An Honest Talk about Spiritual Gifts

At one point in my life, I never knew there were people who bought into this “active spiritual gifts” stuff. And by that, I meant those who believed in healing, tongues, prophecy, and miracles going on today. I also never knew that many years later I’d blog about a subject that once made me so uncomfortable to talk about. But I can’t take all the credit for this. Thanks goes to my Greek syntax professor at Southern Seminary and a few random yet intentional convos with friends as I was forced to handle this subject as best as I knew how. Why? Like the topics mentioned in my marriage posts, 1 Corinthians deals with this subject for three whole chapters! I had to do something besides shrugging my shoulders, saying I don’t believe this stuff, and moving on to chapter 15.

First, I think a few sincere statements need to be made. Being honest about our fears and discomforts over spiritual gifts can help ‘level the playing field’ between cessationists (those who don’t buy that stuff) and charismatics (those who do buy into that stuff). This requires that both camps be honest with and about the Bible. It also requires that some of the personal fears and discomforts be rightly labeled as red herrings, and then done away with.

Here are some of the common oft-repeated arguments against certain spiritual gifts being active for today: 1) no biblical warrant; 2) fears of it interfering with the canon being closed and its implications; 3) TBN’s heavy influence; 4) surely God wouldn’t sanction stuff like that; 5) it was only for the time of the apostles [meaning only they were able to exercise certain gifts]; 6) the sole focus of 1 Corinthians 13 (and the ripping of its context used in marriage ceremonies); and 7) the lack of comfortable boundaries with spiritual gifts {my own take}.

Not all spiritual gifts are questioned as valid for today, only a handful. Some are so adamant that ‘the handful’ are no longer active that they have taken strong stands against the other camp. I was once that way, but now I’d refer to myself as a recovering cessationist both in theory and practice. Now there is no question that when we’re discussing spiritual gifts, we’re dealing with something similar to Baskin-Robbins’ 31 flavors. It’s extremely hard to pin down and 1 Cor 12:4-6 explains why:”Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.” There are varieties of gifts, services and activities that we have to deal with and keep in mind! This has to be our starting point. We also must understand that the Greek language refers to that as present and actively going on, which means they are still ongoing from the 1st century in Corinth to the 21st century.

Our second starting point must be to let the text speak for itself in another area, namely, the apostles weren’t the only ones given the spiritual gifts. Let me explain with Luke 9 and 10. In these two chapters, Jesus sends out the apostles to proclaim repentance and belief first, then he sends out the 72 others.

Luke 9 begins as such:”And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.”  “6 And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.”  “37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for  he is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but  they could not.”  So here we see Jesus giving them power, they exercise it along their journey, and then they are unable to exercise it with the child.

Turning to Luke 10 we see this: “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and  greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ 6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not,  it will return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that  the kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on  that day for Sodom than for that town.”

Jesus sending out the apostles mirrors His sending out the seventy-two. Both were given spiritual power and authority. And both were successful in doing just that. Hopefully now that argument by the cessationist camp will stop popping up. I purposely didn’t mention how the aforementioned 1 Corinthians passage is not speaking to apostles, but to God’s people. But that’s just for you as the reader to think through.

The third starting point looks to 1 Corinthians 1. This is crucial because it ought to bridge both camps instead of dividing them. “4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6 even as  the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The Corinthian church lacked not one single spiritual gift. Paul later said that there are varieties of gifts, services, and activities. Oh, and Paul thanked God for this grace seen among the Corinthian Christians!

The fourth and final starting point comes from 1 Corinthians 14, and this should spur the charismatics camp from going overboard. “37 If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord. 38 If anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized. 39 So, my brothers,  earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But all things should be done decently and  in order.” Simply put, brothers of the charismatics camp, let’s stop with the ‘I can do all [spiritual gift] things in Christ’ attitude when trying to justify the chaos going on in our churches just to feel better about yourself and your worship. The Lord isn’t pleased. Decency is commanded and God’s Word should never be set aside for personal want.

The Spirit gives willingly and freely to all saints. He’s been doing it since Pentecost and He’s not showing any signs of slowing down. The Spirit hasn’t placed any controllable, comfortable borders around the gifts that have been disseminated. And that may bring fear to the hearts of those who are not okay with not being able to control how the Spirit works….sorry. He’s God, so let Him be. The Spirit isn’t working alone in this manner as He points all saints to God in Christ Jesus, cf 1 Cor 12:4-6. As long as these 4 starting points are adhered to based from Scripture, we should be able to talk sincerely about this.

I’m well aware that there are myriads of discussions to be had about the other areas of spiritual gifts that do bring about fear and discomfort. Perhaps I will provide another post to shed light on the matter from my point of view. However, I’m more concerned with both Christian camps getting past talking at each other and begin talking to each other. Surely linguistics professors, Greek scholars, expositors and students of the Word can form a roundtable to thoroughly deal with this, but what will that do for the people in the pews. Who knows? I suspect that it won’t enrich them one bit.

I was once a cessationist taught what I’d refer to as a hermeneutical system labeled cessationism. I no longer believe that system to be valid nor biblical. I am now jokingly a recovering cessationist, which is to say that I fully believe in the active operation of all the gifts today. In other words, I’m a charismatic but I don’t fully feel comfy in the other camp. Having studied chapters 12-14 in the Greek, I without reservation believe my view to be the correct one, and am open to any brothers wanting to hash this out with me. I’m not fully comfortable with every single thing, but then I reflect on the varieties of gifts, services, and activities. And then I’m humbled and set back on trusting God to work this out.

I pray this encourages those who read it and helps both camps to talk sincerely and honestly about spiritual gifts as we talk about them to one another.

#cessationist #charismatic #spiritualgifts