One Size Fits All (Rethinking Spiritual Gifts)

Most of my life was spent in churches that did not operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. At least...that's what I thought. As I young man I became exposed to churches that run in the charismatic circles which did operate in them. At least...that's what I thought. While I do not consider myself an expert on this matter, I want to invite you to a conversation that I had with a brother in Christ the other day. I hope you will be encouraged to think differently on this important subject.

Over the years I have come to understand spiritual gifts differently than the way I was taught. Most people approach 1 Corinthians 12 from a "gifts" standpoint. By that I mean that it looks a lot like Christmas - every person has a different gift sitting under the tree, different wrapping, different bows, different content, & we each get the one that has our name on it. Some of the more modern Bible translations confuse our understanding even more because of the lack of literal translation. An example from a very popular and easy to read translation: "A spiritual gift (singular) is given to each of us..." You see, they carry over their own thoughts into the translation. The more literal translations of 1 Corinthians 12:7 actually tells us that it's not a gift but a manifestation of the Spirit that is given to each one. WHAT?

That's right folks. A literal understanding of 1 Corinthians 12 will teach you that the gift you are seeing in operation is a manifestation of the Spirit of God in their life. Not only that, but when you look into the original language of the New Testament, you will also discover that the word we translate as "gift" is rooted in the word "grace". These "gifts" are spiritual graces (the operating power of God upon our lives) that are given for the profit of everyone. With all that being said, and looking at the context of these verses, I want to give you my understanding of what Paul is actually saying. Remember that he is dealing with the problems that have come up in the Corinthian church and trying to clarify the purpose of the gifts among them.
Concerning the supernatural I don't want you to be ignorant. There are a diversity of graces, services, and operations but it's the same God, same Lord, and same Holy Spirit. You need to understand that the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man for the profit of everyone. One person is given words of wisdom, another words of knowledge, another faith, etc., etc.
Now...
What is given? The manifestation
Where does it come from? The Holy Spirit
Why? For the profit of every one

Why is this important? It's important because we need to understand that the Lord has given each and every one of us the SAME Holy Spirit. Whether that person is a man, woman, or a child, when it comes to the Holy Spirit - one size fits all. This understanding will also keep us from thinking my gift is better than your gift or that somehow I'm inferior because I didn't operate in that one. It will also create a dependency upon the Holy Spirit in our lives. We will begin to recognize that because we have the Giver of these graces living inside of us then we have all the graces available.

When you carry this understanding over into 1 Corinthians 14 it makes perfect sense. Paul is teaching the church that when they come together that these manifestations will occur. Listen to his language (my paraphrase): When you come together, each of you has a song, a lesson, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let it all be done for the edification of everyone.

This portion of Paul's letter, which included the understanding of love, is provided to us so that we can understand how to operate in the Spirit. Every believer has the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of them. Every brother/sister in Christ can also receive the manifestation of the Spirit in every grace that is listed. While I do believe that we tend to function in primary gifts (that is what we are most comfortable operating in), the Lord can do so much more than what we have realized when we surrender our will to His. This is how every member of the Body functions together so that the Head (Jesus) can manifest Himself in our midst. This is how He has chosen to operate in our lives. This is how He has lead the members of the Body to build one another up in Him. This is what keeps us spiritual in nature rather than just going through some religious form. In the end, it's really up to us how we allow Him to operate. The encouragement that I want to bring to your life is this: The SAME Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead dwells inside of you. You need to let Him out!!!