Archive for the ‘Holy Spirit’ Category
Faith
The next gift listed in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 is faith. This particular gift operates in the sphere of the miraculous. It also empowers the believer to endure suffering and persecution.
It is true to say that one needs to have some faith in order to become a follower of Christ in the first place:-
Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.
So, what is faith the Bible itself gives a good definition of faith in:-
Hebrews chapter 11 verse 1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
A dictionary definition is as follows:-
1. Complete trust or confidence in someone or something.
2. Strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.
Faith that leads to salvation can be best described as ‘trust’. Trust that Jesus Christ is who he claimed to be“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John chapter 14 verse 6.
This is the beginning of faith as the apostle Paul said in Romans 10: 17 So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. A person has to first hear or read something about Christ to be able to place any trust in him. You cannot trust someone if you know nothing about them. The more someone learns and understands regarding the character of Christ the more they are able to put their faith (trust) in him. A person’s faith should then increase as their knowledge of Christ increases.
The gift of faith spoken about in 1 Corinthians 12 –is probably best described as an extraordinary trust in God under the most difficult or dangerous circumstances and an unwavering belief in the miraculous.
The Old Testament prophets seemed to have this faith and some of them are listed in Hebrews chapter 11.
Scriptures that allude to this gift of faith are as follows:-
Mt 14: 23-31 reveals the miraculous story of Jesus walking on water and the apostle Peter start to do the same. However doubt crept into Peter’s mind and he began to sink. Jesus pulled Peter up out of the water and called him a man of little faith. Intimating that if Peter had, had enough faith and not doubted he would have continued walking on the water without sinking.
Having the gift of faith assumes importance in the role of healing
Matthew chapter 17 verses 15-20 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
To be fair to the disciples at this point they had not fully received the Holy Spirit because Christ Jesus was still in their midst. They had some faith but were lacking in many ways. Following his crucifixion, resurrection and ascension the Holy Spirit was given to the disciples to empower them. Jesus told them to wait in Jerusalem immediately prior to his ascension into heaven.
Acts chapter 1 verse 4 And while staying with them he (Jesus) ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me;
This promise was referring to what Jesus had previously said to them in:-
John chapter 14 verse 16-17 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
Jesus’ final words to his disciples before his ascension were:-
Acts chapter 1 verse 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The disciples changed dramatically after receiving the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem. They became very bold in their witness for Christ Jesus, performed healing miracles and suffered many persecutions including death. The gift of faith, revealed in 1Corinthians verse 12, from the Holy Spirit has helped believers to have bold expectations regarding healings, freely proclaim the gospel and endure terrible hardships ever since.
All Bible quotes taken from the English Standard Version