by Garrett Glende

We’ve now reached the 52nd chapter of Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology so it goes without saying that there has been quite the variety of issues discussed thus far. Any time that you read something that addresses such a wide range of topics – everything from the authority of Scripture to the ordinance of baptism – you are bound to come across statements that you might not agree with. Such has been the case from time to time when reading and studying Grudem’s book. Nothing has jumped off the page as heretical or worth breaking any sort of fellowship over, but there are definitely some points that we disagree on. This dynamic presents somewhat of a challenge when it comes time to putting together an article on the chapter (mostly because I don’t like to disagree with much smarter people) and it’s happened again this week.

The issue of spiritual gifts within the church has been a hot topic in recent years beginning with the charismatic movement and the debate still stands today. It’s an issue that interests people because the different views seem so divided and it’s genuinely interesting to learn about the miraculous sign gifts. But this is not going to be the focus of today’s article. For now, we’ll just look into the basics of spiritual gifts and how we should view them in regards to our own roles within the body of Christ. Next week’s article will examine the more controversial topics, specifically regarding the cessation or continuation of certain gifts.

Grudem defines spiritual gifts as an “ability that is empowered by the Holy Spirit and used in any ministry of the church.” The main teaching on this topic is found in 1 Corinthians 12-14 so much of our time will be spent looking at passages from this section of Scripture. Paul makes it clear that the gifts “are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11). The Holy Spirit distributes these gifts for the purpose of building up the body of Christ, the church. Verse seven of the same chapter says that “to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” Paul goes on to describe the church as a body that has many members, all of which work together to make it stronger. One of the Holy Spirit’s roles in this process is that it has given a variety of abilities to all the members in order that this growth might take place. When all members are exercising their Spirit given gifts, then the body will function at its fullest potential, the way God intended it. We must remember this purpose of the gifts, because it will become important later when we look into the sign gifts and how they are viewed today.

There are a few different lists of gifts in the Bible, one of them being found in 1 Cor. 12:8-10: “For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.” The above list is not exhaustive, but it shows us that there are surely a variety of abilities that the Spirit distributes (the other lists can be found in 1 Cor. 12:28, Eph. 4:11, and Rom. 12:6-8). It would not make sense for God to give us all the gift of teaching or else we would have no one to do administration. Likewise, He did not give us all the gift of administration because someone is needed to teach. We must note that there is nothing in us that affects what kind of gifts the Spirit gives us. The distribution of gifts is an entirely sovereign act of the Holy Spirit, “who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11).

I know that we’re just scratching the surface here, so I’m hoping that you’ll go study more on your own, but I do want to bring up a point of application. The whole reason why three chapters in 1 Corinthians are devoted to this issue is because the church that Paul was writing to was misusing their gifts and they were jealous of those who had flashier gifts than they did. It’s easy to condemn the Corinthians for such behavior, but I think the same thing goes on in our church today. There’s always a part of us that wishes we had a gift that would make us look godly – something that we could show off. We see others who have been gifted in these areas and we want what they already have. But this completely misses the point of the gifts in the first place! The person who’s gifted in teaching may not have the gift of encouragement or administration, but you might be! But people can even take pride in being the “humble” behind-the-scenes guy who rarely gets credit. Regardless of how we are gifted, we must remember that they must be used in love. Love is the “more excellent way” that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 13. We can have all the flashy gifts in the world, but if we don’t have love then we’re nothing. Paul charges the church in Corinth to exercise their gifts with love and in a way that edifies the body. And we must use ours with love as well – because love is eternal and the gifts are not. I’d love to expand on that more, but I’d spoil next week’s article, so I’ll end it here.

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)