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§35 Unity and Diversity of Gifts (1 Cor. 12:4–11)

Paul makes a crucial point at this juncture in his argument: There is a unified purpose in the truly varied expression of the Spirit in the life of the church because of the common divine origin of each believer’s gift. Moreover, although he is not in this first-century correspondence doing full-blown fourth-century Trinitarian reflection—such as was done later in great church councils and christological discussions (e.g., Nicea and later still at Chalcedon)—Paul makes a remarkable statement about the diversity in the unity of the divine in order to underscore the godliness of diverse expression of God’s gifts in the life of believers in the church. As Paul writes generally about gifts, one can see that he is thinking of concrete manifestations of the Spirit and not of natural, birthright propensities. Gifts and talents may ultimately be related, but they are not one and the same thing. In the present discussion Paul has special or extraordinary manifestations of the presence and power of the Spirit in mind as he reflects on spiritual gifts in the life of the Corinthian congregation.

12:4–6 / In verses 4–6 there are three parallel statements based on an underlying triad of Spirit/Lord/God. In relation to each of these three persons Paul recognizes variety and sameness. There are varieties of gifts of grace and there is one Spirit; there are varieties of kinds of service and there is one Lord; there are varieties of activities (working) and there is one God. Paul almost creates a chant with the repetitive quality of his language, which literally says:

There are different kinds of gifts	but the same Spirit;
and there are different kinds of service	and the same Lord;
and there are different kinds of working	but the same God who works everything in all.

Paul’s point is driven home through declarations about the reality of God and the gifts, service, and work that manifest God’s own rich, complex, diverse, and unified presence among the believers. Diversity in the human sphere exists, relates to, and is unified by unity in the sphere of the divine. By drawing these phrases together Paul creates the theological matrix for valid interpretation of the phenomenon of spiritual gifts. Ultimately all gifts extend from God and are given for the good of the church. These gifts are not rendered to the disposition of the ones who receive them. They are given and established under the rule of Jesus the Lord. Variety exists in the unity of the church because of the reality of the divine that is manifested in such complex coherence.

As Paul’s discussion creates a coherence between the same Spirit and the same Lord and the same God, recognizing the oneness of God in the reality of God’s diverse manifestations, so the clustering of phrases “different kinds of gifts” and “different kinds of service” and “different kinds of working” communicates the unified aim of the diverse gifts working in service. These lines of the letter reveal careful rhetorical crafting, not casual forming of phrases; thus, in the triadic rhetoric one sees both Paul’s purposefulness and his purpose in writing.

12:7 / This simple sentence states the truth that Paul most wants the Corinthians to realize. Paul coordinates the beginning of this sentence with the foregoing verses through the contrasting conjunction now (Gk. de), so that the verse fits as a summarizing conclusion to the complementary lines of verses 4–6. Whatever spiritual gifts are being manifested in Corinth, they are not for personal privilege or glory, but for the common good. The good of others, not merely the good of the self, is the purpose of the Spirit’s giving anything to anyone and everything to everyone. The unifying purpose of the manifest diversity of the Spirit in the life of the church is the well-being of all those called by God to be a part of the church. The divine giving of spiritual gifts is the concrete outworking of God’s own saving mission to the world, and those gifted by God for that mission become agents of God’s working for the common good of the fellowship of believers in the world.

12:8–10 / In three verses Paul catalogues gifts without offering an exhaustive inventory of the manifestations of the Spirit. The list seems representative and particularly relevant to the situation in Corinth. Paul repeats the phrases the Spirit … the same Spirit … that one Spirit to reemphasize the unity of the diverse gifts in their being manifestations of the single, unified Spirit of God. Paul mentions nine particular gifts (see Additional Notes below). His phrasing, to one … to another … to another …, recognizes diversity among the recipients’ gifts; and the repeated qualifiers through the Spirit … by means of the same Spirit … by the same Spirit … by that one Spirit “… all these are the work of one and the same Spirit,” declare the unity of the divine that holds the operation of the gifts together.

In the overall context of Paul’s discussion in this chapter of distinguishing between speech inspired by the Holy Spirit and speech that finds its origin elsewhere (vv. 1–3), one should notice that in this list of nine gifts, distinguishing between spirits, that is, the capacity to judge rightly that Paul calls for throughout the letter, is itself recognized to be a charismatic reality.

Paul lists nine manifestations of the Spirit (Gk. hē phanerōsis tou pneumatos). These phenomena are offered in this context as illustrative examples of the gifts of the Spirit that Paul has been discussing to this point. Among the items mentioned are the following:

(1) The message of wisdom, literally “a word of wisdom” (cf. 1:17–2:16, esp. 1:24; 2:4–6). From Paul’s earlier discussions one understands that the gift of the message of wisdom is a God-given insight into the mysterious purposes and workings of God in and through Jesus Christ.

(2) The message of knowledge, literally “a word of knowledge” (cf. 1:5; see 13:2–12; 14:6). The wording of this reference makes it a parallel to the preceding mention of the message of wisdom. It is perhaps necessary to understand the message of knowledge as a synonymous phenomenon, since Paul’s other references to such knowledge do not make it clear whether he means a supernaturally given piece of information or a Spirit-given discernment concerning the reality of God and human life. The way Paul clusters wisdom, knowledge, revelation, and teaching suggests some relationship and similarity among these phenomena, although the exact nuance that Paul intends to impart by the use of these different words is not recoverable from his letters.

(3) Faith (cf. 2:5; see ch. 13). Interpreters debate whether Paul means to name the faith that is a basic element in the life of all believers by virtue of the work of the Spirit (as in Gal. 5:22) or whether he is referring to “faith that can move mountains” (as stated in 13:2). Since Paul understands that one and the same Spirit brings faith as a foundation and faith as an extraordinary working of divine grace into the lives of believers, it is not necessary to distinguish precisely what Paul has in mind. In context this remark lies in proximity to 13:2, so that Paul may be anticipating that more explicit description of the manifestation of faith. In any case, Paul understands that faith constitutes the basis of all believers’ relationship to God and that the Spirit is the source of every believer’s standing with God. Nevertheless, for some Paul’s implication here is that the Spirit’s gift may be so great as to bring about extraordinary results even for the believers. Although he is correct in one way, Conzelmann exaggerates the distinction between Paul’s use of pistis (“faith”) at this point and other occurrences of the same word: “Pistis is here a special gift alongside others, and accordingly not faith, but apparently the ability to perform miracles” (1 Corinthians, p. 209).

(4) Gifts of healing, literally “gifts of cures” (see 12:28–30). In naming this manifestation of the Spirit, Paul uses the plural form charismata (“gifts”), which he qualifies with the words “of healing” (Gk. iamatōn). Paul’s language indicates the manifestations of the Spirit through the lives and ministry of believers so that others experience divine healing. The focus is on those who are gifted with such acts of ministry. Paul does not have in mind the persons who experience healing from maladies, nor does he seem to refer to a capacity that some specially gifted believers would possess. The plural (“gifts”) indicates manifestations of grace that work, from time to time and from place to place, through certain members of the church. As always in Paul’s thought, humans being do not have and manipulate God’s power, but they are selected as agents through whom God works extraordinary deeds (cf. 2 Cor. 4:7–18).

(5) Miraculous powers, literally “workings of power” (see 12:28–30). The NIV’s introduction of the word “miraculous” is unfortunate, for that word carries philosophical connotations about so-called natural law and breaches of natural laws that would be foreign to Paul and the first readers of his letter. According to the Synoptic Gospels and Acts, Jesus and certain members of the early church did “powerful acts” that were believed to be extraordinary manifestations of God’s power. Such acts were not normal, in the sense of being everyday occurrences; but Paul and other early Christians did not see God as having established a world that ran by natural law until God reached in and altered the course of events. God was transcendent, but his presence was immanent and his power was constantly at work—only sometimes the manifestations of that power were out of the ordinary and so especially remarkable. To be simplistic and a bit sarcastic, it took later philosophers to reason God out of the workings of the everyday world and into a realm of transcendence so that only by interrupting events or violating the laws of nature could God do miracles. Such a world and such a God were unknown to Paul. As in the case of gifts of healing, God works through specially gifted persons to achieve God’s will in sometimes marvelous ways.

(6) Prophecy (see ch. 14). Theories about the nature and practice of prophecy in the early church abound, as does the scholarly literature on this subject. In antiquity, and especially in the history of Judaism, a prophet was a Spirit-inspired speaker who revealed or declared God’s will to the people. At times prophets spoke symbolically or metaphorically, but in general their message was plain, “Thus saith the Lord.” While prophecy was understood to be a gift of God’s Spirit, a special anointing unto inspired proclamation, Paul presents prophecy in such a way that the believers are encouraged to pursue and to desire this particular gift. Paul’s explicit references to prophecy in chapter 14 make his understanding of the shape and scope of this particular gift clear. Prophecy was deemed especially desirable because it edified, encouraged, and consoled. Prophecy was a genuinely missional activity that brought the one blessed with the gift into the service of others.

(7) Distinguishing between spirits, literally “discernings of spirits” (cf. 12:1–3; see 14:29). Again, this reference has generated considerable discussion among interpreters. Among others, Fee (Epistle, pp. 596–97) notes the subsequent statement in 14:29 and the similar admonition to examine prophecies in 1 Thessalonians 5:20–21 to argue that Paul has in mind the gift of making inspired assessments of inspired utterances. This understanding is exegetically grounded and judicious.

(8) Speaking in different kinds of tongues, literally “kinds of tongues” (see chs. 13–14). As will be clear from the lengthy and vigorous discussion of this topic in the next two chapters of the letter, this gift was causing a disproportionate number of problems among the Corinthian Christians. This gift is a special form of Spirit-inspired utterance, distinguishable from prophecy, that aims toward God rather than comes from God through the speaker to the people. The person who was so gifted was privileged to talk to God in different kinds of tongues. This reference itself generates debate, but from Paul’s comments one can see almost certainly that Paul does not have in mind the speaking of other known, human languages that the speaker had not studied in a normal fashion. In fact, such speech is thought to be unintelligible both to the one speaking and to the majority of those who might hear the speaker. Such Spirit-filled talking might appear to be mere gibberish if it were left uninterpreted. Thus, this gift required a special complement that Paul names as the last of the manifestations of the Spirit enumerated in this list.

(9) The interpretation of tongues (see ch. 14, esp. vv. 5, 13, 26–28). This special gift is an ancillary manifestation of the Spirit that was given and used in conjunction with the previously named speaking in different kinds of tongues. Tongues required explanation in order to be edifying for anyone other than the speaker, so along with the gift of utterance was given the gift of elucidation and clarification, in order that tongues might serve a missional purpose for the sake of others than the speaker. Noticeably, the speaker of tongues is not the one gifted with the interpretation of his or her own utterance.

12:11 / This verse is a summary statement. It “takes up vv. 6–7 and rounds off the section” (Conzelmann, 1 Corinthians, p. 209). Paul again articulates his central conviction, which is the key issue he wishes to register with the Corinthians: All these are the work of one and the same Spirit. He states his point, however, with the addition of the recognition of God’s Spirit’s sovereignty or freedom (just as he determines), repeating the basic thoughts about diversity and unity for the fifth time in the span of eight verses while nudging the reflection along with the mention of the Spirit’s determination of the allotment of gifts. Paul will elaborate and explain his convictions about God’s will or determination of the composition and complexion of the church in the remainder of chapter 12, but for now he only mentions that topic in passing. Nevertheless, the subject has been implicit in the discussion of spiritual gifts from the outset of the conversation.