[Transcript]
Paul’s discussion of one body with many members might be his most memorable analogy in all of his letters. The Holy Spirit’s distribution of spiritual gifts among believers can certainly make some gifts seem more useful or essential than others. Using the human body, he masterfully argued that every gift has its place and is important to the function of the whole body. Therefore, in our worship gatherings, there is no room for jealousy over who has what gift because all are gifted for the common good of the entire body.
Spirit Baptism
“For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” – 1 Corinthians 12:13
Spirit baptism is a debated topic, but we can’t discuss one body with many members without briefly examining it. There seems to be general agreement that this verse does not refer to water baptism, though a minority disagrees. Paul’s statement draws from what John the Baptizer said of Jesus.
“John answered, saying to all, ‘I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’” – Luke 3:16 (NKJV)
The debate surrounding Spirit baptism mainly focuses on its timing. When does it occur? Evangelicals and Pentecostals have different beliefs. Basically, evangelicals contend that all believers are baptized in the Holy Spirit at the moment they are born again. Their hearts are regenerated, and the Holy Spirit resides within them. Pentecostals, on the other hand, state that Spirit baptism happens after the new birth and water baptism. They agree that the Holy Spirit takes residence at salvation – He is a necessary agent in the new birth. However, the contention is that though He has taken residence, He hasn’t necessarily taken precedence. Spirit baptism is then that moment where the Holy Spirit takes precedence in a believer’s life. You become immersed in the Holy Spirit.
On the side of evangelicals, the passage we’re studying today is supportive. Paul doesn’t seem to leave room for the concept of a believer who hasn’t been baptized in the Spirit. But that isn’t a conclusive win. Pentecostals draw their conclusions from the testimony of the book of Acts. It seems that in many (but not all) of its testimonies of conversion, Spirit baptism is a secondary event. Salvation occurs, followed by Spirit baptism, which may occur immediately or days, weeks, or months later. The delays of Spirit baptism are often because these new believers weren’t taught about the Holy Spirit. In Acts 19, the believers in Ephesus had believed in Jesus, but they were only familiar with John’s baptism. Paul then taught them about the Holy Spirit.
“And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them and they began to speak in tongues and to prophesy.” Acts 19:5-6 (LEB)
Some contend that these men weren’t truly born again since they only knew of Paul’s baptism. Still, that argument doesn’t hold up well when you consider that Paul called them disciples in 19:1. Additionally, in Acts 18, Apollos also believed in the Lord Jesus and was teaching the truth about Him accurately in the synagogues. Yet, he only knew the baptism of John until Pricilla and Aquila taught him the way more accurately.
It might be that during Paul’s time, the idea of a well-taught believer who hadn’t been baptized in the Holy Spirit was unthinkable, which explains why this passage about the parts of the body doesn’t leave room for that possibility. Evangelicals argue that where the Holy Spirit is concerned, the concept of haves and have-nots in the kingdom is incompatible with the Gospel. If some are baptized in the Spirit and some aren’t, it creates two classes of Christians. Pentecostals respond by saying that the gift of the Holy Spirit is for all believers, and that all glory for any gift is to be given to God, not individuals.[1]
I have gone back and forth on who is right, and if I’m completely honest with you, I’m somewhat unsettled on this. I understand the arguments for both sides, and I’m not sure who is more correct. And to be clear, there are tons of nuances that I’m leaving out here for the sake of brevity. Evangelicals and Pentecostals both bring strong cases to the table for the timing of Spirit baptism. So, over the years, I’ve given lengthy consideration to each position. The testimonies of my Pentecostal friends of their own Spirit baptisms tell me that I’ve not experienced that. However, the manifestation of spiritual gifts in my life tells me that I have. I’m inclined to believe that, at least for myself, I’ve been baptized in the Holy Spirit by the evidence of Him manifesting gifts through me. But I couldn’t tell you when it happened. It wasn’t the dramatic experiences that I’ve heard Pentecostals describe. So, I’ve arrived at what you might consider a middle-ground position, though it’s one that I’m constantly reevaluating to make sure I’m right.
It seems that Evangelicals and Pentecostals agree that the filling of the Holy Spirit is a daily pursuit.[2] It is possible that this entire disagreement revolves around semantics. What is the difference between Spirit baptism and Spirit filling? Though the words differ, they both lead to the same outcome: a life empowered by the Holy Spirit. Is the baptism of the Spirit mentioned in Acts simply the initial filling of the Holy Spirit that we should seek daily throughout our lives? If so, then the timing of when it occurs may not be as important.
This is the middle road that this study will take. You should do your own research on this subject to see if you agree. The most important thing is the daily empowerment of the Spirit, which is the vital key to everything that follows in this passage. The body cannot function without the Spirit’s empowerment. He gives us life and manifests gifts in us that show us our role within Christ’s Body.
Divinely Assembled
“But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.” – 1 Corinthians 12:18
Let’s review. In the last lesson, we defined a spiritual gift as a unique gift from the Holy Spirit that appears after someone is born again. These gifts are also given according to the will of the Holy Spirit. The Lorddoesn’t ask us which gift we’d like to have, but instead He assigns them to us based on the works He has prepared in advance for us to do. So here, when Paul draws the analogy of gifts to parts of the body, the Lordis the Creator, and He has arranged the members of the body as He chose. And His choice is for the best function of the body.
Paul’s point is clear. Not everyone can be a hand or an eye. Every part of the body has a purpose that benefits the whole. The issue this teaching addresses is that some in Corinth were jealous of others’ gifts. Some gifts seem more important than others. And from a casual glance, it might have looked that way. Eyes are very important, so it’s easy to misunderstand how thumbs might not seem as glamorous. The speaking gifts of teaching, prophecy, and tongues might seem more important than the service gifts of administration and helps, but in a body, chaos resulting from a lack of service gifts would undermine the effectiveness of the speaking gifts.
Personally, I’ve never been gift-envious. In fact, I’ve had days where I’ve wanted to give some of my gifts away to others. Teaching is both super rewarding, and super frustrating. I didn’t have a desire to teach the Bible, but the Lord had other plans. Now I feel almost compelled to teach. I actually did try to give it up for a spell when I was younger. The only way I can describe it is that it was like trying to keep a beach ball underwater. You can do it, but it has to be done forcefully. You feel the ball’s urge to come to the surface the whole time. Eventually, I recognized that the Lord’s gifts are given to fulfill the works that the Father planned in advance. Who was I to quit? My job since then has been to teach, and to make sure I don’t disqualify myself from doing that.
Recall that in the opening of this letter, Paul reminded the Corinthians that they weren’t lacking any gifts. Not only can we trust that the Holy Spirit will manifest every gift a local church needs for its health, but we should also trust that the gifts we each receive indicate how the Lord intends to use us within the gathering. The Lordhas divinely assembled His church, blessing people with gifts to fulfill His purposes and advance His plans for His Church.
No Dispensable Gifts
“The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’” – 1 Corinthians 12:21
Not only was there gift envy, but Paul also had to address a different group of people who believed some gifts weren’t necessary. For example, those with the prophetically gifted abilities can’t despise the mercy-gifted people, and vice versa. Prophetically gifted individuals may tend to view things in more black-and-white terms, while those with the gift of mercy are more likely to extend grace. These two people might drive each other crazy, but they must recognize that both are essential for a healthy congregation.
How do they work well together? Mutual respect for each other’s roles is essential. Using Paul’s analogy, the head must acknowledge that it would be a terrible foot, and the foot a terrible head. Each should let the other fulfill their role, understanding that neither can function in a healthy way without the other. In fact, the Lordstructures the body in a way that the greater honor is given to those whose gifts aren’t as obvious publicly.
I’ve come to understand that what Paul means by honor here is the same thing he meant in Romans 12:10 when he instructed us to outdo one another in showing honor. The head should give proper honor to the foot, even more so because the foot naturally receives less attention. Though it’s certainly my intention, I’ve not always felt like I do that well. I’m a guy who doesn’t require a lot of strokes, so I tend toward not offering them very much. However, I’m aware of this, so I do my best to do that thing. But because it’s not a proclivity for me, when I get distracted or I’m dealing with a lot of burdens, it’s one of the first things to suffer neglect. I say all that to say this. Showing honor isn’t optional. We’re actually taught to do it well and almost compete with one another – outdo one another – in showing honor.
This mutual display of honor toward one another is what guards us against division, since we all care for each other with equal passion. When we do that, verse twenty-six becomes true. If the foot is hurting or celebrating, so does the head, and vice versa. In fact, everything between the foot and the head also joins the chorus.
No One Can Do Everything
“Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles?” – 1 Corinthians 12:29
In the closing verses of this chapter, Paul reminded the Corinthians of both their unity and their individuality. You (plural) are the body of Christ, and individually (singular) members of it. A hand all by itself is just a hand. You are individually gifted for a purpose, but that purpose is only useful when it is connected to the rest of the body. A hand disconnected from the body isn’t just useless; it lacks life. Your gift is meant to be life-giving to the rest of the gathering. When connected, not only do you flourish, but so does everyone else.
However, with that reminder, he also pointed out that no one can do everything. It’s likely that, over the course of life, most believers will manifest multiple spiritual gifts; however, there is usually a primary gift that remains long-term. That primary gift is your “body part” in your local church. There may be times when hands need to do the job of the feet briefly. This would be similar to a momentary manifestation of a gift that isn’t your usual gift. However, just because that occurs doesn’t mean your role has changed. You might be asked to substitute teach a class and do well, but one good teaching session doesn’t mean your role should change.
With that said, how should we understand verse thirty-one?
“But strive for the greater gifts.” 1 Corinthians 12:31a (LEB)
I understand this to mean that as we go through the process of gift discovery, we are free to explore. When Paul says “greater” or “higher” gifts, he doesn’t mean that in a superior sense. There are gifts that make the Gospel clearer, and gifts that are more subtle. In chapter fourteen, he is going to demonstrate this difference more clearly, and I don’t want to steal all of the thunder from that teaching, but basically, prophecy is greater than tongues because it’s clearly understood by everyone. So, “greater” or “higher” should be understood as a rank of clarity. In that light, of course, we should strive for that. I want my gift, no matter what it is, to clearly display the power of God to others. And so should you. My primary gift happens to be teaching, but I continually pray that any other manifestations of gifts would clearly display the Lord’s power. It’s the pursuit of clear demonstrations of the Spirit’s power, not prestige or authority.
Higher gifts have the greatest clarity. Clarity is something everyone should seek when it comes to demonstrating the Spirit’s power. Foremost, it will reveal Jesus clearly, not a person’s skill, education, or anything else about them. The clarity of a spiritual gift always magnifies Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is precisely that: to reveal Jesus with increasing clarity. In that way, we understand what Paul meant in 2 Corinthians 3:18 when he said that we are transformed from one degree of glory to the next by beholding the glory of the Lord. As we see Him with increasing clarity, we are transformed from one degree of glory to the next.
Ongoing Discussion
“And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.” – 1 Corinthians 12:28
Is Paul establishing a hierarchy of gifts in this verse? Would such a hierarchy be incompatible with everything he just taught about all the gifts being equally important? Or is it a timeline, where the apostles arrived first, followed by prophets and teachers, and so on? What did Paul do here?
Similar to what we’ve already discussed about clarity, the ESV Study Bible notes on this verse that Paul listed these gifts in order of their benefit to the church.[3] So, what we have isn’t a hierarchy of authority but rather an order showing which ones have the most significant impact on the church as a whole.
The discussion about which gifts are most beneficial to the church can lead to arguments. But if we understand the analogy Paul gave about the parts of the body, the argument is dead on arrival. Without teachers in the church, the Gospel can still be shared and shown in many ways, but not as clearly as a gifted teacher could explain it. It’s that simple. One gift isn’t better than the other, but some make the Gospel easier to understand.
[1] Duffield, G. P., & Van Cleave, N. M. (2016). Foundations of Pentecostal Theology (Revised & Updated, Vol. 1, p. 287). Foursquare Media., not the person.
[2] Ephesians 5:18
[3] ESV Study Bible. (2008). Crossway Books. Notes on 1 Corinthians 12:28.
