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Texts -- 1 Corinthians 12:1-17 (NET)

Context
Spiritual Gifts
12:1 With regard to spiritual gifts , brothers and sisters , I do not want you to be uninformed . 12:2 You know that when you were pagans you were often led astray by speechless idols , however you were led . 12:3 So I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says , “Jesus is cursed ,” and no one can say , “Jesus is Lord ,” except by the Holy Spirit . 12:4 Now there are different gifts , but the same Spirit . 12:5 And there are different ministries , but the same Lord . 12:6 And there are different results , but the same God who produces all of them in everyone . 12:7 To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the benefit of all. 12:8 For one person is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom , and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit , 12:9 to another faith by the same Spirit , and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit , 12:10 to another performance of miracles , to another prophecy , and to another discernment of spirits , to another different kinds of tongues , and to another the interpretation of tongues . 12:11 It is one and the same Spirit , distributing as he decides to each person, who produces all these things .
Different Members in One Body
12:12 For just as the body is one and yet has many members , and all the members of the body – though many – are one body , so too is Christ . 12:13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body . Whether Jews or Greeks or slaves or free , we were all made to drink of the one Spirit . 12:14 For in fact the body is not a single member , but many . 12:15 If the foot says , “Since I am not a hand , I am not part of the body ,” it does not lose its membership in the body because of that . 12:16 And if the ear says , “Since I am not an eye , I am not part of the body ,” it does not lose its membership in the body because of that . 12:17 If the whole body were an eye , what part would do the hearing ? If the whole were an ear , what part would exercise the sense of smell ?

Pericope

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Bible Dictionary

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Hymns

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  • [1Co 12:8] Behold The Messengers Of Christ
  • [1Co 12:8] From Thee All Skill And Science Flow
  • [1Co 12:13] Let Party Names No More

Questions

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Sermon Illustrations

Types in the Bible; Spiritual Gifts are to Edify the Church; Arguments on Spiritual Gifts; Special Gifts of the Spirit; Guidelines for Workers and Those Under Authority; What Does the Holy Spirit Do?; Charisma; Tests for Prophecy; Scriptural Resources; The Permanent Gifts; The Temporary Gifts; What Does the Bible Say?; Trinity Explained; Mark 16:16; Mark 16:16; The History and Nature of Spiritual Gifts; Tongues; Characteristics of Scripture; 1 Corinthians 12:7; Speaking In a Language One Has Not Learned; Ephesians 4:11-16

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • The authorship of the Pentateuch has been the subject of great controversy among professing Christians since Spinoza introduced "higher criticism"of the Bible in the seventeenth century. The "documentary hypothesis,"which dev...
  • Coveting means inordinately desiring to possess what belongs to another person. This commandment deals with motivation rather than deed, with attitude rather than action. It gets at the spirit that often leads to the sins for...
  • David also distributed some of the war plunder to the elders of Judah.293He evidently did so because he viewed the booty as coming from the enemies of all Judah, even the enemies of the Lord (v. 26). He may have also done thi...
  • It was common when Jesus lived for forerunners to precede important individuals to prepare the way for their arrival. For example, when a king would visit a town in his realm his emissaries would go before him to announce his...
  • Whereas the chief priests used bribe money to commission the soldiers to spread lies, the resurrected Jesus used the promise of His power and presence to commission His disciples to spread the gospel.1091This is the final add...
  • Mark said that Jesus appeared to the Eleven on this occasion. However, John qualified that statement by explaining that Thomas was absent (John 20:24). Mark was speaking of the Eleven as a group.16:14 This event evidently hap...
  • The writer next noted the parallel ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus in Judea. John the Baptist readily confessed Jesus' superiority to him even though they were both doing the same things. This was further testimony t...
  • This pericope explains why Jesus must become greater. It also unites several themes that appear through chapter 3. John the Apostle or John the Baptist may be the speaker. This is not entirely clear.3:31-32 The incarnate Son ...
  • Having announced His departure Jesus proceeded to offer the Holy Spirit for those who believed on Him (cf. chs. 14-16).7:37 The feast of Tabernacles lasted seven days (cf. Deut. 16:13). However the day following the feast was...
  • 14:8 The Eleven regarded Jesus very highly. Notwithstanding they did not yet realize that He was such an accurate and full revelation of God the Father that to see Jesus was to see the Father. Philip asked for a clear revelat...
  • At the end of His answer to Peter's question (13:36), Jesus moved the conversation back to the general theme of preparation for His departure (v. 4). He did the same thing after answering Philip's question (v. 8). Obedience t...
  • 17:20 Jesus now identified future believers as the objects of His intercession, as well as the Eleven. He described them as those who would believe through the witness of the Eleven. All Christians have come to Jesus Christ e...
  • If I were to boil down to one sentence what the Book of Acts is in the Bible to teach us, I would say this.The message of Acts is that the church of Jesus Christ is God's instrument to glorify Himself in the present age. The ...
  • Luke introduced the beginning of Jesus' earthly ministry with His baptism with the Spirit (Luke 3:21-22). He paralleled this with the beginning of Jesus' heavenly ministry with the Spirit baptism of His disciples (Acts 2:1-4)...
  • 2:37 The Holy Spirit used Peter's sermon to bring conviction, as Jesus had predicted (John 16:8-11). He convicted Peter's hearers of the truth of what he said and of their guilt in rejecting Jesus. Their question arose from t...
  • Luke devoted more space to Paul's evangelizing in Philippi than he did to the apostle's activities in any other city on the second and third journeys even though Paul was there only briefly. It was the first European city in ...
  • 18:5 Maybe Paul was able to stop practicing his trade and give full time to teaching and evangelizing if Silas returned from Philippi with a monetary gift, as seems likely (cf. Phil. 4:14-16; 2 Cor. 11:9). Timothy had returne...
  • This is the first of two incidents taken from Paul's ministry in Ephesus that bracket Luke's description of his general ministry there.19:1-2 Two roads led into Ephesus from the east, and Paul travelled the northern, more dir...
  • Paul was not on trial here. When he had appealed to Caesar (25:11), he had guaranteed that his next trial would be before the emperor. This was just a hearing designed to acquaint Agrippa with Paul's case so Agrippa could giv...
  • Throughout the history of the church, from postapostolic times to the present, Christians have regarded Romans as having been one of the Apostle Paul's epistles.1Not only does the letter claim that he wrote it (1:1), but it d...
  • Having begun with a formal and unusually long greeting compared to his other epistles, Paul next proceeded to address his readers more personally. He had not met the Christians to whom he wrote so he spent some time getting a...
  • 8:5 Here Paul began to elaborate the difference between "flesh"and "Spirit."This distinction is difficult to grasp because both terms have more than one meaning. To "walkaccording to the flesh"(v. 4) means to carry out in con...
  • 10:8 Paul quoted Moses again (Deut. 30:14) to reaffirm the fact that the great lawgiver taught that salvation came by faith. The "word of faith"means the message that righteousness comes by faith. Faith is easy compared to a ...
  • In contrasting chapters 1-11 with chapters 12-16 of Romans, perhaps the most important distinction is that the first part deals primarily with God's actions for humanity, and the last part deals with people's actions in respo...
  • 12:3 Paul began this pericope with a reminder of his apostolic authority. He probably did so because what he was about to say required personal application that would affect the conduct of his readers. The Romans had not met ...
  • Corinth had a long history stretching back into the Bronze Age (before 1200 B.C.).1In Paul's day it was a Roman colony and the capital of the province of Achaia. The population consisted of Roman citizens who had migrated fro...
  • A phrase in 1:2 suggests the theme of this great epistle. That phrase is "the church of God which is at Corinth."Two entities are in view in this phrase and these are the two entities with which the whole epistle deals. They ...
  • I. Introduction 1:1-9A. Salutation 1:1-3B. Thanksgiving 1:4-9II. Conditions reported to Paul 1:10-6:20A. Divisions in the church 1:10-4:211. The manifestation of the problem 1:10-172. The gospel as a contradiction to human wi...
  • The apostle Paul began this epistle as he did his others by identifying himself and a fellow worker known to the readers. Then he identified and described the recipients of the letter and greeted them with a benediction. This...
  • The warm introduction to the epistle (1:1-9) led Paul to give a strong exhortation to unity. In it he expressed his reaction to reports of serious problems in this church that had reached his ears."Because Paul primarily, and...
  • Paul set up a contrast between cleverness of speech and the Cross in verse 17. Next he developed this contrast with a series of arguments. Boasting in men impacts the nature of the gospel. He pointed out that the gospel is no...
  • Paul's reference to the Holy Spirit's power (vv. 4-5) led him to elaborate on the Spirit's ministry in enlightening the minds of believers and unbelievers alike. The Corinthians needed to view ministry differently. The key to...
  • Building on the preceding theological base, Paul argued against participating in fornication with prostitutes. The Corinthians had not understood the nature of sexual intercourse or the nature of Christian conversion.6:15 Ano...
  • The remainder of the body of this epistle deals with questions the Corinthians had put to Paul in a letter. Paul introduced each of these with the phrase peri de("now concerning,"7:1, 25; 8:1; 12:1; 16:1, 12)."Rather than a f...
  • Paul advised married people not to abstain from normal sexual relations.7:1 Again Paul began what he had to say by citing a general truth. Then he proceeded to qualify it (cf. 6:12-13). The use of the Greek word anthropos(man...
  • Paul began by comparing the way of love and the way of knowledge to show their relative importance.8:1 The key phrase peri de("now concerning"or "now about") as well as a change in subject matter mark off a new section of thi...
  • The apostle proceeded to warn his readers of the danger of idolatry further (cf. v. 7). This paragraph concludes the long argument that Paul began in 8:1 concerning going to temple feasts.10:14 Formerly Paul urged the Corinth...
  • Most of the Corinthians had been following Paul's instructions regarding women's head coverings so he commended them (v. 2), but he could not approve their practice at the Lord's Supper. They needed to make some major changes...
  • This aspect of the problem involved showing disregard for the poorer members of the church.11:17 The Corinthians' behavior at the Lord's Supper was so bad that Paul could say they were worse off for observing it as they did r...
  • Paul had been dealing with matters related to worship since 8:1. He had forbidden the Corinthians from participating in temple meals but had allowed eating marketplace meat under certain circumstances (8:1-11:1). Then he deal...
  • The apostle began his discussion by clarifying the indicators that a person is under the control of the indwelling Spirit of God. With this approach, he set the Corinthians' former experience as idolaters in contrast to their...
  • Paul planned to return to the subject of glossolalia (ch. 14), but first he wanted to talk more generally about spiritual gifts. In the verses that follow he dealt with differences in gifts in the church."Having given the neg...
  • 12:4 Although there is only one Holy Spirit He gives many different abilities to different people. Everything in this pericope revolves around these two ideas. "Gifts"(Gr. charismata, from charismeaning "grace") are abilities...
  • Paul now compared the body of Christ, the universal church, though by extension the local church as well, to a human body. Again his point was not that the church needs to have unity but that it needs to have diversity.12:12 ...
  • Paul proceeded to elaborate his analogy.12:15-16 Perhaps Paul chose the feet, hands, ears, and eyes as examples because of their prominence in the body. Even though they are prominent and important they cannot stand alone. Th...
  • Next, the apostle spoke more specifically about the members of the body of Christ again (cf. vv. 1-11).12:27 "You"is emphatic in the Greek text and is plural. The Corinthian Christians are in view, but what Paul said of them ...
  • Paul now proceeded to elaborate on the fact that love surpasses the most important spiritual gifts. Some of the Corinthian Christians may not have possessed any of the gifts mentioned in the previous three lists in chapter 12...
  • In these first three verses Paul showed that love is superior to the spiritual gifts he listed in chapter 12."It is hard to escape the implication that what is involved here are two opposing views as to what it means to be sp...
  • Paul moved on to point out that Christian love (agape) characterizes our existence now and forever, but gifts (charismata) are only for the present. The Corinthians were apparently viewing the gifts as one evidence that they ...
  • The apostle began this discussion of tongues by comparing it to the gift of prophecy that the Corinthians also appreciated (cf. 12:10, 28; 13:8). He urged the Corinthians to value prophecy above tongues because it can edify a...
  • Paul illustrated his point that hearers do not benefit at all from what they do not understand. He used musical instruments as examples and clarified more about foreign languages.14:6 This verse sets the scene for what follow...
  • The apostle now began to regulate the use of tongues with interpretation, and he urged the use of discernment with prophecy."St Paul has here completed his treatment (xii.--xiv.) of pneumatika. He now gives detailed direction...
  • Paul had formerly acknowledged that women could share a word from the Lord in the church meetings (11:4-16). Now he clarified one point about their participation in this context of prophesying.14:34 The word translated "silen...
  • Paul concluded his answer to the Corinthians' question concerning spiritual gifts (chs. 12-14) and his teaching on tongues (ch. 14) with a strong call to cooperation. He zeroed in on their individualism (v. 36; cf. v. 33) and...
  • The Apostle Paul did not introduce the instruction on the resurrection that follows with the formula that identifies it as a response to a specific question from the Corinthians (i.e., peri de). From what he said in this chap...
  • I have chosen to include this section with the others that deal with questions the Corinthians had asked Paul rather than with Paul's concluding comments because it begins "peri de"(7:1, 25; 8:1; 12:1; 16:12; cf. 8:4). Probab...
  • Adams, Jay. Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible. Phillipsburg, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1980.Andrews, J. N. "May Women Speak in Meeting?"Review and Herald. January 2, 1879. Reprinted in Advent...
  • The subject of 2 Corinthians is ministry, the church's work of service in the world. This is the central concept Paul dealt with in this epistle. What did he say about ministry?He spoke of ministry in two ways. There is minis...
  • 4:1 Paul now returned to the theme of being a minister of the New Covenant (3:6). Since we have a ministry in which the Spirit opens people's eyes and transforms their characters we can feel encouraged. Our job is not simply ...
  • The apostle began to apply the principle stated in 2:15-21 to his audience.3:1 It is folly to mix law and grace. The Galatians were behaving as though they were under some kind of spell and not in full use of their rational f...
  • "Continuing the perspective of salvation history introduced in vv. 13f. and developed in vv. 15-22, Paul gives further consideration to the place of the law in the divine economy by showing the relation between law and faith ...
  • Paul began to pray for his readers again (cf. vv. 1, 14), but he interrupted himself to tell them more about the church. What he said in this section gives background information concerning the church as a mystery.3:1 "For th...
  • Paul had explained that Jews and Gentiles are one in Christ (2:15). Therefore he prayed that they might experience the unity that was theirs spiritually in their relations with one another. Verses 14-19 are also one sentence ...
  • 4:1 "Therefore"or "then"refers to what Paul had said in chapters 1-3. To walk worthily or in balance means to harmonize one's conduct with his or her calling. Calling here refers to God's calling to live in unity as Jews and ...
  • Having described the basis of Christian unity Paul next explained the means by which we can preserve it, namely with the gifts that the Spirit gives.4:7 Whereas each believer has received grace (unmerited favor and divine ena...
  • This paragraph is the most important one in the epistle and the most difficult to interpret."By anyone's reckoning, 2:6-11 constitutes the single most significant block of material in Philippians."582:5 Paul introduced an ill...
  • So far everything Paul had written about Christ other New Testament writers also revealed, but what follows in verse 18 is uniquely Pauline.In 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 and Romans 12:4-8 Paul used the human body to illustrate th...
  • Paul continued his instruction concerning the events that must precede the beginning of the day of the Lord by stressing the lawlessness of that period. His purpose was to explain more clearly that his readers had not missed ...
  • A. Woman has personal equality with man as an image-bearer of God (Gen. 1:27-28; 5:1).Allowing for biological distinctives a woman has the same human nature, qualities and abilities as a man. Maleness and femaleness, though d...
  • A. Paul affirms the personal equality of man and woman in the new creation by stating that in Christ there is "neither male nor female"(Gal. 3:28).A woman obtains salvation by faith exactly as a man does (Eph. 2:8-9; 1 Pet. 1...
  • One of the most important aspects of our works, which James had been discussing, is our words. We conduct much of our work with words. James next gave his readers directions concerning their words to help them understand and ...
  • It is not surprising to find that James dealt with physical sickness in this epistle. He referred to the fact that departure from the will of God sets the Christian on a course that, unless corrected, will result in his or he...
  • Peter proceeded to address the situation of Christians working under the authority of others."The unusual fact, unnoticed by most Bible readers, is that he [Peter], along with Paul (1 Cor. 7:21; Eph. 6:5-8; Col. 3:22-25; 1 Ti...
  • To prepare his readers to meet the Lord soon Peter urged them to make the best use of their time now that they understood what he had written about suffering.4:7 Like the other apostles Peter believed the return of Jesus Chri...
  • 2:20-21 In contrast to the heterodox secessionists (v. 19), the faithful believers within the community were "keeping the faith."The "anointing"referred to is evidently the Holy Spirit whom Jesus gives to each believer at con...
  • John commended Gaius for his love of the brethren to encourage him to continue practicing this virtue.v. 5 John loved Gaius as Gaius loved the brethren to whom he had extended hospitality."The early Christian community's deep...
  • v. 20 The contrast Jude introduced with "But"distinguishes Jude's readers from the false teachers. Since we are God's temples under attack by hostile enemy forces, we need to build ourselves up, to strengthen ourselves spirit...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal'--1 Cor. 12:7.THE great fact which to-day (Whitsunday) commemorates is too often regarded as if it were a transient gift, limited to those on whom it was ...
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