The Contender

  The Gifts of the Spirit: Part 1 1 Corinthians 12                  Back in the day, 1974, the gifts of the Spirit were the talk o’ the town. Everybody wanted to speak in tongues, having no idea what the Biblical gift was. Gibberish was the order of the day. But a closer examination of Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 12 and 14 reveals that speaking in tongues was actually speaking in known languages and that should have settled the matter once and for all; but it didn’t. Charismatics preferred to ignore Scripture and do what they wanted. Speaking in gibberish was just fine with them. Interpretation? Never heard of it. It was common to visit a local congregation that had a strong charismatic influence in it where many people spoke in gibberish at once. It seems charismatics wanted to pitch their tents in 1 Cor. 12 and again, ignore chapter 14.            ...

 If you are hoping for a direct word from God on this post, you're in luck. The catch is there are no direct words from God outside the Bible. Any and every direct revelation from God has already been given and finished. The Canon of Scripture is closed. Sure, one can watch the hundreds of quacks and charlatans on social media sites where they sell their lies and deceptions to the gullible and biblically illiterate. And when I say "sell," that is just what they do; they peddle their heresies and twisted Scriptures to their dupes. All who say, "The Lord told me this," or "The Lord showed me this," are lying. And they know their followers well enough to know they can say anything, no matter how ridiculous and absurd, and their followers will increase, and so will their offerings received.     So, here is a direct revelation from Paul's letter to the saints in Rome. The following truths/facts come from the letter to the Romans. “To God be the glory.” ...

 Do you claim to "speak in tongues?" Do you claim to be an apostle, you know, just like the apostles hand-picked by Jesus were who met the requirements of that office? (See Acts 1) Do you claim to be a prophet who regularly hears directly from God? Do you have the gift of healing? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then you are in the company of millions.  The problem is you have more than likely been deceived into believing that you have any of those gifts or the others mentioned in the apostle Paul's letter to the saints in Corinth. However, the spiritual gifts listed in First Corinthians 12 are legitimate gifts. And, in spite of what many leading pastors of our day and many of our leading theologians might proffer, the Bible does not teach or even hint that the "sign gifts" have ceased. And in spite of the fact that you do not truly have the gifts you have been told you have, if you are born of the Spirit, you do in fact have one of the gifts (or ...