Lesson 26 — The Gifts and Fruit of the Holy Spirit

1. 1 THE GIFTS AND FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

THE GIFTS AND FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The subject of gifts of the Spirit is one of the most misunderstood doctrines of Scripture. We have repeatedly pointed out that the terms “children of God” and “sons of God” mean something. When we say that God is our Father and that we are His children, we mean that God has not only accepted us but that He has endued us with power to become the sons of God with power to represent Him in the world as He would represent Himself. As children of God, we are partakers of the supernatural and divine power that belongs to God.

God has made full provision for the full manifestation of His power and life through His people. In previous lessons we have proven what God’s plan is for the needs of man and how that every believer has the power of attorney to act in the place of Christ among men. Believers are partakers of the divine nature 2 Peter 1:4. They have access to God and freedom to exercise the divine powers that belong to the family of God.

Everything in existence partakes of the same nature, powers, attributes, and characteristics that belong to its particular species. The fish partakes of all the powers and traits of its own kind. The birds partake of every bird-like faculty and characteristic. The various animals also follow their own kind. The human race is the same. And so it is with the family of God. The moment anything is born it has certain powers of its parents. The offspring of a fish can swim and live in water; the bird can fly, and the dog can bark. It would be a miracle for the dog to live in water or the fish to live and fly in the sky. This would be contrary to nature.

It is likewise contrary to nature that men can be born of God spiritually and partake of His nature and live and act contrary to the nature of God. The sons of God should manifest a supernatural nature in life through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and through faith in the name of Jesus Christ and His atonement. God has provided the baptism in the Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit for such manifestation of divine life in His sons.

There is nothing more specific and detailed in Scripture than the plan of God for divine-human sons endued with power to represent God in the Earth. In previous lessons we have given hundreds of Scriptures to prove this. The spiritual tools of God are the gifts of the Spirit which He wants exercised in full by all of His Earth-sons. He has repeatedly demonstrated His will through the prophets, through Jesus Christ, and through early believers. He has repeatedly promised such power to every believer, so there is no excuse for ignorance concerning this subject.

Paul started his discourse of spiritual gifts by saying, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant” 1 Corinthians 12:1, and he ended his discourse by saying, “But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant” 1 Corinthians 14:38. It seems that the more simple and detailed the truths of God are, the more people are ignorant of them. Every time Paul uses a statement such as “I would not have you to be ignorant” the subject is one of the simplest in Scripture to understand. If it is at all difficult it is simply and clearly explained in detail so that there can be no misunderstanding if one wants to understand at all. 1 Corinthians 10:11 Corinthians 12:12 Corinthians 1:81 Thessalonians 4:13-17. The only reason that anyone could possibly misunderstand is that he deliberately refuses to understand, as plainly expressed by the statement above, “But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.”

In Lesson Eighteen, Point IX, we have seen that the gifts of the Spirit were manifest in all Old Testament ages with the exception of the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues. Saints of old had great power with God and even greater power in many instances than manifested today through modern believers. Let any honest heart compare what power he has with what some of the saints of the Old Testament had and with what Christ and the apostles exercised, and he will have to acknowledge that he is falling far short of what men of God of Bible days experienced. Is this normal? Is this the teaching of the Bible? Is it the will of God for this condition to be true of modern believers?

We cannot bring ourselves to say that this is God’s best in view of the many hundreds of Scriptures on the subject. God has been a God of signs and wonders in both Testaments. He is ever the same. His faculties are constant, His attributes are eternal, and His divine powers are immutable. He has never changed in power nor will He ever change. He is not evolving and He will never evolve in divine powers. He is today as ever He has been or ever will be. He will never be what He is not, and what He ever was He is. God’s energies do not grow, and His plan of using power for the highest good of all creation never changes.

The gifts of the Spirit are not new. They have been exercised of old in greater power than we see manifest by modern saints. These were not just temporary loans of power to the Old Testament saints, as some teach. They were permanent anointings and gifts, and they were just as much “without repentance” on the part of God, as they are today Romans 11:29. No calling of God or no gift of the Spirit in any age has been a mere loan or a temporary faculty if it was really given to any person. Solomon said of His gift of wisdom after he had backslidden, “Also my wisdom it remained with me” Ecclesiastes 2:9. There is no statement of any kind that says the Old Testament gifts and anointings were only loans and were only temporary. This is just a theory of man and is to be valued only as such.

1. 1 HOW MANY GIFTS ARE THERE? There are nine gifts as follows 1 Corinthians 2:4-11:

(1) The gift of the word of wisdom.

(2) The gift of the word of knowledge.

(3) The gift of faith.

(4) The gifts of healing.

(5) The gift of the working of miracles.

(6) The gift of prophecy.

(7) The gift of discerning of spirits.

(8) The gift of divers kinds of tongues or languages.

(9) The gift of the interpretation of tongues or languages.

1. 1 WHOSE GIFTS ARE THEY, AND WHO WORKS THEM? They are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and He is the one who operates them in the lives of believers. “Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all-in-all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues. But all these worketh that one and selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will 1 Corinthians 12:4-11.

1. 1 WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFTS? The purpose is to enable all believers to do the works of Christ and to carry on the work that He began both to do and to teach Acts 1:1-2, 121 Corinthians 1:7Romans 12:3-81 Corinthians 12:4-311 Corinthians 14:1-40Hebrews 2:3-4. They were given to confirm the gospel and demonstrate the power of God among men: “These signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them: they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover . . . And they (early believers) went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following” Mark 16:15-20. “How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?” Hebrews 2:3-4. “For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed, through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ . . . And I am sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ” Romans 15:18-19, 29. “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to my Father” John 14:12. “God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues . . . But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way . . . Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts” 1 Corinthians 12:28-301 Corinthians 14:1.

These and other Scriptures state the purpose of spiritual gifts. God’s purpose has not changed. It will be the same throughout this age, as we have proven in Lessons Twenty and Twenty-two. Man only has changed and has lost the powers of the original church. When he changes again to a normal New Testament faith he will again see the gifts of the Spirit in perfect and full operation in the modern church.

In 1 Corinthians 12 and 14 the apostle deals with the supernatural equipment for service and worship and the use of certain gifts of the Spirit in a public believers’ meeting. There cannot possibly be a true New Testament meeting of believers in public without the exercise of spiritual gifts of some kind. These gifts are essential not only in service but also in worship. With all of our claims to godliness and loyalty to church ordinances and rituals we fail God if there is no knowledge and respect for or use of spiritual gifts.

In the first place, it is God’s will for men to be highly enlightened about spiritual gifts, as proven in 1 Cor. 12:1, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.” The ignorance of the modern church concerning these spiritual abilities is simply appalling. Seldom, if ever, are these gifts preached upon in the average church. Whenever they are referred to it is generally in a slanderous way. Some of them are often ridiculed and made fun of and classed as of the devil and fanatical. If they were exercised today in most churches they would be rejected. If the Corinthians, who had these gifts, were referred to as being ignorant of their uses in public meetings, how and by what term should modern churches be referred to as to their knowledge of them? The average preacher today does not even know what such gifts are, much less the purpose and right use of them in local churches. The average church member does not know that there are such gifts for believers.

The Corinthians had been hopeless idolaters and were acquainted with supernatural powers and their operations. For not only among the Gentiles, but also among the Jews there were magicians, wizards, sorcerers, and soothsayers yielding themselves to demons, spirits, and satanic powers. These Gentile converts were in many cases ignorant of the difference between these demon powers and the true spiritual gifts and their operations by the Holy Spirit. Their idols were deified demons 1 Corinthians 10:16-21.

Paul gave them a law of discernment between good and bad spirits, “Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed; and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost” 1 Corinthians 12:2-3. John said, “Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is the spirit of antichrist . . . and the spirit of error” 1 John 4:1-6.

In other words, any power doing miracles and otherwise manifesting itself, if it calls Jesus accursed, or claims that He did not come in the flesh, it is of the devil and not God. There are numerous false religions today that are doing miracles, and they deny the reality of Jesus, His deity, His humanity, His atonement, and His work for man. Some of them claim that He is merely one of many prophets and leaders God has raised up through the ages. They class Him with Mohammed, Buddha, Moses and other religious founders. Other false religions deny altogether the reality of God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the devil, demons, sin, sickness, and all material and spiritual substance. Any religion that denies the reality of these things is of the devil and is an agent of Satan. Any person under the influence of demons will not acknowledge that Jesus is Lord or that He has come in the flesh. On the other hand, those Christians whose lives and voices proclaim the Lordship of Jesus Christ, that He has come in the flesh, and that the gospel in its entirety is truth, should be accepted as of God.

The early believers lived in an atmosphere charged with the supernatural, where signs and wonders were daily occurrence, where such manifestations were expected and where counterfeit demon-workings were always pressing for recognition as being divine. In all of the spiritual revivals of the past and present these counterfeits have been in evidence, so much so in some places as to turn the worldly and formal religionists against all manifestations of the supernatural.

What a change in the modern church from the ways of the early one! Of old, God’s ministers would throw down rods that would swallow up all those of demon powers Exodus 7:10-14. They would totally destroy all the counterfeit workings of Satan through Simon Magus, Bar-Jesus, and others who bewitched the people to believe that they were the great ones in the Earth Acts 8:5-24Acts 13:6-13. Must the modern prophets of the Lord bow the knee to the power of Satan and cut themselves with knives and stones to get an answer from their God who has gone on a journey, or is asleep, or has ceased to care for the lost, sick, and dying of the world for whom Jesus died (1 Ki. 18)? Must the modern church be satisfied with seeing the Holy Ghost defied and the powers of the demon-world enthroned in religious circles? Must the Church constantly cry like Gideon of old, “If the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? And where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of? But now the Lord hath forsaken us” Judges 6:13-14.

The Church must awake from its slumber and quit all of its criticism of spiritual gifts, experiences, and manifestations. It must repent and cry mightily to God for the endowment of power from on High until signs and wonders will again be manifest in the defeat of sin and Satan. It must covet earnestly again the gifts of the Spirit and contend for the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude 3).

1. 1 WHO MAY HAVE THE GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT? Every believer can have one or all the gifts, as he covets them and seeks God for the anointing of the Holy Spirit 1 Corinthians 12:8-31. In this passage we read that every member of the body of Christ should normally function in some capacity for the edifying of the whole body of Christ. Paul wrote to this church saying, “That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge. Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you. So that ye come behind in no gift” 1 Corinthians 1:5-7. He wrote the Roman Church, “For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established” Romans 1:11. Again he wrote, “According as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith . . . Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministry; or he that teacheth, on teaching” Romans 12:3-8.

Jesus Christ taught that “He that believeth” should be able to do the works that He did and that “these signs shall follow them that believe” John 14:12Mark 16:15-20. He said that all things would be possible to him that believeth Mark 9:23 and that all things that any man would ask in prayer believing he should receive Mark 11:22-24Matthew 21:21-22.

This is proof that every believer can attain to the gifts of the Spirit in fullness and that there is no limitation to how many one can have. Everyone can have them all and must have them all before he can do the works that Christ did. There are so many assurances of no limitations stated in so many Scriptures that each person can have faith for and get every thing that he wants from God. He can limit the gifts and grace of God in his life, or he can have unlimited faith and not come short in any gift or grace. This is truth, or the above Scriptures are plain lies, and this no child of God will dare believe. Men have taught for so long that we can have only one gift and that we cannot get what we want from God, that it is second nature to live in unbelief and question every truth of God which is not normal among men. No person has to remain in this state of constant questioning and doubting God. He can quit such a practice here and now, and he must if he is to attain to the fullness of God, as Paul prayed for all believers to do in 1 Cor. 1:7; Eph. 3:19.

In 1 Cor. 12:4-11 we are told that the gifts are for “every man” and for “all” and that “to one is given . . . to another . . . to another . . . to another . . . to another” and so on. Gifts then are for every man and for all who will believe in them and ask God for them and receive them. How many believers claim one or more of these gifts? Most of them are full of questions and arguments against their being for every believer. Most of them are more afraid of the words “miracle,” “sign,” and “wonder” than they are of sin and the devil. The gifts of the Spirit are signs of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, showing that one is a normal New Testament Christian in spiritual things.

1. 1 ARE THE GIFTS THE SAME AND ARE THEIR OPERATIONS THE SAME? We have already seen that there are nine different gifts and that there are different operations. The gifts are different, but the giver is one. The source is the same, but the streams are many. The variety of the operations of the Spirit is that of unity, not of division. The diversity is corporate, not competitive. The differences of administration fit perfectly into the different types and dispositions of the various peoples and accomplish perfectly the various necessities and purposes of the will of God in the redemption of, and the blessing of all creation. The gifts are the division of the omnipotence and omniscience of God into varied divine abilities for use by the children of God in defeating the works of the devil and in confirming the Word of God among men.

In the gifts we have the divine abilities that will meet every known need of man in this life as well as in the one to come. These nine gracious elements make available to all believers the powers of God for the known needs, wants, and deliverances of sons of God in the rebellious world of evil spirits and the sin-darkened Earth. In them we have the glorious revelations of God in wisdom and knowledge the unwavering faith that brings into reality those things that be not; the disease-withering and demon-destroying beams that come from the Sun of Righteousness, who has healing in His wings; the miraculous powers that know no defeat and create the necessities and wants of life; the radiant prophetic insight into things past, present, and future; the illuminating ability to impart eternal truths to men and to know the minds and discern the activities of both men and evil spirits; the linguistic powers to converse in tongues of men and of angels with God and man; and the life-giving, soul-cleansing, and spiritual helps that are capable of defeating all satanic powers and opposition to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

God’s program is still “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts” Zechariah 4:6. The divine energies and abilities of the unchanging Spirit of God are still available for the desperate needs of the whole Earth and of the Church in particular. The stone which was rejected by the builders will yet become the chief corner stone. The world will yet see the full power of the gifts of the Spirit in modern believers and that not long from now.

1. 1 CAN ONE PERSON HAVE ALL THE GIFTS, OR ARE THEY LIMITED ONE TO AN INDIVIDUAL, OR TO ONLY A FEW SPECIAL INDIVIDUALS AS THE SPIRIT WILLS? It is true that 1 Cor. 12:4-11 states that the Spirit gives the gifts as He wills, but there is no statement that He does not will to give all of them to every child of God, or that He wills to give them to a few special persons. It is also stated that He gives “to every man” and not to only a few and that the Spirit “worketh all in all.” There is no statement of limitation in any Scripture to the effect that God will give only one gift to one person and no more. There is positively no limitation. On the other hand, in many passages the Bible teaches that no one believer is limited and that every saved person can get from God what he wants. We have already proven this in Lessons Ten, Twelve, Fourteen, Sixteen, Twenty, and Twenty-two. If you limit your knowledge you limit your faith, and if you limit your faith you limit what you get from God. If you want only one gift and that is all that you believe you can have, that is all you will get. If you want all the gifts and you believe that you can have all, you will get all, as you believe and receive in your life. Jesus taught that all men could get all the gifts He had Matthew 9:29Matthew 21:21-22Mark 9:23Mark 11:22-24John 14:12-15John 15:7, 16John 16:23-26Hebrews 11:6James 1:5-8Psalms 84:11.

1. 1 HAS ANYONE EVER RECEIVED AND EXERCISED ALL THE GIFTS? There were a number of men in the Old Testament who had several of the gifts, but some were not yet given to men, such as the gifts of divers kinds of tongues and the interpretation of tongues. These were foretold by the prophets as being given to men in this age Isaiah 28:9-11Joel 2:28-31Mark 16:15-18John 15:26John 16:13-15Acts 1:4-5Acts 2:14-21, 38Acts 10:44-48Acts 19:1-61 Corinthians 12:1–14.

Men in this age have received and exercised all the nine gifts of the Spirit, for this is the age in which the fullness of God is promised men John 1:16John 3:34John 7:37-39John 14:12-17, 26John 15:26John 16:13-15Mark 16:15-20Ephesians 3:191 Corinthians 1:71 Corinthians 12:4-11. Jesus Christ was the first ever to receive the fullness of the Spirit John 3:34. The whole nine gifts can be traced in the operations of the Holy Spirit in His ministry. Note the following gifts of the Spirit in the life of Christ:

(1) The gifts of wisdom and knowledge Luke 2:40-52Luke 22:10-12John 2:24-25John 4:16-19John 6:64John 13:1John 16:30John 21:17.

(2) The gift of faith Matthew 8:23-27Matthew 14:22-32Matthew 16:8-12Matthew 17:15-21Matthew 21:21-22Mark 9:17-29Mark 11:12-24Hebrews 12:1-2Galatians 2:20.

(3) The gifts of healing Matthew 4:23-24Matthew 8:16-17Acts 10:38.

(4) The gift of the working of miracles Matthew 8:26Matthew 14:22Matthew 15:32-39Matthew 17:27Matthew 21:18-22Luke 22:49-51John 2:1-12John 6:21John 11:43-44.

(5) The gift of prophecy Matthew 5:7Matthew 16:21Matthew 24:1-25.

(6) The gift of discerning of spirits Matthew 9:4Matthew 12:25Matthew 16:23Mark 1:34Mark 2:8Luke 7:36-50Luke 8:2John 1:48-51John 2:24-25John 4:16-19.

(7) The gifts of tongues and interpretation of tongues. These are the only gifts of the nine that men had never experienced before Pentecost except by Christ, who received the Spirit in all fullness John 1:16John 3:34. We could not, therefore, question His ability to exercise both of these gifts.

Paul was another person who had all the gifts of the Spirit and the fullness of God in his life. He had power to impart gifts to another Romans 1:111 Timothy 4:142 Timothy 1:6. He had power to impart the baptism of the Spirit to others Acts 19:1-7. He had the gift of knowledge and wisdom as proven by his many writings Galatians 1:11-17Ephesians 1:8-19Ephesians 3:1-20, the gift of faith Galatians 2:20Galatians 3:2, the gifts of healing and miracles Acts 13:6-13Acts 14:3-10Acts 15:12Acts 13:16-24Acts 19:11-20, the gift of prophecy Romans 11:25-271 Corinthians 14:61 Corinthians 15:21-58, the gift of discerning of spirits Acts 3:9-111 Corinthians 1:10-121 Corinthians 13:1-32 Corinthians 10:3-6, and the gifts of tongues and interpretation of tongues 1 Corinthians 14:6-22.

The other apostles and ordinary believers exercised many gifts of the Spirit, as can be seen in Acts 2:14-21, 43; 3:6-9; 4:33; 5:3-16; 6:5-10; 8:4-40; 9:17, 32-43; 11:21; etc. God confirmed His Word with signs following and gave His early workers gifts of the Holy Ghost to defeat Satan Mark 16:15-20Hebrews 2:3-4. Jesus promised the fullness of God to every one who would believe on Him John 14:12-15. If every person is promised power and divine gifts to enable him to do the works of Christ, then it is certain that all the gifts can be received by anyone who will follow the Lord in the fullness of the gospel. Paul prayed for the early Christians to be filled with all the fullness of God, and if such were not possible he would not have prayed thus Ephesians 3:19. He taught that every believer should be a vessel of honor, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use and prepared unto every good work 2 Timothy 2:19-21. He speaks of Timothy as being able to do all the works he did, and if he had all the gifts, then it is also clear that Timothy also had all the gifts 1 Corinthians 16:10. Ordinary presbyters had power to impart spiritual gifts 1 Timothy 4:142 Timothy 1:5-6 and have signs following them Mark 16:15-20.

These and other facts prove that early Christians were far ahead of modern ones in the exercise of spiritual gifts and that in no Scripture are the gifts limited to a few or to a certain period, as taught by certain denominations today.

1. 1 HOW MANY GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT WERE MANIFEST IN THE OLD TESTAMENT? At least seven of them were given to men in ages before Pentecost, as we have seen in Lesson Eighteen, Point IX.

1. 1 ARE GIFTS ONLY FOR THOSE BAPTIZED IN THE SPIRIT? No, they are for children of God, whether they are baptized in the Spirit or not. Saints in the Old Testament times, before men were baptized with the Spirit at Pentecost, had at least seven of the gifts, as proven in the point above. Many men since Pentecost who have never received the real baptism in the Spirit have received gifts and have done great things for God. Such men would have done a greater work for God if they had been baptized in the Spirit. No person should be satisfied with only one gift of the Spirit, and certainly they should not be half satisfied without any of the gifts. A man without gifts is like a man who has a job to do and no tools to work with. Why should Christians carry on a sham battle with satanic forces and work hard all their lives to do what God commands without the spiritual tools known as the gifts of the Spirit when they can have power to defeat these forces?

1. 1 CAN GIFTS BE ABUSED AND MISUSED? Yes, they can be. Solomon while in a backslidden state used the wonderful gifts of wisdom and knowledge to further his own rebellion against God Ecclesiastes 1:12-18Ecclesiastes 2:4-11. Moses misused his gift of miracles, and therefore, for smiting the rock instead of speaking to it he was forbidden to enter Canaan Numbers 20:7-13Deuteronomy 32:48-52. Paul taught that one may have the gifts of the Spirit and still not have love and they would profit nothing 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. He further corrected many abuses of the gifts in local churches, as is clear in 1 Cor. 14:1-40.

1. 1 CAN GIFTS BE EXERCISED BY MAN WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT? At least certain gifts, or to be more specific, the abilities of certain gifts that become part of the individual soul and spirit can be exercised by any man even in a backslidden condition. This was true of Solomon. The wisdom and knowledge God gave him became part of his natural ability, and he continued to use them while backslidden. Any knowledge that a man learns by divine revelation, or by experience, or by being taught, he can still use whether saved or not, because it becomes part of his mental knowledge and wisdom. So it is with some of the other gifts. Paul said, “Though I may speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity [divine love], I am become as a sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing” 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. At least, this passage teaches the possibility of having and exercising certain gifts without divine love and the direct unction of the Spirit.

It is possible to exercise the natural remains of certain abilities imparted by the Spirit that become part of the natural abilities. It is possible to use them at any time and place, whether backslidden or not. It is just as possible to use them as any other natural ability. Anyone who receives one of the gifts and normally exercises it for any length of time is bound to imbibe some of these supernatural abilities, and he will be able to use all that becomes part of his natural makeup even after he backslides. The reception of these abilities is by divine inspiration and is of God, but the continued use of them may not always be directly unctionized by God, especially that which man can exercise of himself.

A man who is endued with wisdom and knowledge will always retain these powers to a great extent, even when he ceases to be anointed of the Spirit. Wisdom and knowledge become a natural part of the person who has received these divine abilities. Discerning of spirits will enable a man to have insight into things he never could see before and to discern between good and bad spirits. This to some extent also becomes a natural ability of the person. There are certain traits, laws, characteristics, and powers of discernment that stay with a person who may go back into the depths of sin.

The gift of prophecy not only includes foretelling but also forthtelling. Prophecy is mainly the ability to speak to men to edification, exhortation, and comfort by direct unction. The prophetic element was not the main part of this gift 1 Corinthians 14:3, 29. The prophets were primarily preachers of righteousness and any man who receives a gift along this line can still outwardly use it when backslidden. In other words, he can still speak to men to edification, exhortation, and comfort. He may be living in sin, but he can still use his gifts in an outward form because he retains certain truths, knowledge, wisdom, and intelligence that can help people to live right whether he lives right or not. Most of us have heard men who were great preachers, but who were living in open sin while still carrying on an outward ministry of teaching and preaching the things they knew to be truth.

The gifts of faith, miracles, healings, tongues, and interpretation of tongues also leave their natural marks on men who have been greatly exercised by them. Men who have had these gifts while serving God have been able to have more faith and power from the natural remains of these abilities in a backslidden state than many clean Christians who were struggling to have faith and get benefits from God. It would naturally be easier for such men to believe and get answers to prayer, for they have experienced the power of faith, miracles, healings, and tongues while living for God. They have by experience certain knowledge and retain certain natural abilities more than those who have never had the slightest experience of such kinds. Would it not be easier for a man who has had many wonderful experiences with God to exercise gifts and who can remember the signs and wonders God wrought through him while he was being used to exercise special gifts than it would be for one who is totally ignorant and inexperienced in such things? These facts are too self-evident to be denied.

All these natural abilities that remain with men when they go back into sin, if they are exercised, may be taken or mistaken for real personal acts of the Holy Spirit through the person because the outward manifestations appear real and divine. Some people today who are backslidden and have at one time exercised some of these gifts when living in the Spirit, exercise these natural abilities in religious meetings seeking to convince people that they are still right with God because of such outward manifestations. Such is ungodly to do, but it has been done through the ages, and it is still being done. They are always like a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal, but it attracts some by the very noise it makes. These sometimes are manifested in conjunction with demon spirits, who always seek to counterfeit and imitate true Spiritual manifestation, and they do seem real and genuine when unctionized by supernatural evil spirits. The backslider, ceasing to be unctionized by the Holy Spirit, will sometimes yield to demons who imitate the Holy Spirit’s operation of the gift. Sometimes the backslider even thinks he is being used of the Holy Spirit. (See “War on Saints,” Lesson Six, pages 23-26, for demon-workings among Christians.)

It is dangerous to yield to wrong supernatural powers while in a backslidden state. The magicians of Egypt imitated and manifested power to oppose Moses and were successful for a time, but their power was limited Exodus 7:10-13, 22Exodus 8:7, 18. When Nadab and Abihu imitated the true work of the priesthood they were killed (Lev. 10). When Korah and his company took censers like Aaron, the form of worship and the censers were just as real outwardly as his but they were rejected of God (Num. 16). When rebels against God put good almond rods before the Lord along with that of Aaron it was Aaron’s rod that budded and produced almonds over night (Num. 17). When Saul imitated the work of priests he sinned and was rejected (1 Sam. 13). When an old prophet claimed that he had received a message from God by an angel he caused the death of the true prophet (1 Ki. 13). When the false prophets of Israel imitated true prophecy Ahab was deceived and defeated (1 Ki. 22).

Many times God speaks of false prophets prophesying out of their own hearts, who follow their own spirits. The outward manifestations of true and false prophecy were real and visible, but the test was that if the prediction should come to pass it would then be classed as true Deuteronomy 18:9-22Jeremiah 23:16-17, 26. Outward forms of prophecy, wisdom, knowledge, discernment, tongues, or whatever it may be, may appear to be real and genuine, but is not always so. If the manifestation is in harmony with the written Word of God and the prophet’s life is above reproach, it is certain that it is of God. If in any way it contradicts the Bible laws of spiritual manifestations, or calls attention to self instead of Christ, it is a mere manifestation of the personal spirit, or some demon spirit, or an abuse of some ability given by God and used by the individual without direct unction of the Spirit.

1. 1 SHOULD WE NOT BE AFRAID OF GETTING AN EVIL SPIRIT THAT WILL TRY TO IMITATE THE HOLY SPIRIT? This should be one of the least worries of the true child of God. Jesus taught us that “If any man shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Luke 11:11-13. Thus it is clear that God will not give the wrong Spirit to His children or permit them to be deceived if they will follow the Bible. All one has to do is to be simple, childlike, trustful, have faith in God, keep under the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and ask God for the right Spirit and then yield to the Holy Ghost in any way that He desires to operate through that one.

1. 1 ARE THE GIFTS PERMANENT OR TEMPORARY? They are always permanent if they are real gifts given to any person, “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance” Romans 11:29. That is, God does not change His mind when He sees it is proper to give gifts or call a person to some particular work in life. The person may backslide, and God will cease to use him, but if and when he comes back to God his original gifts and calling are there to be exercised through him again. There is no doctrine of a temporary gift or calling mentioned in Scripture. There may have been instances when God used someone and exercised some gift through him for the moment, but such uses could not be classed as permanent gifts and callings. It was merely necessity as circumstances demanded, or it was some specific thing that God wanted done at the moment, and so He used whom He could to accomplish it.

We would not say that when God spoke through the ass that the dumb animal received a permanent gift to speak. We could not say that Jesus Christ gave the apostles permanent gifts and powers when He sent them forth on the single mission of visiting cities before Him (Mt. 10; Lk. 10). Soon after this, they failed because they had not received permanent power Matthew 17:17-21. There have been instances today in which God exercised a certain gift through one person at the moment and he has never been so used in that way again.

1. 1 ARE GIFTS EXERCISED AT WILL? If they are permanent abilities given to the person they can be exercised by him at his will at any time and in any place. This is proven by the fact that Paul had to rebuke the free use of gifts in the Corinthian Church 1 Corinthians 14:1-40. There is no teaching in Scripture that man becomes a mere automaton. Paul said to Timothy to “neglect not” and to “stir up the gift” that was in him, proving that he could let it remain dormant or he could use it at his own will 1 Timothy 4:142 Timothy 1:6.

Man is free to use these gifts as he sees fit for the glory of God. They are given him to be so used and God leads and guides in their use. He instructs in the proper use and makes clear His will as man seeks to be led of the Spirit. God never forces His will on anyone. He seeks willing service and intelligent action from man. Demons work just the opposite way, demanding passivity and unintelligent action on the part of man. With God, man is always free to choose yieldedness to God and to act freely of himself as the Spirit directs. Demons demand yieldedness without choice and self-control. The fruit of the Spirit is temperance or self-control, and the fruit of demons is total abandonment of temperance and intelligent cooperation.

1. 1 WHEN SHOULD GIFTS BE USED? They should always be used when any known personal and public need is manifest. The gifts are for personal edification 1 Corinthians 12:71 Corinthians 14:4 and for public edification and profit and to build up the body of Christ 1 Corinthians 12:4-311 Corinthians 14:2-3, 5Ephesians 4:7-11Romans 12:3-12. When there are sick to be healed, demons to cast out, miracles that need to be performed, the public to be edified and instructed in the things of God, sin to be rebuked, or any human need to be met, it is time for the exercise of the gifts of the Spirit. They are all-inclusive and cover every human need. They are for the purpose of enabling workers of God to accomplish for God anything that needs to be done in preaching the gospel and confirming it. They are to defeat all the works of Satan, and when conflict with him is evident, the time is right to use the gifts.

1. 1 WHERE SHOULD THE GIFTS BE USED? They should be exercised wherever there is need for them in defeating the works of the devil and in edifying any individual or group of people who are gathered together in the name of Jesus Christ. They should be used in the home, in the church, or in any place where men need God and His help 1 Corinthians 12:12-311 Corinthians 14:1-40Acts 2:46Acts 16:13.

1. 1 HOW CAN GIFTS BE RECEIVED? They should be coveted and desired and asked for in prayer just like other things that we need from God Luke 11:131 Corinthians 12:311 Corinthians 14:1. They are received from God as any other blessing that God gives. If a believer wants any one of them or all of them he is free to ask and he will receive according to his faith. Never limit your faith concerning anything that you want from God. If you do, you will receive a limited answer.

Solomon received his gifts of wisdom and knowledge by prayer 1 Kings 3:5-15, Elisha received his gifts of healing, miracles, discernment, and faith by asking Elijah (2 Ki. 2). Jesus received His gifts by prayer and fasting Matthew 3:16-17Matthew 4:1-11Matthew 17:19-21Acts 10:38. The disciples received the Holy Spirit and various gifts by tarrying for the enduement of power from on High Luke 24:49Acts 1:4-8Acts 2:1-4Acts 6:3-8. Paul received his anointing of the Spirit by fasting and prayer Acts 9:8-17. The Gentiles received the Holy Spirit baptism while listening to the Word of God Acts 10:44-48. Others received it by the laying on of hands Acts 9:17Acts 19:1-6. Certain gifts have been bestowed by the laying on of hands Romans 1:111 Timothy 4:142 Timothy 1:6Hebrews 6:1-2.

If we do not have anyone with power to bestow gifts upon us we can still get them by personal prayer and fasting or ordinary seeking of God by faith until He gives us the gifts that we desire for His glory Luke 11:131 Corinthians 12:311 Corinthians 14:1Matthew 21:21-22Mark 11:22-24John 14:12-15John 15:7.

1. 1 DO WE HAVE NEED OF GIFTS TODAY? It is evident on every hand that we need the gifts of the Spirit today as ever. The Church needs them to be able to cope with satanic powers and defeat the works of the devil in the lives of men. Each child of God needs them in order to be able to meet the needs of his own personal life and carry out his responsibility in his work for God. Jesus said, “These signs shall follow them that believe” for the purpose of “confirming the word” Mark 16:15-20. The devil is still loose; demons are manifest on every hand; and men are sick, suffering, and defeated everywhere. There is no question of the need for the gifts.

1. 1 CAN WE CHOOSE WHICH GIFTS WE WANT? Yes, this is clear from such statements as “covet earnestly the best gifts” and “desire spiritual gifts” 1 Corinthians 12:311 Corinthians 14:1. Paul told the Corinthians, “Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church” 1 Corinthians 14:12. Naturally, the gifts must be sought for, as much as any promise of God we want fulfilled. We can ask what we will and it will be done Mark 11:22-24John 15:7.

1. 1 HOW CAN WE KNOW WHEN WE HAVE RECEIVED GIFTS AND WHICH ONES WE HAVE RECEIVED? It is just as easy to know when we have received gifts and which ones as to know when we have received any other thing in life. These gifts are real and can be easily discerned in their operation. (See Lesson Eighteen, Point IX, on the gifts of the Spirit manifest in the Old Testament.) It is impossible to have them without knowing it. When we receive the divine ability to do miracles, we shall be able to do them. The miracles themselves prove that we have the gift. Healings will prove that we have the gifts of healing. Ability to prophesy will prove we have that gift. Power to speak in tongues, interpret, discern spirits, or whatever divine ability we receive is sufficient proof of such gifts. If one would claim to have the gifts of healing and cannot heal, then it is clear that the person does not have the gift. If one claims to be anointed of God to work miracles and cannot do them, that fact is proof that one does not have the gift. This applies to any one of the gifts. The proof of having certain gifts is the ability to exercise them. All claims to have them do not amount to anything without ability to demonstrate them.

1. 1 CAN WE HAVE GIFTS AND NOT KNOW HOW TO USE THEM? Yes, such is possible. Every one who receives the divine anointing in any faculty must learn how to use his gift. This is the purpose of Paul in giving instructions how to use them. 1 Corinthians 12:1-311 Corinthians 13:1-121 Corinthians 14:1-40

1. 1 ARE GIFTS TO CONTINUE THROUGHOUT THIS AGE? Yes, gifts, like all the other blessings of the gospel, are to continue all through this age. This fact is clear from many Scriptures that we have in Point 4, above and in Lessons Twenty and Twenty-two. Tongues, prophecy, knowledge, and other gifts were to cease “when that which is perfect is come” 1 Corinthians 13:8-13. We still have knowledge and prophecies and all these gifts; so the perfect has not yet come. At the same time that these gifts shall cease “that which is in part shall be done away.” Since we still know in part, then we know that the other gifts continue. Because the “perfect” has not yet come, the gifts continue. The very ones who teach that gifts ceased in 64 a.d. still have a little knowledge; so it is clear that the other gifts have not been done away.

The “perfect” that is yet to come refers to the completeness of that which we now have in part. Then the partial knowledge, prophecies, tongues, and other abilities will be superseded by the more complete abilities of the same kind. The Greek word teleios translated “perfect” means “completeness” or “that which has reached the limit.” Since the apostle is speaking of partial knowledge, prophecies, tongues, etc., it is clear that it simply means when the complete knowledge is attained and we shall know as we are known, the partial will be superseded by the more complete knowledge.

According to Mt. 3:11; Jn. 7:38-39; 14:12-17, 26; 15:26; 16:13-15; Acts 1:4-5; 2:38-39; 5:32; Lk. 11:13; Mk. 16:15-20 and other passages, every believer is promised the baptism in the Holy Spirit and power to do what Jesus and the apostles did; so it certainly is true that every believer in this age can receive the gifts of the Spirit. Many people other than the apostles received these blessings in the early Church Acts 1:4-15Acts 2:1-21Acts 5:32Acts 6:3-10Acts 8:4-20Acts 9:17Acts 10:44-48Acts 11:14-18Acts 15:5-11Acts 19:1-7. Only willful rebels against plain truth will deny the fact that these blessings are for all who believe.

II. Classification and Definition of the Gifts

The gifts fall into three natural divisions. They are not in this order in 1 Cor. 12, but for the sake of clarification we will list them in the following order:

1. 1 The Gifts of Revelation, or the Mind Gifts

(1) THE WORD OF WISDOM. This is supernatural revelation, or insight into the divine action. It is the application of divine knowledge according to the will of God.

(2) THE WORD OF KNOWLEDGE. This is supernatural revelation of divine knowledge, or insight into the divine mind and will of God.

(3) DISCERNING OF SPIRITS. This is supernatural revelation, or insight into the realm of spirits to detect them and read even the thoughts of the mind.

1. 1 The Gifts of Inspiration, or the Vocal Gifts

(1) PROPHECY. This is supernatural utterance in the known tongue.

(2) DIVERS KINDS OF TONGUES. This is supernatural utterance in unknown tongues

(3) THE INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES. This is supernatural utterance in the known tongues of what was uttered in the unknown tongues.

1. 1 The Gifts of Power, or the Working Gifts

(1) FAITH. This is supernatural confidence and trust in God for the miraculous manifestation of the divine power according to the Word of God.

(2) THE GIFTS OF HEALING. This is supernatural power to heal diseases, to cast out devils, and to cure, repair, and make the body whole and healthy.

(3) THE WORKING OF MIRACLES. This is supernatural power to intervene in the ordinary course of nature and the common natural laws that govern the material universe.

The gifts as a whole form one unit of the supernatural, enabling the Church to act for God on Earth and accomplish in His stead the things that God Himself would do if He were here doing the work. They are gifts that are fully and completely supernatural and miraculous in their operation. There is no element of the natural in the reception of them at all, although the natural soul and spirit absorbs and acquires from them certain effects and powers that become natural abilities after they are imparted to the individual.

III. The Importance and Necessity of the Gifts

Spiritual gifts in the believers are absolutely necessary if the Church is to function properly and accomplish for God in the Earth what He has purposed in this age. They are necessary to God and man in carrying out the will of God as the members are necessary to the natural body. This is certainly what is taught in 1 Cor. 12:12-26: “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? . . . If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? . . . And if we were all one member, where were the body? . . . Whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it.”

These verses plainly teach that without the gifts the body of Christ is like a human body without bodily parts. It would be a mere limbless body or a paralyzed one. We make the members to the body of Christ, and the gifts are His eyes, feet, hands, ears, and lips. Believers are saved and endued with power to be His lips to speak for Him, His hands to work for Him, His eyes to see for Him, His feet to walk for Him, and His other necessary bodily parts to function for Him in defeating satanic forces in the world.

IV. Human Excuses for Not Having the Gifts

1. 1 IT IS ARGUED THAT THE GIFTS ARE OPTIONAL AND THE CHURCH CAN LIVE WITHOUT THEM

   This is very true, but how does it live and how does it work? It is possible for the human body to live without certain bodily members, but every one it has to get along without, it is handicapped that much, and it cannot carry out its full creative purpose for which these members were made. Spiritual gifts are as optional as these members that we can get along without. We can walk without eyesight, but we cannot see. We can talk without limbs, but we cannot walk. We can do some things with the members of the body that we have, but we cannot do the things that a normal and perfect body can do.

The modern church is lacking in many of the gifts of the spirit and multitudes of individuals are as helpless as a new born baby without the gifts. They can carry on and barely exist spiritually without them, but they cannot be mighty in God without them. They may live good lives without them, but it must be understood that holiness will never heal the sick, cleanse the leper, raise the dead, cast out demons, or do the work of God that should be done. It takes power, the kind that comes with the gifts to do these things. Even the claim to Christian living and holiness is weakened when the gifts are rejected and spurned and any degree of lack of interest is shown in them, for holiness consists of obedience to all the will of God and the commands of the gospel—even the commands to “covet earnestly the best gifts” and “desire spiritual gifts” 1 Corinthians 12:311 Corinthians 14:1.

The present trend of indifference to the gifts must cease, and we must get back to the New Testament pattern of Christianity. There is too much satisfaction among Christians in being without them. It is just like a blind man being satisfied to be without eyes, or a deaf man without ears, or a dumb man without speech. Some men are satisfied to be without one part of the body or another for various reasons. Some have never known anything else but to be this way, and others are content with their lot in life for the sake of making a living or because of being resigned to the fact that they could be much worse.

1. 1 THE THEORY THAT GIFTS HAVE CEASED IS COMMON AMONG SOME DENOMINATIONS

   This cannot be anything but an excuse for unbelief. If one is in the least degree honest with himself and the Word of God he can see that gifts are for all believers. We have already proven that in points above; so it is useless to argue this point again more than to say that we may as well argue that salvation ceased with the apostles. Such a position is impossible to prove and to maintain with Scripture. The main argument used to prove this theory is that Christians today do not have these gifts, and therefore they are not for them. One may as well argue that because all sinners do not have salvation, it is not for them. One who argues this way is a willful unbeliever, and he merely wants an excuse to continue in his state. The truth is that whether anyone ever gets saved or not, salvation is for him. Whether anyone ever gets the gifts of the Spirit or not, they are for everyone.

1. 1 THAT THE GIFTS WERE FOR THE TWELVE APOSTLES ONLY IS ALSO ANOTHER COMMON EXCUSE

   This also has been proven false in the above points on the gifts; so we shall pass this by as being just as unscriptural as the last excuse. One read-ing of Rom. 1:11; 1 Cor. 1:7; 12:1-31; 13:1-12; 14:1-40; 16:10; 1 Tim. 4:14; 2 Tim. 1:6; Jn. 14:12; Mk. 16:15-20; Lk. 11:13; 24:49; Acts 1:4-15; 2:1-21, 38-39; 5:32; 9:17; 10:44-48; 19:1-7; Mt. 3:11; Jn. 1:31-33, and scores of other Scriptures will prove that gifts and the baptism in the Spirit were promised to, and received by others who were not of the twelve apostles.

1. 1 THAT EVERYBODY HAS THE GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT, BUT DOES NOT KNOW WHICH ONES HE HAS OR HOW TO USE THEM. This excuse is a senseless one, and it is just like saying all men have ears, eyes, and bodily parts, but they do not know which ones they have, or how to use them. Anyone knows that every person who has certain normal bodily parts knows that he has them, and he also knows that he can use them. Lack of power to use them proves that one does not have them or that they are not normal. It is clear that not all Christians do have the gifts, or they would not be commanded to covet and desire them 1 Corinthians 12:311 Corinthians 14:1.

1. 1 ANOTHER EXCUSE IS THAT THE GIFTS ARE IN THE CHURCH SOMEWHERE AND THAT WHEN GOD DESIRES TO MANIFEST THEM HE USES ONE AND THEN ANOTHER

   This amounts to the idea that gifts are not personal and this is contradicted by the statements that God “worketh all in all . . . the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal . . . To one is given . . . to another . . . to another . . . dividing to every man severally as he will” 1 Corinthians 12:4-11. To hold that they are the property of the Church and not of individuals is the wrong idea, for the Church is made up of individuals; so if they do not have the gifts it is certain that the Church does not have them. Suppose we would argue that salvation is only for the Church and not for individuals; how many persons would have salvation, and where would the Church be?

1. 1 OTHERS ARGUE THAT GIFTS ARE ONLY FOR PREACHERS, BUT THIS TOO IS AN EXCUSE FOR THE ONES WHO TEACH SUCH A THEORY. Jesus said, “He that believeth” and not for the preachers only John 14:12Mark 16:15-20. Paul is writing to “them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints” 1 Corinthians 1:1-2 and he tells them to covet and desire the gifts for God gives “to every man” and not to preachers only 1 Corinthians 12:4-11.

1. Because of ignorance of them.

2. Because of unbelief in them.

3. Because they are ashamed of them.

4. Because they do not seek for them.

5. Because they do not want them.

6. Because they do not realize their importance.

7. Because they are not yielded to God.

8. Because they have grieved the Spirit.

9. Because of the many excuses of unbelief.

10. Because they think they have them.

All of the above-listed excuses and reasons are unscriptural. To ask men to produce chapter and verse for such excuses is to show the utter lack of Scripture to prove these claims. If men do not believe in miracles and in the supernatural power of God for believers, such excuses may be somewhat consoling, but to those who do believe they are foolishness.

VI. How to Exercise the Gifts—the Fruit of the Spirit

The gifts should be exercised in conjunction with the fruit of the Spirit, which is stated to be “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” Galatians 5:22-23. The ninefold fruit of the Spirit is for character, not for power. Likewise, the nine gifts of the Spirit are for power, not for character. Love is the crowning grace of all this fruit and is the impelling force of God in the true exercise of the gifts. Every element of the fruit of the Spirit should be in every life as well as the nine gifts if one attains to all the fullness of God.

In 1 Cor. 13 the ninefold fruit is summed up in the word “charity” or divine love. God is love, and all that He is, is embodied in His love 1 John 4:8. No character can be complete without this fruit, and no gift should be exercised without it. This fruit is expressed in 1 Cor. 13:4-8 as follows: “Love suffereth long [longsuffering], and is kind [kindness]; love envieth not [goodness]; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up [meekness]; doth not behave itself unseemly [temperance], seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil [meekness]; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth [joy]; beareth all things [gentleness], believeth all things [faith], hopeth all things [trust], endureth all things [patience and longsuffering]. Love never faileth.”

A character may be complete with no gift, but it must have all the fruit of the Spirit in order to be Christ-like and normal. One may have the gifts and backslide and still retain outwardly some of the abilities imparted by the Spirit. He may even exercise these abilities in himself and by his own spirit, but if he does so without the fruit of the Spirit he is nothing 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.

Gifts must always be exercised with the fruit of the Spirit, and then their manifestation will always be edifying. The possessor of the gifts if he is impelled by love will not manifest impatience, unkindness, envy, or boastfulness. He will not be puffed up or be inflated in spirit. He will not be disorderly, act shamefully and manifest indecent acts or the many carnal traits listed in Lesson Twenty-three, Point V, 3. He will never rejoice when others go wrong, but he will always rejoice in truth and goodness. Anyone who is stubborn, self-willed, harsh, commanding, unmerciful, and dogged in pushing himself forward to show off his gifts, is plainly out of the Spirit and is acting in himself, and he will do more harm to the cause of Christ than he will do good.

Those in Christendom who are normal in the quality of divine love will never reject truth, poke fun at spiritual manifestations, reject the power of God, or remain content to be without God’s best for them. They will desire spiritual gifts. They will not despise them. Those who are always critical of every supernatural manifestation and who reject all the gifts because they don’t want the so-called least of the gifts, are never sincere and open to truth concerning the gifts. Many know every poisonous dart that the devil shoots at the gift of tongues. They know all the arguments of unbelief concerning this gift, but they never get to know one detail of the truth about it or learn its benefits.

There is no gift that is unimportant. It is usually argued that the gift of tongues is the least of the gifts, and the attitude is that it is so unimportant that it should never be desired. The trouble with such rebels against truth is that they don’t want any of the gifts that are unpopular. It is certain that if they do not get the least gifts they do not get the so-called greater ones. In fact, if they had old-fashioned religion of any kind or degree they would at least be open to all that the Bible teaches and to all that God promises to give to the Church to make it invincible in the world. The gift of tongues is one of the tools of the Church and it is important, or it would not be of the Spirit and would not have been given to the Church as part of its equipment. We are not told which gifts are the best, and all that anyone says about them is mere human theory. None of them can be bad and worthless and still be of God; so because they are all of God let us desire them all as honest people should and not be poisoned against any one of them just to be a good fellow with the crowd that fights them. Let us not attribute any one of these gifts to the work of the devil, or we shall be in danger of committing the unpardonable sin of Mt. 12:22-37. If you do not want any of the gifts you can at least be honest and reject them as being of God, but do not add to your sin by attributing to the devil the gifts of God.

VII. A Gist of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit

1. 1 The Gifts of Revelation, or the Mind Gifts

We call these mind-gifts because they are pertaining to the mental powers of man more than the others are. These are three in number as follows:

The word of knowledge is a revelation of things past, present, and future, while the word of wisdom is revelation concerning things present and future. This gift is used mainly in the exercise of government, not only in human governments, but in church government. Governmental ability is essential to rulers of any community, state, nation, or to pastors, evangelists, teachers, and elders of any church. When any special problem arises that is not covered by God’s written revelation or there are no specific rules to go by, the gift of wisdom should be used in solving the problem. When the two women were brought to Solomon to decide which one the child belonged to, the gift of wisdom was manifested in calling for a sword to divide the baby and give half to each woman. This brought out the truth as to who the mother really was, for the true mother had enough compassion on the child to want to save it alive, and she requested that it be given to the other woman.

There are numerous problems that come up in churches and civil governments that could be easily solved by this gift if men would reverence God enough to seek for it and depend upon the Spirit for the word of wisdom. A few examples of its use may be seen in Mt. 2:20; Lk. 22:10-12; Jn. 2:22-24; 4:16-19; Acts 26:16; 27:21-25; 1 Cor. 5:1-5.

This knowledge does not come through natural ability, observation, study, education, or experience. It is a supernatural gift. It is not even a profound knowledge of the Bible illuminated by the Spirit. It is the revelation of knowledge that man could not have known of himself, such as the knowledge of creation, the Church, and other truths that were hidden from man from eternity. Neither the gift of wisdom nor the gift of knowledge is given to interpret and to preach and teach the Bible. They are two of the gifts that confirm the Word of God. The anointing of the Spirit is sufficient to equip one for the speaking ministry of giving out the truth, while all the gifts are miraculous abilities to confirm what is spoken Hebrews 2:3-4Mark 16:15-20Romans 15:18-19, 29. The young and inexperienced may be the recipients of this knowledge as well as the old and experienced people, for it does not depend upon natural ability, but upon the direct acts of the Spirit. This knowledge will help make a scholar, but being a scholar will never help one to attain this knowledge. Examples of this gift can be seen in Gen. 1:1–2:25; 1 Sam. 3:7-15; 2 Ki. 6:8-12; Acts 9:11-12; Mt. 16:16; Jn. 1:1-3; Acts 5:3-4; 21:11; Eph. 3; etc.

Clairvoyance, psychism, hypnotism, magic, occultism, witchcraft, sorcery, spiritism, fortune telling, crystal ball reading, and other sources of information, if they are supernatural at all, are the work of demons, as we have seen in Lesson Six. Power to discover the faults of others is not a work of true discernment, for no supernatural power is necessary to do this. All of us are richly endowed by fallen nature with the gift of fault-finding, which is forbidden in Scripture Matthew 7:1, 15. All traffic with demons is also forbidden in Scripture, as seen in Lesson Six, Point VII.

The use of the gift of discerning of spirits is “to help deliver from demons” Mark 5:5Luke 9:39Acts 5:16Acts 8:1-8Matthew 12:22; “to reveal the servants of Satan” Acts 13:9-10; “to defeat the work of demons” Acts 16:16; “to expose error” 1 John 4:1-6; and “to unmask demon-inspired miracle-workers” Acts 8:9-222 Thessalonians 2:8-12Revelation 16:13-16. This gift merely discerns, does not cast out, hence, other gifts become necessary.

1. 1 The Gifts of Inspiration, or the Vocal Gifts

The gifts of inspiration are three. We call them inspirational or vocal gifts because they are manifested by direct inspiration through the vocal organs. They are prophecy, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Their purpose is to inspire men in public gatherings and to make known the presence of the supernatural through the medium of the voice and the ear. They are designed mainly for public worship to instruct, edify, correct, direct, rebuke, exhort, and teach the direct will of God and make known His direct will to His people. They are as follows:

These utterances, whether for edification and comfort or for revelation of things to come, were supernatural, direct from God by the Spirit. They were not the common utterances of preachers under the anointing to preach, for this would rob the gift of the supernatural element and accuse the Spirit speaking many things contrary to the written revelation. For many preachers speak many things in sermons that are in direct conflict to the Word of God, and yet many of them are to some degree unctionized or anointed by the Spirit to preach. The gift of prophecy is direct utterance of things that are not premeditated and which are not the fruit of the intellect of the speaker. The word “preach” is not the same as “prophesy.” The two are distinct from each other. One is inspired utterance without the fruit of the intellect in study, and the other is the result of study though it may be anointed in a mild form. One is the direct speaking through man by the Spirit as He gives utterance in the known tongue, as the gift of tongues is the direct utterance of the Spirit in unknown tongues, while the other is the fruit of the intellect and the natural man’s faculties, giving utterance under a limited unction from God. The true exercise of the gift of prophecy is every bit supernatural, as is clear in examples of its use Acts 2:16-21Acts 3:21Acts 11:28Acts 21:112 Peter 1:21. Preaching can be called prophecy in a limited form, depending upon the degree of yieldedness and the direct control of the speaker and the purpose of the Spirit on the occasion. The purpose of the gifts is for edification, as may be seen in 1 Cor. 14:3, 4, 24, 25, 31.

It is clear that this gift can be exercised by both men and women 1 Corinthians 11:51 Corinthians 14:31Acts 2:16-21, and all should use it in turn 1 Corinthians 14:1-3, 24. Prophecy is greater than tongues without interpretation, but both are equal when tongues are interpreted 1 Corinthians 14:5. It is simply the Spirit speaking through a believer in his own tongue, while tongues is the same operation, only it is not in the native tongue of the speaker 1 Corinthians 12:7, 111 Corinthians 14:1-3, 23. It may accompany tongues Acts 19:1-7. It is not equal to the written Word of God, for it will cease 1 Corinthians 13:8 but the written Word will abide forever 1 Peter 1:25Psalms 119:89. It is to be judged to see if it is in harmony with the written Word 1 Corinthians 14:29. The responsibility of what is uttered rests with the prophet 1 Corinthians 14:32Deuteronomy 18:20-22. The acid test of all gifts is the Word of God.

One should never misuse or suppress true utterances, but false ones should never be tolerated. The spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets 1 Corinthians 14:32, God does not force any person to utter anything. When an utterance is forced it is likely demon-utterance. If the message is of the wrong spirit the speaker is detected by what he utters, and generally it is some rebuke or unseemly and unscriptural utterance without regard to God or man or the Word of God. And the speaker becomes angry if his message is not taken and obeyed as from God. It is generally the source of contention and trouble. The true prophet will always act in the fear of God and in harmony with the Word of God. He will be open to teaching and criticism and will be willing to adjust himself to what he is taught that is best for all.

We do not want the reader to get the idea that we are giving more prominence to the gift of tongues than to other gifts, but this one gift is so much misunderstood that the whole church world seems to be poisoned against it, and it is our duty to plainly state what the Bible says about it, just as we are doing with every doctrine of Scripture. We are giving an impartial study of the Bible and all of its doctrines, and we must be faithful to do this regardless of the narrow-mindedness and unfairness of the multitudes concerning certain truths of Scripture. When a truth is being rejected, as is the doctrine of speaking in tongues, then it is the duty of every man to state fairly and honestly what the Bible says about it to correct these false ideas. It is one of the three gifts Paul gives so much prominence to in 1 Cor. 14. It is peculiar that not one of the other gifts is dealt with in this chapter, thus proving that the vocal gifts are the three main ones to be used in the meetings of believers. The vocal gifts are so evidently supernatural that they naturally challenge at once those who reject such gifts Acts 2:1-21Acts 10:44-48Acts 19:1-7. Scripture is so simple and clear on this subject that it is easy to answer all questions concerning it.

It has nothing to do with linguistic ability nor with the mind or intellect as far as the understanding is concerned. It is simply the Spirit employing the vocal organs and other faculties of speech. Man’s will and spirit are active and in perfect accord with God who is the one directly speaking through the man by the Spirit. This is merely a miracle of utterance in unknown languages, the fact of God directly speaking through man spiritual mysteries unknown to the individual, that we cannot understand Romans 8:26-271 Corinthians 14:2-5. It is God’s way of speaking directly by the Spirit to the spirit of man and through man’s spirit and imparting to it supernatural power and strength. One of the dearest truths of the Bible is that of the weakness of man’s spirit, which has been under the domination of satanic power for so many centuries. Tongues is the provision of God to communicate and edify man’s spirit and strengthen the inner man 1 Corinthians 14:2-4.

Can it be possible that in this one Bible doctrine God has given something to the Church that is of no value, that is to be the object of ridicule and slander, and that is to be the object of blasphemy on the part of man? Can we afford to reject this blessing of the Spirit because we are ignorant of its purposes and benefits? Would He have spent so much time and effort and said so much about it if it were of no importance? Shall we reject gifts because they are not possible to reproduce or cultivate in human schools? Must His ways be lowered to the human plane before we can believe that He has a good purpose in them?

Like prophecy, it is God’s desire that speaking in tongues be practiced by all, but many of us cannot do it because of our lack of understanding, faith, consecration, and yieldedness to the Spirit 1 Corinthians 14:5, 39Mark 16:15-20Isaiah 28:9-11John 15:26John 16:13-16. We must control this gift like all others 1 Corinthians 14:32. We are not to forbid the use of it 1 Corinthians 14:39. It should be used for public edification in public meetings 1 Corinthians 14:4-5, 12. It is not for personal leading, but for edification 1 Corinthians 14:2. If used in private it is speaking to God alone, but in public it is for public edification 1 Corinthians 14:2-5, 12. There are twenty-eight passages in the Bible on the subject, which we shall consider in Lesson Thirty.

1. 1 The Gifts of Power, or the Working Gifts

These are three in number. We call them the working gifts because they are the ones that manifest the omnipotence of God and deliver men from all the works of the devil and intervene in nature when it is necessary to accomplish the will of God. They are as follows:

The purposes of the gifts of healing are “to deliver the sick and to destroy the very works of the devil in the body” Matthew 8:16-17Acts 10:381 Peter 2:24Isaiah 53:3-5Psalms 103:1-3James 5:14-16; “to confirm the Word of God” Mark 16:18-20Hebrews 2:3-4; “to establish the claims of Jesus” Matthew 9:1-8John 10:10, 36John 14:11; “to establish and prove the doctrine of the resurrection” Acts 3:15-16Romans 8:11; “to attract people to the gospel” Acts 4:4Acts 20:11-20; “to turn people to God” Acts 4:4Acts 5:12-16Acts 9:35; and “to carry on the work that Jesus started” Acts 1:1-2John 14:11-15. The doctrine of healing is fully dealt with in Lesson Fourteen.

The purpose of miracles is to confirm the Word of God Hebrews 2:3-4 and display the power of God over all powers in the universe Exodus 7:10–142 Kings 4:1-442 Kings 6:17. The program of Satan is to discount all the miracles of the Bible. So-called scientists have sought to explain the Bible miracles, but there are many they have never found the slightest answer for. The Bible is a book of miracles and those today who believe the whole Bible are still seeing them in answer to simple prayer and faith. Every child of God is promised power to do miracles and get what he wants Matthew 21:21-22Mark 9:23Mark 11:22-24Mark 16:15-20John 14:12-15John 15:7, 161 Corinthians 12:4-11, 27. The great need of today is the full restoration of the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude 3). May God speed the day of normal Christian power in the Church for the glory of God!