1 Corinthians 12
Everett1 Corinthians 12:1-14
Paul Speaks Concerning Spiritual Gifts – In 1 Corinthians 12:1 to 1 Corinthians 14:40 Paul teaches the church at Corinth about the operations of the gifts of the Spirit. Although chapters 12-14 deal at length with the operation of the gifts of Spirit, other churches founded by Paul operated in these gifts as well. We note in Acts 20:23 that “the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city,” which means that the gifts of utterance were operating in every church that Paul was visiting. Also, it is important to note that Paul deals with unity in the body of Christ in the first eleven chapters before he teaches on the operation and manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in chapters 12-14. One reason is that the love walk that Paul emphasizes in chapter 13 must be in a person’s life in order to maintain the work of the Holy Spirit. When we stop walking in love, the Holy Spirit eventually stops manifesting in and through our lives. Outline – Here is a proposed outline:
- The Spiritual Gifts Explained — 1 Corinthians 12:1-312. The Motive of the Operation of the Gifts — 1 Corinthians 13:1-133. The Gifts of Utterance — 1 Corinthians 14:1-40 The Gifts of the Spirit and the Love Walk - After Paul deals with idolatry and false gods who cannot speak or hear in chapters 8-11, he now turns to the true and living God in chapters 12-14. Here, we see the contrast between the foolishness of idolatry compared to serving the living God, who speaks to His people and manifests Himself in marvelous ways. Chapter 12 discusses the gifts of the Spirit and how they operate with unity in the body of Christ. Chapter 14 discusses the manifestation of the three gifts of utterance, prophecy, tongues and the interpretation of tongues, and how they should operate in a church service. Paul spends much more time on these three gifts of utterance because they are the most easily abused. Finally, Paul balances this teaching with a passage explaining the importance of walking in love as the motive in exercising the gifts in chapter 13. If the gifts are not used in love, then they are of no value to the body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:12-31
The Unity of the Gifts of the Spirit in the Body of Christ – After explaining the diversity of the gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:1-11), Paul then begins to explain how God’s operations are in unity and agreement and how they work together for the good of all. God’s operations do not conflict and bring divisions and conflicting teachings. 1 Corinthians 12:13 — “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body” – Comments – There are three baptisms in New Testament Church. (1) There is the baptism into the body of Christ at the time of salvation. (2) There is water baptism as an outward testimony of one’s salvation experience. (3) There is the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues subsequent to the salvation experience. 1 Corinthians 12:13 refers to the baptism into the body of Christ by the experience of salvation. Romans 6:5 states the same thing in another way. Romans 6:5, “For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:” 1 Corinthians 12:14 For the body is not one member, but many. 1 Corinthians 12:22 — Word Study on “more feeble” – Strong says the Greek word “feeble” (ἀσθένεια) (G769) means, “feebleness (of body or mind),” and it implies “malady, frailty.” BDAG says it is used figuratively in this verse to mean, “weak, feeble” (BDAG). 1 Corinthians 12:23 — Comments - We all have parts of our body that are well shaped and look good and we also have parts that are poorly shaped, which we want to hide. We tend to dress so that our comely parts are exposed and our uncomely parts are hidden. Therefore, we attempt to dress our uncomely parts so that they appear comely. For example, if our toes are not well shaped, we tend to wear pretty shoes. If we have a scar on our body, we cover it with clothing. If we are blind, we often wear dark glasses to cover our eyes. A man with strong arms will wear shirts that show his strength. A skinny man will wear clothes that hide his weakness. So is it in the body of Christ. We should attempt to give attention and the proper honor to the weaker members of our congregation so that our entire church looks comely in the eyes of the Lord. If we despise the weaker members, then we become a divided church, which makes the body of believers less functional for the kingdom of God. 1 Corinthians 12:28 — Word Study on “teachers” – BDAG says the Greek word “teacher” (διδάσκαλος) (G1320) means, “a teacher, master.” The Enhanced Strong says it is used 58 times in the New Testament, being translated in the KJV as, “Master (Jesus) 40, teacher 10, master 7, doctor 1.” 1 Corinthians 12:28 — Word Study on “helps” – BDAG says the Greek word “helps” (ἀντίληψις) (G484) means, “help, helpful deeds.” It is used only one time in the New Testament being translated in the KJV as “helps.” Strong say it comes from the Greek verb (ἀντιλαμβάνομαι) (G482), which means, “to take someone’s part, help, come to the aid of.” Webster says the English word “help” means “to aid; to assist.” Comments - Each gift has an anointing. Even the ministry of helps comes with an anointing. Romans 12:6 says, “gifts differing according to the grace that is given.” The word “grace” can easily be translated “anointing.” Within the context of the epistle of 1 Corinthians, the phrase “the grace of God” refers to the operations of the gifts of the Spirit. In fact, some of the early Church fathers will use the Greek word χάρις (grace) when speaking of the charismatic gifts of the Spirit. Romans 12:6, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;” Illustrations: the Building of the Tabernacle - Old Testament illustrations of divine giftings are found in the book of Exodus, when God anointed several people to build the tabernacle. When God anointed people to build the tabernacle, He did not choose the Levites, but men of other tribes, who were helping to build the tabernacle. Exodus 28:3, “And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.” Exodus 31:3, “And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,” Exodus 31:6, “And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee;” Illustrations: David’s Mighty Men - In 2 Samuel 23, we see how David’s thirty men partook of his anointing as they helped King David. King Saul is a type and figure of man attempting to establish God’s kingdom in the flesh, but failed. David is an example of how God accomplishes His plans and purposes by the Spirit. Although many of the men listed in this passage are mentioned nowhere else in the Scriptures, it reveals to us that David could not have accomplished what he did without these brave men and their courageous feats of victory. David had gone into exile with about six hundred men (1 Samuel 23:13). Of these men, about thirty of them learned to partake of David’s anointing and became mighty men of war as their leader.
When we read about the feats that some of the most anointed men accomplished in the following passage of Scripture, we find a clue as to why some of them were able to partake of David’s anointing. These were men who were willing to give up their very lives for David their king. Such a willingness to serve and give one’s life in behalf of God’s servants opens the door of one’s heart to receive from the same anointing that David walked in. We see this displayed as bravery to stand against the enemy. Within their hearts, they had given themselves a sentence of death to their own will in order to accomplish the will of their king and their people. Such were those who because qualified for an anointing. Illustrations: Solomon’s Glorious Kingdom - Another example of the anointing that comes with the ministry of helps can be seen in the ministry of King Solomon and Temple worship. In 2 Chronicles 9:1-9 the queen of Sheba saw something so magnificent that she became speechless. She saw the king’s servants ministering in each of their offices with joy and under the anointing. She saw a Temple that was built and designed under the inspiration of divine ideas. Its artwork and craftsmanship were unique upon the earth and had never been done before. She met a king in which the Spirit and wisdom of God dwelt.
It took her breath away. King Solomon’s servants were happy. This happiness, or joy, is an outward sign of the anointing. When I first began to work as an altar worker in the ministry of helps, I used to enjoy going to church and serving in this capacity. I eventually learned that this happiness or joy that I felt was because I was serving in an anointing in the ministry of helps. 2 Chronicles 9:7-8, “Happy are thy men, and happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God: because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore made he thee king over them, to do judgment and justice.” Illustrations: Jesus Feeds the Multitudes - Another illustration is found when the twelve apostles helped Jesus feed five thousand. Also note the principle of the ministry of helps seen in this story. The twelve disciples were helping Jesus to distribute the bread. As the blessing and anointing was flowing through Jesus Christ to bread the bread, so was this anointing imparted unto the disciples as they took of this bread and broke it and saw it multiply by their hands. This story teaches us that there is an anointing imparted as we serve in the ministry of helps. Illustrations: The First Deacons - A New Testament illustration of the gift of helps is found in Acts 6:1-7, when the apostles chose the first deacons to serve tables. 1 Corinthians 12:28 — Word Study on “governments” – Strong says the Greek word “governments” (κυβέρνησις) (G2941) means, “pilotage, directorship.” It is used only one time in the New Testament. Strong says it comes from the Greek word “κυβέρναω,” which means, “to steer.” Kenneth Hagin teaches that this particular word within the context of this passage describes the office of a pastor, whose job is to oversee the local church.[158] I believe that the elders of the early church also served in this capacity of government along with the local pastor. [158] Kenneth Hagin, He Gave Gifts Unto Men: A Biblical Perspective of Apostles, Prophets, and Pastors (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Faith Library Publications, c1992, 1993), 191.1 Corinthians 12:28 — Comments - We can see the five-fold ministry within this list of ministry gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:28-30. The office of the apostle, prophet, and teacher are clearly listed at the beginning of this passage of Scripture. However, the office of the evangelist and pastor are not listed, but rather can be seen in the gifts and anointings that confirm their offices. For example, an evangelist is confirmed through the regular manifestation of miracles and healings; for these two gifts most clearly distinguish the anointing as an evangelist. The deacons can be seen in the gift of helps, which gift can progress into the office of a pastor. We can then see the office of a pastor and even the elders within the gift of governments. We know that the gifts of utterance are generally a part of the office of a pastor, who often moves with the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues and most certainly is the one who oversees their use within the congregation. We must ask the question of why Paul lists three offices of the five-fold ministry (apostle, prophet, and teacher) and only allude to the evangelist and pastor. I see two possible reasons, which perhaps lies in the role that God gave Paul the apostle, which was to lay down the doctrines of the New Testament Church. Within this task was the responsibility of identifying the five-fold offices. (1) It is possible that this identification, or recognition, was progressive, rather than a single event, so that Paul did not know the other two offices at the time of writing his epistles to the Corinthians. (2) Or, it is possible that Paul is listing in this passage some of the gifts that identify a ministry rather than the office name of evangelist and of pastor because he is emphasizing the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or manifestations of the Holy Spirit, in chapter 12 rather than the titles of their offices, which he lists in Ephesians 4:11. We do read in 1 Corinthians 12:7 that the 9-fold gifts are “manifestations of the Spirit,” being initiated by the Holy Ghost at his own will. Certain church denominations only recognize the offices of the evangelist, pastor, and teacher as operating within the body of Christ in modern days, and they teach that the office of the apostle and prophet ended with the early church. Kenneth Hagin uses Ephesians 4:11-13 to clearly explain that Christ Jesus set the five-fold ministry in the body of Christ “until we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”[159] We must acknowledge that the body of Christ has not yet come into the full measure of the stature of Christ”. Therefore, the five-fold ministry has not ceased to function within the body of Christ. [159] Kenneth Hagin, He Gave Gifts Unto Men: A Biblical Perspective of Apostles, Prophets, and Pastors (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Faith Library Publications, c1992, 1993), 2-3.On the other extreme, Hagin also explains how some ministers used 1 Corinthians 12:28 to say that every local church must have the five-fold ministry on staff with the apostle and prophet having authority over the pastor, which is also an error.[160] This teaching goes to the extreme in the other direction. He explains that the pastor is the leader of the local church and that the description of “first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers” was not intended to describe rank and authority within the local church. One of the clearest examples to show that the apostle does not have authority over his local pastor is seen in Acts 15:1-35 at the first Jerusalem council in which the apostles and elders were asked to determine the status of the Gentile converts. We read in Acts 15:13-21 how James, the pastor over the church made the decision of how to receive the Gentiles into the congregation. When James spoke, the twelve apostles of the Lamb and elders submitted to his decision. We see in Acts 15:52 that there were prophets and teachers who also submitted to this decision.
This story gives us a clear example of how the pastor carries the authority over the local church. Therefore, the words “first, secondarily, thirdly” in this verse do not refer to a hierarchy of church government. [160] Kenneth Hagin, He Gave Gifts Unto Men: A Biblical Perspective of Apostles, Prophets, and Pastors (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Faith Library Publications, c1992, 1993), 17.I believe that the words, “first, secondarily, thirdly” are used to describe the “order” in which Christ Jesus introduced these ministries into the early New Testament church, or into the body of Christ which is referred to in the previous verse. This is what the verse literally says when it reads, “God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, …” Paul lists the five-fold ministry gifts again in Ephesians 4:11, but in a different order. Although we do not see a chronological order as clearly as we would like to see within Scriptures in which these ministry gifts were given to the body of Christ, we do have this order indicated in 1 Corinthians 12:28 when it says, “God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.” The first office of the New Testament Church was that of the apostle. Jesus Christ ordained twelve men in this ministry office prior to His ascension into Heaven. In Acts 11:27 we read about the office of the prophet in the church in Jerusalem, of which Agabus was the most prominent (Acts 11:28; Acts 21:10). We see in Acts 13:1 the office of the teacher being recognized in the church of Antioch.
Thus, we have an order in which these first three offices of the five-fold ministry were placed into the New Testament Church. Paul discusses this order in 1 Corinthians 12:28, “And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.” The office of the evangelist will be recognized later in the lives of Philip (Acts 21:8) and Timothy (2 Timothy 4:5). Paul will begin to ordain elders and pastors to oversee his churches, which is the final office that the New Testament church will recognize. So, we do have somewhat of a chronological order laid out in the New Testament. Acts 13:1, “Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.” Acts 15:32, “And Judas and Silas, being prophets also themselves, exhorted the brethren with many words, and confirmed them.” Acts 21:8, “And the next day we that were of Paul’s company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.” This order of ministries could not have been given as ranks. Kenneth Hagin notes that the office of teacher is listed third in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and last in Ephesians 4:11. Also, he notes that the ministry of helps is listed before church governments, which cannot refer to ranks.[161] [161] Kenneth Hagin, He Gave Gifts Unto Men: A Biblical Perspective of Apostles, Prophets, and Pastors (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Faith Library Publications, c1992, 1993), 187-91.1 Corinthians 12:29-30 — Comments – The Distribution of the Gifts in the Body of Christ - After Paul explains the uniqueness of each member of the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27-28), he then asks the rhetorical question, “Are all members (within the body of Christ) apostles, are all members (within the body of Christ) prophets, etc.” (1 Corinthians 12:29-30) In other words, Paul is saying that each member has unique gifts, which are distributed by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way. 1 Corinthians 12:31 — “and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way” – Comments – The gifts described in 1 Corinthians 12, 14 are to be used in a loving way. They are not to be abused, nor used to offend others nor used for the sake of pride. Therefore, Paul follows his description of the gifts of the Spirit by teaching on the love walk, which he alludes to in his statement that the members should have the same care one for another (1 Corinthians 12:25). Before the gifts of the Spirit were given to the Church on the day of Pentecost, the virtues of faith, hope and love had been working in the lives of believers from the beginning of man’s creation. These virtues will be a part of our lives, long after the end of this Church age, long after these gifts cease to exist. Faith, hope, and love will operate in our lives throughout eternity.
The gifts of the Spirit exhort and edify us to walk in love, but they are not the ends in themselves. The goal is not just to manifest the gifts, but to use these to bring about a walk of love in us and in the lives of the believers. That is, Paul is about to show them a greater way to live than the seeking of even the best gifts.