23. The Epistle of 1Peter 4:10

Transcription

1 23. The Epistle of 1Peter 4:10 The Gifts of the Holy Spirit Pt.5 (5/23/18) We have taken a little detour in our study in 1Peter, using chapter 4:10 as a springboard to launch us into a study on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Verse 10 reads, As each one has received a gift (of the Holy Spirit), minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. As we have already said, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are vital to the overall health and function of the local church which is why Paul in 1Cor.12:1 tells us we must not be ignorant as to what they are and how they work. When it comes to spiritual gifts the most comprehensive list of the gifts comes out of 1Corinthians 12 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 (NKJV) 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. And then at the end of 1Corinthians 12 he adds the gift of helps and administrations. In Romans 12 he talks about the gifts of ministry, teaching (Peter mentions these two in 1Peter 4:11), exhortation, giving, leadership and mercy. 1

2 Last week in our study we finished looking at the gift of miracles. The next gifts on the list are: prophecy, discerning of spirits, tongues and the interpretation of tongues. In 1Corinthians 14 Paul devotes almost the entire chapter to explaining the gifts of prophecy, tongues and the interpretation of tongues so let s study the gift of discerning of spirits and then finish studying the other gifts before we jump over to 1Corinthians 14 to study those last three. The gift of discerning of spirits Matthew 24:24 (NKJV) 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 (NKJV) 13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. Satan is a deceiver and a counterfeiter. The problem is, he is so good at deceiving and counterfeiting that it is often impossible to discern the true from the false using our natural senses and human understanding that is where the spiritual gift of discerning of spirits comes in. What is the gift of discerning of spirits? First of all let s define the word discerning it comes from the root of the Greek word krino. 2

3 The word krino means to judge. The basic meaning of discerning is as follows separating out for examination and judging in order to determine what is genuine and what is false. Satan is the the father of lies (John 8:44), and ever since the Fall he and his demons have counterfeited God s Word and God s work to deceive and mislead believers and potential believers into error and away from God s truth. All Christians should judge carefully what they hear and read in the way of Christian teaching and not just blindly accept it because the author or teacher has a large ministry. When it comes to discernment there are two different kinds: 1. Learned discernment Hebrews 5:12-14 (NKJV) 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. 2 Peter 2:1-2 (NKJV) 1 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 1 Timothy 4:16 (NKJV) 16 Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you. As we get closer to the Second Coming of Christ He told us that false teachers and false prophets would increase. 3

4 Today we see many claiming to be servants of God who speak on behalf of God. They call themselves pastors, preachers, prophets and even apostles but as Paul warned they are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. (Like NAR "New Apostolic Reformation ) Yet many Christians accept these people as men and women of God because they lack discernment or refuse to test all things and hold fast to that which is really of God (1Thess.5:21). As I have pointed out many times in the past Satan has convinced many in the Body of Christ that judging anyone for any reason is wrong their favorite verses to quote are Matt.7:1-2: Matthew 7:1-2 (NKJV) 1 "Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. We are forbidden in Scripture to judge a person s heart motives but we are permitted and even commanded to judge words and actions. 2 Timothy 3:16 (NKJV) 16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, Here Paul is telling us that Scripture is to be used, in part, to reprove and correct wrong or sinful behavior which implies making a judgment. And yet with so many in the Body of Christ convinced that all judging is wrong and forbidden by God it has opened the floodgate in the Church for false teachers to come pouring in Jeremiah 5:31 (NKJV) 31 The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end? 4

5 Jeremiah 14:14 (NKJV) 14 And the Lord said to me, "The prophets prophesy lies in My name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart. And that s why John the apostle said 1 John 4:1 (NKJV) 1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. The only spirit-tester the Lord has given us is His Word and we must hold all teachers and teachings up against the Word of God to prove whether or not these teachers and their teachings are really coming from God John 7:24 (NKJV) 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment." Acts 17:11 (NKJV) 11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. Philippians 1:9 (NKJV) 9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 1. Learned discernment 2. The gift of discernment Now, most of the time you can discern spiritual phonies by holding up their lives and teachings to the Word of God. However sometimes the deception and counterfeit is so subtle there isn t anything really tangible to go on. 5

6 That s where the gift of discerning of spirits becomes so important to the Body of Christ. What is it? It s an impression from the Holy Spirit in your spirit that something is wrong that this person, no matter how kind, spiritual and godly they seem or how blessed their ministry is something isn t right. The impression you re getting is that the Holy Spirit isn t operating thru them. How does it operate? Many times you get an uneasy feeling about a person or situation and you don t really know why. There isn t anything tangible to go on or point to and those that don t have the gift think you re being judgmental and critical hearted if you share it with them. Be careful that you re not being judgmental or critical hearted many Christians think they have the gift of discernment when all they really have is the gift of criticism. We see the gift in operation in Jesus life Matthew 22:15-22 (NKJV) 15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. 16 And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. 17 Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? 6

7 19 Show Me the tax money." So they brought Him a denarius. 20 And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?" 21 They said to Him, "Caesar's." And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." 22 When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way. Here we see two gifts in operation discerning of spirits and the word of wisdom. We see Paul exercise this gift in Act 16 Acts 16:16-18 (NKJV) 16 Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. 17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation." 18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out that very hour. This is significant because it tells us something important about demonic messengers they often speak truth that s what makes them so dangerous (Jesus told us to beware of false teachers). In fact, they often speak so much truth that many in the Body of Christ are convinced they are from God. But it only takes a little poison mixed in a lot of nutritious food to kill you just like false doctrine. I have seen this gift in operation in my life and in Cyndi s many times over the years I am certain that it has been in operation in your life and you weren t even aware of it. (Elaborate) 7

8 But again, be very careful because you can easily mistake a wrong first impression for discernment from God about a person. There have been times when I felt that I had discernment about someone only over the course of time to realize I was wrong about them (Living Water p ) We do need to pray for this gift especially today when the deception is so rampant. I remember a story about D.L. Moody who was preaching in a venue somewhere and kept feeling a heavy spiritual oppression that was hindering what he wanted to share (finish) The church of Satan has over 10,000 to 15,000 members in its San Francisco chapter alone. These often infiltrate Bible teaching churches we need discernment. (Finish with the story of the woman who came into our church and Cyndi discerned she was a witch or Satanist) We now jump down to verse 28 of 1Corinthians 12 for the next gifts of the Holy Spirit The gift of helps The word for helps is a beautiful Greek word, meaning to take the burden off someone else and place it on oneself. Teachers may be the mouths of the Body of Christ but those with the gift of helps are the muscles that allow the body to work and get things done. This is one of those ministries that Paul had just mentioned in 1Corinthians 12 that doesn t receive a lot of attention or honor. 8

9 And yet like the circulatory system in your body is invisible to the naked eye it is none the less vital to the function of the physical body. The same is true with the gift of helps it is absolutely vital to the health and function of the Body of Christ. The people who have this gift are always looking for ways to help in church and serve the Body. You don t have to even ask them to help they just look for things to do. They are the first to volunteer whenever there is a church function. They re always picking up, cleaning up, carrying in and helping to set up so church can happen. They re like the worker bees in a bee colony they make church possible! These are the quiet saints who serve in relative obscurity often in secret but the Lord who sees in secret will surely reward them openly someday! Just like the man who came in every Saturday night to sharpen the pencils that sat in holders on the backs of the pews This of course is in contrast to those who help in the church while they constantly complain Why do I have to do this, why can t someone else do something around here besides me If you find yourself resenting the things you are doing in ministry which are really being done for the Lord by all means stop doing it! 9

10 The Lord isn t pleased with service done out of complaining heart He loves a cheerful giver. So, if you can t serve Him with joy don t serve Him at all. I believe that Timothy had the gift of helps and used it to help Paul with his ministry. Someone has said that Paul would have never been as great an apostle, he would never have done as much for the Lord as he did without the help of Timothy. To the Philippians Paul speaks of Epaphroditus as my fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need, risking his life to complete what was deficient in your service to me (Phil. 2:25, 30). Whatever other gifts he may have had, Epaphroditus clearly had the gift of helps and ministered it faithfully. The gift of administrations The next gift Paul mentions in 1Cor.12:28 is the gift of administrations. The word administrations comes from a Greek word that means to steer or pilot a ship. This is a spiritual gift usually given by the Holy Spirit to elders in the church so that they will have the ability to properly steer the church and keep it on the right course 1 Timothy 5:17 (NKJV) 17 Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. 10

11 However, there are those in the Body who are not elders who have this gift those who run women s ministries, Christian schools, or even Para-church organizations. 1 Corinthians 12:29-31 (NKJV) 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the best gifts The Greek construction of these verses tells us that Paul was asking rhetorical questions in other words he was looking for a no response to each of these questions. No individual believer possesses all the gifts of the Spirit each believer has the gift (or gifts) given to them by the Holy Spirit for whatever ministry the Lord has called him or her to do. What did Paul mean when he admonished us to earnestly desire the best gifts what constitutes the best gifts? I don t know what ministries are you involved in? In my garage I have a variety of saws (rip saw, hack saw, hole saw ) if you were to ask me which of my saws was the best I would have to ask you what you need to cut. You see the job determines which is the best saw and the same is true with regard to what gift is the best gift. Every Wednesday night and Sunday morning as I m driving to church I always ask the Lord to give me 4 gifts prophecy, the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge and the gift of exhortation. 11

12 Now during the week if I have to counsel as I m driving to my office or the coffee shop I m meeting the person at I always pray that the Lord will give me the gift of discerning of spirits and word of knowledge and always prophecy (the Lord speaking thru me). If I have to visit someone in the hospital I ask for the gift of mercy and any other gifts the Lord would see fit to give me to equip me to minister at that time. These gifts are important but Paul said at the end of v.31 And yet I show you a more excellent way. (Explain) As important as the gifts of the Holy Spirit are, and the Corinthian church had all of them (ch.1) they are nothing compared to the love of God being demonstrated in a local church. Remember, we have been looking at the gifts of the Holy Spirit which are different from the fruit of the Holy Spirit, of which love (agape) leads the list in Galatians 5:22. Gifts are given and can be used immediately by even a new believer in Christ. But where gifts are given fruit is grown over time as we stay close to Jesus and is an evidence of spiritual maturity. Next week, we ll continue our study in the gifts of the Holy Spirit and how they become tools in building His Kingdom on the earth. 12