Letter To 1 Corinthians Research Paper

Now – let’s open our Bibles to 1 Corinthians Chapter 12 – verses 1-3. Apparently, some Corinthian Christians were creating divisions over spiritual gifts. It must have been addressed in the Church’s letter to Paul, so he tells them, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed.” Paul wants them to know exactly what spiritual gifts are and how they are to be used. So, what are spiritual gifts exactly? According to blueletterbible.org, “Though the Bible does not give a definition of spiritual gifts, it does tell us much regarding their nature and function. The word normally translated "gift" in the New Testament is the Greek word charismata. The word means "gifts of grace" and refers to the gifts or special abilities

Spirituality is related to spiritual gifts, but not in the way the Corinthians suppose. What were the Corinthians lives like before Christ? The Corinthians are spiritual, and they were “spirit led,” even while practicing their pagan religion. But beyond this, there is a subtle warning which may not be too subtle. The warning Paul gives here is that those who have been falsely led astray in the past by deceitful and demonic spirits may be susceptible to the same influence as Christians. The appeal of the “spirit world” then and now is power. The Corinthians are into power, and they are into spirituality. In their eagerness to “tap into” spiritual power, they might involve themselves in the pagan spirit power of their past. This still applies to us today - it is easy for us to take our superstitious views into our understanding of spiritual gifts. The Corinthians, as we shall see later in chapter 12, suppose certain spiritual gifts are the evidence of superior spirituality, while the absence of these gifts is proof of spiritual inferiority. Paul has a great deal to say about the relationship between spirituality and spiritual gifts. He begins by making sure his readers recognize there are two kinds of spirituality. In verses 1-3, Paul distinguishes true spirituality from the false in terms of its origin. False spirituality originates from the unclean “spirits” and thus, ultimately, from Satan himself. True spirituality originates from the Holy Spirit of God. So how do we discern spiritual gifts from the superstitious? Paul sets down one test for distinguishing the Spirit of God from other spirits. He states in verse 3, “Therefore I want you to understand