Why Study Spiritual Gifts
(1 Corinthians 12:1) 1 Now concerning spiritual [gifts], brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant.
Greek: pneumatikos, things of and pertaining to the spirit. “Gifts” is not in the Greek.
Paul says he doesn’t want us to be ignorant about things of and pertaining to the spirit – and yet there is ignorance about these things in the Body of Christ. A good portion of the Body of Christ – born again believers – doesn’t believe that God does these types of things today, that they were for the early church. Others explain them away and assign natural meanings to the gifts. And even amongst those who do believe in them, that they are still for today, you do not see them in manifestation anywhere near the extent that you see them in the book of Acts. In a lot of churches, you don’t see systematic teaching on them.
So we have to admit we are ignorant – that we have a lack of knowledge in this area. And our end goal is not just to gain knowledge of the gifts, but also to have them start working in our lives and in our church.
Is this a proper desire? “Well, if God wants to use me, He just will”. If you take that attitude, that it is totally up to God, you will not be used much. We are told to desire spiritual gifts in more than one place:
(1 Corinthians 12:31) 31 But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.
(1 Corinthians 14:1) 1 Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
In verse 31 the KJV uses the words covet earnestly the best or greater gifts. Covet? Isn’t that a bad thing? It depends on what it is directed towards. But the meaning of the word is an intense desire – a longing. Being hungry for it.
God uses people who make themselves available – who desire the things of God, who believe what He says, and who are willing to do what He says.
These are the three keys necessary to be used by God: Desire, faith, and obedience.
(2 Chronicles 16:9) 9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.
(2 Thessalonians 1:11-12) 11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:
12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Spiritual gifts – the supernatural working of God – brings credibility to the preaching of the Word of God.
(1 Corinthians 2:1-5) 1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.
2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
(Mark 16:20) 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.
There are those that say the gifts of the Spirit have passed away and are no longer needed since we have the canon of scripture, the Bible. I completely disagree. I think we need the confirmation of the Word more than ever.
There are a multitude of books written on the subjects of spiritual gifts, that cover them in way more depth than I can. But I want to introduce the subjects here. I will consider it a success if I get you hungry enough to dig deeper on your own.
Gifts, Ministries, Manifestations
(1 Corinthians 12:4-6) 4 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.
These verses list three different classes of spiritual gifts. Each of the classes has a different member of the trinity over them, and a different scope.
By “scope”, I mean who can operate in them (i.e., is it for everybody or a select few), and what is the duration (i.e., is it a permanent gift, or is it temporary).
Diversities of activities. KJV: operations. Greek: energematon, from which we get the word energy. These are what we normally think of when we talk about the “gifts of the Spirit”, so I mention them first.
They are listed in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, under the title manifestations of the Spirit. This is the terminology I like to use because it is what the Bible uses.
(1 Corinthians 12:7-11) 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,
10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
We will discuss the scope of these later.
Differences in ministries. Greek: diakonion, a ministry or office. Notice it is the Lord Jesus who is over the ministries/offices. The most well known list of offices is found in Ephesians.
(Ephesians 4:11-12) 11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.
As for scope, not everyone is called to one of the five-fold ministries, as these are named. There is an additional list of offices further down in 1 Corinthians 12, where some of these are duplicated and some new ones are added:
(1 Corinthians 12:28-30) 28 And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.
29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles?
30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?
We see in vs. 29 and 30 that not everyone is called to an office. As for duration, the gifts and callings of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:29). A “calling” refers to a calling to an office or ministry. The fulfillment of that calling, however, is very much up to the individual. Some people may never fulfill their calling.
A person usually does not start in the ministry to which they are ultimately called; i.e., they start in a lesser ministry and are “promoted”. For example, Phillip started out as one of the original deacons in Acts 6. This was an office of administrations, he was placed in charge of something. But later in Acts 8 he goes to Samaria to preach Christ, and in Acts 21:8 he is referred to as Philip the evangelist.
We can also see the promotion of Barnabas and Saul, from prophets and/or teachers, to apostles (lit., sent ones).
(Acts 13:1-3) 1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
Diversities of Gifts. Greek: charismation, from which comes the word charismatic. It means a gift or (spiritual) endowment. A charismatic is one who believes and operates in the gifts. There is another list of gifts in Romans 12 that has come to be called the motivational gifts. That term is not in the Bible, just like “five-fold ministry” is not in the Bible either, but it helps us classify them.
(Romans 12:4-8) 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function,
5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;
7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching;
8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
We have here a list of seven gifts: prophet, ministry (or helps), teacher, exhorter, giver, leader (also called administrator), and mercy. This is a separate list because the scope is different – every born again believer has one of these, or a mix of these gifts, but one will usually dominate. They are what motivates you, what makes you tick. In a way they are like spiritual personality types. The duration is also permanent. This is the “gifts” part of “the gifts and callings of God are irrevocable”.
It is beyond the scope of this article to explain what these gifts are or give a definition. Definitions and characteristics of the motivational gifts were first given by Bill Gothard in his Institute in Basic Youth Conflicts advanced seminar (see bibliography).
Overlap in the Gifts
One source of confusion has been that there is overlap in the names of some of the gifts across the three classes. For example, prophet or prophecy is in all three classes, teacher is in two, administrator is in two, helps is in two, and gifts of healings, miracles, different kinds of tongues, and interpretation of tongues are in two.
People have used 1 Corinthians 12:30 to say, “See, tongues are not for everybody”; but that verse is speaking of operating in a ministry or office, not personal tongues.
Manifestations of the Spirit
(1 Corinthians 12:7-11) 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,
10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
Notice the phrase over and over, “…. given by the same Spirit”. This was in stark contrast to the polytheistic religions that were prevalent in that day, which had different gods over different areas. So depending what your need was, you had to pray and sacrifice to a different god. Different localities had their favorite gods – remember “Great is Diana of the Ephesians”? There were not only the main gods of Olympus we are familiar with – Zeus, Apollo, Hera, Hermes/Mercury, Aries, Aphrodite, Diana/Artemis, Hades, Poseidon/Neptune, but a host of lesser gods.
Scope
Let’s now discuss the scope of the manifestations of the Spirit.
The manifestations of the Spirit are not a gift like when you receive a birthday present. When someone gives you a present, it is now yours, under your control, and you can do with it what you wish. You can use it, lose it, exchange it, give it away, sell it, or let it sit in your closet.
So we don’t possess a manifestation of the Spirit. As it says in verse 11, the Holy Spirit distributes to each one individually as He wills. He chooses who, when, how, and what for. After the gift has accomplished its purpose, it leaves, it is not retained – so we say the duration is temporary. If someone says “I have the gift of prophecy”, or “I have the gift of discernment”, they are wrong. They do not possess the gift.
We also see that God will use a person in a manifestation on a regular basis – i.e., it becomes a regular part of their ministry. For example, gifts of healings appears in the second list of offices in 1 Corinthians 12:28. When that person is operating in their ministry, and they are in the Spirit, God uses them in gifts of healings. This would be someone like Kathryn Kuhlman or Benny Hinn or Oral Roberts. In these days, Randy Clark and Mario Murillo come to mind. But that still does not mean they control the gift – they can’t turn it on at their will.
Secondly, who can be used in the manifestations of the Spirit? Is it for everybody or a select few?
The Holy Spirit decides who will be used in what gift and when – but every one of us (and by that I mean every born again believer) – can expect that God will use us if we make ourselves available. I get this from the use of the words that He gives “to each one” in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, that we are encouraged to desire spiritual gifts. In 1 Corinthians 14:1, we are again told to desire spiritual gifts, “… especially that you may prophesy.” In 1 Corinthians 14:26-32 Paul teaches about the use of tongues and prophecy in a public service. He says, “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may be learn and be encouraged.” In 1 Corinthians 14:39 Paul says
(1 Corinthians 14:39) 39 Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues.
Definition
Let’s give a working definition of a manifestation of the Spirit.
An endowment of supernatural ability given to an individual by the Spirit of God at a specific time and for a specific purpose.
A key concept here is that the gifts are supernatural. There are groups that have tried to assign natural meanings to the gifts because they do not see them happening in their lives. They say someone who has the gift of wisdom is wise in the things of God, someone with the gift of knowledge has great learning, the gift of healing is a doctor, someone who speaks with tongues is just someone that knows multiple languages, and someone who has the gift of discernment knows how to read men’s hearts and motivations.
No, no, no! First of all, there is no such thing as the “gift of wisdom”, or “gift of knowledge”, or “gift of discernment”. It is the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and the discerning of spirits. All of the manifestations are supernatural, they are nothing that can be gained by our own efforts, and they are not retained by us.
A second key is that the manifestations of the Spirit involve God partnering with a person to accomplish something. God can do mighty works and perform miracles on His own, but in the case of the manifestations of the Spirit, He works through us: He imparts a portion of His knowledge or His ability to us, so that we do something supernatural. We become a channel or conduit for the power of God.
What we will see is that the manifestations of the Spirit are nothing new – they did not begin on the Day of Pentecost. Every time we see God working through someone in the Bible, that working can be identified as one of the manifestations of the Spirit. Two of the manifestations – tongues and interpretation of tongues – are particular to this dispensation, but you can see all the rest in operation in Jesus’ ministry, and in the Old Testament.
Will God Use Me?
The Gifts and Spirituality
Just because you operate in the manifestations of the Spirit does not make you a “spiritual” or mature Christian. This is demonstrated unmistakably in the Corinthian church.
(1 Corinthians 1:4-8) 4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,
5 that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge,
6 even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,
7 so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
8 who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1 Corinthians 14:12) 12 Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.
The Corinthian church had spiritual gifts popping out all over the place. So much so that Paul spent considerable time instructing them in their proper use. But he also tore into them for the divisions and strife among them.
(1 Corinthians 3:1-4) 1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.
2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;
3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?
4 For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal?
So if carnal Christians can operate in spiritual gifts, that means the gifts are not an indication of spirituality or maturity. God uses flawed people.
What is the measure of spirituality or maturity, then? Not the gifts of the Spirit, but the fruit of the Spirit, as listed in Galatians 5:22-23:
(Galatians 5:22-23) 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
This makes sense. A gift is something that is given to you. Fruit is something that grows in you. Paul desired to make the same emphasis on the superiority of the fruit of the Spirit over the gifts of the Spirit by inserting the great chapter on love right in the middle of his teaching on spiritual gifts:
(1 Corinthians 12:31) 31 But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.
(1 Corinthians 13:1-13) 1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.
2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;
5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;
6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.
9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part.
10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.
11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
(1 Corinthians 14:1) 1 Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
Love is God’s motivation for giving the gifts of the Spirit. And the more we line up with God’s motivations – a desire to help people – the more He will be able to use us.
The greatest enemy to this is pride. Someone used in the gifts can fall into the trap of thinking they are something special, that God needs them – well He does, but He could just have easily used the person next to you.
Back in the 70’s there was a popular Christian musician named Don Francisco who wrote very powerful songs that were narratives of Bible stories. He had one humorous song that told the story of the prophet Balaam – you know, where God opened the mouth of his donkey to speak to him. The last verse goes like this:
The Lord’s the one who makes the choice of the instrument He’s usin’
We don’t know the reasons and the plans behind His choosin’
So when the Lord starts usin’ you don’t you pay it any mind
He could have used the dog next door if He’d been so inclined!
Balaam, Don Francisco
Most of the time the operation of the gifts are for other people, not yourself. So you, in essence, are just the delivery boy (or girl) – the UPS or FedEx man. Now the delivery man plays an essential part in getting the package to the intended destination, and deserves thanks for doing his job well, but the praise and exultation belongs to the One who sent the package.
Another way to tell if you have the right attitude is if you can rejoice just as much if God uses the person next to you than if He uses you. Now it is exciting when God uses you, and there is nothing wrong with feeling that excitement. But if you start thinking that you are indispensible, that you want other people to quiet down so you can give the prophecy, or you start getting jealous over how God uses others – then you are out of line.
Filled with the Spirit
To be used in the gifts of the Spirit, you need to be filled with the Spirit. Now people will automatically think I am talking about the baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues, and to that I would say – yes and no.
People operated in various gifts of the Spirit before the Day of Pentecost. In the Old Testament, the prophet, priest, and king had the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Different terminology was used, such as “the hand of the Lord was upon me”, but it was the same Holy Spirit that came on the Day of Pentecost. It was said of John the Baptist that he was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb (Luke 1:15). Both of his parents, Elizabeth and Zacharias, were filled with the Spirit and prophesied on occasion (Luke 1:41, Luke 1:67).
In the Old Testament, it was the same Holy Spirit, but the dispensation was different. It was possible to lose the anointing. For example, after David sinned with Bathsheba, he prayed “Take not your Holy Spirit from me” (Psalm 51:11). He had witnessed what happened to a person that lost the anointing in King Saul.
In the New Testament, prior to the Day of Pentecost, Jesus told the disciples
(John 14:16-17) 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever–
17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
This was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit took up permanent residence in the disciples. It was the first time they were filled, but not the only time. After Peter and John healed the man lame from his mother’s womb at the Temple, they were arrested and commanded not to preach anymore in the name of Jesus. After they were released they prayed:
(Acts 4:29-31) 29 Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,
30 by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”
31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
We are not to be filled with the Spirit once and then that’s it. Also, just because you were baptized in the Holy Spirit five years ago doesn’t mean you are filled with the Spirit right now.
Don’t misunderstand me – I am not saying the Holy Spirit leaves you. He doesn’t. You still have the Holy Spirit, He is still in you.
(Ephesians 5:18-19) 18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
“Be filled” in the Greek is in the present continuous tense – “be being filled”. There should be an outflow of the Spirit from us; so to keep from “going dry”, there needs to be a continual inflow. Ideally, it should be like a river in a continuous flow through us:
(John 7:37-39) 37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
We use the term “Spirit filled” too casually and too loosely. We are referring to someone who was baptized in the Holy Spirit and speaks in tongues. The word “baptize” means to immerse. When you were baptized in the Holy Spirit, it means you were totally immersed and surrounded by the Holy Spirit. But being filled means the Holy Spirit is in you, up to the top and overflowing. Now that happens also when you are initially filled with the Spirit. But it doesn’t remain static.
A good way to think of it is that your level of the Spirit, or we could say your anointing, gets used up, or leaks. It needs to be replenished. Like putting gas in your car.
Someone who is “filled with the Spirit”, or is “in the Spirit” is attuned to the Holy Spirit. That’s really what it means. But someone can be more sensitive to what the Holy Spirit is saying and doing, and more obedient to what He says.
There are things we can do that will increase our sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, and things we can do that will decrease our sensitivity. Whether that means we either have “more” or “less” of the Spirit that could be measured with some kind of spiritual dipstick or gauge, I don’t know. But the filling of a container – in this case, you – is the image and terminology that the Bible uses.
If the gas gauge on your car was broke, how could you know for sure that the tank was full? You keep putting more gas in until you can’t put in any more. Nowadays we have gas pumps with sensors and automatic shut off valves that prevent overflowing the tank. But in the old days you could keep putting gas in until it came sloshing out the mouth.
Isn’t it interesting that one of the indicators that you are filled with the Spirit is that things come out of your mouth.
(Acts 2:4) They were all filled with the Spirit and began to speak with other tongues.
(Acts 4:31) … and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and spoke the word of God with boldness.
(Eph 5:18) And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs….
Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit comes from spending time in His Word and in His presence, through prayer and worship. Think of it this way: He is most likely to use the people that “hang around” Him.
Another thing that happens, is that as you mature in the Lord, your “tank” gets larger. You have a greater capacity for the things of God. Your relationship is “deeper”. I look at it like this: you are like a pool with the water of the Spirit flowing into it. A carnal Christian is like one that has a bunch of muck and mire at the bottom of the pool. It may be filled to the top, but there is not that much capacity. So when things happen that put a drain on your spirituality, you can get emptied quicker. That could be things like cares of this world, but it could also be good things like giving of yourself to others.
As you mature, the mire at the bottom of your pool is dredged out, which means there is more capacity for water. Then when outside pressures come, they are less of a drain on you and have less effect. And you have much more capacity to give of yourself to others. You have a bigger reservoir to draw on. Here we are getting into the fruit of the Spirit and not just your capacity to operate in the gifts. Love is the greatest of the fruit of the Spirit, and 1 Corinthians 13 shows us that love gives meaning to the operation of the gifts.
The Doorway
Is it possible for God to use someone who is not baptized in the Holy Spirit in a manifestation of the Holy Spirit? I.e., can God use someone who is not a tongue talker to prophesy, or heal someone, or work a miracle? Certainly. He did it before the Day of Pentecost, and He gives as He wills. But, it’s not as likely. And we are discussing what we can do to make ourselves more available for the Holy Spirit to use.
The baptism in the Holy Spirit and speaking in other tongues is like the doorway into the rest of the manifestations of the Spirit. People who don’t believe in tongues usually aren’t going to believe in the rest of the gifts either.
The manifestations of the Spirit are part of our arsenal of supernatural weapons talked about in 1 Corinthians 10:3. They can be used to bless people, but very often they are used to undo the works of the devil. Acts 10:38 says Jesus went about doing good, healing all those oppressed by the devil. So if the devil can get someone hung up in the doorway, he has eliminated a potential threat.
We will cover this in more detail later, but there is both a public and private use of tongues. In the private use of tongues, you are speaking to God (1 Corinthians 14:3), and it is under your control – i.e., you can start it and stop it any time you want. The public use of tongues is when a message is given by God in a tongue to others, where either it is in a known tongue of men like on the Day of Pentecost, or it is coupled with interpretation of tongues.
Making use of our private tongues – a lot – is another way to increase our spiritual sensitivity. It is practicing yielding to the Holy Spirit. Kenneth E. Hagin, the founder of the Bible school I went to, observed that the more he prayed in tongues, the more the gifts of the Spirit would be manifested in his ministry, and the less he prayed in tongues, the less they would be manifested.
(1 Corinthians 14:4) 4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.
The word edify means to build up. In this modern day, we use the analogy of charging a battery. But what happens when you charge a battery? You apply a voltage to it, and a current flows into it – electrons are moving. You are replenishing the battery with charge – filling it up. So praying in tongues is a very good way to “fill our tank”.
The goal is not to fill the tank just to the top, but to overflowing – so it starts sloshing onto the people around us. That is when you see the supernatural and the miraculous.
Bibliography for Part One
Material on the motivational gifts listed in Romans 12:4-8 is on Bill Gothard’s Institute in Basic Life Principles website at http://iblp.org/iblp/. Specifically, you can order the book Understanding Spiritual Gifts. He also has a blog at http://lifeinconflict.blogspot.com/2008/12/spiritual-gifts-part-1.html that goes into the material. You have to go to the archives to find all the lessons.
Don Francisco’s website: http://www.rockymountainministries.org/
