Grace Bible Church
Pastor Teacher
Robert R. McLaughlin
011721
Every Believer Receives at Least One Spiritual Gift at The Moment of Salvation.
They are gifts that were given such as the teaching gifts.
- These include the Apostles
- The Prophets
- The Evangelist
- Pastor-Teachers.
Point 2. Next, there are the natural gifts.
- Paradise is where the Old Testament believers resided after death before the resurrection of our Lord.
- Torments is where all unbelievers reside, LUK 16:23.
- Tartarus is where certain fallen angels, called “beni ha Elohim” are in Gen 6, where they live or reside.
- The Abyss contains demons who transgress the boundaries of the human race.
The Abyss is also the location of the demon king, Satan's right hand man, called Abaddon.
Abaddon is mentioned once in the New Testament and nine times in the Old Testament.
In Rev 9, he breaks out of this jail with the help of Satan who has now been cast out of heaven and can never return there again.
Back to our Lord, as He continued with His ministry, He did not seek or work for any spiritual gifts.
For example, our Lord became involved in the plan for all of us and was the one who came up with the plan of God for all of us to execute which is why we read the following:
We also know that in HEB 2:4, our Lord used members who were of the same team, but they played different positions.
He was the Production for the work of the ministry as every believer represented Jesus Christ.
He built up the body of Christ by adding new believers and by helping other believers to grow.
Point 3. All spiritual gifts are not listed in scripture, but merely they represent different categorical doctrines.
Such as the gift of helps; administrations, preparation, leadership; exhortation.
Remember that many of the gifts require that the believer prepare that the Lord’s gifts are for the purpose of some of the spiritual gifts mentioned in Eph 4:8-13.
These gifts include the teaching type of gifts that you hear from both the males and female types that come from both the males and females that you hear from this pulpit; like me, John, Samantha, and other women,
Every believer receives at least one spiritual gift at the moment of salvation; 1Co 12:13.
The body of Christ is a team of believers working together.
Your spiritual gift is your position on the team.
It is not necessary for you to recognize your spiritual gift for you to function under it.
Point 4. The attitude toward your spiritual gifts is given in ROM 12:3.
Point 5. One is not to feel inferior or superior because It is a gift.
Possession of a spiritual gift does not indicate merit or spirituality.
And that is because a “Gift” connotes grace. (Paul was the worst sinner, 1TI 1:12, who ever lived and he had several gifts).
Point 6. There are two categories of spiritual gifts:
Permanent: Which exist throughout the Church Age.
Temporary: Those between the day of Pentecost and the completed canon of scripture — approximately 35-95 AD. Most were spectacular.
Temporary gifts were necessary to get the church started without a complete Bible. 1CO 13:8-10.
Temporary gifts were used by God to focus attention on the message of the Gospel — HEB 2:4.
Point 7. Identification.
Spiritual gifts are sovereignly bestowed on the believer by God.
The Holy Spirit is the instrument at the moment of salvation who appoints the spiritual gift; 1CO 12:11.
No spiritual gifts are given until after the ascension — the Lord Jesus Christ provided spiritual gifts — EPH 4:8-11.
You do not seek spiritual gifts. Be satisfied with the one you have.
Spiritual gifts in order of merit were all spectacular: 1Co 12:28-30.
First we have Apostles: Who were temporary gifts, that were necessary when the canon was incomplete in order to carry the church through those difficult days.
Then there was the gift of absolute spiritual dictatorship which was set aside with the completed canon of scripture, the canon now being the absolute authority.
No one now has authority over more than one church.
So, here’s what all churches have with their trmporary gifts:
- Apostles
- Prophets: gift of both: 1. Foretelling - temporary;
- Forthtelling — permanent.
Apostles: Temporary gift, necessary when the canon was incomplete in order to carry the church through those difficult days.
The gift of absolute spiritual dictatorship was set aside with the completed canon of scripture, the canon now being the absolute authority.
No one now has authority over more than one church.
So, here’s what all the temporary churches have.
- Apostles
- Prophets: gift of both: 1. Foretelling - temporary;
- Forthtelling — permanent.
- Teachers: Permanent.
- Miracles: Temporary (Person’s faith not involved)
- Healings: Temporary (person’s faith not involved)
- Then there are the following type of gifts.
- Physiological;
- Mental;
- Demon induced illness.
- Helps: Permanent — gift of administration.
- Governments:
- Permanent
- Gifts of administration.
- Diversities of tongues:
- Temporary — gift of speaking a foreign language not previously known (not ecstatics).
1Co 12:31 introduces chapter 13” “but covet” (as a church) “the best gifts.”
Prophecy verses, tongues, subject of chapter 14. “more excellent way”: This is love produced through the filling of the Holy Spirit.
These Corinthians were noted for their envy, jealousy, childishness, spiritual bullying, litigation, divorce, drunkenness, and other carnality activity.
Conclusion: The possession of a spiritual gift does not mean spirituality.
Principle: If the Corinthians, with all their carnality could have more people with spectacular spiritual gifts, then there is definitely no correlation between possessing a certain type of spiritual gift and spirituality.
It is important to distinguish between spiritual gifts and spirituality; a spiritual gift, for its proper function, depends upon spirituality, but they are not the same.
One of the abuses in the Corinthians church was that there were many people speaking in tongues and they felt that they were the spiritual giants in the assembly.
In the church worship services certain spiritual gifts are to function and others are to be minimized or avoided.