Building up believers and the New Testament church

Spiritual Gifts

"Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant." (I Corinthians 12:1)

I Corinthians 12:1-6 in the Amplified New Testament reads, "Now about the spiritual gifts (the special endowments of supernatural energy), brethren, I do not want you to be misinformed. You know that [when] you were heathen, you were led off after idols that could not speak--habitually--as impulse directed and whenever the occasion might arise. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking under the power and influence of the (Holy) Spirit of God [ever] can say, Jesus be cursed! And no one can [really] say, Jesus is [my] Lord, except by and under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit. Now there are distinctive varieties and distributions of endowments [extra-ordinary powers distinguishing certain Christians, due to the power of divine grace operating in their souls by the Holy Spirit] and they vary, but the (Holy) Spirit remains the same. And there are distinctive varieties of service and ministration, but it is the same Lord [Who is served]. And there are distinctive varieties of operation of working to accomplish things--but it is the same God Who inspires and energizes them all in all."

God has given supernatural gifts by the Spirit so the church might move as a many-membered body to do a supernatural work by supernatural means. God has made provision for the full manifestation of His power and life through His people. Every believer is a partaker of the divine nature and thus has the freedom to exercise the divine powers that belong to the family of God. The sons of God should manifest a supernatural nature in life, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and through faith in the name of Jesus Christ and His atonement. God has provided His Spirit and the manifestations of the Spirit for the outworking of His purpose in a spiritual manner in and through believers.