-Christian ethic may soon be a thing of the past.
What lies ahead for the Christian Churches of America? Today born-again
Christians, as well as any Christians who believe the Bible is the inspired
Word of God, and those who believe in an actual 2nd coming of Jesus Christ, are
all labelled as religious fanatics by the media and society in general.
i.e. To be a valid Christian is to be labelled as a fanatic! The closer
relationship you have with God, the more you're looked down upon in this
society. Don't take the label of religious fanatic lightly today,
especially after Waco and the Branch Dividian fiasco, or Jim Jones and his
cool-aid mass suicide. To have sincere believers in God and Jesus Christ thrown
in with those genuine religious fanatics could have serious implications for us
all, especially where the media and current government policies and attitudes
are concerned. Paul gave a warning about the end times, which he believed were
coming in his day. But Jesus inspired the warning through Paul, and it is for
our day now, found in II Thessalonians 2:1-12. The condition of the Christian
Church in America (collective) is pretty bad right now. Sixty percent of
Christian fellowships don't even believe Jesus is God, God the Son! [If you are
not sure on that point, turn to the link on Romans 1-8 and read "Introduction
to Romans."] Darkness is increasing in our country, and the blame is on the
Church. The gifts of the Holy Spirit operating in the Christian Church are
intended to restrain evil in our country. These are very special and important
gifts, and we will be going into them in detail, showing exactly what the Bible
has to say about them. Jesus says in Matthew 5:13, "You are the salt of the
earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It
is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men."
Salt is a purifying element. It used to be used to preserve meat and fish. It
prevented decay and decomposition of these foods. God says through Zechariah in
Zechariah 4:6, "'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of
hosts." The Christian Church in America has forgotten about the Spirit and the
spiritual gifts, and thus the restraining power it gives to stop evil in
America has left us. Paul admonishes us in II Timothy 1:6-7, "For this reason I
remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the
laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a
Spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to
testify about our Lord..."
1 Corinthians 12-14 go through the spiritual
gifts. In verse 1 of 1 Corinthians 12 the word "gifts" doesn't exist in the
original Greek manuscripts. The Greek word is actually "spirituals." The word
"gifts" was put in there by the translators to clarify what the Greek meant by
"spirituals". God wants us to have a good handle on what his Word says so as to
not be led astray and in order that we properly experience the Christian
experience.
There is a lot of emphasis on the spiritual gifts in the
writings of Paul and Peter. God wants us to have a good working knowledge of
the "spirituals" or spiritual gifts. There are three things we can do with the
spiritual gifts God does give us. We can USE, ABUSE, or REFUSE them.
There are some who use God's spiritual gifts, some who abuse them, and some who
refuse them. Verse 1, "Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want
you to be ignorant."
In verses 2-3 Paul is telling them that they've
previously been led to worship dumb idols, led by the flesh and demonic
influences. The word cursed in verse 3 is the Greek word 'anathema'. He
is saying that the Holy Spirit, or one led by the Holy Spirit, is never going
to say Jesus be cursed, or Jesus is anathema. Why does Paul bring this
up? There were those who must have thought that when you open yourself up to
the Spirit and the workings of the Spirit, you also open yourself up to demonic
influence. In Luke 11:9-12 Jesus makes it very clear that if you ask for the
Holy Spirit, God is going to give it to you--and not something weird or
demonic. There is an exhortation to seek after the Spirit, by Jesus himself.
Luke 11:9-12. "'So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you
will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks
receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake
instead? Or if he asked for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then,
though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much
more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!'"
People in Pauls day were saying, just as some do today, that if you're seeking
the Spirit, you're going to come under all kinds of demonic influence. Jesus
didn't say that, as you just read.
There is a difference between seeking
after the Spirit, the Holy Spirit of God, and seeking after emotionalism and an
emotional experience. Some people may be seeking the emotional experience and
they may not be receiving the Holy Spirit. We must be careful for what we ask
for, and what we really are seeking for. In 1 John it says that we are to test
the spirits that be to see if they are of Christ. Use all the Scriptures to
test the spirits. Certain groups are going to get weirder and weirder as we get
close to the end of the age. [An excellent companion study to this section on
theme of Christian groups getting weirder is Hank Hanegraaf's book "Counterfeit
REVIVAL", available on http://www.amazon.com ]
There is a
difference between seeking the Holy Spirit of God and seeking an emotional
experience. When you ask for the Holy Spirit, God knows in your heart what you
are really asking for, so be careful. In I Corinthians 2:9-12 Paul shows that
the Holy Spirit grants us a spiritual understanding of the things of God--a
spirit-plane level of understanding. Think of it this way. A cow doesn't
understand the things of a man, like astronomy, algebra, languages, etc.,
because a cow does not possess what the Bible calls the spirit of man, or
man's spirit, which grants the human brain a far superior mental capability
than the animals possess. In the same manner, Paul brings out, the Holy Spirit
grants those he dwells in a God-level understanding and wisdom far superior to
that of ordinary man. Ordinary man possess the same lack of spiritual God-plane
intelligence that a cow lacks of human intelligence. 1 Corinthians 2:9-12.
"However, as it is written: 'No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has
conceived what God has prepared for those who love him [Isaiah 64:4]'but God
has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the
deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the
man's spirit within him. In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God
except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the
Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given
us."
Verses 2-3, "You know that when you were pagans, somehow or
other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. Therefore I tell you
that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, 'Jesus be cursed,' and
no one can say, 'Jesus is Lord,' except by the Holy Spirit." [cf. 1 John
4:2-3.]
In the New Testament, the spiritual gifts appear in these
Scriptures: 1 Peter 4, Ephesians 4, Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12-14. In I
Peter 4:10-11 "gifts" comes from the Greek word charisma, a gift of
grace. Thus in 1 Peter 4 the word 'Gift' is actually in the Greek. Peter says,
"know your gift, use your gift." In Romans 12:3-8 Paul uses the word "gift,"
charisma, here. Some call these the "motivational gifts." Paul and Peter say we
should use them to serve others in love. Teaching is an analytical gift. Taking
something apart and explaining it to others so they can better understand it.
You may not realize you have a gift until you start using it. Gifts are given
to edify the body of Christ. Here in Ephesians 4 Paul seems to be talking about
ministries. i.e. Our gift may be that of a teacher, and God may give you a
ministry of being a preacher, or a religious writer. A person's overall
ministry may incorporate several gifts that a person has. Let's read Ephesians
4. Ephesians 4:7-16. "But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ
apportioned it. This is why it says: 'When he ascended on high, he led captives
in his train and gave gifts to men. [Ps. 68:18]' (What does 'he ascended' mean
except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended
is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the
whole universe.) It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets,
some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's
people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up [vs 13]
until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of
God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of
Christ. [Jesus appears to desire two kinds of unity in his body, which I typed
in bold. Unity in the faith, faith being "a faith" a set of doctrinal
beliefs, as taken in context with verse 14; and unity in the knowledge of
the son of God, i.e. the gospel of Christ, the primary knowledge of
Salvation, which leads one to Salvation. This verse 13 is an interesting one
which may indicate that Jesus eventually wants two kinds of unity in his body,
doctrinal and spiritual unity. These are my own thoughts on the subject.]
(Vs. 14) Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the
waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching [k.Js.: doctrine] and
by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead,
speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is Head,
that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every
supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its
work." That is what appears to be the ministerial gifts, which we are supposed
to apply our spiritual gifts to. Although the gift of being a teacher crosses
over into both areas, it being an analytical spiritual gift of being able to
dissect and properly divide the Word of truth, and also it can be a ministry
Christ assigns to us as well. Now back to 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, where Paul
lists the manifestation gifts of the Spirit (although Paul doesn't
actually use the word "gift" here in the Greek, but "spirituals"). These gifts
are not necessarily continual. God gives them to accomplish a certain thing.
The Old Testament lists powerful men of faith--but these men didn't always have
faith. When they did have powerful faith--it was God manifesting His faith
within them. Faith is a manifestation gift of the Spirit.
Verses
4-11, "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 [margin: Or languages, cf. Acts 2], 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."
In verse 7 Paul says these gifts are gifts given for the
benefit of serving the Church and community--for the common good of all--a
corporate setting. The world desperately needs us to understand, properly
covet, and use these gifts. As brought out in verses 1-3 don't be afraid of the
workings of the Spirit. These things of the Holy Spirit are not weird things.
The important thing is to know your gifts, and then use them to the benefit of
all around you--both within your Christian fellowship, in the Church
collectively, the body of Christ, and within your community. That is a pretty
tall order, but God can enable you through these gifts! It is time for true
Christians to come alive and do the Work Jesus has set before us!
The Gift of Wisdom
In verse 8 Paul lists the first gift, wisdom. Wisdom is not
intelligence, nor is it knowledge. Knowledge in the pure physical sense, is the
accumulation of facts. Wisdom is the ability to properly use those facts. [My
father once knew a man at his company who had a photographic memory. He had a
vast physical knowledge or accumulation of facts. He had whole parts catalogues
of the company committed to memory by just reading through them once. But he
never went far into management. He didn't possess the wisdom or ability
to use those facts he had stored in his head.] In the Old Testament we see all
kind of manifestations of the Spirit of God. In 1 Kings 3:5-28 we see the
manifestation of the spiritual gift of wisdom bestowed on Solomon by God. It is
quite an account. "At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night;
and God said, 'Ask! What shall I give you?' And Solomon said: 'You have shown
great mercy to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in
truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you; You have
continued this great kindness for him, and you have given him a son to sit on
his throne as it is this day. Now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant
king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to
go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you
have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. Therefore
give to your servant an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may
discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of
yours?'
And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this
thing. Then God said to him: 'Because you have asked this thing, and have not
asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have
asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to
discern justice, behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given
you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you
before you, nor shall any like you arise after you. And I have also given you
what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be
anyone like you among the kings all your days. So if you walk in my ways, to
keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will
lengthen your days.'
Then Solomon awoke; and indeed it had been a dream.
And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord,
offered up burnt offerings, offered peace offerings, and made a feast for all
his servants.
Then two women who were harlots came to the king, and
stood before him. And one woman said, 'O my lord, this woman and I dwell in the
same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. Then it happened, the
third day after I had given birth. And we were together; there was no one with
us in the house, except the two of us in the house. And this woman's son died
in the night, because she lay on him. So she arose in the middle of the night
and took my son from my side, while your maidservant slept, and laid him in her
bosom. And when I rose in the morning to nurse my son, there he was, dead. But
when I had examined him in the morning, indeed, he was not my son whom I had
borne.
Then the other woman said, 'No! But the living one is my son, and
the dead one is your son.' And the first woman said, 'No! But the dead one is
your son, and the living one is my son.' Thus they spoke before the king. And
the king said, 'The one says 'This is my son, who lives, and your son is the
dead one'; and the other says, 'No! But your son is the dead one, and my son is
the living one.' Then the king said, 'Bring me a sword.' So they brought a
sword before the king. And the king said, 'Divide the living child in two, and
give half to one, and half to the other.' Then the woman whose son was living
spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said,
'O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!' But the other
said, 'Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him.' So the king answered
and said, 'Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she
is his mother.' And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had
rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in
him to administer justice."
In Matthew 22 we see that Jesus had perfect
wisdom. Three times in the same day he used this Godly wisdom to defeat the
verbal traps set for him by two groups, the Pharisees and the Sadducees. As
Christian fellowships we need the manifestation of wisdom. The word of wisdom
would stop disputes in their tracks. Satan wants to divide Christian
fellowships--he is the enemy of unity. The word of wisdom will stop Satan's
divisive attacks. Remember what God said in Zechariah, 'Not by power, nor
by might, but by my Spirit saith the Lord.' Let's look at the word of wisdom in
action in Jesus. Matthew 22:15-22,23-33,41-46. "Then the Pharisees went out and
laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along
with the Herodians. 'Teacher,' they said, 'we know you are a man of integrity
and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't
swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what
is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?' But Jesus, knowing
their evil intent, said, 'You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show
me the coin used for paying the tax.' They brought him a denarius, and he asked
them, 'Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?' 'Caesar's,' they
replied. 'Then he said to them, 'Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God
what is God's.' when they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and
went away.
That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no
resurrection, came to him with a question. 'Teacher,' they said, 'Moses told us
that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow
and have children for him. Now there were seven brothers among us. The first
one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his
brother. The same things happened to the second and the third brother, right on
down to the seventh. Finally, the woman died. Now then, at the resurrection,
whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to
her?'
Jesus replied, 'You are in error because you do not know the
Scriptures or the power of God. At the resurrection people will neither marry
nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. But about the
resurrection of the dead--have you not read what God said to you, 'I am the God
of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not the God of the
dead but of the living.' When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at
his teaching...While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
'What do you think about the Christ [margin: Messiah]? Whose son is he?' 'The
son of David,' they replied. He said to them, 'How is it then that David,
speaking by the Spirit, calls him 'Lord'? For he says, 'The Lord said to my
Lord: 'Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet [Psalm
110:1].' If then David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?' No one could
say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more
questions."
The Gift of Knowledge
Verse 8, "To one there is given through the Spirit the
message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same
Spirit,..." The word or message (as the NIV has it) of knowledge is
information given to us supernaturally--suddenly knowing something about a
person, place or situation that we couldn't otherwise discern or know about.
Acts 5:1-10. "Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sappira, also
sold a piece of property. With his wife's full knowledge he kept back part of
the money for himself [while obviously saying that he was donating the full
amount to the Church], but brought the rest and put it at the apostles' feet.
Then Peter said, 'Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that
you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money
you received for the land? Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And
after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of
doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God.'
When Ananias
heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had
happened. Then the young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him
out and buried him. About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what
had happened. Peter asked her, 'Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got
for the land?' 'Yes,' she said, 'that is the price.' Peter said to her, 'How
could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of the men who
buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out
also.'
At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young
men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her
husband. Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these
events."
Jesus was also given the word of knowledge supernaturally about
the Samaritan woman at the well. How could he have known this about her
otherwise? John 4:4-26,28-29,39-41. "Now he had to go through Samaria. So he
came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had
given to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was
from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. When a
Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, 'Will you give me a
drink?' (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) The Samaritan woman
said to him, 'You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for
a drink? (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans [Margin: Or do not use
dishes Samaritans use].) Jesus answered her, 'If you knew the gift of God and
who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have
given you living water.'
'Sir,' the woman said, 'you have nothing to
draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you
greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself,
as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?' Jesus answered, 'Everyone who
drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give
him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring
of water welling up to eternal life.'
The woman said to him, 'Sir, give
me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw
water.' He told her, 'Go tell your husband and come back.' 'I have no husband,'
she replied. Jesus said to her, 'You are right when you say you have no
husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is
not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.' [Talk about
blowing someone's mind! Meeting a total stranger and reciting her life story to
her.]
'Sir,' the woman said, 'I can see that you are a prophet. Our
fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we
must worship is in Jerusalem.' Jesus declared, 'Believe me, woman, a time is
coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in
Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do
know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come
when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they
are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his
worshippers must worship in spirit and truth.'
The woman said, 'I know
that Messiah' (called Christ) 'is coming. When he comes, he will explain
everything to us.' Then Jesus declared, 'I who speak to you am he.'...Then
leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people
[NKJV, "said to the men" i.e. she wasn't very popular with the women of the
town!], 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the
Christ [Margin: Messiah]? They came out of the town and made their way toward
him...Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the
woman's testimony, 'He told me everything I ever did.' So when the Samaritans
came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And
because of his words many more became believers."
The Gift of Faith
Verse 9, "to another faith by the same Spirit,..." The third gift of the Spirit is FAITH. Faith is something you or I cannot conjure up or manifest. There are three kinds of faith:
The Power Gifts
The Church in America has basically written off Jesus. Beware
of "the Jesus Seminar" who say that Jesus never said the things he said, and
that the miracles in the Bible never occurred. God is supernatural, and
amazingly enough, he desires to manifest himself through us. The gifts of the
Spirit are the signature of God. The gift of faith seems to open up these gifts
of power which come next. We find mentioned after faith in 1 Corinthians
12--and forget what common sense tells you--that God can heal. And the most
important disease God can heal is sin. Yes, spiritual healing, as well as
physical healing. God created matter and the universe, but God can't heal?
Ridiculous! In verse nine it mentions "gifts of healing". Beware of someone who
says he has the "gift" of healing, accompanied by all kinds of weird
doctrines and money making schemes. [cf. "Counterfeit REVIVAL", by Hank
Hanegraaf.] God gives gifts of healing to the body of Christ. God will give you
the faith for healing if he wants to heal you--but God may also choose not to
heal you. People can't just conjure up healing faith at will and be healed by
God. God does not guarantee Christians a physically perfect life. We need to
live for eternity.
Verses 9-11, "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 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."
Some people say these gifts do not exist for
today--this day and age. People say, 'Now that we have the written Word of God,
these gifts are passed away' based on Hebrews 2:1-4, which states, "We must pay
more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not
drift away. For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every
violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if
we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by
the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it
by signs, wonders, and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit
distributed according to his will." This is a weak argument. Those who apply
Hebrews 2:1-4 like this are putting God in a box. They need to hang out with
some missionaries in the 3rd world countries for awhile. God backs up his Word
with miracles. [Order "I Just Saw JESUS" by Paul Eshleman, special edition
published by THE "JESUS" FILM PROJECT, Campus Crusade For Christ, P.O. Box
7207, San Clemente, CA 92674-2007, or order online at:
http://www.jesusfilm.org ] Don't
believe me, read the facts. And if you don't believe what appears here, order
this book off the Internet for yourself.
The Gift of Prophecy
The following was taken off the Internet:
"A powerful testimony in the world today
The Imprisonment
of Queno
From: BHMIN@aol.com
Date: Fri, 18 Apr 1997 16:47:12 -0400
(EDT)
Dear Friends:
Lori (Pinney) Nij and her husband Eugene
Nij serve as missionaries in San Raymundo, Guatemala. They have been there for
over a decade. With the help of the New Iberian Mission Association they have
built an orphanage, a Free School and a number of churches to teach and preach
the gospel of Jesus Christ. Last week, two women tried to kidnap a baby in the
town square (kidnapping is very common and out of control). When they grabbed
the baby, some of the merchants heard the mother screaming and went to her aid.
They caught the two women and got the baby back, but not before the square was
filled with women who had seen what had happened. They formed a mob and were
just going to kill these women (out of frustration for the many babies who were
still missing). When Eugene heard the news he frantically hurried to stop
this.
When he got there the town's women were out of control. The police
were trying to figure out what they were going to do with this mob. Eugene
asked that he be allowed to speak to them. He calmed them down, but he warned
the police that they needed to take these women (the kidnappers) to another
town to be jailed for their own protection. Eugene then went back across town
to the Free School to finish his day.
That afternoon, the women were
placed in the jail there in San Raymundo, in spite of Eugene's advice, and when
the husbands came in from the fields, the women of the town incited them to
tear down the jail and kill the women. By the time the police got there one
woman was killed and the other seriously injured. Today, Eugene has been
arrested and charged with murder 1.
The government has always sought a
way to close the Free School and the orphanage as well as the churches and this
is how they plan to do it. There are over 300 witnesses, including the police
officers that can testify that Eugene wasn't even present, but these voices are
not being heard.
My friends, this is where you come in...I believe with
all my heart that Satan and his forces are waging war on Christians world-wide.
He wants to isolate and destroy. Lori said that the worst part was the
loneliness with Eugene in jail and her family clear across the world. I am
pleading that you begin, the minute you receive this, praying. The kind of
prayers that ascended when Peter was imprisoned. The kind of prayers you have
received when you were in a trial. The kind of prayer that in love can change
the world.
I pray that you send this to every person, church and
Christian organization that you can and together we will not only see Eugene
released, but we will form a chain of prayer that will blanket the globe and no
longer will we be alone in our struggles...But united, with almighty God as our
King. And when the trumpet shall sound, the time shall be no more, we shall
meet face to face and I shall be honored to gaze at the sea of Brothers and
Sisters who prayed with me and loved me as their own.
God Bless
You.
Tim Worstell
Email: timlw@juno.com
Update
Please forgive the delay, but as you might
imagine, we are going around the clock. I will give you a summation, and If you
are interested--I will mail you a copy of the New Iberian Mission Association
Newsletter--It will go into even more detail. As for the latest news, When
Eugene (Queno) got to prison, he found that he would be put in general
population. That means that he would be put in the same holding place with
murderers, rapists, terrorists, anyone who would be put in a federal prison for
a crime worthy of a death sentence.
He began to pray, within a few
minutes, the inmates asked him to pray for them. He began to preach, much like
Paul and Silas did. These men began to cry out, "What must we do to be saved?"
He continued, hours passed. He affected even the guards. They have been
sneaking him up to the head office late every night to call Lori and pray with
her and to update her on his conversions, even though inmates are not allowed
to make phone calls. On the first day, as he began to preach, a man came to
him. He introduced himself as the devil himself. He obviously ran things inside
the prison, and had now pulled Queno off to the side to stop him from
preaching. Queno told him that the power he was looking for, that he thought he
had found in the Mafia, that he thought he had found here, was only available
in one place...Jesus Christ. He prayed with and taught him all night long. The
next day, this man, whose shadow eclipsed Queno, made an announcement to the
whole prison. "Anyone who messes with the preacher messes with me!"
That
day, Lori was held up bringing his food to him (they are allowed to eat once a
day and the family has to bring it or they don't eat at all) and as it became
obvious that he would not get to eat today, one by one the inmates began to
tear off bread from their plates. One said to him, "You've fed us all day from
the plate of God, now let us feed you from our plate." [What did Jesus say to
Peter in John 21:15-17? "Feed my lambs...Take care of my sheep...Feed my
sheep." This is the number one job and responsibility of every minister of
Jesus Christ. Queno is living up to the high calling of Jesus Christ, as a true
minister of Jesus Christ!] My friends, what Satan meant for evil, God has used
for good.
Please continue to pray for Queno, the life expenctancy in
this prison is very short. My prayer has been that, as Queno has made the front
page of the national newspaper for two weeks in a row now, he will be able to
draw great crowds anywhere he preaches. This will enable him to have much more
profound effect on this country. Back in San Raymundo, there have been lines as
far as the eye can see for 5 days. One by one the people who knew Queno and
were touched by him are lining up at the Lawyer's office to give their
deposition. They have over a THOUSAND SO FAR! And the line doesn't look like it
has moved.
These people whose annual income is equivalent to a hundred
dollars or so, are coming to Lori's house with money they had stored to feed
their families and are offering it to her to pay the legal bills, and to help
feed her family as Queno is in prison. Guatemala is largely a Catholic Country,
and this has been a struggle for the past decade for Queno and Lori. On the day
he was arrested every Catholic church in the state announced that there were
going to fast and pray until Queno was released. They have been very faithful
to that promise.
The country will never be the same. My friends, I
cannot express to you in words what your dedication to this prayer vigil means
to me. I may never know the significance of brothers around the world uniting
in prayer in one voice, with one heart. However, I can attest that when I am
asked how I can know that there is a God, I can only respond, "Because I have
his signature." May God Bless Each Of You in your
faithfulness.
Sincerely,
Dean Pinney
UPDATE
Today the U.S. Ambassador called Lori and
insisted that they meet right away. He told her that his phone is ringing off
the hook. He can't get anything done on his computer for the e-mail stacking
up. He was contacted by 2 U.S. Senators this morning that told him that they
expected an explanation by tomorrow regarding the imprisonment of Queno. In
addition, he has received E-Mail from "every continent, from Governments around
the world." He asked Lori, "Who are you?!!! I have received messages from every
continent around the globe over the weekend and now I have the U.S. Senate
breathing down my neck."
Lori told him that they were merely Christians
whose family around the world was concerned. He told her to rest assured that
the U.S. was now involved and they would bring things to an end. He told her
that he has never met anyone in his entire career that had such influential
ties. She said that Queno's imprisonment was used by God to UNITE THE CHRISTIAN
WORLD and that there is a new day dawning for those persecuted for the sake of
righteousness. Because there are millions across the world on their knees
seeking counsel with the Most High God--and He is obviously giving them His
attention.
The President of the Evangelical Association in Guatemala
interviewed Lori for two hours yesterday and was astonished at her reassuring
response. He told her that they must be the "Most protected people in the
world." He said that he sent 2 detectives last week to locate her and tell her
that he wanted to meet with her. When they got to San Raymundo they began
asking where they could find her. No one would tell them where she lived. They
offered money, threatened, and nothing persuaded the people to tell where she
lived. Finally, they resorted to driving the many miles of road that is made up
of the Alto Plano and searching for her truck.
Finally, the President of
the Evangelical Association decided he would find her himself. He found a
Catholic Priest (thinking that surely this man, a religious enemy, would tell
him where to find them) when he asked him if he knew Queno. (He told Lori that
he had never seen anything like this before.) "Do I know him? My son, he has
changed our lives! Come, let me tell you about my brother...for thirty some
minutes he went on about how Queno has given life to these people. Then he
ended with, "May God forgive me, but I cannot tell you where she
lives."
Sunday the church where Queno preaches normally, was packed out
into the streets. There were faces there that had sworn they wanted nothing to
do with religion. "We want to know, What kind of God turns sadness into
singing?" they cried.
Friday, Queno called Lori. "When you come next
week, bring extra food." Lori, worried about why he wasn't getting enough,
asked, "Aren't you getting yours?" "Oh yes, but there are many here who have no
family and they don't have food at all. I try to share mine, but I run out
before we get to everyone." Lori assured him that she would find the money to
buy more.
She took her last bit of money and went to the market, she
began to fill bags with food. The grocer, a lady that has known Queno for a
long time, asked Lori if she was leaving town. Lori then told her that Queno
had talked about the men in prison who weren't getting food and that they were
going to feed them. The grocer stood there dumbfounded. "Back your truck up to
the door" she told Lori. "If your husband is in prison and he is more concerned
about the other prisoners than himself, or his own expense--then I don't want
to be left out of what your God is about to do there." She FILLED Lori's truck
with food and told her to come back if that wasn't enough. It only takes a
spark...
A song that I remember learning 25 years ago now takes on a
whole new meaning. "It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all
those around can warm up to its glowing. That's how it is with God's love, once
you've experienced it--you spread his love to everyone, you want to pass it
on."
In a small village in Central America that most of you have never
heard of, there was a man who grew up without a father. Raised by his mother,
very poor, he learned to be a carpenter. When he was of age, he was converted
by his uncle to Christ. His life was never the same. He vowed to go to bible
college and learn how to bring others to Christ and come back and preach to
this lost village made up primarily of Mayan Indians.
At Colegio
Biblico, in Eagle Pass Texas he met and married his missions professor. To the
amazement of his people, he returned as he had said. (Everyone who got the
chance to leave never came back.) His biggest concern were the thousands of
children orphaned by a century of civil war. As he began building a church, he
also envisioned an orphanage. As he began to work with the children, he
realized that they were not getting a very good education. So his next
challenge was to build a school to educate them. It would have to be free,
because the poverty was overwhelming. A decade later, the orphanage is mother
and father to many children, the free-school is giving a future to the next
generation of Guatemalans. The church has outgrown its building, meeting every
day of the week to overcrowded audiences starving for a peace that passes
understanding.
And this small Mayan preacher, in love with his people,
is lying tonight on a concrete floor, giving praise to his God that he was
chosen for this ministry. Praying that he can reach "one more" before his time
is up. Tonight, he fed the multitudes--with so much food from a grocer that
normally would put her out of business. But up in Heaven God is
smiling...another demon on the unemployment line. I am reminded of the jar that
never emptied as the prophet asked the widow to make him a cake.
Don't
close your Bible yet, God is still keeping jars from going empty. He's still
holding the water back so his servants can cross on dry land. He still asks,
"Whom shall I send, Who will go for us?" It only took a spark, that small ember
of faith shielded from the wind, that grows into a raging fire that the wind
cannot put out--in fact, the stronger the wind--the stronger the
fire.
And somewhere tonight, from a desolate prison cell there is one
who is calling to God for the first time as he awaits death for his crime,
saying, "Remember me in paradise." And beside him is a five-foot tall preacher
with a ten-foot tall spirit fueled by the prayers of Christians from every
land.
Get in, sit down, hang on.
Dean
If you want a Newsletter
contact:
The New Iberian Mission Association
P.O. Box 668
Organ, NM
88052
505/382-9209
Send faxes to:
1) President of the
Republic
S.E. Alvaro Arzu Irigoyen
[Salutation: Sr. Presidente/Dear
President]
Fax: 011-502-221-4537
2) Attorney General
Lic. Hector
Hugo Perez Aquilera
[Salutation: Sr. Fiscal General/Dear Attorney
General]
Fax: 011-502-251-5368
3) Minister of the Interior
Lic.
Rodolfo Mendoza
[Salutation: Sr. Ministro/Dear Minister]
4)
Guatemalan Ambassador to the United States
Pedro Lamport
[Salutation: Sr.
Embajador/Dear Embassador]
Fax: 202-745-1908
Tim Worstell
Summum
Christian Church
8888 East Turner Highway
Astoria, IL
61501
309-759-4236 Email: timlw@juno.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------This
message comes in the middle of Larry's--after the part of Queno's entry into
the prison, and before the call from the US Ambassador to
Guatemala.
*******************************************************************
I
apologize that it has taken me so long to give you an update on the condition
of our brother Queno in Guatemala. He is still imprisoned in the Federal Prison
in Guatemala City, Charged with Murder. He is still being held with no evidence
or witnesses. He is still being kept from his ministry that he has been devoted
to for over a decade. He is still being kept from praising God for the
opportunity to preach to the lost. He is still changing lives
forever.
Yesterday, was the day set aside for visitors to come to the
prison. This is a rare event, they do not allow visitors often due to the
nature of the crimes of these inmates. Lori stood in line for hours with
Tabitha, and Herbert--waiting to see daddy. They were patiently waiting to tell
Queno, husband...daddy, that they loved him.
They were anxious to tell him
of the phone calls that they have received from around the world. They were
anxious to tell him that the people in the village who had never been
interested in their ministry were asking what they could do to help. About how
these people, impoverished beyond our imagination, were taking grain, the corn
that was their meager store of food to feed their family--and they made food
for Lori and the children. About how these strangers to religion, saw an
opportunity to show their love for a family that had brought hope to the
hopelessness of the forgotten village of San Raymundo. They were anxious to
tell Queno that the government threatened every member of the press to stay
away from this situation or they would be held in contempt by the Federal
Government. How that a member of the press told Lori that he was risking his
life to report the story in his small independent paper. They wanted to tell
Queno about the Baptist, Pentecostal, Disciple and Catholic Churches around the
Alto Plano that are STILL fasting and praying for his safety and release.
Tabitha wanted to tell daddy that today in school she was approached by a
reporter that wanted to tell her that he was trying to find a way to tell their
story so that even the government couldn't stop it. Herbert wanted to tell his
daddy that his friends had told him that their mommies and daddies are selling
their possessions to raise money to get his daddy out of jail. Lori wanted to
tell her beloved husband that she has been faithful to his ministry...that she
has been organizing around the clock prayer and fasting for the conversion of
the inmates in the prison that Queno was witnessing to.
But there they
were, standing in a line that seemed to string for miles. Soon, Lori asked a
guard why it was taking so long to get in. The guard told her that it was
because the inmates were taking their families to meet the "preacher". Each one
telling his wife and children, "You have to meet this man who has changed my
life! He knows God, and he told His God about ME! And he said his God will
forgive me!" One after another, each one giving up his time with his family to
take them to meet the "preacher". Lori's head dropped in prayer, "God, I can
wait." They didn't get to see Queno until late that evening, and then for only
a few minutes because it was so late. He glowed with excitement as he tried to
tell Lori of each one of these men whose lives had been changed forever. As
they were taken out of the prison, they looked back to say their last
"good-byes", and he was already kneeling down with another inmate and they were
praying.
The walls came tumbling down in this place. Walls that
separated men from God, walls that divided families, walls that held men
hostage to sin, walls that divided churches, walls that kept love out and hate
in...fell. There were no trumpet blasts, there was no earthquake, just the
people of God on their knees in prayer.
Friends, I need to tell you that
today they had another hearing, the Judge is even more angry that no evidence
has been found. Even with the enormous reward offered for a "witness"--no one
will say they saw him do it. The guard told Lori that he is amazed that they
are having so much trouble "buying" a witness because these people are so poor.
But they are not persuaded by the dull riches of man, for they have seen the
treasures of God.
Thank you for your faithfulness, thank you for your
prayers, and may God change the world through men and women like you. And, as
for Dean, I have seen a glimpse of Heaven in the love of Christians around the
Globe. God Bless you."
Eugene or Queno sounds like he is right out of
the Book of Acts doesn't he? No, the time of miracles is not over by a
long-shot. As a matter of fact, as times get more perilous, God will work more,
not less, miracles--but so will the enemy.
Verse 10, the gift of
prophecy is speaking the Word of God in the Spirit (speaking or writing). We
just read an amazing 20th Century example of a man, Eugene Nij, exercising the
gift of prophecy--speaking the Word of God in the Spirit. And so much so, that
many prisoners considered incorrigibly dangerous and beyond redemption have
been changed and converted, and are showing the fruits of the Spirit of God in
them! Is the time of miracles gone? Nonsense! The gift of prophecy can also be
a foretelling of something to come.
In Luke 19:41-44 both aspects appear
here, foretelling and forthtelling. Luke 19:41-44. "As he approached Jerusalem
and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even you, had only known
on this day what would bring you peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes.
The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against
you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the
ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone
on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to
you."
The body of Christ needs all the proclaiming gifts. The world is
trying to discredit the Word of God. The gift of prophecy helps the Church stay
on course.
Gift of Distinguishing of Spirits
Distinguishing of spirits (vs. 10) is the working of the Spirit to see that something is not right about an individual. Matthew 7:21-22. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'" Plainly Jesus tells us that others can prophecy and cast out demons, but they are false Christians. History has shown us that Rasputin, the mad monk of Russia, could work miracles and healing, but these were by the power of Satan.
The Gift of Tongues
Prophecy, Bible prophecy--foretelling the future--is for the
believer. It shows us that God is in control, no matter how things may look in
the present evil world. But the gift of tongues was and is a sign to the
nonbeliever. Acts 2:1-11 is an example where tongues was used to call 3000 into
the body of Christ the very day the Church was born, on the Day of Pentecost.
On this day of Pentecost all nations and tongues were brought together to the
Lord. At the tower of Babel the tongues were given to divide man. A modern day
example of tongues which occurred in a service where the minister and his wife
were attending, one lady got up in services and started speaking a message from
the Lord in French. She didn't understand French. The minister's wife didn't
understand French, but she got up and interpreted the message, just like in
Acts 2. Others that knew French could tell that the giving and interpretation
were correct.
Verse 12, "The body is a unit, though it is made up of
many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is
with Christ." i.e. None of us are the body of Christ by ourselves, we're
only a part of the body of Christ. None of us can effectively live alone
outside the body. We need to be part of the body. Verse 13, "For we were all
baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or
free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." Matthew 3:11. "I
baptize you in water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more
powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with
the Holy Spirit and with fire." By the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, we're baptized
into the body. Physical baptism in water is only a physical outward sign
symbolizing what the Holy Spirit has and is doing in a person. You can be
baptized by the Holy Spirit without ever being baptized in
water.
Comment: The minister (also the station manager for the local
Christian radio station here) got a phone call from a young man who was all
excited about the radio. When asked what Church he belonged to he said that the
radio was his Church. How would Paul look at this? I Corinthians 12 shows us
what Paul feels about the people who think that listening to a good Christian
radio station fulfills their need for belonging to a Church. Those that think
this are overlooking the Church/community-wide responsibility we Christians
have to use the spiritual gifts and talents God gives us through His Holy
Spirit for the common good (I Cor. 12:7). Is that what Queno did with
his talents? Jesus in the parable of the talents shows us how he will look upon
side-line, bench-warming Christians. Matthew 25:24-30. "Then he who had
received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man,
reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered
seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground [all our
talents come from God, for it is God who designed and made us]. Look, there you
have what is yours.' But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and
lazy servant, you know that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I
have not scattered seed. Therefore you ought to have deposited my money with
the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.'
'Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but
from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the
unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth.'"
Naturally, Christian radio is beautiful for
shut-ins and the elderly who can't get out and around to use their talents in
such a way. Christian radio serves and nurtures these wonderful people,
bolstering their walk with Jesus often times just before they pass on to him.
And Christian radio can be a wonderful supplement to our normal spiritual diet.
But the greatest growth and Christian character development for the rest of us
comes when we serve others with the spiritual gifts and talents that God has
bestowed on each of us. The gifts outlined in 1 Corinthians 12 are meant to be
used collectively for the corporate good.
The Body has many different
members, each to fulfill a function within the body. These parts are not
designed to survive on their own. When we're alone on our own we don't, we
can't experience all the spiritual gifts. i.e. The gift of discernment in one
can warn other members in the body that a person or group isn't what they
appear to be. All these gifts are given for the corporate good of the body of
Christ, and the local congregations of the fellowships that make up that body.
Verses 12-26, "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and
though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we
were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or
free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
Now the body is
not made up of one part but of many [back in Paul's day there was only one
Church, the apostolic Church of God. Now there are many Christian fellowships
which have the Holy Spirit. So this set of verses can apply to Christian
fellowships as representing the various parts of the body of Christ, or it can
apply to individual members of a congregation within a Christian fellowship, as
it was originally written.]. If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand,
I do not belong to the body,' it would not for that reason cease to be part of
the body. And if the ear should say, 'Because I am not an eye, I do not belong
to the body,' it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the
whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body
were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged
the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they
were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but
one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I don't need you! [but some
fellowships say this toward other fellowships, now don't they?] And the head
cannot say to the feet, 'I don't need you!' On the contrary, those parts of the
body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are
less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are
unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts
need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has
given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no
division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each
other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored,
every part rejoices with it."
Now Paul goes on to give the corporate
structure of the Church showing how the gifts and ministries fit together to
form one body [and in his day this one body was composed of one church].
Verses 27-30, "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part
of it. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second
prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of
healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and
those speaking in different kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all
prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing?
Do all speak in tongues [margin: other languages]? Do all interpret?" Do
all possess the same gifts? No, some have teaching, some don't etc. That is
what Paul is saying. Right in the middle of Paul's description of the spiritual
gifts--the "spirituals"--Paul gives us 1 Corinthians 13, the best gift, which
we all can have acting within us. Verse 31, "But eagerly desire the greater
gifts." What greater gifts? That last statement leads us into 1 Corinthians
13 where Paul describes the "greater gifts."
1 Corinthians 13
True greatness, what is true greatness? Billy Graham, Charles
Finney, D.L. Moody, George Mueller--they all did great things for the Lord.
What about all the martyrs? Paul said previously that all the Corinthians had
many spiritual gifts, but were very carnal. They all wanted the more dramatic
gifts, almost like little kids, they wanted to show them off. But they didn't
want these gifts for the right reasons. They liked to be noticed. They liked to
appear spiritual and manifest these gifts (in front of others). What did Jesus
say about the Pharisees liking to make public display of their praying and
almsgiving, all for show, while their motives were evil inside. Paul didn't go
so far as to say this to them, but the shoe certainly fit. Instead he went on
to show them in a positive way what their motive ought to be, and how they
could achieve the best gifts at the same time. Verses 1-3, "Though I speak
with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become as
sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy and
understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so
that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I
bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,
but have not love, it profits me nothing."
What is the Greek word
for love used here? It is Agape, [Strongs #26: Agape; love, i.e. affection or
benevolence; from #25; agapao; to love (in a social or moral sense)...]. The
other word used for love in the New Testament is Phileo, or brotherly love
[Strongs 5368; to be a friend (fond of)[an individual or an object]i.e. to have
affection for (denoting personal attachment, a matter of sentiment or feeling;
while 25 [Agape] is wider, embracing espec. the judgment and the deliberate
assent of will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety...the former
[phileo] being chiefly of the heart and the latter [agapeo] of the head...]. A
third word for love in the Greek is Eros, which is sexual love between husband
and wife. It is not used or found once in the Bible. God didn't have to worry
about telling people to have this kind of love. It was in abundance. But Godly
love, Agape, only comes from one source. It is a spiritual gift from above,
just as the other gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. Paul goes on to break
this love down into it's constituent spiritual components or colors. Verse
4, "Love suffers long [Strongs #3114: makrothumeo; to be long-spirited, i.e.
forbearing, patient:-bear (suffer) long, be longsuffering, have (long)
patience, be patient, patiently endure.] and is kind [Strongs #5541:
chresteuomai, from 5543, to show oneself useful, i.e. act benevolently:- be
kind. #5543; chrestos; useful...good(ness), kindness.] Jesus said "Father
forgive them for they know not what they do" when they crucified him. Is that
the reaction we would have had? I don't think so. But Jesus had agape love
without measure. He set the example that we are to follow (1 Peter 2:20-21).
When people get "righteous and Holy" they tend to get judgmental, not kind. How
would you look upon a homeless person who walked in the door right now, in his
dirty clothes, unwashed, smelly, and hungry? Most of us would have a judgmental
reaction.
Love does not envy [Strongs #2206: zeloo; to have warmth of
feeling for or against:-affect, covet (earnestly), (have) desire, (move with)
envy, be jealous over...]; Envy is a selfish thing. It is not agape
love.
love does not parade itself, is not puffed up [Strong #5448:
phusioo, from 5449 in the prim. sense of blowing; to inflate, i.e.
make proud:-puff up.]..." Knowledge without agape love puffs
up.
Verse 5, "[love] does not behave rudely, does not seek its own [is
not selfish], is not provoked [Strongs #3947: paroxuno, to sharpen alongside,
i.e. (fig.) to exasperate:-easily provoke, stir.], thinks no evil; God's agape
love is not provoked, it can't be provoked. It is never rude to another
individual, no matter what the circumstances. Are you ever rude? When the
salesperson calls up on the phone at dinnertime are you kind to him or her?
When in the check-out line or in traffic are you seeking your own advantage?
Do you think evil of other's (who may deserve it)? Or do you think good
things toward that person? What about the guy who cut you off in traffic? Ever
think evil of him? Rudeness has no place in the kingdom of God. Apply this one
in your daily life. Agape love is not self-seeking. Here's a good
formula:
Jesus first
others second
self third Agape love is not
selfish.
Not easily provoked. In the Greek, "easily" is not there. Love
is not provoked, angered, ever.
Love thinks no evil of
other people, no matter how much we think they may deserve it. It does not
rejoice in evil (that happens to others that may deserve it).
Verse
6, "does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in truth;" Ever like hearing
the juicy tid-bits about what someone else did, or how they got in trouble?
Especially your enemy? God's agape love doesn't do that. A proverb warns us not
to laugh when your enemy stumbles. God's love doesn't.
Verse 7,
"[love] bears all things, believes all things [i.e. the best about people],
hopes all things, endures all things." Can we do this?
God's Agape
love always gives and never expects anything in return. Paul says that no
matter how great a work we may work, it is nothing without agape love. Speaking
in tongues is nothing without agape love--just making a noise, that's all. So
when all is said and done in God's plan for mankind, what will be left?
Verse 8, "Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will
fail, whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge,
it will vanish away..." That's Paul's answer. Verses 9-12, "For we know
in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then
that which is in part will be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a
child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man,
I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to
face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I am known." Love
is permanent but all else will fail. There will be a time when there will be no
need for prophecy, tongues, or any of the other gifts--but love will abide.
Verse 13 shows that love itself includes faith and hope, that is why these
three never fail. Hope is for the future, love is for today. Verse 13, "And
now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is
love."
So Paul says speaking in tongues is nothing without agape
love--it's just making a noise. The Church today needs to read chapters 12, 13
and 14 together. He's saying, you and I, both men and women, like to look
spiritual, but without the agape love its' nothing at all. We want to clang our
symbols and make a show but it's nothing without agape love, it's just making a
noise--it's nothing at all. Sometimes a church can come together with a lot of
fanfare and excitement but it's hollow without God's agape love. "Woe to you
when all men speak well of you" Jesus said.
Knowledge without love
merely puffs up, but love edifies. Having great Biblical knowledge puffs, and
turns into a spiritual danger. People need to learn to have true compassion.
You can love the ministry and hate people. I've seen this before. Paul says you
may be used to move mountains, to teach all kinds of Bible knowledge--but
without agape love it's nothing. We run the race for Eternal glory, but the
secret in doing that is agape love, more than any manifestation gifts. That's
what Paul is saying in verse 3. What's the main difference between other
religions and Christianity? Agape love is the difference. Even our financial
sacrifices without agape love profits us nothing.
God is going to use us
if we abide in his love. What people around you need to see is your compassion.
John 15:1-14. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off
every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit
he prunes [margin: cleans] so that it will be even more fruitful. You are
already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I
will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the
vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you
are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit;
apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a
branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown
into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask
whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that
you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
As the
Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my
commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's
commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be
complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater
love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are
my friends if you do what I command."
1 Corinthians 14
On December 7, 1941 353 Japanese enemy aircraft appeared in the
sky over Pearl Harbor. Eight battleships were lost, 6 airfields were put out of
action and 2400 men and women were killed. The lieutenant in charge of the two
radar operators working our first radar looking out over the Pacific in Hawaii
said to the operators when they saw the massive flight of unidentified aircraft
coming, "Don't worry about it." Many of our overseers in the Christian Church
(collectively) are misreading the signs of the times and saying "Don't worry
about it." The leaders in the Church, the body of Christ, need to be looking at
that radar scope and see the enemy that's on the screen. [The proper
understanding of prophecy has a lot to do with looking at that radar scope, of
discerning the urgency of the times.]
No matter how great the spiritual
gift, the ministry you're in, without agape love it means absolutely nothing (1
Corinthians 13:4-8). Some day the gifts will disappear. Chapter 13 wasn't a
side thought put in there. The mission of the gifts is to edify all. Love
edifies all. Knowledge [without love] puffs up. Chapter 14 goes on the show
that everything is to be done decently and in order. The emphasis is on
prophecy and not on tongues. First let's just read through what Paul said.
Verses 1-25, "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire the spiritual gifts,
especially the gift of prophecy. For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not
speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries
with his spirit [margin: or by the Spirit]. But everyone who prophesies speaks
to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort. He who speaks in a
tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. I would like
every one of you to speak in tongues [margin: "other languages", also in verses
6,18,22,23 and 39], but I would rather have you prophesy. He who prophesies is
greater than one who speaks in tongues [other languages], unless he interprets,
so that the church may be edified. [Remember Queno. His prophesying is
converting the population of a Federal Prison in Guatemala!]
Now
brothers, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to you,
unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of
instruction? Even in the case of lifeless things that make sounds, such as the
flute or harp, how will anyone know what tune is being played unless there is a
distinction in the notes? Again, if a trumpet does not sound a clear call, who
will get ready for battle? So it is with you. Unless you speak intelligible
words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying? You will just
be speaking into the air. Undoubtedly there are all sorts of languages in the
world, yet none of them is without meaning. If then I do not grasp the meaning
of what someone is saying, I am a foreigner to the speaker, and he is a
foreigner to me. So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual
gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church.
For this reason
anyone who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret what he says.
For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what
shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I
will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. If you are
praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do
not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you
are saying? You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not
edified.
I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. But
in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others
than ten thousand words in a tongue.
Brothers, stop thinking like
children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults. In the
Law it is written: "Through men of strange tongues and through the lips of
foreigners I will speak to this people, but even then they will not listen to
me," says the Lord [Isaiah 28:11-12].
Tongues then are a sign, not for
believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however, is for believers, not for
unbelievers. So if the whole church comes together and everyone speaks in
tongues, and some who do not understand [margin: "or some inquirers"] or some
unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your mind? But if an
unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everyone is
prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged
by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down
and worship God, exclaiming 'God is really among you!'"
There are four
major themes about these two gifts that Paul addresses here:
Order in the Church Meetings
The mission or purpose of the spiritual gifts is for them to be
used in the corporate setting to edify the church and others. Paul was writing
to a church, the Church of God at Corinth, that was very blessed with the
spiritual gifts, but they, just like some fellowships now, were way out of
balance in the use of those gifts. They were not refusing the gifts by denying
they existed, so God chose to manifest the gifts through them. The Pentecostals
are in a similar boat. They have the Holy Spirit in abundance, and don't deny
or refuse the spiritual gifts, so God blesses them abundantly with them. But
they, just as the early Corinthians, are not using them in proper balance. Paul
is now laying down the rules of balance here in the fourteenth chapter of 1
Corinthians. As the thirteenth chapter shows, the first and primary purpose we
have as Christians is to love others, and manifest God's agape love on others.
To use the spiritual gifts for any other purpose is a misuse of them. Prideful
use is not using them in love. Verse 26, "What then shall we say, brothers?
When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a
revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the
strengthening of the church." In Matthew 22 Jesus was answering the
Sadducees and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor
the power of God." There is a definite correlation between knowing and applying
the Scriptures properly and the power of God. In 2 Timothy 3:16-17 it states,
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting
and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly
equipped for every good work." The power of God is in the Word of God. When we
ignore the Word of God on any particular subject we miss or diminish the power
of God in our lives and walk with Christ. So with that in mind, here are some
rules the apostle Paul laid down for tongues and prophesying. In verses 27-28
Paul adds some further parameters for speaking in tongues. He says that at
most, two or three in the congregation are to be allowed to speak in tongues
and two or three at most interpreting. Also, when someone speaks in
tongues--one at a time, the interpretation should come in turn, or follow the
speaking in tongues, and not be done simultaneously, which would only cause
confusion. Verses 27-28, "If anyone speaks in a tongue, two--or three at the
most should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. If there is no
interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the Church and speak to himself
and God." Does it get any more clear than that? Yet in some fellowships and
congregations these simple rules are not adhered to, just as in the Corinthian
church. It didn't mean they didn't have the Holy pirit, or weren't really a
Christian Church, they were just unbalanced in the use of God's gifts, like
little children. Finally in verse 28, Paul shows again that tongues is a
vertical thing, between the speaker and God.
In verses 29-33, Paul lays
out similar rules for prophesying. Two or three prophets are to speak, one at a
time. The emphasis is to maintain order. One should speak at a time, and all
should judge. God is not the author of confusion. Verse 30 states that they are
to take turns, one shouldn't go on and on and on forever. Paul says there's to
be order, i.e. don't hog the mike. And others in the congregation should judge
what they hear. Here is some criteria for judging:
Here in verses 33 last part, through verse 35, Paul gets
into an area which in today's world flies in the face of feminism. And we cannot
be totally sure whether this is being said in a historic context for the local
area or to be applied today in all churches, but in verse 34 the statement of
Paul "As the Law says" indicates it goes deeper than just a cultural setting.
But we do see this theme repeated in 1 Timothy 2, Ephesians 5, 1 Peter 2 and
Titus 2:3, as well as Genesis 3. So let's read verses 33-35 and those other
Scriptures, and then you judge for yourself, between you and God. There is an
issue of protection here. We in this fellowship have come to believe that having
married women follow this advice protects the minister from unnecessary temptation
and can actually cause growth and sometimes the actual conversion of unconverted
husbands by having their wives go to them with their spiritual questions. Verses
33-35, "...As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent
in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as
the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their
own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church."
We see in 1 Corinthians 11 that women can prophesy and speak in tongues.
This isn't forbidding them from being an active part of the worship service.
There's something else to this command, which appears to be pointing the women
towards their husbands for spiritual advice and intimate spiritual communication--building
these bonds in the right direction, building spiritual unity and cohesiveness
between husband and wife, instead of between wife and the minister or pastor.
The intent of this command doesn't appear to be sexist at all. Let's look at
some of the other Scriptures that back this principle up. 1 Timothy 2:8-15.
"I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided
hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate
for women who profess to worship God. A woman should learn in quietness and
full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over
a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was
not the deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. But
women will be saved through childbearing--if they continue in faith, love and
holiness with propriety."
Next let's look at Ephesians 5:22-32. "Wives, submit to your husbands as to
the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the
church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ,
so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love
your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make
her holy, cleansing her [or: having cleansed her] by the washing with water
through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without
stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same
way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his
wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds
it, just as Christ does the church--for we are members of his body. For this
reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and
the two will become one flesh [Genesis 2:4] This is a profound mystery--but
I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must
love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." Paul
goes on to say this to all: "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect
and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them
not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ,
doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were
serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone
for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free." i.e. We are all called
to submit to someone, both men and women--slaves to masters, people to government
authorities (Romans 13), women to their husbands. The apostle Peter doesn't
differ from Paul one bit in his advice. 1 Peter 3:1-6. "Wives, in the same way
be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word,
they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they
see the purity and reverence of your lives. Your beauty should not come from
outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of jewelry and fine
clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty
of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight. For this
is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make
themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah,
who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do
what is right and do not give way to fear. Husbands, in the same way be considerate
as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner
and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder
your prayers." In Titus 2:1-5 Paul is instructing Titus what to teach his congregation.
"You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine. Teach the older men to
be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love
and endurance. [You notice he says "older men", perhaps knowing that rash, exuberant
youth has not reached the ability to do or have such traits of character.] Likewise,
teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers
or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the
younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and
pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so
that no one will malign the word of God.
Similarly, encourage young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them
an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness
and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you
may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us [Paul again instructing
Titus].
Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please
them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that
they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching
about God our Savior attractive. [God our Savior, i.e. Jesus is God also, not
just a good person and wise teacher as some would have you believe. He was God
in the flesh, the Word as John 1:1-4 brings out, the YHVH of the Old Testament--together
with God the Father and the Holy Spirit making up the Elohim of Genesis 1.]
So what Paul was teaching the Corinthians here in 1 Corinthians 14:33-35 is
consistent with what he and Peter taught elsewhere in letters to other congregations
and in the Church as a whole. The important thing is to take it in context.
You notice that they bring out that everyone is in submission to someone. No
one escapes this command in reality.
Finally Paul adds this thought to what he said about order. He told them they
were interpreting the Word of God for themselves, and doing it wrongly by the
way Paul was saying this in verse 36. Verses 36-38, "Did the word of God
originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached? If anybody thinks
he is a prophet or spiritually gifted, let him acknowledge that what I am writing
to you is the Lord's command. If he ignores this, he will be ignored [Some manuscripts
read: If he is ignorant of this, let him be]."
Paul then finishes up the chapter by saying that no one should forbid the gift
of tongues, and to be eager to prophesy. Then again he calls for everything
to be done in an orderly way. Verse 39-40, "Therefore, my brothers, be eager
to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But everything should be
done in a fitting and orderly way." [I highly recommend reading Hank Hanegraaf's
excellent book "Counterfeit REVIVAL" as a supplementary reading with this section
of 1 Corinthians 12-14. It is available online at: http://www.amazon.com
. It shows in accurate detail how some counterfeit ministries have sprung up
utilizing slight of hand and definitely a counterfeit "spirit" which brings
discredit to the very real manifestations of God's Holy Spirit.]