The Gifts of the Holy Spirit Will Strengthen Your Church!
Rick Renner
Rick Renner is a highly respected Bible teacher and leader in the international Christian community. Rick is the author of the bestsellers Dressed To Kill and Sparkling Gems From the Greek 1 and 2, which have sold more than 3 million copies combined. Rick’s broad understanding of the Greek language and biblical history opens up the Scriptures in a unique way that enables readers to gain wisdom and insight while learning something brand new from the Word of God.
Today Rick is the senior pastor of the Moscow Good News Church and the founder of Media Mir, the first Christian television network in the former USSR that today broadcasts the Gospel to countless Russian-speaking viewers around the world via multiple satellites and the Internet. He is also the founder and president of Rick Renner Ministries, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and host to his TV program that is seen around the world in multiple languages. Rick leads this amazing work with his wife and lifelong ministry partner, Denise, along with the help of their sons and committed leadership team.
The following article was adapted from Rick’s book Why We Need the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, which can be purchased at renner.org.
When the grace of God touches a person’s life or the life of an entire church, it always produces transformation and has manifold effects. It can give a person the ability to repent, the desire to change, and the power to live an obedient and sanctified life. But as Paul began writing First Corinthians, he started out by specifically reminding them of how the grace of God manifested among them in spiritual gifts. Yes, God’s grace manifests in many ways in a believer’s life, but Paul especially noted the gifts of the Holy Spirit as an outward evidence that an amazing level of grace had been poured out on the Corinthian church.
I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; that in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: so that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. — 1 Corinthians 1:4-9
As Paul continued to elaborate on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, he stressed the truth that God intends for these gifts to function in the Church until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ: “So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 7). In this verse, Paul confirmed that the gifts of the Holy Spirit will be active and functional in the Body of Christ until the end of the Church Age when Jesus returns. This means the claim that these gifts and manifestations ceased with the death of the apostles is untrue.
Weak and Silly — or Firm on Your Feet?
In verse 8, Paul went on to tell us the benefit that these supernatural gifts bring to each of us and to the larger Body of Christ. Rather than make us weak and silly, as some suggest, Paul stated that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are necessary to strengthen and establish us. The apostle wrote, “Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
There are three very important words in First Corinthians 1:8 regarding the impact of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the life of an individual or a congregation. The words “confirm,” “end,” and “blameless” are vital to understanding the long-term effect of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. Let’s see what these words meant when Paul wrote them and how they should be applied in our lives now as they pertain to the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The word “confirm” is a translation of the Greek word bebaioo, which means sure, fixed, steadfast, or maintaining firmness. In classical Greek, the word bebaioo meant firm, concrete, stable, durable, or unshakeable. In the legal sense, this word was used to depict a document that was valid, authentic, proven, and guaranteed. In its broadest sense, bebaioo meant fit, certain, or reliable, and it pictured someone standing firm on his feet.
The use of this word bebaioo, as it is used in verse 8 in connection with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, tells us that these gifts make us firm, stable, durable, unshakeable, reliable, certain, and fit. So rather than make us spiritually silly or weak, these gifts help us stand firm on our feet!
The word “end” in verse 8 is a translation of the Greek word telos, a word that in this verse describes something that is mature or fully ripened. Thus, Paul was not just describing the “end” of something in this verse, such as the end of the age. Instead, he used the word telos to describe the working of steadfast growth and endurance in believers’ lives—by these demonstrations of the gifts of the Spirit—to the end that these believers become “ripened” or fully mature.
The use of the word telos reveals God’s purpose for these gifts: They are intended to help bring us to a higher realm of spiritual maturity. If these supernatural gifts are operating according to God’s design, they cultivate a state of ripeness in the believer’s walk with the Lord and a greater maturity of the Church at large. Paul’s words mean that there is actually an entire dimension of spiritual maturity that cannot be achieved without the operation of spiritual gifts. We can conclude, then, that the gifts of the Spirit are essential for the Body of Christ to attain “…unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (see Ephesians 4:13).
Conviction, Holiness, and Personal Integrity
The third word we’ll look at in First Corinthians 1:8—“blameless”—is a translation of the word anegkletos, an old Greek word that means having no blot on one’s life for which one could be accused, arraigned, or disqualified. It is legal language that describes one who has been found spotless or unimpeachable. Not even a hint of accusation can be found against this individual. Thus, he is “blameless.”
So the use of the word anegkletos in this verse reveals another facet of God’s divine design for the gifts of the Holy Spirit: They are meant to bring us to a place of conviction, holiness, and personal integrity.
When spiritual gifts are working in the life of a believer or a congregation, they often expose deficiencies and produce repentance. As a result, character is purged and justifiable accusation is expunged from a person’s life or from the midst of a local body. By the operation of these spiritual gifts, people are often so impacted that their character and reputation become transformed. People’s lives that may have previously been susceptible to accusation and blame have changed course and are on a new path toward becoming unimpeachable.
The combined use of these words in this verse could be taken to mean:
“These gifts make you fit, firm, and unshakeable. They put you on your feet spiritually and lead you into new levels of maturity. Ultimately, these gifts will work to produce an unimpeachable character in you….”
As we read this expanded translation of First Corinthians 1:8, it becomes clear why we need the gifts of the Holy Spirit working among us. And we see in this verse why the apostle Paul said they must be in manifestation until the return of Jesus Christ. Since these supernatural gifts are that vital, God would of course never allow them to cease! They are essential for us to reach the spiritual maturity that He has designed for His Church.
When these divine enablements are released in our midst and allowed to operate as the Holy Spirit intends, they literally bring a supernatural partnership with Jesus Christ into the Church that we as believers otherwise would never know. God has provided the avenue by which we can experience this divine partnership in these last days, but we have a part to play. It’s up to us to learn to lean on the Holy Spirit—and this must include embracing the gifts of the Holy Spirit as He works among us.
