All right, so we're going to start early and end early today, if that's OK with everyone. All right. All the questions, yeah, they're built in, aren't they? So let's pray. Father, we thank you for this time again that we can spend in your word. We pray that you would help us to grow, continue growing us in our knowledge of the Holy Spirit so that we might glorify you, that we would use the good gifts that you've given us to build up the church, the body of Christ. In his name we pray, amen. Okay. I have an outline for some people that weren't here. We're on page 14, and actually the number 5 and then C is right where we were. Where we left last week was we had come up with what are considered the lists, and I used that parenthetically because you know, the gifts of the Spirit, and we're talking about the gifts of the Spirit, are, they're described in a lot of different ways in the New Testament. And what I'd like to do is start off as kind of a reminder, and I think this passage in 1 Peter 4, 1 Peter 4, over here, verse 10 and 11, is an excellent reminder and summary again for us to view the gifts a certain way. And I'm going to back up to verse 8, verse 7. The end of all things is at hand. This is 1 Peter 4, verse 7. Therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling as each has received a gift. Use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace. Whoever speaks as one who speaks oracles of God, whoever serves as one who serves by the strength that God supplies in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Peter here is reminding us of where these gifts come from. We talked about that there's a Trinitarian aspect of the gifts. And if you can remember when we looked at John 14, where Christ is telling his disciples that he's not going to leave them orphans, he's going to leave the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, what, and he says, so that, Does anybody remember why he's leaving the Holy Spirit? So that you will know what? Anybody, who wants to step out and take a chance? Come on. John 14. Mm. Close. In verse 20, in that day, so he's talking about giving the spirit. And in that day, when you receive the spirit. Yeah. Right. So I'm in the Father. you and me, and I in you. So the gifts of the Spirit are a reminder that we have union with Christ, that Christ is in us, and we shouldn't lose sight of that. So these are the gifts of Christ, and we're told by Christ to use them to build one another up. So we talked about these lists last week, and as is often the case, Some of the best discussion was right up here after Sunday school. And I should have just recorded that and played it. So some of the statements that I made, I said, these aren't complete lists. But there was a disagreement over whether they're complete lists or not. What would the argument be that, yes, this is a complete list of gifts. How could that, I mean, how could we follow that argument? Yeah, as a valid argument. I like that answer. That's always a good answer. I forget the man's name who built the tabernacle, but it says that the Holy Spirit gave him the wisdom to do that. Right. So maybe we can call those construction gifts or something like that. They're used for the betterment of people. Right. And that doesn't say that, that's not arguing that there are others besides this list. It just puts more on the list. There we go. So, and I think one of the things that I said is that these are summary, some of these are summary, right? Like service, the gift of service, I mean, how many different kinds of service is there? Administration, helping, there's various aspects. So, I mean, I think as long as we view these as, and I won't argue against that this is an all comprehensive list, as long as you don't, you know, try to end it at this level, I, you know, I hope for the gift of service. Well, I think it's better to be specific. And we'll talk about discerning our gifts here in a little bit. What about the ordering of gifts? You know, I mentioned that these gifts are all equal. You know, that was my initial thought on it. These gifts are all equal. Well, it was brought to my attention that there are a couple of passages that actually do talk about an order, this, then this, then this. In fact, if you look at 1 Corinthians 12, 28, that's one example. And while we're turning there, I don't know if you remember, but Pastor Schroeder brought up the argument that, well, we can't have a church until we first have a preacher and elders I can't remember if it was deacons and giving. So those in that sense there is an order of priority. But 1 Corinthians 12, 28 Paul actually has an order right here in verse 27, now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various kinds of tongues. So you kind of see this list that, and we have those in verse 28, we put them up here, down this list right here, administration, various kinds of tongues. So what do you think about that ordering or priority of gifts? Is there such a thing? Are some gifts a higher priority or more important? I mean, I'm trying to be careful using that term, but is there an ordering of the gifts? Well, the church is built upon the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Paul says. So it sort of makes them fundamental. Right. Foundational. Yeah. And another thing about at least those part of the gifts is that you're talking about people. I mean, these are kind of positions, right? These are apostles, prophets, teachers. And when we talk about word and deed, these are word and deed gifts combined. And again, some of these gifts are individually described, and some of them are kind of in combinations. Some of these are more, I don't know, standalone, and some of them are combinations of these other gifts. Right? Right here. Yeah, I mean, and I think, John, didn't you, in your Sunday school class, you talked about, I think, this particular verse, and went over the different ways that it's interpreted today. And I think what we said was, this is, these are today gifts, although some would say that this is, yeah. Right. There's another thing in 1 Corinthians 12 at the bottom that kind of struck me. I want to see what you think about this. right after that passage. In fact, if you go down to verse 31, it says, but earnestly desire the higher gifts. What are the higher gifts? First Corinthians 12, 31. So if I read that whole passage, I stopped at 28. So 29 are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers, do all work miracles, Do all possess gifts of healing, do all speak with tongues, do all interpret, but earnestly desire the higher gifts. What is your, what? I just think it seems like, because he listed all that before, that those aren't the higher gifts. Okay, that's a clue. Is there another clue around there? Yes, probably. In the 14th chapter, it says things that edify, build up other things, build up the church. Okay, all right. And in fact, that's one of the definitions that we talked about is that gifts of the Spirit are ministerial in nature. They're there to build up the church. Yes, Karen. Oh, you're going to take your glasses off? Chapter 12, if you look at it, right above that, you're reading, you read 8 through 10, and then you read 28. Yeah. Talks about when we were talking about the whole body of Christ. How does the eye get turned? How do things work? I think this was more for teaching, because the Christians didn't have a body. They were seeking, actually seeking gifts, like being a prophet, speaking in tongues. about how to be a saint in the future, that kind of things that we're not always trying to teach, that that's not the greatest gift. Yes, you have to have a pastor, but a pastor is not a church. And so if you don't have people, then... And so I think, you know, I talk about this a lot this week, I thought maybe this is my feminism coming out, talking about, you know, Most of these callings are men, and it's like, where does that put women in the body of Christ? Are we less important because we can't seek after those gifts? I don't think that's in Genesis where it's asked. So I think that we need to look at the whole chapter and the purpose of what Paul is talking to them in Christians, and not just use this, but maybe look at yeah yes and you are right on track I appreciate that yes Right. That, I think And I intentionally didn't read the next verse, but you were right on. And Karen, too, you said we need to look at the context. What does he say in the next verse? And I think one of the problems we have is we have these chapters and pages. Like on my iPad, it's like I've got to push a button to see chapter 13. But what's he saying here? And I will show you a still more excellent way. And then what's verse 1? Yeah. So now he's teaching. OK, this is what I mean by the higher gifts. And he goes all the way down to verse 8. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away. As for tongues, they will cease. As for knowledge, it will pass away. And then the end of the chapter. Faith, hope, and love abide. These three, but the greatest of these is love. He just talked about the greater gifts, and the greatest is love. So that, I believe, ties it, and this is what you were saying, Jane, it ties it right in. We don't think about this. A gift of the Spirit is love. Now that also makes us step back and think, is the gift of the Spirit what you have? or what you can do, is that a gift of the spirit? Or, that's on the one hand, on the other hand, it's what you do with what you have. It's what you do with what you can do. In other words, to have knowledge and not use it to build up the body is not the definition of a gift of the spirit. to have faith that you keep to yourself, that you don't use to build up, I mean, somebody that has faith can build up the body how? By demonstrating that faith and helping people that are weak in their faith, right? The same is true with love. I mean, how do you, you can say that you love somebody. Oh, I really love everybody in this congregation. But, and I think of this kind of in a military sense, I think of potential energy and kinetic energy. Potential energy is having these gifts or these capacities in yourself. Kinetic energy is actually applying it, actually using it. So, you know, it starts with what you've been given, obviously. I'm not trying to you know, minimize that, but it really doesn't end there. So how do we, I mean, I think this is a prime example right here. What does this, when we looked at Romans 12, six through eight, it doesn't, it says, he who has, or can, you know, contribute, you actually give of what you have. It doesn't say you amass things, To be a blessing, it actually says you give, you contribute to the body to be a blessing. If you have leadership abilities, what good is that if you don't actually lead people with them? And so on. I think the same can be true for many of these other gifts. Marriage, singleness, all of those. Okay, so now that leads us to kind of our last point here, and that is, how do we discern our gifts? Anybody have any ideas? We've talked about what the gifts are, you know, where they come from. How do you know? And it's really interesting, John, I don't know if you're looking at what Gaffin says here. He's got a very interesting approach to this. But I mean, if somebody comes to you and says, OK, I see these gifts of the Spirit. How do I know if I have them? What do you say to them? Try and do something, see how it goes. Try and do something, see how it goes. All right? Yes, Raleigh. If God has gifted you in a certain way, I wish I'd like to do that. Okay. All right. It helps you to see things where your gift could be applied. If you're gifted, somebody else better recognize it too. Right. And I think that's part of it, kind of the confirmation that comes from outside of you. I remember people who want to teach and really want to be quiet and listen to somebody else. And hopefully, in the body of Christ, he inspires me to teach it. And others discern what I can do and what I'm not going to do. That communicates that, too. Yeah. It takes a gift to be able to communicate that to somebody that doesn't have a gift. Yes. Jim. And what do you mean? Yeah. Yeah. And that's a good point. Yeah. Yes. Kind of like with helping. Service. It is something you can learn a lot of. You can practice your skills. I always say I do not have a gift of ministration. Why have you called me here, Lord? But God has enabled me, and maybe that's part of it, too. I don't think I would rely on God as much, except that He's using that gift in me that I don't even believe that I have. And so it's a way for me to grow to bless others, but also to grow as a person. What's the test that you take when you're Briggs-Myers? You mentioned different Christian tests and Myers, and that kind of showed the way you mean or your tendencies. So you could basically say, here are these lists of things. Let me find out what they mean. What's wisdom? What's knowledge? What are these things? And then do an inventory, a self-inventory, right? It starts off there. I am weak at this. Here's my strengths. I'm strong. Not me, but strong here. I'm strong here. Whatever it is. Okay, those are my gifts that God has given me, and now I just need to work on cultivating and growing them. Is that, that's one way? I mean, does that sound completely foreign to everybody? I mean, that's probably a pretty common way, right? Well, Gaffen, I think, presents a pretty stiff challenge to that approach. And I, yeah, and this is, so, Here's the question he says you should ask yourself. It's real simple. What are the needs of the church that I see? And then I'm going to go do it. It's not based on something that you already have, that you're already good at, that you have an ability in. It's based on the needs of the church. Remember, gifts of the spirit are for the edification of the church. Where does the church need to be edified? That's where I need to go. And will the Lord provide in those areas? I mean, if you see a need, does it mean necessarily that you have to already know all about it, that you have to already be good at it, that you already have to have a capability? It does mean that you're already leaning in that direction, because not everybody sees the same needs. So if there's a need I see, it's because there's a propensity in me to have a gift to fulfill a need like that. Right? I mean, that could be part of the equation. It definitely could be. The other thing is you need other people also. There are certain gifts that you need other people to tell you, I believe you have this gift. or an elder. Somebody has to tell you that you have that gift. So it's not only within yourself, it's what people see in you. And that's very true. But I don't think people will see what's in you unless you expose it to them. Right? Right. So I think our tendency is to not expose our gifts for lack of confidence, Like Karen was saying, in the world, it's talented. We tend to equate gifts with talents. And while it's true that there's definitely some overlap there, and I agree that somebody has to be able to say, we appreciate you trying, but this isn't your calling. This isn't a gift of yours. That shouldn't stop us from trying when we see a need that needs to be filled. So do you want to read that passage on Geffen and see? The way to determine our spiritual gifts is not to ask, what is my thing spiritually, my spiritual specialty, that sets me apart from other believers and gives me a distinguishing edge from the church. Rather, the New Testament, on the whole, takes a much more functional or situational approach. The question you ask is, what is the situation in which God has placed me, or what, in the situation in which God has placed me, are the particular opportunities I see for serving other believers in order to meet the spirit or temple? What are the specific needs in front of me that need to be ministered to? Posing and effectively responding to this question will go a long way, not only towards discovery, but also actually using our spiritual gifts. And I think that word, confronting me, well, if you're never here, you're not often confronted with the needs of the church, right? I mean, how can we be better confronted with the needs of the church? What are some ways to do that? Well, there's an outstanding group of public Okay. Raleigh. One of the best missionaries I know of, and I think legendary, not only in our circles, but also in the Korean circle, was Bruce Hunt. Yeah. And he himself said how he was called to be a missionary. He heard people, he heard it again and again in the mountains. And he was a missionary in Korea, and he looked around and didn't see anybody else going. He said, well, I guess I'm married up. That's what he said was his call, really. So when I put this up needs of the church, I want to challenge you to think about it globally, holistically. And I appreciate your example is down to earth, roll up your sleeves, you gotta do stuff. When we think of the needs of the church, I think we have to go back to the book of Acts, which kind of got us started on this study about the gift of the spirit. The gift of the spirit was given to the apostles, why? Why was the gift of the spirit given to the apostles? so that they could bring the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. So the building up of the church is more than just making each other feel good. I don't want to step on any toes. It's part of that. I mean, we want to, you know, iron sharpens iron, right? But it's for a reason. It doesn't end there. Why do the gifts of the spirit exist, building up the church to what end? To the glory of God, so that, I mean, and how is God glorified through the church? By bringing people into the church, by the church going forth, expanding, spreading the gospel. So when you think of the needs of the church, you know, it's starting a church. You know, starting churches and keeping them going. Why? Not so that it's a club, but so that we are actually salt and light, right? And underneath each of these, all of these gifts fit, right? And we have to keep that in mind. The needs of the church are for the gospel to go forth. And it starts from the individual relationship, encouragement, you know, why am I encouraging you just, again, so you feel better, so that you're built up in your faith in Christ so that we can, you know, be coworkers and sharing the gospel. Yes? I remember my grandmother. She was grandma type. She was when I was doing that back in high school. And I could wake up in the morning, I'd hear her out of the other room, praying, praying, praying, out loud. But she's just sitting there, praying, praying. Absolutely. As a matter of fact, who was at the prayer meeting last Sunday? Not very many people. Well, okay. Well, I didn't see hands. Okay. There we go. And I gave a preview of this class last Sunday, and I said, you know, one of the ways you're confronted with the needs of the church is by hearing what you can pray about. I've often struggled with the details of our prayer list. It's like, there's a lot of, you know, kind of personal details in there. But that's how we're confronted with the needs of the church, with building one another up in the faith. So if you're not availing yourself to take that kind of interest, then you're not fully allowing yourself to be confronted with the needs of the church. Any thoughts about this? I mean, I think it's natural to do an inventory of what God has given you the ability to do. or say, you know, if you've got the gift of speech, you've got the gift of service, you know, word or deed, and desire to apply that. I think that's a good, you know, it's a good thing to do. But I just want to challenge you. I think that exercising your gifts and discerning your gifts go well beyond that. You don't have to be good. I don't think that there's anything in scripture that says that your gifts will always be preceded by confidence and skill. And I think of two examples. What about Moses? Moses was told he was going to be the leader of Israel. What did he say? I can't do that. And what did God say? And he said, I can't talk. And what did God do? Did God say, OK, well, all right, then I won't make you do this. He said, yeah. Aaron will be your spokesman. But that didn't remove the responsibility from Moses, did it? No, it didn't. I mean, God provided a way, but it was in spite of his weakness. And if you'll turn with me, this last passage, which I think points to this, Paul in 2 Corinthians, that's 11 and 12. I'll have to get to the exact passage. 2 Corinthians 11, starting in verse 30. And I'm going to go into chapter 12. So if I must boast, I will boast of the things that I'm really good at. Oh, wait. It doesn't say that? I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hand. I must go on boasting." And this next part I'll read it, but though there is nothing to be gained by it, I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who 14 years ago was caught up to the third heaven, whether in the body or out of the body, I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise, whether in the body or out of the body, I do not know, God knows. And he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. On behalf of this man, I will boast. But on my own behalf, I will not boast except of my weaknesses. Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, A thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. And so I think this is Paul saying that one of the greatest gifts that he was given was a weakness. And in spite of that weakness and through that weakness, being called to serve God no less boldly. Yes? How much of an encouragement he was to the people around him, yes. Okay. And then just the last thing that I wanted to leave you with before we go on to the next section next week is that exercising the gifts You know, it comes from action, actually doing things. But these gifts cannot grow apart from the word of God. The spirit and the word go together. So if you really want to understand your gifts, you need to be a student of scripture. If you want your gifts to grow, you need to be a student of scripture. And there's no way that those two can be separated. Any thoughts or questions? Our next section we're going to get into some of the gifts that have been a little bit more controversial. So we're going to talk about tongues and prophecy. Specifically, I don't know about healing, but we're going to talk about this notion of gifts that ceased with the end of the apostolic era. And without giving too much away, that'll be our topic of discussion. So we'll start on that next Lord's Day. OK? Let's pray. Father, again, we thank you for the greatest gift of all, and that is Christ in us, the hope of glory, and that you have made us citizens of heaven, and that you've given us good gifts, Lord, here, word and deed, to build one another up for the purpose of seeing your church grow. that the gospel would spread to the ends of the earth, Lord, and it is done in very small and intimate and private ways, but it's also done in more public ways as well. However you choose to use us, Lord, we pray that you would allow us, that you would give us your grace to step out and to be confronted with the needs of the church. And that you, Lord, have already shown us that you've given us the gifts to minister to those needs. Give us above all, Lord, love in our hearts for one another, just as you, through Christ, given your own Son, have loved us. In his name we pray, amen.