SPIRITUAL GIFTS. Pastor William E. Wenstrom Jr. WENSTROM BIBLE MINISTRIES Marion, Iowa 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr.

Transcription

1 SPIRITUAL GIFTS Pastor William E. Wenstrom Jr. WENSTROM BIBLE MINISTRIES Marion, Iowa 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries

2 Spiritual Gifts Introduction The Scriptures teach that at the moment of conversion, each and every church age believer has been given a spiritual gift for the purpose of serving other members of the body of Christ (1 Peter 4:10; 1 Corinthians 12:7). The distribution of spiritual gifts was authorized by the Lord Jesus Christ as a result of His strategic victory over Satan at the cross during the dispensation of the hypostatic union (Ephesians 4:7-10). However, the actual appointment of the believer s spiritual gift is made by God the Holy Spirit as per 1 Corinthians 12:11. Spiritual gifts are stewardships for which the believer will have to give an account to the Lord. They are also assignments of position within the body of Christ. Identification of one s spiritual gift and production from this gift is a direct result of spiritual growth which can only be achieved through the consistent and persistent learning and applying of the Word of God which in turn enables the Holy Spirit to identify for you, your spiritual gift. Just as a car operates on gas so the believer s spiritual gift operates on God s love. This is indicated in that in Romans 12 after Paul discusses spiritual gifts in verses 6-8, he then discusses loving one s fellow believer in verses Also, after discussing spiritual gifts extensively in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul then discusses the importance of the believer operating in the love of God in 1 Corinthians 13 and even teaches that loving one s fellow Christian is more important than spiritual gifts since they run on love. The believer discovers for himself or herself and manifests to others their spiritual gift by loving God and their fellow believer. The nature of spiritual gifts is important for the believer to understand. First of all, they are never merited or earned. Gifts are a special grace-given ability (nature or essence). They are given by the Holy Spirit to each believer in Christ. Spiritual gifts are for service to the body of Christ that it may grow quantitatively (evangelism), qualitatively (edification), and organically (developed ministries and offices in the church). Ultimately, they are for the glory of God. Spiritual gifts are God s special gifts given to believers to enable them for special service to the body of Christ and in the world. When related to the gift of ministry or service or helps, it may include natural talents received at birth. A spiritual gift is not an office in the local church like pastor or deacon. Certain gifts are needed to function effectively in those offices, but an office and a gift are not the same thing. It is not a particular geographical area or a place of service. It is the ability to serve, not the place where one serves. A spiritual gift is not a particular specialty or method of ministry. The gift of teaching may be used 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1

3 through radio or through writing or through the classroom, etc. It is not a certain personality type (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 with 2 Corinthians 10:10). Ephesians 4:8 There are two categories of spiritual gifts: (1) Temporary: Functioned only during the pre-canon period of the Church Age (1 Corinthians 13:8, 10). (2) Permanent: Function during the pre and post-canon period of the church age. The following gifts were temporary and had disappeared by 96 A.D.: (1) Apostleship (2) Prophecy (3) Miracles (4) Tongues (5) Interpretation of Tongues (6) Knowledge and Wisdom (7) Discerning spirits (8) Temporary gift of faith (9) Healing. The gift of apostleship no longer exists since there are only twelve apostles and the last one went home to be with the Lord in 96 A.D. The gifts of prophecy, knowledge, wisdom, faith and the discerning of spirits no longer exist since they were to fill the void until the canon of Scripture was completed. The gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues no longer exist today since they were given to evangelize Jewish unbelievers who were dispersed throughout the Roman Empire and spoke foreign languages. The gifts of healing and miracles were to establish the authority of the apostles and authenticate that the Lord Jesus Christ sent them. The following gifts are permanent: (1) Pastor-teacher (2) Evangelist (3) Administrations (4) Helps (5) Administrations. In Ephesians 4:8, Paul paraphrases Psalm 68:18 in order to teach the qualifications of Christ and His authority to authorize the distribution of spiritual gifts to individuals who have trusted in Him as their Savior. Ephesians 4:8 Therefore it says, WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH, HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES, AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN. (NASB95) When He ascended on high refers to the ascension of the impeccable human nature of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to the right hand of the Father as a result of His death on the cross, which was in obedience to the Father s will. He gave gifts to men refers to the fact that when Christ ascended into heaven and was seated at the right hand of the Father, ten days later on the day of Pentecost, He first authorized the Holy Spirit to distribute to each individual who trusts in Him as their Savior, a spiritual gift, which is designed to glorify Him. For years, the body of Christ, the church, has been hampered by a clergy mentality that makes a strong distinction between the professional clergy and the lay person. This clergy or minister mentality fails to see and function under the New Testament truth that every believer is in full-time Christian service since 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2

4 every believer is a ministering priest who is to be ministering for the common good of the body of Christ according to the gifts God has given him. Most people view the pastor as a paid professional to preach, teach, counsel, visit, and keep the administrative wheels running smoothly. Believers individually and the church as a whole exist to be good stewards of the truth of God in evangelism and discipleship through the exercise of the gifted members of the body of Christ. We exist for the mission of propagating the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world and building up other believers in the Christian faith so that they become healthy ministering saints. And while other factors hurt this mission, certainly one very large contributing factor is the clergy/layman, retailer/consumer mentality that is so prevalent in our society. The idea of becoming a mission-oriented church with every believer a minister scares people. They are much more comfortable with the concept of paying others to do the work of ministry for them. But the New Testament teaches us that church leaders are to be like coaches who should be training others for the work of ministry according to the spiritual gifts of each believer (Ephesians 4:11-16). This clergy/layman mentality has produced a crisis in the church today that is having serious consequences on the spiritual health of the body of Christ. Romans 12:6a-There Is a Diversity of Spiritual Gifts in The Body of Christ According to God s Grace The apostle Paul in Romans 12:6a teaches that there is a diversity of spiritual gifts in the body of Christ according to God s grace. Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. 3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. 4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith. 7 If service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. (NASB95) 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 3

5 In Romans 12:6, not translated is the sequential use of the conjunction de, which introduces a statement that follows logically the previous statement. In the apodosis of the comparative clause in Romans 12:5, Paul teaches because all Christians are one body in union with Christ, thus logically speaking they are members individually belonging to one another. Romans 12:4 Because in fact, just as in one body, we, as a physiological fact, possess many members however all the members, as a physiological fact, by no means possess the same function 5 so in the same way, we, the many, as an eternal spiritual truth, exist as one body in union with Christ, thus logically are, as an eternal spiritual truth, members individually belonging to one another. (Author s translation) Now here in Romans 12:6, Paul continues to advance upon his statements from the previous comparative clause in Romans 12:4-5. In this verse, he teaches that because all Christians are one body in union with Christ and thus logically members individually belonging to one another thus logically speaking they possess spiritual gifts that differ from each other according to God s grace policy. Some contend that the conjunction de in Romans 12:6 introduces a statement that transitions from a discussion that emphasizes the importance of the Christian maintaining a humble attitude with regards to self and other members of the Christian community to a discussion regarding spiritual gifts and their function. Interpreting de as transitional would support the interpretation of the participle form of the verb echo, we have as functioning as an indicative. However, the participle functioning as an indicative is quite rare. Furthermore, it is more likely that Paul in Romans 12:6 is continuing a progression of thought from Romans 12:1-5. In Romans 12:1, the apostle Paul appealed to his Christian readers in Rome on the basis of the merciful acts of the Father on their behalf to offer their bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing to the Father, which their reasonable service to the Father. Romans 12:1 Therefore, I appeal to each and every one of you spiritual brothers and sisters on the basis of the merciful acts produced by God the Father to offer your bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing and beneficial to God the Father, which is your reasonable service. (Author s translation) Then, in Romans 12:2, Paul prohibited his Christian readers in Rome from being conformed to the standards of the cosmic system of Satan. Romans 12:2a Consequently, do not conform your behavior in accordance with the standards of this age. (Author s translation) He then issued a command on the heels of this prohibition to be transformed in their character into the image of Christ by the renewing of their minds. He teaches that this transformation of the believer s character into the image of Christ by 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 4

6 renovating their mind accomplishes what the Father intended in that it provides the believer the capacity to discern what the will of God is with regards to any situation. Romans 12:2b On the contrary, permit yourselves to be transformed by renovating your mind in order that each and every one of you may discern what is, as an eternal spiritual truth, God the Father s will, that which is good as well as extremely pleasing and in addition perfect. (Author s translation) In Romans 12:3, Paul forbid his readers from thinking more highly of themselves than they were obligated to think. Romans 12:3a In fact, by means of the spiritual gift, which was assigned to me for the benefit of myself and others I say for the benefit of each and every person, namely those who are at this particular time living among all of you not to think more highly of oneself than what one is, as an eternal spiritual truth, obligated to think. (Author s translation) In contrast to this he commanded that they think properly about themselves, which is accomplished by obeying the command in Romans 12:2 to renovate one s mind. Thinking properly about themselves would be consistent with the objective standard that the Father distributed to each believer by which they can accurately and objectively form an opinion of themselves, namely justifying faith. Romans 12:3b On the contrary, make it a habit to think so that you think properly about yourselves consistent with the objective standard God the Father distributed to each and every person without exception for their benefit, namely justifying faith. (Author s translation) Then, in Romans 12:4-5, Paul teaches that the reason why it is essential that the believer maintain a humble attitude toward self is that like the human body has many members with differing functions so they are one body in Christ and individually members of one another. There two verses form a comparative clause, which compares the different parts of the human body that have various functions that benefit the body as a whole with the individuals who compose the Christian community that also have various functions that benefit the community as a whole. Romans 12:4 Because in fact, just as in one body, we, as a physiological fact, possess many members however all the members, as a physiological fact, by no means possess the same function 5 so in the same way, we, the many, as an eternal spiritual truth, exist as one body in union with Christ, thus logically are, as an eternal spiritual truth, members individually belonging to one another. (Author s translation) The comparative clause in Romans 12:4-5 teaches that the Roman believers should obey his command in Romans 12:3 because just as the human body has 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 5

7 many members with diverse functions so the Christian community is one body in union and identified with Christ and thus individually members of one another. The implication is that Paul s reader need to maintain a humble attitude about themselves and avoid being arrogant because they need each other to function effectively as a group since they have different functions which benefits the entire group just as the human body has different parts with different functions. Therefore, the implication of this is that maintaining a humble attitude is essential in order to serve the body of Christ. Now, in Romans 12:6, he advances upon the idea by teaching that because all Christians are one body in union with Christ and thus logically members individually belonging to one another, thus logically speaking they possess spiritual gifts that differ from each other according to God s grace policy. It is logical because just as the human body has different members with different functions that contribute to the proper function of the body as a whole so the Christian community has different members with different functions or spiritual gifts that contribute to the proper function of the Christian community as a whole. Therefore, Romans 12:6a is a continuation of the body metaphor in Romans 12:4-5 rather than a new sentence and a transition of thought as many commentators interpret this verse and many English translations do as well. Then, in Romans 12:6b-8, Paul goes a step further in the progression and identifies the various spiritual gifts and their function. Romans 12:6a Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly. (NASB95) We have is the first person plural nominative masculine plural present active participle form of the verb echo, which means, to experience one what one possesses which is identified as spiritual gifts as indicated by the accusative neuter plural form of the noun charisma, gifts. Romans 12:6-8 is notorious as being a difficult passage to interpret and translate. One of the difficulties with this passage is tied to a misunderstanding of the proper contextual meaning of the verb echo and how its participle form functions. Nearly, all expositors and English translations consider Romans 12:6-8 elliptical and thus supply imperative verbs (NASB; RSV) or a series of them (KJV; NIV; TEV; REB; NJB). Ellipsis is not uncommon in the Greek New Testament, especially in the Pauline corpus. In fact, we have seen many elliptical constructions in Romans. As we also noted earlier, the statement each of us is to exercise them accordingly in Romans 12:6 does not appear in the original text since the translators interpret Paul as using the figure of ellipsis meaning that this statement is implied. They believe that the qualifications for each gift listed in Romans 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 6

8 12:6b-8 reflect an underlying hortatory sense meaning that Paul is exhorting his readers to exercise these gifts. Also, the majority interpret echo as denoting simply possession. However, the verb can often contain the idea of experiencing something (See A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature-Third Edition, page 421; (See Dunn, James D.G., Word Biblical Commentary, volume 38b, Romans 9-16; page 726; Thomas Nelson, 1988). That echo means to experience what one possesses is indicated when Paul speaks of the seven spiritual gifts he lists in Romans 12:6b-8, he is emphasizing their function within the body of Christ and not merely that the Roman believers possess these gifts. You cannot experience the benefits of spiritual gifts without their function. If echo means experience what one possesses as we contend, then this does away with the idea that the passage is elliptical since this meaning fits nicely with the first prepositional phrase in Romans 12:6, kata ten analogian tes pisteos, according to the proportion of faith. Thus, the verb echo denotes that the Christian community possesses and experiences spiritual gifts: if the function of prophecy, according to the absolute standard, which is the Christian faith. It also goes nicely with the remaining six prepositional phrases that have an instrumental force: en te diakonia, in his serving (verse 7), en te didaskalia, in his teaching (verse 7), en te paraklesei, in his exhortation (verse 8), en haploteti, with liberality (verse 8), en spoude, with diligence (verse 8) and en hilarotet, with cheerfulness. This indicates that the Christian community possesses and experiences these spiritual gifts: if service, by means of service, or if a teacher, by means of teaching, or if exhortation, by means of exhorting, if giving or sharing, with simplicity, if leadership, with diligence, if one who gives grace, with cheerfulness. Therefore, the verb echo does have some idea of possession but it also contains the idea of experiencing something as well. Thus, it means to experience what one possesses indicating that the Christian community experiences spiritual gifts because they possess them. Thus, spiritual gifts are not merely possessions but are to be exercised and are manifested through activities that benefit the entire community. The participle form of the verb echo is a result participle, which is used to indicate the actual outcome or result of the action of the main verb. The main verb appears in Romans 12:5 and is the first person plural present active indicative form of the verb eimi, which was deliberately omitted by Paul due to his use of the figure of ellipsis and which we will translate we are, as an eternal spiritual truth William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 7

9 Romans 12:4 Because in fact, just as in one body, we, as a physiological fact, possess many members however all the members, as a physiological fact, by no means possess the same function 5 so in the same way, we, the many, as an eternal spiritual truth, exist as one body in union with Christ, thus logically are, as an eternal spiritual truth, members individually belonging to one another. (Author s translation) The participle of result will follow in word order the main verb, which is the case here. Therefore, as a participle of result, echo indicates that Paul and his fellow Christians in Rome are a corporate unit, analogous to the members of the human body individually belonging to one another with the result that they all possess and experience spiritual gifts. Some interpret this participle as functioning as an indicative and thus standing alone in a declarative sense in the sentence. However, this use of the participle is quite rare as we noted before as well. Also, the conjunction de in Romans 12:6 is continuing the discussion of the body metaphor in Romans 12:4-5. In Romans 12:6, Paul advances upon the idea by teaching that because all Christians are one body in union with Christ and thus logically members individually belonging to one another, thus logically speaking they experience spiritual gifts that differ from each other according to God s grace policy. It is logical because just as the human body has different members with different functions that contribute to the proper function of the body as a whole so the Christian community has different members with different functions or spiritual gifts that contribute to the proper function of the Christian community as a whole. Therefore, the participle is not indicative since Romans 12:6 is a continuation of the body metaphor in Romans 12:4-5. The first person plural form of the verb refers Paul and his fellow Christians in Rome who are all sinners who have been declared justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ. The word functions a nominative subject meaning that the subject produces the action of the verb. The subject in our passage is embedded in the verb and refers to Paul and his fellow Christians in Rome as a corporate unit. They produce the action of the verb of possessing and experiencing spiritual gifts. The present tense is a gnomic present, which is used for a general timeless fact or spiritual axiom, or an eternal spiritual truth. It does not say that something is happening but rather that something does happen. This indicates that every church age believer does possess and experience a spiritual gift. The active voice of the verb is stative emphasizes that Paul and his fellow Christians throughout the world exist in the state of possessing and experiencing spiritual gifts William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 8

10 Gifts is the accusative neuter plural form of the noun charisma, which refers to the various spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit distributed to each believer the moment they were declared justified through faith alone in Christ alone. In Ephesians 4:7-10, the apostle Paul teaches the Ephesians that spiritual gifts are the direct result of Christ s ascension. Grace refers to the fact that at the moment of conversion the Lord Jesus Christ authorized the Holy Spirit to assign each individual believer a position and function in His body by distributing to each believer one spiritual gift. As we mentioned earlier, spiritual gifts are assignments of position in the body of Christ just like a football team has different positions and just as the successful function of each position on the team produces unity and victory so the successful function of each spiritual gift in the body of Christ will produce unity and victory. Spiritual gifts were given to us so that we can serve our fellow believer. Just as the physical body is composed of different members with each member having a different function from the other members so the body of Christ is composed of different members with each member having a different function from the other members. Just as the proper function of the physical body needs each individual member to perform its specific function so the proper function of the body of Christ needs each individual member to perform its specific function by operating in their spiritual gift. Just as a car operates on gas so the believer s spiritual gift operates on God s love. The believer discovers for himself and manifests to others his spiritual gift by loving God and his fellow believer. Therefore, in Romans 12:6, the noun charisma is used of the various spiritual gifts that the Lord Jesus Christ authorizes the Holy Spirit to distribute to each church age believer for the purpose of serving the body of Christ and bringing glory to the Father. Romans 12:6a Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly. (NASB95) That differ is the accusative neuter plural form of the adjective diaphoros, which is modifying the noun charisma, gifts and describes the spiritual gifts that each believer receives at the moment of being declared justified through faith alone in Christ alone as being diverse. According to grace is composed of the preposition kata, according to and the articular accusative feminine singular form of the noun charis, grace. The noun charis refers to God s grace policy towards the justified sinner from which they receive their spiritual gift. This word denotes the sum total of unmerited benefits, both temporal and spiritual, imparted to the justified sinner through the function of the sum total of divine attributes of each member of the Trinity as a result of the sinner making the non-meritorious decision to trust in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 9

11 The preposition kata with the accusative noun charis, grace denotes conformity to a particular standard or policy. Therefore, kata specifies that the Christian community possesses and experiences a diversity of spiritual gifts in accordance with God s grace policy. We will translate kata, according to the grace. Given to us is composed of the articular accusative feminine singular aorist passive participle form of the verb didomi, given and the dative first person plural form of the hemeis, to us. The verb means to give, bestow referring to the justified sinner receiving unmerited blessings on the basis of the object of his faith, Jesus Christ. The aorist tense of the verb didomi is a constative aorist describing in summary fashion the justified sinner receiving grace, i.e. unmerited blessings from God the moment they were declared justified through faith alone in Christ alone. The passive voice means that the sinner who trusts in Jesus Christ as their Savior as the subject receives the action of being given grace. The dative first person plural form of the personal pronoun hemeis refers to those sinners including the apostle Paul who have been declared justified by God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and have received the grace of God in the form of unmerited blessings, which includes a spiritual gift. The word is used in a distributive sense meaning each and every one of us emphasizing that there are no exceptions. The word functions as a dative of advantage meaning that the gift of the Holy Spirit is for the benefit of those sinners who have been declared justified by God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 12:6b-The Temporary Spiritual Gift of Prophecy Was to Function According to The Absolute Standard, Which Is the Christian Faith Romans 12:6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith. 7 If service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. (NASB95) The apostle Paul in Romans 12:6b-8 lists seven different spiritual gifts that are within the body of Christ. He places them into two groups with one group containing four and the second three. The first three gifts are introduced by the conjunction eite, if if. However, the last three have no introductory particle. If if is the conjunction eite, which appears four times in Romans 12:6b-8, once in Romans 12:6, twice in Romans 12:7 and once in Romans 12:8 and is used 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 10

12 in a copulative sense to present a list of seven spiritual gifts. This construction can be translated if if or whether or. We will choose the latter. Prophecy is the accusative feminine singular form of the noun propheteia, which refers to the exercise of the temporary or discontinued spiritual gift of being a prophet. This gift is no longer existent since it existed during the pre-canon period of the church age to fill the void until the New Testament canon had been completed. The word is used for this spiritual gift in 1 Corinthians 12:10, 13:2 and 14:22. The gift of prophecy is referred to by the word prophetes, prophet in Ephesians 2:20, 3:5 and 4:11. In Romans 12:6, the noun propheteia refers to the exercise of the temporary or discontinued spiritual gift of being a prophet. According to the proportion of his faith is composed of the preposition kata, according to and the articular accusative feminine singular form of the noun analogia, the proportion and the articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun pistis, of his faith. The noun analogia means standard and functions much like the noun metron in Romans 12:3, which we translated objective standard. It means standard and is used with the noun pistis, faith, which refers to the Christian faith or in other words that body of doctrine held by the Christian church. This would also include the gospel since the gospel refers not only in Scripture to the good news proclamation to the unsaved but also to the good news that the Christian has died and been raised with Christ. The noun analogia means that the spiritual gift of prophecy in the first century apostolic church was to function according to the standard of the Christian faith or that body of doctrine that Christians held universally. Therefore, the spiritual gift of prophesy was to be exercised according to the standard of the Christian faith, i.e. the Word of God or the body of Christian doctrine. The articular construction of the word is monadic indicating that this standard is unique in that it is that body of doctrine universally received from the Lord Jesus Christ and the apostles. In Romans 12:6, the noun pistis is used in a passive sense referring to the body of Christian doctrine or the Christian faith. Therefore, Paul is teaching that the spiritual gift of prophesy was to function in agreement with that body of Christian doctrine or Christian faith. The articular construction indicates that this body of doctrine is unique to Christianity or the Christian community. The word also functions as an epexegetical genitive or genitive of definition meaning that it is defining or explaining the noun analogia, the standard that it stands in apposition to William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 11

13 The preposition kata with the accusative noun pistis, faith denotes conformity to a particular standard or policy. Therefore, kata specifies that the spiritual gift of prophesy was to function in the Christian community according to the standard, which is the Christian faith, i.e. Christian doctrine or in other words, the Word of God. This prepositional phrase indicates that the content of what the Christian with the spiritual gift of prophesy communicated to the Christian community was to be in agreement with Christian faith, i.e. the Word of God. In other words it could never contradict the Word of God or the revelation already universally received by the Christian church in the first century through the apostles. Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 14:29-33 that the church was to pass judgment on the message of the prophet. Of course, they were to do so by comparing the prophetic message with their Old Testament Scriptures and the revelation already received universally by the Christian church. This would determine if the prophet s message was from God. The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit inside the Corinthian believers would bear witness to the prophet s message if it was from God or not. In the Old Testament, an inspired prophet could be identified using the tests for prophets in Deuteronomy 13:1-5; 18: In the first century, apostolic church an inspired prophet could be identified by those who had the gift of distinguishing of spirits (1 Corinthians 12:10). The apostle John warned his readers about false prophets. In 1 John 4:1-6, he teaches that the believer can discern the false teachers from Satan s cosmic system by their viewpoint or attitude towards the Person of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. If you recall, the comparative clause in Romans 12:4-5 teaches that the Roman believers should obey his command in Romans 12:3 because just as the human body has many members with diverse functions so the Christian community is one body in union and identified with Christ and thus individually members of one another. The implication is that Paul s reader need to maintain a humble attitude about themselves and avoid being arrogant because they need each other to function effectively as a group since they have different functions which benefits the entire group just as the human body has different parts with different functions. Therefore, the implication of this is that maintaining a humble attitude is essential in order to serve the body of Christ. Now, in Romans 12:6, he advances upon the idea by teaching that because all Christians are one body in union with Christ and thus logically members individually belonging to one another, thus logically speaking they possess spiritual gifts that differ from each other according to God s grace policy. It is logical because just as the human body has different members with different functions that contribute to the proper function of the body as a whole so the 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 12

14 Christian community has different members with different functions or spiritual gifts that contribute to the proper function of the Christian community as a whole. Therefore, Romans 12:6a is a continuation of the body metaphor in Romans 12:4-5 rather than a new sentence and a transition of thought as many commentators interpret this verse and many English translations do as well. Then, in Romans 12:6b-8, Paul goes a step further in the progression and identifies the various spiritual gifts and their function. In Romans 12:6, Paul teaches that the Christian community possesses and experiences diverse spiritual gifts that were given for the benefit of the body of Christ in accordance with God s grace policy. He also teaches that these spiritual gifts were given for the benefit of each and every member of the body of Christ indicating that not only were they a benefit for those who possessed these gifts but also for those who benefited from their function. Then, he presents the first of seven spiritual gifts by noting the temporary spiritual gift of prophecy, which was to function according to the absolute standard, which is the Christian faith or that body of doctrine held universally held by the Christian community. Romans 12:7-The Function of The Spiritual Gifts of Service and Teacher Romans 12:7 If service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching. (NASB95) Service is the accusative feminine singular form of the noun diakonia, which refers to the function of the permanent spiritual gift of service and is synonymous with helps in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and whoever serves in 1 Peter 4:11. The gift of service or helps expresses itself in a variety of ways that aid the church and its members. Often individuals who hold the office of deacon have this gift. This word does not refer to a deacon since being a deacon is not a spiritual gift since it was not a gift from the Holy Spirit. Rather, the office of deacon was established by the apostles to meet a need in the first century apostolic church in Jerusalem and they were elected by the Jerusalem congregation according to Acts 6:1-6. Thus, diakonia in Romans 12:7 cannot possibly refer to being a deacon as a spiritual gift since spiritual gifts are assigned by the Holy Spirit as authorized by the Lord Jesus Christ. The gift of service or helps is manifested in a multitude of ways in the sense that it can be manifested through cleaning the church building or the homes of those who are in need or are incapacitated. It is manifested by those who maintain the upkeep of the church building by performing carpentry work, electrical work or mowing the lawn of the church building or those who are in need and are incapacitated. Construction work can manifest this gift by the construction of a church building William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 13

15 This gift can manifest itself in cooking by providing meals for the body of Christ at funerals, weddings or pot-lucks or food for families who have lost loved ones. It can manifest itself in the publications department of a ministry whether editing the pastor s books or producing them. The gift can involve maintaining the website of your church or taking care of the computers of the pastor and the church. This gift manifests itself through financial or accounting work by keeping the books of the church and overseeing its finances. The gift of service or helps is manifested through helping out in the prepschool by teaching the children. The Bible does not teach that women have the gift of teaching but only men as we will see when we study the verb didasko. However, women do manifest the gift of helps or service by serving in the prep-school and teaching children or immature Christian women with regards to how to love their husbands and children the way the Bible prescribes (See Titus 2:3). Therefore, we can see that this gift is absolutely essential for the body of Christ since its function encompasses a wide range of activities unlike the gift of pastor-teacher, which functions through studying and teaching or the evangelist, communicating the gospel to the unsaved. In his serving is composed of the preposition en, in and the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun diakonia, his serving. The preposition en functions as a marker of means and the noun diakonia as a dative instrumental of means indicating the means by which the action of the verb echo, as a result we, as an eternal spiritual truth, do possess and experience is accomplished. This indicates that the function of the spiritual gift of service, i.e. helps is experienced by the body of Christ (those who are its beneficiaries and by those who have the gift) by means of serving. He who teaches is the articular nominative masculine singular present active participle form of the verb didasko, which means, to teach, to educate, to train, to impart information in a public assembly. In Romans 12:7, the verb didasko refers to the function of the permanent spiritual gift of teaching or communicating the Word of God to the congregation. This involves the responsibility of being devoted to studying and teaching the Word of God (1 Timothy 4:11; 6:2; 2 Timothy 2:15, 24; Ezra 7:10). It also involves being devoted to prayer (Acts 6:1-6) and to exemplify the Christian way of life (1 Timothy 4:11-12; Hebrews 13:7). The noun didaskalos, teachers is used to signify this gift of teaching in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and in Ephesians 4:11. In Romans 12:7, the noun didaskalia refers to the activity or function of the spiritual gift of teaching the Word of God. The preposition en functions as a marker of means and the noun didaskalia as a dative instrumental of means indicating the means by which the action of the verb didasko, the one whose 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 14

16 function it is to teach is accomplished. This indicates that the function of the spiritual gift of teacher is manifested by means of teaching the Word of God. Romans 12:8-The Permanent Spiritual Gifts of Encouragement, Giving, Leadership and Compassion Romans 12:8 Or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. (NASB95) He who exhorts is the articular nominative masculine singular present active participle form of the verb parakaleo, which means to encourage and refers to the function of the permanent spiritual gift of encouraging members of the body of Christ to live in a manner worthy of their calling, to grow up to become like Christ. This gift manifests itself in the person who gives advice to other members of the body of Christ that is consistent with Scripture and under the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. It manifests itself by encouraging other believers to live according to the Word of God and can involve not only encouraging but also warning other believers in a humble and loving way when they are going astray from doing the will of God. This spiritual gift can involve comforting those members of the body of Christ who have lost love ones or are experiencing suffering whether emotionally or physically. It can manifest itself through helping and giving support to a weaker, or immature believer when they are having problems with a certain temptation or difficult trial that they are facing. This spiritual gift can involve helping those members of the body of Christ deal with a particular burden that is too heavy to bear alone. It can manifest itself by simply being available to another believer when they need someone to talk to so as to encourage them when they are depressed, frustrated or grieving. The spiritual gift of encouraging can also manifest itself by helping other members of the body of Christ understand and apply that which is taught by the pastor-teacher. Though all believers are commanded to encourage one another according to 1 Thessalonians 4:18 and 5:11, the spiritual gift of encouraging functions or manifests itself in a manner that goes beyond what is normally exercised by Christians who obey the command to encourage one another. To encourage another believer demands that one knows the Word of God and how to apply God s will in any given situation. In his exhortation is composed of the preposition en, in and the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun paraklesis, his exhortation William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 15

17 The noun paraklesis refers to the activity or function of the spiritual gift of encouraging other members of the body of Christ. The preposition en functions as a marker of means and the noun paraklesis as a dative instrumental of means indicating the means by which the action of the verb parakaleo, the one whose function it is to encourage is accomplished. This indicates that the function of the spiritual gift of encouragement is manifested by means of encouraging members of the body of Christ. He who gives is the articular nominative masculine singular present active participle form of the verb metadidomi, which refers to the function of the permanent spiritual gift of giving, which involves distributing one s own money to others and is to be done with simplicity, i.e., with no thought of return or gain for self in any way. Though all believers are commanded to give to one another (Matthew 5:42; 10:8) the spiritual gift of giving functions or manifests itself in a manner that goes beyond what is normally exercised by Christians who obey the command to give to one another. This gift is not given to wealthy believers only but rather it is given to believers regardless of their social or economic status. The believer who exercises this gift properly will enjoy giving of himself and his possessions and will do so without a desire for thanks or recognition. The one who exercises this gift properly will not give because of a sense of duty or obligation or for approbation but simply because they enjoy giving, it brings them great joy and happiness to give either material or financial aid to members of the body of Christ. All believers as we noted are commanded by the Lord Jesus Christ to give (Matthew 5:42; 10:8; Luke 6:30, 38). The apostle taught that the church age believer is to contribute to the needs of the royal family of God (Romans 12:13). With liberality is composed of the preposition en, with and the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun haplotes, liberality. The noun haplotes does not denote simplicity here but rather sincerity. The word deals with the issue of pure motives since Paul is not concerned so much with how much is given through the function of this gift but rather the manner in which this gift functions. The person who possesses this gift is to exercise it with pure motives or in other words with sincerity. In Romans 12:8, the preposition en functions as a marker of manner and the noun haplotes as a dative instrumental of manner indicating the manner by which the action of the verb metadidomi, the one whose function it is to give is accomplished. This indicates that the spiritual gift of giving is to function with sincerity or purity of motives. This is not an instrumental of means since the word haplotes is an abstract noun whereas as an instrumental of means employs a concrete noun as we saw with the gifts of serving, teaching and encouraging William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 16

18 Also, this prepositional phrase en haploteti can be translated adverbially as sincerely, which is a further indication that this prepositional phrase signifies the manner in which the spiritual gift of giving is to function rather than the means by which it is to function. He who leads is the articular nominative masculine singular present middle participle form of the verb proistemi, which in the middle voice means to devote oneself to the exercise or function of leadership and refers to the function of the permanent spiritual gift of leadership. It is permanent in that it was not discontinued with the completion of the canon of Scripture as was the case with the gift of prophecy. This gift is identified by Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:28 as administrations which translates the noun kubernesis. 1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. (NASB95) The noun kubernesis is related to the verb kubernao, which means to steer a ship. It is used figuratively in classical Greek of statesmen meaning the government of states and of deity meaning divine governance. It is used three times in the Septuagint of wise counsel or direction and appears only once in the Greek New Testament and means administration. In 1 Corinthians 12:28, this word refers to the spiritual gift of leadership and those men who help the pastor-teacher lead and administrate the affairs of the church. Those individuals who possess this gift of leadership, along with the pastorteachers, help compose the leadership of the local church. These individuals often hold the office of deacon, which remember is not a spiritual gift since it was established by the apostles and those who were deacons were elected by the Jerusalem congregation according to Acts 6:1-6. The spiritual gift of leadership does not signify an ecclesiastical office but rather is a gift that manifests itself in leading the local assembly in various ways. Those individuals with this gift are often found in the board of directors of local churches. Like the gift of teaching, only men have been given the gift of leadership by the Holy Spirit since Paul teaches in 1 Timothy 2:12-14 that a woman is prohibited from exercising authority over men because of the divine order and because Eve was deceived and Adam was not. Now, like the pastor-teacher, those believers with the gift of leadership are to adhere to the principles of leadership taught by the Lord Jesus Christ, namely, humility William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 17

19 With diligence is composed of the preposition en, with and the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun spoude, diligence. The noun spoude means diligence, which denotes constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken. Therefore, the man with the spiritual gift of leadership is to exercise his gift with diligence in the sense that he is to be constantly and earnestly devoted to working hard on behalf of the body of Christ to lead them. The word denotes that the man with the gift of leadership is to be zealous in going about the task of leading the body of Christ. The preposition en functions as a marker of manner and the noun spoude as a dative instrumental of manner indicating the manner by which the action of the verb proistemi, the one who devotes himself to exercising leadership is accomplished. This indicates that the man with the spiritual gift of leadership is to exercise this gift with diligence. This is not an instrumental of means since the word spoude is an abstract noun whereas as an instrumental of means employs a concrete noun as we saw with the gifts of serving, teaching and encouraging. Also, this prepositional phrase en spoude can be translated adverbially as diligently, which is a further indication that this prepositional phrase signifies the manner in which the spiritual gift of leadership is to function rather than the means by which it is to function. He who shows mercy is the articular nominative masculine singular present active participle form of the verb eleeo, which refers to the permanent gift of compassion. It should be called the gift of compassion rather than mercy because the latter has the connotation of withholding judgment whereas the former connotes the intense desire to act to alleviate the pain and suffering of another or remove its cause (1 John 3:16-17). This gift has been given to both men and women in the body of Christ and is a permanent gift in that unlike the gift of prophecy it was not discontinued with the completion of the canon of Scripture. Though all believers are commanded to be compassionate towards one another according to Ephesians 4:32 and 1 John 3:16-17, the spiritual gift of compassion functions or manifests itself in a manner that goes beyond what is normally exercised by Christians who obey the command to encourage one another. Like all spiritual gifts, the exercise of the gift of compassion is for the benefit of the body of Christ. Specifically, it is directed towards those in the body of Christ who are suffering, whether physically, emotionally or spiritually. It can involve feeding the hungry in the body of Christ and caring for those who are sick in the body of Christ as well as caring for the elderly and the disabled. Like the function of all spiritual gifts, the gift of compassion is an expression of God s love that is manifested in the body of Christ. As is the case with the gifts of service (aka helps), encouraging, giving, leadership, those with the gift of 2016 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 18