Praise Chapel Christian Fellowship of Anaheim
“Spiritual Gifts” (Part #2)
Pastor Albert Garcia
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Sunday, August 09, 2009

TEXT: 1 Corinthians 12:1 / 1 Corinthians 12:7-11

INTRODUCTION: In our text Paul is writing to the church at Corinth.

ü In (V 1) Paul tells the church that it was His desire that they would not be ignorant concerning Spiritual gifts.

ü Last week we began a series on the subject of Spiritual gifts.

o We covered some basic principles regarding Spiritual Gifts.

o The giver of Spiritual gifts is. (Jesus Christ)

§ Ephesians 4:8 “When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.”

o Every believer has been given a Spiritual Gift.

§ 1 Corinthians 7:7 “But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.

o All believers have different gifts.

§ 1 Corinthians 7:7 “one has this gift, another has that.

o Every gift is important and plays a vital role in the church of Jesus Christ.

§ 1 Corinthians 12:21-22 “The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” ²²On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,”

o The purpose of Spiritual Gifts.

§ For the edification, building and strengthening of the Church.

· 1 Corinthians 14:12 “try to excel in gifts that build up the church.”

· 1 Corinthians 14:26 “ All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.”

o We also looked at four different spiritual gifts.

§ The message of wisdom. (Also known as “The word of wisdom”).

§ The message of knowledge. (Also known as “The Word of Knowledge”).

§ The gift of faith.

§ The gift of healings.

ü Today we will continue on the subject of spiritual gifts.

ü We will look at three other Spiritual Gifts.

o The gift of Miracles.

o The gift of prophecy.

o The gift of distinguishing between spirits.

I. A LOOK AT DIFFERENT GIFTS.

a. The gift of miracles.

1 Corinthians 12:10 “to another miraculous powers”

(KJV) “To another the working of miracles”

1. In the original Greek the words “working of miracles” is “energemata dunameon” which means…”Operations of supernatural powers.”

a. This is the ability to perform acts that alter the ordinary course of nature and apparently contradict scientific laws.

2. The Bible records many miracles done through the hands of apostles and disciples.

a. The apostle Paul struck a sorceror named Elymas with blindness for trying to turn a government official away from the faith.

1. Acts 13:7-11 “who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. ⁸But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. ⁹Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, ¹⁰“You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? ¹¹Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.”Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

b. The apostle Peter resurrected a dead woman named Tabitha from the dead.

1. Acts 9:40 “Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up.

c. The Bible teaches that Stephen did many miracles in the New Testament.

1. Acts 6:8 “Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.

d. Ananias the disciple healed the apostle Paul from blindness.

1. Acts 9:17-18 “Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again.

2. NOTE: Sometimes healing comes from a disciple!

3. (Question?) Why don’t we see miracles in the church today?”

a. I believe it is because of our lack of belief in the supernatural.

1. Matthew 21:21-22 “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²²If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

b. When Peter was walking on water and began to sink Jesus told him that it was because of his lack of faith that he sunk into the water.

1. Matthew 14:31 “Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

c. Peter Wagner in his book entitled “Your Spiritual Gift” writes…

1. “Because of our subtle commitment to the supernatural, we Westerners tend to be suspect of anything clearly supernatural . That is undoubtedly one reason why we do not see many miracles working in our churches here today.”

NOTE: Some notable teachers believe that the gift of miracles have passed and they were only temporary to authenticate the ministry of Christ and the apostles.

b. The gift of prophecy.

1 Corinthians 12:10 “to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy”

1. The word “prophet” is a transliteration from the Greek word “prophetes”.

a. This word is derived from two words.

1. “Pro” which means “before” or “forth”.

2. “Phemi” which means “To declare” or “to speak”

3. These words together can mean two things.

a. “One who predicts future events”

b. “One who speaks forth God’s Word for the present time.

Peter Wagner (In his book “Spiritual Gifts” writes)
“Since the word “prophecy” today usually means predicting the future, it is difficult for some people to realize that the biblical use of the word includes not only the future but also a word for the present. In fact the gift of prophecy has been used much more for dealing with present situations than with future events”

2. In the Old Testament a prophet was one who spoke to the people on behalf of God. (Whether of future events or God’s word for the present.)

a. Moses was declared by God as a prophet.

1. Deut. 18:18 “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.

2. NOTE: A PROPHET SPEAKS “EVERYTHING” GOD COMMANDS (Future or present!)

3. In the New Testament prophets also spoke on behalf of God. (Whether future events or His message for the present!)

a. Judas (not Iscariot) and Silas were prophets. (They spoke God’s message for the present)

1. Acts 15:32 “Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.

b. Agabus was a prophet in the New Testament. (He foretold of future events)

1. Acts 21:10-11 “After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. ¹¹Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’”

2. NOTE: Agabus prophecy was later fulfilled.

a. Acts 28:17 “Three days later he called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had assembled, Paul said to them: “My brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans.

4. The purpose of the gift of prophecy as with any other gift is always to strengthen the church.

a. 1 Corinthians 14:3 “But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.”

Application: There are some today in the church who have the gift of a prophet.

ü You are gifted to speak Gods Word for the present.

ü Some are gifted to speak of future events.

c. The gift of distinguishing between spirits. (Or discerning of spirits)

1 Corinthians 12:10 “to another distinguishing between spirits”

1. This is the ability God gives to certain members of the church to be able to discern whether a behavior is of God, humanistic or satanic.

a. Those with this gift are guardians and watchmen of the church.

b. They protect the church from humanistic, satanic, fleshly and perverted spirits and doctrines.

c. NOTE: Those who have this gift may be reluctant about using it because it requires a great deal of courage.

IMPORTANT NOTE: As with any other gift it should not be exercised without first consulting the approval of the pastor.
REMEMBER: The pastor has the gift of an overseer of the flock!

2. We find this gift being exercised in the New Testament church.

a. Peter had this gift. (He was able to discern Ananias and Saphiras lies and dishonesty)

1. Acts 5:3-5 “Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? ⁴Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God.”⁵When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened.

b. The apostle Paul operated in this gift. (He was able to discern the spirit in which a girl who followed him spoke)

1. Acts 9:16-18 “Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. ¹⁷This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” ¹⁸She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

c. Jesus Himself operated in this gift. (He was able to discern when the apostle Peter spoke under humanistic and satanic influence)

1. Matthew 16:21-23 “From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.²²Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”²³Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

3. Every believer is called to test the spirits. (Whether if it is of God or not!)

a. 1 John 4:1 “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

NOTE: Discerning of spirits is not judging people! (It is judging the spirit by which and individual operates!)

IN CLOSING: God has given every member in the church a gift.

ü Some are given the gift of “Message of Wisdom”

ü Some are given the gift of “Message of Knowledge”

ü Some are given the gift of “Faith”

ü Some are given the gifts of “Healing”

ü Some are given the gift of “Miracles”

ü Some are given the gift of “Prophecy”

ü Some are given the gift of “Distinguishing between spirits”

ARE YOU USING YOUR GIFT?

2 Timothy 1:6 “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you