Question 41: Please explain in more detail.

 Question 41: Please explain in more detail.


Answer: Jesus Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit along with all the gifts so that He might distribute them to each person according to the extent that God deems appropriate. Therefore, we obtain all the spiritual graces we possess from Him as if drinking water from a well.

1 Corinthians 12:4-7: “There are different kinds of gifts (charismaton, χαρισμάτων), but the Spirit is the same. There are different kinds of ministry, but the Lord is the same. There are different kinds of work, but God, who works all things in all people, is the same. The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each person for the common good (symperon).”

Spiritual gifts are the same work of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, offices are the same "work of the Lord." This means that there is no distinction between gifts and offices. *Symperon* (συμφέρον) is a compound word of *shim* (together) and *peron* (to carry). This means that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are gifts intended to be with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Lord, and the recipient of the gift works alongside Him in an auxiliary capacity.
Nine spiritual gifts are listed.

First is the word of wisdom. This means that God's word manifests as wisdom to a person. The word of wisdom and the word of knowledge are qualitatively similar.

Second is the word of knowledge. Knowledge also manifests through hearing the word. Knowledge means hearing the word from God and becoming aware of a certain event.

Third, it speaks of faith to others through the same Holy Spirit. The faith referred to as a spiritual gift is faith that performs miracles.

Fourth is the gift of healing through the one Holy Spirit to some people. The gift of divine healing is the one that manifests most frequently among ministers.

Fifth is the ministry of power. When a believer prays, the minister lays hands on the head of the one praying, and at that time, mysterious reactions sometimes occur. Thus, the believer who experiences power comes to experience the presence of God.

Sixth is the gift of prophecy to some people. While this is also one of the important gifts for ministry, caution is required because there are many cases of prophecy lacking sincerity. Seventh is discerning a spirit in a person. It is discerning whether it is the work of the Holy Spirit or the work of an evil spirit.

The eighth and ninth speak of the gift of speaking in tongues and the gift of interpreting those tongues. The speaking in tongues and the person interpreting it occur simultaneously. It is not a matter of listening to the speaker's words and interpreting them; rather, the speaker speaks in unintelligible words, while the interpreter speaks in understandable words.

This means that while all of this manifests through one Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit appear differently in each believer. Gifts are grace given by God for the propagation of the Gospel. Therefore, just as each person has their own characteristics, gifts are given accordingly. Believers today must be wary of charismaticism. If misguided, they can fall into mysticism. They must listen to the voice of the Lord and exercise their gifts.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Question 64. What is the invisible church?

  Question 64. What is the invisible church? Answer. The invisible church is the total number of the elect who are gathered together and will be gathered together in the future under Christ, the head. In the catechism, the doctrine states that the invisible church is "the total number of the elect who are gathered together and will gather together in the future under Christ, the head," so it can be understood as those who make heaven in Christ. However, the invisible church can be said to be an invisible church community, but this was only used as a means to divide the visible church and the invisible church, and dividing them into visible and invisible is not biblical. The church is the church of the saints, and the church community is the gathering of the saints. The expression "true member" is also ambiguous.  
Read more

Question 10: Is that enough?

Question 10: Is that enough? Answer: No. Although the saints have become holy in Jesus Christ, they still have the characteristics of the old man in their hearts. Therefore, the saints must fight and overcome the fleshly desires of the old man through spiritual growth. Carnal desires are a collection of roughly seven characteristics: physical nature, blood ties, experience and knowledge, thoughts and ideologies, religious beliefs, self-righteousness, and the desire for dominance. These desires develop and diminish as we grow, but they remain constant overall. However, because these carnal desires establish a hostile opposition to God, they hinder and torment the spiritual growth of believers.
Read more

Question 82. What is the communion in glory that the members of the invisible church enjoy with Christ?

  Question 82. What is the communion in glory that the members of the invisible church enjoy with Christ?   Answer. The communion in glory that the members of the invisible church enjoy with Christ is something that exists in this life and happens immediately after death, and is finally completed on the day of resurrection and judgment. In question 64, the invisible church is said to be the total number of the elect who are gathered together under Christ, the head, and who will be gathered in the future, so it can be understood as those who make heaven in Christ. And question 82 is connected to question 65. Question 65. What special benefits do the members of the invisible church enjoy through Christ? Answer. The members of the invisible church enjoy union and communion with the Lord in grace and glory through Christ. The word communion is not a biblical expression. It is understood to mean union with Jesus Christ, or becoming one with God in Christ. However, the doctr...
Read more