The Holy Spirit will give you gifts as He wills and nurture your character. In Galatians 5:22, 23, the fruit of the Spirit and in 1 Corinthians 12:7—11 the gifts of the Spirit.

First the fruit of the Spirit is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23 KJV)

I cannot do justice to both of these in one or even two sermons. Just know we are to bring forth the fruit of the Spirit to be Christ like. I believe God sanctifies us in each area by cutting and sanding and smoothing our rough edges so we can refract God‘s Shekinah glory to others. There are many examples like, Romans 5:1-5; 2 Corinthians 1:3-11, or even 2 Peter 1:4-11. Let God renew your mind, through His word, to develop Christ like characteristics in you.

Second the gifts of the Spirit are manifested to the believer as He wills. (1 Corinthians 12:7-11 KJV) say:

“But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;  To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;  To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.” (1 Corinthians 12:7-11 KJV)

Holy Spirit’s Gifts are to witness to the world and to glorify God.

First we have a word of wisdom. Here I believe the Holy Spirit imparts in the believer a prophetic word.

(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. {before him: or, like unto him} (Romans 4:17 KJV)

Calls those things which be not as though they were. I was at a Bible Study one time when the Pastor prayed over us and I got an impression that Justin would be leaving on March 8. I took a leap of faith and told him. This was 3 or 4 weeks away and it did not appear that he was going anywhere Monday March 8th. But God made it happen in such a way that man could not have seen it in the natural realm and an experience that I won’t forget.

Some may say it is the ability to understand God’s word and apply it to life’s circumstances. Rev 4:11 and the squirrel.

The word of knowledge.

I believe the Holy Spirit imparts the word of knowledge to a believer in the past or present tense. One time I was studying and a guy came up to me and I just told him something, after he asked me if I had time to talk with him. The look on his face was jaw dropping. He said his sister just told him that yesterday. It was confirmation for him.

Some may say it is the ability to speak God’s truths with the revelation to bring forth God’s deeper meanings.

Faith

Faith, I believe here that this is an additional level of faith that gives you the confidence to do God’s will. For instance, You may have felt God call or impress on you to pray for someone, go ask the person to church, tell them I love them or maybe pray for their healing. At that moment you my feel confident that God was going to heal or do a miracle for that person. This is a gift of faith, e.g. [Guy at church I prayed for his back.].

Gifts of Healing

Healing I believe God heals today. Especially when He gets all the glory. There are too many accounts of overseas healings where God has been introduced to people and God has down a miraculous healing. There was a guy I knew who wanted to travel up the Mississippi River to preach the word of God, but he said his back hurt. Like most men I figured it must be the typical lower back problem, the L4 and L5. Several weeks later a sat behind him in church and I felt God wanted me to pray for him. I reached over the pew and touched his middle back on either side of his spine. Another week went by and I asked him how is back was. He said he went to the doctor and there was nothing wrong with it. I said you know I prayed for your healing in chruch. He said yea did you feel my back move right were you touched me. I was surprised. First I thought it was his lower back. And second I did not feel anything move, and lastly why didn’t he say anything that day. He just got up and left after service. But those questions should not have been an issue. God healed the man after He led me to pray for His healing. Glory be to God.

Workings of Miracles

A working of dunamos power. Miraculous power that cannot be explained be natural wisdom. The raising of the dead, bones being mended, the lame walk, the blind hear, the deaf hear. God can give us the faith to believe and when we step out in faith at the Holy Spirit’s unction anything is possible for God. Glory be to God.

Prophecy

Prophecy is the forth telling or foretelling of the will of God. Today we see more forth telling for the purpose as Paul wrote in Chapter 14. “But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort. (1 Corinthians 14:3 KJV). Therefore when the Holy Spirit gives the gift of prophecy to a believer, the prophecy should edify, exhort (i.e. admonish or encourage) or comfort the hearer.

Discerning of spirits

The Holy Spirit helps us to discern the truth. Satan is the great deceiver. He will throw anything close to the truth at you so you will believe a lie. You only have to be 1 degree off from earth to the moon and you will miss it by miles who knows maybe thousands of miles or more. The Gnostic’s were trying to deceive many Christians in the Apostle John’s day. He Wrote;

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. (1 John 4:1-4 KJV)

The Holy Spirit can lead us into truth by helping us discern spiritual matters with spiritual matters. Look to the word of God.

Tongues and interpretation of tongues

The Holy Spirit can give us gifts to speak an earthly or heavenly language. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-2 KJV).

This is the beginning of the love chapter. But Paul said “though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels”, here are the two distinguishing languages. Paul later admonishes the Corinthians for their unruly worship services by giving them guide lines to follow as they were all speaking in tongues and most without an interpretation.

The interpretation was necessary to edify those who heard. Without the interpretation the utterance was without meaning, for there was no edification, exhortation or comfort to those who heard it. Paul said, “If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret.” In (1 Corinthians 14:27 KJV).

God has given us His divine nature. “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:4 KJV)

His Divine nature, and other parts of the Bible it is transliterated as the Godhead. Certainly He that dwells in me is greater than he who dwells in the world.

Let us begin to walk as children of God ready to meet Jesus at every turn. Excepting to join in and see God move for His glory and purpose. To reconcile the world back to God through us in Jesus Name, amen.

In Christ,

Greg