Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
-
God-given smarts aren't limited to politics and religion. He also equips people with practical smarts too; for example:
● Ex 28:2-4 . .You shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. And you shall speak to all the skillful persons whom I have endowed with the spirit of wisdom, that they make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister as priest to Me.
Years ago I attended a very large church in San Diego whose minister of music decided the choir needed new robes. They were purchased from a vendor at what I thought was a ridiculous expense when the ladies' sewing club could have made them at no cost for labor, and with much cheaper fabric too that would have served just as well as the high-end stuff.
Somebody endowed with the gift of the word of wisdom needed to sit down with that director and talk to him about waste and abuse of church resources.
/
Well, what is "right" at that moment, may not be what WE think is right, that's why the Spirit must be the administrator. Could be He wanted to bless them, and in reality all the money is His anyway. If not the righteous, then who? Peace
-
● 1Cor 6:1-6 . . If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!
. . .Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church. I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother goes to law against another-- and this in front of unbelievers.
Someone "wise enough" refers to people in church with the gift of the word of wisdom. Actually the Corinthian church probably had some members with that gift but were not paid any attention due to the fact that they had no status. Here's an example of what I'm talking about.
Not long ago I was discussing the merits of the good shepherd spoken of in the tenth chapter of John's gospel. Well, the person with whom I dialogued finally got to the point where they could no longer dispute my points; so they closed the discussion with this remark:
"That is your opinion. But who are you? No one to be listened to, in my book. You are not one of the leaders which Jesus Christ has placed in the Church and through whom He speaks."
In other words; seeing as how I am neither an ordained minister, nor a church officer; then nothing I say on my own deserves to be taken seriously no matter how air-tight it appears to be.
My opponent's reasoning was logical, yes; but was it wise? No.
-
● Acts 6:1-4 . . In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.
. . . So the twelve gathered all the disciples together and said: It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.
Some churches have something called a Deacon's Fund set up to accomplish the very thing described in that passage. Point being, it's probably a good idea to follow the apostle's lead to appoint people with the gift of smarts to manage the fund because according to 1Tim 5:3-16, not just any widow qualifies for church assistance; and soft-hearted, soft-headed, careless churches are easy marks for fraud, waste, and abuse.
/
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Re: Rules Governing The Gift Of Wisdom
