In chs. 12—14 Paul dealt with the ninth problem among the Corinthians, the problem of spiritual gifts in relation to God's administration and operation.

Like a violent wind, the frenzied promoting by the promoters of idolatry among the Greeks in those days was leading people away to idols. Here the apostle referred to the leading of this kind that the Corinthian believers received in the days when they were Gentiles. They were led away to different kinds of idols to worship and serve them, at whatever time and in whatever way they were led by the frenzied ones.

The apostle's thought here was that the dumb, voiceless idols in v. 2 make their worshippers dumb and voiceless. But the living God causes His worshippers to speak in His Spirit. This kind of speaking is related to the spiritual gifts. No one who speaks in the Spirit of God would say, "Jesus is accursed"; he would like to say, and he is able to say, "Jesus is Lord!" No worshippers of God should be silent; all should use their voices to speak forth "Jesus is Lord!" in the Spirit of God. This — to speak "Jesus is Lord!" — is the main function of all the spiritual gifts.

See note 1 Cor. 16:22^1b.

This indicates that when we say with a proper spirit, "Jesus is Lord!" we are in the Holy Spirit. Hence, to call on the Lord Jesus is the way to participate in, to enjoy, and to experience the Holy Spirit.

But here indicates a contrast between v. 3 and v. 4. Verse 3 says that when we minister by speaking in the Spirit of God, we all say "Jesus is Lord!" exalting Jesus as the Lord. But the gifts for the manifestation of the Spirit are different, diverse.

Or, diversities, varieties, distributions. So also in vv. 5-6.

Gifts here refers to the outward gifts, the abilities or capacities for service. Some of them are miraculous, and some are developed out of the initial gifts mentioned in 1 Cor. 1:7 (see note 1 Cor. 1:7^1a). All are different from the initial gifts.

I.e., services. The gifts in v. 4 are for these ministries, in which the operations in v. 6 are manifested.

Lit., effects of operations. Referring to the result produced by the divine power's energizing of the gifts in their activities. This result is the operation (Eph. 4:16) manifested by the gifts.

The gifts are by the Spirit; the ministries, the services, are initiated by the Lord and are for the Lord; and the operations are of God. Here the Triune God is involved in these three matters — the gifts, the ministries, and the operations. The gifts by the Spirit are to carry out the ministries for the Lord, and in the ministries for the Lord are manifested the operations of the gifts, produced by God's operating, God's working. This is the Triune God moving in the believers for the accomplishing of His eternal purpose to build up the church, the Body of Christ, for the expression of God.

All the different gifts are the manifestation of the Spirit, in that the Spirit is manifested in the believers who have received the gifts. Such manifestation of the Spirit is for the profit of the church, the Body of Christ.

I.e., for the growth in life of the members of the Body of Christ and for the building up of Christ's Body.

According to the context of this book, the word of wisdom is the word concerning Christ as the deeper things of God, predestined by God to be our portion (1 Cor. 1:24, 30; 2:6-10). The word of knowledge is the word that imparts a general knowledge of things concerning God and the Lord (1 Cor. 8:1-7). The word of wisdom is mainly out of our spirit through revelation; the word of knowledge is mainly out of our understanding through teaching. The former is deeper than the latter. However, both of these, not speaking in tongues nor any other miraculous gift, are listed as the first gifts and the topmost manifestation of the Spirit because both are the most profitable ministries, or services, for the edification of the saints and the building up of the church to carry out God's operation.

According to the context of this book, the word of wisdom is the word concerning Christ as the deeper things of God, predestined by God to be our portion (1 Cor. 1:24, 30; 2:6-10). The word of knowledge is the word that imparts a general knowledge of things concerning God and the Lord (1 Cor. 8:1-7). The word of wisdom is mainly out of our spirit through revelation; the word of knowledge is mainly out of our understanding through teaching. The former is deeper than the latter. However, both of these, not speaking in tongues nor any other miraculous gift, are listed as the first gifts and the topmost manifestation of the Spirit because both are the most profitable ministries, or services, for the edification of the saints and the building up of the church to carry out God's operation.

Such as the faith that can remove mountains, as mentioned in 1 Cor. 13:2 and Mark 11:22-24.

Miraculous power for healing different diseases.

Works of miraculous power, miracles, other than healing, such as Peter's raising of Dorcas from the dead (Acts 9:36-42).

Speaking for God and speaking forth God, including foretelling and predicting. To speak for God and to speak forth God are gifts out of life, gifts developed by the growth in life; foretelling and predicting are miraculous gifts and have nothing to do with life (see second half of note 1 Cor. 12:10^5e).

To distinguish the Spirit that is out of God from those spirits that are not out of God (1 Tim. 4:1; 1 John 4:1-3).

A proper language or dialect (Acts 2:4, 6, 8, 11) either of men or of angels (1 Cor. 13:1), not meaningless voices or sounds. The genuine and proper speaking in tongues is one of the many gifts of the Spirit (v. 4), one of the many aspects of the manifestation of the Spirit (v. 7). Some say that speaking in tongues is the initial evidence of the baptism in the Spirit, and that later it becomes a gift of the Spirit. They say that every believer must speak in tongues as the initial evidence, but that not every believer needs to have the gift of speaking in tongues. This kind of teaching has no ground in the New Testament. The New Testament makes it abundantly clear that speaking in tongues is only one of the many gifts of the Spirit and that not all the believers have this gift.

To make the unknown tongues known, understandable (1 Cor. 14:13). This is the ninth item of the manifestation of the Spirit listed here. However, the manifestation of the Spirit by the believers consists of more than nine items. The apostleship, helps, and administrations by the Spirit listed in v. 28, the seeing of visions and the dreaming of dreams by the Spirit mentioned in Acts 2:17, the signs and wonders referred to in Heb. 2:4, and three of the five miraculous acts prophesied in Mark 16:17-18 are not listed here. The apostle listed here only nine items of the Spirit's manifestation as an illustration. Of these nine gifts and those listed in vv. 28-30, prophecy as prediction, faith, gifts of healing, works of power, speaking in tongues, and interpretation of tongues are miraculous. The rest — a word of wisdom (such as the word of the apostles), a word of knowledge (such as the word of the teachers), and speaking for God and speaking forth God in prophecy by the prophets, discerning of spirits, helps, and administrations — are gifts developed by the growth in life (1 Cor. 3:6-7), like those listed in Rom. 12:6-8, out of the inward, initial gifts mentioned in 1 Cor. 1:7 (see note 1 Cor. 1:7^1a). The miraculous gifts, especially speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues, do not require any growth in life. The Corinthians did much speaking in tongues, yet they still remained infants in Christ (1 Cor. 3:1-3). However, the gifts developed in life require growth in life, even maturity, for the building up of the church. It was for this purpose that this Epistle was written to the Corinthians.

For indicates that this verse is an explanation of v. 11, which says that the one Spirit operates all the various aspects of His manifestation, distributing them to many believers individually. This is just like our physical body in its being one and having many members.

Referring to the corporate Christ, composed of Christ Himself as the Head and the church as His Body with all the believers as members. All the believers of Christ are organically united with Him and constituted with His life and element and have thus become His Body, an organism, to express Him. Hence, He is not only the Head but also the Body. As our physical body has many members yet is one, so is this Christ.

As the Spirit is the sphere and element of our spiritual baptism, and as in such a Spirit we were all baptized into one organic entity, the Body of Christ, so we should all, regardless of our race, nationality, and social rank, be this one Body. Christ is the life and constituent of this Body, and the Spirit is the reality of Christ. It is in this one Spirit that we were all baptized into this one living Body to express Christ.

The believers of Christ are baptized through water and in the Spirit into
1) Christ,
2) the death of Christ (Rom. 6:3),
3) the name — the person — of the Triune God (Matt. 28:19),
4) the Body of Christ. Baptism ushers the believers into an organic union with Christ and the Triune God, making them living members of the Body of Christ.
All the gifts, as the manifestation of the Spirit distributed to the individual believers by the Spirit, are for the profit, the building up, of this Body. The apostle was very conscious of this. He was Body-conscious, Body-centered, unlike the Corinthians and so many other believers through the centuries who are self-centered concerning spiritual gifts. Hence, after this verse he gave the Corinthians a long discourse concerning the Body. His intention was to rescue them from self-seeking back to a concern for the Body, that they might no longer be for their individual profit but for the building up of the Body.

Referring to races and nationalities.

Referring to social ranks.

To be baptized in the Spirit is to get into the Spirit and to be lost in Him; to drink the Spirit is to take the Spirit in and to have our being saturated with Him. By these two procedures we are mingled with the Spirit. To be baptized in the Spirit is the initiation of the mingling and is once for all. To drink the Spirit is the continuation and accomplishment of the mingling and is perpetual, forever. This requires us to call on the Lord continually and draw water with joy from Him as the fountain of living water (Isa. 12:3-4; John 4:10, 14).

Implying to be mutually adjusted. God has blended all the different members of Christ together into one Body. For this we need much transformation (Rom. 12:2); that is, we need to be transformed from the natural life to the spiritual by the same Spirit for the practical Body life.

In the Body life the same care should be given to all the different members. A difference in care causes division.

The church here refers to the church in both its universal and local aspects. In vv. 12-27 the church is the Body of Christ. The Body is an organism for Christ as the believers' life to grow and express Himself. The church is an assembly for God to operate His administration.

Those who are called and sent by God (1 Cor. 1:1; Rom. 1:1)
1) to preach the gospel that sinners may be saved to be the materials for the building of the church,
2) to establish the churches (Acts 14:21-23),
3) to teach the divine truth (see note 1 Cor. 9:1^3b).
Their ministry is universal for all the churches.

Those who speak for God and speak forth God by God's revelation, and who speak sometimes with inspired prediction (Acts 11:27-28). For the edifying of the saints and the establishing of the churches, they are second only to the apostles.

Those who teach the truths according to the apostles' teaching (Acts 2:42) and the prophets' revelation. Both prophets and teachers are universal as well as local (Eph. 4:11; Acts 13:1).

See note 1 Cor. 12:10^1a.

See note 1 Cor. 12:9².

Or, helpers, helpings. These must refer to the services of the deacons and deaconesses (1 Tim. 3:8-13).

Or, administrators, governings; referring to the eldership in the church.

See note 1 Cor. 12:10^4d. This is the second time that speaking in tongues is listed as the last of the aspects of God's operation in the church.

Or, be zealous for, delight in.

This indicates that some gifts, such as speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues, are smaller because they are less profitable to the church, and that we should desire earnestly the greater gifts, such as prophesying and teaching, which are more profitable for the building up of the church (1 Cor. 14:1-6). To have these greater gifts, we need to grow in life unto maturity. The greater gifts are developed, by growth in life, out of the initial gifts (1 Cor. 1:7) that we received when we were regenerated.

The most excellent way to have the greater gifts is love, which is fully defined in the following chapter.