Just as the members of the body, though many, are one body, so is Christ.

 

Just as the members of the body, though many, are one body, so is Christ.

 

1 Corinthians 12:12-13: "For just as the body, though many, has many members, yet the members of the body, though many, are one body, so is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all given one Spirit to drink."

 

By likening spiritual gifts to the body, it states that just as the body has many members, those who are in Christ also manifest their roles in diverse ways. It implies that both Jews and Greeks have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit in Christ.

 

The purpose of giving the baptism of the Holy Spirit is to witness the Gospel, to do so by the power of the Holy Spirit. If all believers receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit and exercise spiritual gifts, they will demonstrate great power in the evangelism of the Gospel. However, the church tends to think that only ministers exercise such power.

 

There are cases among ministers where they are displeased with believers exercising these gifts; the reason is that ministers try to use such gifts to demonstrate authority over the believers. Among the members of the Corinthian church, there were those who had received various spiritual gifts. However, some of them did not regard the gifts received by others as gifts, but considered only their own gifts as such. Paul explains this by likening the various gifts to the body.

 

Since gifts come from one Spirit, he is telling those who have received them to cooperate and utilize them for the preaching of the Gospel. When those with diverse gifts within the church cooperate to proclaim the Gospel of Christ, even gifts that are considered less precious can shine.

 

This means that if gifts are shared and complemented by one another, the power of the Gospel can be demonstrated externally, and a beautiful church community can be built internally. If one considers only the gifts received by oneself important and devalues ​​those received by others, it will cause harm to the church community. 1 Corinthians 12:27-28 states, "But you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a part of it. God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then those who work miracles, then those with gifts of healing, helping, governing, and speaking in various tongues." Here, the gifts for ministers are introduced.

 

First, an apostle signifies one who governs. An apostle is one who manages the church members well. Apostles are those who preach the gospel and manage believers. This apostolic office is exercised through the gift given to them. We can see that during the early church era, Peter served as an apostle to the Jews centered in Jerusalem, while Paul served in the Gentile regions.

 

Second, a prophet signifies a seer. Prophecy refers to the Word of Scripture, which remains hidden until the time of faith when it is to be revealed, and signifies one who accurately conveys and reveals the meaning of that Scripture. Acts 2:14-21: “Peter stood with the eleven apostles and spoke in a loud voice, saying, ‘Jews and all who live in Jerusalem, listen to me so that you may know this. It is the third hour, and they are not drunk as you think. This is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: that they were drunk.’” When the Holy Spirit came and Jesus’ disciples began to speak in tongues, the Jews claimed that the disciples were drunk. However, Peter stated that they were not drunk, but that it was the fulfillment of what the prophet Joel had prophesied.

 

He promised salvation through grace, saying, “Whoever calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.” The promise, “The Spirit of God will be poured out on all people, and whoever calls on the name of the LORD will be saved,” was fulfilled when Jesus came to this earth. Apostle Peter preached on Pentecost, quoting the prophecy recorded in the Book of Joel, and this was immediately after the assembled crowd had experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit. The prophecy had clearly been fulfilled.

 

The third is the teacher. A teacher refers to the gift of teaching. It means that a teacher accurately understands the meaning of the Gospel and explains it properly to the believers. The Gospel is about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on the cross, and it is about the complete grace of God. If legalism, prosperity theology, or mysticism are mixed into the meaning of the Gospel, it cannot be the Gospel.

 

Fourth, one is a worker of powers. Working of powers can take various forms. It means evangelizing to many people and leading them to the church.

 

Fifth, the gift of healing involves utilizing the spread of the Gospel through healing.

 

In addition, the gifts of helping, governing, and speaking in tongues are introduced. Those with the gift of helping play the role of assisting church members who are experiencing difficulties for various reasons. Those who govern refer to the office of elder today.

 

Speaking in tongues within the church is connected to the interpretation of tongues; when someone speaks in tongues, an interpreter is appointed so that the congregation can understand. It is to make known to all believers the words that God speaks through the mouth of the one speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues is not so much the content of a believer's prayer to God, but rather God making His will known through that believer.

 

The gifts are classified according to the importance of the gifts God has given, introducing apostles, prophets, teachers, those who work miracles, healers, speakers of tongues, and interpreters. We can understand the Holy Spirit coming upon the apostles from Acts 2:1-4. "But when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. Suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues of fire, divided and resting on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance."

 

Furthermore, the instruction is not to appoint one person to perform the role of the gifts, but to appoint someone responsible for each specific gift. It means that the ministry should not be done by a single minister doing everything, but rather the work should be divided.

 

Gifts are phenomena that appear among those who have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. There are gifts greater than those listed, and the instruction is to earnestly desire them. This means that God pours out the Holy Spirit upon those who have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit and earnestly desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Acts of claiming to perform gifts and deceiving believers without having received the baptism of the Holy Spirit are not performed by the power of the Holy Spirit, but by evil spirits.