All The Gifts Of The Holy Spirit Are Important

That we should no 

longer be children,

tossed to and fro

and carried about 

with every wind 

of doctrine, 

by the trickery

of men, in cunning

craftiness of

deceitful plotting

Ephesians 4:14

     We are to grow up, change from the need of milk to an appetite for meat, solid food, but there are those who have a design that has developed a doctrine(s) that can only be admitted to be a deceitful plotting and a continual craftiness, attempting if possible, at least for a moment to mislead the elect as well as pagans. These doctrines that have plagued the Church, divided the Church, caused men and women to be engaged in hostilities at times are the muses of Satan. The focus has been upon gifts that are exciting, titilating the senses leaving in the closet, dusty and seldom used other gifts of the Spirit they have come to place in their thinking and believe that they are no greater nor no less needed in the Church. All gifts have their purpose and that is to equip the Church, that is the people who are Christian, and to not use those gifts properly is a shame upon Christianity, that is a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and defaming our Savior Jesus Christ. 

     One such gift that is so important is that of the gift of helps. Jesus surrounded Himself with men and women, not just the twelve apostles, but those whom He sent out to proclaim the good news, speaking that the Messiah had come (Matthew 10; Luke 10). In the book of Acts chapter six men are appointed to aid in the ministry; Mark was a helper for Paul and Barnabas, Philemon records of Epaphroditus who minister (Philemon 2:25), and we appoint deacons in the Church, helpers to assist and benefit the Church and promulgation of the Gospel. Paul in first Corinthians 12:28 mentions helps and the Greek word used here is: ἀντίλημψις, and properly defined it signifies "a Laying hold of, an exchange." This gift is one of ministrations in the Church to render assistance using this gift is special ways at times for the weak and the sick. The root word from which this word used by Paul is translated carries the meaning: "to take hold of in turn, to participate; to support. Yes, there are those who have this special gift of the Holy Spirit and use it in ways that most find that they cannot do so unless it be so very necessary and that is good, but it is not good to not help even if you do not have this special gift of the Holy Spirit. The Church needs cleaning, the Church yard need manicuring, small things need fixing, and to sit back and not help is not showing brotherly love; don't wait until you have this special gift, you are to help! We all are to be involved in our Church, we are to be a clean, shining place in the  community, a place where strangers can come and worship God in a clean, neat, and orderly house of worship. We are to show our faith to the world and in helps we do so to our brothers and sisters, and to all who would look upon our Church.

     A gift of the Holy Spirit spoke little of is that of governments, or administrations. The Greek word used by Paul in First Corinthians 12:28 is: κυβέρνησις; meaning governing, or governments and all Churches are in need for administration. The Scriptures teach that all Churches are to have government, leadership. Jesus Christ spent His time here on earth developing twelve men to do just that; lead the Church. Wherever Apostles went they appointed leaders, men such as Titus being appointed and sent by Paul to the island of Crete (Titus 1:5); furthermore we are told to obey our leaders: "Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account, Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you" (Hebrews 13:17). Notice this: it would be unprofitable for a believer not to obey the leader of the Church. Does this mean that we are acquiesce to every whim and notion of a leader? No
! But, we are to be careful and choose a leader according tot the principles laid out by Paul: "A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with reverence" (1Timothy 3:2-4). Every true leader must be a helper, as demonstrated by Jesus washing the feet of the disciples; this applies also to all believers: "For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another" (Galatians 5:13).
     God has not ordained the Church to drift aimlessly without direction and purpose and for the Church to represent Jesus Christ there must be the use of those God given by the Holy Spirit gifts. Some gifts are for all time as the Church exists in all time. We should come to a place where we can by means of Scripture note those who have been given these gifts by the Holy Spirit, appoint leaders according to the Holy Spirit and remove leaders who do not uphold Scriptural admonition and requirements. We all should desire gifts, not to seek them, to go to schools to somehow learn about and attain those gifts for they are given solely by the Holy Spirit at His discretion, yet we are to pray, meditate, and when led by the Holy Spirit that we have been given a gift(s), to not only recognize this gift(s) but are to mature those gifts, and this by the use of those gifts, and remaining Scriptural. We all should desire the greater gift (1Corinthians 12:31), that is the gift of love. One day we will be present before the Lord and will give an account of ourselves, that includes how we used our gifts, our talents, and what has been required of us; therefore, prepare yourself for we should want to hear from our Lord Jesus Christ: "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord" (Matthew 25:21).
     The next blogs will address the sign gifts, those are the gifts that have divided the Church and we must conclude from Scripture what are the sign gifts and are they necessary for the Church today? Be open minded, that is, prepare to learn, read the Scriptures presented, so that there will not be any confusion over this gifts that some Churches practice and others do not; we need the truth and this is what will be presented by the Scriptures.

For My name's sake
     I will defer My anger,
and for My praise I will
     retrain it from you,
so that I do not cut you off.
                      Isaiah 48:9


Place Your Trust In God


Richard L. Crumb

Gifts Of The Holy Spirit That Little Noterity

 So Samuel said:

Has the LORD as great delights

in burnt offerings and sacrifices,

as in obeying the voice 

of the LORD?

Behold, to obey is better 

than sacrifice,

and to heed than the

fat of rams.

1Samuel 15:22

     Many Israelites believed that all that was necessary to receive God's forgiveness was to sacrifice to Him; but this is not what God desired for all that the sacrifices should have done is reveal their sinfulness and were to be done in obedience to Him. Their worship became convuluted as they focused on themselves rather than upon Him. When it was pointed out to them that their rituals were not pleasing to God they rebelled and argued and defended their actions. John the Baptist pointed this fact out to the Pharisees who had placed a heavy yoke upon the people of Israel: "But when He saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, 'Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come" (Matthew 3:7)? John's open rebuke would give cause for his beheading, but he was willing to speak the truth and if you did not like it, well that was your problem; he did what was necessary in order to preach the truth of God. This is so true today as people have their sacrifice that is all theirs, it is all about them, and while give some similarity of obedience, all they are doing is obeying their feelings and not obeying God. There is a major focus on sign gifts and the other gifts are lessened in importance and seldom spoken of and given little credence. All gifts of the Holy Spirit are to be done in true obedience to Him and are for the benefit of the Church. What is the Church? or, Who is the Church? It is true called out people from this world who have been given the free gift of faith and the benefit of those God given gifts are for the benefit of those called out from the world into the life of obedience to God. 

    The Holy Spirit gives special gifts that are necessary for the Church and the promulgation of the Gospel but He has given us the command or the unction to test all things for there are many false teachers who were or are now associated with the Church: beware: "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world" (1John 4:1). The Holy Spirit gives to the Church and to some this gift of Discernment of Spirits (1Corinthians 12:10). The Greek word for discernment is: diakrisis:  a distinguishing, discerning, judging; therefore it is to have the ability to determine what a person is teaching as to whether or not it is truthful. This was very important in the days of Paul with many false teachings were being taught as truth such as Gnosticism, Nicolaitans, Donatism, Docetism, and more, so God, before His word was available in written form as is the Bible, gave to men this special gift of the Holy Spirit. It is still necessary today for many have gone out from the Church and claim that they have the truth when in fact they do not. Some even attach the name of Jesus Christ to their religion: "The Latter Day Saints of Jesus Christ" or Mormons, are one such example. Men who have this gift are often seen as uncanny because they have this ability to discern what is being taught. We should not be shocked that some would distort the truth as Paul wrote to Timothy: "Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times come will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons" (1Timothy 4:1). Peter apparently had this gift of discernment of spirits when Ananias and Sapphira who who nothing more than hypocrites and died because of their hypocrisy and when Simon the magician offered to buy the gifts of the Holy Spirit and was rebuked and then turnout to be a counterfeit and taught a false Christianity. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians: "Test all things; hold fast what is good" (1Thessalonians 5:21). 
     Scripture teaches us that anything that calls themselves religious or has the name of Christ upon their teachings should be examined by both those who have this gift of Discernment of Spirits and by us as believers for we are to be ready to give a defense of our faith: "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear" (1Peter 3:15). Strive to become sound in your faith, in your witness for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, learn to love God and then you will not only be able to love yourself, you will be able to love others. This love will give you the desire to know the truth and to follow the truth even if it costs you all that you have, that others will not understand and accuse you falsely, you will be a Christian of truth. Paul admonishes: "Finally, brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might" (Ephesians 6:10). 

Therefore He says:
     "Awake, you who sleep,
arise from the dead,
     and Christ will give 
you light."
                     Ephesians 5:14

May The Grace Of Our Lord Be With You 


Richard L. Crumb

All The Gifts Of The Holy Spirit Are Important

To another the working
of miracles, to another
prophecy, to another 
discerning of spirits,
to another different kinds
of tongues, to another 
the interpretation of tongues.
But one and the same
Spirit works all these things,
distributing to each one
individually as He wills.
1Corinthians 12:10,11

     Confusion over Spiritual gifts have divided the Church for many years, especially after the introduction of Arminianism by the preaching of such men as Charles Wesley, and Charles Finney, and others, teaching methods of worship and doctrine that the Bible does not teach. Churches excepted this teaching and the more exciting gifts were promoted and the so-called lesser gifts were not given the same import. In the upcoming blogs I will discuss the sign gifts, or the revelatory gifts, but until then I must continue to speak of those gifts that are relevant for the benefit of the Church today. Remember, when I speak of the Church I am speaking of Christians, not some denomination, or institution, for it is you who are the Church. Therefore I will discuss the above Scripture as there has been much discussion over the use of these gifts; what does the Bible actually say in regard to these gifts? 

     As a beginning to our understanding of all gifts verse 12 of Chapter 12 explains to us that it is the Spirit that gives the gifts and He does this according to His will and distributes the gifts to individuals. It is Scriptural to desire spiritual gits (1Corinthians 14:1) but it is the Holy Spirit who gives the gifts and we are to accept the gift(s) given to us and exercise our faith in the use of those gifts. We are to to pursue love not to pursue spiritual gifts according to 1Corinthians 14:1, but this verse is not guiding many Churches and schools, such as schools of supernatural gifts, where a student pays a tuition and is taught those supernatural gifts as though they could cause the Holy Spirit to give to them a gift. This is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit because we are misusing the grace of the Holy Spirit who understands what is need, where it is needed, and to whom He by means of His omniscience gives to certain individuals the needed gift(s). All gifts are needed, there is no question to that fact, but not all gifts are needed at all times for there are reasons for the giving of gifts and it is for us to understand that we may not know the reason why the Holy Spirit gives certain gifts and at certain times, but we must understand that we are to use whatever gift God has determined to give us, if indeed He has given us more than the gift of faith. So very often a Christian is not happy with having the single gift of faith, of course this gift is most important for without that gift given to you for without it you cannot become a Christian. Once that gift has been given and you have placed that faith upon the very object of that faith, Jesus Christ, then you are commanded to live a certain way, and to make disciples. If God has given to you a certain gift, then use it, but it does not require a special school of supernatural gifts for you to receive that gift, for the Holy Spirit is able to give that gift and to cause you to discern that gift, and it is He who will direct you in the use of that gift. Many so-called Christians, and I use that term with caution, marvel at the fact that they have been given a gift, and they go about misusing this gift with an over exuberance and a practice of this gift that may or may not be a leading of the Holy Spirit; they just cannot accept the fact that God calls us to live the Christian life, and to do this quietly: "That you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing" (1Thessalonians 4:11-12). This is a command but many Churches have ignored this command, and we can find much emotional outbursts, and misuse of Scriptural gifts as though they are worshiping God and showing signs of their being holy. Far too often those Churches resemble a rock concert, demonstrating the same euphoric gyrations as to be seen at those concerts as can be seen at the Woodstock rock concert. By means of such services where there are explosions of emotional and sentimental demonstrations as though the participants have some special gift of the Holy Spirit are done and promoted so that those Churches will touch upon the senses of people. Why? Often so that those Churches will continue to exist as a Church, and there is often much money involved and that old saying to follow the money is apropos, just look at the lifestyle of many Church leaders and you will find that they live in abundance, extravagantly; now this is said not to disparage those who are honestly attempting to follow our Lord and Savior, but have been wrongly taught the Bible. 

     As we enter this new year make it your goal to know God's word even if what you are learning is striking against what you have come to believe is true. Paul in writing to the Corinthian Church did not hesitate to point out their errors and to do all he could to bring them into a right position with God and to speak against their misuse of many things including their misuse of spiritual gifts. Paul in Chapter 12, as elsewhere in this letter, of 1Corinthians is not commending the Corinthians for their use of Spiritual gifts, rather is condemning them and showing them the right way in the use of spiritual gifts, and for the proper worship towards God. We must make the same decision, will we follow what we have come to believe and practice as true or will we do what God wants us to do? Would you make changes, even to change from Churches that teach and practice such misuse of the Spiritual gifts, regardless of the consequences? Matthew writes: "Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch" (Matthew 15:14). Mark records the words of Jesus Christ: "So Jesus answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house of brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for my sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time--houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions-- and in the age to come, eternal life" (Mark 10:30-31). Do you think that this is impossible, so very hard then you have not come to believe the words of Jesus: "But Jesus looked at them and said, 'With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible" (Mark 10:27). You make the effort, God will supply the power enabling you to do that which you may think is impossible.

But You are He who

     took Me out of

the womb; You made

     Me trust while on

My mother's breasts.

    I was cast upon You

from birth. From My 

    mothers womb You 

have been My God.

                Psalm 22:9-10

God is our help 

Richard L. Crumb