Lititz United Methodist Church Sermon Archive

This is the last in this series of sermons on the Holy Spirit. Today we will look at the gifts of the Spirit, and also what is called the “charismatic movement”. Before we do this, though, let’s look at one ministry of the Holy Spirit that is sometimes overlooked. It is the Holy Spirit interceding in our praying.

Romans 8:26-27 says, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

These verses remind us that we are weak, and we don’t know how to pray as we ought.
We don’t know what’s best to pray for. We can’t see the future. We don’t have a clear grasp of all the factors in a situation. So, as we pray, we come face to face with our human limitations. But we are also weak in another sense. We sometimes just cannot find the words to express our deep and intense feelings. Knowing this, God has given the Spirit to assist us. He “intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express” (Romans 8:26 NIV).

This Scripture doesn’t say exactly what all of this means, but the idea seems to be that the Holy Spirit brings our deepest, sometimes inexpressible, longings before God the Father.
Haven’t you ever had times when you just could not find the words to convey to God what you are feeling? I have! Maybe you are just overwhelmed with grief, or fear, or gratitude,
or praise. How many times I have just prayed, “Spirit, make intercession!” Or I have simply sighed and whispered, “Oh, Holy Spirit”! Perhaps you are praying for someone, and your feelings are so intense that you say, “Spirit, make intercession for (this person)”.
Of course, I am not suggesting that we get lazy in our prayer life, and never pray more than “Spirit, make intercession”!

The Spirit can be a great help in our prayer life, because “the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:27).

Let’s change directions now, and talk about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. When we read about the first century church in the New Testament, it is easy to see that the Holy Spirit was alive and pulsating through that body of believers. Part of what we see is the operation of all kinds of spiritual gifts (or gifts of the Holy Spirit). Hebrews 2:4 describes the early church in this manner: “God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his own will.”

The Greek word most often used for “gift” or “gifts” of the Spirit is the word charisma, or the plural form, charismata.“ Charisma comes from the root word charis, which means “grace”. Gifts of the Spirit are “grace gifts”. They flow from God’s grace, His undeserved mercy. They are not something we can get if we just try hard enough. They are not something we can earn, or deserve. In a sense, they are like presents that God gives us!
Spiritual gifts are not the same as natural talents. We are born with natural talents. Natural talents are given to everyone. The gifts of the Spirit are given only when we become a believer in Christ.

Why are these gifts given to the church? What’s their purpose? The answer is found in 1 Corinthians 12:7. “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”
Every Christian is given at least one gift of the Spirit for the common good, to build up the body of Christ (the church).

What are some of these gifts of the Spirit? Time permits just a quick overview of the gifts.
The list most often referred to for spiritual gifts is found in 1 Corinthians, chapter 12. “To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues” (1 Corinthians 12:8-10). There are nine gifts mentioned here.

First, is the utterance of wisdom. This is telling someone something wise to do that we have no way of knowing ourselves. Next, is the utterance of knowledge. This means expressing knowledge of something that the Spirit reveals to us. For instance, someone leading a meeting might say, “Right now in that part of the sanctuary God is healing a teenager of a growth on his kidney.”

Faith is a gift of the Spirit. This is not the faith in Jesus that everybody has to have in order to be saved, but rather the extraordinary faith that often results in unusual happenings
taking place. Another gift is healing (or literally “gifts of healings”). Then, there is the working of miracles. Following that is prophecy. Prophecy basically means telling what God’s will is in a particular situation. Discerning of spirits. This is being able to distinguish what is from God and what is from Satan, what is true and what is false.

The next gift listed is tongues, or speaking in a heavenly language. Finally, the interpretation of tongues, where someone interprets the message just given in tongues.

Most of these gifts are pretty unusual and supernatural, aren’t they? But there is another list of gifts given in Romans 12. “We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us; prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness” (Romans 12:6-8). In this passage of Scripture, the same
word for gift is used – the Greek word charisma.

Prophecy is named first. It is the same gift that is listed in 1 Corinthians 12. Then there is ministry (or service). This is practical service rendered to others. Teaching is a gift. Exhortation, or encouraging others. Giving – this suggests having a special Spirit-given ability to give large amounts of money or a high proportion of one’s income to the work of the Lord. Leadership is a spiritual gift. Likewise, compassion, or showing mercy, is one of the gifts.

Did you notice that some of these gifts are much less spectacular, but they are just as important to the upbuilding of the church and the kingdom of God?

So far we have covered 15 spiritual gifts. Are there others mentioned in the New Testament? I believe there are three additional gifts listed later in 1 Corinthians 12:
apostleship, helps, and administration. We can also add two more found in Ephesians 4:11-12, the gifts of evangelism, and that of pastor (shepherd).

Not all Christians agree on the number of gifts mentioned in the New Testament, or whether there might be other spiritual gifts not mentioned in the Bible. We can debate this issue forever, but the important thing is to focus on those listed, to see which gift or gifts may be given to us, and to put them to use!

I believe gifts of the Spirit should be operating within the church today, including some of the extraordinary gifts like healings and miracles. Discovering and using our gifts can bring joy and fulfillment to us, and greatly enrich and strengthen the body of Christ.

Sometimes it is asked: Do we receive a gift and it stays with us for life, or do the gifts come and go? The Bible doesn’t answer that question. I believe, however, that both are the case. For instance, if you have the spiritual gift of teaching, it will probably remain with you throughout your life. On the other hand, you might be placed in a certain situation where the utterance of knowledge is needed, and the Spirit may give you that gift for that instant, and you may never have the gift again.

How can we discover what gift or gifts the Spirit has given us? First of all, we should be informed. In 1 Corinthians 12:1 it says, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed (ignorant)”. Some of you have taken our “Launching Pad” seminar, where we try to help one another discover our gifts and calling from God. Many of you have done spiritual gift inventories, a practical tool in helping us pinpoint our spiritual gifts. As a church we are working to provide even better opportunities for us to discover and use our spiritual gifts.

Second, we are to desire the spiritual gifts. In 1 Corinthians 14:1 it says, “Make love your aim, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts”. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome, “I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you” (Romans 1:11). How it must frustrate the Holy Spirit when He offers us a present for ministry, and we’re not interested!

Third, we can step out and attempt things for God. Romans 12:6 says, “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them”. 1 Peter 4:10 tells us, “As each one has received a gift, employ it for one another”. For example, how will I know if I have the gift of teaching unless I try to teach? Likewise, it’s when we put ourselves in spots where we need a word of wisdom from God that the Spirit may give us that word of wisdom!

In the final part of this sermon I want to say some things about what is called the charismatic movement. Perhaps 40-45 years ago in mainline churches there was a resurgence of interest in the Holy Spirit, and people experiencing the gifts of the Spirit. This came to be known as the charismatic movement (again, from the Greek word for gift - charisma, or charismata (plural).

People in this movement testify to a deeper experience of the Holy Spirit referred to as the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, or being baptized in the Spirit. Emphasis is placed on the nine gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12, especially on speaking in tongues. In fact, many claim that the evidence that one has received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is that he or she will speak in tongues.

My introduction to this move of the Spirit came during my college years, when the pastor of my home church had this experience, and began to have charismatic prayer and praise services in the church. I will admit that over the years I have developed an affection for the charismatic movement. I have been to any number of dinner meetings, prayer groups,
and praise services of that vein. I have personally sought the baptism of the Holy Spirit, have had experiences in the Spirit that have deepened my life in Christ, although to my knowledge I have never spoken in tongues. I would like to share some reflections about the charismatic movement that I hope will be balanced and fair.

Some of my feelings are on the negative side. For one thing, I have some fundamental differences with the theology and interpretation of Scripture often put forth by those in the charismatic movement. I don’t agree with their view of what it means to be “baptized in the Spirit”, nor with some of their teaching about the place of speaking in tongues. I even disagree with what the term “charismatic” means. For instance, I have been asked more than once, “Are you charismatic”? I think I know what the questioner is asking me: have you had the experience of the Spirit where you have spoken in tongues? My belief is that according to the Bible, every person born again is “charismatic”, because each believer
is given a charisma, or gift of the Spirit. My pastor friend who had this experience did his Master’s thesis on the gifts of the Spirit, and he disagrees with some of the theology held by those claiming to be charismatics.

Another negative experience in associating with charismatic Christians has been a tendency on the part of some to look down on those who have not had that type of encounter with the Spirit. Some have insisted that unless you have an experience like theirs, you are not filled with the Spirit. I have even heard several people indicate that you don’t even possess the Holy Spirit unless you have spoken in tongues. In some cases I have known people who have been “baptized with the Spirit”, then look down on others in the church as being unspiritual, and wind up leaving and going off to some charismatic church or group.

Then also, I have found a tendency on the part of so-called charismatic believers to focus totally on the nine gifts of the Spirit listed in 1 Corinthians 12, and ignore the other gifts mentioned elsewhere in Scripture.

While there are, I believe, reasons for caution, I also see many reasons why we should be seeking the fullness of the Spirit expressed through the charismatic experience.

First, among charismatics there is a sense of the nearness and reality of the Holy Spirit. I have been in small prayer groups and also worship services with two to three hundred people, where there have been messages in tongues and interpretation of tongues, or where someone has gotten up and spoken a prophecy, so that there is a sense of the imminence and presence of God among those people.

Second, I value the joy and spontaneity often found among charismatic Christians. This is often in marked contrast to a lack of joy found in much of Protestantism. In the first century the Apostle Paul had to counsel the charismatic Corinthian congregation to calm
down their enthusiasm in worship, and to let everything be done decently and in order.
This is not an issue for most Protestant churches today, where worship is often dull and
lifeless! The sense of uninhibited praise and adoration and joy that often permeates
charismatic worship can be a welcome relief from the routine monotony that stifles
many worship services today!

Third, there is a sense of expectancy among charismatics that is often thrilling. They expect God to do something when they gather to pray and praise – they anticipate miracles,
healings, direct messages from God in tongues and prophesy. Again, this is in contrast to many of us, where we gather to pray or worship, not anticipating God to do anything – and we are not disappointed! There is no reason why there shouldn’t be supernatural manifestations of the Spirit in this congregation!

Finally, for many who have connected with the charismatic wave of our time, it provides a deepening, liberating encounter with the Spirit of God. Many have been turned from being marginal, lukewarm Christians to enthusiastic, joyful, fruitful disciples of Jesus!

The charismatic experience is one type of encounter with the Holy Spirit. I believe there are others. But the important thing for each of us to ask is this: Is the Holy Spirit something we say we believe in, and know a few facts about? Or, is He our daily Companion, our Helper, our Guide, and our Strength! He wants to be all of that for us!

“The Holy Spirit”

“He Gives Us Presents!”