OUR FATHER WHO GAVE US GIFTS BY THE HOLY SPIRIT

In 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verse 1 - 11 ( NIV ), the Apostle Paul discusses the spiritual provisions that are made available to believers so that they can be equipped to navigate the hazards of the spiritual realm and also to care for and guide each believer in their midst.

1 Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. 3 Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

The first utility Paul mentions is the basic discernment of spirits. Many believers at Corinth were already familiar with spiritual entities and had engaged with them on their pagan practices so Paul gave them a litmus test to determine if the spirits they came across as christians were friends or foes. The test was an uttered allegiance test that would definitively inform them of which kingdom the entity was from. 

If the entity could curse the name of Jesus, that spirit was from the kingdom of darkness no matter how dressed up in light it was. If the spirit could say "Jesus is Lord", the spirit was operating in the kingdom of light.

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

The Holy Spirit of God is the arbiter of spiritual gifts and distributes them at His discretion and below are the categories of gifts and their general description and an example of the gift in action from scripture;

1. Message of wisdom - Gives the ability to get spiritual guidance on the best course of action to take in a situation ( When Jesus met with his disciples at lake galilee while they were fishing, they said that they had fished all night and had caught nothing. The word of wisdom Jesus gave them was to drop their nets on the other side of their boat and they quickly caught so many fish they could barely bring them in )
2. Message of knowledge - Gives the ability to supernaturally know a piece of information pertaining to a person or a situation ( When the Lord Jesus was speaking to the woman at the well, He received a word of knowledge about her marital status and she was astonished how He knew about the private matters of her life )
3. Faith - Gives the ability to spiritually handle the substance the things hoped for and perceive the evidence of things not seen. ( When the Prophet Elisha and his servant were in Samaria, the servant was afraid because they were surrounded by enemy forces and he could not see how they would escape, Elisha prayed that the servant would have the ability to see the evidence of the invisible spiritual army that was on their side )
4. Healing - Gives the ability to bring physical or mental healing to others from the spiritual realm ( The Apostle Peter and John, when passing through the beautiful gate in Jerusalem, were asked for alms by a man who could not walk and Peter grabbed the manˋs arm and  lifted him up to walk and he was healed  )
5. Miraculous powers - Gives the ability to perform signs and wonders to establish the superiority of the kingdom of light ( In the book of Acts, when the Apostle Paul touched handkerchiefs and these were taken to people in remote places, they were being healed and demons were being cast out of them )
6. Pro phecy - Gives the ability to collect information on the occurences, intentions and directives of heaven and transmit this information to people. ( Prophet and Apostle John, having been given access to the spiritual realm, was able to see the future and the fates of nations and he recorded his experiences in the book of Revelation )
7. Distinguishing spirits - Gives the ability to sense the true nature and intention of a spirit or a person so that friends and foes can be distinguished from one another. ( When Apostle Peter ancountered Simon in Samaria asking to buy the power to lay hands on people so they could get the Holy Spirit, Peter was able to discern that Simon was not operating out of sincererity and was not right with God )
8. Speaking in tongues - Gives the ability to speak in spiritual languages and in doing so, builds up the inner man ( spirit ) of the speaker. ( After Jesus had returned to heaven, his earnest followers gathered in the upper room and the Holy Spirit alighted on those who had tarried there and a flame of fire could be seen on their heads and they spoke in other tongues )
9. Interpreting tongues - Gives the ability to interpret a spiritual language  and translate the spiritual language into an accessible language. ( e.g. - Prophet Daniel read the spiritual writing that was written on the wall of the king Belshazzarˋs palace and interpreted its meaning for the king )

The gifts given to believers are means of interacting with the spiritual realm in order to bring down information and power to supply requirements in the physical realm.

For example, if knowledge is needed, a person operating in that gift can connect to a channel in the spiritual realm and receive the otherwise hidden knowledge and speak it.

Likewise, if a person has a physical or mental ailment, a person gifted in healing can connect to a spiritual channel and bring down the power to heal the sick person.

All these are provided by the Holy Spirit to the glory of the Lord Jesus.

Amen.

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