The Gifts Part 37
Prophecy continued...
As I said in a previous post, most scholars and theologians divide the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit into three categories. Although there are offices of authority within the body of Christ, these are not gifts, since someone wrote in and had a bone to pick saying that there were more than nine gifts when it came to the Holy Spirit. There is a difference between being called to an office, such as apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor or teacher, and receiving one of the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 4:11-16, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive, but speaking the truth in love may grow up in all things into Him who is the head –Christ- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
Although there is much to be said concerning this passage, and it is a passage worth reading time and again so that we might understand the true extent of what it is attempting to convey, I just wanted to point out, if only briefly the reasons that Christ Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists some pastors and some teachers, as well as why the gifts of the Holy Spirit were distributed to the Congregation of God.
First, so that the saints might be equipped for the work for the ministry and the edifying of the body of Christ, and second, that we would no longer be children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men.
So the Holy Spirit is among us to equip us, or give us the necessary tools in ministry, that we might be bold and strong and victorious against the enemy, to edify us, or to instruct and encourage us on the path of righteousness, and to keep us from being swept away by every wind of doctrine, deception, false spirituality, and men who are but mists and empty cisterns that can hold no water.
No, the Holy Spirit did not come, nor were the gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed to the church so we could walk around with titles, and insist that people call us prophet, or evangelist, or teacher, or apostle, the Holy Spirit did not come so that we might boast in that which we have been given from the hand of God, He came that we might be that mighty army of which we often sing, that we might be the saints of God, thoroughly equipped for every good work, and ready at any moment to defend the faith.
If the Lord terries, we will perchance one day delve into the five offices to which God calls individuals for the work of the ministry and for the edifying of the body of Christ, but for now we are still discussing the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The first of three categories into which most learned men agree that the gifts of the Holy Spirit can be divided into is that of revelation. Within the construct of the category of revelation, there are three gifts, which are the gift of the word of knowledge, the gift of the word of wisdom, and the gift of discerning of spirits. Through these three gifts, the Holy Spirit manifests His power to reveal, unveil, uncover or expose. Through the gift of the word of wisdom the Holy Spirit reveals future events, through the gift of the word of knowledge past events, and through the gift of discerning of spirits He authenticates that which comes from God, as well as exposes those things which do not have their origin in God. It is as important to know that which does not originate from God as it is to know that which originates from God, because throughout the history of the church the enemy has attempted to infiltrate the household of faith, bringing in destructive heresies, deception, and a myriad of half-truths that stunt the spiritual growth of the believer, and in some cases derails their faith altogether.
The second category of gifts into which the nine gifts have been divided is what is known as the gifts of power. Within the framework of the gifts of power, we find the gift of faith, the gifts of healings, and the gift of the working of miracles. Within these three gifts we see the power of God manifest, whether through the gift of faith, the gifts of healings or the gift of the working of miracles. All three of these gifts are designated and defined as gifts of power.
The third category of gifts into which the nine gifts have been divided is what is known as the gifts of inspiration. Within the gifts of inspiration, we discover the three gifts that have yet to be named, those being the gift of prophecy, the gift of different kinds of tongues, and the gift of interpretation of tongues. Of the three categories, it is this last category that is most often witnessed within the household of faith, as prophecy, tongues and the interpretation of tongues are more often visible than the other six gifts of the Holy Spirit. Why is this so? Only God knows, but from a personal perspective I believe that God gives what is needed to His children, and as such these three gifts are what the Body of Christ needs in greater proportion than the others.
With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.
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