teaching notes : 1 cor. 12:1

1. what are the gifts?

a. are gifts natural or exceptional?
b. what are prophecy and teaching?
c. is the list exhaustive or a sample set?

2. 'sign gifts': are they still around?

a. cessasionists
b. non-cessasionists

3. what about tongues and the baptism of the holy spirit?

1. what is the baptism of the holy spirit?
2. why do people believe that tongues is a necessary gift?

1 cor 12:8-10

word of wisdom
word of knowledge
faith
gifts of healing
effecting of miracles
prophecy
distinguishing of spirits
kinds of tongues
interpretation of tongues

1 cor 12:28-30

apostles
prophets
teachers
miracles
gifts of healings
helps
administrations
kinds of tongues
interpretation of tongues (30)

rom 12:6-8 (3-8)

prophecy
service
teaching
exhortation
contributing
leadership
mercy

eph 4:11-13

apostles
prophets
evangelists
pastors / teachers
( these may be roles or services, not gifts in the same sense as the others)

a. the gifts can be normal to the christian or exceptional

1. normal : faith, mercy
2. exceptional : prophecy, healing, miracles, etc...
when mentioned, is the normal to indicate a greater degree?

b. prophecy and tongues; what are they?

1. what is tongues?

a. foreign languages

main divisions include :

- a talent for learning languages
- the supernatural ability to speak another language

- 1 cor 14:22 "a sign for unbelievers" (echoes acts 2:11)

b. tongues of angels

main divisions include :

- 'prayer language'
- a special angelic langauge

- 1 cor 13:1 - 'tongues of man and angels' (???)

c. ecstatic utterances

main divisions include :

- babbling
- 'groans and utterings to deep' (rom 8)

i'm not sure - chapter 14 has more data we will cover, but i don't know.

2. what is prophecy?

a. direct word from god (predictive, didactic)
b. teaching?
i would lean towards direct word from god as that is the normal biblical use
we also know that it was present in the nt church (acts 21:11-14)

argument : the lists are most likely samples, not exhaustive sets

1. no one list contains all of the gifts listed elsewhere
2. gifts cover a wide range : functions (teacher), abilities (miracles), and attributes (faith).
3. i would argue that nowhere is the impression given that the lists are exhaustive

cessasionists vs non-cessasionists
http://www.bible.org/docs/theology/pneuma/giftques.htm
cessastionist - http://pages.sbcglobal.net/dcrow/dcrc/articles/irons_cessation.html
cessasionists

1 cor 13:8-10

love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge it will be done away. for we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will done away with.

what is the perfect? cessasionists take it to be the bible, non-cessasionists take it to be heaven.

2 cor 12:12 / heb 2:3,4

argument is that 'apostles' is an office limited to the time before the canon, and that this office used signs/wonders to verify their word and authority.
heb 2:1-4 says that signs/wonders confirmed the testimony of the eye-witnesses of christ...

non-cessasionists

1 cor 1:4-8

I thank my God always concerning you, for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge, 6 even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you, 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who shall also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

assuming the gifts spoken of here include 'sign' gifts, they seem to be spoken of as useful until the coming of christ.

eph 4:7-13

apostles and prophets are presented as useful to build up the church

some believe that tongues are :

- necessary for salvation (fringe view without much to commend itself)
- a necessary sign of the baptism of the holy spirit

1. what is the baptism of the holy spirit?

a second experience (post-salvation) in which the believer receives a greater filling (some say the spirit 'comes on') of the holy spirit. some tie this to:

- increased holiness
- ability to do ministry
- receiving of gifts

the argument is made from :

acts 8:14-17
acts 10:44-46
acts 19:5-7

in all of these passages, the holy spirit comes upon people explicitly...
argument against the idea

1. acts 10 and 19 are salvation experiences, not second experiences. acts 8 is probably post-salvation however; is this to confirm their salvation to the church? either way, a description of what happened to the church is not a statement of something that should happen to everyone; occurances described do not have to be necessary experiences.
2. nowhere in the nt is the believer ever told to seek a second baptism. (eph 5:18 is a condition, not an experience).

2. why do people believe that tongues are a necessary gift?

because the people in acts 10:44-46 and acts 19:5-7 spoke in tongues.
however - neither passage (nor anywhere in the nt) says that tongues are necessary for gifts. in fact, in 1 cor 14, when paul speaks of tongues he says that 'i wish that you all spoke in tongues', not 'you all should speak in tongues'; he nowhere says that they should seek the baptism of the holy spirit however...

1. theology has room for questions
2. your gifts...

you received them

- 1 cor 1:4-7 "every spiritual gift"
- 1 cor 4:7 "what do you have that you did not receive?"
- they are called gifts for a reason...do not be proud

you are better at somethings than at others

12:4 Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit.
12:5 And there are different ministries, but the same Lord.
12:6 And there are different results, but the same God who produces all of them in everyone.
12:7 To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the benefit of all.
12:8 For one person is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit,

you are responsible for them

- matthew 25:14-30 parable of the talents

3. do something to help out

- you have a duty in the church - edify the body
- you have a duty in the world - make disciples