Somebody Loves You

Guest (Male): Welcome to Somebody Loves You Radio, the Bible teaching ministry of Raul Ries and Diamond Bar, California. Today as Raul continues our study of the Holy Spirit's role in the life of the believer, it's great to have you along.

You'll see that God has blessed all of his people with a unique set of spiritual gifts and he's also provided directions for their effective use. Stay with us for encouragement to seek the Holy Spirit's guiding power to operate in your gifts and glorify God while edifying the church. The title of today's study is How to Use the Gifts in Worship. In 1st Corinthians chapter 12, here's Raul Ries.

Raul Ries: There seems to be a lot of confusion how the gifts of the Holy Spirit are to be used in public worship. There are people, they're called dispensationalists, that believe that the gifts are not for today. They believe that the gifts actually cease with the apostles. And so we really don't believe that. We believe that the gifts are for today.

We believe that that which is perfect has come, it's talking about the second coming of Christ and when Christ comes again, surely we are going to be perfect. We won't need wisdom or knowledge or prophecy or tongues or anything else because Christ will be here ruling and reigning with us.

But right now at the moment, we are in great need of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Paul the apostle has been dealing with the public worship in the city of Corinth and we must take it from that position. He's actually talking to people, they were in the church that had accepted Christ but their worship was carnal and bringing confusion to the body of Christ. Paul is writing to correct what was taking place in the city of Corinth among the believers.

And Paul the apostle told us last week in 1st Corinthians chapter 13 that the greatest of all things is love. Without love, we are nothing. Because you can have the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues or the gift of prophecy or the gift of wisdom, a word of wisdom or word of knowledge and you can go through the 21 gifts that are given to us through the Holy Spirit. But if those gifts are not exercised in the base of love, then it's nothing. You can be a Christian and be nothing concerning the things that Paul talks about here, especially spiritual gifts.

Now, it's interesting that in the original manuscript as we look at chapter 14 beginning with verse one, he says, pursue love and desire spiritual gifts. You notice that word "gifts" is not in the original language. It's actually added by the translators. So you could actually put a line through it and maybe put a note next to it that it was added by the translators. Literally, it should read like this, pursue love and desire spirituals. That's the original language. Seek after spirituals. But especially that you may prophesy.

Now, I find it interesting that as Paul the apostle is going to be talking about spirituals, the first thing that we have to do is we have to establish a base of doctrine. That is what we call establishing what was taught by Jesus and by the apostles and what was taught in the epistles. Otherwise, if we don't establish our basis for doctrine, then anybody can actually take any experience and use it for themselves biblically.

The way we check out doctrine is first of all, did Jesus teach it? Did he teach it in the book of Matthew, in the book of Mark, in the book of Luke, in the book of John? Do we find it among the gospels of Jesus Christ, whatever doctrine may be, whatever experience we may come into? Can we find it in the four gospels and can we find it also biblically and scripturally and doctrinally in the book of Acts?

And also in the epistles of Paul and Peter and James? Why? Because if we cannot find it in the epistles or the book of Acts or Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, then we do not accept it as doctrine. The reason is because when anyone has an experience, the Bible tells us to be careful because even Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.

So now we have heard not only in the past as Paul not only was dealing with people that were coming to public worship like we are today, except for one difference: in the synagogue of that day, the women would sit on one side and the men on the other side. They were totally separate. And so Paul will deal with these issues that are not only found in the book of Corinthians, but also these are things we find still today in and around the world in the church.

There are problems today in the church of Jesus Christ and I believe that this is part of the reason that so many people have become scared to the gifts of the Holy Spirit because of the use and the abuses that we have seen in the church. For example, we have not only churches that literally in the services as the pastor, they've had their time of worship and song and praise and the pastor gets up to give his sermon that in the middle of his sermon or three quarters through his sermon and even sometimes at the beginning of his sermon, somebody in the church will get up every week and will begin to speak in other tongues and will stop the service.

Well, first of all, the Holy Spirit is a gentleman and he's not the author of confusion. We must establish that the Holy Spirit and the anointing of the Holy Spirit is on the speaker, not really on the one that is listening. Yes, you have the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit is in control of the situation. He would never bring confusion to himself. And usually they use it as a spiritual time where God is speaking to the church.

So as somebody gets up to speak in tongues, then as they give their message and utterance in tongues, then somebody else after that person will get up and will give the interpretation to the message of tongues. Now, first of all, biblically and doctrinally, there are no messages in tongues. You don't find that term ever in the Bible. What would happen is that the person that would get up to speak in tongues, he would actually be speaking to God but not to men.

He would be out of order to do that first of all, Paul says. Why? Because of the largeness of the congregation and because there are non-believers in the congregation and if they hear you speak in tongues they will say you are crazy. There is a place for the gift of tongues. Now, does everybody speak in tongues? No.

I thank God that God has blessed me in speaking in tongues. You've never heard me speak in tongues and the reason is because biblically I follow what Paul says. I speak only when I am alone in secret in my closet to God, not to people. And so it is of importance that when such a thing happens in the church and the person speaks in tongues and then sits down and then somebody gets up to give the interpretation, it's never the true interpretation to the tongue.

Because it's always like this, "My little children, thus saith the Lord God Almighty" and they're actually giving a prophecy instead of the true interpretation. The true interpretation should be a praise and a prayer to God. Paul says that. We're following biblical doctrine. It is not a message to the people but it's a praise and a prayer back to God.

Why? Because Paul says that when we speak in tongues, nobody understands us. We're speaking mysteries and the only one that can understand us is God and not man. Very clear Paul declares here. So I think it's important that we understand those of you that are baptized with the gift of the Holy Spirit and the baptism of the Holy Spirit is not tongues. It's love.

Because if God has baptized you with the gift of tongues, then thank God for it and use it as often as you can use it in the privacy of your prayer life. It's good to use it. I use it constantly. You say, well, what about if God hasn't baptized you with the gift of tongues? But at the same time I am baptized with the Holy Spirit and I do have the love of God in my life. Well, I'm glad you asked because I want to give you the answer.

Because the answer is found in Romans chapter eight, verse 26 and 27. Turn with me for a second. I'll show you. He says, likewise the Spirit also helps our weaknesses. Now do you have weaknesses? I have weaknesses. There are times before I ever received the baptism of the Holy Spirit or before I ever received the gift of tongues that I did not know how to express myself to God.

As I spoke to him in English, I thought, man Lord, I don't know if you're getting the message. And there were times where I could not even speak in English but what I would do is I would literally groan unto the Lord. I didn't understand that at that time. Now I do. Why? Because I've read the Bible and I've studied the word of God. And Paul here explains it.

That those that do not speak in tongues, sometimes you express yourself to God not by speaking in tongues but by groans which cannot be understood but God understands your groans and the weaknesses in your life when you pray. But here is how Paul says it. He says, likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities or our weaknesses, for we do not know what we should pray for as we ought.

But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us, here it is, with groanings which cannot be uttered. I like that, underline that. It's okay to groan to the Lord when you're praying to him. It's okay. He understands what you're going through. He understands your weaknesses, he understands your trials and your temptations and the sicknesses that you might be facing even here this morning. That's biblical to do that.

But you see, the problem comes is that the Spirit is searching out what's in you. Look at verse 27. Now he who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is because he makes intercession for the saints according, notice, to the will of God. I like that. That whether I pray or I don't pray, God always gets his will done.

I like that. That when I pray in the Spirit or I groan in the Spirit, guess what? God is getting his way, not my way. The Spirit expresses what I need in my life deeper than I could ever pray in English. Interesting.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Somebody Loves You Radio with Raul Ries. We're here to support you in living a spirit-led, God-honoring life. Connect with us anytime at somebodylovesyou.com for a wide variety of helpful resources, including Raul's Holy Spirit study titled Filled, Empowered, and Equipped. Now, back to more with Raul Ries.

Raul Ries: If you believe that the gifts of the Holy Spirit stopped with the apostles, hey, that's just between you and the Lord. But it's good to understand that the Holy Spirit was with us, in us, and is upon us. Three prepositions in the Greek. And I need as much as God wants to give to me. I need all that God has for me.

Maybe you don't, but I do. Lord, give it to me all. I need it. I want to be open to the Holy Spirit biblically and doctrinally to whatever he has in his word of God. Otherwise, I don't want anything else. And we do find today we have people that are barking like dogs, singing and shaking and screaming in the Spirit, running in the Spirit, dancing in the Spirit.

And they've got all these terms that they make up and they say, well, I couldn't help myself. The Holy Spirit made me do it. No, he didn't. Whenever the Holy Spirit is over my life, he's in control. But let me tell you something, I know what I'm doing. I never lose consciousness.

Especially there is a doctrine that has been not only been debated and has brought so much confusion and that is the doctrine of slain in the Spirit. Is that biblical? Is that doctrinal? Well, let me teach you from the Bible what the Bible says. Let me tell you that I experienced, I had the privilege and experience to be with Kathryn Kuhlman and to see her ministry and watch her on stage being led by the Holy Spirit.

And watching God work through her life through hundreds and millions of people as God would use her life to not only touch people but God to do the healing through her ministry. And there were others that I've watched over the years. And I was always wondering, God, why haven't you given me such gifts in the Spirit so that I can lay hands on people and people can be slain in the Spirit?

First of all, God knows what we can handle and what we cannot handle and he knows our pride and he knows our ups and our downfalls. And surely I would not want anything for God to give to me that is going to bring glory to me and not to the Lord. And so when I go through the scriptures and I look at the gift of tongues, yes, the gift of tongues is in the Bible, in the book of Acts.

You find it in chapter two of the book of Acts on the day of Pentecost as they were sitting all in one mind, one heart. And then it goes on to explain that they spoke the wonderful works of God, not a message of tongues, but they praised the Lord in that language and everyone that was there from all around the world heard them in their own language or dialecta, or their own dialect, praise the Lord. I like that, he explains it.

Then we find it again in chapter four of Acts, we find it in chapter eight, in chapter 10 and in chapter 19 where we find people receiving the gift of tongues praising God. So the gift of tongues is the real thing, but not everybody speaks in tongues. The true evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is love. Love is the basis.

Now what Paul says here in chapter 14, verse one and verse two, look what he says. He says, pursue love, desire spirituals, but especially that you may prophesy. For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. I want you to underline that. We're not speaking to men, we're speaking to God. It is always upward, always upward to God when we're speaking in tongues.

Then he says this, for no one understands him. However, in the Spirit he speaks mysteries or divine secrets to God. You see, that's a dimension of the Spirit that I don't understand, that the Spirit takes over and God can understand what I am praying to him in that tongue. My intellect doesn't understand it.

But by faith I step out and I pray in that tongue that God has given to me in my private closet, in my office or when I'm driving by myself. I am praying to God in the Spirit. But then again, what about this whole thing of slain in the Spirit? Well, people will take the context and they'll say when Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane and he was betrayed by Judas, 600 men came with Judas with swords and staffs and torches.

And they came to arrest Jesus and when they came to the garden, Jesus said, who do you seek? And they said we seek Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus said, I am he, and they all fell backwards. And they said, there it is, they were slain in the Spirit. The Bible doesn't say that. First of all, the Bible says that they were all non-believers. Secondly, nobody caught them from behind.

Thirdly, they got right back up. They never lost consciousness of anything because they asked again, who do you seek? And they said Jesus of Nazareth. He says, I told you, I am he. And then another time we find it is in the book of Acts and this time they're Christians. Two carnal Christians, Ananias and Sapphira, and the Bible says that they did fall backwards but they died.

God's judgment came upon them and they were carried away to be buried. And then there is one more instance and that is in the book of Acts chapter nine where Paul the apostle was knocked down by the Spirit of God from his horse as he was on his way to Damascus to do what? To kill Christians. And he said, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Paul never ever once lost consciousness and the whole time he was communicating with the Lord.

So biblically speaking, slain in the Spirit, there's no such thing. Because God is not the author of confusion. I believe God can do anything he wants to do. I'm not discrediting that at all. But as far as biblically speaking for somebody to catch you and to be under the power, it's not biblical. We have to be taught in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, Acts or the epistles.

And if I find that as doctrine, then I accept it and I will practice it. You see, the gift of tongues is taught and is practiced, so we accept it as doctrine. The gift of word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, prophecy, all those gifts, all nine gifts here in Corinth are accepted and then the other gifts that are in Romans and also in Ephesians are accepted.

The problem is when people begin to take it out of context and begin to abuse it, the problem comes and that's what you have to be careful of. That's why here at Calvary Chapel we practice whenever we have a prayer meeting or we're having a time of healing to have the elders of the church biblically, James chapter five, to come forth and lay hands on the people so the people that are sick may be what? May be healed.

Never one person doing the healing. Why? Because one person that's bringing attention to one person and people begin to get their eyes on one individual person. This way when there's a lot of people, nobody gets the credit for anything. It's the Lord that does the healing. It's the Lord that is doing the work. And so we want to make sure that we honor God in his word, but also we want to make sure that the non-believer that is here doesn't think we're wacko and crazy if we were out of order.

You see, they would say you are crazy, you're mad, man your church is weird. And I've had those experiences when I was a new believer. But as I began to study the word of God and as I began to have my own experiences with the Lord biblically, I began to have peace with God and peace with man. So we're just trying to teach you what Paul says. Nothing new, it's all biblical.

So now Paul says this, verse three. He says, but he who prophesies speaks edification, notice he builds up, exhortation, he what? Exhorts you by rebuke, whatever it may be, and by comfort to men. And what is the gift of prophecy? It is not always the telling forth of the future. That's what most people think.

No, because most pastor-teachers while they're pastor-teaching, they're using the gift of prophecy is being exercised, the gift of word of wisdom and the word of knowledge while it's being taught. And it's neat because in reference here to the gift of prophecy, it is actually to the teaching of the word of God. When you're getting the word of God taught, what do you get?

You get edification, you get exhortation, and you get comfort by hearing what God says to me. And then what happens? Everybody gets built up. You see, because you understood what I was saying. Why? Because I spoke in plain English, not in an unknown tongue which you cannot understand. So there's a balance.

So here in the first five verses, Paul is actually speaking what builds up. Paul says that the teaching of the word of God is of importance above everything else and love is the greatest thing that we must have in our lives. And then he says this in verse five. He says, but he who prophesies edifies the church, verse five.

And I wish that all would speak with tongues, but even more than you that you would prophesy. For he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, notice, that the church may receive edification. And that is again, there has to be a true interpretation if something like that would happen in a small cell group and somebody would speak in tongues, the true interpretation would be what?

The marvelous works of God. It's a praise and a prayer to God, but not thus saith the Lord. So I think it's important that we understand what Paul is saying here.

Guest (Male): We hope it's been helpful to learn that whether your spiritual gifts are highly visible or used more behind the scenes, God's word provides practical instructions for effective service. You're listening to Somebody Loves You Radio with Raul Ries. If you'd like to hear today's message, How to Use the Gifts in Worship, in its unedited form, we'll be happy to send a copy to you with much more teaching for a donation of five dollars or more.

Just call us at 800-634-9165. We'd also like to tell you about a resource titled Filled, Empowered, and Equipped. Available on CD and thumb drive, Raul's seven-part study will inspire you to daily seek the Holy Spirit's guidance and support. You'll find that you can accomplish great things for God when you fully submit to his Spirit's leading.

Visit somebodylovesyou.com or call 800-634-9165 to order Raul's seven-lesson series titled Filled, Empowered, and Equipped. We'll send you the CD set for 20 dollars, or if you'd like the flash drive for just 11 dollars. That's 800-634-9165.

This resource is also available when you write to us at Somebody Loves You Radio, PO Box 4440, Diamond Bar, California 91765. Somebody Loves You Radio with Raul Ries is completely listener-supported and we are truly grateful for the partnership of your tax-deductible gifts. Be sure and join us next time as we quiet our hearts and minds to listen for God's voice speaking more truth through the pages of his word. This program is sponsored by Somebody Loves You Radio in Diamond Bar, California.