The Work of the Holy Spirit II

Admin
6 hours ago
9 min read

This is the second installment in our series about the work of the Holy Spirit. In the first post, we talked about who the Holy Spirit is and learned more about his purpose within the Body of Christ. We also discovered that the phrase “Gifts of the Holy Spirit” can be a little misleading.

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

When we think about gifts, we generally think about birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, graduation gifts, and wedding gifts. These kinds of gifts are things that are given to or shared with others. As a general rule, gifts usually have a kind or generous person giving the gift.

In polite society, we understand that gifts cannot be demanded and should not be expected because if there is a demand or expectation of giving or receiving a gift for an occasion, it’s no longer a gift. It’s a duty to be performed, and somehow there is no joy left in the giving or in the gift for that matter. This is what I know about Father. He doesn’t give us gifts or things. What does he give us? He only gives us more of himself, but that is not all he gives. He gives us as his gifts to the Church and to the world.

Alleviating Confusion

Much of the confusion in this matter comes from the wording that we find in I Corinthians 12:1, ^“Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed.” Entire doctrines have been built on a misleading translation and implied meaning of the term, “gifts of the Spirit.” Historically, we have attached our conventional meanings to these words and have gone from there. In the original language, however, the word used has nothing to do with what we call gifts or presents. The original intent of what Paul was saying here are “things of the Spirit.” He’s referring to what the Holy Spirit does in our gatherings or in our in our lives. A better translation for this verse might be: “Concerning the work or functioning of the Holy Spirit, I don’t want you to be lacking understanding or to be uninformed.”

Gifts Are Functions

As we continue our study on the work of the Holy Spirit, we will be examining the various functions of the Holy Spirit within the Body of Christ as a whole as well as in individual lives. We will begin by building an understanding of the term function. By definition, the word means the natural activity or purpose of something. When an object or organism is functioning properly, it is carrying out its task without thought, request, or prompting. It is the natural process of an organism or an object.

Functioning is not about doing certain things. Functioning is simply being what you were created to be without thought or worry. An example of this would be a fruit tree. I have various fruit trees in my yard, and they do not worry or fret about what they’re supposed to do. They just function as fruit trees: growing, blossoming, and bearing fruit. It is their natural task to complete.

Guiding Questions

Within this study, there are two guiding questions that we will need to consider. The first question is this: How does the Holy Spirit function in a local fellowship? The second question is a bit more direct: How should the Holy Spirit function in the local fellowship? As we ponder these questions, we will rely on the Word to guide us. We will begin in Ephesians 4 reading from the Phillips translation. The Phillips translation is one of my favorite translations and offers more clarification on this important issue, in my opinion.

How Does the Holy Spirit Function?

It is apparent, with the amount of attention that Paul gives to this issue in several of his letters, that the early Church struggled with understanding the work of the Holy Spirit just as we do. Reading from Ephesians 4:7-8, Paul says, “Naturally there are different gifts and functions; individually grace is given to us in different ways out of the rich diversity of Christ’s giving. As the Scripture says: ‘When he ascended on high, he led captivity captive and gave gifts to men’.”

Now, as we take a look at these verses, Paul is quoting from Psalm 68:18. The Hebrew word for “gift” there means a present or something that has given and received just like the ones we talked about earlier. The Greek word that Paul uses here has the same meaning. It is a gift, a present, or something given and received. It is important to point out, however, that this is not the same word that Paul used in I Corinthians 12:1 when he wrote, ^“Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed.”

Skipping down Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul identifies some of these “gifts” that God gave to men, “His ‘gifts to men’ were varied. Some he made his messengers, some prophets, some preachers of the Gospel; to some he gave the power to guide and teach his people. His gifts were made that Christians might be properly equipped for their service, that the whole body might be built up until the time comes when, in the unity of the common faith and common knowledge of the Son of God, we arrive at real maturity – that measure of development which is meant by the ‘fullness of Christ’.”

Now, looking at this passage, it says that God gives different kinds of gifts and that these “gifts” are actually people. These are individuals who have been given to the Church for a purpose. What is that purpose? The purpose is that each of us will be properly equipped for our service or ministry. I think it is worth noting here that it doesn’t say that only “certain” Christians are being equipped for service. The implication here is that all believers are equipped for service so that the whole body might be built up. Father’s purpose is that we will all arrive at real maturity, which is that place where Christ fills and permeates every part of our being.

Functions in the Church

Paul addresses individuals functioning in the Church in Romans 12:4-5, where he compares the church body to the human body, “For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ, we, though many, form one body and each member belongs to all the others.” With that established, we will now examine these functions, which are the ways the Holy Spirit is supposed to operate within the Body of Christ.

Returning to I Corinthians 12:4-7 Paul writes, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” There are three words in this passage that we need to focus on: gifts, service, and working.

The word for “gifts” here is an entirely different word from any of the others that we’ve looked at. The word is charisma, and it means an operation of grace. It is a grace-endowment, a gift of grace to edify the church. This endowment of grace divinely empowers a believer to share God’s work with others. It is the Holy Spirit working in and through individuals within a body for the edification and the building up of that body.

The second word is “service,” and there are different kinds of service that we can see operating in local churches. This word in the Greek has the meaning of waiting at a table. This is kind of like a waiter or a server in a restaurant. The server doesn’t own the restaurant. He or she is not the chef. They simply offer what they have been given to serve others.

The third word here is “working.” This word speaks of the effects of actions taken, or the results of the energy being employed. There are different kinds of things being done and different effects of those actions, but it is God at work in all of them to make the operation of the Holy Spirit manifest or known for the benefit of everyone.

Three Types of Functions

Throughout Paul’s writings and explanations of the workings of the Holy Spirit, we find that there are different categories or various types of functions that are common within the Church or in local fellowships. Perhaps the most famous (or infamous, as the case may be) are the “manifestation or sign” gifts that we see in I Corinthians 12:8-10. These include word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miracles, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. These are the sign gifts – ones that you can see or experience – and the ones that cause the most consternation and division in the Church.

Another category or type of functions of the Holy Spirit are the “ministry or servant” gifts that are listed in Ephesians 4:11. Here Paul lists apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Apostles are ones sent to present Christ and to build up the Church. Often, but not exclusively, these are church planters who go to places where there is no established work of God and start a church. Prophets are God’s spokesmen or messengers. They can also be watchmen who have been called to watch and listen to hear what God is saying the Church. Evangelists have a burden for souls. Their heart and their mission is to share the gospel and to win souls for Christ. Pastors have a burden for personal ministry and to care for the individual needs of the congregants in a local body. Teachers function by sharing, explaining, and modeling the truths that are found in the Word.

The third category of Holy Spirit functions are what are known as the “service or motivational” gifts. They include the tasks that we find in Romans 12:6-8 and in I Corinthians 12:28. These are functions like prophesying, serving, teaching, encouragement, giving, leadership, showing mercy, helping, and guidance. These are essential components in the body life of the Church.

How Should the Holy Spirit Function?

In every local fellowship, there are many ways that the Holy Spirit can work through individuals for the benefit of the larger body of Christ. Going back to our second guiding question, how should these gifts (or functions) fit into what we do in a local fellowship? I Corinthians 14:26 says, “What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” Church is not something that we do. We are the Church, and each of us have a function to perform.

Every one of us is an essential part of the ministry within a local fellowship whether we realize it or not. Each one of us have a gift or a function to carry out just like every part of the human body has a function to carry out. (The body’s appendix was removed a long time ago, by the way.) It takes each of us operating or functioning to make our local churches grow and be as effective as possible in the communities that we serve. This only happens, however, when each of us chooses to use our individual talents and skills to serve each other and to minister to the needs of those within our reach.

For example, in the fellowship that I serve we have the occasional church workday where people in the church come out to work on the building. Are all of us doing the same job? No. Each one of us have a particular talent, a particular skill, or a particular area that we work in. Working together, we improve the functionality of the building and continue to improve the ministry of the entire fellowship. Working together, we are able to better reach our community and be an effective witness for Christ.

Working Together

The gifts or the functions of the Holy Spirit are an essential part of the ministry of every local fellowship. We need to understand that every Sunday, or every time we come together, is a workday, and we are building the house of God. Remember, you have been given as a gift to your local church. You have a part. Now, it is up to you to be a part of what Father has planned for your life and service to Christ.

In Part III, we will explore the 5-Fold ministry, or the Servant Gifts, in depth and consider their place in modern-day Christian practice. I hope you will join us for that adventure.

Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®

Scripture quotations taken from The New Testament in Modern English by J.B Phillips

Administered by The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England.