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99.
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I don't know.
In First Corinthians chapter 12, if we can start with verse 7.
First Corinthians chapter 12, verse 7.
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit with all, for to everyone is given by the Spirit. The word of Wisdom, sorry 421 is given by the Spirit, the word of Wisdom to another, the Word of knowledge by the same Spirit to another, faith by the same Spirit to another, The gifts of healing by the same Spirit to another, the working of miracles to another, prophecy to another, discerning of spirits to another, Divers kind of tongues to another. The interpretation of tongues.
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But all these worketh that one and the self same spirit.
Dividing to every man severally as he will.
For as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of that one body being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by 1 Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bonds or free, and have all and have been all made to drink into one spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.
If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, because I am not the eye, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the hole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now has God set the members, every one of them in the body, as it has pleased him?
And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members yet but one body. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee, nor gain the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more of those members of the body which seem to be more feeble are necessary, and those members of the body which we think to be less honorable. Upon these we bestow more abundant honor.
And our uncommonly parts have more abundant comeliness.
For our commonly parts have no need, but God has tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacked. That there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care one for another.
And whether whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
And God has set some in the church. First apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then giving, then gifts of healings helped government, diversities of tongues are all apostles.
Are all profit? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing, Do all speak with tongues, Do all interpret, but covet earnestly the best gifts, and yet show I unto you a more excellent way.
I heard you explain how chapters 12/13 and 14 fit together with has been helpful. Could you do that again please?
Well, it's often been.
Like and perhaps to an engine.
And what makes an engine, uh, function properly is the oil in it.
That makes it function smoothly. And so it has been said that what we have in chapter 12 is the engine. Chapter 13 is the oil, the love chapter. That makes the engine function smoothly.
And in chapter 14, we have the engine functioning. We have what is called an assembly meeting there. And of course, we're not talking about an engine here. We're talking about the body of Christ. And so we have the body mentioned in chapter 12 and then love the more excellent way that we read about the end of this chapter. That's what makes it function properly. And then in chapter 14, we have.
An assembly meeting, if you notice in the chat, 14th chapter in verse 23, if therefore the whole church become be come together into one place. Now there's what is called an assembly meeting. That's God's purpose is for God's people to be together and we're together as the body of Christ. It's not for, uh, just certain ones to speak, It's for everyone like we were mentioning yesterday.
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To be exercised if the Lord wants to use us. It may be that we will not speak up in a particular meeting, but we need to be ready for the Lord's use. Because in the body, how many members function? Is there just certain members that function and the rest are inactive? No, every member should function properly. And when that's the case.
Things work smoothly.
Assembly meetings and all the places for the members of the body to function.
You answer that, brother. I, I would say they're not, I, uh, I, I think it's very beautiful that, uh, there's, there's the gifts of help, there's, there's the gifts that, that, uh, support and, uh, encourage. Umm, And so it's wonderful that the Lord has provided gifts for the edification. And that was what chapter 14 is.
Is presenting to us the importance of identification so that the body of Christ can be instructed and, and, uh, given the, the nutrients to grow and develop and, and, and yet, uh, there's so much more for the body of Christ to display before this world and, and then the family circle. So that's a very helpful question and helpful comments because.
If we limit it to just what takes place when we're gathered together in the Lord's presence in an assembly meeting, it would exclude the sisters.
But every sister here is a member of the body of Christ just as much as every brother is, and every sister has their place and function in that body. So the sisters don't take part in the assembly meetings in prayer and prophecy and ministry and so on, the way the brothers do. But they have a very, very important function. I'd like to just draw without going back to it, to draw on an illustration from the Old Testament.
Because there are also members of our natural body. And remember brethren, what he's using here is a very simple illustration of a natural body. That's what we have in these verses that we have read together. It's he's taking a natural body and using it to illustrate the fact that as members of the body of Christ, we all have a function. But remember this too, that many of the of the members of our natural body are unseen.
They have a function that is hidden. In fact, some of our members have a function that we're not even aware of. But if that function breaks down, we're going to feel it in our body in one way or another. And so there are members of the body of Christ that have a little hidden function that perhaps no one even knows about and, or realizes. But if that function isn't there, if it ceases to be, the body feels, it feels that I'm talking about the body of Christ.
Now in the Old Testament you find with the Levites that every Levite had a function, every Levite had a service. And it wasn't the greatness of the service or the outward show of it that was important. It was doing it before the Lord. And so there were those who carried the furnishings of the Tabernacle and the boards and the the curtains and so on. And that was, that was a big job. That was something that everybody no doubt saw and recognized.
Not just when they took down and set up the Tabernacle in the wilderness, but as they carried those things through the wilderness.
Everybody could look and say, oh, there's those Levites. What a wonderful place they have, uh, carrying the boards and the furnishings and so on. But what about the Levites that were appointed to go around and pick up the pins or to keep the cords from tangling or to make sure the pots and the other equipment was gathered together? What if they had said, oh, I wish I was carrying the boards, or I wish I had the responsibility of the curtains or something like that?
What would have happened when they got to the next place? Well, there would have been a lock. Those pots and pans and those tongs and so on wouldn't have been there to carry out the service of the Tabernacle. There wouldn't have been pins and cords to help give stability to the boards. No, every function was important. It wasn't the greatness of the service or the outward display of it that was important. It was doing it before the Lord.
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Now we talked about ministry and if you'll just give me a moment, I'd like to say a little word about that. Because so many Christians think of ministry or a minister as a special person who perhaps has been to a Bible seminary and they have some letters after their name and they have a special position amongst a certain group of Christians. But that is not the context in which Scripture takes up the word minister or ministry. And we noticed yesterday in the early verses he speaks of this ministry.
You know, everyone of us here are ministers. Is that interesting? Everyone sisters are there. Are there lady ministers? Yes, there are. Every sister here is a minister. You know, it says of some of the ladies that follow the Lord Jesus and His pathway. They followed him and ministered to Him of their substance. And there are three that are named Mary, Johanna and Susanna. They were ministers.
And so sisters, your ministers, I noticed in the dining room, there are some, some lady ministers and they're helping out with the various, uh, practical, uh, aspects of this, of this conference. When we travel from place to place and visit the Saints of God, when Bob and I are in 3rd world countries, are there lady ministers down there? You know, I don't think we could do without them, or at least it wouldn't be the same if we didn't have those sisters. Sometimes they travel with us and they're a tremendous help. They don't stand up and take a gospel meeting at the end of the day.
But there are tremendous help and blessing and so I just say that and I appreciated Phil's question. Yes, there's in the 14th chapter. It's in connection with the assembly and the public place that the brothers have. But brothers and sisters alike have an important ministry as members of the body of Christ the Lord. Sir Paul said to the Colossians Saints and say to Archippus.
Take heed to the ministry that thou hast received of the Lord, that thou fulfill it. I think Archippus wasn't fulfilling his little ministry in colossi, and Paul felt that the Saints were suffering a lot because of it, and he exhorted archipelas to take up that ministry for the blessing and profit. And that's really brings us back to our seventh verse here. I want to read it in Mr. Darby's translation because it it makes it very clear, chapter 12 here in verse 7. But to each the manifestation of the Spirit is given. Now notice these next two words for profit.
That's what, that's what our ministry is for. And when the Spirit of God leads in our ministry and function, if it's really the leading of the Spirit of God, whether it's in an assembly meeting or in connection with whatever little ministry the Lord gives us, if it's led by the Spirit, it's going to be for the prophet and blessing of others. You were referring to verse five, right, As the ministry. Yeah, yes, that's another word is service simply, isn't it?
But I think verse 7, umm, it's good kind of introduces the verses that follow down through verse 11 because it's talking about the ministry of the manifestation of the Spirit. We've been talking about that from the very first verse. The Spirit of God manifests himself amongst his people, and here is a list of different ways in which.
It is evident that the Spirit of God is amongst us and he dwells in each believer individually, but he also dwells in US collectively. I'd like to point out those two verses in uh, here in Corinthians in chapter 6, we have his dwelling in US individually. You notice in chapter 6 and verse 19. What know ye not that your body.
Is the temple of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which you have of God, and you're not your own. That's individually. Now go back to chapter 3 and verse 17.
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Over 16 I'm sorry. Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
Or if any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy, For the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are so that collectively we are where the Spirit of God dwells. And that should be evident then. And so in these verses that follow we have.
The way that the Spirit of God, uh, makes His presence, uh, manifest to one is given by the Spirit, the Word of wisdom to another, the Word of knowledge by the same Spirit, to another faith, by the same Spirit to another, gifts of healing by the same Spirit to another, working of miracles to another, prophecy to another, discerning of spirits.
To another diverse kinds of tongues, to another interpretation of tongues. So there is a list of different ways that the Spirit manifests himself amongst God's people.
One small thought from verse 7, before we go on, it's pointed out that the manifestation of spirit is for profit. It's important to contrast that with prominence. It's not for prominence. Absalom had a, had a beauty and he ended up hanging, uh, from the long hair that he had that he was so proud of. The Corinthians were quite gifted when it came to speaking in tongues and so on. They didn't use it for profit. That led to confusion because they used it for their own prominence.
And another observation in that verse seven I think is good is it's given to everyone, every man it says in the King James, but it's everyone sisters as well as brothers is given the manifestation of the spirit. So let's be more sensitive as to his presence rather than he's there. Lemoyne read the verse yesterday in John 16 that.
The Spirit of God is to guide us into all truth.
He's here in our midst. Why is he here to guide us? And so he's, uh, manifests himself and let's be sensitive as to his presence and give him his place if he wants to use you to be willing to be used. And in chapter 4 of Ephesians where it's talking about the gifts, it mentions something similar. And it's a little different context in Ephesians because.
In Ephesians it's Christ in glory that gives the gifts from the glory, and it says in verse 7 Ephesians 47 unto everyone of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
So there's the gift, and then there's the grace that we need to use the gift. And those two things, both of them come from the Lord.
So each one of us has it and I really sometimes a burden to see that. Sometimes it seems like some of us just come and we just sit without any exercise to be used of the Lord. I don't say you have to be taking part every time, but what I do want to encourage is exercise. Let's see your young brothers that are of age.
Be exercised. That's the way there's going to be growth in your soul. If there's exercise. The other side of it is we can come with the thought that I'm going to take part. That quenches the spirit just as much. And so I think what you say is important. It's to come with that exercise that if the Spirit of God desires to use me, I am a ready vessel not to come with the thought on the one hand that I'm not going to say anything.
Or the thought, on the other hand, that I'm going to take part. I've got something to say which I think was more the problem.
In Corinth, I just say this to the young brothers too. I knew a brother who never took part publicly in the assembly because his mother had told him when he was young. If you never open your mouth, you'll never make a mistake. Isn't that sad? Not not sad. I, I, I knew that case. That is not a made-up case. And that's why again, when the Spirit of God is given liberty, if I say something that's wrong in a meeting like this, another by the Spirit of God can correct it.
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Where we get the balance in meetings like this? You know, I believe that being gathered to the Lord's name, when the Spirit of God is given liberty in ministry like this, we get a balance like nowhere else.
You know, there are many who will put a man up at the front and they'll get part of the truth, They'll get some of the truth, but there's no one to correct him and there's no one to balance. You know, we're thankful for those who can lay out the doctrinal principles of Scripture clearly and concisely. Others can make a practical application from those same scriptures. Somebody else can even bring out the gospel aspect. And maybe I can just add this too, in connection with written ministry.
You know, we have a wealth of written ministry here on the stage. I hope we're availing ourselves of it. But I would just say this, that when we read a variety of writers, we get that balance as well. I'm thankful for Mr. Darby, who again, can lay out, he lays out the doctrinal principles of Scripture. If you've got the capacity to take it in, Mr. Kelly can tell you all the Greek and Latin and the false teaching that was propagated on the on the subject.
Mr. Ballot can give you the light, nice little Nuggets in the applications. Mr. Woolston can bring out the gospel application. But again, it's like ministry in the assembly. There's a balance when different ones, whether it's written ministry or oral ministry, when different ones minister to us. It's not that the Bible needs balance. This is the only balanced book there is in the world. But it's we who need the balance, and I believe that's why God has ordained.
Gifts and abilities and ministry and so on in the way that he has now as to the word of, of, uh, wisdom and knowledge. This doesn't just apply to the brothers either. It applies to the brothers in a public setting. And a woman is not to pre teach publicly in the presence of a man. But rather than I am so thankful in my growing up for sisters who've been faithful to me, sisters who have come in their proper place, sisters who have known me all my life.
And they've had a word of wisdom. They've had a word of knowledge. Maybe I've told this story on myself before, but I remember many years ago I had a Sunday school class in Smiths Falls. And I had been away for several weeks, uh, from Smith's Falls. And when I got home, I was apologizing to a sister who'd know me all her life and, uh, all my life. And I was apologizing that I'd been away from my Sunday school class for so long. She looked me straight in the eye and she said.
To me, Jim, remember nobody's indispensable. That was a word of wisdom that that really has stood me in good stead till this very day. That was a sister that God gave a word of wisdom to for my heart and conscience at the time. So.
Sisters, yes, you don't want to step out of your God-given place, but you can have a word of wisdom. You can have a word of knowledge for someone at a specific time. This is again all part of being part of functioning as a member of the body of Christ.
In chapter 14, where you have an assembly meeting, it says the prophets speak two or three and let the others judge so that that's what happens in a reading meeting. Like we're having two or three speak and all the rest. They have their Bibles open in front of them. Are you measuring what's said by Scripture? It's not judging people, it's judging what is said.
And balancing it and I think that is so helpful. I must say I sat in reading meetings many years of my life and increasingly I appreciate the balance that there is in that context. If you have one man ministering it. God never meant it just to be that because we are members of one body and we need everybody and we.
Are not sufficient in ourselves, like I mentioned this morning, that or I forget yesterday maybe that I've made mistakes sometimes and what I've said publicly and I've been corrected and it's been so helpful to get the correction in a proper way. I don't know if you remember brother Chuck Kendricks, most of us remember him, but he was fairly direct.
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And his corrections at times and, and uh, I must say he was a great help to me. Thank the Lord for him.
This uh interesting in verse 8, the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, two things that go together, but they are different. Knowledge is obtained by reading. Wisdom comes in prayer. Any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who give it to all men abundantly.
But there are those brother that I value. They are knowledgeable, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they have a lot of wisdom.
Wisdom is taking that knowledge and applying it properly. That is a different quality and that's important and necessary. Just like to say something that I feel is perhaps a word of knowledge that is important in the days we live in when, uh, there's so much of focus on the Muslim world. Uh, I've heard the statement made that.
Allah is not the true God, and that is not a true statement because Brother Rife has the Arabic Bible there, and if you look in the Arabic Bible, the word for God is Allah. It's the Muslim religion. That is not the revelation of the true God. So we need to have those things clear. We don't then we're going to make statements that are confusing the people. So the Lord help us to exercise.
Knowledge and wisdom too. They're both very necessary.
Know if any of you remember very much dear brother Harry Hagel, he was. I was a boy when he used to go around, but I can still remember him sitting on the front and saying in the explanation of scripture that means this.
And he would give the explanation. I must say that lots of times when he said what he did, it really didn't explain it. But what he said was a word of wisdom and very value what he said.
Wisdom too is the ability to take the knowledge and apply it in connection with the day we live in and the circumstances that we find ourselves in. Sometimes we might have knowledge, but we may not be able to apply it wisely to the situation might be a little different, but it says of the men of Issachar, they had understanding of the times. It does isn't that it changes the truth of God, that remains the same, but to apply it in connection with the day in which we live is quite a different thing.
And I'm thankful for those that I have known and do know who have been able to take the word of God and apply it in a proper in a proper way.
Back in a generation or two ago, perhaps they took it and applied it a little different way. Again, it didn't change the meaning of it. But these are these are different days than the days that our grandfathers and the early brethren lived in. We're facing situations to do today that we have to say like the lows of old. We've not passed this way here to four. Do we have then? Do we seek grace in the power of the Spirit to take what we know?
It has to be, there has to be a based on the Word of God, but to take what we know and to apply it in connection with the situations that we face.
We find that with Daniel, don't we? Because Daniel had three things. He had knowledge, wisdom and understanding. And those three things go together, but they are again, very distinct things. When Daniel came to the court of Babylon, it wasn't home in Judea the way he had been as as a growing up, as a teenager, a boy and a teenager. But he was able, with the Lord's help, to take what he had learned as to the truth of God in his day.
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And apply it in a way that gave him favor there in Babylon. He didn't compromise, but he used the truth in a way that God honored. And we see the blessing that resulted from it.
Seems like it'd be interesting to consider on our own.
To compare this chapter with Acts 15.
And see these different things in that chapter.
Because there you get those who wanted to bring in the law and circumcision.
Can you get in that book a transitional time in the church when you're moving from Judaism to Christianity? And so there's going to be setting aside what was of God?
To bring in in its power what is of God, because that's pretty difficult transition. What you get in Hebrews as well. You get the order of the the Tabernacle and the furnishings and everything that's typical. But the minute you introduce Jesus to one of those things you see it perfected forever is never ever before. So it'd be an interesting to consider individually this chapter and its functions.
Compared with X15.
Verse 9 says to another faith by the same spirit. I think this is a special manifestation of the spirit in giving faith to an individual at a particular time.
Member Particular Assembly, where they were considering having a conference and the brethren were quite concerned that the expenses had gone up.
Quite a bit. And maybe we shouldn't be too, uh, quick to go forward on it. And another brother said, brother and I really feel before the Lord that we need to trust the Lord and go forward. And it was through that brother's exercise that they did go forward and the Lord blessed it because it was in faith.
So the Lord gives faith at those times of difficulty to act on the Word of God. And I think that's the sense here because to be a believer you have to have faith. And of course it is the Spirit of God that gives faith to believe in the Lord Jesus. But here it is a manifestation of the Spirit in the assembly.
We just had an example of this in Egypt.
The, as many know, the conference there that we, they hold on the Sinai that they've held for many years was canceled. Initially, the, uh, government had banned all group travel to the Sinai during the month of July. Then they said if we were going to go, we needed certain paperwork from the government that wasn't going to be forthcoming. And, uh, several of them.
Most of the brethren wondered if we really should go, but when they had a brother's meeting about three or four days before they had to finalize it, a couple of brothers spoke up and they said, brethren, let's in faith act on the word of God and, uh, let's, let's trust the Lord and go ahead. I, I, I don't want to digress from our chapter, but Brad and I got to share. I, I, I'll share, share what happened. So the Lord really honored the faith of, I believe those two brothers and umm, we all acted on their faith, so to speak, and.
We went ahead, the Lord very graciously brought us safely to the compound where they have the conference on the Sinai, and the brethren asked if we could take up the subject of faith, hope, and love as we have it in the end of the 13th chapter. And I made some comments when we spoke about faith, as to the fact that the way our faith grows is to put it in operation. I know I'm digressing from our chapter, but just bear with me for a moment.
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No, I think that's right. Thank you. So I mentioned that really, in a sense, it is not an intelligent prayer to ask the Lord to increase our faith. The disciples did that, and the Lord gave them an illustration of the grain of mustard seed to show that the way our faith grows is to put it in operation. If you've known me a short time, you might feel you can trust me. But if you've known me for 20 years and I've always been worthy of your confidence, your faith in me has grown.
Well, I brought this out and then.
Brother by the name of He spoke up. That was in Arabic, but it was translated for me.
I hope I can tell you this brother. To me it was the highlight of.
Is the highlight of the conference. He said we have experienced this this week, said when we left Cairo most of us didn't have much faith other than these couple of brothers. But he said we acted on the little grain of seed of faith that we had. And he said, brethren, hasn't our faith grown in the last week as we have seen how the Lord has undertaken, not just in bringing us safely through, but preserving us this week?
In this facility and the happy meetings and time of fellowship that we have, he says our faith has certainly grown. And I thought that was very sweet. It was just a an example right in front of us to show how faith grows. But again, coming back to this, there were those who had the faith to say, brother, let's act, let's go, let's, let's trust the Lord and the brethren trusted the Lord.
And I'm thankful that a Word of Faith was given to those brothers because it was a tremendous time of blessing for them and for all of us that were there.
Umm expressions are the manifestation of the Spirit. So if these brothers acted in faith, the Spirit was manifesting his work in them. And that is what I want to encourage each one here, that the the Lord has the Spirit.
Has this uh.
Dispense diverse gifts amongst the body of Christ, and He wants to manifest Himself.
His power through you and through me and sometimes we think this is something that I have to manufacture myself, so I have to be willing to use of the Lord so that the Spirit can manifest himself is followed.
The next, uh, manifestations of the Spirit are they're miraculous, the gifts of healing, Verse nine at the end, and then verse 10 to another, the working of miracles.
And uh, then it speaks of diverse kinds of tongues. The gift of tongues that was evident was a help to me. If we go back to Acts chapter 18, you have.
The apostle Paul in Corinth and just want to point out, there's something that I found helpful.
Just pointed out to me by brother Jimmy Smith, uh, some time ago that Paul, uh, says in verse one, after these things, Paul departed from Athens and came to Corinth. And so he's at Corinth, but then the Jews, uh, opposed in verse 6 and blasphemed.
And so in verse seven, he says he departed thence and entered into a certain man's house named Justice, one that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to the synagogue. In other words, he was right next door to the synagogue. And so Brother Jimmy Smith used to suggest that when Paul separated from the synagogue and went into Justice's house.
There's where the assembly meetings were held then, since it was right next door, there were Jewish people that came in to the assembly meetings and God gave miraculous gifts that were evident in the beginning of the church's history that are not near so evident. They were gifts given to the Jewish people in general because the Jews look for a sign, whereas the.
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Greeks looked for wisdom, and so that's why in the three places in Scripture where you have the gifts mentioned in Romans 12, First Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4, only here you have the miraculous gifts. And so there's the gifts of healing. And I have no question in my mind that God can heal today, but it's not a gift given to a person that can go and heal.
Like, uh was done in the first days of the Church's history. I just wanna make that distinction.
I wanna ask if this is the thought as well.
Hebrews, chapter 2.
You, you the brethren can correct me if if I'm not on the on the mark here, umm, says verse three. How shall we escape between neglect so great salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and it was confirmed unto us by them that heard him God also bearing them witnesses, witness with those signs and wonders, and with divers miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost.
According to his own will.
Is, is this umm, indicating that it was, it was it was meant for this transitional time when the Jews needed to come into out of Judaism, into faith in the Lord Jesus. That's the way I understand it, yes, because the Jews sought out the sign. Scripture says that. And so God gave them signs in the beginning because in the early acts it was just Jewish converts that were brought into the Church of God.
Up until the stoning of Stephen, the gospel did not go out beyond the walls of Jerusalem or the walls of Judaism, I should say, because the Lord had told the disciples when He commissioned them with the gospel, that after His resurrection and ascension they were to go into all the world and preach the gospel beginning at Jerusalem. It was to begin with the very nation that had rejected the Lord. So much was His desire for their blessing. But as I say, the Jews sought after a sign.
There was something else too, and that is they didn't have the written word of God completed like we do. In fact, that's why it's a little different. But that's why in the early Acts, when Peter and different ones preached, they drew on Old Testament scriptures and gave what seemed like some almost strange applications of scripture. But the Spirit of God used those because that was all they would have had at the time. So again, I say those two reasons.
Because it was going forth to the Jews 1St and of course Paul is right, or the apostles writing to Hebrew believers in the, uh, second of Hebrews where you cite and then they didn't have the complete word of God. But I, I do wanna say this too, that in unusual circumstances, God can still use these sign gifts. And again, having come back from the Middle East recently and having been in other countries in South America and the Caribbean and so on.
I have by belief seen God use, uh, these, these, these sign gifts, but not in an outward prevalent way the way they were in the early church. And I'm sure Bob and Tim, you've seen some of these unusual ways, that miraculous ways that God has reached souls.
God is not limited.
But all these work at that one and the same self, same spirit dividing to every man or everyone severally as he will. Remember again what we said the yesterday. It's not a democracy, the body of Christ, it's where the Lord Jesus authority is recognized.
And the Spirit of God is to direct us.
In our, uh, speaking in our acting. And so it is the Spirit who divides severally as he will and how important it is. Uh, you know that verse that Jim quoted, uh, the verse before it in first second Corinthians 318, verse before says where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
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Brethren, it's not sometimes I think we think that, uh, when we read that verse that anybody's free to take part in what they want. That is not the thought. There's liberty for one. It is the Spirit of God and you and I should be here in exercise to be ready if he wants to use it. Let me know. Say another word of caution that.
I feel that I have failed in brethren is that we should speak when the Spirit of God gives us to, but sometimes we speak beyond that and in speaking too much we also quench the Spirit of God and that's an area I need to be exercised about.
So it says he will, not as we will, but as he will. And remember too, God doesn't give all the gifts to one person. That's a a.
Problem sometimes in and again I want to be careful because wherever the Spirit of God is given liberty amongst his people, there's blessing, but the the difficulty sometimes is that all the responsibility is given to one person and it is considered that that person is going to teach and pastor and evangelize and and shepherd and so on. God has not given all the gifts to one person and that's why we need.
This diversity, that's why there needs to be the liberty of the of the Spirit of God. And it's not as we as we will. It's not my going somewhere and taking certain courses and passing certain exams and someone saying, well, now you've got the gift and ability or or the liberty to go out and to do something amongst the Lord's people. No, you know what the Lord said to the disciples, I have ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit.
Nobody ordained them but the Lord. They were ordained. Are you ordained? Yes, you are.
Are there ordained brothers and sisters here today? Yes, but the Lord has chosen you and ordained you that you should go out and fulfill your ministry. And if you do in the power of the Spirit, then there will will be fruit. But again, notice it says he will and I don't want to get ahead of ourselves, but in that connection, notice something else in verse 18 he says, but now, but now has God set the members, every one of them in the body? And I want you to notice this.
Not as that has pleased us, but as it has pleased Him. So the gifts by the Spirit are given, and the abilities and the ministries as the Spirit sees as it's hit according to His will. God has set the members in the body, not as it has pleased us, but as I've pleased Him. And I think, brethren, if we can keep that before our souls, then it is going to help us to look beyond the instrument, beyond the person.
You say that person just rubs me the wrong way and when they speak, I I just find that hard, hard to take. But look beyond the person and realize if they have a word of wisdom or a Word of Faith or a word of knowledge and it's from by the Spirit of God, we need to take it as such. It's as it pleased him. God has placed that member in the body as it has pleased him. He said that member is there for the good and blessing of the body, body of Christ. I think that helps us then to accept.
What is said and done rather than just looking at the person or the instrument?
We've had in the meeting here a number of people taking part.
So what is given by the Spirit, Word of Wisdom, another word of knowledge and other faith and so on. So there's opportunity in the assembly reading meeting to have these gifts exercise. But like has been already mentioned, the assembly is not the only place where we can use our gift. The gift is given for the edification of the body, and the body isn't just here in the room.
You may have the gift and you don't need to wait till the assembly meeting to use your gift. There's other people who are are hurting, there's other people who need help, there's other people who need a word of wisdom and you can go privately and talk to them or maybe in a group. And so you can be used by God. Your gift can be used and if you, if you have a gift, you need to use it. God's given it to you to help the body of Christ.
00:55:23
To, to exercise, to be, to umm, edify one another. And so if you don't use your gift, it's just sitting there lying dormant, umm.
The the verse has been used a couple of times this this weekend. Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do with all your might. So when the Lord put something in your pathway, He gives you a person to talk to. We can just be quiet because we don't feel like talking today.
But reach out to that person. It may be that the Lord is wanting you to use your gift with that person for encouragement or or teaching or or whatever, whatever your gift may be. And being gathered to the Lord's name gives us the broadest platform to use our gift. You know, there's some in this room that I've had the privilege of traveling with Brother Garvin Seymour and I whose name is familiar to many. We travel together throughout different countries and we have often said.
We are thankful that we are not shackled by some of the names that Christendom has taken, because if you, I say I'm connected with such and such a fellowship, it may be a well known name that immediately limits me in the minds of those we are seeking to minister to. That limits me. Oh, he's connected with that. He called such and such and, and, and we're connected with something else. But when we are.
Unshackled.
By all the names that Christendom has taken, it gives us the broadest platform to exercise our gift. Brethren, this is the broadest place there can be is to be gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus alone. I I think what you say is very good, Tim.
Because we take the ground of the one body of Christ, and that includes every true believer. So wherever you meet one, you are to exercise yourself.
And being helping and encouragement in any way you possibly can. So we come to this versus 12 and 13 that we mentioned spoke about yesterday. And I think it is central to this chapter. But again, let's read those verses because they are so important as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one.
Body being many are one body, so also is Christ. For by 1 spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one spirit. 6 times that word one is used. It shows that what God does, it's unity, what man does.
Is divide. And so it's a beautiful thing to see that God speaks about one body and there is one body today, just as there was in the beginning of the church's history. In the beginning of the church's history, it was evident. Look at Acts chapter four. I think it is beautiful. The testimony of the believers in the those first days of the church's history and testimony.
And, uh, chapter 4 and verse 32 Says, the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul. Neither sought any of them that ought of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things common. So there it is, one heart and one soul.
Brethren, we are one today just as much as on the day of Pentecost, but it is not outwardly evident. The testimony has, is in ruins. But we do gather on that ground. And that's why what you say, Jim, is important, that that's the ground we take. And so when we do meet up with believers, whatever persuasion they are, we seek to be a help to them in the measure that we can.
01:00:02
I remember in South America when we lived down there, there was a sister who was a dentist. She was quite a nice believer, but she came over to the house quite often. She would wander around from one church to another to another, and one time she was visiting our home and she said to me.
Brother, we should all be one.
I said, sister, it's not that we should all be one, we are one. We're just not acting like it. And that's the truth of the matter. Brother, it's a beautiful thing to realize that the body of Christ is one. We cannot split up the body of Christ. That's an act that God has done. And how has that body been formed? Verse 13.
Says it very clearly. Why one spirit?
We are we all baptized into one body, whether it be Jews or Gentiles, whether it be bond or free and have been all made to drink into one spirit. So the baptism of the Holy Spirit was to form the body of Christ and I'd just like to go back to the book of the Acts to show rather than that it's mentioned in the book of the Acts twice for two distinct.
Actions of the Holy Spirit in connection with the formation of the Body of Christ. First in chapter one of the Acts.
The Lord Jesus disciples and the Lord Jesus are talking together and he says.
In verse 4.
And being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which saith He, Ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. And then the Lord Jesus ascends into heaven. And another 10 days, the day of Pentecost, which means 50.
On the In the second chapter, when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were, And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as into fire, and it sat upon each one of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues.
As the Spirit gave him utterance, so there you have the baptism of the Holy Spirit to form those Jewish believers into one body in Christ. And then when you go over to the 10th chapter, you have the Gentiles brought in, and it is through the instrumentality of Peter, and he is preaching the gospel to Cornelius.
And those that were gathered there, they were Gentiles. And as he was speaking notice in verse 44, while Peter was yet yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them whi which heard the word, and they of the circumcision which believed were astonished as many as came with Peter, because that on the.
Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. Now in Chapter 11 Peter is called to account why he went in and he gives the account of how it happened and just noticed in verse 15 of Chapter 11 as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them as on us at the beginning.
Then remembered I the word of the Lord.
Now that he said, John indeed baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. So the baptism of the Holy Ghost is to form the body of Christ. Tongues were given in those cases to show that it was the Holy Ghost, but it was not for that purpose. It was for the purpose of forming believers into one body in Christ.
01:05:00
Rather than this is a wonderful reality in our world. When we look at the religious world, it's those who are called believers are so divided, so scattered that we don't get the picture. We are one body, brethren, and it is a blessed privilege. Jim went to Egypt and you were in Angola recently with believers and and different parts of Africa.
And I, we were in Brazil and Bolivia. And to experience the oneness of the Spirit, it's a reality. It's not just a doctrine. And I just challenge you, younger brothers, go down and visit your brother in other countries. It's a blessing to sit down. Sometimes people say, well, I can't preach another language. OK, you don't have to preach. Just go sit down beside them and show them that you love and care.
That you are of the same body. Break bread with them. It's a blessing, isn't it? The reality of the truth that we are one body in Christ. So how do we explain this, Bob? It seems like there's been two baptisms of the Holy Spirit. It's a, it's a second installment is the way I've heard it, but I, I don't think it's too, it's one. But the first is for the Jews and the second was for the Gentiles to bring them into. It was also the Samaritans in the 8th chapter and something very similar happened there.
And I put it this way, what, how what you say is, is good. It was a little extension of what took place, a little addendum to what took place on the day of Pentecost, not really a repeat of it. And that's why when the Samaritans and later, as you pointed out, the Gentiles are brought in, it had to go back to what was established at the beginning. Because the Spirit of God is very careful to guard in the Acts, lest we ever think there was a Jewish church, a Samaritan church, and a Gentile church.
Or even a Jewish gentile church with a hyphen. No, it went back to what had taken place at the beginning.
And sometimes we talk about saved Jews and saved Gentiles, and I understand what we mean.
But there was a brother in fellowship at the Lord's Table in Smith's Falls for a number of years. He's with the Lord now.
And he was born into this world, into a Jewish family. He was a Jew by birth.
I was a Gentile by birth, and I guess everybody else that's been at the Lord's Table in Smith's Falls was born a Gentile. But when we broke bread, we didn't really break bread as saved Jews and save Gentiles. We broke bread as members of the body of Christ.
And I know it's perhaps a little feeble illustration, but sometimes I've had a chart. In seeking to minister on this truth, I have two circles on the chart. If you can just picture 2 circles on a chart, you put the Jew in one and the Gentile in the other. That's what you had in the Old Testament. You had the Jew and the Gentile. They were two very distinct things and the Jew was in the place of privilege and so on. But if you bring those circles partly together and you have a football shaped.
Segment in the middle you can put the Church of God. It's a new entity made-up of Jews who are saved by the grace of God.
And Gentiles who are saved by the grace of God. And what are they now?
They are members of the body of Christ. They are brought into a completely new position.
And that's why it was so hard for a Jew to accept this in the early days of Christianity and perhaps even still today, because to the Jews had been taught that they were the special people, that they were in that special place of blessing and they had the oracles of God and so on. And that was true. But then to be taught that they had to come for the blessing now in the same way as a Gentile, wonderful for a Gentile to realize he could be brought in by grace.
On the basis of the work of Calvary, but very difficult for a Jew to accept.
That they had to come in that same way and that now they were viewed in the same way.
As a Gen. as a Gentile, yeah, I'd like to look at Acts chapter 2 and verse 47.
The last verse of the chapter.
Says the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. At the beginning of the chapter there was the baptism of the Spirit, The body of Christ was formed. Then the Samaritans came. They it looked like the same thing, but they were just being added to the body that already been established.
Now the Gentiles in Acts 11, they are also added to that body and the Spirit of God did it in a way that looks similar to the beginning, to what happened on the baptism of the Spirit of the beginning. But it was their way. The Spirit of God was adding them to the church that had already been established on the day of Pentecost. And is that what's still happening today? One by one, Yes. So let, let, let's, since this has come out, let's to understand that she was a very simple illustration.
01:10:27
I know it's been used before, but it helped me when I was younger to get a hold of what Tim has just brought out.
On the day of Pentecost, in the upper room, in obedience to the word of the Lord, there were about 120 believers present, and the Spirit of God came down as had been promised, and did two things, three things. It formed a new unit called the Church of God, and came to dwell in that new unit also came, as was pointed out earlier, came to indwell each individual believer. And thirdly, to link us as members of the body of Christ.
With our head in heaven. But now in connection with the verse Tim has read us at the end of the chapter. If I can illustrate it this way, it's like a necklace. Let's suppose I have about 120 beads or so in a bowl here.
They're individual beads. And so now I'm going to make a necklace. And so I take a thread and I thread those beads. You know, they're still individual beads and we are still individual believers. That hasn't changed in that way. But we're something else now. Those beads are something else now. They formed a new unit.
Called a necklace, and there's something unseen that is holding them together, and that is that thread that I have threaded through them. But now let's for the sake of illustration and to illustrate Tim's point, let's suppose that after a while I obtain some more beads. What do I do? Well, I don't necessarily make a new necklace. I untie the clasp of that necklace and I add those beads to what was already formed in the beginning.
And that is what happened, has been happening since the day of Pentecost. The church was formed by about 120 believers, linked together by the Spirit of God.
And like that necklace, God has been adding believers ever since, such as should be saved. And the fact that we're here today shows that there's still some work before the Spirit of God to do in adding to the church. Once the church is completed, then I believe the Spirit of God is that the Lord is going to give the shout and the Spirit of God and the church are going to go the Spirit and the Bride say come at the end of of Revelation. So maybe that's a little help to help to understand what has been happening since the day of Pentecost. There's one church.
One body that hasn't changed, but God has been adding to that which He began in the beginning.
Something I think should be noted that is amazing is that last phrase in verse 12. Paul was Speaking of the church, and he concludes so also is Christ.
And this is incredible. If you or I said that, I'm sure that the brothers would think it was. Erica talked about the church, but he said so also is Christ. That's the wonderful identification.
Of the Lord Jesus, first of all, with each and every one of us as believers, we have this identification with him, but God suits us no longer as children of Adam, but as having a new life. It was Frank and God, but this is a collective thing. Also, Paul is Speaking of the church and he says so also is Christ and that is just beyond wonderful. Uh, I guess it says, Lord Jesus, are we one with thee or I go death of love.
And Mr. Douglas translation, it says so also is the Christ. So it's Christ the head in heaven and we the members in in this world a living relationship. Brethren, do we really properly understand and enjoy this? We are livingly united to a man, a real living man in the glory of God. He is the head.
And we are members of the body of Christ, who is mentioned in yesterday. It never speaks in Scripture of being members of a church. It speaks of being members of the body of Christ. It's a living Organism. I sometimes say to people, people can form organizational structures and it's necessary if they're gonna work together in an orderly way.
01:15:09
But only God can make an Organism, and the body of Christ is not an organizational structure. It is an Organism has one head that directs the body, and we are members of that body.
It might be helpful to just make a, a brief comment about the, the latter part of this chapter. And verse 14 has been mentioned. Uh, the body is not one member, but many. And then it goes on in these following verses describing that. And what it's actually reflecting back to and illustrating is what has already been spoken of. And so I just like to point out one word a little bit earlier in this chapter and we, we have noticed it, but just notice it again.
Umm, in, uh, in verse eight, we're told to one is given that the word of wisdom and then the word that I'd like to emphasize is another. So another, the word of knowledge, verse 9 to another faith, uh, verse 9 to another, the gifts of healing, verse 10 to another, the working of the miracles to another prophecy to another, discerning of spirits to another, diverse kinds of tongues to another.
You you get the point here. There's.
There's a number of different members and, and there's the working together. And so we see that very clearly in the, in this illustration of the body, how there's to be the members working together. And just just to make one application here from these verses that we've already covered. And it was, it was pointed out the, uh, umm.
And uh, in verse 8, the, uh, the word of wisdom and the word of knowledge, the one who is giving that word of wisdom relies on the one who, who gave the word of knowledge. They're applying what that other individual, what that other member of the body of Christ has and they're taking that and they're using it. To use another example, we have one who is a discerner of spirit. A, a shepherd may have, a may have a shepherd's heart, but they, they're not quite sure.
What the exact state of things is. And one who is a discerner of spirits would say, well, this, this one over here, they, they need some encouragement. They, they need you to, to come and give a hand and the shepherd will respond and we'll do that. And so that's why we see developed here in the, in the second-half of this chapter, the working of the body together. And we need our, we need our brethren. We may look down our noses and say, oh, you know, this, this brother can't, can't quote, uh, the whole book of Ephesians with his eyes closed. I, I don't need to listen to anything he says.
Not at all. There's different manifestations of the spirit, no doubt given to that brother or that sister. And we will we will lose out tremendously if if we neglect them and think that that we can do it all ourselves to to illustrate a a fairly simple illustration.
We're all gonna go to the dining room in a few minutes. If, if I think that my hands can do all the work it well, it's true, I could drag myself with my hands to the dining room and and eat it and and do do the eating and do the propulsion and everything, but it doesn't work very well.
We need each member of the body of Christ. And that's really just the the very homely, very simple picture that is being presented in the latter half of this chapter. So illustrating what what is being developed at length in in the previous two reading meetings.
They, when you mentioned discerning of spirits is an interesting gift and in the 8th chapter of the book of Acts, uh, uh, Philip is preaching the gospel and.
There's a man called Simon Magus who makes a profession of faith and he's baptized.
He doesn't seem to discern where he really stood, but Peter and John come down, and then Simon Magus comes up and offers some money, and Peter discerns immediately this guy is not right with God. And he tells him. And it does seem that he wasn't real at all, even though he had been baptized. That's an illustration of discerning his Spirit.
That's there's another thought there too. There's the Corinthians. We're in a Pagan city with Pagan idols and there were demons and the demon is a can impersonate as an Angel of light what is true. And so there was the need for the gift that would detect that it was actually a demon and not the Spirit of God that was speaking. And this is that all important for us when the person might have a difficulty.
01:20:18
Is this a weak believer who needs encouragement, or is this possibility an unsafe person? And when we have problems within assemblies with other assemblies, it's just a discernment of spirits of.
Loss and importance.
You're a little practical.
Visiting with a friend one time, he was a rather discouraged Christian from another assembly and and what it discouraged him was the fact that he felt like the Lord had given him the ability to discern things but the and it I'm not putting any blame on anyone, I'm just relating the story, but.
The brethren and his assembly weren't inclined to listen to him.
And they, there were reasons, umm, they probably had probably given them good reason to not listen to them. But in the end, I've, I've wondered whether he really truly had the the gift to discern spirits and.
There, there's fault on both sides. If you'd have been more useful in the assembly, if you'd been more respected, his gift would have been profitable.
And then would have probably saved some some trials. But at the at the on the other side, each each member of the body of Christ has a gift. We need to be really careful not to discredit or set aside one of the members of the body of Christ because there may be a time when they when it when it when it comes. And it's very important that.
That that the Spirit be able to minister through them.
210.
210.
One spirit.
1.
Day.
Uh.