Paul reminds the church at Corinth that they were converted from heathenism; having been carried away and led (apagomenoi) to worship dumb (aphona), mute or silent idols as they were led by Satan, the prince of idols and demons. Since all idols are totally passive, not seeing, hearing, nor helping the worshiper, Satan has used them to lead men astray. He is the force behind all idol worship seducing the worshipers to follow at his command.
Then Paul makes a profound statement saying, "..no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed (anathema) or doomed: and no man can say that Jesus is the Lord (kurios), Master or Owner but by the Holy Ghost." The Holy Spirit residing in a child of God can call Jesus, Lord; by the same token only by the spirit of Satan can anyone call Jesus, accursed. Only an unsaved person can say, "Cursed Jesus;" whereas only a saved person can say, "Lord Jesus." The unsaved that repent of their sins can go from saying Accursed Jesus to Lord Jesus. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit and not Satan that the individual can say, "Lord Jesus." So Paul introduces the gifts of the Holy Spirit by pointing out that the experience of the child of God begins with the Holy Spirit (John 16:7 - 11). It is He (the Holy Spirit) Who bestows the gifts about which Paul begins to write in verse 4. It is significant that the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Godhead, does not direct our worship to Himself, but always to Jesus the Second Person of the Godhead. He seeks no prominence but directs our worship to Jesus.
To know the importance of the work of the Holy Spirit, Yeager writes, "During the Old Testament period God the Father spoke unto the fathers through the mouths of the Prophets. During the first thirty-three years of the 'last days' He spoke to us through His son. Throughout the remainder of the 'last days' He has spoken unto us through the Holy Spirit. When the 'last days' (Hebrews 1:1,2) are over and the mystery is completed (Ephesians 3:1 - 13; Revelation 10:7) our Lord will return and establish the kingdom that will never be overthrown" (Volume XIII, p. 46).
4 - 7 "Now there are diversities (diaireseis) or varieties of gifts (charismaton), but the same Spirit (auto pneuma)." One Spirit gives to each Christian the gift or gifts that He sees fit. That Holy Spirit is God, and He is capable of dividing among the saints whom He calls a variety of capabilities (Yeager, p. 47). The word charismaton comes from charis meaning grace or favor, a manifestation of grace. "It denotes here a gracious gift of God, an extraordinary favor conferred through the working of the Spirit" (Gould, p. 104).
"And there are differences of administration (diakonion) or ministry, but the same Lord (autos kurios)." Leary wrote of the diversity of the Spirit's operation thus, "The witnessing of the Spirit admits of degrees. Just as a rich man's window may be wider than a poor man's, and so the sun may make his house the more light, that the things within it may be better discerned, yet the poor man may really enjoy the beams of the sun, and see what is in his house; so the poorest, the weakest believer may know the Spirit hath shined into his heart, as well as others that enjoy brighter beams than he hath been acquainted with" (B. I., Volume XLIII, p. 170). Verse 6 says, "And there are diversities of operations (energematon) or workings, but it is the same God (autos theos) which worketh all in all." Note that in verse 4 the Divine One is called Spirit, in verse 5 He is called Lord and in verse 6 He is called God. The division of labor in the Godhead is clearly pointed out in these three verses. Three functions are mentioned here - the legislative function is performed by God the Father; the Judge is the Lord Jesus Christ; the Executive is the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit (the Head) is in perfect control, He is not only resident by also regnant, and the Christian is able to accomplish what God would have him to do.
Verse 7 reads, "But the manifestation (phanerosis) or disclosure of the Spirit is given to every man to profit (sumpheron) or 'to get it altogether'." Gould translates this verse, "But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for that which is profitable...In this verse the apostle passes over to a consideration of the object for which the various gifts of the Spirit are bestowed - viz., the profit of the church" (p. 104). Although the church may have many members, as does the human body, when the Head is in control of the body God's will is accomplished. Yeager writes, "The Holy Spirit is not inarticulate. He calls, regenerates, quickens, teaches, gives His gifts, indwells, asks that He may infill and assures and reassures each child of God that he is important because he has a task assigned to him which is assigned to no other and he has the ability to do what the task requires" (p. 51).
8 - 11 In these verses Paul mentions some of the many gifts which Christians may possess, these gifts come through or by the Spirit. These are as follows: (1) the word of wisdom (logos sophias) or total thinking, (2) the word of knowledge (logos gnoseos) or understanding, (3) faith (pistis) or that high degree of belief by which men work miracles, prophecy and judge spirits, (4) gifts of healing (chismata iamaton), different kinds of cures or remedies, (5) the working of miracles (energemata dunameon) or superhuman powers, (6) prophesy (propheteia) or divine inspiration and announcing the decrees of God, (7) discerning or distinguishing of spirits (diakriseis pneumaton), (8) tongues (glosson), use of speech or dialects and (9) interpretation or explanation of tongues (ermeneia glosson). In Romans 12 Paul mentions other gifts such as exhorting, giving, ruling and showing mercy; in Ephesians 4 he mentions apostles, prophets, evangelists and pastor-teachers. When the New Testament was completed some of these gifts were phased out and no longer needed. One must remember that the Holy Spirit has given to each individual one or more gifts; no amount of boasting should be involved. The Holy Spirit has done as He desired. These gifts all work "that one and the very same Spirit, dividing (diairoun) or distributing to every man severally (idia), privately or individually as he will (bouletai) or wishes."
Kistemaker gives an attractive threefold division of these gifts as follows:
1. Pedagogical: wisdom and knowledge
2. Supernatural: faith, healings, miracles
3. Communicative: prophecy, spirit discernment, tongues, interpretation of tongues. (pp. 420, 421).
All the members of Corinth were baptized (ebaptisthemen) or immersed into one body as they were led by the Holy Spirit. Whether the members were Jews or Gentiles, bond or free, they were made to drink (epotisthemen) of that same Spirit. The church at Corinth was made up of not one member but many members (melos). Most commentators teach the universal church in these verses, but this writer still stands on the premise that Paul refers to the church at Corinth and not a universal church. It is true that all believers are in the family of God, but the church and the family of God are not synonymous. Each individual church is a separate unit thereby corresponding with the human body. All human bodies can not be united to make one great human body. Gould says, "All the gifts and endowments of individuals go to make up the efficiency of the one church, and are necessary, each to the other and to the whole" (p. 107).
15 - 20 Paul now begins to show that the church at Corinth had many members, but all of them had not the same function. He uses the foot, the ear, the eye, the nose to show that just as the human body possesses these parts, they function as the head directs. One is not more important than the other. "It is ludicrous to imagine how the body would get along if all the functions assigned to the hand were attempted by the foot" (Yeager, p. 62). Nor is the human body made up of only one ear, only one eye, only one nose, etc. "Paul then puts into the mouth of the various members of the body statements which are absurd because they failed to appreciate the unity of the body, a unity which cannot be abolished" (Grosheide, p. 294). Each part of the body has its function, and each part is needed as God made the human body. He has set (etheto) or put the members in the body and in the church as it pleases Him. In the human body and in the church at Corinth there was unity in diversity. The fact that God placed parts in the human body and members in the church as it pleased Him, precludes change, dissatisfaction and conceit.
An Old Testament example can be cited to show that Jehovah God distributes gifts as He sees fit (Exodus 31:1 - 6) when instructions were given to build the tabernacle. First of all God instructed Moses to build the tabernacle in the desert. God said, "See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design skillful works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in cutting stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship, and I, behold, I have given with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all that are wisehearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee..." Furthermore, an example is given in the New Testament when deacons were needed (Acts 6:1 - 6), God instructed the church to chose men, and He gave them the needed wisdom to do their task.
In the church at Corinth there were Jews and Gentiles, male and female, educated and ignorant - all were products of a diverse set of environmental factors, but they were compacted together by a common "born-again" experience. They were independent but also interdependent. The Holy Spirit had joined them together because they were in submission to His will.
21 - 26 These verses were a response from the Apostle Paul and a challenge to the church to see their need of each other. Just as the eye could not say to the human body, I have no need of the feet, so the Corinthians must see that they need each other. Those members of the church who are newly converted may see the parallel to the human body which has feeble parts. Even the feeble (asthenestera) or weak parts of the human body are needed just as the new converts are needed in the church. Paul writes about uncomely (aschemona) or indecent parts in the body that need to be covered in order to show comeliness (euschemosunen) or modesty are necessary, even so God has tempered (sunekerasen), blended or adjusted the body together and honor is given to all the parts that lack. God has so joined the parts of the human body that there is no schism (schisma) or division in the body, in the same way has He joined the members of the church at Corinth, and He has the same care for all regardless of their station in life or their status as His children. "The members cannot say that they do not need one another for they all have to perform their own task in the organism of the body. No member is superfluous, yea, all those members that seem to be feeble are necessary" (Grosheide, p. 295). Jehovah God works in and through the human body which He has given to all His people, so He works in and through the church body as He sees fit in order to carry out His plan for the ages.
Thomas illustrates the feeble souls in this way, "(They) are like those tracks of land which have neither depth nor richness of soil, yet, however arid, produce something to serve the world. The sandy and stormy deserts of the Cape are covered with heath of every line and form, to beautify the scene and to charm the traveler's eye. Even so the feeblest soul can display some phase of feeling and character that shall add a beauty to its sphere. The world wants the heath as well as the oak, and the genial heavens shine alike on both. 'Even the most feeble are necessary'" (B. I. Vol, XLIII, p. 194).
27 - 31a The church at Corinth is a body of Christ, not the body of Christ (corpus Christi), and members (mele) in particular (merpous) or a part of the whole. In the church as an institution God set first apostles (apostolous), secondarily prophets (prophetas), thirdly teachers (didaskalous), after that miracles (dunameis), then gifts of healing (charismata iamaton), helps (antilempseis) or assistants, governments (kuberneseis) or administrations, diversities of tongues (gene glosson). Now Paul drives home a truth with seven questions - "Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? Have all gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? To which he expects a negative answer. "But covet earnestly (zeloute) or zealously desire the best gifts..." A portion of verse 31 will be expounded in chapter 13.
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