Spiritual Gifts

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was the culmination of the Gifts that God had given his people throughout history, beginning with the gift of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. God has always given us the tools we need to follow. In the Torah, God gave us the law, and at Pentecost, God gave us tools to put the law into use.

Acts 2:38b …you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12: 8-10 To one, the Spirit gives wisdom in discourse, to another, the word of knowledge through the same Spirit. Through the Spirit, one person receives faith; through the same Spirit, another is given the gift of healing; and still another, miraculous powers. Prophecy is given to one; to another, power to distinguish one Spirit from another. One receives the gift of tongues; another, that of interpreting tongues.

Ephesians 4:11 To some, the gift they were given is that they should be apostles; to some, prophets; to some, evangelists; to some, pastors and teachers.

Romans 12:6-8 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophecy, use it in proportion to your faith. If your gift is ministry, use it for service. If you are a teacher, use your gift for teaching. If you are good at preaching, then preach boldly. If you give to charity, do so generously; if you are a leader, exercise your authority with care; if you help others, do so cheerfully.

It seems to me, this is a blueprint for the church, and it is imperative that we follow it. It is not up to us to worry about anything except everyone in the church is properly using the Gifts given to us by God. In these passages, no Gift takes precedence over any other Gift. All are needed and all are given “for the edification of the saints – building up the body of Christ.”

It also seems to me, the Spirit is color-blind, gender-blind, age-blind, monetarily blind, and physical ability-blind in the giving of Gifts. We should be just as blind in allowing God’s children to use them as well!

Amen.

Others participating in the June Synchroblog…

Kerri at Earth’s Crammed With Heaven… – Transformation

Sarita Brown at Gypsy Queen Journals – Pentecost: A Poem

Jeremy Myers at Till He Comes – The Incarnation of the Temple, Torah, and Land

Tammy Carter at Blessing the Beloved – Random Biblical Calendar Thoughts, Unity & Love

K. W. Leslie at More Christ – Pentecost

Liz Dyer at Grace Rules – We Cannot Capture The Wind 

Emma Nadine at Life by List – An Outpouring of the Spirit

Marta Layton at Marta’s Mathoms – Shadow of Things to Come?

Bill Sahlman at Creative Reflections – A “Wild Goose” Festival at Pentecost

John O’Keefe at john c. o’keefe – What’s With This

Kathy Escobar at kathy escobar – more than the leftovers