Bible Discussion Thread

Of all the gifts from the Holy Spirit - a most excellent way Paul said superior and better than these gifts the more excellent way than the gifts the best gifts - superiority of love over the gifts of the Spirit

Yes dear John. in 1 Corinthians 12:31 Paul says "But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way" And then in chapter 13 Paul talks about love and the characteristics of it. But does actually Paul mean that love is enough and so we don't need the spiritual gifts that God gives to His children? Is that so? No, it isn't. Read the first three verses of chapter 14. "1 - Follow after charity (love), and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy. 2 - For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries. 3 - But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort."

What does it says above? Follow love AND desire the spiritual gifts. What spiritual gifts is Paul talking about? All, but he specifically talks about tongues and prophesy. So should these exist in any church congregation? Paul says yes they should. Chapter 14 is an excellent example of how the early church functioned. But is this only for the early church ... ?

GBU

The Spirit choses to whom and what spiritual gift or gifts He gives- hope that He gives the gift that is most needed in one's life not sure He gives multiple gifts? Whatever gift He gives He gives to be used to the glory of God I think Jesus said it best when they asked what should one do and He responded to love God with all your heart, soul and mind and to love your neighbor as yourself on this rests all the law and the prophets he emphasized love - He is right - and in John 3:16 for God so loved the world He sent His only begotten son. Agape love - we can't understand fully this love but we r to love one another as Christ loved it was love that the father accepted his wayward son back and celebrated his return but I agree - to have gifts of wisdom , knowledge , ministry , etc wonderful but to truly love wow that is hard to find to have that ability to love your enemy? Love those that persecute you? Those that revile you? That is a mark of a true Christian I feel if there is not an outward pouring of love for God and for fellow man . Gifts don't matter

You are right my brother about what you have said about love, loving one another, love our enemies and most importantly God. But the reason God gave His gifts to His children is not really about His Glory so much but for the proper function of the church. Paul described the church as the Body of Christ, as a body that each individual part has a work to do so the whole church functions in a proper way, in the way God wants. If they were not important God wouldn't have given them to us. But He did and expects us to take them and use them, I guess. So you saying that they "don't matter" opposes God's plan for His church actually. Paul says, as I wrote in my previous post, to ask for the best gifts, so how can one claim that they don't matter. Prophesy for example is according to v 3 "for edification, exhortation and comfort". So God uses an individual to give a message to a person or the church for these reasons. Prophesy is not always foretelling, it may be sometimes but not always. Did Nathan the prophet ever foretell about smt to happen in future? No but he had messages directly from God to give to king David. If God wants to talk to us, is it sensible to not want to hear? Just think about it.

Now let's talk about love. God is love, but God is also truth and God is also justice. This means that love can not exist in God separate from truth and justice. E.g. Love without justice is not not right, truth without justice doesn't mean anything, justice without truth can not exist. All three must be present in a person just like their are present in God. But truth is the Word of God, which is also what is right or wrong. If one says I want to have love then according to what God wants then one must have His truth as well, that is His written Word.

So love outside the written Word of God is not accepted. Finally if we just claim that all those things were for that time then we are never going to ask them and never going to get them. As simple as that. But why not?

GBU

I agree with u brother

God is love and we are to love Him with all our heart , soul and mind and one another as we love ourselves and the gifts are important of course for the proper function of the church