(iii) The Use Of The Gifts Of The Spirit (12:1-14:40)

Map of Corinth / Map of Corinth's Location / Picture of the Temple of Apollo / Outline Chart/ Read The Letter

This section is based on 1 Corinthians Chapters 12 to 14 in Paul is addressing the question of ORDER in the assembling of the Church. There are certain things to do with the Gifts of the Spirit which the Corinthians are doing with a lack of one vital ingredient - that is the ingredient of LOVE ! Let us examine what exactly was the problem (EXEGESIS) and then apply this to our Church situation today (HERMENEUTICS).

(a) THE PROBLEM: In reading this passage of Scripture it will become obvious that the problem in the Corinthian assembly lies in the use of the Spiritual Gifts. There is one gift in particular that is mentioned 19 times (more than the others). What is this gift ? Is it.....

(i) Prophecy

(ii) Healing

(iii)Tongues

Choose your answer based on what you read in this passage.

There has been an abuse of this gift in the following three ways...

1. They were OVERLY enthused with the gift.

2. They were SINGULARLY enthused with the gift.

3. They were "all" using the gift in a most DISORDERLY way.

The reason for the above is because the Corinthians probably used the gift as a criteria for being "SPIRITUAL". They saw this gift as a sign that a person was 'spiritual' and the more ecstatic the person got in this gift the more 'spiritual' they were!! This could well have arisen due to the heresy in their midst that they had 'already arrived' as we have seen before.

What are some gifts today that tend to be over emphasized ? Why ? Is this happening in your church ?

(b) PAUL'S ANSWER: We have seen that the Corinthians tended to emphasize the ALREADY and have the attitude "I've made it already in my Christian life". This caused them to misuse the gift of Tongues as they saw it as THE sign of spiritual maturity. However, Paul carefully answers their wrong thinking IN LOVE, demonstrating the very ingredient they have been lacking!

There are four basic sections to Paul's answer which take up various aspects of the problem. Let us look at each part....click on the one you want to explore further...

(I) SECTION ONE: Diversity in the Gifts (12:1-11)

(II) SECTION TWO: The Picture Of The Body (12:12-31).

(iii) SECTION THREE: The Most Excellent Way (13:1-13).

(iv) SECTION FOUR: In Church, Only What Edifies (14:1-40).